On Dominion Cast 6, Hunin briefly mentions the G4 animated show Code Monkeys, yet still can not comment on the masterpiece that is Heroes. This isn’t about attacking how he accrues opportunity cost, that’s mostly what the podcast is for. At the recording, I hadn’t seen Code Monkeys yet, so requested that he rank it in the modified IGN list from my Rusty’s Rise article. Being of the somewhat compulsive list maker mindset, our Tribune quickly and confidently placed it between Ren and Stimpy and King of the Hill. I have since watched the first andmost of the second seasons of this show, and though it will spawn a recurring debate from our favorite fanboy, a critique will be here attempted.

First off, a clarification. The animated comedy show list derived from Rusty’s Rise is BY FAR not my list of favorite shows of this type. It was a matter of bringing contemporary Truth to the IGN list of all time greats and focusing on those of the comedic category I like most often. I am not of the list maker mindset really, a statement that automatically puts list makers on the defense because they can’t conceive of non-hierarchical judgements, so this translates to them as “Non-listers are number one, but Listers are number 2!” I do have preferences but a lot depends on the mood I’m in. I like Home Movies overall more than King of the Hill, but may have a taste for Arlen, Texas Americana at that moment given there are pros and cons of each style. If faced with a hypothetical mandate to exclude either one from my life for the promise of the other, your Dominus will form a resistance network to destroy the imaginary dictator of taste – lowered by their waste over a tank of acid and allowed to decide whether to go in head first or ass first, then being judged based on his choice of death … forever.

Code Monkeys is a cast of overdone stereotypes with line-pushing anti-social humor animated like 8-bit Theatre. Though not a Lister, I am concisely cognitively complex.

Main characters are the Randal and Dante inspired Dave and Jerry – their predecessors have their quirks ramped up to ten: Dave is a super indulgent asshole and Jerry an super sensitive wuss. Surrounding them at their job as video game designers in the mid-80’s are your typical sitcom archetypes: crazy capitalist redneck boss, super nerd loser, under appreciated feminist man-hater, resentful angry black man, candy-addicted hyperactive Korean child slave game-tester. Ok, the last one is novel – given the recent Korean deaths from gaming obsession, though the Asian stereotyping goes back to the Union Pacific railroad workers Hung Lo and Duk Wang. They also feature voice cameos by what I can only assume are actual game designers of that decade. I guess if you’re watching G4 in the first place, and are an actual 40-something IT gimp, this will impress you.

The humor is most similar to Drawn Together, but scaled back a few notches. CM will reference some disgusting occurence, where the other would show it to you and go another step. Black Steve will shoot white crackers for the smallest slights, while DT’s Foxy Love “musturbates”since sex may lead to her 22nd state-funded abortion. Nudity is often featured but being in a low-res pixelated style it’s not very shocking, and it’s exclusively male.

For being so simplicitistic it’s busily animated. There are video game replicating fields at the top and bottom of the screen which have their own supplemental jokes to the main gag being protrayed. So if a character is telling a far-fetched lie the top will show a bullshit meter with increasing numbers of turds and the bottom will read “Oh yeah, right”sarcastically. This kinda of annoys as it requires constant scanning even when the camera focuses. Many scenes are direct homages to video games of the past like Ikari Warriors and Contra, I’d like to see more of these. Characters do make the jump tone like Super Mario consistently and get points for anything – gallons of vomit hurled to fart magnitude.

The dialog is funny of the calibur of actual things your friends would say with situtational set up, so it’s chuckle-worthy. It also has a lot more random yet repetitive feel. As show above, whore murdering jokes come in packs. The main gags derive from the insanity of the characters, whom are so stereotypical you can see them coming. Eighties references are sparse but will manifest in the occassional show about Reagan’s assassination attempt and the release of Michael Jackson’s Thriller, but most of the plots are modified from The Great Index of Sitcom Tropes.

Still, Code Monkey likes me and overall I guess I like it too – though this statement would result in an ape-fucking joke on the show.
     

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