"Creased Comics," by Brad Neely Serves as a Reminder of his Longtime Hilarity

Brad Neely has been around for some time, making comics, animated YoutTube videos, and having whole cartoon shows created out of his genuis/madness. "Creased Comics," is a new book which collects a chunk of his earlier-ish work, the stuff that helped him go from being in a student newspaper to eventually writing for, "South Park," and getting his weird stuff like, "China, IL," on the air (Cartoon Network's Adult Swim has often been a home for wild material). Neely has always had this amazing absurd air to his work, the kind of thing where you get it or you don't. Plus, even when you sometimes do get it, ya still really don't! 

"Creased Comics," serves as a showcase for how Neely's been making odd stuff for decades, and it has been a hoot for years too. The pieces within this book are basically all one-panel gag strips, but the best pieces tell a whole story that exists outside of the frame. A bald eagle angry that a human fell out of the wheelchair it was carrying (to feed the person to its young). A grandmother known for always getting, "In a pickle," finding herself about to engage in a footrace with Satan for the souls of the grandkids. One of my favorite--and quite dark--pieces, a young boy who faked his death, patiently watching out of his assumed parents' sight as they put his favorite toy car by his grave and he considers how long he has to wait to reacquire the toy. Here's that one as it cracked me up:

Neely has some short text pieces between the strips that discuss just how he started making comics, and why. A weird childhood, a strange sense of humor, and the metaphor of basically opening his mental window, "Open," and seeing what flutters in are all aspects of how we end up with his, "Creased Comics," and anything else bizarre-yet-enjoyable he's crafted. Witnessing Neely spill his clever and twisted psyche onto the page with pencil and ink is a rewarding activity. You think, you laugh, and you say, "What the Hell?" It's good stuff.

5 out of 5 Stars.

"Eternal Family," is the Weird Streaming Service I Didn't Know the World Desperately Needed

Look, I've complained about how there are too many streaming services. There are the mainstream ones that serve millions of folks like Netflix, Hulu, Prime, Disney+, Apple TV, HBO MAX/MAX, and more. There are niche ones too like, "Shudder," which focus on horror-based content or Crunchyroll with Anime. It is a lot, but I can appreciate how this variety is capable of resulting in something interesting too. Something strange. Something known as, "Eternal Family."

I was on Facebook and saw a weird ad full of random quirky clips. It said it was, "Eternal Family." It looked like the love child you'd get from the more esoteric shows on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim reproducing with the catalog of the cult movies brought back to life by Vinegar Syndrome. I did some research, and yeah, "Eternal Family is an offbeat streaming platform presenting hidden gems from the past and surreal entertainment." It has a bunch of old bizarre stuff, things the platform created with the talent involved in the service, and it is weird. The thing is, I'll always take weird over boring, so I checked it out.

Eternal Family has an app, a program you can access on Roku televisions, and a website. It offers a free 7-day trial and a subscription for $8 a month (or less if you buy a longer chunk of time). You navigate it like any other streaming service with its various genres of content. That's where it being like other streaming services ends, however.

There are old monster movies from foreign countries, strange television shows from the 90's. 80's comedies, low-budget and surreal horror movies. Short flicks, some anime, and a number of original content options, and it is all so random and entertaining. Back in the older days of the internet/Youtube/whatever you would just kind of stumble upon unique and cool things (there even was a website called, "Stumbleupon," for example). Now, of course, we go online to find something specific as quickly as possible. That is why search engines such as Google are so popular and Amazon with its nearly-infinite selection of items is massively successful. We want to find something fast and get it given to us even faster. That is all well and good, but Eternal Family evokes the feeling of just finding something cool. 

In an interview, the folks behind Eternal Family say, "It’s a bunch of weird stuff that you might not 'get' but makes me and my friends happy to watch." That's a great way to put it, but I'd argue there is enough variety to the stuff on, "Eternal Family," that anyone who tries it out will find something they get. Maybe a vintage silent film. Perhaps a T.V. movie titled, "Wishman," about a bioengineered creature featuring Linda Hamilton before she was in, "Terminator." A training video from the 90s about how to use a speed-bag could appeal too. Maybe entertainer and artist Kerwin Frost singing karaoke? What about a Latvian cartoon series for kids? These are all real options with, "Eternal Family," the strangest streaming service on the web. 

I'm unsure how Facebook knew to have a random ad for this streaming option appear to me (I mean, they probably studied my analytics and knew I'd like it, but yeah). I am happy I checked it out, however. Eternal Family is most definitely not for everyone, but it could be for anyone who wants something wild and different. Check it out, you'll be glad you did.

Now Warner Brothers Discovery is Going After Video-Games

David Zaslav is the head of Warner Brothers Discovery and he has essentially slaughtered whole franchises in the name of saving money. He cut 2 billion to make 100 million in profit (so yah?) and everyone seems to dislike him. Thanks to him the, "Batgirl," movie got thrown in a vault, "Westworld," got canceled, tons of shows were taken off HBO MAX--which he renamed simply MAX--and impossible to find anywhere legally due to a lack of a physical disc release, and so forth. Now, Zaslav's bloodlust seems to have expanded to video-games.

Warner Brothers Discovery has announced a number of games will be retired/delisted from online stores that are associated with the WBD brand in some capacity. Anything cool relating to Adult Swim shall be off online marketplaces or Steam and the focus for games in the future will be just four big franchises with more live service games. The four franchises are Harry Potter, anything relating to DC, Mortal Kombat, and Game of Thrones. Oh, and yes, WBD is fully aware the live service-focused, "Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League," game has performed horribly but like a gambler who is already on a terrible losing streak, WBD wants to double-down on live service and, "Free to play," games in the hope their luck/the gaming population, comes around. Expect less fun indie games that you can simply buy and look forward to more big ol' franchises delivered via microtransactions. That is really exciting to imagine. Excuse me, did I say exciting? I meant excruciating.

Television Tuesday (a Day Late on Wednesday): "Futurama," is Back Yet Again!

"Futurama," is a show that refuses to stay canceled. Fox killed it but Cartoon Network picked it up in reruns for their Adult Swim block. Then Comedy Central did some direct-to-DVD movies that were retroactively made a season of the show as new individual episodes then were produced. About a decade ago the show as canceled again and that was truly the end of the show. Until now! After a lot of negotiations regarding pay for the original voice cast is back for what is season 11 of, "Futurama," on Hulu. As the Professor would say, "Good news everyone!" because it still feels just like, "Futurama," based on at least the first episode of this new season.

It's been a decade since the last series finale (weird to think there are multiple ones) but the show humorously acknowledges the past while making it clear we're in a new present. Despite being a show about the future, "Futurama," has often included current topics and this episode works in jokes about binging shows on streaming networks, has an NFT jab, and makes a lot of meta jokes regarding the cancelation and bringing back of fan-favorite programs. Don't worry that this is all just jokes about whatever is trending, however, that classic Futurama DNA is present. We've got Bender drinking while cracking jokes as always, Zoidberg is an endearing loser, and Richard Nixon's head is still in a jar and serving as President because why not?

Bender is back and still loves to drink!

If you ever watched and liked any of the on-again-off-again seasons of, "Futurama," you'll enjoy the first episode of this latest iteration. Our own World has changed a lot since the last time there were new, "Futurama," episodes, but the show itself somehow always manages to be reliably funny and familiar even when trying new fresh ideas. Welcome back, "Futurama." Well, welcome back, again.

5 out of 5 stars.

Television Tuesday: "The Paloni Show! Halloween Special!"

As everyone argues whether Cartoon Network (and by proxy, Adult Swim) is dead/dying or just fine, Hulu has quietly dropped a Halloween special that seems a bit like a way to backdoor pilot a slate of its own animated show ideas. This occurs within a program/one-shot/pilot itself that dropped yesterday, "The Paloni Show! Halloween Special." 

Created by Justin Roiland (one-half of the, "Rick and Morty," founding team and a creator of Hulu's show, "Solar Opposites," too), the framing device of this hour-long program is the Paloni family as they struggled to host a quality Haloween show between having to babysit a nephew with absurdly long legs, avoiding a serial killer, and other dangers. Between the Paloni family's mayhem, there are 13 shorts that vary in their animation style (one is claymation and another is actually live-action). Many of the shorts incorporate the holiday Halloween or riff on horror movie concepts, but nothing is especially, "Scary," so much as sometimes over-the-top silly in a variety of ways including some cartoony violence. 

When it comes to the shorts, I would say 1/3 are fantastic, 1/3 are okay, and 1/3 are...well, they're bad (some shorts are just dull and lack much of any idea or are simply really ugly in their animation). The good stuff really sticks with you though, like a town where the mayor banned anything scary that increases in absurdity as the bit goes on. I also really liked an animated Megahex segment that was made by the comic's creator, Simon Hanslemann. A weird story about a seemingly ineffective apartment complex manager also becomes inadvertently bittersweet as it features one of the last recorded performances of Gilbert Gottfried--who passed earlier this year.

Overall reviews of, "The Paloni Show! Halloween Special!" are mixed. I've seen some positive takes that admire how bizarre and off-kilter the whole thing is. I have also spotted reviews that have the same opinion I do about how the shorts vary immensely in quality, but overall it is a fun program that sets up possible future Hulu shows in a cleverly subtle manner (please, PLEASE give us a full Megahex series). I would say the entire thing is a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars. If you like the kind of weird shows Roiland makes this is mandatory viewing, but if you've found yourself struggling to ever enjoy the kind of stuff on Adult Swim or the like, maybe pass on this. I liked it.

The Aqua Teen Hunger Force Has Returned!

Between Kendrick Lamar announcing a new album, the trailer for the next Thor movie, and what I'm about to report on here, today has been a good day for me regarding news about entertainment I enjoy! You see, it has been over seven(!) years since any kind of new content featuring the Aqua Teen Hunger Force (and friends). The series had a movie, changed its name off and on, and was always off-the-wall weird. When I met the voice of Frylock, Carey Means, at the 2021 Big River Comic Convention he hinted that something was maybe in the works (but couldn't say more). Then, less than a month later Adult Swim announced some cool projects were in the works, including new ATHF content. 

Now we have, "Aquadonk Side Pieces." There will be 10 one-shot shorts featuring various, "Famous," and, "Popular," characters from the ATHF mythos. As Polygon explains in this article, "Adult Swim will release a new episode of Aquadonk Side Pieces every day from today until April 17 via the network’s official YouTube channel, with each episode premiering at 12:00 p.m. EDT. The as-yet-untitled Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie sequel is slated to release sometime this summer." I do indeed wonder if there will be a big announcement on the 17th about the movie. One can dream, eh?

October 2021 Links, News, and Stuff Like That

October Has Been Going Well

I don't know about you, but October has been going pretty well for me. After a slog of a September I'm enjoying being in this lovely month. I thought I'd share some interesting news and link with you all as I occasionally do. Here we go...

Links For You

In its earliest days, Adult Swim seemed like this weird secret that few talked about. It was quite a trip. I remember the first time I witnessed shows like, "Aqua Teen Hunger Force," and it blew my mind.

Before James Mangold worked with Hugh Jackman on one good Wolverine movie ("The Wolverine,") and one amazing one ("Logan,") they first worked together on the decent romantic comedy, "Kate & Leopold." I did not realize Mangold directed that movie so this article about it was interesting.

The Comic's Journal has a good article breaking down some of the legalese and drama surrounding the latest copyright wars between creators' families and Marvel/Disney.

I loved OutKast when it was putting out music. One half of the duo, Big Boi, is still out there rapping a lot. He appears on the new song, "Garden Party," and delivers a lovely (as well as saucy) verse. He's still got it!

While we're on the subject of music, I loved Kacey Musgrave's new album, "Star-Crossed," but observed it didn't sound too country in genre. I still thought it would count as a country album, however. The Grammys (which suck, but whatever) disagree. They are going to call it a pop album, I guess.

New York Comic-Con happened last weekend and it had winners and losers according to Comics Beat. Sounds like it was a fun show and they tried to keep everyone masked & safe.

That's it, go enjoy the Fall!

I don't have much news and links to share as other times, but quality over quantity, right? Get out there and enjoy the Fall weather, which lately seems to mean its abnormally hot or cold, but whatever.

Television Tuesday: "Rick and Morty," is Back for Season 5

"Rick and Morty," is one of those shows I really like but has a certain percentage of its fanbase that is best described as, "Problematic," or, "Toxic." Fans who miss the point of the show that Rick is--at the end of the day--a villain, a monster, and not ever someone to aspire to be like. Some troubling aspects of the fanbase aside, there are plenty of fans of the show who are great people--some I actually met thanks to the show. Hence, with the return of the series as it brings us its fifth season, we gear up for a fun time and hope we can avoid the off-base hot takes or tweets by the less pleasant fans. The first episode was on Sunday and it was great fun.

In Sunday's Episode, "Mort Dinner, Rick Andre," we spent much of the time dealing with Rick's apparent, "Nemesis," a Namor/Aquaman type named, "Mr. Nimbus," who might flood the planet Earth if Rick doesn't make nice with him for the folly of touching his ship down in the ocean during a crash landing during the episode opener (it seems agreements were in place that Rick doesn't mess with the ocean). The same night Morty has Jessica from school over to attempt a date, Mr. Nimbus comes to the house as well for a peace negotiation. He propositions Morty and Summer's parents (Beth and Jerry) for a threesome, threatens Rick a bunch, and drinks a ton of rare wine that Rick puts in a Narnia-style dimension that has time move quickly so it ages well. That little pocket dimension brings us our B-plot as the creatures there get increasingly upset at Morty for his meddling in their World every decade or so. It is the usual wonky and funny kind of episode you expect from, "Rick and Morty," with some self-loathing thrown in by Rick and a bunch of explosively violent action whenever Morty has to mess with the pocket dimension.

"Mort Dinner, Rick Andre," wasn't as thoughtful or depressing as some, "Rick and Morty," episodes happen to be. It was pretty light--which can be nice sometimes too. Mr. Nimbus is a hoot and Jessica continues to be a bit of a blank-slate character (Morty likes a girl, and that's basically all there is to her, she's an object of affection) but maybe shows minor growth after living in the pocket dimension for eons in a frozen state--or as she puts it upon heading home and having a stranger hit on her by the side of the road, "Fuck off, I'm a time-God." It's a whimsical little episode and the meta-gag that it took this many seasons to meet a random, "Nemesis," for Rick beyond himself was cute. If this pleasantly breezy opener is any indication of what upcoming episodes hold they should be pretty snazzy!

4.5 out of 5 stars.

Adult Swim is Bringing Some Shows Back With Feature-Length Movies

There are shows on Adult Swim that either ended before reaching a conclusion or finished but have more stories to tell. Two shows that stopped too early--" Metalocalypse," and, "The Venture Brothers," will be getting a full-length movie on Blu-Ray and on-demand before then streaming on HBO Max. "Aqua Teen Hunger Force," did have a true final season, but it's back too! I enjoyed all the shows so I welcome their return. I will admit to falling behind on, "Metalocalypse," and, "The Venture Brothers," so I maybe need to catch up, but I think I've seen every, "Aqua Teen Hunger Force," episode there was--the good and bad--so I'll be quite eager for that.

"The Electric Black," is Becoming a Horror Cartoon on Adult Swim

 

I used to watch Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block all the time. I would watch basically every weird show, the good and the bad. I watch some of the shows still, but not always all of them. I am intrigued to hear that, "The Electric Black," from SCOUT Comics is going to become a show on Adult Swim in partnership with another IP developer, Starburns Industries. I've read some issues of, "The Electric Black," and its mini-series and have liked what I've seen. It is a horror anthology comic so different episodes could have a different tale. A bit like, "Tales From the Crypt," in its live-action and cartoon incarnations. 

The press release gives the general overview the show may have, focusing on the cursed antique shop known as, "The Electric Black," and how different items from the store will impact partons of the shop--e.g. different items will lead to different episodes, I gather. This should be pretty fun once it comes out and I'll tune-in for sure as someone who has enjoyed a lot of Adult Swim over the years and is a fan of horror-themed entertainment.

Television Tuesday: Don't Judge a Show Based on Its First Couple of Episodes AKA "Rick and Morty" Season 1

Can't Judge A Book/TV, Show by its Cover/Pilot

Often in Television Tuesday posts I talk about shows that I enjoy--because why would I want to watch a season of something I hated, after all? That said, it can interesting how I discover I am a fan of a show. I may come into it later in the first season, or even many seasons in, find the episodes I see interesting, and seek out the earlier stuff. Also, maybe I'll see a brand-new show and find it intriguing enough to keep following. That said, I've often found one interesting trend in a variety of shows I have enjoyed. Namely, I never can judge them accurately based on the first couple of episodes.

Numerous times I have seen the premiere of a show and thought it looked like something that was either not for me, or just, "Meh." Then I'll see later episodes and think, "Wow, this really found its footing, I need to watch it from the start!" This can make being able to buy/rent/stream the entirety of a show's season really helpful. I didn't like the first episode of, "Bob's Burgers," but enjoyed ones shortly after it. I thought, "True Blood," was quite boring until (spoiler alert for a show that actually ended a year ago so I don't know why I'm issuing a spoiler alert) the Grandma died a few episodes in.

There are other shows that follow this trend for me too. For example, "The L Word" doesn't hit its stride in the premiere season until around the 3rd episode, feeling a bit wobbly and unsure of itself at first. Key and Peele wasn't too great in the debut episode, but I did like the 2nd one and its grown into quite the popular program in later seasons. Clearly, you can't judge a show by its pilot/beginning and sometimes not even the 2nd episode. Hell, despite people claiming that "Lost" was gripping from its action-packed pilot on, I didn't find myself that impressed by it until the fourth episode!

There are a lot of shows I have greatly enjoyed or at least appreciated (I never really got into "Lost" as much as some folk), which I would maybe have not given a chance if I didn't see later episodes and suffer through questionable starts, or just put-up with difficult beginnings figuring it would all get better. This brings me to a discussion of my latest favorite program, and one which if I had happened to only view the pilot and the 2nd episode would have not appreciated as much as I do. That show is, of course, "Rick and Morty".

"Rick and Morty" is an Incredible Delight

Originally starting out as a raunchy parody of "Back to the Future" characters, "Rick and Morty" are a grandpa (Rick) and his grandson (Morty). The show is about them going on absurd sci-fi adventures, with Morty's parents (Jerry and Beth) and sister (Summer) often having their own story-lines intersect with and diverge from the going-ons of Rick and Morty in interesting ways. Created by Dan Harmon (of "Community" fame) and Justin Roiland, I caught what is basically the seventh episode one night on Adult Swim (the "Rasising Gazorpazorp) and was immediately intrigued.

I picked-up the DVD of the show and proceeded to get excited! Then I watched what is officially the first episode/pilot. I was not impressed. There were some good jokes, but mostly I found it all pretty subpar.

Next, I watched the next episode, "Lawnmower Dog." It was a bit better with its jokes about "Inception" but it seemed to drag in its humor and even riffing on, "A Nightmare of Elm Street," for a gag couldn't save it from feeling a bit dull.

I was concerned after these two episodes. Had the one I'd caught on T.V. before been a fluke? Was this in fact a relatively mediocre show that just happened to have that one good episode? These were worries floating through my mind, but thankfully when I started watching the third episode ("Anatomy Park") I found myself very amused. After that it was basically all gold, with every episode being at least quite fun, and some being just amazing ("Rixty Minutes" for example is my jam with its mixture of humor, heartfelt moments, and general silliness--also, "Meeseeks and Destroy" is hilarious).

Once you watch the show you will find this meme to be the bomb-diggity.

It is hard to describe "Rick and Morty" as each episode is its own beast, often relatively free of any continuity from other episodes outside of the occasional mention here-or-there. As I said, it just is a really funny show that takes the lighthearted fun of adventures, but inserts a lot of twisted and dark humor into the proceedings, while just occasionally being sweet enough to make you care about the characters instead of flat-out hating them. You can in fact watch the episodes on Adult Swim's website easily (although a cable provider log-in is needed for the official site, other methods exist such as buying the episodes online or finding shoddy YouTube streams if you are a real cheapskate/unable to afford paying) so I would recommend doing so--although maybe start with "Anatomy Park" instead of the first two.

Give Things a Chance

Were I to have just watched the first two episodes of "Rick and Morty" I would have missed out on a show I now adore.I have found out yet again that you just can't judge a program based on its initial episodes. Sometimes a show needs a couple to get situated, feel comfortable, and really start putting out good stuff. There can be occasions where it takes a long time (I hear "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't finally get good until toward the end of the 1st season but has been enjoyable since), and sometimes something can even start strong and quickly go downhill ("Homeland" apparently had a stellar first season but has been a wreck since), but usually you should give a show a chance to expand beyond its initial growing pains as a caterpillar and turn into the beautiful flower it can be (I'm mixing my metaphors, but you follow what I'm saying).

You shouldn't judge a show based on simply its starting episodes, if the multiple programs I have viewed in the past have taught me. As a show such as "Rick and Morty" illustrates, if you give something a chance it may become your new favorite thing to watch. You just need to be patient sometimes. Unless of course it is in fact the show "Lost", then you end up mad about how it had a shoddy ending after all the energy and emotion you invested in it (I'm glad I never really cared much).

Anyways, watch "Rick and Morty" if you have the kind of sense of humor I do (which if you enjoy the blog I assume you would), you should find it extremely pleasurable too!
5 out of 5 stars.