It wasn't until a few years ago that I tuned in to Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. I didn't even know what Adult Swim was at the time, but it turns out that it was created by the channel as a late-night block of animated shows geared towards (as the title night suggest) adults. It was often recommended that the 'kids should get out of the pool.' All of the shows were extremely irreverent, but it was a kind of hit-and-miss proposition as to whether you’d see something really funny or just downright stupid. Of the handful of shows I got hooked on, which included "Sealab 2021", Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law", it was a newer one called "The Venture Brothers" that really caught my attention.

Like a good number of the other shows in the Adult Swim library, "The Venture Brothers" based itself on an older, very popular cartoon. In this case it was obviously a take-off of the Hanna- Barbara classic, "Johnny Quest", mixed in with a little "Hardy Boys." The brothers of the series are Hank and Dean, the sons of famed scientist, Dr. Thadeus Venture. They live a life of dangerous adventure as they attempt to thwart a cadre of super-villains. Well… at least that's what they purport to do. The boys are actually a couple of dim-wits and their father has spent the better part of his life on various pills. Any 'danger' they get into gets them saved by their bodyguard, Brock. As voiced by Patrick Warburton, Brock is the personification of warrior, ready to kill at a moment’s notice.

As for their super-villains, let's just say that none of them would want to meet YOU in a dark alley. Generally as inept as the Ventures, none of them really pose any kind of real threat to the world.

I mentioned irreverence when it came to most of the shows on Adult Swim, but "The Venture Brothers" takes it to new heights. The humor flies fast and furious and you really have to pay attention to catch every joke… and as the promos tell you before the episodes air… get the kids out of the pool. The humor is not for the little ones. It's not in-your-face raunchy (which is a credit to the writers), but cleverly suggested or not, you'll find yourself doing a lot of explaining to Junior.

Warner Brothers has been releasing on DVD a good many of the shows that air on Adult Swim, turning its attention to "The Venture Brothers" back in 2006. This month, they're following up with the complete 3rd season, which in my opinion was even funnier and more insane than the 2nd. Look especially for some great nods to the old GI Joe cartoons of the past.

The 2-disc set comes complete with all 13 episodes of the 3rd season but not as many special features as have been offered in the past sets. First up are commentaries on every single episode by the show's creators and occasionally the voice actors. And like most of the commentaries done by guys who work on animated series, just expect a lot of joking around and picking on each other. There's not a lot of insight, but good portion of additional innuendo. Honestly, it is well worth taking the time to hear what these maniacs have to say. The rest of the special features is made up of deleted scenes, worth watching to be sure, but I was hoping for a bit more of the mayhem that is usually offered up.

I would like to take a second to point out the packaging, which is little more than a box which contains a foldout digipak. But I really enjoyed the artwork on the digipak which looks like an oversize ad for an old Sega Gensis game. I love how much work goes into these sets, both in terms of the cases and the content.

Like most of the shows on Adult Swim, the humor and style of "The Venture Brothers" are not for everyone. You really need to be smart, sophisticated and literate to catch all the jokes and laugh at more than just the pretty colors.

Episodes:
Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny
The Doctor is Sin
Home is Where the Hate Is
The Invisible Hand of Fate
The Buddy System
Dr. Quymn, Medicine woman
What Goes Down, Must Come Up
Tears of a Sea Cow
Now Museum – Now You Don’t
The Lepidopterists
Orb
The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (part 1)
The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (part 2)

Extras: Episode commentaries by cast and creators, Deleted scenes
Specifications: Full Screen, Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround Sound
Studio: Warner Brothers
Release Date: 4/14/2009
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
http://www.warnerbros.com

We'll give The Ventures Brothers: Season 3 a B.