TV Trash: Superjail

Superjail! is an upcoming episode of TV Trash, hosted by Chris Lee Moore.

Transcript
RowdyCMoore: *disappointed sigh* Welcome to another episode of TV Trash, and I cannot BELIEVE I have to review this!!!

Okay, I am willing to admit that not all cartoons for adults are bad. There are examples of good adult cartoons, with the likes of Futurama, the best of the Simpsons, classic Family Guy, Duckman, and even Beavis and Butt-Head. I know I've been receiving a lot of backlash for how I treated South Park, and while I still don't like the first three seasons, I will give props to their one and only theatrical film to date for not only saving South Park, but for also actually proving that South Park was more than just shock humor. I still don't like South Park, but I do enjoy their movie. I know it's contradicting, but I do believe that even Trey Parker and Matt Stone were not happy about the quality for the first three seasons at the time.

So, it is clear that Cartoon Network wanted to jump in on the South Park bandwagon in the early 2000s with Adult Swim. They not only picked up the rights to Home Movies, but they also delivered in brand new adult animated content for viewers to watch. They even went as far as to give Family Guy and Futurama a lot of recognition, as well as bringing Cowboy Bebop to the west. In addition, they also brought back two Cartoon Network shows for short revivals like Space Ghost Coast to Coast and Samurai Jack, in addition to their own original content that actually are good, like Robot Chicken, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law, the Brak Show, the Venture Bros., and even Sealab 2021; the first two seasons of the latter, at least, before it all went downhill with season 3. I'll see if I can look into it soon on TV Trash, but that's not what we're gonna look at. Although, I kinda did enjoy Metalocalypse, but MrEnter didn't care that I disagree with him on it.

However, there is a major downside. It came out during the time TimeWarner and AOL merged together to form AOL Time Warner in the early 2000s.

It's very clear that the moment AOL and Time Warner merged together, things were very much beginning to go downhill from there. It just goes to show you that Warner's business practices weren't any better than Disney's, were they? I really don't care how much you wanna call the CN City era good, but I think it's time you learned as to WHY Cartoon Network's mid-2000s CN City era rebrand were not as enjoyable as you thought. Betty Cohen stepped down due to creative differences with Jamie Kellner, who then became the CEO of Turner Entertainment, and just pulled the plug on WCW programming due to wrestling being too low class. In addition, Jim Samples took over Cartoon Network in the summer of 2001, and disaster fell from there. Even with good shows coming out like Samurai Jack, Foster's Home, Ben 10, and Teen Titans, it's clear that Cartoon Network was beginning their downfall from then on until 2010, when they had a resurrection with Adventure Time, Regular Show, and more.

The 2000s were more remembered as the network's worst decade, for good reason. There were a lot of problems with that era besides live-action. We were treated to shows that nobody even bothered caring like Chowder, Flapjack, Total Drama, Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi, Juniper Lee, Camp Lazlo, My Gym Partner's a Monkey, Squirrel Boy, Cramp Twins, Johnny Test, Kids Next Door, etc. It doesn't matter if any of those shows had fans. What matters more is how they managed to ruin what made Cartoon Network fun to watch. There was even a period of time when Chris Savino took over Dexter's Laboratory and the Powerpuff Girls, and him being a sexual predator is further proof as to why it's a VERY bad idea to put him in charge! No wonder CyberRampage on YouTube told him to crawl in a hole and die!! It's very clear that Cartoon Network was going through their age ghetto even before the CN city era came. This is why the 2004 logo did not get as much love as the 1992 logo or even the 2010 logo. During the time Cartoon Network was changing their logo in 2004, Mike Lazzo wanted to make sure that kids shows should strictly be bright, colorful, and loud, while shows for adults should not have any piece of good animation. This is why shows like Chowder and Flapjack DESERVED to get screwed over, because they're NO different than the other crap shows that Cartoon Network used to air in the 2000s!!

If those two shows were meant to be the Cartoon Network versions of Phineas and Ferb, then there's a big REASON why Phineas and Ferb earned more love than Chowder and Flapjack!! The moment Cartoon Network was still going downhill with the city era, even Adult Swim themselves was going downhill! Robot Chicken, Metalocalypse, and Moral Orel may be good, but then you had ACTUALLY bad adult cartoons that show that not even Adult Swim could do a better job with than any other network. Shows like Frisky Dingo, Minoriteam, Squidbillies, 12 oz. Mouse, Assy McGee, Xavier Renegade Angel, Titan Maximum, Tom Goes to the Mayor, and the Drinky Crow Show are the shows that show how nasty Adult Swim can be at showing that they HAVE made bad cartoons BEFORE we had Mr. Pickles and King Star King; showing that they too can be like how we ended up having the likes of the Nutshack, Drawn Together, and any of the Spike TV animated shows. And don't even get me started on their live-action shows!! I may get a chance to review Spike TV's This Just In soon, but that's not what we're gonna talk about today either. AND NO, I DO NOT WANNA EVEN ACKNOWLEDGE THE FACT THAT CARTOON NETWORK HAD LIVE-ACTION SHOWS AFTER 2009!!! DO YOU REALLY WANT TO RUIN OUR LOVE OF 2010S CARTOON NETWORK EVEN MORE BESIDES TEEN TITANS GO!??

What I'm saying here is that there is one particular cartoon on Adult Swim, that according to YouTube user Doknot1999, in his 2016 rant on Mr. Pickles, that due to the ugly character designs, and the overall use of violence and gore, only a demonic psychopath fool would find enjoyment in it. And yes, people. We are finally going to take a look at one of Adult Swim's biggest 2000s disasters: Superjail!

This show was the creation of Christy Karacas, Stephen Warbrick, and Ben Gruber. Originally first airing as a pilot on May 13, 2007, the show would eventually get the green light by Adult Swim around the time of the mid-2000s, and premiered there on September 28, 2008. And GOOD NIGHT, are we in for what so many people consider as the adult cartoon that flat out PROVES why the 2000s are considered to be one of the WORST decades in all of animation!!

Now, the creators have had their head start at MTV animation, Karacas worked as a background designer for Daria, while Warbrick, besides ALSO working on Daria, was known for his work on Beavis and Butt-Head and Celebrity Deathmatch, and Gruber was known for his work on Ultracity 6060, a series of animated shorts on Cartoon Sushi.. But how is THIS show gonna prove why the 2000s were awful? Because Ben Gruber, one of the show's creators, has also worked on Breadwinners and Teen Titans Go!, two of the most HATED cartoons of the 2010 decade, and considering the fact that those two shows were hated, I have a feeling this would be even worse!!

How Superjail! was made was when Christy Karacas created the short film Space War, shown in 1997 on MTV's Cartoon Sushi, it was eventually followed up by a short he and Warbrick made, also for MTV, in 2001. The second short of his is called "Bar Fight", and it has excessive amounts of violence and gore, that it ultimately caught the eye of Toonami and Adult Swim exec Mike Lazzo, who originally made the aforementioned statement that shows for adults should not have good animation, or any at all, while kids shows, only needed to be bright, colorful, and loud. Except that Mike Lazzo wanted an animated show for adults that's even MORE bright, colorful, and LOUD, than any kids show!!! And this was the mid-to-late-2000s, a time when Ben Jones pitched the Problem Solverz to Adult Swim as Neon Knome, and I'm sure it wouldn't do any better on Adult Swim either!! I have a feeling this is gonna be a TV-MA version of Johnny Test. But the public has spoken, so let's finally take a look at... Superjail!

Okay, so every episode goes like this: It starts with a criminal named "Jackknife" who commits such heinous crimes, like stealing, rape, murder, etc., until he was eventually taken away by Jailbot, who attacks him in the process, and not only does he arrest him, but sends him to a place called "Superjail!", which is run by a warden, who is said to be a sadistic Willy Wonka. The Warden then asks Jared to do some task for the inmates of Superjail!, but the twins frak up everything, and every single inmate in Superjail! gets brutally killed on screen in a grotesque fashion, and at the end, everyone acts like if nothing has ever happened. That's literally the plot of every episode, people!! DId the writers go to the school of wanting to be as dumb as Modern Butch Hartman or Seth MacFarlane??!!

I guess I should talk about the characters. The main character is the Warden, voiced by David Wain. Who is basically what happens when you combine Mr. Krabs with Johnny Test and Willy Wonka in a blender. Except whereas Willy Wonka was actually funny and likable, Mr. Krabs and Johnny Test are not. And if you thought Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka in Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is bad, this Warden is even worse!!!

Warden: Where do you think you're going? You're not invited to my humility party! As your punishment, move that vat of growth serum back to the closet!! Besides, you're not tall enough for this ride!!

(Warden, Rollercoaster, and Alice all laugh)

RowdyCMoore: Then there's Jailbot. He's essentially the supposed son and servant of the Warden who is often shown capturing Jackknife at the beginning of every single episode. He never actually talks, but only communicates by beeping weird noises. Like some sort of 8-bit video game.

IS IT ME, OR IS THIS SHOW TRYING TO FORESHADOW THE PROBLEM SOLVERZ, A SHOW THAT ACTUALLY REFERENCED SUPERJAIL! IN AN EPISODE??!!

(Jailbot beeps; Jackknife screams as Jailbot beats him up at "Shopmart")

Then there's Alice. Voiced by creator Christy Karacas, she is a trans woman prototype of Connie from Brickleberry, but also serves as the one cop in this "Superjail!", and every single person in this show, treats Alice like some sort of sex symbol, which is a joke I found myself really annoyed by.

Alice: The new chick's gotta go. Four reasons! She! Ain't! Working! Out! Why are you naked?

Warden: Oookay, Alice. I see what's going on here. Jealousy does not become you.

Alice: Why is he naked?

Warden: You're afraid she's gonna replace you. Well, don't you worry. Since she's clearly too cerebral for guard duty anyway, I'm promoting her. To... be my personal assistant!

Jared: WHAT??!!

RowdyCMoore: Then there's Jackknife, a criminal who is ALSO voiced by Karacas. Basically, he's supposed to be the equivalent of the Tex Avery wolf, but as a human criminal, who only communicates by speaking gibberish and grunts like the Tasmanian Devil in Looney Tunes. He's often shown committing such heinous crimes, and often gets beaten to death by Jailbot.

(Jackknife grabs a bunny, and stuffs it in his pants)

I hope nobody was eating anything when watching this!!

You also have the show's supposed butt-monkey, Jared. Who is often shown as the Warden's "secretary" at this Superjail!, as he often gets bullied by everyone around him, very much like Adam Lyon from My Gym Partner's a Monkey, and Eric Needles from Sidekick. Which is odd, considering that Sidekick actually came out in 2010; and yet THAT SHOW FELT LIKE IF IT BELONGED MORE IN THE 2000S!!!

Jared: Finally, a hot steamy dip with my friends.

Alice: Sorry, no nerds allowed.

RowdyCMoore: And we have an enslete of inmates. Besides Jackknife, there's also Jean and Paul, who happen to be a gay couple, because their last name sounds like "gay". Did Christy Karacas look at every gay stereotype of the 2000s, and thought "DAAAHH!! LET MAKE GAY STEREOTYPE!! THIS ARE GEENIOOS!!!" They also tend to bicker a lot.

Jean: What the hell's gotten into you these last few minutes?

Paul: Would you remember to put the fucking seat down?

Jean: Why?

Paul: Because I almost fucking fell in. That's why.

Jean: Who gives a shit?

Paul: A shit, huh? You know what? This whole relationship is shit!! HERE'S YOUR DAMN PROMISE RING BACK!!

Jean: FINE!!! HERE'S YOUR PROMISE SHAVE BACK!! (stabs Paul in the chest)

RowdyCMoore: And we get other inmates in the show, like Fatty, who is basically just fat, Gary, a mute inmate with a bird, some puppet inmate, Nicky, who is supposed to be "crafty", and then there's Lord Stingray, who's basically Dark Lazer from Fairly OddParents, but without the charm, and is voiced by Foop.

Lord Stingray: I'm what you might call a tyrannical ruler, okay? I plunder stuff, nuclear weapons, international space stations, president's daughters. I see something I want, I take it. Now, take Superjail!, for example.

Warden: (nervous laughter) Wha?

Lord Stingray: Oh no, actually... I'M taking Superjail!!

RowdyCMoore: We also get the twins, whose names were never revealed, but are accompanied by techno music, and just frak everything up in Superjail!

Twin 1: The buffoon has opened a saloon.

Twin 2: A saloon for baboons.

(both twins make baboon sounds)

RowdyCMoore: And then we have the gender flipped version, known as the "Ultraprison", run by the Mistress. That's literally it, Ultraprison is a gender flipped Superjail!!

And you wanna know something? EVERYONE IN THIS SHOW IS UNLIKABLE!!!! Literally, this is the same problem I have with other 2000s shows like Johnny Test; how literally EVERY single character is portrayed as an absolute jerk!! Not a single character in this show is likable!! Not even the butt-monkey, Jared, is a saint, as he too has his selfish asshole moments!!

What makes things crazier was that Christy Karacas said the influences for the show include Tex Avery, Chuck Jones, child art, Bob Clampett, John K, Vince Collins of "Malice in Wonderland", Sally Cruikshank, Tom Ruegger, Fleischer Studios, Walt Disney, Ripley's Believe It or Not!, Monty Python, Itchy & Scratchy Show, Beavis and Butt-Head, Hanna-Barbera, Ralph Bakshi, Looney Tunes, Mad, Sesame Street, The Muppets, Yellow Submarine, outsider art, Pee-wee's Playhouse, Schoolhouse Rock!, Earthworm Jim, Dr. Seuss, and underground comix (including Gary Panter, Robert Crumb, and Mike Diana).

OKAY!!! FOR... THE... RECORD!!! I HIGHLY DOUBT THAT TEX AVERY, FLEISCHER STUDIOS, WALT DISNEY, AND DR. SEUSS WOULD INFLUENCE SOMETHING THIS SADISTIC!!! THIS SHOW IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY BENTHELOONEY WAS HEAVILY CRITICIZED, AS THAT PEDOPHILE OF A REVIEWER CLAIMED IT TO BE A FUN HOMAGE TO CLASSIC CARTOONS, WHEN IT'S JUST ANOTHER AWFUL 2000S CARTOON, BUT EVEN WORSE!!!

I actually do believe that John K influenced the show. And knowing Doug TenNapel, this show definitely feels like if it would appeal to those who DEFEND a republican!!

How is it that shows like the Modifyers were rejected, and yet this show was made??!! THEY GOT RID OF FUTURAMA RERUNS FOR THIS??!!

Sadist shows of the 2000 decade can all be credited thanks to the CatDog effect! CatDog was a 1990s Nickelodeon show about a cat and a dog conjoined at the hip. However, what made it age worse than milk was not just the sibling rivalry, BUT IT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST SHOWS OF THE MODERN ERA WHERE A PUSHOVER HAS TO HANG OUT WITH AN ASSHOLE!!!! This would later be used in so many 2000s animated shows like Ed, Edd n Eddy, My Gym Partner's a Monkey, Brandy and Mr. Whiskers, Johnny Test, Squirrel Boy, Out of Jimmy's Head, AND SUPERJAIL!!!! How else is Superjail! proof as to why the 2000s were a disaster?? The constant use of violence and gore!!!!

You've seen that used in so many other adult cartoons, EVEN South Park. But no show has overused shock humor MORE than Superjail! The writers just cannot seem to take any sort of criticism, and thought it would be funnier to traumatize its viewers with their constant use of gore!! Think Flapjack but much more disturbing!! Not only did they amp up the nightmare fuel just for a cheap laugh, but the aforementioned violence and gore was the main setup for the whole show!! Every single character gets brutally killed just for a cheap laugh!!! It's like Happy Tree Friends with with Problem Solverz style art! Oh, and need I remind you that the art of the show is HORRIBLE??!! It's like Mr. Pickles, but more over the top and zany. It's even worse than King Star King's animation!!! This style is so bad, it actually makes Klasky Csupo look like Fleischer Studios by comparison!!

Let's be real here; the 2000s were often remembered more as a chaotic decade in humanity!! George W. Bush's presidency! 9/11! Crashing an economy!! Companies with horrible business practices!! Hurricanes Katrina and Ike!! The mid-2000s Writers Guild of America Strike!! Desperate attempts to be cool and hip!! Famous People dying!! THE SARS OUTBREAK!!! And the ANIMATION INDUSTRY AT AN ALL TIME LOW!!!

And THIS SHOW... is FURTHER PROOF!!! This is apparently why 2000s kids are horribly treated, because all those kids cared about is the evil side of companies. It's very clear that Christy Karacas, Stephen Warbrick, and Ben Gruber felt that adult should be treated like kids, when coming up with the concept of Superjail! I'm actually convinced they drew influence from John K, not caring that he himself is already a pedophile. But yeah, these guys went ALL OUT is making the cartoon that makes EVEN the Nutshack look like Regular Show by comparison!!

Now, I'm not finished talking with the show yet. Oh no, we're just getting started. The pilot episode and first season were animated by Augenblick Studios. Aaron Augenblick, who ran the studio, was known for specializing in making some awkward animation styles. Augenblick had worked in animation on other shows, like Wonder Showzen, Ugly Americans, Golan the Insatiable, Shorties Watchin' Shorties, and Teenage Euthanasia. The animation in Superjail! during the Augenblick Studios run is god awful!! It's like if they took the animated segments in Wonder Showzen, and made it look worse!! And this was BEFORE Problem Solverz and King Star King.

The first season had girls of Ultraprison seducing the inmates at Superjail!, Jack trying to save Superjail! from some thief, but they don't believe him, A terrorarium episode, a dream machine episode, a Monster Convict episode, and a two part episode about the Time Police, which was supposed to be the final episode of the show. It eventually ended where Superjail! broke reality and time, Jailbot becomes a dead train, Jared becomes a beast, Warden becomes a baby, Alice becomes an old lady who breastfeeds him,...

DID THE WRITERS TAKE NOTE FROM CHRIS SAVINO AFTER HE RUINED DEXTER'S LABORATORY AND THE POWERPUFF GIRLS??!! After Superjail! ended its first season, Christy Karacas went on to direct and executive produce Robotomy for Cartoon Network in 2010. Was it any better than Superjail!? NO, IT FRAKING WASN'T!!! It's just a kiddie version of Superjail! crossed with the most basic of teen oriented programming!! And I wasn't surprised that the show would last for 10 episodes. A high budget animated series that SUCKED!!!

But just when we thought the madness was over, it wasn't. Superjail! was brought back in 2011. April 3rd of that year, one day before Cartoon Network gave us that god awful show known as the Problem Solverz, Adult Swim brought back Superjail! with another season. Did I mention that the Problem Solverz actually referenced Superjail! in the episode "Puffy Puppiez"??!!

Badcat: Hey, you! Those dogs need to be on leashes! Or else, they'll go to my New Dog Superjail! (Maniacal meowing laughter)

RowdyCMoore: And the quality for Superjail! just got WORSE!!! THIS time, with its animation being done by Titmouse, inc., who you may know more as the studio who did Metalocalypse. This was to show more facial expressions and more cartoony animation, in an attempt to combine the Disney style animation with the Looney Tunes style animation. And even then, IT'S STILL GOD AWFUL TO LOOK AT!!! The animation is way too over the top and cartoony, and not to mention, too drugged up, even for Adult Swim, the movements are too much like Johnny Test during seasons 2 and 3, and NOBODY EVER SHUTS THE HELL UP!!!! Also, the characters started to have backstories, but are completely pointless, as they have even WORSE character later on!! WHY DOES THIS SHOW NEED CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND STORY ARCS, WHEN IT'S NOTHING BUT CRUELTY, GORE, RAUNCHY CONTENT, AND HEARTLESS CHARACTERS THAT MAKE YOU WANNA THROW INTO JUDGE DOOM'S DIP??!! Remember when AniMat said that Sony Pictures Animation's use of cartoony animation was way too much?? Well, THIS is even MORE cartoony, and NOT THE GOOD KIND!!!

And it's no surprise that shows like Harvey Beaks and Jellystone! deserve JUST AS MUCH hate as Chowder, because... WHY GIVE C. H. GREENBLATT TWO MORE CHANCES??!! Oh, and I also forgot to mention that BEN GRUBER ALSO WORKED ON JELLYSTONE!!!!!! That made me even LESS excited for Jellystone! already!! And what's worse is that even a show like the LOUD HOUSE took note from Superjail! on how to write inconsistent character development, and incoherent story arcs!!! Character development and story arcs can work. Shows like Samurai Jack is a primary example on how to do character development right, along with story arcs. Even a show like Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!, which people consider as Jetix's best show, was more consistent than this!! It mainly worked better in shows like those, Teen Titans, Gravity Falls, Phineas and Ferb, Adventure Time, Regular Show, and even Clone High of all shows.

Home Movies, another show on Adult Swim, was also known for having horrible animation. But the reason why Home Movies doesn't get as much hate was that there was more to the show than just the awful animation. It TOO had consistent story arcs, and character development that actually makes sense. Watching Home Movies, you actually RELATE to those characters, you FEEL their pains, you WANT to see those who harm you get their comeuppance.

Superjail! does character development and story arcs completely WRONG!!! It's like if Christy Karacas, Stephen Warbrick, and Ben Gruber all wanna belittle those who want story arcs and character development by having them written completely BACKWARDS to no end!! Warden was a little child who was somewhat abused by his father at times, but actually likes getting abused by his daddy, and later has even WORSE character as time went on, Jackknife was an abused kid, and still didn't stand up to his father, and just continued being a monster, Alice was once a man named Big Al, but was fired due to his boss's transphobia, only to realize she was actually a girl her whole life, Jared used to be an inmate of Superjail!, only to be an even BIGGER asshat, Jailbot had NOTHING consistent about himself, and NONE of the inmates learn to grow as characters!!! Hell, even IF the ugly ass inmates actually DESERVED to get murdered to death, it's just TOO MUCH, even for Adult Swim!! And it also doesn't help that the animation is even MORE distracting than in the FIRST season!! Like, no offense to the people at Titmouse, but WHY do you have to work on Superjail!??!!

Jared: Gooooood... morning, sir.

Warden: It's hardly morning, and there's NOTHING good about it! I have to wake up all on my own!! Where the HELL IS JAILBOT??!!

Jared: Why are you asking me?

Warden: Cause that's what I do!! I ask you things, and then I tell you things!! And right now, I'm telling you to go find Jailbot, and send him to me!!

Jared: I'll get right on that, sir.

RowdyCMoore: THE WARDEN IS SO SELFISH AND STUPID, HE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW HOW TO DO THINGS ON HIS OWN??!!! THIS IS WHY YOU FAIL AT COMEDY, CHRISTY!!!! Oh, and the less said about that Doctor character, THE BETTER!!! I wouldn't be surprised if Superjail's Warden represents how 2000s kids would become once they grow up!! He may as well be the Adult Swim equivalent of Johnny Test and Chris McLean!!! Oh, and did I mention that the latter's voice actor Christian Potenza is a SCUMBAG??!! And the episodes got worse!! There's a wedding for gay stereotypes, which offends gays even today, an episode where one of the twins get pregnant, only to eat their newborn, an episode where Lord Stingray makes his debut, an episode where they go on vacation, a racing episode, and and episode where Warden gets a new Jailbot!!!

If, for any reason you actually ENJOYED CN City, then you have no faith in good quality animation whatsoever, and you would most likely enjoy Cartoon Network's horrible quality live-action shows like Out of Jimmy's Head!! Superjail! is no different from ANY mid-to-late 2000s abomination on Cartoon Network or Adult Swim!! So, if you want a cartoon for adults on Adult Swim that belittles animation in the worst way possible, THIS IS NOT ONLY THE ADULT SHOW EQUIVALENT OF JOHNNY TEST, BUT OF OUT OF JIMMY'S HEAD AS WELL!!!

And season 3 gets even worse!! An episode about Paul leaving, Jared takes control of Superjail!, and becomes a BIGGER asshole, Warden hosts a magic show which backfires, an amputee episode, and an episode where Warden and Ash bring fire to Superjail!