The Samsonadzes

The Samsonadzes (Georgian: სამსონაძეები, Samsonadzeebi) is a Georgian CGI animated television sitcom created and produced by Shalva Ramishvili. It first aired in Georgia in November 2009.[2] It almost immediately became a "hit", "taking Georgia by storm" and "shooting to the number two spot among the most-popular shows on one of Georgia's main TV channels".[3] It has been described as "bearing more than a passing resemblance" to the American animated television sitcom The Simpsons.[2]

The Samsonadzes
Genre	Animation Comedy
Created by	Shalva Ramishvili
Country of origin	Georgia
Original language(s)	Georgian
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	18[1]
Release
Original network	Imedi TV
Original release	November 2009 – 2010

The Samsonadzes are "a yellow-skinned cartoon family, consisting of a dopey husband" (Gela Samsonadze, who works in a bank) "and his lavishly coiffed wife, who live in a made-up city with their children", Shorena and Gia. They also have a parrot, Koke.[2] Their home city has been noted for its apparent resemblance to Tbilisi.[1]

Ramishvili has stated that the series aimed to be "relevant to Georgian reality and touch on social issues that will resonate with a Georgian audience",[2] while its chief scriptwriter, Zviad Bliadze, explained: "We just took an average family and made a parody of the common traits, like laziness or love of alcohol."[3]

The series has attracted some attention by featuring Russian leaders in a negative light, in a context of tense Georgia–Russia relations. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin appears in one episode, sending a spy into Georgia.[2] Ramishvili described this criticism of the Russian government as "simply our civil liberty and duty".[4] The Independent, however, has remarked that there are "no plans to introduce the controversial Georgian President, Mikheil Saakashvili" into the programme, and Russia Today has noted that the series' creators "make lots of fun of Russian politicians, while forgetting their own."[3]

Episodes: 1. Delivery Express/Stageplay Show 2. Becoming Villain (forever)/Good Morning Russia 3. Bubbleade Tea, Parts 1,2 and 3 4. Slick Tooth/The Imagination Studio 5. Granmamamonmy/Oath of the Compass 6. Elastabike!/Starbur Warz 7. Raccoon Favers/Clown's Circuits Chaos 8. Tooned Up/Halloween 9. Homework Destruction 10. Denzel-Robo!/It's Made for Kids 11. Battle Bible/Clash of Cousins 12. Bodies! Bodies Forever/Co-workin' 13. Outta Time/n.o.t. 14. IT!/All that 'zazz 15. Skippy Wafers/Yellow Arecs 16. The Mines/The Hero 17. Old Man Tyime/A Weird Secret 18. The Future Begins