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178 of 199 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Show, Based On An Even Better Comic Series, April 29, 2006
Before I start the review, I'd like to tell anyone who's a fan of this show to BUY THE COMIC COLLECTIONS. They're even better than the show (which I love), and if this show introduced you to the Boondocks, then you should definately explore the comics that the show is based on.
The Boondocks might just be the best show on TV. First of all, it has some great, memorable characters. Huey Freeman, the 10 year old revolutionary that listens to too much Public Enemy...His younger brother, Riley, who is fascinated by gangsta rap, guns, and bling...Grandad, the guardian of the two boys, who's slightly disconnected from the modern times, but has enough sense to be the occasional voice of reason...Tom Dubois (his name is a play on "uncle tom"), his (white) wife, and his confused daughter, Jasmine, who are the Freeman's neighbors...Uncle Ruckus, the self-hating, caucasian loving black man...Ed Wuncler, the owner of almost all of Woodcrest...His grandson, Ed III, and Gin Rummy; 2 crazy crime obsessed white characters played brilliantly by Charlie Murphy & Samuel L. Jackson...And more
Another reason the show is so great is because it touches on interesting and controversial subject matters. It's a show that can really make you think - about social issues, religion, race, relationships, business, war, politics, and just society in general. Episodes about the R. Kelly trial, Martin Luther King Jr. coming out of a coma, ect., all show that there is no place Aaron McGruder (creator of the Boondocks) isn't willing to go. But the key here is EXECUTION. All of the episodes are executed extremely well. A lot of the idea's they've used on The Boondocks could have turned out to be really stupid episodes, but they do a great job at executing ideas. And lastly, the show is just FUNNY. Every episode makes you laugh at one point of another. That, and the fact that the show is incredibly smart and witty, are what truly make this one of the best shows on TV.
Even with all of that going for it, the music is the x-factor that makes this show even more appealing to me. From the dope opening track, to the constant MF Doom and Dangerdoom tracks being played during the show/promos (I remember most of the promos having the instrumental of 'Bada Bing' from the Danger Doom album in the background), the music sets an incredible tone for the show. Even if you're not a huge fan of MF Doom & Danger Mouse like I am, you should still appreciate the music used here.
Episodes From Season 1:
1. Garden Party - 8/10 - The Freemans are invited to a party at Ed Wunclers house. This one really had me hungry for more. It wasn't the greatest episode, but parts of it indicated that this show had the potential to be great.
Quotable: Riley: Man, I really liked that house. Oh well. I shot a n****!
2. The Trial Of R. Kelly - 10/10 - Riley goes to R. Kelly's trial to defend one of his favorite artists. This is where the series really started to take off. Tons of great moments, and hysterical lines.
Quotable: Riley: If I started peeing on you right now, would you A: Smile and ask for more, or B: Move the hell out the way!
3. Guess Hoe's Coming To Dinner - 8.5/10 - Huey & Riley know Grandad's new girlfriend is a prostitute, but he won't believe them. Wasn't the best episode, but it had it's moments. Katt Williams ('Next Friday', 'Wild N Out') makes a very funny cameo here as 'A Pimp Named Slickback'
Quotable: Grandad: Hold on there, Slickback.
A Pimp Named Slickback: No, it's "A Pimp Named Slickback."
Grandad: That's what I said. "Slickback."
A Pimp Named Slickback: No, it's "A Pimp Named Slickback." Like "A Tribe Called Quest"; you say the whole thing: "A Pimp Named Slickback"!
Grandad: Can't I just call you "Slickback" for short?
A Pimp Named Slickback: No, n****! It's "A Pimp Named Slickback!"
4. Grandad's Fight - 8.5/10 - Grandad gets into a fight with a blind man. I didn't like this one as much as most people, but it's still a VERY funny episode. The whole "n**** moment" thing was hysterical.
Quotable: Tom: Nobody's gonna call you a "Fruity boy" or "Pansy Pants" if you don't do this.
Riley: I will.
Tom: Right, well, Riley will.
5. A Date With A Health Inspector - 10/10 - Huey & Riley need to catch the "xbox killer" to get Tom out of jail. Probably my favorite Boondocks episode. The whole dropping the soap thing, and all the scenes with Ed II and Rummy make this a classic episode.
Quotable: Rummy: Well no we ain't find none. But I always say the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence.
Riley: What?
Rummy: Simply because you don't have evidence that something does exist does not mean you have evidence of something that doesn't exist.
Riley: What?
Rummy: What country are you from?
Riley: What?
Rummy: What ain't no country I ever heard of. They speak english in what?
Riley: What?
Rummy: English mother f***er! Do you speak it?
Riley: Yeah.
Rummy: So you understand the words I'm saying to you!
Riley: Yeah.
Rummy: Well what I'm saying is that there are known known and known unknown. But there are also unknown things that we don't know that we know.
Riley: What?
Rummy: Say what again! Say what again, mother f***er! I dare you! I double dare you! Say what one more time!
6. The Story Of Gangstalicious - 10/10 - Riley learns that his favorite gangsta rapper isn't really a 'gangsta'...Definately one of the best episodes, and we can all learn a little lesson from this about CERTAIN rappers
Quoatable: Grandad: What's Thuggin' love? Is that when you're makin' love to your woman and right before that "special moment", you beat her in the head, grab her by the throat, and throw her down the stairs?
7. A Huey Freeman Christmas - 9.5/10 - Riley tries to kill Santa, and Huey puts on the school christmas play, which he has titled 'The Adventures Of Black Jesus'. VERY Funny episode, featuring Quincy Jones as himself.
Quotable: Riley (writing a letter to Santa):
Dear Santa,
You are a b**** n****--no wait... (erases the line)
Dear Santa,
You are a b**** ass n****. I heard the mall is hiring extra Security to protect you. That's a b**** move, Santa. I'm coming for that ass again untill YOU PAY what you OWE!
Sincurly Yours,
The Santa Stalker
8. The Real - 9/10 - The whole episode is a spoof on reality shows (Pimp My Ride, The Real World, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, etc.), and Huey is paranoid that a government agent is following him. Another great episode, featuring Xzibit as himself.
Quoatable: Grandad: So you're saying that the car stops, but the rims keep spinning? That's amazing!
9. Return Of The King - 9.5/10 - Dr. Matin Luther King Jr. comes out of a coma to discover how much things have changed after 30 years. This episode really has a great message, and it's a shame to me that Al Sharpton was so against it. If you actually paid attention to the episode, it wasnt offensive to MLK in ANY way.
Quotable: Dr. King: Oh, snap. No, they didn't. A boneless rib sandwich. What will they think of next? I know I shouldn't eat these. But they're for a limited time only.
10. The Itis - 10/10 - Grandad gets his own soul food restaurant, but the customers get addicted. This is another one of my favorite episodes.
Quotable: Riley: Whoa. This is what crack must feel like.
11. Let's Nab Oprah - 9/10 - The return of Ed III and Gin Rummy. Not as good as 'A Date With The Health Inspector', but still great.
Quotable: Huey: (narrating) Ed and Rummy kidnapped Bill Cosby... But, he was really annoying. So they put him back 15 minutes later.
12. Riley Wuz Here - 9/10 - Great episode, about graffiti, art and expression, with Huey experimenting on the effect of black television. The art teacher character is more than a bit weird...but I loved the message, and the ending of the episode.
Quotable: Riley: Don't tell Grandad I left.
Huey: (blankly staring at BET) We got any grape soda?
Riley: ...N****, you stupid.
13. Wingmen - 9/10 - Has a great message about friendship, companionship, and love. Not to mention, its very funny.
Quotable: Grandad: Huey, say something deep.
Huey: Huh?
Grandad: I ain't got all day, boy. Be deep
14. The Block Is Hot - The only Boondocks episode I didnt get to see...I'll update the review with feedback on it when I get the DVD (or catch the episode on adult swim)
15. Passion Of The Ruckus - 9/10 - Ruckus becomes a reverend, spreading the word of white jesus. This was a great episode to end the season with, and had a great ending...Can't wait for season 2
Quotable: Grandad: "You aint a Jehova Witness now, are you? 'Cause I'm in the Jehova Witness Protection Program.
The biggest problem I had with the show was that it didn't include maybe my favorite character from the comics, Caesar. Caesar becomes Huey's best friend when he moves to Woodcrest in the comics, and he's featured in most of the Boondocks comic strips. I figure (and hope) Caesar will be introduced next season, but thats pretty much the only beef I could find with this show. I'll be sure to pick this up the day it's released, and I would highly reccomend you do the same.
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47 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Greatest TV show?, April 12, 2006
This show BLEW me away when it came on earlier this year. I'd heard of, but not read, the comic strip...but I had no idea really how incindiary, topical, scathing, and brilliant this show was going to be. I thought "oh gee...another attempt to bring a little comic strip to TV." I should have detected brilliance when the show was knocked from BET to Adult Swim (Catoon Network...the only channel with BALLS big enough to air something like this).
Like the dearly departed "Chappelle Show," Boondocks is about racism and the culture wars in modern America. It attacks stereotypes (of both whites and blacks)...but evern better, the show also attacks reality. The best example of this would be the infamous "Dr. King" episode, in which in an alternate timeline, we see what would happen if the famous civil rights champion had not died but merely been placed into a coma. When King wakes up and speaks out against the War in the Middle East he's labeled a "traitor." Brilliant. Some people may miss the irony, and humor, of the show. If you take it at face value, the show is the most racist thing on TV today. However, if you examine the context, and the intent of the creators you'll find that this show speaks volumes on the problems of today's world. The people who work on this show obviously are supremely talented, and have a lot of important things to say. I'm eagerly awaiting the release of this DVD, and the second season.
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25 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Worth every penny, September 23, 2006
Huey Freeman is angry. And can you blame him? As a ten-year-old aspiring black revolutionary living in the almost entirely white suburb of Woodcrest with his stern, authoritarian grandfather and his thug-worshipping younger brother Riley after relocating from Chicago's tough South Side, Huey is faced with the grim realities of both white condescension and black ignorance as he tries to call to light the truths people would rather not face. In the opening scene of The Boondocks, Aaron McGruder's confrontational, profane, and brilliantly satirical adaptation of his comic strip, Huey envisions himself inciting a riot at an all-white garden party by reporting some unpleasant truths (at least in his mind) about Jesus, Ronald Reagan, and 9/11, but when he actually gets a chance to do so he merely finds himself praised for being "articulate." And when he tries to bring his vision of a black Jesus to the masses via his school Christmas play (with some help from Denzel Washington, Angela Bassett, and Quincy Jones), his work becomes the target of a boycott by parents angry at the exclusion of their children. Not to mention, he has to watch a race-baiting white laywer exploit black-white divisions to get R. Kelly off on underage peeing charges, and witness two wanna-be master criminals exploiting wartime paranoia to rob a store when he just wants to get his friend out of jail. All in all, Huey faces un uphill climb in his quest to shake a comfortable populace out of its complacency.
Huey's attempts at fomenting revolution, however, are just the tip of the iceberg in The Boondocks, which presents viewers with a mix of the political, social, philosophical and sentimental that I have yet to see in animated TV. It comes along at just the right time, too, as many cartoon giants have come to feel increasingly calcified: South Park, while still a frequently brilliant show, has become increasingly reliant on excessive toilet humor and often contrived topicality; The Simpsons ran out of ideas about eight years ago; and the "revived" Family Guy has become a lazy, unfunny mockery of its former self, weighed down by interminable, punch line-less "jokes" and rapid-fire successions of random, context-free pop culture references. Viewed in this context, the Boondocks feels refreshingly raw, witty, and character-driven in its approach; and more importantly, it's frequently, gut-busting hilarious regardless of whether you're always in agreement with its subversive viewpoint or whether you approve of its near-constant use of the N-word among other choice terms. There are some overtly topical episodes-taking incisive aim at such subjects at hip-hop culture (The Story of Gangstalicious); the legacy of the civil rights movement and the post-9/11 closing of the American Mind (The Return of the King); and traditional attitudes regarding Christmas (A Huey Freeman Christmas)-but they never diminish the episodes as vehicles for telling stories or exploring characters. Some of the best episodes are actually more personal and familial than political-in Riley Wuz Here, Huey's ignorant younger brother explores his artistic side with the help of a kindly but insane gun-toting art-teacher, while Wingmen sees both Huey and Granddad confronting figures from their pasts in a return to their old neighborhood for the funeral of Granddad's friend. And throughout, there's the show's examination of the generation gap and the dynamics of a decidedly atypical family, as we frequently see the size of the gulf between Huey, Riley, and their old-school, tough-loving grandfather.
The voice acting is top-to-bottom terrific, starting with Regina King, who deserves special props for taking on double duty by performing the roles of both Huey and Riley (most impressively, I heard that she read all her Huey lines and all her Riley lines separately, no small task considering how different the voices are and how frequently she has to act against herself). In the other principal role, John Witherspoon is suitably grizzled and cantankerous as Granddad, while Gary Anthony Williams (aka Stevie's father from Malcolm in the Middle) is hilariously over the top as Uncle Ruckus, an elderly Uncle Tom with a freakishly large right eye who in one episode actually turns his hatred of his own people into a religion. An array of one-off and recurring guest stars including Adam West (R. Kelly's slimy lawyer), Ed Asner (rapacious capitalist Ed Wuncler), Charlie Murphy (inept criminal and George W. Bush mockup Ed Wuncler III) and Samuel L. Jackson (Ed III's partner in crime and Donald Rumsfeld caricature Gin Rummy) helps expand the show's stable of memorable characters even more, bringing it close to prime-era Simpsons in terms of creating a far-reaching and (somewhat) lifelike make-believe world.
Where the Boondocks really outshines much of its competition, though, is its appearance. Simply put, this show looks incredible: rich, colorful, and expressive it a way most animation scarcely approaches. Owing a heavy debt to Japanese anime, especially in its occasional, but brilliantly shot, fight scenes, The Boondocks far surpasses the likes of Family Guy and South Park in its attention to detail, be it the astonishingly lifelike background scenery or the intimate (if not always pleasant) details of its characters' appearances. Hell, Huey's afro and Uncle Ruckus's oversized eye alone are practically worth the price of the DVD set.
Along with the 15 episodes on these discs, the season one DVD set is laden with the kind of time-wasting extras hardcore fans crave: several insightful commentaries (plus two not-so-insightful ones with Uncle Ruckus, which are just plain funny), animatics, three deleted scenes (all of them hilarious), and a 20-minute featurette, heavy on McGruder's commentary, regarding the process of bringing his vision to the screen. In all, this season set is more than worth the price for those in the mood for a departure from the animated-TV norm.
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