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Tick: The Entire Series (The)
R4 - Australia - Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (18th May 2004). |
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The Show
 In the early 80's comic book writer/artist Ben Edlund created what was to come one of the most popular underground cult heroes, The Tick was an escaped mental patient who believed he was a superhero, paired up with unlucky-in-life ex-accountant turned sidekick Arthur they would patrol the city and fight crime! The Tick was a cult hit mainly because of it's sense of humour and how it pokes fun at mainstream comics and their many universes. Smart and witty writing combined with unique art equalled an enjoyable comic book and the entertainment industry saw it's potential in the mid 90's. Fox network launched a successful animated show that kept the flavour and sense of humour as the comics but toned down it's edginess for the kids a tad for their weekly Saturday morning cartoon run. Three seasons later the show was cancelled, but remains to this day one of the best comic-adapted animated shows ever. I certainly was a fan and hope that one day this will see release on DVD. Fast-forward to 2000, The Tick comics are still in circulation, reprint after reprint, the series despite its small following still does well. Fox announces that they are creating a new Tick TV series for their prime-time slot and this time it's live action! I was overjoyed and certainly looking forward to this new show, especially since it was a prime-time show and would likely be 100% faithful to the adult humour present in the comics. Then it never came, well at least to New Zealand. I checked imdb but it didn't give me much information, and after a few minutes online I found out that just after 8 episodes the series was quickly cancelled. I was sure I would never get to see the show. That is until Columbia Tri-Star released the entire series on DVD! In fact it was one of the most requested TV series to see release. Thank you Sony, you did a good thing. What I saw however wasn't the Shangri-La of TV that's for sure. I figured rather quickly why the show got cancelled at the blink of an eye. It was only moderately funny, with only a few really good episodes. The show was a little weird for mainstream audiences, the show's style was very much the over-the-top comic book inspired look. Also it was live action, in the animated world you can get away with almost anything. Once you're in the real world some things aren't that easy to accept. These are probably the flaws that killed it so quickly, the scenarios of the show are supposed to be completely ridiculous and sometimes that's a big bite to ask a viewer to take in the live-action TV world. Another kiss of death was that for a show about superheroes, there sure was a lot of talking and not a lot of crazy action. It was kind of like a superhero sit-com without the laugh track. However, it wasn't a complete turd, it just wasn't for everyone. The casting of the series is spot on, Patrick Warburton is the perfect actor to immortalize the big blue bug of justice himself. It was almost as if he was born to play the role, as well as David Burke who plays Arthur. The costume and design of the world they lived in was almost an exact carbon copy of the comic book world. I also found that after the second viewing that I got to appreciate it more and more and found it funnier. Tick fans will get into for sure, as for everyone else...hmm it's kind of an acquired taste. The DVD contains all the 8 episodes that aired plus an unaired episode for a total of 9 episodes. The following is a breakdown of each episode: Episode 1: "The Tick vs. The Red Scare" (Pilot) Cosmic forces have forged the Tick and Arthur into a righteous sandwich of justice! But can they cut the mustard in time to save Jimmy Carter from the deadly clutches of the Red Scare! This is the pilot episode, which introduces us to our main characters The Tick (Patrick Warburton), Arthur (David Burke), Captain Liberty (Liz Vassey) and Batmanuel (Nestor Carbonell). Directed by the show's executive producer Barry Sonnenfeld and written by creator Ben Edlund, this is a humorous pilot, which shows how the Tick and Arthur met. Episode 2: "The Tick vs. The Terror!" (Unaired episode) Earth's oldest super criminal, The Terror, awakens from his geriatric slumber to unleash his "terror gas" upon the Tick's domain. Do our heroes have what it takes to beat up an old man and save the city Not the best episode as it's generally unfunny, probably why it wasn't aired. The jokes in this episode are a bit lame. This episode is the sort of flash back episode. It takes place on the 1-year anniversary of when the Tick and Arthur met. Episode 3: "Arthur, Interrupted" When Arthur reveals his new "lifestyle choice" to his family, he is quickly committed to Francis Peacock's Superhero Deprogramming Centre for treatment. Can the Tick devise a plan to bust his chum out in time? This is probably the best episode in the whole series, and my favourite, with a wonderful cameo appearance by Dave Foley (The Kids in the Hall & News Radio) as Francis Peacock. Episode 4: "The License" In an attempt to obtain a superhero license, the Tick discovers his true identity. What will he chose: his newfound suburban paradise or the saucy life of a superhero? Moderately funny episode where we see a different side to the Tick, family life! Episode 5: "Arthur Needs Space" The Tick is baffled by Arthur's decision to spend time with his high school dream girl. Is this the end of our dynamic duo...or will Arthur choose the Tick in an action-packed marriage of justice? What makes this episode great is Captain Liberty and Batmanuel's attempt to explain the "birds and the bees" to the Tick, as he thinks that the only reason why Arthur is seeing this girl is to fight evil with her and not with him. This episode has some great moments. Episode 6: "Couples" The Tick and Arthur spend a night on the town with the dysfunctional duo Firey Blaze and his sidekick Friendly Fire. When the partnership is abruptly extinguished, will it our boys who wind up getting burned? Not the funniest of episodes, but it has its moments with a nice cameo by Ron Pearlman (Hellboy) as the Firey Blaze. And we get some nice moments when Friendly Fire moves in with Tick and Arthur and introduce Arthur to his under-appreciated sidekick friends. Episode 7: "The Funeral" When Captain Liberty shares an amorous evening with America's favourite superhero The Immortal, she discovers that his name is a bit of a misnomer. Can the Tick ensure that the legacy of the Immortal is able to rest in peace? Fun from the beginning, where Batmanuel has to pretend to be the Immortal, while Arthur and Tick return his corpse to his hotel room so that his image won't be tarnished after having died in the throws of passion with Captain Liberty. Episode 8: "The Tick vs. Justice" When the Tick is called into court against the evil Destroyo, he finds that the judicial system can be a harsh mistress indeed. Will the Tick find a way to allow justice to prevail of has he fought the law and the law won? The goes to jail in contempt of court as evidence is not allowed as it was found without a warrant. Meanwhile Batmanuel must protect Arthur from Destroyo's assassins while Captain Liberty stands full watch over Destroyo's Hannibal Lecture inspire prison cell. This was one of the best episodes of the series. Episode 9: "The Big Leagues" The Tick and Arthur are invited to join the ranks of the elite League of Superheroes. Will our boys bow to pressure and leave their friends behind of thumb their noses at this pretentious collection of heroes? This is a moderately funny episode, with some hilarious moments. As the Tick and Arthur join the League, Captain Liberty sues them for discriminatory practices by not allowing women or minorities into the League.
Video
Each episode is presented in a ratio of 1.78:1, and is anamorphically enhanced. This one of the most flawless transfers I've ever seen, especially for a low-budget TV series. The colours are bold and the image is sharp. This is an A+ effort all the way. Also note that this DVD was released in the NTSC format and not PAL.
Audio
This DVD offers the show in an English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround track. Although it would have been preferable to include a 5.1 track or maybe even a DTS track (hey even the New Animated Spider-man DVD got a DTS track!) this 2.0 track is serviceable at best, the dialogue, sound effects and musical cues all come across clear and distortion free.
Extras
This is a 2-disc set with the first 6 episodes on disc one and the last three on disc two. The extras on disc one include 3 audio commentaries. Disc two features a 4th commentary as well as some bonus trailers. The first commentary is featured on the pilot episode "The Tick vs. The Red Scare" and is with the executive producer of the series and director of that episode Barry Sonnenfeld. Although brief as these episodes only last for just over 20-minutes, Sonnenfeld managed to pack a lot of information in his time. He goes into detail regarding the production and the differences between TV and film work, and shares with us his hopes of someday making a live action Tick movie! This is an overall good commentary that gives some insight into the series. The following three commentaries feature the creator of the Tick Ben Edlund. He provides commentaries on the following episodes: "Arthur, Interrupted", "Couples" and "The Tick vs. Justice". While the first two appear on disc one the last is on disc two. It was certainly nice to have the creator of the comic talk about the show, mainly about the characters and the episodes and their relation to comic events and such. This is a nice inclusion to have Edlund comment on these episodes, Tick fans especially will get a kick out these tracks. The last of the extras on the second disc are two bonus trailers for "Men in Black II" and "Ghostbusters". Now, since this was one of the most requested TV shows to make an appearance on DVD Columbia could have put a little more effort into this release. It would have been real nice to have 5.1 sound as well as some deleted scenes, interviews, featurettes, and more commentaries that include the cast. But alas at least this was released and not forgotten.
Overall
Long time Tick fans will enjoy this, it's not the animated series but it's closer to the comic book with its edgy humour. Some episodes have their weaknesses so the comedy is not as consistent as I would have like, but otherwise a nice effort. Certainly not a DVD to buy blind, especially if you haven't seen or heard of the Tick before, then I would suggest a rental first.
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