The Tease: 'Creature Comforts' on CBS
This feeling may come off as vaguely anti-American, but I'll just have to deal with the blowback, I guess.
For some reason, it's just funnier and more endearing to watch big-eyed animals discuss the conditions of everyday human life when the voices coming from the claymation critters have British accents.
Watch the American - accented CBS version of Creature Comforts and then seek out Nick Park's original Oscar-winning short and subsequent series and tell me I'm wrong.
That isn't necessarily to take anything away from the new Creature Comforts, which was still produced by Park's Aardman Animation house and features that studio's distinctive assortment of malleable animals. The dialogue was provided by "real Americans," interviewed by the show's producers about all manner of casual conversational topics ranging from wine tasting to romance to the state of healthcare.
Sometimes, the juxtapositions are pricelessly funny: Two dogs sniffing at a poodle's rump stand in for the amateur wine experts, a couple of porcupines bicker over which of them are scared of needles. Often there's a certain poignancy -- a polar bear wearing floaties admits he can't swim. And sometimes the pairings are just effectively obvious -- police dogs delving into the challenges of sniffing out a liar.
Although Creature Comforts is animated and many of its cutest sketches feature the musings of children -- a frog cracking jokes to an audience of nervous flies is particularly funny -- it's not entirely kid-friendly. Some of the language is just a bit saucy and double-entendre is still double-entendre coming from clay dogs. The format may also be a bit hard for uninitiated youngsters to immediately embrace -- sometimes the interviews are meant to be silly, but they're just as often trying to be thoughtful and wise.
At times, the British Creature Comforts got genuinely biting and political, while the premiere episode of the American take is initially pretty softball stuff. A dachshund duo admitting that they hadn't initially noticed their height disparity is good for a titter, but it doesn't go very deep.
Even if I wasn't wowed by the American Creature Comforts (even the animation seems just the slightest bit inferior to that of the original), it was never less than engaging. In a summer of reruns and bad reality shows, Creature Comforts is a humane piece of counter-programming.
Creature Comforts premieres on Monday, June 4 at 8 p.m. ET
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Looks semi-amusing.
For more information about "Creature Comforts," please check out my audio interview with the show's executive producer, Kit Boss: http://www.mrmedia.com/2007/05/kit-boss-creature-comforts-exec.html . Boss previously was a writer and producer for seven seasons on "King of the Hill."
I thought Creatures, from just
looking at the previews, was
very underdone by a bunch of ametour actors who really just
should've kept this series as
an idea for an internet-only
submition. It's definately no
Dinasours, and if CBS were
smart enough, they'd have
turned this show down in ABC's
favor. Cadallacs & Dinasours
was much better than this one.
I saw the name of the show and thought oh great, but then I read that it won't be with the British accents. I will still watch.
Okay Daniel, you're wrong. Creature comforts using American interviews was more amusing than the original film. The animation had a subtlety to it that wasn't present in the first go-round. It might not have been more "exotic" but it was pretty damn funny. Any half hour show that gets me to laugh out loud more than a half-dozen times is a winner.
More Aardman, please!
I thought that show was the funniest show I've seen in a long time. It was something new and I cried laughing! Thank you CBS
I agree with Doug. Deftly done and funnier than 80% of what's on, CC hit my funnybone and there were more than a few LOL moments. I loved the show and will watch again.
This show is one of the best of the century...it makes me laugh till I cry...I have bragged about this show to everyone I know by discussing the various subjects of the night...the polar bears finding ways to make the cold elimate more 'bearable' was just too funny...please keep up the good job!!! Thanks...Lyn