Critical Condition: Final Space

July 18, 2018 0 Comments

Final Space | Netflix, from Friday

➢➢ “Just who is this show supposed to be for? It’s a good question, as the series, created by Olan Rogers, is a curious mishmash of science fiction tropes and elements familiar to other animated series, like The Simpsons and, more obviously, Futurama. Case in point: the series’ main character, Gary, is another staggeringly dimwitted dude who is prone to making incredibly poor life decisions that inevitably send him tumbling down a path to self-actualisation (maybe). In essence, he’s an amalgam of Homer Simpson and Fry, but one who’s draped himself in the unearned swagger of a man aching to be Han Solo.” — ScreenRant.

➢➢ “The animation of the show itself builds on some of the established touchstones of its sci-fi forebears, whether real-life or drawn. There are the familiar ship schematics and the cool glimmering sheen in all the futuristic interiors. But occasionally, when the crew lands on distant planets, the show gets to indulge a rich, luscious rainbow of eye-popping space delights. (Even if that doesn’t hook you, the gorgeous rendering of light-speed travel wormholes sure will.) That fusion of the simple and the vibrant is what makes the show worth tuning in for.” — IndieWire.

➢➢ “As a satire on science-fiction and the world we ordinarily live in, it is not as clever as Futurama or The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy or Galaxy Quest, works with which it shares certain features. The comedy leans toward things adolescent boys find funny … Living things are hacked or torn apart for a laugh. But it clips along and looks good — the space backgrounds and a bioluminescent planet in black-light colours are especially lovely — and there are not so many animated space serials around that, even with its faults, Final Space doesn’t have a niche to fill.” — Los Angeles Times.

➢➢ “There’s nothing overtly bad about Final Space, but it couldn’t really muster up any laughs in the two episodes reviewed, with the animation leaving a lot to be desired (this might be on purpose, but it if that was the idea, it wasn’t taken far enough) and the overall effect being very, very mild amusement that is quickly overcome by rapid checks of the time as things get uninteresting … It’s hard to ask people in the Peak TV era to stick with an animated comedy that’s not exactly working on any level.” — The Hollywood Reporter.

➢➢ “The new Conan O’Brien-produced animated comedy set in the galaxy-traversing future, works better as a freewheeling kids’ show than one exploring the kind of mature-theme depths mined by similar series like Rick and Morty. Its sense of humour is very much the ‘everything and the kitchen sink’ variety, as ready with wheezing Borscht-belt one-liners as it is with sight gags or wit … Final Space needs to find a smarter path to its humour but the Futurama-meets-Steven Universe premise ‘, and with some adjustments, this series could potentially launch into hyper-speed.” — The AV Club.