The Plot:
Chowder wants to be a chef, but he lacks the necessary skill. Getting a job in Mr. Mung Daal's catering kitchen in Marzipan City, he comes in contact with the owner's shrewish wife Truffles, and their mumbling servant Shnitzel. Across town, Ms. Endive and her young apprentice Panini run a competing business, and while the underling has a crush on Chowder, he couldn't care less about such girly affections. Whenever he's troubled, our hero heads over to Gazpacho's produce stand for a little advice. Sadly, the oversized stall owner usually requires more help than he offers. As part of the Volume 2 DVD set for this series, we are offered the following five episodes - out of sync with the original release schedule - forming what appears to be the first half of the entire first season. Each installment contains two parts. On tap are the following:

1. "The Wrong Address" (Chowder and Mung can't locate the customer for a recently purchased Roast Most)/"The Wrong Customer" (While out delivering a Roast Most, Mung's kitchen is commandeered by an escaped criminal)

2. "Burple Nurples" (Chowder wants a shot at making his own dish, and accidentally puts poison in it)/ "Shnitzel Makes a Deposit" (When he goes to the bank to deposit his check, Shnitzel is saddled with a tagalong Chowder)

3. "Gazpacho Stands Up" (The stall owner makes the mistake of asking Chowder to help him with his comedy routine) / "A Taste of Marzipan" (Mung and Endive wage an all out food fight at the local Marzipan City tasting festival).

4. "The Puckerberry Overlords" (When he eats an overly sour treat, Chowder discovers a world of tart terrors in his own mouth) / "The Elemelons" (Truffles causes the flavorful fruits to go on strike, and Mung must convince them to get back on the job).

5. "Sniffleball" (Mung wants Chowder to play sports, but the young apprentice wants nothing to do with exercise)/ "Mung on the Rocks" (When he forgets their anniversary, Truffles tosses Mung in the doghouse).

The DVD:
Chowder is the kind of product you expect from the current Cartoon Network - smart, irreverent, slightly scatological (our main character has a weird obsession with poop), and loaded with bold, bright colors. The animation is stunning, focused and filled with memorable character and backdrop designs. There is a smoothness to the action and a real polish to the form and structure. And we even accept the minor blips in taste, as when Chowder chalks everyone's bad mood up having to defecate, and we do wonder about this apparent fetish with constipation. But that doesn't make this series a slam dunk. In fact, there are times when Greenblatt's premise far surpasses the material being made of it. The writers here are notorious for substituting gimmickry for genuine humor. The main culprit here is the naming of food stuffs. Mushrooms become 'flushrooms', while kid prank classics like "Purple Nurples" become gassy, belching candy treats. But in the all important facets of story and character, Chowder is a little one note.

You can see it in the first episode here, "The Wrong Address". Chowder comes across as dim and dopey while Mung is a highly strung mess who screams more than he thinks. Later on, the subplot involving Shnitzel grows tired because the character only says one thing - the word "radda" - and no matter how many different ways voice artist John Dimaggio offers it, it still sounds redundant. In fact, it's safe to say that all the creatures in Chowder are singular in set-up and execution. Truffles is the typical angry spouse. Endive is the standard nonentity nemesis. For kids under a certain age, none of this will matter. They will be mesmerized by the vivid imagery and nonstop splashes of primary pigment. But for anyone over the age of 10, Chowder will seem slightly immature. This is not like Spongebob Squarepants which plays to a decidedly older demographic, or other Cartoon Network fare that falls somewhere in between nostalgic tribute and post-modern irony. This is a kids show for kids, aimed at their level of comprehension and cleverness. Even the ending speaks to this, as puppet versions of the characters act out a final, over the credits, comedy bit.

Overall, the quality is consistent. The novelty of seeing the other side of "The Wrong Address" is dealt with in "The Wrong Customer", and the glorified spectacle of Shnitzel's bank more than makes up for the lack of comic invention in the episode. There is very little of Endive and Panini here, but their presence is a welcome relief from the constant cackling of Chowder and Mung, and the promise of Gazpacho's potential stand-up career is undermined by a lack of payoff toward the end. In retrospect, characters like the Puckerberry Overlords and the Elemelons are better ideas than realities, and anytime Chowder is out of his pro-cooking mode, the attempted comedy becomes sticky and unsure of itself. Still, those who are still memorizing their times tables won't care about this apparent problems. They will simply sit back and groove on the glorious Eastern tinged eye candy present. Chowder Volume 2 does a good job of illustrating the show's strengths and weaknesses. It's not a classic, but it's a decent cartoon nonetheless.

The Video:
Perhaps the best thing about this DVD is Cartoon Networks decision to release the episodes in their original 1.78:1 OAR, instead of the cropped full screen versions you see when they air. Each installment is sharp and crystal clears, the colors literally popping from the TV screen. There are no visible flaws or transfer issues and this kind of flawless presentation really illustrates the artistry involved in making the show.

The Audio:
On the sound side of things, there's not much novelty here. The Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 is respectable, but not authoritative. We are treated to clean dialogue and frequent cartoon sound effects, but there is nothing really immersive or atmospheric about the mix.

The Extras:
Sadly, the only bit of added content here is a featurette focusing on the animation. We see some sketches and basic character design, but that's it. What would have been nice is a voice actor biography, As with many animated efforts, the people behind the characters seem to get little recognition for their contributions to the cause.

Final Thoughts:
Chowder is clearly an age oriented entertainment. If you're pushing past middle-age, like yours truly, you'll probably grow tired of the constant chaos. If you are a parent with wee ones, however, you'll smile when you realize that those little ankle biters will just love this. Settling somewhere between such a higher approval and a rental, this review splits the difference and goes for the standard Recommended rating. As long as the caveats about proposed demographics are heeded, you won't find yourself fretting over the purchase of something you (or your kids) may or may not enjoy. As Cartoon Network prepares its own live action affiliate for launch in the Fall of 2009, they continue to carve out a convincing niche with original animation and pen and ink programming. Chowder is an example of some of their better work. It's also part and parcel of a production line paradigm - the notion of making sure that airtime is filled with something sensible (and saleable). The results are good, but not great.

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