I remember being asked by a friend of mine a couple of years ago if I had ever seen "Robot Chicken." The question that immediately came to mind was, "What the heck was Robot Chicken?" I thought I had heard mention of it briefly, but had never caught any of the episodes on Cartoon Network. My friend would try to describe it to me and in part due to his lack of communication skills, failed miserably. The other part of the problem, as I soon discovered, was the "Robot Chicken" was so bizarre as to almost defy description, but without a doubt it was impossible to pigeonhole (pun woefully intended). Early last year, a DVD set showed up on my doorstep for the 1st season of "Robot Chicken", and as I looked at the cover, which oddly enough had a picture of what appeared to be a robotic chicken face, I wondered just what I was in store for.

For the next hour, I sat incredulously at the TV screen… alternating between laughing my head off and shaking my head in disbelief at what the creators of this little how had actually put together. In the next paragraph, I will make my own attempt to describe the concept of the series. Let's see if I fare better than my friend.

To start with, it was created to be a part of Cartoon Network's Adult Swim (which means not for kids) and each episode lasts about 15 minutes. It was the brainchild of actor Seth Green ("Buffy, the Vampire Slayer", "Greg the Bunny). They took an idea that kids have had for ages and taken it to new heights by creating extremely short skits that star… action figures. They animate the figures using a combination of stop motion and computer generated animation, but the ideas behind the skits are often way beyond the left side of center. From the first season, for example there is a re-creation of "The Real World" starring action figures of Superman, Wonder Woman, Hulk, Catwoman, Batman and Black Falcon (you really have to be a comic book freak to know that character). With some shades of "Drawn Together" thrown in, we see Batman getting drunk at a bar, Hulk peeing in the sink and Catwoman dancing naked on a tabletop (her top tastefully blurred out I might add). The second season included a look at Inspector Gadget… as the Terminator. There are skits throughout the series that star everyone from Captain Kirk to The New Kids on the Block to Michael Jackson, all put into situations It might seem somewhat sophomoric, and to some extent it is, but still undeniably funny.

Each 'episode' is made up of a series of sketches lasting anywhere from 5 seconds to a couple of minutes, the view constantly switching as if channels are being changed. In between the full sketches are even shorter clips that we don’t get to see for more than a flash, again to simulate the changing of channels. Some of these images are so startling that you have to wonder if any of them were ever created as full-fledged story ideas.

The DVD for "Robot Chicken" offers up the 20 episodes that made up the 2nd season, and there are almost as many extra features (time-wise) as there are episodes. On each of the two discs you'll find a ton of deleted scenes and skits as well as a featurette that looks into the making of a sketch. Added to this, there are even commentaries on every episode. It's an awesome release for such a series as silly as this one.

Oh, and the title? The opening sequence shows a mad scientist bringing a Robot Chicken to life and strapping him to a chair so that he is forced to watch the TV. Somehow, it seems fitting.

Episodes:
The Deep End
Junk in the Trunk
Nightmare Generator
The Sack
Nutcracker Sweet
Gold Dust Gasoline
Kiddie Pool
Plastic Buffet
A Piece of the Action
Toyz in the Hood
Vegetable Funfest
S&M Present
Badunkadunk
Toy Meets Girl
Midnight Snack
Atta Toy
Joint Point
Operation Rich in Spirit
That Hurts Me
The Black Cherry

Extras: Deleted Scenes, Deleted Audio, Christmas Special, The Making of a Sketch, Adult Swim Promos, Deleted Animatics, Animation Meetings, Slide Show, PS3 Contest Promo, Video Blogs, Freedom Rock Promo Episode Commentaries
Specifications: Full Screen
Studio: Warner Brothers
Release Date: 9/4/2007
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give Robot Chicken: Season 2 a B+.