While fans of Rick and Morty have looked forward to the new Hulu show, Solar Opposites, it might not be the best new show. The new series showed some promise with a new alien family getting shipwrecked on Earth after the destruction of their home planet. The show was created by Justin Roiland and Mike McMahan.
In the original trailer for the show, fans saw similarities in style to Rick and Morty, but does it surpass the show? Here are a couple of reasons why Solar Opposites might hook some audiences and why it might completely fall flat and be a hard pass.
SKIP: Parallels To Rick And Morty
With the first trailer alone, fans were already seeing the parallels to the hit Adult Swim show. While this would entice fans to watch Solar Opposites, it’s not necessarily a good thing. The show follows a similar set up of alien races and distant planets with the main stars not being over-enthused about Earth.
On top of this Justin Roiland also voices the lead character Korvo. Fans have already been accustomed to his voice as Rick Sanchez, so it tends to be the only thing you think of when watching Korvo. There is also a very similar character design in the almost lifeless eyes and droopy faces. The setting also looks familiar.
WATCH: Highly Unusual Alien Family
What makes most adult animated shows fun are the unordinary main characters. Korvo, Terry (Thomas Middleditch), Yumyulack (Sean Giambrone) and Jesse (Mary Mack) are weird, to say the least. Each one has their unique traits that create a highly dysfunctional alien family.
Yumyulack is a young alien who has a knack for dissecting and experimentation. The biggest question of all is the family dynamic overall. Fans question if Korvo and Terry are technically considered a couple and if the children are actually considered their kids.
SKIP: Before Seen Alien Story
Despite the show having its different story markers, the premise for the show isn’t new. The family’s home planet of Schlorp is destroyed and they manage to get away. They land on Earth, like most shows, and try to assimilate themselves on their new planet.
They also must try to deal with daily adventures whether human or alien-related. Overall this isn’t a new idea. You have the disgruntled Korvo who hates living on Earth and Terry who instead loves everything it has to offer. Of course, you have Jesse and Yumyulack who are doing things they shouldn’t.
WATCH: Gets Started Right Away
A fun aspect of the show is its ability to get straight to the point. The minute the episode starts, audiences are whirled into a chaotic storyline. It helps you get more invested in the episode if there’s no mundane beginning, but then again there really wouldn’t be since it’s an alien family.
In episode six of the first season, Terry races home, killing many animals, to simply tell the family they don’t have noses. Cue opening sequence. Audiences will always know what the mains storyline is going to be for the rest of the episode.
SKIP: Some Episodes Don’t Rise To The Occasion
It’s upsetting to say when you have high hopes for a show, but certain episodes of Solar Opposites leave you dissatisfied. Once you start watching, you’ll get the idea. While the individual storylines are intriguing, by the end of the episode you’re left with an okay feeling.
In episode three, Korvo becomes a famous magician who attempts to pull off traveling through a black hole. There’s a lot of promise in the concept but by the end scene, Krovo drops the ball just so that the family attends his Taco Tuesdays.
WATCH: No Holds Barred
What can make this show fun to watch is the fact that it doesn’t shy away from a lot of adult content. This can also be a bad thing and will be discussed later on. The show is meant for adults and it shows. The ability to use curse words and adult themes adds more flavor to a lot of the storylines.
Many can agree that certain situations require a curse word or two like when Korvo loses control of the black hole that runs amuck through the house. The show also isn’t shy about shedding some blood or Yumyulack and Jesses cutting open a fellow student’s skull.
SKIP: F-Bombs And Gore Can Be Overplayed
Some can agree that part of the charm of adult animated shows is their ability to talk about blood, sex and everything in between. But in Solar Opposites, the f-bombs can occasionally not feel well-timed out. It ends up loosing its lustrous charm.
The show can also overplay its gore factor. In the first episode, Korvo and Terry replicate Funbucket from a kid’s show. They then proceed to go on adventures and one of them includes taking shots of snake blood, freshly killed. Later on, Funbucket merges with a copy of himself. It involves a lot of gory blood-soaked deaths.
WATCH: Interesting Sub Stories
It would be highly unentertaining if the show only focused on one main story and thankfully it doesn’t. While Terry and Korvo go off on their own adventure, Jesse and Yumyulack have their own storylines. They range from shrinking down humans, getting back at bullies, or being naive children.
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Beyond the main family, there are sub-stories that are entirely their own. For example, the kids shrink and collect humans. In episode three, audiences are introduced to the sub civilization the kidnapped humans have created with their own set of problems. Plus, the Pupa (Sagan McMahan) makes it known that he knows you’re watching.
SKIP: Random Aggressive Jokes
While a lot of adult animated shows are known for vulgar jokes that catch you off guard, in the show they tend not to feel as comical. They tend to borderline between random and comical. When Korvo and Terry make Funbucket, Funbucket randomly blurts out some inappropriately sexual comment, and it’s not the only time.
WATCH: Pop Culture References
While Korvo hates being stranded on Earth, Terry fully embraces his new home. This includes catching up on Earth’s pop culture references. You’ll catch Terry wearing t-shirts with comical catchphrases or a shirt with “Dick Wolf” from Law & Order: SVU written on the front.
He also references Jennifer Garner’s Instagram and saving his Game of Thrones Funko to unbox on his Youtube channel. Terry is the only one who gets Earth’s culture. There are also small jabs at pop culture like selling overpriced PlayStation 4’s.
