Plot: What’s it about?
The town of Moralton is driven by religion, or at least that is the case with young Orel. He is just a wee lad, but he wants to be a good person and serve the Lord’s will. He loves to attend church and listens closely to the sermons, so he can put what he hears into action. Orel doesn’t understand how the world works however, so sometimes when he means to do good deeds, he is misguided and finds himself in trouble. But his father is there to dish out a lesson in the study, with both his belt and his wisdom. When he learns that a man must learn to please his wife, Orel winds up with a penis piercing and when he learns masturbation is wrong, he impregnates hundreds of women to avoid sin. He means well, but Orel acts before the thinks and that lands him in weird situation after weird situation. As he strives to be a good person and follow the bible’s teachings, will Orel ever find the correct path to walk on, or will he make too many mistakes?
This is one I have waited for, as Moral Orel is an awesome show and one of Adult Swim’s home runs. Based on the religious, but corny shows of the past, this series is over the top, but still effective. The episodes are quite short, as per Adult Swim usual standards, so there is never time for a story to become dull. The writing is crisp and wastes no time, with great premises that yield some hilarious situations. This first volume is home to fifteen memorable episodes and to be honest, I’ve never seen an episode of Moral Orel I haven’t liked, its just that good. Now if you want depth, you won’t find it here, as these are self contained stories that are basic, but pack a lot of humor into that brief duration. The show does poke fun at religion, but it isn’t mean spirited and seems to be more about the hypocrites in religion, not religion itself. Moral Orel has a lot of things that could offend folks, so if you’re easily offended, this won’t be your kind of show. But I love Moral Orel and am thrilled to own this release, so if you’re a fan of smart, offensive humor, then give Moral Orel: Volume 1 a shot.
Video: How does it look?
The episodes are presented in full frame, as intended. I found the visuals to be better than broadcast, but I did see some edge enhancement at times. The animation here is simple and rather crude, so detail is limited. But the image is clean and crisp, doing the show justice. The colors look on the mark and brightness is on target also. Not much else to say here, as the visuals are simple and the transfers here are up to par.
Audio: How does it sound?
The audio is basic and simple, but sp is the show, so it all works out. The inspirational music adds some spice and is well presented. Aside from that, some sound effects can be loud and directional in rare instances, but this is still pretty much a straight forward presentation. The vocals sound great and the other elements fall into place, not much else we could want here. This release also includes subtitles in English, French, and Spanish.
Supplements: What are the extras?
On eight episodes you can listen to comments from cast and crew members, who share their production anecdotes. Not as fun as I had hoped, but most are worth a listen. The Awkward Comic-Con Panel is the coolest inclusion here, as an Adult Swim panel at the convention turns sour and chaos breaks loose. In addition to watching the event unfold, you can hear audio comments from both sides of the conflict, which adds another dimension to the fun. This release also includes the show’s promos and bumpers, a brief look at how the show is made, and some deleted scenes.
