It's no secret I'm a fan of College University. I distinctly remember watching Newgrounds videos the summer before my Freshman year of college, and coming across their first cartoon on the main page. The animation, as far as my understanding of Flash at the time, was phenomenal. The writing was clever, and the concept was something I could definitely identify with. I enjoyed CU all throughout my college career, anxiously awaiting new episodes that would be updated months (and sometimes up to a year) at a time. And unlike Homestar Runner, I give the guys some slack. They work, and CU didn't exactly pay the bills, as far as I knew. I was also enjoying free cartoons that were leaps and bounds ahead of any current incarnation of The Simpsons.
Created and run by Mike and Andy Parker, the two now run College University and another Flash series, brilliantly titled Clock Suckers for College Humor.com, and the CU Podcast.
I think each time they create another step in their system, it raises the bar of quality and humor exponentially. CU was funny. Then they practically re-invented it, and leaned more towards CU animated shorts, which condensed the humor and upped the animation quality. Then they came out with a podcast that's updated on a weekly schedule that incorporates interactive email correspondence (mine have been read more than a few times, each time much to my own surprise). Finally, they were commissioned to make Clock Suckers (CS), and this is by far the best thing they've done together yet. The 'toons are short, but not "shorts." It's funny, edgy, and winds up not being the worst cartoon show on television. It definitely pushes the envelope that works for the characters they've created, in a way that I think would be inappropriate for College U. CU and CS have a dichotomy of similar humor, but entirely contrasting characters, co-existing in a realm where neither has to jockey for attention; each gets a fair share because, I think, the fans recognize one isn't trying to be the other.
I've been enjoying the creations of the Parker Brothers for over seven years, and they're East Coasters which is never bad. If you've never heard of this stuff, definitely check it out. One additional product of theirs is a short, basic Flash series titled Kung Fu Karl's Illustrated Adventures, a direct mesh of the CU universe and the podcasts.
If you go through all the toons in short order (which is easy to do when it's snowing, or you're on disability), catch up on the podcasts. They're like really long episodes with more intelligent Mike and Parks. It's an excellent fly-on-the-wall experience.
Chome Bear Out.
