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Brak Show, Volume 2, The
Warner Bros. // Unrated // August 8, 2006
List Price: $24.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The landscape of the television graveyard is littered with spin-offs. Rarely do shows which were spawned from existing programs offer much quality or succeed. So, what are the odds of an animated show which was mined from an animated talk show being any good?
The Show
Space Ghost Coast to Coast premiered on Cartoon Network and soon established itself as one of the weirdest shows ever. The program was an animated talk show which featured (pseudo) interviews with real celebrity guests. The stars were all taken from the 1960's cartoon Space Ghost. Space Ghost was the host of the show, while Zorak, Moltar, and Brak all filled various roles on the show. The main joke emerged from the fact that these three had been villains on the original Space Ghost program. Now, Zorak provided music for the show, Moltar ran the control room, and Brak, who appeared to be mentally retarded, just yelled weird things. In 2000, Cartoon Network rolled out The Brak Show as part of its Adult Swim lineup. This show was a spoof of sitcoms, as it featured Brak (voiced by Andy Merril), who lived with his Dad (voiced by George Lowe) and Mom (voiced by Marsha Crenshaw). They were often visited by Brak's best friend, Zorak (voiced by C. Martin Croker), despite the fact that Zorak is still evil. The episodes featured Brak and his family in many odd situations.
The new DVD release The Brak Show: Volume 2, features episodes from the second and third seasons of the show. The episodes included on the DVD are as follows:
"New Brak" -- The easily impressionable Clarence (voiced by Andy Merril) decides that he wants to be just like Brak. This leads to him attempting to take over Brak's life.
"Feud" -- Dad steals a lawn ornament from Thundercleese (voiced by Carey Means), leading to a war between neighbors.
"Runaway" -- When Brak gets in trouble, he decides to run away from home. Space Ghost (voiced by George Lowe) then arrives to try to explain to Mom and Dad exactly who Brak is and how Space Ghost relates to The Brak Show.
"Brak Street" -- Brak decides to enter a rap-off, but how can he beat local favorite Prime Cut Miggity Mo Mack Daddy Jizzabang Doggy Dogg Dogg (voiced by Cee-Lo).
"Dinner Party" -- The family is invited to a dinner party thrown by their new neighbors -- who may or may not be homicidal cannibals.
"We Ski in Peace" -- Mom forces Dad to face the fact that he needs to get a job, despite the fact that Dad claims that his job is to protect the Earth from giant evil ants.
"Braklet, Prince of Spaceland" -- The Brak Show does their own version of "Hamlet", as Dad's ghost urges Brak to kill Zorak, before the alien insect can wed Mom.
"Coma" -- Dad gets a new vacuum cleaner and Thundercleese falls in love with it.
"Shadows of Heat" -- Dad is a secret agent and must talk to fellow agent George Martinez (voiced by Dave Willis)...in 15 minutes.
"Enter the Hump" -- Dad is bitten by a radioactive camel at the zoo and Brak convinces him that he should become a superhero.
"Splat" -- Mom suddenly becomes a fan of violent horror films and goes on a homicidal rampage which Dad must help cover up.
"Sexy New Brak Show Go" -- When Brak wins a contest from a cereal box, the family becomes the star of a Japanese TV show.
"All That I Desire You" -- This episode spoof soap operas, as everyone wants to get married and become rich.
"Cardburkey" -- Brak moves into a cardboard box and has the opportunity to have a wish granted by a god.
The episodes presented on this DVD represent what is technically the second half of the show's second season (running from November 2002 to December 2002) and all of the third season* (which ran from October 2003 to December 2003). As far as I'm concerned, a change took place in the show between the first half of Season 2 (which concluded in May 2002) and the episodes presented here. The most obvious change was that the voice of Mom had been taken over by Joanna Daniel, who replaced Marhsa Crenshaw. Crenshaw's sweet middle-American voice was replaced by a somewhat stoic British one.
The other change was more subtle, but far more important. As far as I can tell, the roster of people responsible for making The Brak Show didn't change during this period, but the tone of the show did. I'm a huge fan of Season One and would often laugh out loud at Brak's innocent ignorance. Those first episodes would present a (somewhat) coherent storyline (typically spoofing a cliched sitcom plot) and then interject the show's brand of odd humor. And while things often get very strange and Zorak would occasionally say some nasty things, the show had a sort of demented sweetness to it. Brak's childlike demeanor permeated the show and the episodes had a zeal that would appeal to both adults and a 5-year old. In these shows, Brak was the star and everyone else would interject their own unique witticisms -- with Dad often having the craziest lines.
But any trace of innocence or sweetness has been obliterated for the shows contains in The Brak Show: Volume 2. The show is much more mean-spirited, as it contains more violence and more sexual references. Perhaps the makers of The Brak Show wanted to be more adult for Adult Swim. Unfortunately, the result is a show which is weird just to be weird and isn't funny. While watching all 154 minutes contained on these DVDs, I may have laughed five times total. The other main problem here is that Brak has been pushed to the background while Dad has been made the main focus of the show. (This reminded me of how Bart was the star of The Simpsons when it premiered, but Homer slowly took over.) Yes, Dad is funny...in small doses. His nonsense statements were the perfect accent to the early shows, but an entire 10 minutes of Dad is too much. And the fact that some of the shows, such as "Shadows of Heat" have no real story only makes things worse. I only saw one episode of this phase of the show when it initially aired and I often wondered why the program was cancelled. Now I know.
(*It should be noted that the episode "New Year's Eve Party at Brak's House" does not appear on this DVD, nor are the episodes in the order which they aired on Adult Swim.)
Video
The Brak Show: Volume 2 rambles incoherently onto DVD courtesy of Warner Home Video. The two-disc set contains 14 episodes of the show. The episodes are all presented in their original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The shows offered here look very good, as the image is sharp and clear. There is no notable grain on the image, nor are there any defects from the source material. The Brak Show displays a nice use of primary colors and they look great on this transfer. I noted some video noise, especially when characters moved quickly, but otherwise the transfer looked fine.
Audio
The DVD features a Dolby stereo 2.0 audio track. This track provides clear dialogue and sound effects with no hissing or distortion. The stereo effects are noticeably good, as there are often sounds from off-screen which inhabit the left or right channels. The songs found on the show sound fine as well. The audio isn't overwhelming, but it serves the show well.
Extras
The DVD contains no extra features whatsoever, not even promos for other Adult Swim titles. It should also be noted that the box design has changed for The Brak Show: Volume 2. While Volume 1 came with a gatefold in a slipcase, Volume 2 is a standard keepcase.
Given the odd nature of the episodes contained in The Brak Show: Volume 2, I would normally only recommend this release to die-hard fans. The problem is, I was a die-hard fan of the show -- until I saw these episodes. So, maybe this will make it easier. If you saw the first episodes of The Brak Show and thought that the show was too soft, maybe this set will entertain you. If you are like me, and loved the silliness of "Mr. Bawk Ba Gawk" and "Goldfish", then you may be dismayed at where the show eventually went.
The Show
Space Ghost Coast to Coast premiered on Cartoon Network and soon established itself as one of the weirdest shows ever. The program was an animated talk show which featured (pseudo) interviews with real celebrity guests. The stars were all taken from the 1960's cartoon Space Ghost. Space Ghost was the host of the show, while Zorak, Moltar, and Brak all filled various roles on the show. The main joke emerged from the fact that these three had been villains on the original Space Ghost program. Now, Zorak provided music for the show, Moltar ran the control room, and Brak, who appeared to be mentally retarded, just yelled weird things. In 2000, Cartoon Network rolled out The Brak Show as part of its Adult Swim lineup. This show was a spoof of sitcoms, as it featured Brak (voiced by Andy Merril), who lived with his Dad (voiced by George Lowe) and Mom (voiced by Marsha Crenshaw). They were often visited by Brak's best friend, Zorak (voiced by C. Martin Croker), despite the fact that Zorak is still evil. The episodes featured Brak and his family in many odd situations.
The new DVD release The Brak Show: Volume 2, features episodes from the second and third seasons of the show. The episodes included on the DVD are as follows:
"New Brak" -- The easily impressionable Clarence (voiced by Andy Merril) decides that he wants to be just like Brak. This leads to him attempting to take over Brak's life.
"Feud" -- Dad steals a lawn ornament from Thundercleese (voiced by Carey Means), leading to a war between neighbors.
"Runaway" -- When Brak gets in trouble, he decides to run away from home. Space Ghost (voiced by George Lowe) then arrives to try to explain to Mom and Dad exactly who Brak is and how Space Ghost relates to The Brak Show.
"Brak Street" -- Brak decides to enter a rap-off, but how can he beat local favorite Prime Cut Miggity Mo Mack Daddy Jizzabang Doggy Dogg Dogg (voiced by Cee-Lo).
"Dinner Party" -- The family is invited to a dinner party thrown by their new neighbors -- who may or may not be homicidal cannibals.
"We Ski in Peace" -- Mom forces Dad to face the fact that he needs to get a job, despite the fact that Dad claims that his job is to protect the Earth from giant evil ants.
"Braklet, Prince of Spaceland" -- The Brak Show does their own version of "Hamlet", as Dad's ghost urges Brak to kill Zorak, before the alien insect can wed Mom.
"Coma" -- Dad gets a new vacuum cleaner and Thundercleese falls in love with it.
"Shadows of Heat" -- Dad is a secret agent and must talk to fellow agent George Martinez (voiced by Dave Willis)...in 15 minutes.
"Enter the Hump" -- Dad is bitten by a radioactive camel at the zoo and Brak convinces him that he should become a superhero.
"Splat" -- Mom suddenly becomes a fan of violent horror films and goes on a homicidal rampage which Dad must help cover up.
"Sexy New Brak Show Go" -- When Brak wins a contest from a cereal box, the family becomes the star of a Japanese TV show.
"All That I Desire You" -- This episode spoof soap operas, as everyone wants to get married and become rich.
"Cardburkey" -- Brak moves into a cardboard box and has the opportunity to have a wish granted by a god.
The episodes presented on this DVD represent what is technically the second half of the show's second season (running from November 2002 to December 2002) and all of the third season* (which ran from October 2003 to December 2003). As far as I'm concerned, a change took place in the show between the first half of Season 2 (which concluded in May 2002) and the episodes presented here. The most obvious change was that the voice of Mom had been taken over by Joanna Daniel, who replaced Marhsa Crenshaw. Crenshaw's sweet middle-American voice was replaced by a somewhat stoic British one.
The other change was more subtle, but far more important. As far as I can tell, the roster of people responsible for making The Brak Show didn't change during this period, but the tone of the show did. I'm a huge fan of Season One and would often laugh out loud at Brak's innocent ignorance. Those first episodes would present a (somewhat) coherent storyline (typically spoofing a cliched sitcom plot) and then interject the show's brand of odd humor. And while things often get very strange and Zorak would occasionally say some nasty things, the show had a sort of demented sweetness to it. Brak's childlike demeanor permeated the show and the episodes had a zeal that would appeal to both adults and a 5-year old. In these shows, Brak was the star and everyone else would interject their own unique witticisms -- with Dad often having the craziest lines.
But any trace of innocence or sweetness has been obliterated for the shows contains in The Brak Show: Volume 2. The show is much more mean-spirited, as it contains more violence and more sexual references. Perhaps the makers of The Brak Show wanted to be more adult for Adult Swim. Unfortunately, the result is a show which is weird just to be weird and isn't funny. While watching all 154 minutes contained on these DVDs, I may have laughed five times total. The other main problem here is that Brak has been pushed to the background while Dad has been made the main focus of the show. (This reminded me of how Bart was the star of The Simpsons when it premiered, but Homer slowly took over.) Yes, Dad is funny...in small doses. His nonsense statements were the perfect accent to the early shows, but an entire 10 minutes of Dad is too much. And the fact that some of the shows, such as "Shadows of Heat" have no real story only makes things worse. I only saw one episode of this phase of the show when it initially aired and I often wondered why the program was cancelled. Now I know.
(*It should be noted that the episode "New Year's Eve Party at Brak's House" does not appear on this DVD, nor are the episodes in the order which they aired on Adult Swim.)
Video
The Brak Show: Volume 2 rambles incoherently onto DVD courtesy of Warner Home Video. The two-disc set contains 14 episodes of the show. The episodes are all presented in their original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The shows offered here look very good, as the image is sharp and clear. There is no notable grain on the image, nor are there any defects from the source material. The Brak Show displays a nice use of primary colors and they look great on this transfer. I noted some video noise, especially when characters moved quickly, but otherwise the transfer looked fine.
Audio
The DVD features a Dolby stereo 2.0 audio track. This track provides clear dialogue and sound effects with no hissing or distortion. The stereo effects are noticeably good, as there are often sounds from off-screen which inhabit the left or right channels. The songs found on the show sound fine as well. The audio isn't overwhelming, but it serves the show well.
Extras
The DVD contains no extra features whatsoever, not even promos for other Adult Swim titles. It should also be noted that the box design has changed for The Brak Show: Volume 2. While Volume 1 came with a gatefold in a slipcase, Volume 2 is a standard keepcase.
Given the odd nature of the episodes contained in The Brak Show: Volume 2, I would normally only recommend this release to die-hard fans. The problem is, I was a die-hard fan of the show -- until I saw these episodes. So, maybe this will make it easier. If you saw the first episodes of The Brak Show and thought that the show was too soft, maybe this set will entertain you. If you are like me, and loved the silliness of "Mr. Bawk Ba Gawk" and "Goldfish", then you may be dismayed at where the show eventually went.
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