The trend these days seems to be for animated shows to stretch together three episodes into an arc, and slap it out on DVD, euphemistically titling it as a �movie� or some such. Futurama is obviously working that way, more through necessity than choice. South Park�s recent �Imaginationland� was another bald-faced attempt at fleecing the public even more than usual, as was Family Guy�s �Blue Harvest�. Tripping the Rift, the Canadian Sci-Fi channel original animated show, is also jumping on the bandwagon. It doesn�t fair as well though, because it sucks.
A little backstory here. I actually enjoy Tripping the Rift the TV show a little, though mostly due to fond memories of the internet short the it's based on. Stretched out over 22 minutes and 13 episodes though the premise gets progressively weaker. Stretch that again to 3 series and you�ll actually find that it snapped a long time ago, and that you�re now missing an eye. Rift is usually pisspoor in most ways, animation quality, scripting and voices being the three most blatant (I except Stephen Root and the character of Darth Bobo from this criticism) and has been since day one. Its small but seemingly rabid fanbase must surely be of the lowest common denominator variety, as the show is tits, ass and swearing. And nothing more.
I�m not even going to bother discussing the plot as it takes thievery of ideas to a whole �nother level. I know shows like this are highly dependent on parody to make up for the serious creativity shortage the writers suffer from, but there�s a limit you know. Taking your ideas mostly from The Terminator, and tacking on a little of the usual Star Wars, Indiana Jones and recent pop culture (Desperate Housewives? Come on, try harder) does not a clever idea make. I don�t think I laughed once during the blissfully short 75 minutes, and I was really really trying to.
Tripping the Rift will hopefully now die a quick and painless death, with this as its swansong. Its crappy gags, lousy characters and loose and lazy plotting a testament to just how far a one-note internet phenomenon can go. I anticipate Penny Arcade: The Movie any time now. |
