Categories
Esoterica

Go, Team Venture!

Just received the Venture Bros Season One on DVD. I had only caught two or three episodes on adult swim, since they seem to air it only once or twice a week, and since I rarely am in front of a TV which receives cable. From the first episode, “Dia De Los Dangerous!,” I was hooked, and have been waiting ever since for this boxed set. Other episodes of note include “Ice Station – Impossible,” a parody of the Fantastic 4 and the Incredibles, and The Incredible Mr. Brisby, which features a battle royale between a Disney-like figure and the Orange County Liberation Front.

The show is a brilliant send-up of Jonny Quest; here the boy detectives are idiots, Dr. Venture lives in the shadow of his own father, and their bodyguard, Brock Sampson, is a larger-than-life character with a License to Kill who will spare no brutality to protect his charges. The soundtrack, provided by J.G. Thirwell (a.k.a Jim Foetus/Clint Ruin), is spy music on steroids, and worth the price of admission alone.

The DVD is well worth getting and nicely packaged, with some amazing art from Bill Sienkiewicz, and some great extras, including an Xmas episode, the original series pilot, and a number of funny behind-the-scenes features.