by Jonathan Klotz
| has been published
Parodies are hard to get right; for everyone spaceballhave a Epic movie And Disaster movieBut in the late 80s, teenager Ben Edlund created a big blue generic superhero named The Tick and accidentally launched one of the most successful superhero parodies ever. With no powers even remotely like Tick's, the big blue muscled hero quickly became a success, going from local comic store mascot to headlining his own series in just a few years. While you can still find the debut series in black and white, the 90s Fox kids cartoon that made Tick a generational favorite is nearly impossible to find today.
90s grime and gritty lampooning
tick premiered in 1994, an era when superhero movies consisted of the phantom And meteorite manBut the comic book industry was still going through a boom period. Thanks to speculators buying comics expecting price increases, Image Comics gives creative writers an outlet for stories that DC and Marvel Not to mention, and with the rise of major events including The Death of Superman and the imminent arrival of The Age of Apocalypse, the comic book bubble was at its peak. This meant that a superhero that poked fun at the dark and proud heroes of the day was a breath of fresh air for frustrated fans who missed superheroes having fun.
And there's no doubt about it: tick was fun Episode 7, “The Tick vs. The Tick,” sees the big blue guy face off during a superhero party with a much more literal tick-themed hero, the greatest villain of all time, The Evil Midnight Bomber What Bombs at Midnight, planning to blow them all up at midnight. Not only does it lampshade that Tick's name doesn't make sense, but it also features most of the supporting cast slowly getting drunk for a kids' show, the kind of Hunger and Crap classic. Justice League International was known for its run in the 80s.
Pick any episode of the show's three-season run, and there's going to be at least one brilliant comedic moment, even if the gags are often pretty stupid; That's the point. Like the Swiss spies who use giant Swiss Army knives on their missions, while in the background, a large bipedal whale runs across town, and in context, it makes sense. Sort of. But The Tick showed continuity at a time when most cartoons couldn't even pronounce the word, thanks to the arrogant chairface trying to write his name on the moon. The villain made it as far as the “tea” before stopping him, leaving the letters visible in later episodes.
In danger of being lost forever
tick Was a hit, even stretched Comedy Central Later in its run, but till date, it is the only successful version of the hero. The two live-action series, although critical hits, both failed to catch on in 2001, despite the perfect casting of Patrick Warburton as the big blue hero, and the amazon series in 2016, with Peter Serafinowicz as the titular protagonist and “Downtown” Griffin Newman as his sidekick, Arthur. Both live-action shows were canceled early, after seasons one and two.
Although it was a hit, the 1994 series is becoming harder to find as the years go by and is in danger of becoming lost media. tick The DVD collections, released mid-season, are incomplete, with one episode missing from Season 1, “The Tick vs. the Mole Men” and Season 2 missing “Alone Together.” At one time, the series was also available on streaming, but it has since been sent to video on demand YouTube. Animated series are endangered with DVDs getting harder and harder to find every year and severely limited streaming alternative
It's a shame that today, decades after the recent superhero movie boom, audiences are ready for a superhero parody that doesn't take itself seriously, especially when D-list villains are favored. Craven Getting their own movie. The world needs The Tick, his bright blue suit, and his signature rallying cry: “Spoon!”