Exercising restraint can be hard. Some creators are just more suited for writing to a more adult audience with their work and when they have to scale it back for a younger crowd, not all of the material comes off as entertaining. So a series created by the American Greetings Entertainment, a group known for creating content for younger audiences, and produced in conjunction with Stoopid Buddies Stoodios (the team behind Robot Chicken and SuperMansion) could easily create a show which many would find awkward and cringe-worthy. Worry not dear reader, for instead, this collaboration has created something unique entirely: Quality family programming.
Writing
The story focus on titular character Buddy Thunderstruck, a semi-truck racer in the town of Greasepit who enjoys nothing more than winning, hanging with his best friend/mechanic Darnell, and munching down hot wings. Together, the pair get into hijinks focusing on Buddy’s obsessive need to always be number one while making life difficult for their rivals, Big Tex, Big Tex Jr. and the mystery man (later revealed to be named Belvedere Moneybags).
The show features some very off the wall and random bits of comedy. Story lines include Buddy becoming a repo man, break dancing to get out of jail, racing the pizza delivery service which is faster than him, and becoming a cop with an obsession for justice. The writers are able to produce a large amount of humor despite the show being for a family audience. The series makes frequent references to adult entertainment like The Big Lewboski, CSI: Miami, and Office Space. They also make use some creative wordplay to make nods to more adult terms such as “Son of a buck” and using a beaver dam to mean the explicative instead.
There are plenty of great moments for the younger crowd as well. Physical humor moments such as when Buddy throws a billy club at a car with an expired meter causing it to explode will have kids giggling hysterically. Also, Hoysenberry, the deputy who is an adorable character who is too cute and friendly to be a cop. She is the kind of character you feel for but can’t help but snicker at as they experience misfortune. Also the kind of character who would be perfect as a stuffed animal.
Acting
Family entertainment also has a stigma when it comes to voice acting. Many actors simply phone in their roles and deliver bland performances. Not here though, as the entire cast of Buddy Thunderstruck delivers the perfect amount of energy and style to their characters.
Brian Allen as Buddy is perfect. He seems to be channeling Ricky Bobby from Talladega Nights with a hint of Jason Lee from My Name is Earl. Darrel is played by Ted Raimi (Ted Hoffman from the Spiderman Trilogy), who performs a dual role as Darnell and Moneybags. As Darnell he is the perfect best friend who will be there for a person no matter what. As Moneybags he plays the perfect snide villain who just wants to prove how much better he is than everyone else. The entire cast delivers a phenomenal performance and creates characters which are a joy to behold.
Animation
The team created this show with some fantastic stop motion effects. Unlike some of their Robot Chicken sketches, where the figures have their joints exposed or there are moments where you can tell where the clay didn’t seal properly, there are no flaws to be seen here. There isn’t a moment of the show brought down by a bad effect or poorly created character in the cast. Every visual seems to be a great representation of the studio’s work and sells the physical comedy moments employed in the first season.
Conclusion
This show finds the balance between comedy intended for young and older audience and succeeds in being a perfect show for the family. All it needs now is more viewers so there can be a possibility of a second season. If you find yourself needing a show which is binge-worthy than blame it on the thunder and check out Buddy Thunderstruck! Kaboom!
