While there’s been a huge wave of disappointment over Groening’s new show for Netflix, I want to bring up a pair of cartoons which are much, much worse. Not as a way to raise Disenchantment‘s ratings by trashing others. No. I will blather on how much like it but I want to watch it all the way through one more time before I write. My point in in bringing these other shows forward for criticism is that I hope to spare you all from wasting any of your time and hopefully the people running Netflix’s algorithm will tweak it, then produce something a helluva’ lot better. Stuff on par with Bojack Horseman, F is for Family, All Hail King Julian! and Big Mouth, the latter returns this October!
First up is what I’m guessing is an Australian version of Archer, aka Pacific Heat. In short, it’s the misadventures of four cops stationed in Queensland fighting gangsters, terrorists, whatever. One officer is smart, one is vain and two aren’t very bright. Most attempts at humor are its rapid-fire dialog (I think these are supposed to be the jokes) and showing semi-racist stereotypes of Asians. The accents are probably dumb downed for a wider audience but after a couple episodes, I just couldn’t find it funny nor amusing. The animation quality is also pretty terrible, resembles what people did with Flash in Nineties.
Debuting over this weekend if Paradise PD and it’s from the team who are responsible (or we can blame) for Brickleberry. It’s practically the same show, just swap out the park rangers for cops and throw in additional gore, cursing and nudity because you can on Netflix. It has the A-list when it comes to voice actors: Tom Kenny, David Herman, Sarah Chalke (Beth on Rick & Morty) and Grey Griffin (formerly DeLisle). The problem here is the premise is tired and old; an incompetent police department yet the spin is this is in animated form. There were greater and funnier shows I can quickly list to put your time to better use: The Thin Blue Line with Rowan Atkinson; Barney Miller, hell Brooklyn 99 and I’ve never seen that, I’m going on the recommendation of friends I trust.
The jokes in Paradise go for what the creators must think are easy laughs. They are, if you’re under 20 and even then, the funniest show before this was Family Guy.
Even if you don’t watch either of these turds in Netflix’s punch bowl, please do me a favor, search for them, mark ’em “thumbs down,” and we can hope Reed Hastings gets the hint on how to have his staff vet harder on what’s actually funny.