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Mr. Pickles

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Mr. Pickles
Genre
Created byWill Carsola
Dave Stewart
Written byWill Carsola
Dave Stewart
Sean Conroy
Directed by
  • Will Carsola
  • Animation director
  • Mike L. Mayfield
Voices of
Theme music composerMark Rivers
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes10 (and 1 pilot) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Will Carsola
  • Dave Stewart
  • Micheal J. Rizzo
  • Mike L. Mayfield
  • Keith Crofford
  • Walter Newman
ProducersMicheal J. Rizzo
Eric Binns
Ollie Green
Running time11 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkAdult Swim
ReleasePilot:
August 25, 2013 (2013-08-25)
Official:
September 21, 2014 (2014-09-21) –
present

Mr. Pickles is an American animated television series created by Will Carsola & Dave Stewart for Adult Swim. The series revolves around the Goodman family, namely their 6-year-old son named Tommy and the family's border collie, the demonic Mr. Pickles. The series has been picked up for 10 quarter-hour episodes for its first season, which premiered on the network on September 21, 2014, following the ninth season premiere of Squidbillies, and ended on November 23, 2014. It has since been renewed for a second season.

Plot

In the small, old-fashioned world of Old Town that is slowly being taken over by the modern world, the Goodman family and their innocent 6-year-old son Tommy obtain a border collie named Mr. Pickles. The two spend their days romping around Old Town on classic adventures — while unbeknownst to Tommy and the family (except for Tommy's grandfather), Mr. Pickles' secret evil streak drives him to slip away to kill, mutilate and hump his victims.

Characters

  • Mr. Pickles - The titular character of the series. He is the Goodman family's pet border collie who loves to eat pickles (hence his name) which Tommy regularly feeds him. He also enjoys mutilating, killing, and humping as well as engaging in sexual debauchery. He possesses demonic powers which allows him to control local animals to do his bidding. Despite his evil ways, he actually is quite protective of the impressionable young Tommy: protecting him from danger and will often kill those who might mean to do the boy harm (such as murdering a group of pedophiles or turning an unlicensed breast surgeon who gave Tommy breast implants into a multiple-breasted freak). He has a long-standing feud with Tommy's Grandpa, who is the only family member aware of Mr. Pickles' evil nature. Despite Grandpa's attempts to expose him, Mr. Pickles himself does not do anything to actually harm him or the rest of the family. Mr. Pickles enjoys playing pranks on Grandpa now and then. He has also shown to be sexually attracted to Tommy's mother by often groping or touching her private areas. Mr. Pickles' doghouse leads to a hidden, underground lair that's filled with blood, satanic imagery, victims (both living slaves and dead, mutilated bodies), and a throne where he usually eats his pickles. He is shown to be highly intelligent, a skilled surgeon, and is even capable of building high-tech androids.
  • Tommy Goodman (voiced by Kaitlyn Robrock) - The Goodman family's physically disabled young son who wears leg-braces and considers Mr. Pickles as his best friend, often feeding him pickles whenever he behaves. Tommy is often protected by Mr. Pickles and is protective of Mr. Pickles as well, such as when he took it upon himself to search for Mr. Pickles after he was kidnapped by mercenaries. Due to his naive personality (since he is a child), Tommy usually gets involved in dangerous situations and Mr. Pickles steps in to save him and dispose of the bad people involved. Like most characters on the show, Tommy is unaware of Mr. Pickles' evil nature.
  • Stanley Goodman (voiced by Jay Johnston) - Tommy's father who works as a telemarketer. Stanley is constantly bullied by his boss; as a result, Stanley hardly has time to spend with his family, especially his son. Nevertheless, Stanley means well and is committed to his family. Though they don't interact much, Mr. Pickles seems to respect him to a degree. He even showed displeasure when it looked as though a doctor was about to bring Stanley harm.
  • Beverly Goodman (voiced by Brooke Shields) - Tommy's stay-at-home mother who is the traditional dutiful mother and wife. Beverly is oblivious of Mr. Pickles' evil nature (especially by her father's stories) & dismisses the dog's sexual behavior (e.g. groping and touching her) as simple dog mannerisms.
  • Grandpa Goodman (voiced by Frank Collison) - Tommy's grandfather and Mrs. Goodman's father. He is the only family member aware of Mr. Pickles' evil ways and has borne witness to several murders and other depraved acts committed by Mr. Pickles. However, most his family and the town Sheriff dismiss his tales of Mr. Pickles' evil as just another of one of his "evil Mr. Pickles stories". He views Mr. Pickles as a monster and is only trying to protect himself and his family from the dog's evil nature. Grandpa understands Mr. Pickles cares for Tommy, such as when they both attempted to rescue the child from a baseball stadium riot.
  • Sheriff (voiced by Will Carsola) - The unnamed sheriff of Old Town. He lives with his mother and sister. He behaves like a young boy and has a doll named Abbigail, whom he often talks to and has tea parties with. He is often called upon by Grandpa when the old man has evidence of Mr. Pickles being evil, but Mr. Pickles usually manages to place the blame on somebody else or remove the evidence causing the Sheriff to remain skeptical of Grandpa's claims. Ironically, despite his dubious abilities as a police officer, the Sheriff is often credited with the capture and arrest of individuals Mr. Pickles sets up to take the fall, contributing to the towns view that the Sheriff is a competent law enforcement official.
  • Floyd (voiced by Dave Stewart) - A colleague of Stanley Goodman who works as a telemarketer. Morbidly obese to the point that his excessive fat sags, Floyd is almost always seen eating various foods. He got his obesity from traveling to food competitions (which he won). Because of his competition fame, he is surprisingly quite wealthy and lives in a mansion with the interior designs being made mostly out of food. He also has a gym, but doesn't use it since he can't fit through the door. Despite his appetite and appearance, he seems to get along with others (although Stanley finds him awkward to be around).
  • Steve - Mr. Pickles pet human gimp who walks on all fours and behaves like a dog, even barking like one. The gimp lives in the caves under Mr. Pickles' dog house. He often takes part in Mr. Pickles' depraved activities.

Cast

Additional Voices

Production

External image
image icon Dave Stewart and Will Carsola at the 2014 San Diego Comic-Con International

The series was created by Will Carsola & Dave Stewart (of Funny or Die Presents fame) and executively produced by Will Carsola, Dave Stewart, and Michael J. Rizzo.[1] The series was one of several shows pitched to Adult Swim, according to the creators, who also operate under the name "Day by Day". Stewart recalled promoting it as a "one-line sentence", while Carsola remembered that it derived from a "write-off" session, where the two present ideas to each other in the form of scribbles for their amusement. Carsola explained that ideas in this process are released from the pressure "of them being good", occasionally finding "one that sticks".[2] They later explained at the 2014 San Diego Comic-Con International that the idea was based on Lassie, but has become "more of its own thing since then".[3]

Stewart's own female pet dog served as inspiration for the animators on the character of Mr. Pickles.[3][a] Animation director Mike L. Mayfield recorded Stewart's dog playing around on video, with animators using the resulting footage as a base for the character's movements;[4] the series is animated using Adobe Flash.[5][b] Its setting is roughly based on Richmond, Virginia, where the creators started out in entertainment before moving to Los Angeles.[2] In the United States, the series is rated TV-MA for graphic violence;[7] the creators are given creative freedom by the network, with Stewart explaining the notes received by them as "minimal", much to their surprise.[2] The creators observed some inconsistencies as to what is considered unacceptable, but try not to question it and compromise instead.[3]

Elaborating on its 11-minute running time, Carsola described it as a 22-minute show "squished" into a quarter hour.[8] Among the voices for the characters include Brooke Shields,[2] Frank Collison, Jay Johnston and Carsola and Stewart themselves.[1] Shields' role in the series came after looking at the creator's work for Funny or Die and obtaining the script for Mr. Pickles. According to Carsola, the two were dubious over her interest in the series, but after being cast she provided lines in a recording booth in New York City while the creators supervised over Skype.[2]

Episodes

Pilot (2013)

TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
"Pilot"Will CarsolaWill Carsola & Dave StewartAugust 25, 2013 (2013-08-25)

Season 1 (2014)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code		U.S. viewers
(millions)
11"Tommy's Big Job"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroySeptember 21, 2014 (2014-09-21)1021.43
Tommy sets out for a job when he falls for a young farmer girl.
22"Father's Day Pie"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroySeptember 28, 2014 (2014-09-28)1011.70
Tommy hunts for the missing Father's Day pie, but encounters Bigfoot instead who is actually a man named Jon Gabagooli who is in this form as part of a witness protection program.
33"Foul Ball"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyOctober 5, 2014 (2014-10-05)1041.47
The Goodmans go to a baseball game and Tommy hopes to catch a highly sought after, record-breaking foul ball.
44"The Cheeseman"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyOctober 12, 2014 (2014-10-12)1071.64
The Goodmans go on a family camping trip and Tommy learns the frightening legend of The Cheeseman.
55"Dead Man's Curve"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyOctober 19, 2014 (2014-10-19)1051.39
Tommy enters the soapbox derby and Grandpa finds Mr. Pickles' biggest fear.
66"Loose Tooth"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyOctober 26, 2014 (2014-10-26)1061.27
Tommy sets out with Mr. Pickles to lose his tooth so he can meet the Tooth Fairy. Meanwhile, the Sheriff searches for a group of wanted pedophiles.
77"Grandpa's Night Out"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyNovember 2, 2014 (2014-11-02)TBA1.23
After a night of heavy drinking, Grandpa awakes married to Crazy Linda and resorts to drastic measures to end the marriage. Meanwhile, Tommy seeks advice from the local town mutants to learn how to be himself.
88"Coma"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyNovember 9, 2014 (2014-11-09)TBA1.17
Mr. Goodman falls into a coma and dreams of a world where he and Mr. Pickles have switched places.
99"Where is Mr. Pickles?"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyNovember 16, 2014 (2014-11-16)TBA1.21
A disgruntled farmer hires mercenaries to capture and kill Mr. Pickles, and Tommy seeks help from the sheriff when he goes missing. Meanwhile, the Goodmans enjoy Floyd's hospitality where Mr. Goodman is shocked by Floyd's successful lifestyle.
1010"The Lair"Will CarsolaWill Carsola, Dave Stewart & Sean ConroyNovember 23, 2014 (2014-11-23)TBA1.33
Grandpa wants to learn what actually goes on inside Mr. Pickles' doghouse to prove that he has not gone crazy, and gets more than he bargained for.

Broadcast and reception

The series has been picked up for ten quarter-hour episodes for its first season,[9] to premiere on the network on September 21, 2014 following the ninth season premiere of Squidbillies.[1] In July 2013, the pilot episode was released online as part of a presentation of in-development shows for the network, partnered with KFC; viewers could vote for their favorite pilot, with the winner being broadcast on August 26, 2013.[10][11] The series lost to Übermansion, a Stoopid Buddy Stoodios production, although the presentation as a whole won an Internet Advertising Campaign Award in 2014 for "Best TV Integrated Ad Campaign".[12][13] The pilot was later published on the network's website on January 23, 2014,[7] and on YouTube on March 10 of the same year, becoming viral with over 700,000 views after roughly a month later.[2] A second season was mentioned at the 2014 Comic-Con.[3]

Writing for Strange Kids Club, Mat Spitkovsky stated the series' extreme content matter left him at a loss for words as well as confused. Afterwards, he found it lacking in "class, creativity and goddammit, originality" in the vein of Superjail!, although its "brazen approach at crass offense ... all in good fun" was "kind of cool."[14] Aaron Simpson of Cold Hard Flash called the series an amalgamation of Lassie and Superjail!, while observing some social commentary "to ensure this is more than just a multi-episodic sketch."[5] Mike Hale of The New York Times labeled it "the less tasteful but more mainstream" counterpart to Tim & Eric's Bedtime Stories, another addition to the network.[15] He wrote that the show was "more grisly than funny," but predicted it to have a cult following and that Shields' voice would add "surreal-pop-culture cachet".[15]

In Australia, the series premiered on 3 August 2015 on The Comedy Channel.[16]

Explanatory notes

  1. ^ Stewart mentioned that she was an Australian Cattle Dog.[4] He also pointed out similarities between her and the main character, and jokingly called her "Ms. Pickles".[3]
  2. ^ Cold Hard Flash is an entertainment and news website dedicated to media produced with Adobe Flash, founded by Aaron Simpson.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c Milligan, Mercedes (July 30, 2014). "Adult Swim Premiering Mr. Pickles September 21". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e f Kutner, Brad (April 1, 2014). "RVA Born Day by Day Premieres the Terrifying Mr. Pickles on Adult Swim, Brooke Shields Lends Voice". RVA Magazine. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b c d e Begley, Jim (August 17, 2014). "SDCC – Adult Swim's Mr. Pickles Is the Touching Story of a Boy and His Evil Dog". Spinoff Online. Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on August 18, 2014. Retrieved August 18, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b Zargari, Shahab; Brunty, Ryan; Davis, Ryan (July 28, 2013). "SDCC 2013 Press Roundtable Interview Series: Mr. Pickles, King Star King, and Superjail!". Verbicide. Scissor Press. See video; 0:20–0:25, 6:00–6:50. Archived from the original on May 26, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ a b Simpson, Aaron (March 24, 2014). "Adult Swim's Mr. Pickles Pilot". Cold Hard Flash. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Simpson, Aaron (February 25, 2013). "About Cold Hard Flash". Cold Hard Flash. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ a b "Mr. Pickles". Adult Swim. Turner Broadcasting System. January 23, 2014. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ Zargari, Brunty & Davis 2013, 6:45–6:55.
  9. ^ Zargari, Brunty & Davis 2013, 7:10–7:20.
  10. ^ "'Like a Slap to Your Taste Buds': KFC Gives Bite-Sized Chicken a Hot and Spicy Kick". KFC. July 23, 2013. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ "Adult Swim Pilots – Mr. Pickles". Adult Swim. Turner Broadcasting System. July 2013. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved May 25, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ "Adult Swim Pilots". Adult Swim. Turner Broadcasting System. July 2013. Archived from the original on May 26, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ "Adult Swim & KFC Wins 2014 Best TV Integrated Ad Campaign Internet Advertising Award for Adult Swim Pilots". Internet Advertising Competition. The Web Marketing Association. April 8, 2014. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ Spitkovsky, Mat (April 15, 2014). "Adult Swim Seeks New Levels of Depravity in Mr. Pickles Pilot". Strange Kids Club. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ a b Hale, Mike (September 18, 2014). "A Devil Dog Tears into People, and Other Tales". New York Times. The New York Times Company. p. C3. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
  16. ^ Purcell, Charles (July 30, 2015). "New this week (Aug 3): Rogue, Jonathan Strange, Bitten, 7 Days In Hell and live sport". The Green Room. Archived from the original on July 30, 2015. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
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