The Boondocks (TV series)

The Boondocks
Created by	Aaron McGruder
Starring	Regina King John Witherspoon Cedric Yarbrough Gary Anthony Williams Jill Talley Gabby Soleil Charlie Murphy Samuel L. Jackson
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	15 (20 more in production)
Production
Running time	22 minutes per episode
Original release
Network	Cartoon Network (Adult Swim)
Release	November 6, 2005 – present

The Boondocks is an American animated television series produced for Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming block, based on the comic strip of the same name. The show made its broadcast debut on November 6, 2005; it was originally set to premiere on October 2, 2005, but was pushed back for November sweeps. It is a production of Sony Pictures Television, executive produced by Aaron McGruder, the creator of the comic strip.

The series has been renewed for a 20 episode second season which will begin airing March 2007. The second season will feature animation produced by the Japanese animation studio Madhouse.

Overview

McGruder and one-time collaborator Reginald Hudlin had originally created a pilot show for the Fox Network, but found great difficulty in making the series acceptable for broadcast television. Hudlin left the project after the Fox deal fell through, although McGruder and Sony Television are contractually bound to continue to credit him as an executive producer.

Like the comic strip, the television version of The Boondocks is a satirical situation comedy revolving around the lives of the Freeman family. Elementary-school aged black brothers Huey and Riley Freeman have been moved by their Granddad, Robert Freeman, from inner city South Side Chicago, Illinois to the quiet and almost completely white suburb of Woodcrest. Because of the long turnaround time required for each episode, The Boondocks show avoids the topical nature of its newspaper counterpart, and instead covers more long-standing issues involving race relations and politics, including: the assimilation of black people into white culture, what would have happened if Martin Luther King, Jr. had gone into a coma instead of dying (and finally awoke in 2000), and the R. Kelly sex scandal controversy.

Expanding upon the anime / manga influence present in the comic strip, the show also has an anime style (McGruder has said he's a huge fan of anime). In the animated series, younger Freeman brother Riley was redesigned with cornrows, and the comic strip followed suit with a month-long story arc involving Riley growing cornrows. Uncle Ruckus, a self-hating black man originally intended to have been introduced to the strip before 9/11, was introduced into the strip in late 2004 and is being primarily developed in the animated series. The Freemans' neighbors, the Dubois family (Tom, Sara and their daughter Jazmine), also appeared during the show's first season; Huey's best friend Michael Caesar is being withheld for later seasons. The opening theme song was recorded by hip hop artist Asheru.

The Boondocks makes constant references to past events in previous episodes. The Boondocks also shows continuity with the comic strip that serves as its basis. A running theme in the series is the concept of black unity. Even though Huey and others may disagree with the points of view of characters like Tom Dubois, Uncle Ruckus and Old Stinkmeaner -- they still feel obliged to provide them with support and respect.

Main characters

File:Boondock.jpg

Huey and Riley

• Huey Freeman: The show's protagonist. Huey is a ten-year-old vegetarian black radical who is portrayed as both a voice of reason and, at times, a mouthpiece for contemporary Afrocentrism. He has dreamed of being an expert swordsman and near-master practitioner of the martial arts (a reference to anime, wǔxiá, and Samurai epics). Even though he is often cold toward Jazmine Dubois, during various episodes of the TV series, he does appear to care about her. During the course of the series Huey never appears to be in a good mood, being that he never smiles. (Though it is noted, in the episode "Let's Nab Oprah", Huey can be seen smiling in a satisfied manner when he manages to disarm his brother in the opening fight scene, albeit momentarily.)

• Riley Freeman: Huey's eight-year-old little brother, Riley is subject to influence from gangsta rap. He is often easily swayed or caught up in the moment. Even though Riley may sometimes be on the wrong side, he has been known to exhibit some of his older brother's verbal skills when needed. He also seems to have a knack for manipulating people to side with him. Riley is representative of the misguided black youth; he is the Santa stalker (he shot at a mall Santa with airsoft Glock 17's and at one point, attacked him with a golf club for not "paying what he owe") and is portrayed as Huey's polar opposite. Despite this he does indeed have something of a soft side and is shown to be capable of spray-painting emotional and touching murals instead of the typical graffiti. He also loves weapons, as being a "gangsta", he feels the need to always be ready to "blast those fools!". Riley, however, does not own any real firearms, and has only been seen as the owner of Airsoft-style firearms. He has been seen with a Glock 17, and an MP5K (though he pals around with Ed Wuncler III and Gin Rummy, who have, on occasion, given him access to real weapons). He has, however, bragged to brother Huey that he has fired a real hand gun and shot a rival ganster of his Gangsta Rapper idol Gangstalicious (see The Story of Gangstalicious) after he had dropped the gun while they were attacked at a hospital.

• Robert Jebediah "Granddad" Freeman: Huey and Riley's grandfather and their legal guardian. Granddad retired to the suburbs so that he could raise the boys in a peaceful environment. He has borne witness to many major incidents in American history. He was a part of the Civil Rights Movement, but was prone to certain faux pas (such as wearing rain gear in preparation for getting shot with a fire hose). Freeman was also a fighter pilot in World War II, where he flew the P-51 Mustang with the Tuskegee Airmen. He was also a part of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, even sitting next to Rosa Parks, though she received all the credit for refusing to give up her seat. Granddad serves as another figure of reason in contrast to Huey, although his reason tends to be more pragmatic. It is suggested, while not actually stated, that Huey and Riley's birth parents are deceased, based on Robert's quote in episode one that he spent the boys' "inheritance" on their new house in Woodcrest. Likewise, in the episode Riley Wuz Here, the voice of Riley's art teacher is heard saying, "Why don't we paint a picture of someone we love, someone who is no longer with us," while a graffiti picture of what is possibly Riley and Huey's parents at their wedding is shown, or Roberts own wife, being that the picture the Graffiti was based off of was taken from a scrap-book filled with black and white photos, which would be more common during the time period that Robert was married in. Also, the picture brought a tear to Robert's eye, however this may be used to support both theories.

• Tom Dubois: The Freemans' neighbor from across the street. Tom Dubois is a rich African-American attorney. Tom strictly adheres to the law and can be viewed as a "do-gooder". His character can be interpreted as an "Uncle Tom" by some other black characters, as he is seen as having turned his back on his black heritage to marry a white woman (Sara), producing a mixed-race child (Jazmine), and become a criminal prosecutor who often convicts black people. In the episode "the Trial of Robert Kelly", Tom was the prosecuting attorney attempting to prosecute Robert Kelly, though he failed. Tom is also skittish and easily frightened. In one episode, a voiceover of Huey explains to viewers that Tom's entire life of following the law and being an attorney has been the result of his fear of being anally raped in prison. A flashback shows Tom at age ten watching a prison movie on television, and being terrified by it; from then on, he refuses even the slightest legal infractions. ("But what if we get caught? We'll get arrested and anally raped!") Huey mentions that Tom's job as a prosecutor is, ironically, to send other black men to the very fate he most fears. He also fancies himself as a singer, dreaming of being a successful recording artist.

• Sara Dubois: Tom Dubois' white wife. She is incredibly casual toward their interracial marriage, even going so far as to joke about it when Tom is mocked and attacked for it.

• Jazmine Dubois: Tom and Sara's biracial daughter. She can be extremely paranoid and a bit naive, making her an object of ridicule for Huey and Riley. Jazmine was shocked by both the September 11 attacks (and hid in her room for two years as a result) and finding out that the tooth fairy isn't real. She is a strong believer in Santa Claus, viewing him as the true meaning of Christmas to the point where she imagines preaching a sermon about Santa to the masses. Jazmine seems to have a crush on Huey Freeman, despite the fact he is often cold toward her. Jazmine first appears in the episode The Trial of Robert Kelly.

• Uncle Ruckus: An overweight black man with a grotesque appearance who idolizes white culture. Ruckus is self-hating, dissassociating himself from his African-American heritage as best he can, and instead championing whatever small traces of Native American, French, and Irish ancestry he may have. His greatest wish is that black people were still enslaved, because he believes that they were better off that way. He claims to have a mythical disease called "re-vitiligo" ("It's the opposite of what Michael Jackson's got, lucky bastard" as he always retorts). His hatred of black people shows up strongly in the Garden Party episode to the point where when Riley, Huey and Granddad show up he exclaims "We have a code black at the front gate". Ironically, he is the darkest-skinned character on the show. His character is a hyperbolic parody of the self-hating black man. However, as much as he may hate black culture, he has been shown in other episodes to still hang around with the Freemans. He also speaks with what seems to be a Southern United States accent.

• Ed Wuncler, Sr.: A rich realtor whose family founded the town of Woodcrest and have lived in the area for decades. The wealthy Wuncler owns the mortgage loan on Granddad's house (as he does with every house in Woodcrest) and somehow Woodcrest's police force, and is embarrassed by his inept grandson, Ed Wuncler III. Wuncler also owns the fictional fast food restaurant franchise, "McWuncler's", and bears a resemblance to the man who voices him, Ed Asner. Ed, sometimes, does things thought of as racist, such as referring to Grandad as "Robert Free-man", and employing only illegal Mexicans at his restaurants; ultimately, though, his racism is portrayed as simply being a byproduct of his insatiable greed, rather than an active hatred of those from different races. Ed seems to have taken a general liking to Robert, referring to him as "Old School," and even funding his Soul food Restaurant venture in the episode The Itis, though this may have merely been a plot to lower property values in the area so that he could purchase the nearby park and "develop" it. He also has a sweatshop which is run by 12 year-old Indonesian girls, showing his ruthless manner.

• Ed Wuncler III: The grandson of Ed Wuncler I. Ed III is a somewhat psychopathic and trigger-happy ex-soldier, freshly discharged from active duty in Iraq, and is portrayed as a representation of the "wigger" stereotype: a white person who acts like an exaggerated version of a young black person. His character, voiced by Charlie Murphy, could be seen as a parody of a young George W. Bush, painted in broad strokes -- a figure destined to be president on the strength of his family's wealth and power, despite his sub-average intelligence (as referenced at the end of the Garden Party episode, where his grandfather says "In 30 years, that boy will be President of the United States...and he'll still be a fucking idiot!"). Ed's bling includes a large medallion in the shape of the letter W. Ed III and his friend, Gin Rummy, get away with their misguided and comically inept criminal antics because Ed Wuncler I has the police, and everyone else in the city, on his payroll, and because his status as a member of the U.S. Armed Forces makes the public view him as a hero, no matter how immoral his actions may be. Some proof is: getting away with a poorly executed bank robbery, being viewed as a hero for robbing a store owned by a person of "terrorist descent", trying to kidnap Oprah Winfrey and getting Maya Angelou, then Bill Cosby instead. His trademark line is "What the fuck ya'll looking at?"

• Gin Rummy, voiced by Samuel L. Jackson, is a former soldier and Ed Wuncler III's best friend. He can be seen as a parody of Donald Rumsfeld, in name, appearance, and use of actual quotes. His last name, "Rummy," matches the nickname given to Rumsfeld that was often said by President George W. Bush. Even though, he is shown more intelligent than his best friend, he has the same homocidal tendencies. His name is also a reference to the card game, Gin rummy. Gin Rummy will repeatedly explain away his poor criminal planning by saying that "the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence", parodying how Bush and Rumsfeld continue to assert that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, or by insisting that he could not plan for "unknown unknowns". Rummy seems to be marginally more intelligent than Ed III. This could also be a pun of Pulp Fiction which Samuel L. Jackson was in. Gin Rummy considers himself a patriot, and will do whatever it takes to bring the "Fugitives of Justice" to justice. Gin first appears in the episode "A Date With The Health Inspector".

One time characters

• Moe - Robert Freeman's former friend. He dies during the television show run; an episode focuses on the destruction of the friendship between Moe and Robert Freeman. He finally got his last laugh on Robert before dying by leaving him a jar of peanuts in his will. (voiced by comedian Mike Epps)
• Cairo - Huey Freeman's former best friend. He and Huey ended up fighting each other during Moe's funeral. Huey apologizes by offering him a fruit basket, but Cairo simply responds with a headbutt to the face. He then slowly closes his door on him without making a sound.
• Dewey - Cairo's new best friend. Sanctimonious afrocentric youth, who believes no one can be a part of the black struggle without following some mainstream guidelines, such as writing black poetry, which in his eyes must rhyme as much as possible; often to exaggerated and ludicrous effect.
• Cristal - A stripper/prostitute who shares a brief relationship with Robert Freeman, namely for the sake that he can show her "the life." Cristal aspires to more than the prostitute life, but can't handle schooling and has no desire to do real work. She leaves Robert when her pimp shows up at the Freeman house for her, revealing her identity as a prostitute to Grandad.
• A Pimp Named Slickback - Cristal's pimp, who gets easily irritated when someone calls him "Slickback" for short. He explains his name by saying "It's like 'A Tribe Called Quest', you say the whole thing." He made a cameo appearance in "Return of The King" but had no speaking lines (voiced by comedian Katt Williams)
• Colonel H. Stinkmeaner - A blind old black man who fights Grandad Freeman. As Huey states, Stinkmeaner has acted like an ornery old man for his entire life. Huey mistakes Stinkmeaner for a blind swordsman (specifically the zatoichi) and has Grandpa train to fight Stinkmeaner. During the second fight, Huey realizes Stinkmeaner does not actually have sensitive hearing, and fails to stop the fight before Grandad kills him. (voiced by Cedric Yarborough)
• Gangstalicious- Riley's favorite rapper, featured in Episode 6, 'The Story of Gangstalicious'. Was involved in some kind of homosexual love affair with a gangster when he was younger. His lover fails in his attempt to kill Gangstalicious for betraying him. Maker of the hit single 'Thuggin Love'. (voiced by Mos Def)
• Eat Dirt- Gangstalicious' rival in episode 6 'The Story of Gangstalicious'. In a parody of the violence that broke out at the 2000 Source Awards and the 2004 VIBE Awards, Eat Dirt is hit by a metal folding chair at an awards show, which incites a brawl. Accidentally shot himself in a club while fighting with Gangstalicious.
• The White Shadow- The secret agent sent to spy on Huey. Can be seen in the episode. (voiced by John C. McGinley)"The Real (Boondocks episode)"

Controversy and critical reception

The Boondocks series has attracted a great deal of controversy for its heavy use of the word "nigga". Aaron McGruder defended the usage of the word, stating that its use made the show feel "more sincere", since the word is commonly used in the everyday conversations of some African Americans. The show's premiere episode, "Garden Party", makes a joke of the long-standing controversy surrounding the word:

Granddad: ...and all I ask y'all to do is act like you got some class!

Riley: (to Huey) Hey... what's "class"?

Huey: It means, "don't act like niggas."

Granddad: Now, now, see? That's what I'm talkin' about right there! We don't use the "n-word" in this house!

Huey: Granddad, you said the word "nigga" 46 times yesterday. I counted.

Granddad: Nigga, hush!

The show has stated in the episodes that the term "nigga" is used to describe an ignorant person, a person being ignorant, or a person displaying such attributes of ignorance.

According to an article in The Washington Post, references to Rosa Parks were removed from one of the series' completed episodes within a week of her death. In the second episode, "The Trial of Robert Kelly", Parks was originally outside the courtroom protesting Kelly when she was hit with a large piece of fried chicken. In 2006, The Rev. Al Sharpton protested Martin Luther King's use of the word "nigga" in the aforementioned hypothesis episode. Rev. Sharpton felt it was defacing the name of Martin Luther King, and sought an apology from Aaron McGruder and The Boondocks. The controversy stirred by Rev. Sharpton was later referenced in the cartoon strip itself five times - February 6-9 and February 16, 2006 and also in the cartoon in the episode "The Block is Hot" in the form of a morning radio announcement. The segment appeared as a deleted scene on the Season 1 DVD release of the program.

In January 2006, The Boondocks was nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series at the 37th NAACP Image Awards, alongside The Bernie Mac Show, winner Everybody Hates Chris, Girlfriends, and Half & Half. Adult Swim has ordered 20 more episodes for season two of The Boondocks. The Boondocks was also picked up by the Canadian broadcaster Teletoon, which has aired all the episodes, excluding the Christmas episode, which it is reserving for the holiday season.

Running gags

• The throwing of a metal folding chair, either with the intent of hitting someone specific or simply to incite a mass brawl in a crowd. Riley's hypothesis ("Whenever you throw a chair a brawl jumps off") is that when you throw a chair in a room full of people, a fight will break out no matter the circumstances (even if it doesn't hit someone). This is usually true, though Riley throws a chair at another kid in "Wingmen" and it only progresses the fight he had already started.

• Virtually every episode involving Ed Wuncler III (who represents George W. Bush) and Gin Rummy (Donald Rumsfeld) are parodies of the Iraq War. (The most obvious being "A Date with the Health Inspector".)

• Characters frequently defecate themselves. Every time this happens, someone else says "go change your pants".

• Every character delivers the line "A full day's supply of Vitamin C," after drinking orange juice, or when it's the topic at hand.

• Sometimes, Ed Wuncler or Uncle Ruckus address Grandad by his last name and nonchalantly says it as two separate words, "Free Man," an obvious slavery pun.

• Criticisms of black pop culture. If someone turns on the television network BET, a music video with women dressed in skimpy outfits is shown, with an MC yelling, "Booty butt, booty butt, booty butt cheeks!" McGruder has parodied and criticized the content in hip-hop music videos, particularly the late-night programming on BET Uncut, for some years. Also, whenever a radio is turned on, it happens to be playing either "Move them Cheeks" or "Thuggin Love" by Gangstalicious. There are two exceptions, one in the episode "Guess Ho's Coming to Dinner" in which an excerpt from "Gold Digger" by Kanye West was played and a second in the episode "Grandad's Fight" in which an excerpt from "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor was played.

• Whenever a TV is shown (unless it is needed for a plot device) it always has "Booty Butt Cheeks", Gangstalicious' "Thuggin' Love" video, Bobby Brown's trial (with at least one episode showing Bobby striking Whitney in the middle of court), or a video of rapper Eat Dirt getting hit with a folding chair (thrown from offscreen) at an awards show followed by a riot breaking out.

• Uncle Ruckus has a different job in every episode. Duties he fulfilled include valet, janitor, mall Santa, maître d', police officer, and preacher.

• Whenever Riley becomes exceptionally disrespectful, Grandad will take him off screen and beat him ("whoop his ass").

• The series occasionally references the movie Soul Plane in a bad light, which might be another criticism of black pop culture. As in "Return of the King", Martin Luther King Jr. stated "And now a word about Soul Plane."

• The Wunclers have a tendency to refer to Arabs or those who appear Arab as "people of terrorist descent".

• Every time two males hug or show signs of affection Riley says either "Y'all niggas is gay" or (when reffering to a single person) "Nigga, you gay."

• Every time Ed Wuncler III says "What the fuck y'all looking at?" after doing/saying something ignorant, the nearby crowd cheers and applauds (except in the "Let's Nab Oprah" episode and the first time he says it in the episode "The Garden Party").

• In every episode which features a high speed chase the driver always tells the passenger to buckle up, saying "It's the law and its a good idea". (e.g. "Riley Wuz Here" or "The Story of Gangstalicious")

Trivia

For episode-specific trivia, see List of The Boondocks episodes.

File:Huey che.jpg

Huey Freeman stylized in the likeness of Che Guevara, from the opening credits sequence of the show.

• Aaron McGruder enjoys watching anime, martial arts films and Samurai epics, elements of which find their way into both fantasy segments and actual fights throughout the series. Two specific anime McGruder said would influence the show were Samurai Champloo and FLCL. For example, the intro to the show is also a homage to the intro of Samurai Champloo and a Jin look alike is shown in "Guess Hoe's Coming To Dinner". Huey also showed Granddad a Zatoichi film to reference the "blind swordsman" legend. In that same episode, The fight between Huey and the Blind Man is an apparent take off of a scene in the Samurai X film Rurouni Kenshin: Requiem for the Ishin Patriots]]. Part of this segment was used for a promo on Adult Swim.

• The comic strip Bloom County is referenced several times. There are similarites between Ruckus and Bill the Cat, mainly the eyes. Also, in "Riley Wuz Here", Ruckus directly references the creator of Bloom County when discussing master artists as "that genius that drew that strip with the talkin' penquin...Master Penquin Draw'er".

• The show parodies scenes from several Bruce Lee films. When Huey and Grandad are training for combat, Huey uses the line "What was that? An exhibiton? You need emotional content", all while wearing the same uniform Bruce Lee wore in Enter the Dragon. Also, Bushido Brown from the episode "Let's Nab Oprah" is inspired by Jim Kelly's character in Enter the Dragon, with his martial arts, general appearance, and quotes like "You come straight out of a comic strip.", itself refrencing the fact that the show is adapted from a comic strip.

• Rumors have begun circulating about a movie based on the show, whether or not this is true has yet to be confirmed.

• McGruder is an admitted Star Wars fan. Quotes like "Let him have it. It's not wise to upset a Wuncler," and the name of the show's production company (Rebel Base) are indirect references to the movie. Also, when Granddad Freeman is training for his fight with Stinkmeaner, he tells Huey he is "not afraid". Huey replies, "You will be. You will be.", a reference to Luke Skywalker's training with Yoda on Dagobah.

• There is a brief image of Huey in the opening sequence of the show that is drawn in the style of the iconic photo of Marxist revolutionary, Che Guevara. Guevara's photo can also be seen as a poster in Huey's room. An image of Riley in the opening sequence is a reference to Al Pacino's Scarface character Tony Montana as depicted on the film's poster.

• Since many of the voice actors also were in the Friday film series (King, Witherspoon, D.J. Pooh, Mike Epps, Katt Williams, Terry Crews, and Kym Whitley), random references are made to the films. For example, in the episode The Passion of Reverend Ruckus, Grandad is seen watching a dvd of Friday in his car. Granddad says "Nobody go in the bathroom for 35-45 minutes" in "The Itis", and "It's your ass, Mr. Postman" in "The Passion of Ruckus". Also, in the episode "A Huey Freeman Christmas", Riley says "It's your ass, Santa." Riley and Granddad's conversation about "game" in "Guess Ho's Coming To Dinner" is similar to the "game" conversation in the first Friday film. Riley also recites part of the infamous Chris Tucker line, "You got knocked the fuck out" in "Wingmen". In "The Passion of the Ruckus," when Huey plans to free imprisoned Shabazz K. Milton Berle, he relies on the speculation that Granddad will be too busy watching Friday to notice his faked heart attack. In "The Story of Gangstalicious", Gangstalicious mentions Ice Cube, also a star of Friday, was his favorite rapper.

• The show also references Monty Python, especially Monty Python and the Holy Grail. In "Riley Wuz Here", the scene cuts to a man who speaks about the dangers of Black television, with the subtitle "An Expert Guy," not unlike the "A Famous Historian" scene. There are also references to the "not dead yet" running gag:
  • Gin Rummy: I want you to know that you are not going to die...in vain.
  • Officer Frank: I don't think I'm dyin'.
  • Gin Rummy: Oh. Well, I want you to know you wasn't mortally wounded...in vain.
  • Officer Frank: Actually, I think I'm gonna make it.
  • Ed Wuncler III: You hear that, you sweaty bastards? Freddy [sic] ain't dead. Freddy say, "Bring it on, bitch"! BRING IT!

• In a scene in episode 105, "A Date with the Health Inspector," Samuel L. Jackson's character, Gin Rummy reenacts some lines from Pulp Fiction (the "Say what again!" conversation) nearly line for line. His dialogue before the bank robbery on "Nigga Technology" in "Let's Nab Oprah" is inspired by the conversation held by Vincent and Jackson's character Jules before killing Brett in the movie.

• Armstrong Elders, the conservative black media personality who provides Ruckus with publicity for his idea of "white heaven", is a direct reference to Armstrong Williams and Larry Elder. The body is modeled after Williams though the mustache is similar to Elder's. McGruder has had well-publicized confrontations with Elder in particular, referring to him as an embarrassment to black people in his strip.

• In episode two The Trial of Robert Kelly, One of the protesters against R.Kelly bears a striking resemblance to African American intellectual, Cornell West.

• In the episode "The Block is Hot", as Ed Wuncler Sr. is about to buy lemonade from Jazmine's stand, he declares "Lemonade was a popular drink in my day...and it still is." This is a very obscure reference to an odd line from the Gang Starr song "DWYCK".

• In "Riley Wuz Here", Riley has displayed his habit of using lines from the film Scarface. One of these lines is "Fine, say hello to the bad guy, but a white man told me to do it". This is a reference to the line Tony Montana said as he left the restaurant. And in the episode "Garden Party", Riley says "Say hello to my little friend!" as he is going to shoot at Ed Wuncler III, who is wearing a bulletproof vest. Additionally, some of the suits Riley wears to "Garden Party" and "Wingmen" are similar to what Tony Montana wears in Scarface.

• In the episode "The Block is Hot", Tom Dubois tells Ed Wuncler Sr. that he thinks he's taking his daughter's lemonade stand a little too far. Ed Wuncler takes Tom over to the side and tells him, "You know the name of the game, your daughter chose me. Now we can handle this like some gentlemen, or we can get into some old gangster shit." This is a reference to the blaxploitation film The Mack. The episode is also filled with references from the Spike Lee film Do The Right Thing. Huey walks around with a boom box playing Public Enemy's "Fight The Power", a la Radio Raheem in the movie; Uncle Ruckus quotes Sal's lines in the movie about turning off the music. The scene where Riley breaks the fire hydrant is also referenced from the film. Also, the scene in which Huey throws a trashcan through the glass of Jazmine's Lemonade Parade stand and incites a riot similar to the way Mookie throws a trashcan through the glass of Sal's Famous Pizzeria in the movie and a riot ensues.

• In the episode "Riley Wuz Here," Riley's art teacher is an obvious parody of Bob Ross and indeed repeats almost verbatim Ross' popular phrase, "I don't believe in mistakes; I just believe in happy accidents."

• The only episode not to use the word nigga is "The Itis" (though still using negro). And the episode that uses nigga the most is Grandad's Fight. Nigga is said 65 times.

• The only episode that did not have Huey narrate was "The Story of Gangstalicious" (instead, it was Riley).

• Teletoon's website says the show's made by MGM.

• The only episode not to have Granddad in it is A Date With The Health Inspector, athough he is mentioned in it.

• In the episode A Huey Freeman Christmas in the midst of Huey's summarization of the history of Christmas to Granddad, Granddad tunes it out which is a reference to Charles M. Schulz's Charlie Brown; a second reference is utilized in where Huey dismisses the entirety of the cast, and compares himself to Charlie Brown. A third is when Riley writes a letter to Santa with the writing appearing above his head.

• The Wuncler name is likely a reference to Dr. Seuss' "Once-ler" character in his book "The Lorax". The Once-ler is a greedy user.

Voice cast

• Huey and Riley Freeman: Regina King
• Robert "Granddad" Freeman: John Witherspoon
• Tom Dubois: Cedric Yarbrough
• Uncle Ruckus: Gary Anthony Williams
• Sarah Dubois: Jill Talley
• Jazmine Dubois: Gabby Soleil
• Ed Wuncler, Sr.: Ed Asner
• Ed Wuncler III: Charlie Murphy
• Gin Rummy: Samuel L. Jackson
• Gangstalicious: Mos Def
• Moe "Guns" Jackson: Mike Epps
• A Pimp Name Slickback: Katt Williams

DVD Releases

Season Releases

DVD Name	Release Date	Ep #	Additional Information
The Complete First Season	July 25 2006	15	This 3-disc set includes all 15 episodes from Season 1, uncut and uncensored, and presented in a widescreen format. Extras include episode commentaries by both Aaron McGruder and Uncle Ruckus, a behind the scenes featurette, animatics, DVD-ROM storyboards, and bonus previews. The set is also available for the UMD Video format, though it does not contain any bonus features.

See also

• List of The Boondocks episodes
• The Boondocks comic strip

External links

• Sony Pictures' official Boondocks website
• Adult Swim's official Boondocks page
• Interviews with the Boondocks cast
• The Boondocks at TV.com