Animation is one of the most expressive and vibrant art forms to exist, adapting to different genres like comedy, drama, family-friendly, and horror, helping to fill every corner of film and TV. So when it comes to picking what new animation show to pick from there are a lot of options (like A LOT) and it's a pretty intimidating venture to start when there are just so many shows to choose from.
This list is here to help ease the stress of trying to figure out what to watch, especially if you are interested in all of the weird glory that animation has to offer. Here are six new shows you should check out if you haven't already, each with its own eccentric and bizarre charm.
'Tuca and Bertie'
Created by Bojack Horseman's lead designer and lover of anthropomorphic animal hybrids, Lisa Hanawalt, Tuca and Bertie is a surreal buddy-comedy that follows the adventures of two bird BFFS as they try and navigate the weird world of being a woman in your 30s. The show's main anchor lies within the friendship of Tuca, a carefree and unfiltered toucan, and Bertie, an anxious song thrush who dreams of one day becoming a baker, voiced by Tiffany Hadish and Ali Wong, respectively.
The series, first arriving on Netflix but then finding a home with Adult Swim, is filled with color and lives within a world that hilariously depicts the pitfalls and confusing reality of living in today's world as a 30-something, such as adopting a wild jaguar to live in your apartment to save on rent or accidentally cooking the ashes of your boyfriend's grandmother into a cake. There are also incredible portrayals of mental health and trauma, capturing complex emotions with expert sensitivity, but still making sure that the humor is never too far away. Anyone still sad at the Bojack series' finale definitely needs to give Tuca and Bertie a watch, and you'll soon fall in love with the funky world and characters Hanawalt has made.
'Smiling Friends'
Another show from the wild world of Adult Swim, Smiling Friends is a workplace comedy show created by Zach Hadel and Michael Cusack that finds its two leads, Charlie and Pim (voiced by Hadel and Cusack themselves) in a mix of surreal, bizarre, and inconceivable adventures in order to make their clients smile by any means necessary. The show isn't shy to delve into dark humor, such as parodying the infamous Björk bomb scare and is filled with a range of absurd characters voiced by a range of individuals you would not expect to hear which just adds even more to its esoteric charm.
Smiling Friends is filled with expressive and vibrant animation, bright colors, and unique character designs, mixing the incredibly bizarre and the extreme banality of modern existence to create a unique animated identity that is more than a joy to watch. If you are interested in the surreal and the weird, Smiling Friends is bound to put a smile on your face, guaranteed.
'Inside Job'
The Netflix animated series, Inside Job, is another animated workplace comedy but this time takes place in a shadowy corporation that controls and maintains all the craziest conspiracy theories that you have ever heard of, except they're even weirder than you'd first expect. Created by Shion Takeuchi, who also worked on the animated show Gravity Falls, the show features some of the most well-recognized conspiracies, such as Mothman (who works in HR), reptilian shapeshifters, and an army of John F. Kennedy clones that wreak havoc throughout the building, as well as creating some of their own conspiracies like sentient mushroom creatures that live within the subterranean "hollow Earth."
The show mocks the sudden influx of obsession over conspiracy theories over the last few years, filled with sharp and hilarious jokes that bring humor back into the realm of conspiracy theories, making them as ridiculous and farfetched as they really are. Inside Job is a show that reflects that conspiracy-obsessed world we now live in, and allows the audience to laugh at them again.
'Centaurworld'
One of Netflix's most recent addition to their animation repertoire and one of the most bizarre, Centaurworld is a musical-comedy animated series that follows a war horse, (who is literally just called Horse) voiced by Kimiko Glenn, who is magically transported to a colorful and magical land filled with a mix of animal-hybrid centaurs that is entirely different to the world of death and battles that horse is used to. Four other centaurs, Wammawink, Durpleton, Zulius, Ched, and Glendale, follow Horse on her journey to return home and to her rider (called Rider) as she begins to learn more about this strange world and herself along the way.
The series slowly reveals the dark truth of the war in Horse's world and its relationship with the peaceful Centaurworld, all through the medium of show tunes and sparkly musical montages. Centaurworld is a treat to watch just for the beautiful animation alone, but the songs and the wonderful array of characters makes the show something really special and a great new addition to your animated watchlist.
'Love, Death, & Robots'
First released in 2019, Love, Death & Robots is an experimental anthology series created by Tim Miller that features the talents of a range of diverse artists who each create stand-alone episodes that explore different genres such as comedy, action, horror, and of course, science-fiction. The series just recently released its third volume of short films, continuing the show's artistic legacy to create visually brilliant, surreal, and breathtaking stories that range from traditional hand-drawn animation to CGI and feature themes on either love, death, or (you guessed it) robots, with some episodes including all three.
Each episode is detailed with something entirely unique to offer, meaning that the show guarantees that everybody is satisfied due to its genre-bending and fluid storytelling. Check out the hit Netflix anthology series if you haven't already, a world of animation splendor awaits.
'The Midnight Gospel'
A psychedelic series created by the man behind the beloved Adventure Time, Pendelton Ward, The Midnight Gospel is a transcendent portrayal of animation that discusses complicated and complex issues such as the acceptance of death and one's mortality, the struggles of forgiving someone, self-awareness, and the modern industry of funerals and death, all while the show's main character explores different galaxies and interviews strange individuals for his podcast.
The show, while sadly only one season, is a trippy exploration of modern society and the human condition in a smorgasbord of color and beautiful animated sequences. If you are after something fun, unusual, and unlike anything you have seen before, this show is for you, though a recommendation of not being sober will absolutely help the experience be even more enjoyable.