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* '''Starla''' (voiced by Courtneay Taylor) – An overweight, big-breasted green woman. Starla first appeared in "Muscle Woman", where she is viewed as the antagonist after breaking up with Muscle Man and causing him to be grief-stricken. In the same episode, she fell for Mordecai, who briefly dated her in hopes the relationship would blow over. When he broke up with her, Starla became filled with rage and went on a rampage, destroying the eastern end of the Park. She finally calmed down after Muscle Man called her "sexy when destroying things", and both tongue-kiss.<ref name="Muscle Woman" /> She appears again in "Fancy Restaurant", where her parents are introduced during a date with Muscle Man.<ref name="Fancy Restaurant" />
* '''Starla''' (voiced by Courtneay Taylor) – An overweight, big-breasted green woman. Starla first appeared in "Muscle Woman", where she is viewed as the antagonist after breaking up with Muscle Man and causing him to be grief-stricken. In the same episode, she fell for Mordecai, who briefly dated her in hopes the relationship would blow over. When he broke up with her, Starla became filled with rage and went on a rampage, destroying the eastern end of the Park. She finally calmed down after Muscle Man called her "sexy when destroying things", and both tongue-kiss.<ref name="Muscle Woman" /> She appears again in "Fancy Restaurant", where her parents are introduced during a date with Muscle Man.<ref name="Fancy Restaurant" />


* '''[[Death (personification)|Death]]''' (voiced by [[Julian Holloway]] in a [[cockney]] accent) – Pictured as a Grim Reaper-like character modeled after [[Motorhead]]'s [[Lemmy]], Death is a reoccurring character who has a grudge against Skips for being immortal. First introduced in "Over the Top" after Skips accidentally killed Rigby in a game of [[arm-wrestling]], Death restores Rigby to life only after being defeated in an arm-wrestling match.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=Over the Top |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=May 23, 2011 |season=2 |number=21}}</ref> In the episode "Skips Strikes", Death and his team The Magical Elements tried to beat Mordecai and Rigby's team in bowling so he could kill the four due to a bet made by Rigby. However, Mordecai's team won, so Death had to give a magical bowling ball filled with dead [[soul (spirit)|soul]]s to Rigby.<ref name="Skips Strikes">{{Cite episode |title=Skips Strikes |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=October 3, 2011 |season=3 |number=3}}</ref> In "Dead at Eight" after Muscle Man's death, he agreed to restore him to life by forcing Mordecai and Rigby to babysit his 3000-year old son Thomas for his 5000th anniversary.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=Dead at Eight |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=May 28, 2012 |season=3 |number=28}}</ref> In "Exit 9B," Death was among the characters who helped the park workers fight Garrett Bobby Ferguson and his villain allies.<ref name="Exit 9B">{{Cite episode |title=Exit 9B |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=October 1, 2012 |season=4 |number=1-2}}</ref>
* '''[[Death (personification)|Death]]''' (voiced by [[Julian Holloway]] in a [[cockney]] accent) – Pictured as a Grim Reaper-like character modeled after [[Motorhead]]'s [[Lemmy]], Death is a reoccurring character who has a grudge against Skips for being immortal. First introduced in "Over the Top" after Skips accidentally killed Rigby in a game of [[arm-wrestling]], Death restores Rigby to life only after being defeated in an arm-wrestling match.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=Over the Top |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=May 23, 2011 |season=2 |number=21}}</ref> In the episode "Skips Strikes", Death and his team The Magical Elements tried to beat Mordecai and Rigby's team in bowling so he could kill the four due to a bet made by Rigby. However, Mordecai's team won, so Death had to give a magical bowling ball filled with dead [[soul (spirit)|soul]]s to Rigby.<ref name="Skips Strikes">{{Cite episode |title=Skips Strikes |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=October 3, 2011 |season=3 |number=3}}</ref> In "Dead at Eight" after Muscle Man's death, he agreed to restore him to life by forcing Mordecai and Rigby to babysit his 3000-year old son Thomas for his 5000th anniversary.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=Dead at Eight |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=May 28, 2012 |season=3 |number=28}}</ref> In "Exit 9B," Death was among the characters who helped the park workers fight Garrett Bobby Ferguson and his villain allies.<ref name="Exit 9B">{{Cite episode |title=Exit 9B |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=October 1, 2012 |season=4 |number=1-2}}</ref> In "Exit 9B," Death is among the characters that helps the park workers fight Garrett Bobby Ferguson and his allies.


===Villains===
===Villains===
* '''Garrett Bobby Ferguson''' (voiced by Sam Marin) – A giant floating head from outer space who first appeared in "High Score." He was the universal record holder for an arcade game called "Broken Bonez", before he exploded in a fit of rage when Mordecai and Rigby beat his high score.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=High Score |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=February 7, 2011 |season=2 |number=7}}</ref> In "Exit 9B," it was revealed that he had a son named Garrett Bobby Ferguson Jr. who attempted to bring back his father along with other deceased villains to have their revenge. Yet the park workers and their allies managed to send Garrett Bobby Ferguson and the other villains back into the afterlife.<ref name="Exit 9B" />
* '''Garrett Bobby Ferguson''' (voiced by Sam Marin) – A giant floating head from outer space who first appeared in "High Score." He was the universal record holder for an arcade game called "Broken Bonez", before he exploded in a fit of rage when Mordecai and Rigby beat his high score.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=High Score |series=Regular Show |network=Cartoon Network |airdate=February 7, 2011 |season=2 |number=7}}</ref> In "Exit 9B," it was revealed that he had a son named Garrett Bobby Ferguson Jr. who attempted to bring back his father along with other deceased villains to have their revenge. Yet the park workers and their allies managed to send Garrett Bobby Ferguson and the other villains back into the afterlife.<ref name="Exit 9B" />
** '''Garrett Bobby Ferguson Jr.''' (voiced by [[Roger Craig Smith]]) – A floating head who is the son of Garrett Bobby Ferguson, wearing a suit to conceal his true identity. Desiring revenge, after his attempts to buy the park legally failed, Ferguson Jr. took it by force and constructed Exit 9B over the next two months to summon his father and other deceased villains the park residents defeated (ranging from Blonde Men from "Bet to Be Blonde," Deerman from "Camping Can Be Cool," Destroyer of Worlds from "Just Set Up the Chairs," Duck Collector from "A Bunch of Baby Ducks," the Game Store Manager from "But I Have a Receipt," the Hot Dogs from "Meat Your Maker," Howard Fightington and the Zombies from "Grave Sights," Judge Broseph Chillaxton from "Cool Bikes," Master Prank Caller from "Prank Callers," No Rules Man from "House Rules," Party Pete, Skull Punch from "Terror Tales of the Park," Summertime Song from "This Is My Jam," Susan's giant form from "Benson Be Gone," The Hammer from "Rage Against the TV," The Night Owl, and The Urge from "Trash Boat") to have their revenge. However, when his work was undone by all park workers and their intern Thomas signing a document that makes the park a historical landmark, Ferguson Jr. exploded as his father was sent back to the afterlife.<ref name="Exit 9B" />
** '''Garrett Bobby Ferguson Jr.''' (voiced by [[Roger Craig Smith]]) – A floating head who is the son of Garrett Bobby Ferguson, wearing a suit to conceal his true identity. Desiring revenge, after his attempts to buy the park legally failed, Ferguson Jr. took it by force and constructed Exit 9B over the next two months to summon his father and other deceased villains the park residents defeated (ranging from Blonde Men from "Bet to Be Blonde," Deerman from "Camping Can Be Cool," Destroyer of Worlds from "Just Set Up the Chairs," Duck Collector from "A Bunch of Baby Ducks," the Game Store Manager from "But I Have a Receipt," the Hot Dogs from "Meat Your Maker," Howard Fightington and the Zombies from "Grave Sights," Judge Broseph Chillaxton from "Cool Bikes," Master Prank Caller from "Prank Callers," No Rules Man from "House Rules," Party Pete from "Party Pete," Skull Punch from "Terror Tales of the Park," Summertime Song from "This Is My Jam," Susan's giant form from "Benson Be Gone," The Hammer from "Rage Against the TV," The Night Owl from "The Night Owl," and The Urge from "Trash Boat") to have their revenge. However, when his work was undone by all park workers and their intern Thomas signing a document that makes the park a historical landmark, Ferguson Jr. exploded as his father was sent back to the afterlife.<ref name="Exit 9B" />


==Development==
==Development==

Revision as of 21:57, 8 December 2012

Regular Show
File:Regular show title.PNG
Regular Show as it appears on the title card
GenreComedy
Fantasy
Surreal humor
Innuendo
Created byJ. G. Quintel
Creative directorsMike Roth
(season 1)
John Infantino
(season 2–present)
StarringJ. G. Quintel
William Salyers
Sam Marin
Mark Hamill
Roger Craig Smith
Janie Haddad-Tompkins
ComposerMark Mothersbaugh
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes88 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerJ. G. Quintel
ProducersJanet Dimon
Supervising Producers
Chris Reccardi
(season 1)
Mike Roth
(season 2–present)
Running timeapprox. 11 minutes
Production companyCartoon Network Studios
Original release
NetworkCartoon Network
ReleaseSeptember 6, 2010 (2010-09-06) –
present

Regular Show is an Emmy winning American animated television series created by J.G. Quintel for Cartoon Network. The series revolves around the lives of two friends, a blue jay named Mordecai and a raccoon named Rigby, both employed as groundskeepers at a park. Their usual attempts to slack off often lead to surreal misadventures that are either over the top or supernatural. The show's tagline, "It's anything but," alludes to this. The series is produced by Cartoon Network Studios. Although the series does not air on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block and is rated TV-PG, it is considered more of an adult's animated sitcom rather than a children's cartoon.[1]

Many of the characters are loosely based on those developed for Quintel's student films at California Institute of the Arts: The Naive Man From Lolliland and 2 in the AM PM. Quintel pitched Regular Show for Cartoon Network's Cartoonstitute project, in which the network allowed young artists to create pilots with no notes to possibly be optioned as a show. After being green-lit, Quintel recruited several indie comic book artists to compose the staff of the show, as their style matched close to what he desired for the series.

The show premiered September 6, 2010 and has since broadcast over four seasons. The show has received general acclaim from critics, has performed successfully in the ratings and has been nominated for an Annie and has won an Emmy.

Plot

Two 23-year-old friends,[2] a blue jay named Mordecai and a raccoon named Rigby, are employed as groundskeepers at a park and spend their days trying to slack off and entertain themselves by any means. This is much to the chagrin of their boss Benson and their coworker, Skips, but to the delight of Pops. Their other coworkers, Muscle Man (an overweight green man) and High Five Ghost (a ghost with a hand extending from the top of his head), serve as rivals to Mordecai and Rigby.[3] Mordecai and Rigby would later befriend a new coworker, an intern named Thomas, and slowly help him adjust to life working in the park. The show usually revolves around Mordecai and Rigby's attempts to avoid work and enjoy themselves. However, they often, at times, have to pay for their irresponsible actions, as they always get into more trouble than they thought. This typically results in Mordecai and Rigby going through bizarre and surrealistic misadventures, many of which nearly kill them or others around them.

Characters

File:Mordecai-Rigby-Punchies.JPG
The lead characters, Mordecai and Rigby.

Main characters

  • Mordecai (voiced by J.G. Quintel) – A 23-year-old blue jay who is best friends with Rigby. Together, Mordecai and Rigby are employed as groundskeepers at a park, but together they are lazy and rarely get their jobs finished. Mordecai is more conscientious, mature, and moral about his actions, but he tends to go along with Rigby's antics as a result of rivalry. He's also prone to jealousy, often towards Rigby, causing him to act angrily and recklessly; he once killed Rigby, but later wished him back. Mordecai enjoys playing "punchies" against Rigby, knowing he will always win because of his strength over Rigby. Mordecai has a crush on Margaret, a red-breasted robin and waitress at the local coffee shop. He is an art school graduate.[4] He was originally in the short film 2 in the AM PM as a cameo, which was also created by Quintel.
  • Rigby (voiced by William Salyers) – A 23-year-old raccoon, who is best friends with Mordecai and works as a groundskeeper alongside him. Rigby is eccentric, immature, and extremely mischievous, which puts him at odds with Mordecai at times. Rigby lives mostly for self-gratification, which he sometimes achieves through selfish acts of lying or cheating; but consequentially, Rigby has a bad habit of getting himself and other people in trouble. Many of the problems that the park employees face appear to be (mostly) Rigby's fault. Nevertheless, he is best friends with Mordecai and often relies on him for getting himself out of trouble. Rarely has there instances where he's saved Mordecai from danger. He has a younger brother named Don, who he is jealous of due to people often mistaking him for the older brother, due in part to Don being taller and larger. He was killed (and later revived) four times, once by Mordecai,[5] another time by Snowballs the Ice Monster,[6] once by Skips,[7] and then is put into a coma in "Eggsellent" after eating a large amount of eggs (which he is allergic to).[8] He has a crush on Eileen, a mole and the best friend of Margaret, but he is loath to admit it.
  • Benson (voiced by Sam Marin) – A living gumball machine, and manager of the park, the employer of Mordecai and Rigby, who works for Mr. Maellard. Mordecai and Rigby frequently infuriate Benson due to their constant slacking and mischief, and as such he has limited trust for them, even though it's his responsibility since their mistakes happen on his watch. He is a responsible and hardworking employee. He is very hot-tempered, sarcastic, and is prone to fits of rage (turning red whenever this happens). However, Benson loosened up a bit after "Benson Be Gone" where he has gained some degree of understanding for the two. In the same episode, Benson (temporarily) became a slacker upon being replaced by a woman named Susan before reverting back to his old responsible self.[9] It is revealed in "Think Positive" that Benson had a dysfunctional family which created his anger in life, along with the overwhelming expectations from his boss.[10] He is good friends with Pops whom he takes care of due to his naivety. He was originally in the short film "2 in the AM PM" (which was also created by Quintel) and the voice also done by Marin.
  • Skips (voiced by Mark Hamill) – A yeti groundskeeper who is apparently far older than he appears. Granted the power of immortality, he is destined to perform a ceremonial dance every year on his birthday; if he doesn't perform the dance, he will die. He works out frequently, and as indicated by his name, he "skips" when he moves. Skips' personality seems rather indifferent, but he is always willing to help Mordecai and Rigby whenever they end up in trouble. He tends to be the solution to many of the problems Mordecai and Rigby cause, usually by means of some sort of contraption he rigs up instantaneously. Skips appears to be very experienced and knowledgeable for whenever Mordecai and Rigby cause trouble, he says, "I've seen this before." He then proposes a solution to the problem (implying that Skips used to be much like Mordecai and Rigby). In "Skips Strikes", it is revealed that Skips is an excellent bowler and that his birth name was Walks, but he changed it due to the fact that he never walked and only skipped.[11] In "Diary," the reason he skips everywhere is to remember the time he spent with his former love as they would always skip together.[12]
  • Pops Maellard (voiced by Sam Marin) – A naïve lollipop-shaped man who is almost always in a jolly mood. Pops works with Benson as a park manager yet acts as a groundskeeper. He tends to be overly ecstatic about every situation, and expresses himself as an upright gentleman to the point where he overly extends his words and sentences formally. Despite being an elderly man, Pops is very childlike and naïve about the world around him. Therefore, he serves as somewhat of a non sequitur character. He also seems to like Mordecai and Rigby more than Benson ironically despite Mordecai and Rigby's irresponsible behavior and Benson's more responsible behavior (and Benson being his good friend). Pops' father Mr. Maellard owns the park. Even so, Pops relies on Benson for the upkeep of the park. Benson also seems to be responsible for taking care of Pops due to his childlike nature. Pops' character is taken from Quintel's short animation "The Naïve Man from Lolliland." In the episode "Prank Callers," it is implied that Pops was once a (somewhat) more serious man until Mordecai and Rigby (who had traveled back in time to the 80s) collided with his younger self, causing him apparent brain damage and turning him into the quirky character he is known as in the series. [13]
  • Mitch "Muscle Man" Sorenstein (voiced by Sam Marin) – Another groundskeeper at the park. Mitch Sorenstein (better known by his nickname "Muscle Man") is an overweight, dwarfish, green-skinned man which is ironic given his nickname. His behavior seems quite erratic and immature. Muscle Man believes himself to be macho and superior to everyone, constantly disrespecting Mordecai and Rigby and referring to them as "ladies". He is always cracking "My mom!" jokes (botched attempts at "Your mom!" jokes), much to the chagrin of everyone else (except his best friend, High Five Ghost, who enjoys them). He also enjoys pulling pranks on people. He had a father, Muscle Dad, who enjoyed the same attitude for pranks and jokes, but was mauled and killed after aggravating a bear in "Trucker Hall of Fame".[14] The same episode showed his sensitive and grief-stricken side. In the episode "Muscle Woman", his real name is revealed to be Mitch Sorenstein.[15] As of the episode "Fancy Restaurant", he and Starla are dating.[16] His name is a homage to Michael "The Situation" Sorrentino.
  • High Five Ghost (voiced by Jeff Bennett in Season One, J.G. Quintel in later episodes) – A ghost with a hand extending from the top of his head that works as a groundskeeper. High Five Ghost is best friends with Muscle Man, and he is frequently shown giving Muscle Man a high five to accompany his "My Mom!" jokes. He rarely talks, but when he does, he uses a quivery, high pitched voice like a standard ghost's voice. In spite of his close friendship with Muscle Man, he doesn't seem to share in the rivalry with Mordecai and Rigby, at least not to the degree that Muscle Man does.
  • Thomas (voiced by Roger Craig Smith) – A recent newcomer to the park workers' crew, he is an anthropomorphic goat intern who is introduced in the fourth-season premiere, "Exit 9B." He obtained the job to get extra credit points for college.[17] He is constantly seen talking to his mother on his cellular phone.
File:Mordecai-Rigby-Punchies.JPG
The lead characters, Mordecai and Rigby.

Secondary characters

  • Margaret (voiced by Janie Haddad) – A red-breasted robin[18] who works at a local coffee shop. She is kind and respectful to both Mordecai and Rigby, who is aware that Mordecai has a crush on her. A running gag on the show is that she appears to have a new boyfriend almost every episode she is in, much to Mordecai's chagrin; however, since "Camping Can Be Cool", she has remained single.[4] Since the events of "Butt Dial" when Mordecai's feelings for her were revealed, she has, (albeit slowly), returned the feelings of Mordecai,[19] with it being shown in "Access Denied" that she only threw her birthday party so she could dance with him,[20] and in "Death Bear", they almost kissed after a romantic moment at the abandoned zoo.[21] The season 3 finale, "Bad Kiss" had Mordecai kiss Margaret, but she did not enjoy it due to his bad breath. Luckily for Mordecai, he utilized time travel to prevent the kiss from happening.[22]
  • Eileen (voiced by Minty Lewis) – A mole who looks surprisingly human. She also works at the local coffee shop alongside Margaret. She has a crush on Rigby, but he is initially unaware of it. She first appeared in the episode "Brain Eraser".[23] She also appears in "Do Me a Solid", where Rigby learns of Eileen's crush on him (even though Rigby is not interested in Eileen),[24] though he goes along with it for a while. Since the episode "Camping Can Be Cool", Rigby has warmed up to Eileen and considers her a cool person and praised her actions throughout the episode.[4] In the episode "Diary", Rigby admits that he finds Eileen to be attractive without her glasses on.[25]
  • Mr. Maellard (voiced by David Ogden Stiers) – A lollipop man who owns the park and is also the father of Pops. He first appeared in "Dizzy".[26] Maellard is very impatient towards Benson (similar to Benson's impatience towards Mordecai and Rigby) and Maellard blames Mordecai and Rigby's shenanigans on Benson (as he expects Benson to take responsibility for Mordecai and Rigby as park manager). He purposely mistakes Benson's name a lot in some of the episodes he is in. Maellard finally got Benson's name right (and starts to respect him as well) in "Benson Be Gone" due to Benson coming to his rescue when he was captured by Susan (a woman whom Mr. Maellard had hired as the park manager after demoting Benson) and also gave Benson his old job back.[9] However, their relationship was short-lived as in "Busted Cart" where he threatened to fire Benson for Mordecai and Rigby's recent shenanigans destroying the golf cart.[27]
  • Gary (voiced by Robin Atkin Downes) – Gary is a chauffeur that first appeared in "Free Cake" where he was hired by the Guardians of Eternal Youth to take Skips to be executed.[28] He has made a reappearance in the episode "Skips Strikes" using magic to defeat Mordecai and Rigby in bowling.[11] He also appeared in "Cool Bikes" as Mordecai and Rigby's attorney.[29]
  • Starla (voiced by Courtneay Taylor) – An overweight, big-breasted green woman. Starla first appeared in "Muscle Woman", where she is viewed as the antagonist after breaking up with Muscle Man and causing him to be grief-stricken. In the same episode, she fell for Mordecai, who briefly dated her in hopes the relationship would blow over. When he broke up with her, Starla became filled with rage and went on a rampage, destroying the eastern end of the Park. She finally calmed down after Muscle Man called her "sexy when destroying things", and both tongue-kiss.[15] She appears again in "Fancy Restaurant", where her parents are introduced during a date with Muscle Man.[16]
  • Death (voiced by Julian Holloway in a cockney accent) – Pictured as a Grim Reaper-like character modeled after Motorhead's Lemmy, Death is a reoccurring character who has a grudge against Skips for being immortal. First introduced in "Over the Top" after Skips accidentally killed Rigby in a game of arm-wrestling, Death restores Rigby to life only after being defeated in an arm-wrestling match.[30] In the episode "Skips Strikes", Death and his team The Magical Elements tried to beat Mordecai and Rigby's team in bowling so he could kill the four due to a bet made by Rigby. However, Mordecai's team won, so Death had to give a magical bowling ball filled with dead souls to Rigby.[11] In "Dead at Eight" after Muscle Man's death, he agreed to restore him to life by forcing Mordecai and Rigby to babysit his 3000-year old son Thomas for his 5000th anniversary.[31] In "Exit 9B," Death was among the characters who helped the park workers fight Garrett Bobby Ferguson and his villain allies.[32] In "Exit 9B," Death is among the characters that helps the park workers fight Garrett Bobby Ferguson and his allies.

Villains

  • Garrett Bobby Ferguson (voiced by Sam Marin) – A giant floating head from outer space who first appeared in "High Score." He was the universal record holder for an arcade game called "Broken Bonez", before he exploded in a fit of rage when Mordecai and Rigby beat his high score.[33] In "Exit 9B," it was revealed that he had a son named Garrett Bobby Ferguson Jr. who attempted to bring back his father along with other deceased villains to have their revenge. Yet the park workers and their allies managed to send Garrett Bobby Ferguson and the other villains back into the afterlife.[32]
    • Garrett Bobby Ferguson Jr. (voiced by Roger Craig Smith) – A floating head who is the son of Garrett Bobby Ferguson, wearing a suit to conceal his true identity. Desiring revenge, after his attempts to buy the park legally failed, Ferguson Jr. took it by force and constructed Exit 9B over the next two months to summon his father and other deceased villains the park residents defeated (ranging from Blonde Men from "Bet to Be Blonde," Deerman from "Camping Can Be Cool," Destroyer of Worlds from "Just Set Up the Chairs," Duck Collector from "A Bunch of Baby Ducks," the Game Store Manager from "But I Have a Receipt," the Hot Dogs from "Meat Your Maker," Howard Fightington and the Zombies from "Grave Sights," Judge Broseph Chillaxton from "Cool Bikes," Master Prank Caller from "Prank Callers," No Rules Man from "House Rules," Party Pete from "Party Pete," Skull Punch from "Terror Tales of the Park," Summertime Song from "This Is My Jam," Susan's giant form from "Benson Be Gone," The Hammer from "Rage Against the TV," The Night Owl from "The Night Owl," and The Urge from "Trash Boat") to have their revenge. However, when his work was undone by all park workers and their intern Thomas signing a document that makes the park a historical landmark, Ferguson Jr. exploded as his father was sent back to the afterlife.[32]

Development

J.G. Quintel, creator of the show and voice of Mordecai, based the show off his student films produced at CalArts

Regular Show largely grew out of creator J.G. Quintel's own life and experiences in college. Quintel attended the California Institute of the Arts, and many of the characters on Regular Show are furthermore based on the characters developed for his student films: The Naïve Man from Lolliland (2005) and 2 in the AM PM (2006). Both originated as part of a game called "48-hour films," in which students put words into a hat, pull one word out at midnight and spend a weekend rushing to come up with a film. He attended college with Thurop Van Orman and Pendleton Ward, who would both go on to work at Cartoon Network Studios with Quintel, creating The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack and Adventure Time, respectively. Quintel concurrently worked on Camp Lazlo and Flapjack while completing his degree, and was later offered to pitch for Cartoon Network's Cartoonstitute, a planned project showcase of animated shorts created without the interference of network executives and focus testing,[34] while serving as the creative director for Flapjack.[35]

Quintel went back to the characters from his films and put them together with newer characters to create a pilot.[35] Quintel desired a visual pitch rather than verbal, believing the idea would make very little sense otherwise. He storyboarded the idea for the pilot, and Craig McCracken and Rob Renzetti liked his presentation.[36] Eventually, Regular Show would become one of two series that were green-lit from the project, which was eventually scrapped and never premiered on television.[37] The character of Mordecai embodies Quintel during his college years, specifically at CalArts: "That’s that time when you’re hanging out with your friends and getting into stupid situations, but you’re also taking it seriously enough."[38] The character of Rigby developed randomly when Quintel drew a raccoon hula-hooping on a Post-It. He liked the design and developed the character of Rigby to be a jerk character who is far more irresponsible than his companion.[39]

While preparing for the beginning of the show, Quintel looked for young, indie comic artists to compose the show's storyboard artists, feeling that the style would match closer to that of Regular Show. Quintel looked through blogs and convention panels for the "total package," which he explained as having the ability to both write and draw, something that many independent comic book artists possess, as they often write and draw their comics solely by themselves. In addition, Quintel reached back to CalArts and attended many "open shows" - an eight-hour festival of student animation. Teams of storyboard artists, therefore, can include those who were contacted through their work in comics or those hired with a background in animation.[35] The style and sensibility of the show was a bit difficult to work with in the beginning, as they struggled to create a natural, sitcom-like sound for the series.[36]

Regular Show was inspired by shows like The Simpsons and Beavis and Butt-head, and Quintel credited the stylistic elements of Joe Murray's Rocko's Modern Life and Camp Lazlo as working their way into his style.[36] Video games Quintel played as a child, such as Street Fighter, Shadowrun and ToeJam & Earl, inspired the series, as did a large degree of British television. Quintel's interest in British television was spawned by his roommate at CalArts, who was British and introduced him to many shows he had never heard of, such as The League of Gentlemen, The IT Crowd, and The Office. The Mighty Boosh was, in particular, very influential to Quintel, whose sensibilities began to switch after watching them and would later influence the humor in Regular Show.[35] In addition, Mordecai and Rigby's "hmm hmm" dialogue was inspired by the same roommate: "[That] stuff was something that a roommate of mine from college would always do. He would kick my door open and be holding his Nintendo DS and say nothing more than "hmm, hmmm." […] It’s just a way of saying I’m way better than you without saying words." The show also drew inspiration from bad jobs Quintel had while growing up, such as his tenure at a movie theater.[39]

Production

Each episode of Regular Show typically takes about nine months to complete. Quintel and his team of about 35 develop each episode at Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank, California.[40][41] The process begins in the writer's room, where they play games to generate ideas. The head writers (Quintel, Jack Thomas and John Infantino) find an idea that they are most partial to and proceed to write a premise, which is then given to a team of storyboard artists.[42] The staff works hard to make sure stories are strong before moving forward to make any episode.[38] The board artists come up with dialogue and draw the entire episode while Quintel and crew give notes throughout the process. The storyboard is turned in to the network who often give notes to tone down language and other aspects. The board is recorded and an animatic is created, and all of the show's artists put together the assets (backgrounds, character designs, props) to send to Saerom Animation in South Korea. The episode is timed on sheets and then sent overseas, while the crew gives more notes to the Saerom animators. Music and sound effects are created and the final episode is mixed and completed. The process allows for dozens of episodes to be worked on at different stages of production.

The voice acting of the series is relatively low-key, and the intention was to make the majority of the characters sound natural and conversational. Quintel desired to make the show listenable and given contrast to most other cartoons, which often take a zany route and are difficult for adults to listen to. Sam Marin, voice of Benson, Pops and Muscle Man, was in the same year as Quintel at CalArts and he would often contribute voices to his student films. Although more modern animation has switched to tablet/screen hybrids such as the Cintiq, Regular Show has been described as "far more low-fi," and is animated traditionally by hand using digital ink and paint. Although Cintiqs were optioned to be used for the program, Quintel felt more comfortable working on paper, feeling it to be more organic and more representative of each artists' individual style. Board artist Calvin Wong has described "the tools of the trade as being pencils, pens, white out and occasionally light boxes and electric erasers.”[35]

The show makes heavy use of references to the 1980s, through music and montages, as much of the crew was born in and grew up during the decade. The show often licenses music from bands and artists to use during the show, which is very unusual for animated television shows.[39] This process began when the show was first began, and early animatics included songs the crew liked to put music montages together to see whether it would flow well or not. Executives saw the animatics and offered to secure the rights for songs submitted. "Some of them were actually cool about us using their music," explained Quintel, who hoped the use of relevant songs would strike memories for adults and re-introduce it for younger children.[38] Although several elements in the show are distinctly modern, such as commercial Internet, the reference to DVDs in "The Best VHS in the world", and a reference to flatscreen TVs in "Rage against the TV" the show often references older technology, like VHS cassette tapes and cartridge-based video game consoles.[38]

Regular Show is rated TV-PG-V. Cartoon Network told Quintel early on that they wanted to "age it up from the TV-Y7 stuff we'd been doing in the past." This direction led the crew to push things as far as possible before realizing there were limits to that as well. During the production process, episodes regularly receive network notes for sequences that should be toned down. The staff often wants to make dialogue more conversational, but the use of certain language is often pulled back and toned down by the network's Standards and Practices department. In an extreme example, the network forced the staff to re-write the last three minutes of an episode.[38] Quintel has often stated in interviews that the staff writes the show for themselves, which often leads to subtle innuendo.[39]

Reception

Regular Show became an instant hit with its first and second seasons on Monday nights, ranking #1 in its time period among all key boy demos across all of television according to Nielsen Media Research.[43]

Regular Show has received general acclaim from critics and audiences. Devin D. O'Leary of Alibi.com's "Idiot Box" column gave the show a favorable review, saying that its theme felt like a workplace sitcom and that the "parade of super-strange characters" added to the show's humor. He compared the show to Beavis and Butt-head.[44] PopMatters critic Chris Conaton gave the show a six-out-of-ten rating, saying that it was "mildly amusing." His review praised Quintel's and Salyers' voice acting, but thought that the humor was derivative of Beavis and Butt-Head and The Ren & Stimpy Show.[45] Common Sense Media reviewer Melissa Camacho said the show to be "pretty edgy for non-Adult Swim Cartoon Network fare" due to its fantasy violence, sexual content and language but also said that "viewers who are into creative animation will definitely appreciate the wit featured here," and gave it three stars out of five.[46] Metacritic gave Regular Show a 9.0 rating, with the rank of "universal acclaim".

Episodes

Main article: List of Regular Show episodes
Season(s) Episodes(s) Season premiere Season finale DVD release date
Pilot 1 2009 N/A
1 12 September 6, 2010 (2010-09-06) November 22, 2010 (2010-11-22) TBA
2 28 November 29, 2010 (2010-11-29) August 22, 2011 (2011-08-22) TBA
3 40 September 19, 2011 (2011-09-19) September 3, 2012 (2012-09-03) TBA
4 40[47] October 1, 2012[48] TBA (TBA) TBA
5 40[49] TBA TBA (TBA) TBA
Miscellaneous appearances 2 2012 (2012) TBA N/A
Student films 2 2005 (2005) 2006 (2006) N/A
Shorts 2 April 15, 2011 (2011-04-15) TBA (TBA) N/A

Season 1 began on September 6, 2010 with the episode "The Power" and ended on November 22, 2010 with "Mordecai and the Rigbys". There was a pilot of the series that aired on Cartoon Network Video, an extended remake was aired on July 11, 2011. Season 2 began on November 29, 2010 with "Ello Gov'nor" and ended on August 1, 2011 with "Karaoke Video". The 39-episode third season and premiered on September 19, 2011 with the episode "Stick Hockey" and ended on September 3, 2012 with "Bad Kiss". The 40-episode fourth season premiered on October 1st, 2012 with the 30-minute episode "Exit 9B".

Other media

Toys

Jazwares has produced an assortment of 2,[50] 6,[51] 7,[52] and 10-inch licensed action figures and plush toys for the series.[53] "Collectable Figures" have also been released[54] along with other themed merchandise, such as "80's Bobbleheads",[55] "Pullback Custom Cruisers"[56] and "Wrestling Buddies".[57]

Video games

The game has an app called Nightmare-athon available on the iOS app store. The game costs US $.99 in the United States.[58]

Home media

Region DVD title Season(s) Aspect ratio Episode count Time length Release date
1 Regular Show: Slack Pack[59] 1, 2 16:9 12 137 minutes April 3, 2012
1 Regular Show: The Best DVD in the World *At this Moment in Time[60] 2, 3 16:9 16 TBA November 6, 2012

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Result
2011 Annie Awards Best Animated Television Production for Children[61] Nominated
Emmy Awards Outstanding Short-format Animated Program for "Mordecai and the Rigbys" Nominated
BAFTA Children's Award (UK) Kids Vote Powered By Yahoo! – Top 10s – Television[62] Nominated
International[63] Nominated
2012 Annie Awards Storyboarding in a Television Production:Benton Connor Nominated
Emmy Awards Outstanding Short-format Animated Program for "Eggscellent" Won
PAAFTJ Television Awards Best Animated Series[64] Nominated
Best Writeing in an Animated Series for For "Weekend At Bensons" Nominated
Best Voice Actor In An Animated Series for J.G Quintel as Mordecai in "Eggscellent" Won

See also

References

  1. ^ Rewind, Geekdad. "Regular Show's J.G. Quintel Is Just A Regular Guy". Wired. Wired. Retrieved 2012-10-03.
  2. ^ "The Power". Regular Show. Season 1. Episode 1. September 6, 2010. Cartoon Network. Dude, we're 23 years old, we shouldn't be busting holes in walls.
  3. ^ Cruz, Eileen (April 21, 2010). "Toonzone at the Cartoon Network 2010 Upfront". Toonzone.net. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
  4. ^ a b c "Camping Can Be Cool". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 6. October 17, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  5. ^ "It's Time". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 2. January 3, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  6. ^ "Appreciation Day". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 3. January 10, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  7. ^ "Over the Top". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 21. May 23, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  8. ^ "Eggscellent". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 18. February 27, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  9. ^ a b "Benson Be Gone". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 11. February 28, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  10. ^ "Think Positive". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 15. January 30, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  11. ^ a b c "Skips Strikes". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 3. October 3, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  12. ^ "Diary". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 3. July 23, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  13. ^ "Prank Callers". Regular Show. Season 1. Episode 9. November 1, 2010. Cartoon Network.
  14. ^ "Trucker Hall of Fame". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 31. June 18, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  15. ^ a b "Muscle Woman". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 14. April 4, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  16. ^ a b "Fancy Restaurant". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 33. July 16, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  17. ^ "Fist Pump! Cartoon Network's Emmy®-Winning Regular Show Returns for Fourth Season". Turner. Retrieved 2012-1-2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  18. ^ "Cartoon Network Characters". Cartoon Network. Retrieved 2012-8-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  19. ^ "Butt Dial". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 17. February 13, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  20. ^ "Access Denied". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 29. June 4, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  21. ^ "Death Bear". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 37. August 13, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  22. ^ "Bad Kiss". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 40. September 3, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  23. ^ "Brain Eraser". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 10. February 25, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  24. ^ "Do Me a Solid". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 18. May 2, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  25. ^ "Diary". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 3. July 23, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  26. ^ "Dizzy". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 5. January 24, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  27. ^ "Busted Cart". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 27. May 14, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  28. ^ "Free Cake". Regular Show. Season 1. Episode 5. October 4, 2010. Cartoon Network.
  29. ^ "Cool Bikes". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 8. November 7, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  30. ^ "Over the Top". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 21. May 23, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  31. ^ "Dead at Eight". Regular Show. Season 3. Episode 28. May 28, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  32. ^ a b c "Exit 9B". Regular Show. Season 4. Episode 1–2. October 1, 2012. Cartoon Network.
  33. ^ "High Score". Regular Show. Season 2. Episode 7. February 7, 2011. Cartoon Network.
  34. ^ Bynum, Aaron H. (04-03-08). 'The Cartoonstitute' Announcement "CN Upfront 2008: 'The Cartoonstitute' Announcement". Animation Insider. Retrieved 2008-06-20. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
  35. ^ a b c d e Shannon O'Leary (May 16, 2012). "Interview: Regular Show creator JG Quintel on indie comics and cartoons". The Beat. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
  36. ^ a b c Ramin Zahed (April 17, 2012). "The Sublime Madness of J.G. Quintel". Animation Magazine. Retrieved July 15, 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  37. ^ "Cartoon Network Announces Comedy Animation Greenlights". News.turner.com. Retrieved 2011-05-03.
  38. ^ a b c d e "Regular Show's J.G. Quintel Is Just a Regular Guy". Wired. April 3, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  39. ^ a b c d Charles Webb (April 3, 2012). "Interview: The Regular Show Creator J.G. Quintel". MTV News. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
  40. ^ Bentley, Rick (October 30, 2011). "Hanford High's JG Quintel has cartoon career". The Fresno Bee. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  41. ^ "Cartoon Network Brings the Funny to WonderCon 2012". Action Figure Insider. actionfigureinsider.com. March 8, 2012. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  42. ^ "A Day in the Life of J.G. Quintel". Animation Magazine. August 2010. Retrieved July 15, 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  43. ^ Ramin Zahed (September 16, 2011). "New Season of Regular Show Arrives Monday". Animation Magazine. Retrieved July 15, 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  44. ^ O'Leary, Devin D. (September 2, 2010). ""Regular Show" on Cartoon Network". Alibi.com. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
  45. ^ Conaton, Chris (September 7, 2010). "'Regular Show': Mildly Amusing". PopMatters. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  46. ^ Camacho, Melissa. "Regular Show TV Review". Common Sense Media. Retrieved October 14, 2011.
  47. ^ http://www.formspring.me/BentonConnor/q/325723525363034617
  48. ^ https://twitter.com/jgquintel
  49. ^ http://www.formspring.me/tobytobyjones/q/388474121693975068
  50. ^ "2 Inch Figures". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  51. ^ "6 Inch Figures". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  52. ^ "7 Inch Plush". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  53. ^ "10 Inch Talking Plush". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  54. ^ "Collectable Figures". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  55. ^ "80's Bobbleheads". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  56. ^ "Pullback Custom Cruisers". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  57. ^ "Wrestling Buddies". Jazwares. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  58. ^ "Regular Show - Nightmare-athon for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad on the iTunes App Store". Apple Inc. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  59. ^ Regular Show's Slack Pack Party - DVD Preview at IGN
  60. ^ Regular Show DVD news: Announcement for The Best DVD in the World *At this Moment in Time | TVShowsOnDVD.com
  61. ^ "Nominations Announced For The 38th Annual Annie Awards". PR Newswire. 2010-12-06.
  62. ^ "Awards Database". British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
  63. ^ "Awards Database". British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
  64. ^ "PAAFTJ Television Awards winners announced". 8 July 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2012.

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