Disenchantment (TV series)

Disenchantment
Genre
Created by Matt Groening
Developed by
Voices of
Composer(s) Mark Mothersbaugh
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 10 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)
Producer(s)
Running time 27–36 minutes
Production company(s) The ULULU Company
Rough Draft Studios
Distributor Netflix
Release
Original network Netflix
Original release August 17, 2018 (2018-08-17) – present
External links
Website

Disenchantment is an American adult animated fantasy sitcom created by Matt Groening. The series is Groening's first production for Netflix; he previously created The Simpsons and Futurama for 20th Century Fox Television. Twenty episodes of the series have been ordered by Netflix, with the first ten episodes being released on August 17, 2018.

Set in the medieval fantasy kingdom of Dreamland, the series follows the story of Bean, a rebellious and alcoholic princess, her naïve elf companion Elfo, and her "personal demon" Luci. Disenchantment stars the voices of Abbi Jacobson, Eric Andre, Nat Faxon, John DiMaggio, Tress MacNeille, Matt Berry, David Herman, Maurice LaMarche, Lucy Montgomery, and Billy West.

Cast

Main

  • Abbi Jacobson as Princess Bean, a 19-year-old princess from Dreamland.[1] Her full name is Princess Tiabeanie Mariabeanie de la Rochambeau Grunkwitz.[2] She enjoys drinking.[1]
  • Eric Andre as Luci, Bean's personal demon. Bean is his first assignment.[1]
    • as Pendergast, the head of King Zøg's knights.[1]
  • Nat Faxon as Elfo, an 18-year-old elf from Elfwood. He is optimistic and likes candy.[1]
  • John DiMaggio as King Zøg, Bean's father and the ruler of Dreamland.[1]
  • Tress MacNeille as Queen Oona, King Zøg's second and current wife and Bean's stepmother. She is an amphibian creature from Dankmire who married into the family as part of an alliance between the kingdoms.[1]
    • as Prince Derek, Zøg and Oona's son, and Bean's half brother.[1]
    • as The Fairy, who helps Bean with advice.[1]
  • Matt Berry as Prince Merkimer, from the kingdom of Bentwood, who is arranged to marry Bean, but was turned into a pig.[1]
  • David Herman as The Herald, who announces arrivals for the kingdom of Dreamland and also presents news[1]
    • as Guysbert, Merkimer's older brother.[1]
    • as Jerry, who assists Cloyd and The Enchantress[1]
  • Maurice LaMarche as Odval, the three-eyed prime minister of Dreamland.[1]
    • as Big Jo, the world's leading exorcist and all-around creepy person.
  • Lucy Montgomery as Bunty, Bean's lady-in-waiting. She is married to Stan.[1]
    • as The Enchantress, a mysterious woman who sent Luci to Bean as a wedding gift.[3][1]
  • Billy West as Sorcerio, a wizard who serves as King Zøg's advisor.[1]
    • as The Jester, whose catchphrase is "Oh no!" when he is tossed out of windows or falls through trap doors.[1]
    • as Mertz, a Dreamland knight reporting to Pendergast[1]
    • as Pops the Elf, Elfo's father.[1]
  • Noel Fielding as Stan the Executioner, Dreamland's royal executioner and manager of the torture chamber[1]
  • Sharon Horgan as Queen Dagmar, Bean's biological mother.[4]

Recurring

  • Jeny Batten as Kissy the Elf, Elfo's friend and coworker in Elfwood[1]
  • Rich Fulcher as Cloyd, who is in league with the Enchantress,[1] who was revealed by an assassin to be the Emperor of Maru in Episode 8, "The Limits of Immortality." [1]
    • as Turbish, a Dreamland knight reporting to Pendergast.[1]
  • Unvoiced but appearing are Vip and Vap, King Zøg's silent cape-bearers[1]

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release dateProd.
code
1"A Princess, an Elf and a Demon Walk into a Bar"Dwayne Carey-HillMatt Groening & Josh WeinsteinAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT01
Princess Tiabeanie "Bean" is the roughhousing princess of Dreamland who is destined to be married to Prince Guysbert, the son of the incestuous king and queen of Bentwood. While looking through her gifts, Bean receives a demon named Luci who was sent by two dark mages hoping to turn Bean to evil. Luci ends up being a fun-loving troublemaker who sympathizes with Bean's predicament as she feels that the marriage is simply so that her father, King Zøg, can be more powerful. Meanwhile, Elfo, an optimistic elf, is disillusioned with his candy making happy life and leaves the elf realm much to the consternation of his people. Elfo arrives just in time to witness Bean turn down Guysbert who unfortunately impales himself on a sword. Bean, Elfo, and Luci escape while Prince Merkimer, next in line to marry Bean, and his men chase after her. The group get directions by a fairy to see the Wishmaster, but he turns out to be the Washmaster instead. With everyone surrounding them, Bean takes Elfo and Luci and jump from a high cliff.
2"For Whom the Pig Oinks"Frank MarinoDavid X. CohenAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT02
Bean, Elfo, and Luci are "rescued" by Merkimer who take them back to Dreamland. Elfo is taken in by Sorcerio who wants to use his blood to create more magic and so Zøg can gain the elixir of life. At Luci's suggestion, Bean approaches Merkimer with the idea of having a bachelor party before the marriage. She also discovers Zøg and Sorcerio's plan to drain Elfo of his blood so they use pig's blood to fool them. At the bachelor party, the entire crew travels to mermaid island in the hopes that Merkimer will be killed by the mermaids. He is instead taken in by walruses who save them from murderous Borcs, though they turn out to be the allied Bozaks. Bean ultimately loses hope; however, a thirsty Merkimer discovers the "elf blood" which is mostly pig's blood and Elfo convinces him to drink it transforming him into a pig. Bean fed up denounces the marriage and Zøg finally agrees with his daughter. This upsets the king of Bentwood and he and Zøg settle things in a fistfight with Bean, Elfo, and Luci happily watching.
3"The Princess of Darkness"Wes ArcherRich FulcherAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT04
While under the influence of Queen Oona's snake root, Bean, Elfo, and Luci run into a gang of gender aware thieves who convince Bean to join them. With Luci's urging, Bean breaks into her ancestors' resting place and steals their valuables, but the thieves betray them and they get caught. At the suggestion of Odval, Zøg's vizier, they decide to hire an exorcist named Big Jo to remove a demon from Bean, unaware of the fact that Luci, whom everyone thinks is a cat, is Bean's personal demon. Big Jo manages to seal away Luci and leaves. While Bean feels clean and at peace with herself, Elfo convinces her that they need to get Luci back and learn that he, along with several other demons will be tossed into a volcano. Bean and Elfo get back at the thieves by getting their valuables and manage to reach Big Jo who they end up dismembering and toss into the volcano. When they successfully free Luci, Elfo accidentally causes Big Jo's carriage to roll down the mountain which crashes and frees all the other demons into the world.
4"Castle Party Massacre"David D. AuJeff RoweAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT05
Due to her status as a princess, as well as her reputation, Bean is frustrated by the fact that she cannot have a real relationship with anyone. Zøg ends up drinking poisoned fountain water and is taken by Oona to her people's spa where an employee named Chazz begins to torture Zøg with his stories. Meanwhile, the residents at the castle throw a party. While Bean seeks to use this to hook up with someone, Elfo wants to use the opportunity to tell his true feelings to her. The party is suddenly overrun by vikings where their leader, Sven, ends up catching the interest of Bean, angering Elfo. When Bean and Sven are about to make out, Elfo interrupts them and accidentally reveals that Bean is the princess. Sven then reveals his true intent to take over Dreamland and have Bean rule by his side. The trio trick Sven into drinking the poisoned fountain and get rid of him and his vikings. They manage to clean up the party in time for Zøg to arrive, but he finds severed body parts in the chimney angering him. Bean, Elfo, and Luci calmly watch the sunrise mutually.
5"Faster, Princess! Kill! Kill!"Ira SherakReid HarrisonAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT06
Following the party, Zøg sends Bean to a church so that she can be a nun. She immediately gets kicked out and Zøg insults her for being a good for nothing. She meets up with her maid Bunty, her husband Stan and their numerous children. Bean decides to act as an apprentice to Stan who is an executioner and torturer. Elfo stays with Bunty who babies him too much so he runs away into the woods. Bean meets a cackling witch named Gwen with whom she sympathizes. When it comes time to execute her, Bean cannot bring herself to do it and she leaves the kingdom. She and Luci find Elfo's foot prints when he ran into the woods and follow them, where it is revealed that he came upon the candy house which is now owned by a cannibalistic Hansel and Gretel. Bean and Luci arrive in time to rescue Elfo and Bean ends up killing the siblings with a candy ax, albeit in self defense. Gwen is suddenly cured from a curse and leaves pardoned. Zøg tells Bean that he is proud of her, though she threatens to kill him if he continues to make fun of her buck teeth.
6"Swamp and Circumstance"Albert CallerosEric HorstedAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT03
Bean once again sneaks off with Elfo and Luci for more debauchery. Zøg feeling that he does not give Bean enough to do, decides to make her an ambassador while the family goes on their trip to Dankmire, the homeland of Oona and her son Derek. When they get there, the group puts up with the customs of the Dankmirians who for years were at war with the Dreamlanders due to a canal that was built. Both sides claimed ownership of the canal and the fighting stopped once Zøg married Oona. Impressed with Bean handling the situation, Zøg asks for her to give a speech at a banquet. Overcome with the stress of thinking of what to say, Luci spikes Bean's drink and she shows up drunk at the banquet where she humiliates herself and her family and offends the Dankmirians who chase them out of their land. Oona makes it back safely, but Zøg and Derek are captured by hillbillies and Bean, Elfo, and Luci rescue them. Zøg finally admits that he is proud of Bean and allows her to go to Hay Man, an event that he initially disallowed her to attend.
7"Love's Tender Rampage"Peter AvanzinoJeny Batten & M. DicksonAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT07
While passed out drunk, Bean, Elfo, and Luci are picked up by the plague patrol who toss them into a pit. As they are about to be burned alive, Elfo tries to kiss Bean, but she rebuffs him. They manage to get out and Elfo claims that he was not trying to kiss her because he already has a girlfriend who Elfo claims is tall, has red hair and one eye. The trio head to a drug den and while in a state of intoxication, Bean claims to have seen Elfo's girlfriend. She sends the royal guard to go and find her and they bring back a giantess who they later learn is named Tess. Tess is upset over having been taken from her home, but she agrees to go along with Elfo's charade so that she can get a real working eye from him. Elfo ends up using a crystal ball and Tess is suddenly able to see the truth in everyone. This results in Elfo telling Bean the truth and a fire causes a mob to chase the three and Tess. They use the drug den to turn the mob away and Tess leaves with Bean and Elfo finally kissing, albeit while in another intoxicated state.
8"The Limits of Immortality"Brian SheesleyPatric VerroneAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT08
During a parade, Elfo is kidnapped by someone and Bean approaches Zøg with a quest to find him. Coincidentally, Sorcerio finds a book in Gwen's burned down candy house and figures out that the secret to the elixir of life is tied to a vial called the Eternity Pendant and decides to come along with Bean and Luci on their quest. They meet Gwen who leads them to her ex-husband Malfus who had taken the elixir of life, but has become a hermit in a cave. He directs the group to the "edge of the world" where they run into a griffin who informs them about the vial. Big Jo is revealed to be Elfo's kidnapper as he can locate the vial and soon kidnaps Bean and Luci as leverage. They find the Lost City of Cremorrah out in the middle of a desert and manage to locate the vial while Big Jo and his assistant Porky are distracted by a knight. The trio escape by burying Big Jo in the city as it fills with sand. Meanwhile, the mages who sent Luci, named the Enchantress and Cloyd, congratulate Bean as they prepare for Dreamland's fall.
9"To Thine Own Elf Be True"Frank MarinoShion TakeuchiAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT09
The trio return from their adventure with the pendant and try to use Elfo's blood to bring people back to life. However, the pendant still does not work. An expert is brought in and reveals that Elfo is not a true elf, angering Zøg who kicks him out of Dreamland. Odval allows Bean and Luci to go and find him so that he and the knights can follow. Bean and Luci find Elfo who decides to take them to Elfwood where he is reunited with his kin. While Bean and Luci mingle with the elves, Elfo learns from his father that he is half-elf, with his other half a mystery due to being interrupted by the arrival of Zøg's men. Bean, Elfo, Luci and the elves fight off the knights and seal Elfwood away before any of them can capture them, but the victory is short lived when an arrow pierces Elfo, killing him. Zøg reveals that he wanted the elixir to revive Bean's mother Dagmar who was turned to stone by a poison. Having got some elf blood from one of the guards, Bean chooses to use the pendant on Dagmar over Elfo as they share a tearful reunion.
10"Dreamland Falls"Wes ArcherBill OakleyAugust 17, 2018 (2018-08-17)1DNT10
Dagmar is reintroduced to the kingdom as everyone rejoices including an ecstatic Zøg. Oona immediately takes a disliking towards Dagmar and reasserts her position. The entire kingdom holds a funeral for Elfo; however, Dagmar and Oona get into a fight resulting in Elfo's corpse falling into the ocean. Oona flees and makes a deal of some kind with Odval while Zøg keeps Derek "safe" in the tower. Dagmar attempts to spend the day with Bean proclaiming she has a destiny to fulfill. Zøg reveals more about himself to Luci who uses the crystal ball that Tess returned to see things that happened in the past. The kingdom's residents suddenly turn to stone and Dagmar takes Bean to a secret library while Luci reveals to Zøg that Dagmar tried to poison him all those years ago. Dagmar releases more of the poison upon all of Dreamland, turning everyone to stone except Zøg. Luci is captured by someone while Dagmar and Bean escape on a boat with creatures. In a post-credits scene, Elfo's corpse washes onto shore and is retrieved by mysterious figures.

Production

Promotional poster for the series.

Development

The series, created by The Simpsons and Futurama creator Matt Groening, "will bear his trademark animation style".[3] The series is animated by Rough Draft Studios, the same studio that worked on Futurama,[5] and is planned for a 10-episode first season in 2018.[5] In July 2017, it was announced that rapper Briggs is part of the writing team for the series.[6] John DiMaggio has described the series as "the offspring of The Simpsons and Game of Thrones".[7] Groening has said the show has a "definite feminist point of view".[8][9]

Marketing

On May 22, 2018, Groening released three teaser images on Reddit.[10] The next day, the premiere date was revealed along with several more images.[11]

Tie-ins

The episode "Dreamland Falls" ties into Groening's other show Futurama, implying that both shows do in fact take place in the same universe. When Luci uses the crystal ball to show moments from before, Philip J. Fry, Bender and Professor Farnsworth can briefly be seen in a time machine. The moment is a clear reference to the episode "The Late Philip J. Fry" in which the trio travel in a one-way time machine and witness the end and rebirth of the universe, implying that the three were passing through after time restarted.[12]

Release

Twenty episodes of the series have been ordered by Netflix, with the first ten episodes being released on August 17, 2018.[13][14]

Reception

Critical reception

The series has received mixed to positive reviews from critics, based on the first seven episodes sent to critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has a score of 64% based on 69 reviews with an average rating of 6.17/10. The critical consensus reads: "Disenchantment showcases enough of Matt Groening's trademark humor to satisfy fans—although the show's overall familiarity and disappointing willingness to play it safe may not bode well for future seasons."[15] On Metacritic, the series has a score of 55 out of 100 based on 26 reviews indicating "mixed or average reviews".[16] Forbes called the series "charming, unique, and excellent."[17] Ars Technica stated the series starts rocky, but then it gets "bloody good".[18] Entertainment Weekly gave the series a "C" grade, likening it to an extended "Treehouse of Horror" story.[19] Den of Geek gave a more mixed reception of the series, praising the concept, but criticizing some of the jokes.[20] Brian Tallerico from RogerEbert.com wrote the series does not live up to the standards of other Netflix Original animations, but praised its concept and cast, and suggested the series might improve in the future.[21] Reviewing seven of the first season's 10 episodes, Danette Chavez of The A.V. Club gave the series a B-, saying that the strength of the cast made up for weak writing.[22]

Upon its initial review, TV Guide had a lukewarm reception. But upon viewing of the last three episodes, the opinion changed, and praised the serialization of the series that paid off in the end.[23]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 Credited as co-executive producer.
  2. ↑ Credited as supervising producer.
  3. 1 2 3 Credited as co-producer.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Schneider, Michael (July 29, 2018). "'Disenchantment': Meet The Characters Voiced by Abbi Jacobson and Others in Matt Groening's Netflix Dreamland". IndieWire. Retrieved July 31, 2018.
  2. ↑ Weinstein, Josh [@Joshstrangehill] (September 3, 2018). "Bean's full name is Princess Tiabeanie Mariabeanie de la Rochambeau Grunkwitz, not "Drunkowitz" - she just called herself that while drunk. Grunkwitz is Zøg's family name from the House of Grunkwitz (like House of Windsor or House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg)" (Tweet). Retrieved September 4, 2018 – via Twitter.
  3. 1 2 Andreeva, Nellie (July 25, 2017). "Matt Groening Netflix Animated Comedy A Go With 20-Episode Order, Abbi Jacobson, Nat Faxon & Eric Andre Lead Voice Cast". Deadline. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  4. ↑ http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/feature/a864341/disenchantment-season-2-release-date-cast-trailer-spoilers/
  5. 1 2 Liao, Shannon (July 25, 2017). "Matt Groening is making an animated medieval adult fantasy with Netflix". The Verge. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  6. ↑ Moran, Rob (July 27, 2017). "Briggs to be part of the writing team on Matt Groening's new Netflix series". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved September 25, 2017.
  7. ↑ Shepherd, Jack (May 27, 2018). "Disenchantment: Matt Groening's Netflix series described as lovechild of The Simpsons and Game of Thrones". The Independent. Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  8. ↑ Littleton, Cynthia; Littleton, Cynthia (July 25, 2017). "Netflix Orders Matt Groening Animated Comedy 'Disenchantment'". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  9. ↑ Hughes, Josiah (August 14, 2018). "'Disenchantment' Sees Matt Groening Living in the Past". Exclaim! Media. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  10. ↑ Groening, Matt (May 22, 2018). "Matt Groening here! Wanted you all in r/netflix to be the first to see what I've been working on…". Reddit. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  11. ↑ Ramos, Dino-Ray (May 23, 2018). "Netflix Sets 'Disenchantment' Premiere Date, Unveils First Look At Matt Groening Animated Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  12. ↑ Leadbeater, Alex (August 18, 2018). "Disenchantment Easter Egg Confirms Netflix Show Exists In The Futurama Universe". Screen Rant. Retrieved August 19, 2018.
  13. ↑ "Netflix Announces DISENCHANTMENT, a New Epic Fantasy Animated Series from Matt Groening" (Press release). Hollywood, CA. July 25, 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  14. ↑ Goldberg, Leslie (July 25, 2017). "Abbi Jacobson to Lead Voice Cast for Netflix's Animated Matt Groening Comedy". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Disenchantment: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  16. ↑ "Disenchantment Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 19, 2018.
  17. ↑ Barr, Merrill (August 7, 2018). "'Disenchantment' Review: 'The Simpsons' Creator Does For Fantasy What 'Futurama' Did For Sci-Fi". Forbes. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  18. ↑ Machkovech, Sam (August 7, 2018). "Disenchantment review: Groening's new Netflix toon is off to a bloody good start". Ars Technica. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  19. ↑ Franich, Darren (August 7, 2018). "Disenchantment is like a never-ending 'Treehouse of Horror' sketch: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  20. ↑ Matar, Joe (August 7, 2018). "Disenchantment Review (Spoiler Free)". Den of Geek. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  21. ↑ Tallerico, Brian (August 14, 2018). "All-Star Team Of Voice Talent Carries Netflix's Disenchantment". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved August 19, 2018.
  22. ↑ Chavez, Danette (August 8, 2018). "An Excellent Cast Rescues Fantasy Parody Disenchantment from Mediocrity". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  23. ↑ Surette, Tim (August 17, 2018). "Matt Groening's Disenchantment Gets So Much Better as It Goes Along". TV Guide. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.