Season 1 |
Episode Guide
Strangest Things
Raging Waters
Mate Expectations
The Cycle of Life
H2 WOah
Extremeliest
The Flight Stuff
Eat Prey, Live
Flights, Camera, Action!
Strangerer Things
We’re All the Same
Absurd is the Word
Absurd Planet is absurdly unfunny and while there are sprinklings of genius dotted through its 12 episodes, these are oftentimes sidelined in favour of toilet humour and adult-orientated jokes. For a show that’s rated as PG and prominently showing on the Netflix Kids channel, there’s a lot of taboo humour right the way through and the episodes sporadically jump around so much between the different animals that there’s never time to actually digest the facts learned. With options like Planet Earth and Our Planet which are accessible to all ages, Absurd Planet may have some entertaining moments but it’s a show that can’t quite decide who it wants to tailor its material too.
After an opening segment that impersonates David Attenborough and pokes fun at his unique voice, Absurd Planet introduces us to Mother Nature, our wise-cracking narrator that joins us along this wild ride as we learn about a whole host of weird and wonderful creatures. As a nature lover, there are some amazing creatures chosen and they are truly bizarre.
Unfortunately Absurd Planet throws in skits and jokes – all geared toward Americans – in the hope of keeping the entertainment factor up rather than letting the animals themselves do the talking. While some of the sing-alongs are a nice musical touch, these are oftentimes counteracted by distracting accents ranging from slugs talking about mating in a posh British accent or Goats speaking French.
If this show was primarily geared toward kids then perhaps it wouldn’t be too much of an issue but hearing “Hey ladies, check out my scrotum neck,” in the first episode and a separate segment involving Narwhals where you shouldn’t “sit on its horn, unless you’re into that sort of thing of course,” aren’t exactly kid-friendly jokes. The references to pop culture including Edward Scissorhands, Jersey Shore and even Adrien Brody will be lost on most kids and it only further accentuates the issues this show has tailoring its material for a specific audience.
Don’t get me wrong, there will be a crowd that love this and I’m sure they’ll enjoy the abundance of toilet humour and those different reference. There are some interesting facts sprinkled through each episode and the 20 minute run-time is smart, playing off that 20 minute attention-span most of us have before it wanes slightly. It’s frustrating that Absurd Planet doesn’t capitalize on that more, with bare bone facts given about one animal before moving to the next.
It’s just difficult to recommend this show when so much of the good material is bogged down by needless comedy skits with no rhyme or reason – especially given their American slant.
In terms of the camera work and shots of the animals themselves, there’s lots to like with this one and some of the creatures and locations explored are truly unique and interesting. There’s a conscious effort to squeeze in as many animals as possible into the run-time but in doing so, the show runs into that aforementioned issue about the facts. It’s the documentary equivalent of sprinting through a zoo, whipping your head from side to side to see all the different animals before stopping at the gift shop and laughing at a silly postcard.
If you watch Absurd Planet and enjoy what’s on offer then that’s absolutely fine and I’m happy that the show has found an audience. Compared to other shows of its kind though, Absurd Planet is lacking in educational material, the tone of the piece feels conflicted between tailoring for kids and adults while the abundance of sex, poop and genitalia jokes dotted right the way through this one make it more taboo and outrageous than it has any right to be.
If you enjoy a 3 minute song about poo and enjoy the style of humour on offer then Absurd Planet is definitely the show for you. It’s a simple concept executed with as much comedy as possible which oftentimes pushes the information aside in favour of getting another laugh from the audience. As light, breezy entertainment in the background some will find this enjoyable but an educational resource for kids? Best to steer clear of this one and throw on Our Planet instead.
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Verdict - 2/10
2/10
Like many other reviewers this show has only a minimal amount of educational content and a lot of sexual innuendo. Some of it isn’t even innuendo but outright sexual content that is not just a discussion about animals and their mating practices. Take the comparison of humans walking upright and animal comparisons showing a chimpanzee walking upright but also having a very upright errection. The 30 year old accountant who finds this so entertaining suffers from immaturity. To have this being marketed to kids is inappropriate and misguided and the constant shifting from one topic and animal to another and then back again is annoying. This could have been a really cool show but was botched in so many ways.
Warning! Not appropriate for children. This programming (yes, I mean to write programming as that is what it is) is trying to desensitize the public to mixing childhood entertainment/education with sex. I found this smutty and completely inappropriate for children. Even my 8 year old daughter was able to see through the hidden agenda in this film stating that they were obsessed with “bum holes and things that look like willies.” The combination of sexual references and excessive amounts of phallic and orifice like images, together with a narrative style of pitch and tone of voice, deliberately aimed at children make for an ugly piece of work. I speak to the makers, or whoever it was that contributed (ie manipulated) this script. I see through what you are doing.
Hey Bart, I’m glad you enjoyed the show and really appreciate you taking the time to comment!
-Greg W
First episode was funny . Animals are so good , better than humans .
We loved it. The series was light hearted and educational at the same time. In these serious times, the series gave us an emotional break and allowed us to truly enjoy ourselves. Yes, the humor was juvenile and it was so much more enjoyable than the violent, dark and so-called mature entertainment that pervades our TV today. The photography was excellent. I hope Netflix consents to another season.
I managed to somewhat enjoy the first episode after the beetle (heh, get it) song was over. Although it did last for 3 minutes, which were excruciating.
Their is a slight amount of educational content, but I think I counted exactly 2minutes of information, versus 18 minutes of “jokes”. It’s a bit mindboggling though, the potty humour is definitely catered towards 8-years old, yet they add semi obscure reference, and absolutely raunchy humour (the scrotum neck, don’t sit on it unless it’s your thing) which only an adult would understand. So it seems to be a family oriented show, yet you’ll be facing a few questions from your kids, which you might not feel the need to discuss.
All in all, 2/10 seems like a fair review, hopefully they recycle the footage for a better doc (implying this is a documentary and not a collection of sketches).
Terrible trash
I’m reading all these horrid reviews on the show and now starting to question if I’m a 5 yr boy in a 30yr old man-body. No, I don’t smoke weed. No I don’t have any kids. I honestly find this shit hilarious and I’m a 30yr old accountant who doesn’t take life too seriously and love all kinds of comedy. Is there something wrong with me?
I think it is hilarious.
The narrator is totally annoying. Both the accent and terrible humor turned me right off this show in the first 5 minutes. Some of the footage was excellent. I can’t imagine the type of audience they are targeting. It winds me up as an adult. And it’s something I would never allow my kids to watch. Bizarre.
The voiceover is incredibly annoying, catered to American teenagers I think.
I can’t stand the voiceover. The narrator and writing are strained and not at all funny. Nature by itself is so rich, this show could have been so much better by not trying to dumb it down with quips that distract from the content. What a disappointment. Even my kids are wincing as we tried to watch it, finally pleading with me to change the show.
Good concept but so badly executed that it’s unwatchable at any age. The commentary is
very annoying and is the death nell of this show.