Spoiler Alert: If you’ve never seen the first season of the show and you would like to, then don’t read this! If you have and you still want to be surprised, then don’t read this! Everyone else who doesn’t fit the previous two statements, read on.
Supposedly the second season of The Venture Brothers took a long time to appear because the Cartoon Network/Adult Swim was slow to decide on renewing and the show’s production cycles are the same as other “hand-drawn” programs like The Simpsons. It was very frustrating since the first ended on a cliffhanger:
- What exactly did Dr. Venture say when the brothers were killed? Most people said, “I’ll get their clothes.” Yet it sounded like “clones.”
- Why weren’t Brock and Dr. Venture distraught when they died?
- Was this the end of the show? Many of the loose ends were wrapped up such as the source of Dr. Venture’s nightmares, the Monarch going to jail and the brothers’ death.
All of this and more are answered in the first episode with hilarious, gross and weird results. It also continues the other storyline of the Monarch versus the Phantom Limb for the affections of Dr. Girlfriend. With the brothers back from the dead in the second episode, the season then moves on with new adventures involving some crazy woman claiming to be their mother, Brock having to kill his mentor (a parody of Hunter Thompson) and Dr. Orpheus forming his own hero team since the Guild of Calamitous Intent has approved a nemesis for him. Past villains, rivals and allies return too: Professor Impossible (aka Stephen Colbert), Baron Underbheit, Colonel Manstrong, Girl Hitler, Molotov Cocktease and the original Dr. Venture’s cohorts. Everyone’s favorite henchmen, 21 and 24, receive more screen time as they’re instrumental to the Monarch-Dr. Girlfriend arc. New characters with different voice actors appear too: Jefferson Twilight (a Blade parody who only hunts blaculas), The Alchemist (Dana Snyder aka Master Shake), Orpheus’s mentor (H. Jon Benjamin), Dr. Killinger, Kim (Triana’s friend) and minor characters covered by Brendon Small. Places from season one are revisited too, namely the fate of Venture’s failed space station Gargantua-1 and Spider Skull Island. The Guild is fleshed out as well with the revelation of who its leader Sovereign really is…someone very famous, much to Brock’s consternation.
This season is definitely more killer than filler. For me, the only throwaway episode was an intentionally disjointed one that presents itself as part two of a three-part story. The remainder must be watched in order due to the ongoing events involving the Monarch and Dr. Girlfriend reuniting. True to its predecessor, this also ends on a cliffhanger but the writers didn’t leave any decent or vague hints as to what Dr. Girlfriend revealed to the Monarch.
My complaints over the first season’s weak features are amplified on this set. There are deleted scenes which are usually enjoyable as most were cut for time; one or two had to be shortened since you can tell the actor is ad-libbing. However, the other offerings are a tour of Astrobase Go (painfully dull) and more meandering, not insightful, pointless commentaries on all 13 episodes instead of four. In defense of McCullough, Hammer and Urbaniak, I readily admit to being spoiled by Matt Groening’s shows. The Simpsons set the standard I judge commentaries’ worthiness by. I just don’t think it’s too much to ask that the people talking during the episode explain the obscure references, the story behind making it, what it was like working with Stephen Colbert or Brendon Small, so on. Banter and prattling isn’t a feature, it’s egotistical noise and crap which is why I was I unimpressed by DVDs when they first appeared. The guys behind this show are brilliant but I feel it would be smarter for them to skip doing commentaries or attend a special class on how to do it well (note to self, talk to VC about starting a commentary school). Otherwise, they’re wasting everyone’s time which could be focused on the upcoming third and fourth season.
Is this worth owning? I’m still debating the whole DVD ownership mentality lately. I just don’t really watch the same movie again that frequently nor am I big video buff, compared to music. I find myself just keeping particular series for their relative obscurity so I can loan them to friends who never heard of Mission Hill or lack cable. The real question should be, is this worth watching, borrowing or renting? My answers are yes (without the lame features), yes and yes. The Venture Brothers is still one of the Cartoon Network/Adult Swim’s best creations and proof of how animation can go beyond live shows for humor, action and absurdity.
Until season three, slated for the end of 2007 to early 2008, Go Team Venture!