It’s that time of year: the sun is shining, the weather is warm, the flowers and trees are blooming, and Adult Swim is announcing a new slate of shows that may or may not air. It’s upfront season, y’all.
Adult Swim’s upfront presentation is coming up on May 15th in New York City, with performance by Kanye West. But the juicy new show info is out now. There’s a bunch to go over, so let’s get to work.
First off, a note about the network: Adult Swim is coming off of an amazing year. Adult Swim had its most watched year ever in the 18-34, 18-24, and 18-49 age demographics. The network is growing up pretty well, into cable’s #1 network in those demos. Our little net is growing up.
This year, Adult Swim brings out a slate of new and returning shows and pilots and more. First up, let’s all run through…
NEW SERIES & SPECIALS
- First, something we’ve told you about already, Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland’s Rick and Morty. A sort-of parody of the main characters of the classic Back To The Future series, the show is about a genius inventor and his less-genius grandson. The show will be a half hour.
- Next, Mr. Pickles comes from Will Carsola and Dave Stewart. The Goodman family lives in an old-fashioned town overrun by modern society with their dog, Mr. Pickles, a deviant, satanic pet. Another quarter hour.
- Mike Tyson Mysteries is exactly what it sounds like. Amazing. Boxing legend Mike Tyson stars as himself in a live action/animation hybrid with his trusty pidgeon sidekick. Mike, with his magic face tattoo and his pidgeon buddy work for anyoeh who needs help, and they work together to fight crime and solve mysteries, like defeating a super computer at chess and helping a werewolf author finish his novel. Quarter hour, probably going to be amazing.
- King Star King is about a punk-rock he-man who falls from his realm to become a fry cook in some crappy waffle joint. He has to regain his memory so he can defeat his nemesis and save his love. From JJ Villard, it’s a quarter hour show.
- Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell. You know what this is. It’s currently airing Thursdays at midnight. Check out our interview with Dave Willis and Casper Kelly for the show now.
- There’s also Robot Chicken DC Comics Special II. You also know what this is. Coming in 2014!
- Hot Package is a faux-entertainment show from Canada in the vein of Access Hollywood or Extra by Derrick Beckles of TV Carnage (Totally 4 Teens). Produced by Beckles and Abso Lutely. Live action quarter hour.
- Update: There’s something important that we forgot. Coming this October is Metalocalypse: The Doom Star Requiem, an hour-long special. The special picks up after the finale of season 4. With Toki abducted and in mortal danger, his only hope is the rest of Dethklok. But, like always, the band’s egos start to get in the way. To save their band member and friend, they need to get over themselves, work together, and save Toki in the hour-long heavy metal rock opera (with an original score, of course!). Set your calendars for October.
Sounds good? Let’s keep it rolling with…
PILOTS
- Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder has two pilots coming, both live action, one a half hour and the other a quarter.
- Tim & Eric’s Bedtime Stories: Zach’s Haunted House is a new T&E show with the duo and Zach Galifianakis. The trio find out that their grandfather has left them $1000 in his will, but to get it, they must spend the rest of their lives in his haunted house. This’ll be a half-hour Halloween special.
- Ghostbags by Hayes Davenport and Guy Endore-Kaiser is about a trio of frat guys who were douchebags in life, and weren’t much better in death. Quarter hour.
- Hole to Hole by Pam Brady and Arden Myrin is a live action quarter hour about Ashleigh and Amanda Dangerhole, America’s sexiest detectives.
- Filthy Sexy Teen$ is a show by Paul Scheer, Jonathan Stern, and Curtis Gwinn, following a group of teens and their principal in a school full of dark secrets as they try to climb the social ladder by any means necessary. Live action quarter hour.
- Next, we have a couple of shows from the creators of Robot Chicken and Stoopid Buddy Stoodios. First, Team Unicorn is a send up of Saturday morning cartoons, starring four heroines, and some dark twists on old 80′s cartoon tropes. Live action and animation hybrid, quarter hour.
- From the same people, but also produced by Bryan Cranston, John Harvatine IV, Seth Green, and Eric Towner, created by Matt Senreich and Zeb Wells, comes Ubermansion. It’s about the mundane life of six superheroes living in one mansion.
- Finally, from Matt Harrigan, is Untitled Cruise Ship Project. The employees of a cruise ship are steered into trouble by their insane Scandanavian captain.
Last up…
RETURNING ORIGINAL SHOWS + ACQUISITIONS
- Aqua TV Show Show (ATHF)
- Black Dynamite
- The Boondocks
- Children’s Hospital
- Check it Out! With Dr. Steve Brule
- China, IL
- Eagleheart
- The Eric Andre Show
- The Greatest Event in Television History
- The Heart, She Holler
- Original infomercials
- Loiter Squad
- NTSF:SD:SUV::
- Robot Chicken
- Superjail!
- The Venture Bros
- American Dad
- Family Guy
- Cleveland Show
- King of the Hill
- Bleach
- Naruto
- Soul Eater
- One Piece (Coming this Summer)
- Bob’s Burgers (Coming this Summer)
So, there. That’s your year right there. How rad does that sound? Pretty rad.
Keep an eye right here on any updates on the Upfront or any of the upcoming shows in the coming days and weeks and months. Adult Swim Central has you covered.
Let’s make 2013 Adult Swim’s most watched year. Even more so than last year! Let’s keep makin’ AS #1, y’all.
