Gallery: Venture Bros. Returns With Fresh Blast of Geek Satire
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Quick! What's the most deranged fanboy toon on television? If you didn't answer Adult Swim's The Venture Bros., which returns Sunday to begin wrapping the rest of its transgressive fourth season, then you may need to seriously recalibrate your geek meter. "Well, I wouldn't call it deranged," [The Venture Bros.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Venture_Bros.) co-writer and multidisciplinary artist Doc Hammer told Wired.com in an e-mail interview. "The show is clinically sane. I mean, that's kinda why it speaks to the fanboy." See Also:[](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/underwire/2010/09/cult-tv) [Must-See Cult TV, From Danger Man to *Firefly*](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/underwire/2010/09/cult-tv) Whatever gets you through the night, Hammer. Loaded with ballistic action, bloody humor and pop-culture stabs both obvious and obscure, Hammer and show creator Jackson Publick's unrelentingly sharp spoof of a family of mad scientists might broadly appeal across demographics. But it's an especially pointed satire for those who grew up on everything from the Johnny Quest cartoons the show skewers to the gonzo journalism of Hunter S. Thompson. Shows like these -- of which there are few (see our short list of [cult television classics](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/underwire/2010/09/cult-tv) for more) -- fully warrant their own annotated companions. Wired.com goofed with Hammer and Publick on comics, toons, television that doesn't suck, the show's hopeful fifth season and the return of Hank and Dean's (pictured above) ultraviolent protector Brock Samson. Plus, we've got an exclusive clip from The Venture Bros.' return as a chaser.
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__Wired.com:__ I've got The Venture Bros. down as the most deranged fanboy toon ever made. __Jackson Publick:__ I'm not sure what that means ... __Doc Hammer:__ We take all of this crap pretty seriously, and go out of our way to explain the boring intricacies of supervillainy, and how these poor guys can exist inside of that world. It's precious! Jackson and I hold every episode like a white-hot danger-baby and put it up for adoption on your TV with the caveat: "Here, take our child. But seriously, be careful. It might set your couch on fire. Super sorry." __Wired.com:__ Aw, what an adorable, terrifying geek. __Hammer:__ That kinda geeky respect for the genre we ostensibly lampoon is what makes us fanboy-approved. So I think you're accurate with the fanboy part, but the "deranged" part is unearned. Maybe you meant "boffo?" __Wired.com:__ Dude, what happened to Dean's ass here? __Hammer:__ Sure, here's a spoiler. I'm not sure why you want it ruined for you, but if you're the type that opens then re-wraps his Christmas presents while his parents are sleeping, then I'll let you gingerly try not to rip the paper as you remove the tape: Dean sat on a pile of ants. It happens. Now wrap up those socks, and pretend to be excited on Christmas morning.
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<object align="right" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,47,0" height="436" id="flashObj" width="404"><param name="movie" value="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1"></param><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF"></param><param name="flashVars" value="videoId=605792410001&playerID=1813626064&playerKey=AQ%2E%2E,AAAAAF1BIQQ%2E,g5cZB_aGkYZXG-DCZXT7a-c4jcGaSdDQ&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true"></param><param name="base" value="http://admin.brightcove.com"></param><param name="seamlesstabbing" value="false"></param><param name="swLiveConnect" value="true"></param><embed allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" base="http://admin.brightcove.com" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashvars="videoId=605792410001&playerID=1813626064&playerKey=AQ%2E%2E,AAAAAF1BIQQ%2E,g5cZB_aGkYZXG-DCZXT7a-c4jcGaSdDQ&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true" height="436" name="flashObj" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash" seamlesstabbing="false" src="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1" swliveconnect="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="404"></embed></object>__Wired.com__ The show is a dizzying mash of allusion and influence. How in the hell do you guys keep track of all the viral strains and jokes? __Hammer:__ We don't need to keep track of jokes. We need to keep track of stuff like, "What kinda car did Phantom Limb drive before he got the Rolls?" The jokes just come from the characters. __Wired.com:__ Oh, here we go ... __Hammer:__ I know! That sounds like that old writer's cliche: "We let the characters speak to us, and we are no more than humble stenographers taking dictation." But cliches sometimes wear shoes made of facts (and metaphors made of shoes). The jokes come from the characters, and we have a truckload of characters to make them. If we have a funny comment on a copyright-infringed Hulk action figure that has a light in the center of his chest, we have Billy, a toy collector. Or henchman 21 (enthroned above), who is the champion of all things geek. Or maybe Hank, if the joke is about the concern that maybe this Hulk is a kind of Hulk. Like he is from a warring race of Hulks that were banished to the Hulk dimension of darkness ... so they need a little heart-light? __Wired.com:__ You had me at "copyright-infringed Hulk action figure." __Hammer:__ See? We have a cast so huge, and so realized, that we can make virtually any joke or comment we want. Is that good? No idea. It is a unique thing to see on your TV, though. I mean, can you imagine a pitch-book that reads like a D&D *[Monster Manual](http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=products/dndcore/177550000)*? It would never get on the air. No network would believe that it could be followed by their simple viewers. Wait, why are we on the air?
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__Wired.com:__ Good question, Doc. Jackson, why is The Venture Bros. on the air? __Publick:__ Mommy and Daddy both had jobs when I was a kid, so, like a lot of people my age, TV became Mommy and books became Daddy (OK, mostly comic books). They both reared me with pop-culture tough love every afternoon after school (and twice as much on weekends) and a lot of it just blended together and got stuck in here (my big head). I can't get rid of the shit. Go ahead -- ask me to recite all the words to the Ritz Thrift Shop commercial. Or Quint's Indianapolis speech from Jaws. None of that's going anywhere. So now I just regurgitate it, constantly and involuntarily, and don't really bother to keep track of it. __Wired.com:__ A Quint nod! __Publick:__ Great. Now the next thing I write will probably feature a copyright-free Quint-like character delivering the Ritz Thrift Shop ad copy like it's the gravest sea tale you ever heard. And then the legal department will make us bleep it.
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__Wired.com__ Sgt. Hatred (left) is a horny bash, but Brock (right) is missed. Can the two peacefully coexist? Also, anything you can reveal about the upcoming season? __Publick:__ Brock is back in the next eight episodes, so there's no need to miss him. You will see for yourself if and how they coexist, and how peacefully. I guess that kind of reveals a little about the upcoming season right there. __Hammer:__ We don't see Hatred as a horny guy. He is lovelorn. Right from the get-go he wants to love and be loved. And I don't mean sexually. The first time we see Hatred in the job as Venture bodyguard, he asks Hank to shoot him. Why? To create an insane bond of trust. That's a man of love, not lust. But it is also known that Hatred was a pedophile. __Wired.com:__ Spoiler alert! __Hammer:__ This is a deep, dark taboo in any sane society. It's a crime that is unforgivable. He knows this. Hatred lives with this shame. Fully recovered, with some thanks to experimental drugs, he tries to move on. It seems that the Ventures are willing to let him move on. Can our viewers? Should our viewers? It's a fascinating thing. Maybe we aren't ready to address that taboo so candidly. But! We did. We'll find out if Hatred can be forgiven.
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__Wired.com:__ Sgt. Hatred has taken over Brock's job of protecting Hank and Dean from Dr. Venture's nemesis Monarch (above) and other hilarious villains. Will he keep it? __Hammer:__ Yes, he has Brock's old job. We'll see how that goes. Change is something Jackson and I play with. I agree, it's not the best way to make episodic TV. The general rule of thumb is to reset everything by the episode's end. Barney Rubble is still Fred Flintstone's wacky neighbor, and hasn't moved to Germany to find somebody to eat his leg. But that's not life. People change. We don't recognize that convention as being a law. Our cast changes not unlike your friends. Honestly, how sweet is it that the jock who called you a "pussy" every day now washes dishes at Applebees? It's awesome. Change is awesome! __Publick:__ Want more spoilers? OK. Phantom Limb returns. Monstroso returns. White and Billy start spending their "insurance money." Some people kill each other and some other people kiss each other.
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__Wired.com__ The Venture Bros. is one of the rare shows on TV that's hilarious, smart and subversive. What would you like to see more of on TV these days, and what other shows do you think are capable of sniffing your jock? Or is that Brock? __Publick:__ First of all, thanks. That's nice of you to say. What would I like to see more of on TV? I guess even more of what TV's already been giving me lately. More Mad Men. More The Wire kinda stuff; I know we're not getting any more of The Wire. That [Boardwalk Empire](http://www.hbo.com/boardwalk-empire) thing looks pretty good. I like expensive-looking, nuanced, hour-long dramas that don't smell like regular TV. That and cheap, funny shows that feel like one guy made them by himself. So ... artisanal television? __Wired.com:__ What? __Publick:__ I'll tell you a show that kicks our jocks: South Park. I think it's still the funniest thing on TV, and it's only gotten better with age. I must admit I don't watch a lot of Adult Swim or Cartoon Network. I only catch it once in a while, and usually just to see if the sound mix on our show is coming out right in the broadcast. When I see something I like, I usually ask Mike Lazzo to send us a DVD so I can see more of it. To date, I've asked for Moral Orel, Metalocalypse and Robot Chicken DVDs.
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__Wired.com:__ Finally, Season 5! Is it happening? Has it taken shape? Please say yes. __Hammer:__ "Yes." I may have said it because you said "please." I might just be polite. I may mean it. I may just be a positive person, and "yes" is how I roll. Seriously, if [John Lennon](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/underwire/2010/08/geek-the-beatles-john-lennon) didn't climb that ladder and read Yoko's "Yes," we'd have less album covers with ungroomed genitals on them. Am I being cagey enough? __Wired.com:__ Yes, although for some reason the phrase "ungroomed genitals" is making me think of Dr. Girlfriend (above). Mr. Publick, what's your cagey dodge on The Venture Bros.' fifth season? __Publick:__ Officially, we don't know yet. Despite how much time it appears we took between seasons, we've been working nonstop on The Venture Bros. since we started writing Season 3 back in like the spring of 2008. We need a break. Plus our original contracts expire with the end of this season. So that's where that stands right now. But I'm not gonna say we haven't discussed it, or that we don't have some super-hot ideas.
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The Venture Bros. returns Sunday to Adult Swim at 11:30 p.m./10:30 p.m. Central. Don't miss it. It could be the last time you get the chance to watch such deranged geekery.
