Review: Superjail 101

With the premiere of Superjail last week, it hit me that Adult Swim seems to be following a distinct theme with all its new programming (the stuff that isn’t cheaply produced live action crap). That theme being that super violence = super AWESOME! And while I may find it hard for my baser instincts to argue against such a theme, it does make me yearn for something a bit more substantial from the only television block that caters to adult fans of animation. But I digress; Superjail is, in a word: AWESOME!

The concept behind the show is simple enough; In every episode, the lowly criminal Jackknife is captured in the midst of a crime and taken to Superjail: a psychedelic prison run by a megalomaniacal Warden. The episode then loosely follows his escape. Jackknife is far from the main character of the show though. Mostly, his plight is a framing device for the antics of the regular inhabitants of the jail, most prominently those of the aforementioned Warden.

The image that immediately leapt to my mind when I saw the Warden in action was that of a slightly crazier, seemingly omnipotent Willy Wonka. He has to ability to control the very fabric of reality, which he uses for his own selfish, flighty whims. The Superjail itself seems to be constructed in his own fantastical, normally impossible way, and he seems to have no regard for the safety of others. In this episode he seeks to gain the love of Alice, Superjail’s only guard. Her very masculine features–especially the bulge in her skirt–seem to hint toward her being a Transsexual. But that’s not a deterrent for the Warden who seeks to create a bar at the Superjail so he can legitimately socialize with Alice, despite there being a policy against dating coworkers. This bar is met with much worry from Jared, the Superjail’s accountant with a very big head, and a recovering alcohol addiction. But he finds it impossible to disapprove with the Warden’s wishes on anything, except perhaps when under the influence of alcohol.

The plot is minimal, although there are hints at a developing relationship–or lack thereof–between the Warden and Alice. Frankly, whatever plot there is seems to be an excuse to get to the extraordinary sequence of death and violence near the end when an awry escape plan lets loose the flood waters from an undersea kingdom. But that’s entirely forgivable.

Let me explain why.

Beyond the sequence of crazy graphic violence, there are two things about this show that are truly fantastical: its art direction which looks like a cross between a Mike Judge production, a heavy metal music video, and drug-induced coma; and its animation, which is not only good for Adult Swim standards—it is several hundred miles ahead of any Adult Swim production I’ve seen—it’s good for theatrical short standards. Really, the work here is extremely impressive. The Warden’s movements are especially great, showing off many principles of animation that other Adult Swim shorts neglect. Not to mention, Superjail is animated in flash.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I absolutely loathe most Flash cartoons on TV. The medium adds almost nothing to the animation art form except making things cheaper to produce. I have expressed this distaste at least one time in the past; so believe me when I say that Superjail is a true exception to the rule. In fact, it practically legitimatizes the use of the tool in a professional setting. It disregards the excessive use of motion-tweening for traditional frame-by-frame animation, which is such a huge relief when compared to Adult Swim’s usual fare. And from what I’ve heard, it’s made completely in-house which is something rarely heard of. I can’t imagine how long it must of taken to animate everything.

Try Superjail out. I think it really deserves a viewing. Some people have complained that its not exactly funny which is usually what Adult Swim strives for with the original productions; but then again, my favorite show is The Venture Bros. which has rarely made me laugh. Superjail is amusing at least, and the level of violence surpasses the point of excessiveness. I’m not normally one for extreme violence, but in this case, it’s strangely hypnotic.

There’s a lot of potential here. I hope they can go far.