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Why I Love Aqua Teen Hunger Force

Welcome to another edition of the Why I Love column, where I, Eric Ratcliffe, pick something I've read, played, listened to or watched to discuss with you fair readers. This week we talk about something that I've watched from the beginning, a show that helped launch the late night programming on Adult Swim and features some of the weirdest storylines ever. I talk of course about the 11 minute cartoon Aqua Teen Hunger Force!

The Story:

For those of you who don't know the history of Aqua Teen Hunger Force, let me give a refresher course. Since the pilot episode, we've followed the adventures of Master Shake (A milkshake), Meatwad (A ball of meat) and Frylock (A box of fries) with their neighbor Carl (A crazy New Jersey stereotype) who all live in Jersey and deal with the weird stuff that happens in their life. As you can tell by the description, this is a very odd cartoon.

The show was created by Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis as an 11 minute cartoon that was part of the launch of the Adult Swim line up back in 2001 when they only had 2 hours for their programming. (Now Adult Swim airs from 10 at night until 5 in the morning on Cartoon network) This block of shows had Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Sealab 2021, the Brak Show and of course Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

Sadly, Aqua Teen Hunger is the only one of the original shows that is still running. Though I think it speaks for the guy's talent (and the fact that they both worked on Space Ghost) that the show is still alive and well. The Aqua Teen's first appeared as a concept on an episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast where Space Ghost decided to make a deal with a chain restaurant in order to get a really cool boat. The only one who really even slightly resembles the original character from that "pilot" is Master Shake. Meatwad was depressed and Frylock was...well you just have to watch it to understand, it's odd to say the least.

The pilot episode introduced us to the team and their home as they attempted to solve the mystery of who destroyed Carl's car. The concept was simple and originally it was going to continue as a mystery of the week kind of concept but soon evolved to just plain weird and crazy ideas.

Supporting Characters:

Easily the best thing about the show is the recurring or random characters that come across the Aqua Teen crew.

Dr. Weird and Steve - When the show first started they would have these 30 second teasers that would feature Dr. Weird and Steve. The Doctor had a few screws loose and usually the teasers would end with him or Steve seriously injured or unleashing something that would eventually plague the team. Easily some of the more fun voice acting on the show it's something long term fans miss and wish would come back.

The Mooninites - Hard drinking, sassy, prone to violence and grand larceny Igignokt and Errr have been on the show since its very first season. They are also easily my favorite characters. They've managed to pull poor innocent Meatwad into a few of their schemes and of course are just a thorn in the side of our main characters.

The Plutonians - Oglethorpe and Emory who are similar to the Mooninites but easily have a lower intelligence factor. Mostly harmless, they've also been a thorn in the side of the Aqua Teens for a while as they tried to broil Master Shake, attempted to take over the earth with a piss poor Shake clone and even created the Remonster who was an all purpose remote control.

MC Pee Pants - He's gone under many names like Sir Loin and become many different creatures. But he started as a giant spider and raps about wanting candy amongst other things. He also apparently works for Satan. A highlight of the show for the Chris Ward aka MC Chris voice acting alone he's easily a fan favorite throughout the history of the show.

Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past - He claims to come from the future and has even appeared before the cast as a robot turkey. His visions are very erratic and never make a lot of sense but you can't help but laugh at the madness that he brings into the show. From a story about a giant ape named Santa to hiding from Glen Danzig who buys Carl's house at one point, he is yet another constant on the show.

Boxy Brown - Meatwad's imaginary cardboard box friend who only he can hear. Occasionally threatening to slice people down the middle and looking like Shaft are things that you can expect when seeing Boxy.

Voice Acting/Guest Stars:

Something you can expect from the show is the caliber of talent that Matt and Dave get to guest voice. It's actually really surprising just who they managed to pull in.

Patton Oswalt (stand up comedian, big fanboy and plenty of movie roles) played a frat boy alien

David Cross (Arrested Development among many other things) played a born again piece of Christian fruit who was attempting to beat his past of being a drug addict as well as a suicidal doll named Happy Time Harry,

H. Jon Benjamin(Coach McGuirk) played Mothmonsterman/Mr. Sticks/and was one of the fruit with David Cross

Scott Adsit (30 Rock) played Hoppy Bunny

Bruce Campbell (Army of Darkness, Burn Notice) played Chicken Bittle

Tina Fey (30 rock, SNL) was the Aqua Teens' mother

Chris Katan (SNL) a watermelon

Glen Danzig played himself

Zak Wyld played himself

Tera Patrick played herself

The guest stars never felt forced and I could keep going with the list as we are almost at episode #100. But honestly the guest stars never outshined the main cast and really the voices of the actual cast and close friends like George Lowe (Space Ghost) were always highlights when appearing.

Controversy Abounds:

For those that were living under a rock a few years ago, Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Adult Swim ran into some trouble in Boston a few years ago. Basically black boxes that were along the lines of Lite Brites in the image of the Mooninites were posted in several cities to promote the new season and the movie as part of the marketing. But Boston's mayor and those in the office spent a shit ton of money to blow them up and make sure they weren't bombs...even though most people were already telling them "Hey idiots, it's from a cartoon and harmless." but they went ahead and did it anyways.

The other cities could not have cared less about it and didn't really react to them and I know I still sort of want one of them. It was an all around stupid moment for the "brilliant" political office of Boston and still makes me shake my head. I guess the Mooninites won that one!

The Movie:

Not satisfied with staying on the small screen, the guys made a movie which is risky for a cartoon that only runs 11 minutes an episode. It was very simply called "Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie Film for Theatres" and featured Carl, the Aqua Teens, the Mooninites, the Plutonians, Dr. Weird and some very random guest stars on a quest to find out the origin of the Teens all while trying to stop a device called the Insane O Flex.

It runs for almost 90 minutes and really shows the charm of the show and its voice actors and works on a lot of levels. From Dana Snyder's Master Shake singing Nude Love to the Insane O Flex blaring a song called "I like your booty but I'm not gay" it really is something that has to be seen to be believed.

Mind you the "origin" story really leaves you with more questions and confusion then answers; it's still a fun little popcorn flick to watch, especially hearing uncensored Master Shake or Bruce Campbell as our fourth Aqua Teen.

Favorite episodes:

Escape from Leprechaupolis - It was episode 2 and still very early on in the series but easily one of my favorites. A trio of leprechauns steal a rainbow machine from Dr. Weird and it's up to Shake, Frylock and Meatwad to save the day. With some very funny deadpanned lines and a memorable speech from Meatwad, it's easily one of the best episodes of the show.

Mooninites - The first appearance of everyone's favorite 2-D trouble makers and really a sense of what the show would be up to in the long run. It features a chain smoking Meatwad and the classic boasting of how supposedly the moon has 5,000 dimensions. All in all a classic episode.

Bus of the Undead - Shake decides to get the Shake Signal which he puts on his head and it's supposedly so people can contact the team. This soon leads into some trouble as Mothmonsterman appears as he just wants the light and leads to Carl being pissed off. It also features the first appearance of the cloner and assisted living Dracula on the TV. Also it has the first real argument where we get a sense of the characters (like the fact that a bus can't be a vampire)

Ol' Drippy - Thanks to Shake never picking up after himself, sentient life grows in the kitchen and Drippy is born. He soon becomes Meatwad's best friend and gets Shake kicked out of the house. Sadly the character doesn't last as he meets a horrible end thanks to Shake by the end of the episode.

Dumber Dolls - The first appearance of David Cross on the show and really one of the funniest episode of the show as we get a discussion of the Highlander and a suicidal doll which causes problems thanks to Frylock being cheap. It also brings up the question...why does a hillbilly need night vision goggles?

Love Mummy - My friends and I used to quote this episode all the time and it's my opinion it's one of the most underrated of the show. Frylock and Meatwad discover a mummy in the basement of the house and things get worse from there as he threatens the team with a curse.

Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past - The ghost makes his first appearance as he tells Carl that his house is cursed due to where it's built on and it starts bleeding. We get a terrible story of an evil monkey Santa Claus and his alien work force. Carl decides to move out and we get Glenn Danzig as himself offering to buy the house.

Super Bowl - Meatwad wins tickets to the Super Bowl and both Carl and Shake want to go. Of course when Meatwad leaves the tickets behind and brings Boxy along, Shake tries his best to find more tickets and ends up becoming diabetic.

Super Spore - An alien arrives at the Aqua Teen's home and it's up to Frylock and Meatwad to turn him into an honorable member of society. But of course the alien's old habits die hard and he has to use Shake for most of the episode to speak for him.

Universal Remonster - The Plutonians do their best to not get sued by the creators of Stargate and steal cable from the Aqua Teens. Of course Frylock discovers what they are up to and puts a fast end to it.

Broodwich - An evil sandwich is discovered by Shake and whenever he takes a bite from it he's transferred to an alternate reality (beautifully animated) it also features Jon Glaser and H. John Benjamin in a few really funny scenes as Shake sifts between the two dimensions.

The Dressing - A robotic turkey with a very familiar voice appears at the team's house for Thanksgiving. He gets drunk and regales them with the tales of exactly what he's doing there. This episode features one of my favorite endings for the show ever.

The Cloning - Frylock reveals to the guys how he keeps getting all the TVs when they destroy one and he tells them that he'll do it one more time and that's it. This TV turns out to be evil and gives Meatwad, Shake and Carl horrible visions of things that don't happen. And when they decide to clone money, a President pays them a visit to try and change their minds.

Gee Whiz - Has one of my favorite moments in any episode as Frylock teaches Meatwad about censorship. Meanwhile people claim to see Jesus in a billboard and Ted Nugent guest stars.

Robositter - Shake and Frylock get jobs and Frylock creates a robot babysitter for Meatwad while they are away (played by Sarah Silverman). Of course as usual things take a turn for the worse and Frylock has to pick up the pieces.

Hypnogerm - Shake starts to hallucinate after getting hypnogerms from a toilet seat and Frylock sends Mexican jumping beans into his system to help save the day. Most of the episode ends up taking place inside of Master Shake and it's easily one of the weirdest episodes to ever air for the show. Fans either love it or hate it.

Dirtfoot - Shake falls into a well to gain media attention and babes but ends up roommates with Dirtfoot, a creature who proves to be very difficult to live with.

Hand Banana - Frylock creates a pet dog for Meatwad who looks like one of Shake's hands and constantly attacks Carl. Carl attempts to get revenge on the dog but sadly only makes things worse for himself.

Antenna - Carl gets 40 thousand dollars to house a giant tower over his house and Frylock does his best to find out why as Carl gets worse. Mike Judge and Will Forte guest star and George Lowe returns playing himself.

Ezekiel - Another milkshake appears, younger than Master Shake and everyone thinks that the tiny milkshake is his son. The episode had Shake facing down whether or not he could be a good father or not and features Patton Oswalt as the very cute Ezekiel who turns out to be older and smarter than Shake.

Robots everywhere, Sirens and Couples Skate - This was a three part arc that featured an immortal vampire named Markula who was the Aqua Teens landlord. He captures them and has Carl attempt to find a new tenant for the house. So the three episodes barely have the team but are really some of the stronger writing for the show and have some truly memorable lines.

Dummy Love - The first guest appearance of T-pain and is an homage to Child's Play as a killer dummy makes his way to the Aqua Teens home. Of course when Meatwad wishes them to be real, the guys truly get more then what they aimed for.

Bible Fruit - David Cross returns with H. Jon Benjamin and Kristen Schaal who come to meet Frylock from a website. They soon reveal that they are not at all what he thought they were as Bert Banana does his best to fight his inner demons.

Der Inflatable Fuhrer - Frylock is hired by a mysterious benefactor to make a deadly disease but quickly decides the job isn't worth it and the team comes face to face with a balloon that has the spirit of Hitler in it and has an army of balloons that Frylock does his best to stop. Also, Meatwad coverts to a new religion.

The Last Last One Forever and Ever - The live action Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode where Frylock is played by t-pain, Shake is H John Benjamin and Meatwad is an exercise ball. Shake does his best to finish his dream script and gets advice from the exercise ball in the room he rents from Frylock. It's absurd and definitely exactly like the series.

Verdict:

Aqua Teen Hunger Force has been the one constant thing on Adult Swim through its almost full decade of inception. It's finally coming on to episode #100 which no other original Adult Swim show has come close to. It's bizarre, fun and just over all funny.

There are 6 DVD collections out as well as the movie which can be found online as well as in some select retail stores. I highly recommend it to those who are fans of crazy cartoons.

Well that's it for this week folks. Join us next time as we talk about something else that has caught my eye. See you next time!

Eric Ratcliffe is a young writer/pop culture journalist/interviewer currently working on pitching a project named the Hunter chronicles. When not reading his weekly stack Eric can be found watching dvd's, playing on his 360 (gamertag: Zack Hunter) or just surfing online trying to find a scoop or two. Brand new to the Comic Related family, Eric is a fun new voice. Eric shops at TJ's Collectibles. Visit them on the web at www.tjcollect.com!