Customer Reviews

Superjail!: Season One

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

SuperJail is by far one of the greatest pieces of animation to hit TV in the last ten years.
Clearly it's not for younger viewers as it was developed for the AdultSwim programming block on Cartoon Network.
As I mentioned before this is not a review of the Show, but of AdiultSwim's DVD product.

While the show is great in and of itself, this DVD is not.

Once again Adultswim is releasing a DVD with an "UNCENSORED" sticker on the package (Like they did with the Metyalocalypse DVDs) when this content is still COMPLETELY CENSORED as it was on the original Cablecasts and "air dates".
This is ridiculous.
I bought this DVD to see this amazing show without the silly BLACK BARS over images and without loud BEEPS over language.
Instead only the animatics, -the auxiliary extra content- is free of censor beeps etc.
I hope Adultswim smartens up and eventually releases these shows uncut, uncensored as they are currently advertising -falsely.
I doubt I'll be buying more Adultswim DVDs outside of the Venture Bros. releases (which actually are UNCENSORED as advertised)
I received this DVD in the mail on Thursday, and I just sold it this morning.

I'm waiting for the real uncensored version if it ever comes out.
-SJ

What irritates me the most about this DVD is the "Uncensored warning" on the cover. Again this is only for the special features, NOT for the 10 episodes!!! This seems to be a trend with Adult Swim items. Just like Metalocalypes and Venture Brothers, this dvd is full of bleeps! What is the point of that? The main reason I collect these is to avoid the censorship and to enjoy them as they are meant to be viewed.

Superjail! is a creatively gruesome cartoon suitable for the late night slot it was in on cable. Due to it's extreme nature it was never meant for anyone under 17. They should have kept the swears and sex (the censors have no problem with the ultra-violence however) and slapped an R or NC-17 rating on it. The censor beep is offensive to me. It shouldn't be on a DVD you buy.

[DW]

I've been asked, "Why do you like this show?" "Superjail!" is incredibly fast-paced; it's packed with wall-to-wall gore and violence of the type only seen on Adult Swim (or in anime); and the viewer only understands what's going on after two or three repeat viewings of any episode. Yet I can't stop watching it.

How to describe it? Every episode begins with the latest adventure of Jackknife, the only inmate ever to escape Superjail, which he does at the end of each and every episode. Meanwhile, at the beginning of every episode, Jackknife is caught by the Jailbot in the middle of doing something disgusting, obscene, and inhuman, and the Jailbot flies him back to Superjail through a psychedelic landscape, in a sequence that is different with each episode. (No animated sequence ever repeats itself on this show!) Superjail is in an impossible location, a gigantic fortress within a volcano, within an even bigger volcano. This is the type of idea you'd expect to see in drawings from the imagination of a seven-year-old child...and in fact, the entire design of the animation, right down to the hand-drawn "Superjail!" logo, has that aspect. It's as if the series creators took a hundred years' worth of graffiti and doodles from the back pages of bored elementary school students' textbooks, and brought them to absurd, sadistic life.

There are only few actual "characters" here - the Warden, the insane yet naive and child-like overlord who treats Superjail as his own personal Christmas toy; Jared, the nervous and shy accountant with a gigantic forehead not unlike The Leader from The Incredible Hulk; Alice, the hermaphrodite prison guard with strong female overtures, even stronger muscles, and a deep baritone voice (who really gets off on the tortures and sick perversions that take place all the time in Superjail); and the strange Twins, who appear to be from the future or maybe another dimension, causing trouble and havoc in Superjail just because they're bored and want to liven things up. And then there's the jail itself, with its thousands upon thousands of inmates who pack the frames of every moment of this show. Other than Jackknife, none of them is an actual personality; they're there for our entertainment, as we watch them suffer the whims of the Warden's latest idea, dying horrible deaths by the hundreds in sequences that happen so fast, they scream for DVD and frame-by-frame examination.

I think it's the animation that makes this show what it is - outrageous, absurdly glorious animation that is refreshingly unlike anything else showing today, on TV or in the movies. There's no CGI, the designs seem to be taken from bad 1960s acid trips (one episode has a five-second-or-so clip that's a direct homage to Yellow Submarine's Sea of Monsters), and there is (refreshingly) absolutely no influence of anime stereotypes anywhere at all in this show! What's more, every single frame of this show is packed with movement, with something happening in every single frame. This is an animation background designer's paradise, as you can look at any part of any scene and see something strange. You could freeze-frame any moment of any episode, and I would defy you to describe that single image in anything less than three paragraphs. This contributes to much of the reality-defying moments of the show. It moves at such a breakneck pace that we're treated to sudden sequences in which the gore and action flow off on strange tangents, unrelated to the main plot in any way other than we're watching the inmates die in unendingly creative ways. There's so much going on here that it threatens to overwhelm the viewer...but, somehow, it works. Each episode is only about eleven minutes long, and that's for the best; this show is taken best in small doses. Maybe that's why we don't care that there isn't much of a plot or any actual characters other than the regular cast - we don't need them.

This could be one of those shows where the creators went for broke: not knowing if they were going to be renewed for a second season, they poured all of their ideas and creativity into the first season, resulting in one of those flashes in the pan that may not last into a second season. There will be a second season of "Superjail!," and like its other fans I am hoping that it is every bit as good as the first, or even better. But even if it isn't, the first season will stand like the original first season of "Ren and Stimpy" - an instant classic of surrealism that makes your jaw drop as you can't believe what you are seeing, but you simply enjoy every moment of the experience.

First of all, this is not a show for children and this is not a show for adults. This is a show for people with an acquired taste. Happy Tree Friends + Willy Wonka + Chaotic art style. If those things are up your alley then you will absolutely fall in LOVE with Superjail!. Each episode is around 15 minutes in length, but I certainly consider it to be one of the most well-written, well-put together, well thought-out shows to ever be played on Adult Swim. The violence and gore play out like an instrumental score, flowing graceful in a freakishly poetic way. The characters are the most endearing that I have seen on Adult Swim in YEARS. They have depth and are multi-faceted, voiced wonderfully, and hilarious. If one looks past the outer layer of obvious gore, one will appreciate how beautifully made this show is. Definitely hoping for Season 2!!!!!

First off, I love Superjail! and was really excited for the season one DVD to come out. It does contain all the episodes from the first season and.....that's really it. No commentary or any other extras to speak of other than a music video, the pilot, and animatics. Boring.
Also: while it says that it is "Uncensored" I have found that it is, in all actuality, still censored. There are still *bleeps* when people swear and still boxes for nudity.
So not only are you getting false advertising, but an absolutely bare bones ordeal of a DVD.
Its a shame too, because they could have done something great with the DVD. Maybe the next one will be better.

This show is an incredible cartoon that will blow your mind with the amount of ...things going on on-screen at once. The incredible violent scenes that top off every episode are painstakingly detailed and perfectly timed. I can only hope that sales of this DVD set lead to another season of this highly original cartoon series. BUT...there is an issue with the actual DVD that no one seems to document and I have not had any luck getting a response on. After trading my DVD in multiple times to multiple locations, there are a series of small audio/video glitches in the EXTRA pilot episode "Bunny Love". After dealing with so many copies of the DVD I'm guessing it's not just an issue with a certain "Shipment" of them. Right near the end of the episode, the video/audio pauses three seperate times and the video gets a second of "lines" through it. Clearly an issue with rendering it to DVD...but I don't know if this will ever be addressed being that this is a small time show in the scheme of things.

I will still keep this DVD however, as this show is worth every penny. Video quality overall is 9/10. When the chaos hits the screen it does it best (as much as DVD can) but sometimes the colors block and blur. That just happens with DVD compression though. I'd give it an 8 because it's very minimal.

I'm just hoping I'm not the only one encountering this glitch in the pilot episode.

If bodies being shredded and ripped apart in cartoon form are up your alley then Superjail is for you!
Every episode goes through the same motions...Follow JackKnife as he is captured by Jailbot and returned to Superjail at the beginning of each episode. The Warden will come up with a crazy plan for which the twins will make even more difficult. Poor Jared, the Warden's assistant, will try to follow the Wardens plans but makes things worse or at least gets blamed for things going wrong. Alice the prison guard and object of the Warden's affection, will keep the prisoners in line...or take them out. As chaos breaks out so does JackKnife and the cycle can begin again in the next episode.
This is one of my favorite cartoons on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. I highly recommend it if you have a stomach that can handle the gore.

If I could rate this show any higher than 5 stars, I would. This is definitely the most beautifully chaotic show I've ever seen. It sucks you into an ultra-violent dreamworld. Have you ever wondered what it would be like if Willy Wonka ran a prison? Need I say more? Buy it if you wish to be entertained.

This is the most creative animated show since Ren & Stimpy and Spongebob. This show actually takes advantage of being a cartoon. Strong replay value because each episode is jam packed with visual gags and bizarre insanity. I've watched all the episodes at least 5 times now because I keep showing the DVD to friends, who all love it. I highly recommend this DVD.