The Brak Show
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Image:Brakshow.jpg The Brak Show is one of Cartoon Network's 15-minute animated series that airs during Adult Swim. It is a spin-off of Space Ghost: Coast to Coast featuring recurring characters from that show and Cartoon Planet, both of which used stock footage from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon Space Ghost and Dino-Boy. The protagonist is a Space Ghost villain named "Brak", voiced by Andy Merrill, who developed a quirky persona for the character.
The Brak Show was produced by Williams Street Studios, and is akin to Sealab 2021 and Aqua Teen Hunger Force. The show premiered in September, 2001. After unexpectedly being canceled in December, 2003, the show returned to the air in May, 2004.
The show is characterized by its crude animation, bizarre sense of humor, and a host with a voice that sounds like a "Muppet whose mother was a habitual crack user"Template:Ref.
The Brak Show could be thought of as a continuation of Brak Presents The Brak Show Starring Brak, which spun two episodes. Both of the episodes aired once and only once in 2000, although clips of the show could be caught after the Space Ghost Coast to Coast time slot on a few rare occasions. But despite the similarities in the titles, the two Brak Shows have very little in common. Those who missed the first Brak Show can at least be tided over by Brak Presents the Brak Album Starring Brak, which features songs and segments from the original version.
Contents |
Characters and premise
"What happens when two adults get together and have children? And what if those children grow up and go to school? That's the just-crazy-enough-to-work premise behind 'The Brak Show.' Also, Brak is in it." -Description of show from cover of Brak Show DVD.
The show is about Brak's suburban life with his alien mother and Cuban father. It originally started off as a parody of situation comedies, but just like its sister show, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, the plot dissolved over time and became increasingly bizarre. The setting is suburban with an extra-planetary hint. A Saturn-like planet appears in the background on occasion, and a lot of the extras are aliens.
Characters
Brak (voiced by Andy Merrill) is some sort of anthropomorphic space cat with an eccentric personality and a speaking lisp. He is quite unintelligent and seems to be a pre-teen adolescent. He still has attachments to stuffed animals ("Hippo", who is actually a lobster), yet nonetheless is starting to be attracted to girls (the episode "Poppy"). He often randomly breaks into (usually non-rhyming) song. The writers take care, oddly enough, to use a wide variety of musical styles for the songs--covering jazz, country, showtunes, rap, and rock and roll.
Brak's Dad (voiced by George Lowe) is a small human with a Cuban accent, who is extremely self-centered and nonsensical. Most of his time is spent sitting at the kitchen table and reading the newspaper. He is likely an homage to Desi Arnaz. An episode seldom goes by without him delivering a moral to the story that is completely incoherent and has no relevance to the situation. Occasionally, he displays prominent male-chauvinistic behavior, which is sometimes rebuked by Brak's mom. Brak's dad is about 4 feet tall, apparently due to a freak accident involving a shrink ray. A typical Dad quote: "Why don't you get your feet off your head, and your pants to your ears, and think about all the people of the world who have no feet! They can not walk around on their little non-footed areas... now can they? Hah! I don't think they can!" Another quote: "This is the future, where letters are the new numbers!"
Brak's Mom (voiced by Marsha Crenshaw for the first 13 episodes, and Joanna Daniel for the remainder of the series) is a creature of the same species as Brak, with the fashions of a matriarchal character on a 1950s sitcom. She is largely the only (semi-)sane character on the show. She displays little romantic or sexual interest in Brak's Dad, and often does not tolerate him. She is most likely an homage to June Cleaver and similar motherly characters.
Zorak (voiced by C. Martin Croker) is another character from Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, a human-sized mantis. On this show, he plays the role of an Eddie Haskell character, who's also a sociopathic, sadistic, morally-bankrupt misanthrope. He often hangs out with Brak, but usually only as a way to force him into doing something for his own benefit. Zorak considers himself "above" Brak and his entire family, and is constantly criticizing and insulting them.
He often gets killed off in the show, in the same way he did in Space Ghost: Coast to Coast. He has occasionally been known to have a "beautiful man-voice" ("Psychoklahoma", "War Next Door")
Sisto was Brak's brother who made cameos on the show in which all he did was flatuate and walk off screen, until they killed him off in season two by having cannibalistic aliens eat him.
Thundercleese (voiced by Carey Means) is Brak's next-door-neighbor, a militant Killbot (with the visual appearance of a Gundam or a similar anime-style robot) who also is passionate about his lawn and garden. A short-lived shtick on the show involved Thundercleese blasting Zorak often (inherited from Space Ghost Coast to Coast, see above). He has little patience for Brak's idiotic questions. On the Adult Swim New Year's party it was shown that Frylock of Aqua Teen Hunger Force created Thundercleese, which is why they sound alike (both characters were voiced by Means). Image:Headkicker.JPG
Clarence (also voiced by Andy Merrill) is a chubby purple alien and schoolmate of Brak's at Learnmore High School (home of the Lowly Worms). He was a supporting character on the show who made more regular appearances towards the end of the series. Clarence is very socially awkward, but idolizes Brak. His constant talking often annoys those around him.
Marlon the Magician was the original inventor of the double-beer hat and the golden showerhead. He was also called upon in a later episode to revive a slain Zorak (or at least the parts that Brak's family hadn't already eaten).
Headkicker is a game created by Brak. You can play an online version of the game here. This version is actually Headkicker II: The Final Kick (the first Headkicker does not exist). In the game, you actually play as Zorak, Brak's companion, who is the co-host on Space Ghost Coast to Coast. Zorak has to fight Clonebots in order to help Brak find his mother. He uses Fishpockets, one of his favorite snacks, as a health boost during the game.
Trivia
- In Episode 18 of The Brak Show Meatwad from Aqua Teen Hunger Force made 2 brief cameos riding a scooter in the street. Oddly enough his name was seen in the credits as a 'Special Guest". He is also seen riding this scooter (briefly) in an episode of Aqua Teen Hunger Force.
Episode Guide
Season 1: 2001
| Ep # | Designation | Title | Airdate | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2001 | Mr. Bawk Ba Gawk | December 21, 2000 | Zorak convinces Brak he will be more popular at school if he steals the mascot from rival Jerkwater High School. |
| 2 | 2101 | Goldfish | September 2, 2001 | Brak promises to take care of Mr. Thundercleese's goldfish, Mr. Tickles, while he is away. Goldfish eat ham don't they? |
| 3 | 2102 | Time Machine | September 2, 2001 | Brak and Zorak didn't finish their homework on time, so they use Thundercleese's time machine to go back in time to set things right. |
| 4 | 2103 | War Next Door | September 9, 2001 | Zorak makes Brak jealous when he develops a wonderful singing voice after accidentally having a pink lump knocked out of his throat. |
| 5 | 2104 | Hippo | September 9, 2001 | Brak is upset because Zorak made him get rid of his lobster doll, Hippo. |
| 6 | 2105 | Mobab | October 21, 2001 | When an alien blob named Mobab falls in love with Mom and takes her away to his home planet, Dad realizes how much he needs her and he and Brak go into outer space to save her. |
| 7 | 2106 | Expiration Day | November 4, 2001 | Thundercleese finds his powers have been deactivated by his creators, which is a bad thing as there is an asteroid heading for The Planet. Dad and Brak go on a mission to return his weapons, so he can save everyone. |
| 8 | 2107 | Psychoklahoma | December 2, 2001 | Brak and company attempt to raise money to save Señor Science by putting on a musical. |
| 9 | 2108 | The Eye | December 30, 2001 | Brak's Father, retired staring-contest expert, is challenged by Brak, Zorak, and a mysterious guest. Father has no choice but to take them on. |
Season 2: 2002
| Ep # | Designation | Title | Airdate | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 2201 | Poppy | April 14, 2002 | While watching his favorite cop show, 'Schnozzo', Brak tells Zorak that he wants to get some action. Brak asks Dad and Mom for some advice. They give Brak some help passed down from Brak's Grandfather, Poppy, which Brak puts to use. |
| 11 | 2202 | Bully | April 28, 2002 | Zorak has set up a booth were children give him money to beat them up. Unfortunately, the business has been taken over by Butch |
| 12 | 2203 | Mother, Did You Move My Chair? | May 12, 2002 | Brak tries to get out of going to school to avoid dissecting a clam in Biology class. |
| 13 | 2204 | President Dad | May 26, 2002 | Dad decides to run for President of the neighborhood association. Unfortunately, he doesn't know that the incumbent Galrog, used to be a terrible planet-eating monster. |
| 14 | 2209 | Brakstreet: Men in the Band | November 3, 2002 | With high hopes of winning a fabulous spa resort vacation, Brak enters a rap contest. Rapper Cee-lo guest stars. |
| 15 | 2207 | Feud | November 10, 2002 | Dad and Thundercleese are in the midst of a neighborhood feud. Weird Al Yankovic guest stars. |
| 16 | 2208 | Runaway | November 17, 2002 | Brak gets grounded and decides to run away from home. Special guest Space Ghost arrives at the house to arrest Brak for crimes he has committed in the future. |
| 17 | 2206 | The New Brak | November 24, 2002 | Brak has a devoted admirer which is initially quite flattering. But, when the admirer starts imitating him, Brak worries that he might be replaced. |
| 18 | 2205 | Pepper | December 1, 2002 | Dad believes the mothership will take him away to be king of the alien world. Meanwhile, Zorak begins a relationship with an interesting alien named Pepper. Sisto joins the aliens on the mothership for dinner. |
| 19 | 2210 | Dinner Party | December 15, 2002 | Brak, Mom, Dad and Thundercleese have been invited to a dinner party at the new neighbors' house. The neighbours include Franklin (A nervous dad, whose nose always seems to be growing), Rhonda (A mother who lives in a steel box, and she keeps talking about everyone's judgement), and Winston (Their son, a large man that looks similiar to an infant, and is incapicitated due to his size). |
| 20 | 2211 | We Ski in Peace | December 29, 2002 | Brak wants to go to work with Father for "Go To Work with your Father Day". Brak's mom tells Brak the truth that Father doesn't work. Father shows mother a secret underground base, where he works for no money keeping Earth safe. Brak's mom forces him to get a real job at the local Ice Cream Shop. Meanwhile, Alien Ants from Outer Space attack while Father is away from his old job... |
Season 3: 2003
| Ep # | Designation | Title | Airdate | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 2301 | Braklet, Prince of Spaceland | October 5, 2003 | The Brak Family Players present their take on the classic Hamlet story. |
| 22 | 2302 | Coma | October 12, 2003 | Brak's father offers to help Thundercleese win the heart of his true love. Zorak burns things. |
| 23 | 2303 | Shadows of Heat | October 19, 2003 | Brak's Father is playing a dangerous game, with George Martinez, Hector Riviera, and Rudolpho the butcher. Quickly, Father's 'dirty world of espionage and intrigue' drags in Brak's Mother, Brak, and even Zorak. All the while, The Shadows of Heat flicker and swirl. |
| 24 | 2305 | Splat | October 26, 2003 | Mom and Dad are involved in an accident that must be kept secret. |
| 25 | 2304 | Enter the Hump | November 2, 2003 | After being bitten by a radioactive camel, Dad is given super-powers. |
| 26 | 2306 | Sexy New Brak Show Go | November 9, 2003 | Brak wins a cereal contest, giving him his own TV show. A man from Japan directs Family. |
| 27 | 2307 | All That I Desire You | November 16, 2003 | The Brak Family Players present their take on a soap opera. Tragedy! Wealth! Passion! Betrayal! Incest! Doctors! The Photographs! Zorak! |
| 28 | 2308 | Cardburkey | December 31, 2003 | Brak decides that living in a cardboard box will help impressive the womenfolk. |
| 29 | Special | New Year's Eve Party at Brak's House | December 31, 2003 | Brak's family throws a New Year's Eve bash. Includes additional characters from Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law, Sealab 2021, and Space Ghost: Coast to Coast. |
DVD Boxsets
Season Releases
| DVD Name | Release Date | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|
| Volume 1 | February 1 2005 | This two-disc box set contains the first 14 episodes of the Brak Show (Mr. Bawk Ba Gawk through Pepper) in production order, as well as an episode of Brak presents the Brak Show starring Brak. |
| Volume 2 | Summer 2006 | This two-disc box set will contain the final 14 episodes of The Brak Show (New Brak through Cardburkey) as well as "New Years Eve Party at Brak's House" The release date is currently unknown but will most likely be released in the summer alongside Space Ghost Coast to Coast Volume 4. |
See also
Notes
- Template:Note "Cartoons for Big Kids", Newsweek, August 8, 2002