Uncle Grandpa
Uncle Grandpa is an American animated television series created by Peter Browngardt that ran on Cartoon Network from September 2, 2013 to June 30, 2017. It is based on Browngardt's animated short of the same name from The Cartoonstitute. Uncle Grandpa is also a spin-off of Secret Mountain Fort Awesome, which was in turn a spin-off of the Cartoonstitute short. It was produced by Cartoon Network Studios.
The show is a surreal action-adventure comedy that relies extensively on visual gags and catchphrases. Creator Pete Browngardt has cited the work of cartoonists Don Martin, Gary Larson and Robert Crumb, as well as Golden Age–era animators such as Tex Avery and Max Fleischer when it came to developing the style of the show. Each 11-minute episode is presented in a unique format, consisting of a main seven- to nine-minute story, some short bumpers typically composed of a quick visual joke, and an original short that focuses on the show's side characters.
Cartoon Network renewed the series for the fourth and fifth seasons: first splitting the second season into two halves, which respectively became the second and third season, then also dividing in half the already announced third season into the fourth and fifth season, which served as the final seasons.
History
The Uncle Grandpa pilot was created by former Chowder storyboard artist Peter Browngardt, who first pitched the idea to Cartoon Network in 2006. Browngardt, who grew up the youngest in a large family of eight children, based the character upon the various and often eccentric relatives who would often drop by and visit them, as well as aspects of his own personality. The style of the show was inspired by his love of comics and Warner Bros. Cartoons. The pilot was produced in 2008, then aired online in 2009 on Cartoon Network Video as part of The Cartoonstitute. Akin to the Regular Show pilot, the Uncle Grandpa pilot was successful, but it had yet to have been green-lit into its own series.In 2011, the TV series Secret Mountain Fort Awesome aired on Cartoon Network, but was not as well-received as the other Cartoon Network series at the time, and was eventually put on hiatus in February 2012. Despite the failure, Secret Mountain Fort Awesome went on to win several awards, including the coveted Crystal Award for "Best Television Production" at Annecy International Animated Film Festival, the first US-based production to do so. This helped boost Browngardt's profile in getting Uncle Grandpa greenlit as a series. Another factor that contributed to the launch of the show was the redesign of the character by John Kricfalusi, The Ren & Stimpy Shows creator.
On July 27 and 28, 2013, Cartoon Network aired a sneak peek of the series as part of Big Fan Weekend, along with Clarence and Steven Universe.
Plot
Uncle Grandpa, a magical shapeshifting humanoid, stops by children's houses every day to see how they are doing. The children he visits have a problem of their own and Uncle Grandpa tries to help them through a series of chaotic and surreal misadventures. He is a clowny sort of person who sometimes eats inedible objects. He drives/lives in a UG-2000 model robotic RV known as the Perpetual Persistence and is accompanied by a talking red fanny pack named Belly Bag, a green dinosauroid named Mr. Gus, a static photographic cutout of a tiger named Giant Realistic Flying Tiger, and an anthropomorphic pepperoni pizza slice named Pizza Steve.Characters
Main
- Uncle Grandpa. Uncle Grandpa is a magical shapeshifting humanoid who is the uncle-grandpa of everyone in the world with a large, rectangular head, a brown horseshoe moustache, a pink nose, a propeller hat that talks and an outfit consisting of a white T-shirt, lederhosen with rainbow suspenders, knee high tube socks, and black slippers. His outward appearance is depicted as rather clownish and unsophisticated, but he is well-meaning, fun-loving, supportive, and surprisingly competent when need be. His catchphrase is "Good morning!"
- Belly Bag − Uncle Grandpa's talking red cyborg fanny pack and best friend who carries all of his priceless valuables, especially Uncle Grandpa's weapon of choice, which is a UG-series robotic laser hammer named Samantha. Belly Bag's insides contain many weird objects and dimensions, including a castle where Frankenstein lives. Despite being practically attached to Uncle Grandpa, he has the ability to walk and can produce multiple hands from inside his body. He even has the ability to see despite having no visible eyes. In the second Uncle Grandpa short "Secret Mountain Uncle Grandpa", he is referred to as Fanny Pack and voiced by Paul Rugg. His catchphrase is "What's cookin', good-lookin'?"
- Mr. Gus − Mr. Gus is usually the voice of reason. He is a large, serious, yet somewhat grouchy green dinosaur who was Uncle Grandpa's rival in "Leg Wrestler", but eventually became his friend and bodyguard. He is unfazed by most of Uncle Grandpa's eccentricities and seems to have an even temper despite his roommates, but often loses his temper, especially where Pizza Steve's antics are concerned. He is older and more mature than Uncle Grandpa. One of Mr. Gus's favorite parts of the day is 9:00 PM, which is his designated bathroom time, and during that period he likes to take a bubble bath and read for an hour. His catchphrase is "You're just sayin' that to get under my skin."
- Pizza Steve − Pizza Steve is an anthropomorphic pepperoni pizza slice with sunglasses and a member of Uncle Grandpa's crew. He is depicted as extremely vain, troublesome, and often brags about how cool and awesome he is, which annoys his friend Mr. Gus. Despite this, he pretends to be very popular and a hit with women. He is a good friend of Uncle Grandpa. Pizza Steve is featured in his own cartoon shorts entitled "A Slice of Life with Pizza Steve", which usually involve Pizza Steve exaggerating his abilities. In "Tiger Trails", he claims to be a black belt in Italian Karate, but he wears the black belt over his eyes instead of around his waist. He also is meant to cheat, like for instance in “Leg Wrestler”, he trained Uncle Grandpa, and forced Mr. Gus to do his chores, so uncle Grandpa could Cream him. His catchphrase is "I'm like a modern-day Thomas Einstein except a brazillion times better!"
- Giant Realistic Flying Tiger − A static photographic cutout of a tiger that Uncle Grandpa rides on to get around. Tiger is his pet and other best friend, and while she exhibits normal tiger traits such as only being able to communicate by roaring, she is able to fly and leaves a rainbow trail as she goes. The rainbow trail is also expelled from Tiger's rear end when she passes gas. Her personality is a cross between that of a stereotypical teenage girl, a house cat, and a real-life tiger. In order for Tiger's emotions to be shown, only certain parts of her body are animated. This is done in a stop-motion style.
Recurring
- Tiny Miracle – Uncle Grandpa's imaginary UG-series robot grandson that can perform tiny miracles by just a series of unnecessary moves and then technically performing one only to lead up to another tiny miracle. He sounds like a 1980s microphone. According to Uncle Grandpa, he is his trusty robot helper buddy. He can be summoned by a person saying something that includes the words "tiny miracle" in it and then the task he/she is attempting. His catchphrase is "Did somebody say "tiny miracle"?"
- Beary Nice and Hot Dog Person – These two are the stars of their own recurring segment, "New Experiences". Beary is an anthropomorphic teddy bear with a red nose and a bow tie and Hot Dog Person is an anthropomorphic cyborg frankfurter with a face. Beary has a positive outlook on life while Hot Dog Person is more gloomy. Each of their segments consist of the two of them trying something different for the first time. Beary is always excited to try whatever they're doing, while Hot Dog Person is more reluctant as it seems every time he tries something new, something bad happens to him. Beary's excitement also leads to him being self-centered, as he is so wrapped up in his own emotions that he pays no attention to Hot Dog Person's plight.
- Charlie Burgers the Ball-Loving Dog Next Door – A talking dog that befriends Uncle Grandpa and his friends. He can be well behaved and he enjoys going on adventures with Uncle Grandpa. His catchphrase is "I love my ball!"
- Santa Claus is the famous figure for Christmas and is revealed to be Uncle Grandpa's brother in the Christmas special. They have had a troubled relationship since 1983.
- Frankenstein – A tag-along with Uncle Grandpa in his adventures. Because of his condition, he is unable to talk, communicating only through groans. He is usually seated next to Uncle Grandpa in his chair.
- Xarna − An overly-muscular, masculine cyborg. She is on a mission to get some gas for the Mad Motorcycle. Her catchphrase is "I don't like your mouth." She is a spoof of Xena the Warrior Princess and She-Ra.
- Evil Wizard − A wizard that goes around trying to make everyone's day horrible by humiliating them but he actually makes their lives better. His catchphrase is "Behold! I am Evil Wizard!"
- Priscilla Jones − Uncle Grandpa's nemesis with a British accent and the main antagonist of the series. She wants revenge on him for ruining her science project, when rather than help her, he played hacky sack instead resulting in her getting second place in the science fair. She prefers to solve children's problems using simple practical solutions, the complete opposite of what Uncle Grandpa does. Her catchphrase is "Beautiful morning!"
Human children and adults
- Belly Kid – A kid who has a big belly. He was first ashamed of it, but Uncle Grandpa taught him the best features of having a big belly. He appeared in "Belly Bros".
- Caleb – A boy that Uncle Grandpa takes out of a math test to go battle Evil Wizard in outer space. He appeared in "Tiger Trails".
- Melvin – Melvin is a bratty kid who likes to play Space Emperor, with him being the emperor. When Uncle Grandpa accidentally sent him into another dimension, he was sent to a planet where he's the emperor. He discovered what it's like being a servant, and learns his lesson after Emperor Krell bosses him around. He loves dinner sandwiches, and hates mayonnaise. He appeared in "Space Emperor". His catchphrase is "I decide who does what!"
- Melvin's Babysitter – an attractive teenage girl with braces who babysits Melvin in the episode "Space Emperor".
- Eric – Eric is a kid who doesn't have a nickname but Uncle Grandpa helps him. Uncle Grandpa helps him be legendary to get his nickname. In the process of becoming legendary he becomes tall and muscular. In the end he gets the nickname, "Cupcake", because he loves cupcakes. He appears in "Nickname".
- Mary – Mary is a nervous girl. She takes her driver's test, but fails. Uncle Grandpa takes her on a test and helps her pass. Uncle Grandpa gives her her own "Freedom and Independence USA" truck for passing her test. She appears in "Driver's Test".
- Dennis – Dennis is a kid who wanted to finally pass his teacher's hard class and avoid going to summer school, until Uncle Grandpa comes and eats his homework and putting Dennis in danger of going to summer school. So Dennis and Uncle Grandpa go to Egypt to get a real pyramid to make sure Dennis gets an A+++++-+ on his project. Dennis appears in "Uncle Grandpa Ate My Homework!".
- Mrs. Numty – Dennis' teacher. She appears in "Uncle Grandpa Ate My Homework!" and "1992 Called"'.
- Guillermo – Guillermo is a kid who had an awesome new bike until the Perpetual Persistence crushed it. So in Uncle Grandpa and Belly Bag's absence Mr. Gus and Pizza Steve help Guillermo by giving him a trashcan and saying it was a "Magical Uncle Grandpa Bike". Guillermo appears in "Uncle Grandpa for a Day".
- Susie – Susie is a little girl who was afraid of the dark, but learned how to combat her fears by imagining herself as a scary monster. She appears in "Afraid of the Dark".
- Adam – Adam is a kid who couldn't become the master of a very hard video game, until Uncle Grandpa and Pizza Steve shrink to get inside his brain to become better at video games. He would always have his eyes barely open showing that he's been playing videogames too much, and his eyes are sore from playing too much. Adam appears in "Brain Game".
- Angry Man Johnson – Angry Man Johnson is a grumpy old man who hates Charlie Burgers. Judging by his name, he is always angry at everyone, including Uncle Grandpa. Angry Man Johnson appears in "Charlie Burgers".
- Austin – Austin is a kid who had a lot of imperfections so he asked Uncle Grandpa to turn him into a robot to become the most perfect kid, and to eliminate all imperfections. Austin appears in "Perfect Kid".
- Shaquille O'Neal – The former professional basketball player who is an old friend of Uncle Grandpa. In the past, Uncle Grandpa helped Shaq realize his dream of being a stand-up comedian. He appears in "Perfect Kid" after Uncle Grandpa is chased into a comedy club that Shaq was performing at, where he helps Uncle Grandpa fight against Austin 2.0 by combining with the audience in a manner similar to a giant robot. Uncle Grandpa finds the jokes Shaq makes to be very funny.
- Akira – Akira is a Japanese kid who wanted to make the best action packed monster movie of all time. Akira appears in "Big in Japan".
- Riley – Riley is a teenage boy who fails a test, his father grounds him and demands him to fold laundry all weekend instead of going to a party.
- Josie – Josie is a girl who was trying to make duck lips for a site called "face hole" and tries to get a lot of followers and likes. Josie appears in "Duck Lips".
- Emily - Emily is a girl scout.
- Isabella - Isabella is a girl who is an aspiring inventor but her inventions are useless. Isabella appears in "Inventor Mentor".
Pilot
- Ham Sandwich Jones – A rotund nerdy teenager who started out hating Uncle Grandpa, but later grew to like him. In the Secret Mountain Fort Awesome episode "5 Disgustoids and a Baby", he appeared as less responsive, and more stingy while intensely playing a portable gaming system. He can be seen in the show's intro and has a very brief role in "Big Trouble for Tiny Miracle".
- Little Judy Jones – Ham Sandwich's fat mother.
- Remo – A destructive popular kid, who similarly started off hating Uncle Grandpa, but ends up warming up to his antics. He appears in Secret Mountain Fort Awesome episode "Secret Mountain Uncle Grandpa".
- Remo's Friends – The cool-dude friends of Remo.
- * Kev – Kev is a destructive teenager who thought art was dumb until Uncle Grandpa convinced him that art is pretty fun. Kev appears in "Viewer Special". The character originally appeared in a live-action film starring Browngardt called The Last American.
- Crazy Driving Man – A man who wears framed glasses, who is the somewhat "uncool" father of his son Remo. He reappears as a driving instructor in Uncle Grandpas 7th episode, "Driver's Test", and claims to be the father of a crazy driving baby from another universe.
Episodes
Specials
''Christmas Special''
The first-season episode "Christmas Special" was aired on December 2014. A double-length Christmas special, it centers on Uncle Grandpa who reluctantly agrees to disguise himself as his brother Santa Claus, after the latter character injures a leg. The episode received mostly praise in international publications, and in the United States it was viewed by 1.5 million. Cartoon Network developed a browser game adaptation named Sneakin' Santa to promote the episode. The episode was well received by the critics during its respective Christmas season.''Say Uncle''
A crossover special between Uncle Grandpa and Steven Universe was aired as an episode of the latter series' second season in April 2015. Conceived of by the creator of the latter series, Rebecca Sugar, the episode has Uncle Grandpa teach Steven how to bear a shield from his gemstone. Nearly two million viewed the episode, which received acclaim from critics.''Guest Directed Shorts''
The second-season episode "Guest Directed Shorts" was aired in June 2015 and consists of three animated shorts. The first short, directed by M. Wartella, has Uncle Grandpa using time travel in order to find the best hamburger; the second, by Pendleton Ward, has Pizza Steve beatboxing with Uncle Grandpa in the park; and the third, by Max Winston, has the RV gang getting trapped in Uncle Grandpa's claymation mind after their television set breaks down. Wartella is known for his work on the animated series Superjail! and Mad, while Ward is the creator of Adventure Time; Winston is a professional stop-motion artist. The episode was viewed by 1.3 million. The episode was very well received by the critics, while Winston's short was nominated for best television production at the 2015 edition of the Annecy Film Festival.''Uncle Grandpa Babies''
Uncle Grandpa Babies first appeared as a short in the 2014 episode "Grounded" as a faux Cartoon Network ad that presents a series called "Uncle Grandpa Babies" and claims to be made by the same creators of Adventure Time and Steven Universe. One year later, a full episode based on the babies saving America from a foreign country's missile launch aired on August 20, 2015.In light of the special premiering, reruns of Baby Looney Tunes returned to Cartoon Network.
International broadcast
In India, it aired on 2015 on Cartoon Network India and it airs still now on Cartoon Network HD+.In Canada, it premiered on September 2, 2013 on Cartoon Network. It also premiered on Cartoon Network channels in the United Kingdom and Ireland on April 14, 2014 and in Australia on May 5, 2014.
In the Middle East, it premiered on 2015 on Cartoon Network Arabic and 2017 on Cartoon Network.