Adult Swim Shows

‘Totally for Teens’

C-

This may be one of the most confusing shows Adult Swim has ever produced. Sure, the show provoked a few outbursts of random laughter, but those just don’t hold up against the rest of the show’s randomness. The show follows a framework similar to programs like TRL, where a host directly interacts with members of the audience while intercutting random narratives with the show’s ‘correspondents.’ These arbitrary sideshows added nothing to the show. It seemed they were meant to reinforce the show’s central ‘theme,’ which is that kids have the power to make choices. Fair enough. So Adult Swim obviously won’t mind if everyone makes the choice to skip this convoluted mess. Oh, and one more thing, if this is a program on Cartoon Network, why is everything live action?

‘Cheyenne Cinnamon and the Fantabulous Unicorn of Sugar Town Candy Fudge’

F

Unfortunately, every moment of this show was understandable – every long, painstaking, mind-numbing moment. But seriously, who thought this show was a good idea? How could a program about a Britney Spears archetype in some Candy Land-esque world possibly appeal to anyone? This faux-Britney welcomes a teenager impregnated by her softball coach to her magical land, where hilarity is supposed to ensue. To no one’s surprise, it doesn’t. There’s some vague resemblance of a plot – if one could even call it that – as the characters randomly wander through the candy land. The only true highlight is hearing T-Pain voice a gingerbread man, but it’s T-Pain sans auto-tune, so even that is slightly disappointing. The animation is cringe-inducing, as everything looks to be computer animated in someone’s basement. The designs are barbaric, as the characters are stiff, and seeing a G-string on a D-cup-wearing animated pop icon is just downright awkward.

‘Korgoth of Barbaria’

B-

There’s nothing like gratuitous amounts of violence to get a laugh out of an audience. At least, this is the case in ‘Korgoth of Barbaria,’ which could best be understood as an X-rated ‘Conan the Barbarian.’ Similar to the movie ‘300,’ much of its stock is stylized into wanton violence. ‘Korgoth’ relies too heavily on nearly naked men dismembering every living thing in sight. The basic formula found in most epic quests is there: Korgoth embarks on a cross-country trek in order to obtain the coveted ‘Golden Goblin’ from a wicked warlock. Of course, that means gallons of blood and gore must be spilled in order for Korgoth to achieve his goal. Unfortunately, if you didn’t like ‘300’ and all its gutsy glory, there will be absolutely nothing to enjoy here. The only real jokes made in the show are amateur and juvenile. For the testosterone-driven audiences that live for ultra-masculine scenes of violence, this will be the best thing since ‘He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.’

‘Welcome to Eltingville’

D

Clearly the writers of this show were on something when they wrote it. How does this show even make sense? In what’s supposed to resemble a parody of Japanese-animated cartoon shows, ‘Eltingville’ just resembles a bad night with opium. The show successfully lampoons the normal clichés of animé, such as bright, flashing lights, extreme close-ups and scantily clad schoolgirls. There can be some humor mined from the show’s mocking tone, but the entire story is so fragmented and jumpy that it’s hard to appreciate the smaller aspects. Sometimes, there are moments that defy all semblance of normal logic. At one point, the character Space Ghost from another Adult Swim program, ‘Space Ghost from Coast to Coast,’ makes a cameo, but even a special guest appearance from George Clooney could not save this animated debacle.

ansteinb@syr.edu

Published on November 8, 2009 at 12:00 pm