Plot: What’s it about?
The threat of evil always looms over even the safest of cities, but life has to push ahead, even with rabid criminals loose in the streets. The evil minions sometimes manage to succeed in their crimes, but other times, someone intervenes. Perhaps no branch of law enforcement, security guard, brave citizen, or vigilante is as feared, misunderstood, and downright bizarre as The Aqua Teen Hunger Force. The team consists of Master Shake, an oversized milkshake with a smart mouth, Meatwad, a shape shifting meatball, and Frylock, a large order of french fries with telekinetic abilities. The trio of detectives are up for whatever crime happens to present itself, no matter how dangerous. But in truth, the friends spend more time in arguments, watching television, and fighting with their neighbor Carl than fighting the minions of evil. But that doesn’t mean adventure is absent, as the trio encounters aliens, mystical sandwiches, mail order brides, an even an all knowing cube of wisdom, not to mention countless other unusual folks. So while they might be ugly and strange, The Aqua Teen Hunger Force can always be counted on for a good time.
The Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim has become a goldmine of unusual animation, with Aqua Teen Hunger Force as one of the best of the best. The concept is about as odd as possible, with three pieces of fast food as a detective group, only one that never gets a case. Instead, the show follows the group through a mixture of off the wall and asinine situations. So aliens from a frat party and damned sandwiches can be found in episodes, but not all the episodes follow such outlandish topics. In fact, the show is at its best when the premise is something basic and realistic, maybe even dull by some standards. This is when the characters can shine and take a normal topic, then spin off into some hilarious tangents. Then again, with running times of just over ten minutes, the episodes don’t have to be as balanced as a full length show. So the jokes are crammed in at a high volume, to make sure the most is made of the brief duration. I do think the show has gone downhill a little and become more random than anything else, but this fifth season is still well worth a look for fans of the Aqua Teens.
Video: How does it look?
The episodes are presented in full frame, as intended. The episodes look about the same as they do when broadcast, perhaps a little more refined. The animation is simple, even crude at times, so the visuals don’t have a lot of flash or substance. The shows look terrific however, with a clean overall look and no signs of debris or other source flaws to mention. I didn’t notice any softness either, so the visuals come across as sharp and well detailed, as expected for a recent show like this. I found black levels to be balanced and free from errors, while colors give off vivid hues throughout. Not much I can complain about here, as these episodes look as good as we could expect.
Audio: How does it sound?
The audio is Dolby Digital 5.1, but don’t think this is going to be a feast for the ears. You have to keep in mind, this is animated series about a meatball and his pals, not the latest action show that tries to replicate a motion picture style surround sound atmosphere. The music does add some depth to the audio, with deep bass and such, which is nice. Aside from that, some sound effects can be loud and directional, 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, Spanish, and French, just in case you might need those.
Supplements: What are the extras?
While not as packed as the other sets from ATHF, you’ll find some goodies here. In addition to some deleted scenes, you can check out a music video, a Tera Patrick segment, an interactive game, and a preview of the ATHF video game.
