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Category:    Home > Reviews > Animation > Comedy > Satire > Action > Superhero > Spoof > TV > Robot Chicken – DC Comics Special (Warner Blu-ray) + SuperJail! – Season 3 (2009 – 2010/Adult Swim/Warner DVD)

Robot Chicken – DC Comics Special (Warner Blu-ray) + SuperJail! – Season 3 (2009 – 2010/Adult Swim/Warner DVD)

 

Picture: B     Sound: B     Extras: B     Episodes: B/B+

 

Robot Chicken has poked fun at superheroes since its creation, so it is only appropriate that they created a whole special centering on the DC Universe.  After the success of the Robot Chicken: Star Wars Special their next venture was a 23 minute look into the day to day activities of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, The Flash, and many other super beings from the world of DC.

 

I am a big fan of DC as well as Robot Chicken so I knew this special was a must see.  This is the same special that aired on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim some months back, but is now available on Blu-ray.  None of the content has changed, but is merely a means to watch the hilarity again and again.  Like most Robot Chicken episodes this special is hit or miss; there are some great jokes/cutaways, then there are those that are horrible flops.  Overall, the special was great.

 

As in the past, Robot Chicken continues to utilize stop-motion animation and a variety of altered action figures/toys/custom models to create their work.  In the case of DC Comics Special the creators made use of many classic Mego Action Figures, which was fun to see.  As previously mentioned not every joke is a hit (some that really should have been on the cutting room floor), but for DC fans this is a hilarious manner in which to poke fun at our infallible heroes.

 

SuperJail! Returns for a Third Season and is as great as ever.  The animation continues to retain its rough, highly detailed, psychedelic feel and the stories are as violent as ever.  On some level the quality of animation has improved over the past three seasons, but as the style is intentionally dilapidated not much has changed.

 

What also has changed is the gruesomely amazing content!  The stories are fasted paced and trippy; having plenty of violence along the way.  This is by no means a children’s series as the content (often violent and sexually explicit) caters to a more open minded and mature audience.  There are 10 episodes this season and in all honesty is one of the funniest most creative animated series to ever appear on television.

 

The ten episodes are as follows:

1.      Stingstress

2.      Super Fail!

3.      Uh-Oh Magic

4.      Sticky Discharge

5.      Special Needs

6.      Troubles with Triples

7.      Night Shift

8.      Oedipusmess

9.      Planet Radio

10.  Burn Stoolie Burn

Special features for SuperJail! Include:

·         Introstring Featurette

·         Animatics

·         Rough Cuts

 

The picture on SuperJail! again is presented in a simple standard definition that highlights the crude animation nicely as the image is crisp, clean and very bright.  The color spectrum is wide as the primary colors pop from scene to scene with reds, greens and blues light up the screen.  The sound has been upgraded from its original Stereo track to a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, which is very nice as the series is lively and deserves a more dynamic track.  It isn’t perfect but definitely an upgrade.

 

Robot Chicken: DC Special is presented in a High Definition 1.78 X 1 widescreen (not the stated 2.4 X 1 on the back cover) that has wonderful colors, good black levels, and great detail.  You can see every nook and cranny of the superhero toys and is exemplary to all of the work that goes into bringing the series to life.  The sound is a Dolby 5.1 True HD lossless mix that comes blasting from the front with only a minimal amount of full speaker range utilized; though the dialogue was crisp, clean, and clear.

 

The extras for Robot Chicken include:

·        5.2 Questions

·        Cut Sketches

·        Outtakes

·        DC Entertainment Tour @ DC offices

·        Writers’ Commentary

·        Actors’ Commentary

·        Chicken Nuggest – Commentary by Seth Green and Geoff Johns

·        RCDC’s Aquaman Origin Story – a look at why there was such a focus on Aquaman

·        The Making of the RCDC Special

·        Stoopid Alter Egos

 

 

-   Michael P. Dougherty II


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