Sealab 2021

[Excellent_Biscuits]

I'm a large fan of this. Especially the first two series (fine, seasons as it's american)

Anyone else a fan?

The two main writers as far as the commentry and anything ive seen of them do seem like the most unfunny people in comedy history. But there is something there with this thing.

Long pauses. Daft characters. Strange claustrophobic atmosphere. All the best bits of so many good sit-coms.

Maybe its just a load of proto Family Guy shite?

Well I like it, and so should you.

[popcorn]

I've never seen an episode of this, but what a theme tune.

[Shaky]

Yeah, I used to really like Sealab when we discovered the whole Adult Swim thing around 2005-ish. It's no Harvey Birdman, mind.

[Alberon]

I've seen a few of these and I got hooked on the uh-oh episode when I found it on YouTube years ago.

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

I love the early series. Captain Murphy is one of my favourite comedy characters ever. It just didn't seem to have the same wit or charm after Harry Goz died and they started animating the episodes from scratch.

[Captain Z]

Don't you mean.. Bizarro Sealab 2021?

[rimbaud]

It is indeed mostly great.  The Martian Law episode is particularly good.

Their follow up, Archer can be good and has a great art style but there is too much shouting and it tries a bit hard.

[Sebastian Cobb]

[tag]Hesh wants poppers[/tag]

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

Hesh can shut up.

Their follow up, Archer can be good and has a great art style but there is too much shouting and it tries a bit hard.

Their previous follow up, Frisky Dingo sits between the two - both chronologically (obviously) and in terms of tone/style. The lead character, superhero Xander Crews, is like a prototye Archer.

[Obel]

Uh ohhhh!

[Replies From View]

I always thought that Sealab was the Beatles' merchandising company.

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

In case anyone hasn't seen the show, someone uploaded it all to Youtube.

[alan nagsworth]

Hesh can shut up.
Their previous follow up, Frisky Dingo sits between the two - both chronologically (obviously) and in terms of tone/style. The lead character, superhero Xander Crews, is like a prototye Archer.

The first season of Frisky Dingo is a thing of absolute brilliance. The second (which apparently they were sort of forced into making?) is alright but doesn't really hold a candle to how much of a great self-contained universe it was beforehand. I love how they effectively made their own memes, in 2006 when meme culture was a fucking speck, like the "Cat Party" ringtone and people making slideshows, which are never explained but immediately become a part of the furniture. Solid writing.

Adam Reed has a serious knack for applying voice talent to otherwise lazily animated visuals. Archer became a lot more polished as it went on, but Sealab and FD have such a basic style that is almost entirely propped up by how solid the voice talent is at all times. As previously mentioned, the use of pauses is equally as important too. Of course this style is prevalent in a lot of early Adult Swim material like 12oz Mouse and Aqua Teen, but it's utilised best here.

My favourite episodes are the one with Happy Cake Oven (with that weird guy in the submarine talking in the incomprehensible sloppy French accent) and the one where the crew goes to see MC Chris and Murphy gets stuck under the vending machine which has all those amazing jazz/fizzy pop puns, and befriends the scorpion.

And yeah, the theme tune is fantastic.

[Twed]

My favourite episodes are the one with Happy Cake Oven (with that weird guy in the submarine talking in the incomprehensible sloppy French accent) and the one where the crew goes to see MC Chris and Murphy gets stuck under the vending machine which has all those amazing jazz/fizzy pop puns, and befriends the scorpion.

"All That Jazz".

Those might be my favourite too. "All That And of course the Bizarros.

[kidsick5000]

Is there a name for that type of humour?

It's a very Adult Swim thing in the early-mid 2000's - bickering over minutiae in grand settings.

Very fond of Sealab. More fond of when it was hacking the old cartoon rather than creating new stuff.
I wonder if the makers are ever tempted to try the old ways again.

[Dannyhood91]

I hate pod 6

[rimbaud]

In case anyone hasn't seen the show, someone uploaded it all to Youtube.

Thank you.  *Immediately realises how great the theme tune is*

[Revelator]

Anyone else a fan?

Definitely! The first seasons aired while I was at college and discovering Adult Swim, and I remain very fond of them.

I love the early series. Captain Murphy is one of my favourite comedy characters ever. It just didn't seem to have the same wit or charm after Harry Goz died and they started animating the episodes from scratch.

Agreed entirely. Goz's Murphy was a terrific example of an authority figure who is also a lord of misrule. That's a combination powerful enough to power a series. Goz's charisma was a centripetal force, and without it the show began cracking apart. The character who replaced Murphy--Shanks or whatever his name was--was voiced by Goz's son, but didn't have enough authority.

The new animation was another mistake. It looked cheap in the worst possible way and didn't blend with the 70s animation. Part of the show's  appeal was seeing the vintage animated characters resurrected like zombies to spout dialogue completely inimical to their appearance and original characters. That was lost when the new animation took over. It also eliminated the weird quality of stillness caused the careful manipulation of the old animation, which contrasted wonderfully with the manic dialogue.

My favorite episode was "Stimutacs," which is awash with great lines ("It's like a koala bear crapped a rainbow in my brain!") and a guest appearance by Marduk, slayer of Tiamat.

Is there a name for that type of humour? It's a very Adult Swim thing in the early-mid 2000's - bickering over minutiae in grand settings.

Many Palin/Jones sketches from Python fit that description, but in Adult Swim the pauses are extra-long and the characters seem more alienated or downright stupid. Space Ghost Coast to Coast shared a similar sense of humor to Sealab 2021, along with re-purposed limited animation from an earlier program. If memory serves, the character designs for the original Space Ghost and Sealab were by the great comics artist Alex Toth. Given his irascible nature, I'm afraid what his reactions to the comedy versions would have been...

[Twed]

Agreed entirely. Goz's Murphy was a terrific example of an authority figure who is also a lord of misrule.

What a wonderful way of summing up his character.

in Adult Swim the pauses are extra-long and the characters seem more alienated or downright stupid. Space Ghost Coast to Coast shared a similar sense of humor to Sealab 2021, along with re-purposed limited animation from an earlier program.

Yeah. The comedy beats from those two shows (and to some extent Aqua Teen and 12 oz Mouse) don't get the respect they deserve. Space Ghost giving a dumb look to camera punctuated by a shot to Zorak with his buzzing sound will never get old to me, and I don't think anybody will ever hit on the same feel.