Image: Berkeley breathed for FOX
CHICAGO – A collapsed lawyer, a lobotomized cat and a penguin in underwear. What do these things have in common? They’re all part of the acclaimed “Bloom County” comic, which is in development as a new animated comedy from FOX Entertainment and Bento Box Entertainment.
Pulitzer Prize-winning original creator Berkeley Breathed is also on board as the series’ co-writer and executive producer.
Set in “FlyWayWayOver country,” a whimsical version of Central America where kids act like adults and animals can talk, “Bloom County” takes a satirical and irreverent look at politics and culture. The main setting is the Bloom boarding house, home to a rotating cast of eccentric characters – from a world-weary 10-year-old journalist to a politically conservative rabbit.
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Breathed, then a student at the University of Texas at Austin, pitched the idea in the college newspaper as a comic strip aptly titled “The Academia Waltz.” His work caught the attention of editors at The Washington Post, who recruited the young artist to do a nationally distributed comic strip. The official “Bloom County” comic strip debuted in 1980, and the series appeared in more than 1,200 newspapers worldwide until its end in 1989.
Breathed continued to feature its “Bloom County” characters in its “Outland” and “Opus” series. And in 2015, he relaunched “Bloom County” on Facebook, where he began posting new comics almost daily.
The anime adaptation is something of a passion project for Michael Thorn, president of entertainment for FOX Entertainment, who explained, “I discovered the brilliance of Berkeley Breathed and ‘Bloom County’ as a teenager. characteristic of satire, politics and sentiment hooked me. Plus, I love ‘Opus.'” Thorn added, “Today, Berkeley’s intelligent and hilarious take on American culture is more relevant than ever. And, with Bento Box, we’re excited to bring its unique set of characters and social commentary to broadcast television.”
WATCH FOR FREE ON TUBI: The Monster Brothers
Explaining the concept for the new series, Breathed noted, “At the end of ‘Alien,’ we watched cuddly Sigourney Weavergo for a long, peaceful nap in cryogenic hypersleep after being chased by a saliva-spewing maniac. , only to be woken up decades later to a world stuffed with far worse FOX and I did the same to Opus and the rest of the Bloom County gang, may they forgive us.
Bento Box will serve as the animation studio on the project, while Miramax, Spyglass and Project X will also serve as executive producers. Breathed created this original image to celebrate the announcement:
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Animated hits, streamed (for free!) on Tubi
The Monster Brothers (2021): Based on Gilbert Shelton’s cult 1960s comic, “The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers”, this adult animated series follows three hippie smokers who smoke a magical variety of weed in 1969 and fall into a 50-year sleep, for wake up in the 2020s. “The Freak Brothers” is a Tubi-Original. Rated TV-MA. A season. With: Woody Harrelson, John Goodman, Tiffany Haddish, pete davidson, La La Anthony and Adam Devin.
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The Flintstones (1960): For another Hanna-Barbera treat, this Stone Age comedy is just as charming today as it was when it debuted at the end of the Eisenhower administration. Rated TV-G. Real: Joseph Barbera and William Hanna. With: Alain Reed, Mel White, Jean Vander Pyl.
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