'Stroker and Hoop':
Stroker and Hoop debuted on September 4, 2005. The series debut followed an August encore presentation of the 30 minute special that aired in 2004. The newest season premiered in May of 2008.
Premise:
John Stroker is a horribly hapless private investigator, with Hoop as an incompetent sidekick. If anyone respondes to the 1/8 page ad in the yellow pages, Stroker and Hoop are there to help, unless they're too drunk or they get lost. This is one of the most adult cartoons of Adult Swim, sometimes involving porn but always including graphic sex talk. If you haven't guessed already, the entire show is a parody of any buddy cop show or movie in the last few decades, especially Starsky and Hutch.
Characters:
Stroker (Jon Glaser from Late Night with Conan O'Brien) has only a few P.I. skills, which include the art of lock picking, car-hood sliding and keeping his gun from falling out of his waistband. Hoop (Speed Levitch from The Cruise) is a self-proclaimed master of disguise. They drive around in a talking hatchback named C.A.R.R. (Paul Christie from Saturday Night Live: TV Funhouse).
Creators:
Casper Kelly and Jeff Olsen came from Cartoon Network On-Air Promotions, where they served as writers/producers and as creative consultants on Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law. Prior to joining Cartoon Network, Kelly was a production assistant for Roger Corman, king of the B-movies, and wrote scripts for Nickelodeon and Disney while writing his own comic strip, Fried Society. Olsen joined Cartoon Network after a stint creating animated advertisements for Old Navy. This is the first series for each.
My Two Cents:
I had high hopes for Stroker and Hoop. On paper, it sounded really funny because I love a good parody. But there is just too much adult humor to wade through. Just because a show is on Adult Swim, late at night, and can get away with graphic sex jokes and such, doesn't mean it should. If the humor doesn't come with a mildly entertaining storyline, or characters that are somewhat likeable (they're not) then I can't bear it. Hopefully this team of creators will at least hit a single their next time at bat.
