The show’s based on characters from the comic strip with the same title, which enjoyed syndication in national newspapers until a few years ago. When I found out that there would be no more comics to grace my computer screen every morning I was deeply saddened, but then sadness was replaced by elation when I heard about the animated version. The show is definitely as funny as the comics. It’s well drawn, well written, and extremely well voiced. The style is very similar to that of the comic strip, and influenced by anime and manga. The voice cast is an amazing selection of talent. Regina King lends her voice to both brothers Huey and Riley, kids relocated to the suburban ‘boonies’ from Chicago by their granddad Robert Jebediah Freeman (John Witherspoon). Their frequently tormented neighbors are Tom (Cedric Yarbrough) and Sarah (Jill Talley) Dubois and their Daughter Jazmine (Gabby Soleil). A strong recurring cast includes local rap artists Gangstalicious (Mos Def), Thugnificent (Carl Jones), and to a lesser extent Macktastic (Snop Dogg) and Flonominal (Busta Rhymes). They provide a pretty large share of the comic relief, based on their stereotypical lifestyle and Gangstalicious’ secret gayness. Another neighbor, Unkle Ruckus “No relation” (Gary Anthony Williams), is the voice of exorbitant racism in the show in the form of a self-loathing black man in denial. A Pimp Named Slickback (Katt Williams), and Rev. Rollo Goodlove (Cee-Lo Green) appear occasionally to provide advice.
Various views of the show’s creator are the main source of material for the show, which like the comic has been fairly controversial. Often lampooned are pop culture, politics, and african-american culture. Though like most high quality satire, multiple sides of issues are made into punch lines. Aaron McGruder is an equal opportunity offender. Huey tends to seem like an almost autobiographical character, as a precocious and politically militant ten year old. His views are brought into contrast by his gansta-rap idolizing brother, aka ‘Young Reezy’, Huey’s polar opposite. Lest the show become too serious, nearly everything is played for comedic effect. Arguments are often settled by bad-ass kung-fu fight sequences in which Huey breaks out crazy Jedi moves. There are a number of running gags centered around the supporting characters, which are just as detailed as the main cast.
The third season premier was a big one, and hopefully the rest of the season will follow suit. It took the form of a documentary focused on the Freeman family before, during, and after the 2009 presidential campaign, and made light of all the inherent ridiculousness of national politics. Both the over the top vilification and idolization of Obama, and a few references to actual political silliness, were highlighted through the different character’s opinions. This made for an exceptionally hilarious episode that also served as a great reintroduction to the recurring cast. Music is a fairly large part of the show, with several musical artists providing voice work or producing songs for the show. The song in this episode was the best so far, entitled ‘Dick Ridin’ Obama’, meant to parody will.i.am’s ‘Yes We Can’. Not only is it extremely funny, but it’s also disturbingly catchy and has been stuck in my head for days.
This premier came big, and seems to be the start of another great season of the show. The combination of crude and intelligent humor, and nerdy Star Wars, Kung-fu, and pop culture references keeps the show from getting too pretentious or stale. The multiple allusions add to the layers of humor in each episode. There’s just enough social commentary in the episodes to keep it from being too absurd, and overall it’s very well balanced and entertaining. It’s truly raising the bar for adult-oriented animation. It’s been consistently providing high quality entertainment, and it seems like that patten will continue.
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