The best show on Adult Swim There were three seasons of this show and it changed dramatically from one season to the next, the third season being by far the best. This show evolved more in three seasons than probably any other show has in ten or more seasons. It is a remarkable thing. It is one of the best, if not the best, TV show I have ever seen.
It has been compared to "South Park" and "Davey and Goliath" and other shows and that is just ridiculous. It is not anything like them or any other show ever. It is not meant to be a parody or satire or even meant to be explicitly funny. It is not a comedy, though it is frequently humorous. It is not a drama, though it is just as frequently serious. There has never been another show like this.
I have read all of the reviews on IMDb about this show and I think almost all of them have it wrong, the good and the bad reviews both.
This show has as it's backbone, Christianity. But that is far from the point of the show. I believe the point of the show is to highlight our human failings, and obsessions or things that control our lives, whether that be a reliance on religion to run our lives or some other thing, such as eggs, which rules Francis Clara Censordoll's life (her initials are FCC, by the way) or cleaning, which controls Bloberta's life or sex which drives not only Reverend Putty's life, but also Coach Stopframe's life, among others. Others are controlled or obsessed by loss of a child, or by a lack of love or by drinking, etc.
It takes all of these themes to the extreme to see what would happen. Predominately the extreme is based on a religious theme, especially in season one, but it is in no way limited to religion. That is why I disagree with so many of the other reviews. They look at this show as a religious show, while I look at it as a human show. After all, most people believe in some religion or another. It just so happens that in America most people believe in Christianity so that is what the show is primarily about, but it is not about Christianity exclusively. It is about the human condition. Religion just happens to have the most powerful effect on human life and how people act than just about anything else, except perhaps for sex, and this show deals with both of those subjects almost equally.
There were several people reviewing this show that saw it as an attack on Christianity and said that they would not have dared to attack Islam or some other religion in the same way. I disagree. As I said, I don't think this show is specifically a show about religion, but is a show about humanity. If this show would have happened to, or been allowed to have been made in a country where Christianity was not the predominant religion, it would have been almost the exact same show.
It is about how an idea can be taken too far. Whether that be a religious idea or not. For example, Nurse Bendy's obsession with the loss of her child and subsequent preoccupation with dolls and her childish attitude have nothing to do with religion. Also, Ms. Papermouth. Her obsession is with zebra statues and a lack of self-esteem which also has nothing to do with religion. There are many more examples like that.
After the first season, most of the shows didn't have anything to do with religion, as a matter of fact. It dealt mainly with the relationships between a father and son and the relationships between different people in Moralton.
The third season especially is a deeply insightful exploration of human feelings and how people interact with each other. It has virtually nothing to do with religion in any way and is also very rarely funny, though that is done very much on purpose. It also happens to be one of the best explorations of human psychology that I have ever seen depicted on screen. It is so deep and thoughtful that I have seen this series three times or more in total and I am still finding new meanings and new things to think about.
It is an amazing show, and anyone who dismissed it after the first few shows should give it another look. They will be pleasantly surprised. It is not some one dimensional parody of religion or some other show. It is a unique insightful look at how humans act and why they do so. It is an amazing achievement that I have never seen equaled anywhere else.