China, Il

[Majikthise]

So, the episode just finished airing. What did everyone think of it? I really dug it.

[WafflesOMD]

hmmm idk ill need to give it a couple episodes.......it was good but it didnt feel right...maybe its the change in animation

[TheHafk]

We need rebel zebra, We need the zeeb.

This show was worth the long wait. Fantastic.

[StephenHero]

Initial response: enjoyed most of what I saw. Need a rewatch and more episodes to make full judgement, but a funny episode of television.

I was expecting a version of "Community" from the staff's perspective, but it turned out to be (and not in a bad way) a bit different from that, reminding me at times of "Tom Goes To The Mayor".

[Plstcsldgr]

any one where to find  that rap baby cakes had for the commercial for the show it went ICU and UCI cant find it any where.  great little song there.

[Swymco]

fuuuuuudge yeah!

I love this show. I'm glad Baby Cakes and the Professor Brothers made the jump to TV. The only thing that seemed off to me was Hulk Hogan doing the voice of the Dean. Everything else was perfect!

I wonder if there is going to be a Baby Cakes episode. The pilot did suggest that most of the stories would happen from his point of view.

I'm looking foward to the rest of the season. This show can go a lot of places.

[Roxas666]

I'm liking it, funny stuff.

Next ep looks nice.

[God-Says-No]

i liked it
better than there live action.

[chelydra]

I'm going to hang on for the ride...  THROUGH TIME!

[SwimMod_Luuv]

It was fantastic.  I'm a Neely fan though too.  I had an initial kneejerk reaction the first time I saw his work (unfocused superficial sort of reaction) that I hated his stuff.  But literally like, the first time I actually looked at it and focused on it, I thought it was crazy funny.  That was back in the Babycakes days.

Was excited about China, Ill, It did not disappoint.  In fact, my expectations were very high and it surpassed.

Things that worried me going in:  Animation and style.  I was sort of wondering how one would f with the other.  Like, to get a "show" ready for air, would they sacrifice that fantastically simplistic Neely art style that works so well in communicating the ideas and humor of the pieces.  The recent "ramping up" of the animation on Superjail I'm actually still not completely comfortable with.  Though I see how it's slicker and faster and prettier and whatever else, this whole season I couldn't shake that feeling that I wasn't watching Superjail at all.  Was thinking I'd have a similar feeling with China.

But the director and animators did a great job.  It was fluid, it felt like a cartoon, very nicely animated, and yet it didn't walk on that simplistic alt comix Neely feel of the art.

And most importantly, funny as hell.  Straight up funniest premiere I've seen on AS in a long time. 

I always knew Neely was perfect for AS.  I was a little worried about how the work woutd translate.

I have to say, for my money, they knocked it completely out of the park. 

I hope it's a hit for them, it definitely deserves to be.

[SwimMod_Luuv]

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Swymco wrote:

This show can go a lot of places.

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Yeah this too.  It's like watching Childrens Hospital, I sometimes wonder how they can keep up the pace.  Maybe it's the 11 minute format or something.  But Neely seems to be one of those sort of endlessly creative/funny type people.  And somebody who can hit hard with the pacing and humor, and there's still a lot of like - ideas and philosophy embedded in it as well.  It's just really interesting stuff, and it's rare to find somebody that can throw that kind of stuff out with the level of humor and that insanely quick pacing and do it well.

I was super happy with this show.  It's been awhile since a show came along that got me excited about the whole block again.  China Il definitely accomplished that.  I'm into a lot of AS shows, but it's been awhile since a premiere shot through Sunday and blew my doors off.

[Majikthise]

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God-Says-No wrote:
i liked it
better than there live action.

---

Your "their/there" confusion makes you sound like a redneck.

[HolyLoliSoul]

I dug it before you were even born and will continue to dig it far into the next universe's heat-death.

[viperxmns]

I liked it

[God-Says-No]

your face makes you look like a butt

[VTEKID]

Rubbish. I don't think I laughed once.

I'll give it another shot, but idk. I think it svcked.

[Uppercrust]

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StephenHero wrote:

Initial response: enjoyed most of what I saw. Need a rewatch and more episodes to make full judgement, but a funny episode of television.

I was expecting a version of "Community" from the staff's perspective, but it turned out to be (and not in a bad way) a bit different from that, reminding me at times of "Tom Goes To The Mayor".

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I read your comment before I saw the episode, so I was looking out for things that might be TGTTMesque.  To be completely honest, I didn't see anything, and I'm a huge TGTTM fan.

The interactions in TGTTM were more awkwardly subdued and dry.  I don't know how to characterize the atmosphere of this show after one episode, but it certainly didn't give off the same vibe, in my opinion.

I don't want this show to be like TGTTM, though.  It would be better off carving its own identity. 

I'm not blown away by anything yet, but the show kept my interest.  I'll be tuning in again.

[StephenHero]

It was like TGTTM to me because:

1) The protagonist, albeit unlike Tom, is trying to achieve a goal of not achieving anything.

2) The protagonist's attempt(s), much like Tom's, are subverted by a(n undeserving) figure of higher authority.

3) The lengths taken by the protagonist to succeed, and the actions of the subverters is on farcical par (if not equally visually outrageous, and admittedly they aren't quite yet) with some of the Mayor's shenanigans.

I think I had another point, but it escapes me currently...

I did not try, with my original post, to say this was a (for lack of a better way of phrasing) carbon-copy or the direct successor of TGTTM (and I know that you never made the claim I did), but rather I was trying to imply my expectations for the show being like program X (Community) were met with the realization that, yes, while like program X, China IL is more like program Y (TGTTM) because it relies more on the duo dynamic (and their interactions with temporary, read episodic, foils) than it does the group based situational humor. For all I know, next weeks episode might remind me of Code Monkeys, or the pacing might be similar to (since its on my mind) Arrested Development.

I do think you're right in that the speech patterns of the characters are far removed from that of TGTTM, so if nothing else we can at least completely agree on that.

[Uppercrust]

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StephenHero wrote:

It was like TGTTM to me because:

1) The protagonist, albeit unlike Tom, is trying to achieve a goal of not achieving anything.

2) The protagonist's attempt(s), much like Tom's, are subverted by a(n undeserving) figure of higher authority.

3) The lengths taken by the protagonist to succeed, and the actions of the subverters is on farcical par (if not equally visually outrageous, and admittedly they aren't quite yet) with some of the Mayor's shenanigans.

I think I had another point, but it escapes me currently...

I did not try, with my original post, to say this was a (for lack of a better way of phrasing) carbon-copy or the direct successor of TGTTM (and I know that you never made the claim I did), but rather I was trying to imply my expectations for the show being like program X (Community) were met with the realization that, yes, while like program X, China IL is more like program Y (TGTTM) because it relies more on the duo dynamic (and their interactions with temporary, read episodic, foils) than it does the group based situational humor. For all I know, next weeks episode might remind me of Code Monkeys, or the pacing might be similar to (since its on my mind) Arrested Development.

I do think you're right in that the speech patterns of the characters are far removed from that of TGTTM, so if nothing else we can at least completely agree on that.

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1)  Fair enough

2)  Fair enough

3)  Fair enough

Y' know, I watched a clip where the creators touched on that aspect of their show.  For whatever reason the premiere episode just didn't strike me as such.  Upon a second viewing, it became more clear to me that the situations were more dysfunctional than I'd thought.  The staff at the community college and Tom Peters are both well-meaning.  The Mayor of Jefferton, however,  is more psychotic and downright impossible to work with.  Whereas the staff, it seems, is more light-hearted and create there own problems from within.  No pushovers like Tom, who doesn't have the guts to keep the Mayor from twisting all his plans to make Jefferton a better place. 

Oh yeah, I totally understand the comparison.  It's what we do when something new comes out; we try to make sense of it by comparing it to something that's already around. 

[GucciCreatalias]

Been a fan of this **beast** for along time, been waiting for this **beast** a long time...somethings not right. Baby Cakes was said to be the Kramer on a behind the scene preview. Why are they comparing this **beast** to Seinfeld.  I thought Baby Cakes was a mildly retarded man baby with a scued, yet brilliant, life outlook. Baby Cakes is Franks student, his father is Franks close friend, Baby Cakes thinks they're **beast** wizards.  It's not the same. Like there is to much of an attempt by Adult Swim trying to make this a sitcom and not enough raw Neely. Waiting to watch the new episode. If I'm still not about to **beast** myself in anticipation for next week's episode after tonight. I'm going to start demanding they free Neely. With my huge **beast** of a voice.

[GucciCreatalias]

I'm still not **beast**ting myself, but I may be pissing my self

[funky_branca]

y'all

what does the sign language dude say at the end when frank is celebrating

[TheTimesplitter98]

I was skeptical how it would transition to from simple animated web shorts to a fully animated TV show, but I thought it stuck to the original formula and was funny as hell.

[4-HBabe]

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Plstcsldgr wrote:

any one where to find  that rap baby cakes had for the commercial for the show it went ICU and UCI cant find it any where.  great little song there.

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here

[4-HBabe]

Any new series that starts out mocking Ronald Reagan has my attention.