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He's the Wild Blue Yonder and The Tick is back to show
why this outlandishly funny TV series should never have been canceled! After
proving his mettle in comic books and animated TV, creator Ben Edlund's
blue-insect superhero made his auspicious debut on Fox (in November 2001),
portrayed in live action (in a buff-muscled rubber suit) by Patrick Warburton,
the popular guest
star (as "Puddy"), who instantly perfected the role he was born to play. In his
appreciative commentary track, co-executive producer (and Men in
Black director) Barry Sonnenfeld calls the pilot episode "the best thing
I've ever directed," and it's easy to agree: wide-angle lenses, stylized sets,
hilarious dialogue, and a comedically gifted cast make the episode (and the
entire series) a perfect summation of Sonnenfeld's wacky style. Edlund concurs,
observing that The Tick is "something you get or you don't," and the
impatient Fox executives obviously didn't get the show's expert blend of
absurdity, stupidity, and good-natured irreverence. They axed the series after
eight of these nine episodes aired, only proving that The Tick was too
hip for their bean-counting mentalities.
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