The Michigan Daily’s review of Mission Hill

Empty ‘Hill’ tries to shock

By Anika Kohon Daily Arts Writer

Sept 21, 1999

Cartoons, often considered children’s fare, are getting fresh. That is not to say they are necessarily getting new and original – simply, they are getting fresh. Should this really come as a surprise, though?

From cartoons’ inception, creators have employed guns, dynamite, anvils and rabbit stews, to bring laughs. Cartoons then, have always appealed to the baser human instincts. In light of this, shows like “South Park” and the WB’s new perverse cartoon, “Mission Hill” (from the producers of “The Simpsons”), should come as no surprise.

“Mission Hill” offers a cornucopia of alcohol and sex-related images mixed with a cacophony to compliment it.

From Gus and Wally, the tempestuous gay couple feuding over who purchased “cheap condoms,” to an alcoholic dog named Stogie, “Mission Hill” is comedy of the lowest common denominator. Instead of employing violence, though, the show employs hyperbolized characatures, sexual rhetoric and foul language in an attempt to relate to its audience.

Andy, the protagonist, a waterbed salesman, and a frustrated cartoon artist, is as fatally flawed as the hero of any Greek comedy or tragedy, and he has the low self-esteem only Woody Allen might understand. One cannot help noticing Andy’s self-reflexive, self-deprecating announcement that he is “sick off all the animated shows on TV.” A thin narrative ploy, this will hardly make for a season of original laughs.

It is hard to imagine this show scraping enough trite material out of the dumpster of humanity to fill an entire season. Granted, there are some semi-funny moments. Andy French’s nerdy 1460 SAT-scoring brother, Kevin, lets loose with his battle cry, “It’s time I start taking advantage of all this freedom, do things I could never do with mom and dad around. Now let’s get home so I can start masturbating!”

At least this show does not suffer from delusions of self-importance or stupidly pious morality. Andy encourages under-aged drinking, applauds his brother for calling his AP chemistry teacher a douchebag and congratulates him for burning out his “inner light” all in one night.

With help from Jim, the stoner roommate, Posey, the hippie-chick relic, Kevin, the Ivy-bound brother, a sexually aggressive co-worker, a pompous boss and two gay neighbors, Andy French will try to make “his cartoon” rise above the ordinary, formulaic, and predictable nature of its narrative.

The show’s intended demographic is far too intelligent for this ridiculous display of banal fodder. “Mission Hill” tries too hard to be risqué, but it will never usurp “South Park” or “The Simpsons” positions as original and morally dubious cartoons. “Mission Hill” leaves the viewer with a very empty,”been-there-done-that” feeling, a sort of queasy deja vu.

The WB

Tuesdays at 9 p.m.

Mission Hill