Patton Oswalt stars in the new Hulu animated series.
By Chelsea SteinerMay 22nd, 2021, 4:36 pm
As Marvel continues to plumb the depths of their extensive catalogue of heroes and villains, the company’s more obscure characters are getting their moment in the sun. And few are as delightfully bizarre and goofy as M.O.D.O.K. (Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing), a giant-headed genius whose cranium is so packed with evil plans that he can only travel via hoverchair. M.O.D.O.K was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and first appeared in
Tales of Suspense #93–94 (September–October 1967). In the ensuing decades he kept popping up, battling the Avengers, the X-Men, and many others.
Without context, you’d be forgiven for dismissing
M.O.D.O.K as nothing more than a
Robot Chicken clone overlaid with Marvel theming. After all, it shares many core features with the long-running sketch series, including a penchant for lampooning movies, scatological humour, a few members of the voice cast, and even the same animation provider: Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
Yet whilst their exteriors are near indistinguishable from one another, when you scratch beneath the surface you’ll realise that
Robot Chicken and
M.O.D.O.K are entirely different beasts. For a start, the latter is consistently funnier and much more heartfelt, recalling (at its best) the heyday of
Marvel s M O D O K Adds Patton Oswalt s Voice to the Superhero Universe | TV/Streaming rogerebert.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from rogerebert.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Ziwe (Photo: Barbara Nitke/Showtime),
Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K. (Image: Hulu)
Graphic: Natalie Peeples
As the world begins to open up once more to social activities (for those who have been fully vaccinated, that is), TV is making a few big plays to keep everyone indoors this May. A new
Star Wars animated
Ziwe’s hotly anticipated Showtime debut, Barry Jenkins’ adaptation of
The Underground Railroad, and more true-crime docs and superhero shows await those who are prepared to wait a little longer before going outside again. Camping out in your living room for another month also means catching the exciting returns of