This show deserves to be just as popular as Bob's Burgers or The Simpsons. The creators are alumni of Bob's, which is evident in the art style and musical numbers, but Great North is a little queerer and more down-to-earth than its higher-energy sister show. My top pick episodes are "Pride and Prejudance Adventure" (S1 E6), "Tasteful Noods Adventure" (S2 E7), and "Say It Again, Ham Adventure" (S2 E20) - but there are laugh out loud moments in every episode, no matter how many times I rewatch. Beef Tobin is my favorite wholesome dad, and time with the Tobins is a consistent comfort. I'm hopeful that we'll see many more seasons of this gem - a third is scheduled for September 2022.
It's not looking good for this one... Netflix has laid off its animation department, and there are "no plans" for a second season of Adventure Beast. The season we got is something really special - a nature documentary-slash-edgy comedy that fills a niche I didn't know I was missing. Meet the characters: Bonnie, a badass if overeager Filipina-American protaganist; her goofy, knowledgable, and injury-prone uncle, who values human life significantly less than animal life; and Dietrich, a cowardly assistant who somehow hasn't died yet. If only we could have gotten more of the charming jokes and unusual animal facts, and more time for the characters to develop. Naturally, my favorite episode is "We Live on a Queer Planet" (S1 E5), but every episode has massive rewatch value.
What can I say about Undone that captures the magic of what I see as a contemporary masterpiece? Every element is carefully crafted to add to the overall experience. I will say that few, if any, shows make me think of mad pride... the idea that madness is not necessarily something to be cured, that the mad deserve to move through their madness in a way that centers their autonomy. A mad pride reading of Undone would probably be very fruitful. I want to talk about excellent representation, complicated characters, half-hour comedy that feels like hourlong drama, psychedelia, the complexity of love and relationships and sisterhood... In the end, all I can say is, watch the show!
We're gonna make space for women's trauma and we're gonna have fun with it!
I'm sure everyone knows about Bob's Burgers by now - judging by the number of comments I tend to get wearing my Bob's Burgers shirt in public, I'd guess that it's very popular. But it's still worth saying: this is a good show. It avoids a mean-spirited sense of humor that was especially popular in the 2010's, and had been hard for adult animation to shake between South Park and Family Guy - Archer was a hit, starring the same lead actor, that thrived on put-downs and ridicule. Don't get me wrong - that kind of comedy has its merits - but Bob's stood out because it always seemed to approach its weird, socially awkward characters with love. More than ten years later, Bob's has its ups and downs, but it's still going strong.
Sure, you've heard of Bob's Burgers, but did you watch creator Loren Bouchard's Home Movies, the first original show on the Adult Swim network? It's become something of a cult classic. For some of us, H. Jon Benjamin will be always be Coach McGuirk before Bob Belcher or Sterling Archer. For me, typing these reviews will always remind me of www.moviewinnerorweiner.com. Home Movies is scrappy and understated.