Cult. Weird. Strange. WTF. These are the things I search out in my viewing criteria when seeking content and most importantly television.Because everything in TV is so similar nowadays, it almost feels like a copy of a copy but there was a time when there were great cult TV series that legions of followers would dissect and interpret like their graduate thesis.
But what makes a cult TV series? Is it in the few people who know about it or the strange themes that it delves into. I remember reading the article by EW a few years ago and feeling like most people they got it wrong so I decided to sit down and make a tight list of the most bizarre, craziest cult TV series to develop a strong following.So, without further ado… here’s my list of the Craziest Cult TV Series:
Vermilion Pleasure Night
Created by Yoshimasa Ishibashi
2000
TV Tokyo
Japan
This bizarre WTF Japanese early 2000s sketch comedy series was something to behold, and still holds up till this day. Vermilion Pleasure Night was comprised of various skits and animation performed by female actresses in a variety of roles from zombies, dirty English teachers, singing cooks and wacky living dolls that resemble extras from Soundgarden‘s music video.
BET: Uncut
Created by ????
2001 – 2006
BET
USA
What do you get when you cross Hip-Hop, MTV and Cinemax together? I’ll tell you. The most bizzare and controversial programming block of the 2000s. BET: Uncut, a soft-core porn version of MTV solely for Hip Hop was born featuring some of the most chauvinistic imagery to ever appear onscreen. Its concept was “suppose” to be to allow hip-hop artist to air their music videos uncut and uncensored as a form of artistic integrity by airing it at hours when most viewers aren’t watching. But instead, the show got a cult following and became the night time fodder of numerous teen boys.From strippers, booty claps and a interesting term that should never be introduced in mainstream conversation that rhymes with boppin. The show will forever live on in infamy.
Toonami
Created by Sean Akins and Jason DeMarco
1997 – 2008
Cartoon Network
USA
If you were reading manga on the floor of a bookstore in the 2000s, then the words Toonami definitely had something to do with. Toonami, the first anime programming block developed by Cartoon Network gave a whole generation of kids access and exposure to shows that only if they were physically living in Tokyo would see. Comprised of everything from music videos from Daft Punk and Gorillaz, an avatar robot host and a late night uncut version, the children’s show began generating a large teen and adult following and premiered work by artist who would later on become major players in the anime industry. Toonami broadcast the gamut of the weird and wacky from stables like Gundam, DBZ and Cowboy Bebop to the strange like Crayon Shin-chan, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo and FLCL.
To be continued….
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