The Goode Family

I think animation lovers will know Mike Judge only too well from 'Beavis and Butthead' and 'King of the Hill'. Very different shows but they grew on us. King Of the Hill in it's prime was wonderful and now in auto-pilot is still amusing to watch. I love both shows and wish B & B could make a comeback minus the music videos. Mike's new show 'The Goode Family' is a little more like KOTH. In the sense that it feels like a sitcom with live actors except that it's animated. The pilot episode was amusing through out with some good dialogue and interesting characters. The title character Gerald Goode is voiced by Mike Judge doing a reprisal of the hippie teacher from B & B. The consensus on the web seems to be that the show is too risqué with it's hyper-liberal goody two shoes family at the heart of the story. Others plain don't like it. I think like Mike's other two shows, this one needs some time. Give it a season, if it's still good...

I only became aware of this show after being told about Tubi TV app by my Lyft driver. I started watching and I was immediately hooked. Why did this only last 1 season? Maybe because no one knew about it. Either way, this show is pretty GOODE for watching at work or just passing the time. I heard Bliss' voice instantly knew it was my girl Linda C from Freaks and Geeks! Anywho, this show is pretty decent. It's no Beavis and Butthead or King of the Hill but it did the trick.

I only discovered "The Goode Family" (TGF) this past week and have been gobbling up past episodes with abandon through YouTube. What a hoot they are.

Nobody remembers that the term "political correctness" was actually coined by the Left before it was hijacked by the GOP and the right-wing in the late '80's. Originally it was meant as a humorous check on ourselves and a term of endearment and self-mocking rather than the derisive put-down of others it mutated into. I like to think that TGF is a continuation of that gentle spirit of PC which softens the edges of political rhetoric that can cut deeply and easily alienate.

Episodes around the politics of being a "football family," public radio, One Earth food stores (a stand in for Whole Foods), eco-terrorism, graffiti tagging and cult icons of frugality and consumer waste hit many of the right spots. For someone who has spent the majority of his adult life in Madison, WI, New York City and Seattle, WA while visiting Portland/Eugene, OR and Berkeley, CA, these shows really do touch on life in these communities no less in need of skewering than people in suburbia or Texas.

While I wouldn't say that the series is yet a subcultural must-see, it bears watching and deserves getting picked up and given more time to develop. TGF reminds me of the first season of Seinfeld where they were just getting characters and themes established. While not as out-and-out shocking and stupid (in a funny way) as Beavis & Butthead, TGF is clever and there is some potential here for very good humor.

The opening paragraph is a little off-topic rant/opinion dump, If any potential reader is interested in the review itself, I would recommend skipping it.

It's sad how prematurely this show was scrapped due to low ratings. Now, I'm sure people can find a whole bunch of reasons "The Goode Family" never amassed the necessary popularity to survive, but I personally see it as tragic case of preconceptions determining public opinion. Now, I'm not from the USA myself, so any political BS people throw around about satirical shows such as this one was never that interesting to me. If I'm not mistaken, the main creative force behind the show (Mike Judge) once stated, that his work is more about people's way of thinking and social processes - not political events. Even so, people just love to label things as "conservative" or "liberal" to simplify them. It really sucks when folks can't appreciate a good joke, or a piece of art in general, just because they have a stick up their arsenal about some recent political event that no one will give a fudge about in 5 years or so. Quite sad, indeed.

The show itself is based around episodes with individual plot lines - there is no connection between episodes, save for the characters and setting. The humor is varied, ranging from lighthearted jabs at different stereotypes that doesn't really stand out that much from other satirical shows to slapstick moments which work surprisingly well and occasionally - surprisingly cynical and nuanced humor, which is the highlight of the show.

The series does have several shortcomings, some of the running jokes, namely the dog not being fed properly, could have been handled better. Some of the supporting characters aren't developed properly and don't fulfill the potential their overall concept had planned. Out of the 13 episodes created, the later ones show more refinement and potential, (especially the "lime dew" one) proving the series had a good starting point. Sadly, corporate pulled the plug.

In its unfinished state the series exists as more of a curiosity, but I would still highly recommend seeing it, as it still shows time, effort and creativity was put into it, what little there is.

This show did not get enough time on the air to catch everyones attention. One season does not give this show justice. I felt I was just getting to know all of the characters and now I can only imagine who they would have become. It was a unique show working with ideas I haven't seen in any animated show before. Mike Judge is always doing good work and I hope this show can get picked up on another station someday. But for now we can all catch the reruns on Comedy Central! I mean doesn't everyone remember when Family Guy was cancelled and how big of a following it received while it was off the air? It was too bad that King of the Hill ended in 2009, but then this show comes on and I felt a little better because it was still the same animation and some of the same humor.