Brett Rogers on Pinky and the Brain

Mischievous Mice:

Pinky & The Brain Go Prime Time

October 6, 1995 (Reposted 1/7/00)

If you happened to turn on the television last Sunday night, you may have seen an interesting new addition to this fall's prime time lineup. “Pinky and the Brain” features two laboratory mice who aim to take over the world by executing various off-the-wall plans under cover of night. One particular episode features a scheme in which Brain, the smaller and smarter of the pair, aims to seize power over the world, inserting himself as its pint-sized potentate. If all goes well with his plan, Brain will become a successful country music singer and insert a mind melting subliminal message into his songs. When his tunes are played over the radio, mankind will be rendered helpless. The result is a half-hour of animation that unhesitatingly mocks country music, (specifically singer Billy Ray Cyrus) as well as those fine Americans among us who enjoy eating beef jerky and the comedy of that watermelon smashing comedian, Gallagher.

It's social satire, folks. It's clever, sharp, and if you let your guard down because it's a cartoon, the humor may fly right over your head. The show may be silly and full of physical comedy, but the dialogue is skillful and unmistakably rich.

You might be surprised to learn that Pinky and the Brain were originally concocted to entertain your younger siblings. Don't tune in expecting to see a show with the sophistication of “The Critic”. While this fast-paced and surprisingly intelligent spin-off is full of wit, zaniness and humorous jabs on modern culture, “Pinky and the Brain” was originally produced for a Saturday morning time-slot. The decision to air the show in prime time was made after this season's episodes were already in production.

Realizing that children would probably not appreciate the many of the subtleties of the show's humor, such as when Brain responds to a Dolly Parton compliment with, “I'd say puberty was inordinately kind to you,” the new WB Network (Warner Bros. answer to UPN) moved the mouse duo from their former home as a part of the wildly successful “Animaniacs” into their own half-hour show. Airing Sunday nights at 7 on Washington's WBDC Channel 50, “Steven Spielberg Presents: Pinky & the Brain” has left the children's animation ghetto behind for a prime time slot.

Despite taking the daunting leap to prime time with little warning, the show holds its own. The humor is well beyond what you'd expect, and the lighter nature of the show is refreshing rather than immature. These mice aren't your typical Mickey-type rodents. In the tradition of Abbott and Costello, Pinky and the Brain are a classic comedy pair. Brain passes his time as a laboratory mouse caged at Acme Labs by using his genetic experiment-enhanced intelligence to plan for world domination. With his voice provided by voice actor and accomplished impressionist Maurice LaMarche, Brain is a fascinating caricature of Orson Wells as megalomaniacal mouse. Cagemate and partner in crime Pinky, masterfully voiced by Rob Paulsen, speaks with a broken cockney accent for no apparent reason (other than humor value). Without a doubt one of the most unusual cartoon personalities to arrive in recent years, Pinky graces the show with sometimes insane babbling and undying, uproariously funny naïveté as he tries to assist Brain with his plots to take over the world.

To the show's credit, the characters and plots remain loyally absurd while still displaying surprising depth. In an interview with The HOYA, Peter Hastings, producer, story editor and head writer for “Pinky and the Brain”, explains what makes the show tick:

“Certainly a huge part of the appeal is that [the show] often makes fun of pop culture and human foibles and basically paints humans as a bunch of gullible idiots.”

Hastings, who writes many episodes himself, has supplied the show with an energy and creative force which clearly shines through in the final product. “I try to keep the show a little bit unpredictable. My goal is to make the show funnier and funnier and funnier and funnier,” said Hastings.

Under the guidance of Steven Spielberg, Hastings has used much of the same creative team that works on “Animaniacs” to put together an impressive follow-up product. However, in order to survive in prime time, especially airing across "60 Minutes" on a fledgling network, “Pinky and the Brain” will need to become a bit more sophisticated to cater to the tastes of new adult viewers. While creativity and unpredictability were enough to make the mouse duo a hit in the afternoon and Saturday morning slot, many adult viewers in prime time will resist any animated program that isn't decidedly "mature". It's going to be an uphill battle. Luckily for “Pinky and the Brain,” if anyone can pull off a successful transition, it's Hastings and company, who have provided the WB Network with their lone bright spot in a graveyard of a fall prime time lineup.

Originally published in Washington, DC

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