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Rex The Runt
A&E Video // Unrated // September 24, 2002
List Price: $39.95 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The folks at Aardman certainly have my undying respect as animators and talented storytellers. They gave us "Chicken Run", and "Wallace and Gromit" along with a slew of fantastic short films. With "Rex the Runt" we are taken on a ride of the absurd. British humor escapes me somewhat, but I guess this is what gets the Brits laughing. I myself don't find it as hilarious as some do, but I can intellectually see where the humor comes from, it just doesn't appeal to my own sensibilities as much.
With this collection we are treated to a much less technically animated series and much more of a fun wild and stupid ride through the tales of Dog Rex the Runt and his cohorts. Despite the fact they don't look like dogs, the gang includes; eye-patch wearing "Bad Bob", Wendy the snobbish, unstable bored girl, and Rex's pet dog Vince who has Pavorotti-syndrome which means he has unexpected spasms, frequent bouts of silliness, and of course uttering the Barber of Seville's opening notes on occasion. If I had to pick a favorite character it would be Vince. He seems to have been inspired by Bill the Cat from Bloom County with the most capacity for humor and absurdity. Vince rarely speaks and has a wonderfully deadpan look to him that makes the audience wonder what might be on his mind. Rex gives us the narrative as the TV anchorman guiding us through each hair brained story.
The episodes really aren't about storytelling so much as finding humor in various situations and scenarios. As plasticine and extremely bouncy as the adventures are, the characters themselves are a bit stiff and doughboy-like, I found it hard to find the humor when there isn't a lot of character to be found in the players. The characterization that does exist relies mostly on voice talents, facial expression and frantic pacing of the visual elements and scenarios. Claymation is the method as most of Aardmans work is and the animation is anything but fluid and emotive. I understand it wasn't meant to be and I'm not saying its bad at all. I just personally don't find it laugh-out-loud funny. There are certainly entertaining situations and humor to be found, but for my time there are much better choices for this in animation. I do give credit for Aardman for making this a bit more mature level of work than most animation that is aimed strictly at kid audiences.
I guess if I had to classify this animation collection I would call it much more "fun" than I would humorous. The imagination and twisted nature of the episodes is really wild and varied. I was always surprised to see what came next in this world of total fantasy and twisted fiction. If you like British Humor (Monty Python, Benny Hill) then you will most likely identify with Rex the Runt. The props and sets used are very interesting and I found myself freeze framing a lot to give them closer inspection.
VIDEO: It's only available in a Full Screen 1.33:1 as it was made for the Telly. The video clarity is very sharp and the colors look saturated and rich.
AUDIO: Quality is clear but lacks any real punch in this 2 channel Dolby Digital track. The explosions and other sound effects are noticeable, but not overpowering by any means.
MENUS: The menu designs are static, yet colorful and very fitting of animated content from Aardman.
Disc 1
1) Holiday in Vince
2) Adventures in Telly part 1
3) Adventures in Telly part 2
4) Adventures in Telly part 3
5) Bobs International Hiccup Centre
6) Easter Island
7) Too Many Dogs
8) The Trials of Wendy
9) Stinkys Search for a Star
10) Under the Duvet
11) Johnny Saveloys Undoing
12) The City Shrinkers
13) Carbonara
Extras
Photo Gallery - Photos of many of the characters and stills from the episodes.
Character Bio's - Text based biographies of each main character.
Series Creator Biography - Text based biography of Richard Goleszowski.
Disc 2
1) Mouse in my Kitchen
2) Wendys Hot Date
3) Patio
4) Crap Day Out
5) Slim Bob
6) Private Wendy
7) Rocket Raymond
8) Plasticine Gene
9) Wendys New Hairdo
10) Wayne the Zebra
11) Art of Cooking
12) Bob Joins a Gang
13) Hole in the Garden
Extras
Season 2 Trailer
Wendy's Photo Shoot - 3 shots of Wendy from her photo shoot.
Weblink to Rex the Runt.com
This kind of animation may be an acquired taste for some people, but many others find it very funny. It's a bit more mature level of humor for older kids and adults. I would recommend renting it to see if it's something that appeals to you or your kids. There certainly isn't any profanity here, but some parents may be sensitive to some of the violent scenes although they are done very much in the style of "cartoon" animation.
With this collection we are treated to a much less technically animated series and much more of a fun wild and stupid ride through the tales of Dog Rex the Runt and his cohorts. Despite the fact they don't look like dogs, the gang includes; eye-patch wearing "Bad Bob", Wendy the snobbish, unstable bored girl, and Rex's pet dog Vince who has Pavorotti-syndrome which means he has unexpected spasms, frequent bouts of silliness, and of course uttering the Barber of Seville's opening notes on occasion. If I had to pick a favorite character it would be Vince. He seems to have been inspired by Bill the Cat from Bloom County with the most capacity for humor and absurdity. Vince rarely speaks and has a wonderfully deadpan look to him that makes the audience wonder what might be on his mind. Rex gives us the narrative as the TV anchorman guiding us through each hair brained story.
The episodes really aren't about storytelling so much as finding humor in various situations and scenarios. As plasticine and extremely bouncy as the adventures are, the characters themselves are a bit stiff and doughboy-like, I found it hard to find the humor when there isn't a lot of character to be found in the players. The characterization that does exist relies mostly on voice talents, facial expression and frantic pacing of the visual elements and scenarios. Claymation is the method as most of Aardmans work is and the animation is anything but fluid and emotive. I understand it wasn't meant to be and I'm not saying its bad at all. I just personally don't find it laugh-out-loud funny. There are certainly entertaining situations and humor to be found, but for my time there are much better choices for this in animation. I do give credit for Aardman for making this a bit more mature level of work than most animation that is aimed strictly at kid audiences.
I guess if I had to classify this animation collection I would call it much more "fun" than I would humorous. The imagination and twisted nature of the episodes is really wild and varied. I was always surprised to see what came next in this world of total fantasy and twisted fiction. If you like British Humor (Monty Python, Benny Hill) then you will most likely identify with Rex the Runt. The props and sets used are very interesting and I found myself freeze framing a lot to give them closer inspection.
VIDEO: It's only available in a Full Screen 1.33:1 as it was made for the Telly. The video clarity is very sharp and the colors look saturated and rich.
AUDIO: Quality is clear but lacks any real punch in this 2 channel Dolby Digital track. The explosions and other sound effects are noticeable, but not overpowering by any means.
MENUS: The menu designs are static, yet colorful and very fitting of animated content from Aardman.
Disc 1
1) Holiday in Vince
2) Adventures in Telly part 1
3) Adventures in Telly part 2
4) Adventures in Telly part 3
5) Bobs International Hiccup Centre
6) Easter Island
7) Too Many Dogs
8) The Trials of Wendy
9) Stinkys Search for a Star
10) Under the Duvet
11) Johnny Saveloys Undoing
12) The City Shrinkers
13) Carbonara
Extras
Photo Gallery - Photos of many of the characters and stills from the episodes.
Character Bio's - Text based biographies of each main character.
Series Creator Biography - Text based biography of Richard Goleszowski.
Disc 2
1) Mouse in my Kitchen
2) Wendys Hot Date
3) Patio
4) Crap Day Out
5) Slim Bob
6) Private Wendy
7) Rocket Raymond
8) Plasticine Gene
9) Wendys New Hairdo
10) Wayne the Zebra
11) Art of Cooking
12) Bob Joins a Gang
13) Hole in the Garden
Extras
Season 2 Trailer
Wendy's Photo Shoot - 3 shots of Wendy from her photo shoot.
Weblink to Rex the Runt.com
This kind of animation may be an acquired taste for some people, but many others find it very funny. It's a bit more mature level of humor for older kids and adults. I would recommend renting it to see if it's something that appeals to you or your kids. There certainly isn't any profanity here, but some parents may be sensitive to some of the violent scenes although they are done very much in the style of "cartoon" animation.
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