Aqua Teen Hunger Force facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Aqua Teen Hunger Force |
|
|---|---|
The series' main protagonists. From left to right: Master Shake, Meatwad, and Frylock.
|
|
| Genre |
|
| Created by |
|
| Written by |
|
| Directed by |
|
| Voices of |
|
| Narrated by | Schoolly D |
| Theme music composer |
|
| Composer(s) | Bill Fulton |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 12 |
| No. of episodes | 144 (1 unaired) (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
|
| Producer(s) |
|
| Running time |
|
| Production company(s) |
|
| Release | |
| Original network |
|
| Original release | December 30, 2000 – August 30, 2015 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows |
|
Aqua Teen Hunger Force (also known as Aqua, with different names), or ATHF for short, is an American adult animated TV show. It was created by Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro for Adult Swim, a late-night block on Cartoon Network. The show is about the strange and funny adventures of three human-like fast food items. These characters are Master Shake, Meatwad, and Frylock. They live together and often interact with their human neighbor, Carl Brutananadilewski.
The first episode was shown on December 30, 2000. The series officially started on Adult Swim on September 9, 2001. Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro wrote and directed every episode. They also voiced many characters. From season 8 to 11, the show changed its name each season as a joke. It also had different theme music. The series first ended on August 30, 2015, after 139 episodes and 11 seasons.
A movie based on the show, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters, came out on April 13, 2007. It was the first movie made from an Adult Swim show. A new movie, Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm, was released on November 8, 2022. A short spin-off series called Aquadonk Side Pieces was also released on YouTube in April 2022. The show is available to watch in other countries and on DVD. It was Adult Swim's longest-running show until 2020. However, a twelfth season was announced in January 2023 and started on November 26, 2023. This made it the longest-running Adult Swim series again.
Contents
Meet the Aqua Teens
This show is about the strange and funny adventures of three fast food characters. They are Master Shake, Frylock, and Meatwad. Master Shake is a milkshake who is selfish and often tells lies. Frylock is a smart and logical box of French fries. Meatwad is a shapeshifting, childlike ball of ground meat.
They live together like a family. They often have funny problems with their human neighbor, Carl Brutananadilewski. Carl is a middle-aged, bald sports fan. The main characters also meet different villains or other people in each episode. These characters usually only appear once. Sometimes, they meet famous people or athletes.
The Mooninites are two aliens from the Moon. They often appear as bad guys. They cause trouble by doing illegal or destructive things. The Mooninites appear more often than most other characters. Other characters who appear many times include Oglethorpe and Emory, MC Pee Pants, Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future, and Dr. Wongburger.
Episodes often end with the main characters getting hurt or their property being destroyed. But they are always fine in the next episode without explanation.
In the first seven seasons, the characters live in a suburban neighborhood in South New Jersey. In the eighth season, the show's setting changed to Seattle, Washington. The neighborhood looked the same, but each episode started with "Seattle" on the screen. As of the ninth season, the neighborhood is in a made-up place called Seattle, New Jersey.
How the Show Was Made
Starting the Show
The three main characters, Master Shake, Frylock, and Meatwad, first appeared in an episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast. They were mascots for a fake fast-food place called "Burger Trench." These first versions of the characters looked similar to their final designs. But Master Shake and Frylock looked and sounded different. The original name "Teen Hunger Force" meant they were a team fighting hunger in teens.
The Space Ghost episode with them was not made until Aqua Teen Hunger Force became popular. Instead, the characters first appeared in "Rabbot", the pilot episode of Aqua Teen Hunger Force. A full season of 16 episodes was then made. The show quickly became very popular on Adult Swim.
In early episodes, Master Shake said the trio was the Aqua Teen Hunger Force. They solved crimes for money. But after a few episodes, this idea was dropped. This crime-fighting idea was added to make Cartoon Network executives happy. They did not want a show about "food just going around and doing random things." In the show, Frylock says they stopped fighting crime because it "wasn't making us a whole lot of money."
Writing and Directing
Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro wrote and directed every episode. They also produced the show through Williams Street. Much of the talking in the show was made up on the spot by the voice actors. The show had a full script, but these made-up lines were kept in the final show. Many people who worked on the show also worked on Space Ghost Coast to Coast.
Different Show Names
| Alternative title | Season | Original season run |
|---|---|---|
| Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1 | 8 | May 8, 2011 – July 24, 2011 |
| Aqua Something You Know Whatever | 9 | June 24, 2012 – August 26, 2012 |
| Aqua TV Show Show | 10 | August 11, 2013 – October 20, 2013 |
| Aqua Teen Hunger Force Forever | 11 | June 21, 2015 – August 30, 2015 |
In 2011, for the eighth season, the show's name changed to Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1. Maiellaro said they were bored with the old name. They wanted a "new fresh open and a whole new show." Even with the new name, the characters and show's style stayed the same. In 2012, Maiellaro said that each new season would have a different name. This became a running gag (a repeated joke). Willis later said the name changes were a failed attempt to get more attention for the show.
Each season with a different name has a new opening and theme music. These are made by different artists. On most TV listings, these episodes are listed under their new names. This makes them seem like different shows.
Voice Actors
The main voice actors are Dana Snyder as Master Shake and Carey Means as Frylock. The show's co-creator, Dave Willis, voices both Meatwad and Carl. He also voices Ignignokt. The other co-creator, Matt Maiellaro, voices Err, Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future, and Markula. The main cast and Maiellaro also voice many smaller characters. The three main characters appear in almost every episode.
Voice actor George Lowe has appeared many times. He was previously the voice of Space Ghost in Space Ghost Coast to Coast. Many people from that show later worked on Aqua Teen Hunger Force. Lowe first appeared in Aqua Teen Hunger Force in season one. He later became the announcer for season eight.
Series animator C. Martin Croker voiced Dr. Weird and Steve in the first two seasons. He also voiced them in "Allen Part One". Andy Merrill voices Oglethorpe and Mike Schatz voices Emory. MC Chris has voiced MC Pee Pants in several episodes.
Many comedians, athletes, and other famous people have made guest appearances. They were often credited with fake names. This was because the show originally used non-union voice actors.
The twelfth season featured new voice actors like Eric Bauza and Brian Cox. This season was made under SAG-AFTRA, a union for actors.
| Main Cast members | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
.jpg) |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Dana Snyder | Carey Means | Dave Willis | Matt Maiellaro | George Lowe | C. Martin Croker |
| Master Shake | Frylock | Meatwad, Carl, Ignignokt, Boxy Brown, Various | Err, Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future, Markula, Various | Himself, Police Officer, Season eight episode announcer, Jet Chicken, Various | Dr. Weird, Steve, Various |
Theme Music
Rapper Schoolly D sang the Aqua Teen Hunger Force theme song for the first seven seasons. A longer version of the song was used in the 2007 movie. It was also in the soundtrack for the 2011 video game Saints Row: The Third. Schoolly D returned for the season seven episode "Rabbot Redux" with a different theme song. Each later season had a new theme song by a different artist. It also had a new animated opening.
Cold Openings
In the first two seasons, episodes started with a short scene in Dr. Weird's laboratory. Dr. Weird and his assistant Steve would create monsters or other strange things. In early episodes, these creations were part of the story. But later, they became just a funny, random opening.
In the third season, the Dr. Weird openings were replaced. They used parts from the pilot episode of Spacecataz. This was a spin-off show created by Willis and Maiellaro that was never fully aired. These scenes showed the Mooninites and Plutonians making fun of each other. The full Spacecataz pilot is on the Volume Four DVD.
Cold openings were removed starting with the fourth season. However, Dr. Weird and Steve appeared again in the season eight premiere, "Allen Part One".
Show's End and Return
In 2015, Adult Swim announced that Aqua Teen Hunger Force was ending. This was not what Willis and Maiellaro wanted. They found out about it during the making of the 11th season. Willis said that Adult Swim president Mike Lazzo decided to end the show because he "was ready to move on from it." The episode "The Last One Forever and Ever (For Real This Time) ..." was promoted as the final episode. It aired on August 23, 2015. The real final episode, "The Greatest Story Ever Told", was released online on August 26. It aired four days later with almost no advertising. At that time, Aqua Teen Hunger Force was Adult Swim's longest-running original series.
Animation Style
The first 11 seasons were made using Adobe Photoshop for images. They were animated with Adobe After Effects and edited with Apple's Final Cut Pro. Starting with season 12, Floyd County Productions animates the series.
Show's Revival
After the show ended, Maiellaro said there were no plans to bring it back. But he said it could return someday. In 2017, Adult Swim hinted that they might make more episodes.
In April 2022, Adult Swim started uploading Aqua Teen Hunger Force shorts to their YouTube channel. These shorts are called Aquadonk Side Pieces. They are usually less than four minutes long and focus on the show's villains. All the original voice actors returned for these shorts. In December 2022, Maiellaro announced that he and Dave Willis were working on five new scripts. A month later, Adult Swim officially announced these five episodes as the show's twelfth season.
Episodes List
List of Aqua Teen Hunger Force episodes
Movies
Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters (2007)
A movie based on the show, Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Movie Film for Theaters, came out on April 13, 2007. The movie tells the origin story of the Aqua Teens. It includes an exercise machine, Neil Peart from the band Rush, and a watermelon slice named Walter Melon. The heavy metal band Mastodon also appears. The film introduces a fourth Aqua Teen, a chicken nugget named Chicken Bittle. Many recurring characters like the Plutonians, the Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future, the Mooninites, Dr. Weird, and MC Pee Pants also appear.
Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm (2022)
In 2010, staff members of Radical Axis said a sequel called Death Fighter was being made. They also thought it might be in 3-D. By 2014, the script for Death Fighter was ready. However, Willis later said the project was stopped. He mentioned on Reddit that it would cost $3.4 million to make. He was interested in using Kickstarter to fund it.
A new movie was confirmed in May 2021. It would be a direct-to-video film. On May 12, 2021, Adult Swim confirmed three new movies, including a new Aqua Teen Hunger Force film. These would first be available on HBO Max after being released on Blu-ray/DVD.
On May 18, 2022, the film's title was revealed as Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Plantasm. It was later changed to Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm. The movie was released on Blu-ray, 4K Ultra HD, and digital on November 8, 2022.
Where to Watch
The first episode "Rabbot" aired on Cartoon Network on December 30, 2000. It was part of a preview for new Adult Swim shows. Aqua Teen Hunger Force officially started on September 9, 2001, on Adult Swim. It has aired there ever since in the United States. The final episode "The Greatest Story Ever Told" first aired on TV on August 30, 2015. It had been quietly released online four days earlier.
Watching Around the World
In Canada, Aqua Teen Hunger Force used to air on Teletoon and G4. Now, it airs on the Canadian version of Adult Swim.
In Australia, it started airing on SBS2 in April 2013. It later returned in July 2016 as part of Adult Swim on 9Go!.
Cool Stuff and Games
Many items have been made for the series. These include T-shirts, caps, and action figures. There were also Halloween costumes for Master Shake and Carl. A soundtrack for the movie was released on April 10, 2007. On November 3, 2009, a Christmas album by the characters was released. It was called Have Yourself a Meaty Little Christmas.
In September 2010, Adult Swim Shop offered a working hot air balloon shaped like Meatwad. It cost $70,000. The purchase included a piloted ride. The buyer could keep the balloon, but needed a pilot's license to fly it. This was the most expensive item on the Adult Swim Shop.
Home Releases
The first eight seasons have been released on DVD by Warner Home Video. The movie was released on DVD on August 17, 2007. The season five episode "Robots Everywhere" was also released with the Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am video game.
The first eleven seasons, except for two episodes, were released in a 20-disc DVD collection. This was called Aqua Teen Hunger Force: The Baffler Meal Complete Collection. It came out on September 20, 2022. It was the first time seasons 9-11 were on DVD. Some episodes are not included on DVD or streaming services due to content reasons. A second movie, Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm, was released on Blu-ray and 4K on November 20, 2022.
Episodes are also available on iTunes, Xbox Live Marketplace, and Amazon Video. The series is available for streaming on Hulu and HBO Max.
| Season | Episodes | Release date | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Region 1 | |||||
| 1 | 2000–02 | 18 | November 18, 2003 | ||
| July 20, 2004 | |||||
| 2 | 2003 | 24 | |||
| November 16, 2004 | |||||
| 3 | 2004 | 13 | December 6, 2005 | ||
| 4 | 2005–06 | 13 | January 29, 2008 | ||
| 5 | 2008 | 10 | December 16, 2008 (excluded "Boston") | ||
| 6 | 2009 | 10 | |||
| June 1, 2010 | |||||
| 7 | 2009–10 | 12 | |||
| October 11, 2011 | |||||
| 8 | Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1 | 2011 | 10 | ||
| 9 | Aqua Something You Know Whatever | 2012 | 10 | September 20, 2022 | |
| 10 | Aqua TV Show Show | 2013 | 10 | ||
| 11 | Aqua Teen Hunger Force Forever | 2015 | 9 | ||
Video Games
There have also been video games based on the series. Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Destruct-O-Thon, a mobile game, was released in 2004. In 2005, Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Studio Shakedown was released for PC. Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am, a golfing, racing, and fighting game, was released for the PlayStation 2 on November 5, 2007. An online Flash game called The Worst Game Ever was also released, but it was later removed.
See Also
- List of Aqua Teen Hunger Force episodes
- Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters
- Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm
