Cow and Chicken
Cow and Chicken is an American animated comedy television series created by David Feiss for Cartoon Network, and the third of the network's Cartoon Cartoons. It follows the surreal adventures of two talking animal siblings, Cow and Chicken. They are often antagonized by the Red Guy, a cartoon version of the Devil who poses as various characters to scam them. The original pilot appeared as an episode of the animation showcase series "What a Cartoon!". The popularity of the original short allowed Hanna-Barbera to give it the green light for a full series, which premiered  on July 15, 1997. Originally, "Cow and Chicken" was attached to another segment called "I Am Weasel", which was later spun-off into its own half-hour series on June 10, 1999. The series was produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons. It was nominated for two Emmy Awards. Premise. The series focuses on the misadventures of two unlikely yet somehow biological siblings: the sweet-natured, dim, ecstatic, anthropomorphic 7-year-old Cow Steer and her cynical 11-year-old older brother Chicken Steer (both voiced by Charlie Adler). The two are often caught in escapades with their flamboyant enemy, the Red  Guy (Adler), a comical version of the Devil himself who disguises himself under various personas to attempt to either scam them or take them to Hell. Supporting characters include Chicken and Cow's delirious human parents Dad and Mom (Dee Bradley Baker and Candi Milo, respectively), only seen from the waist down and implied to have no torsos, heads, or arms; Chicken's best friends Flem (Howard Morris) and Earl (Dan Castellaneta); and their cousin, Boneless Chicken (Adler). Cow has her favorite dolls, Crabs the Warthog, Piles the Beaver, and Manure the Bear, who is a polar bear. The series  draws on eccentric, surreal, grotesque, and repulsive humor. For example, Cow and Chicken always order "pork butts and taters" in the cafeteria, the Red Guy always shows his butt, and characters often pepper their speech with malapropisms and sarcasm. The humor and storylines depicted are often based on traditional childhood worries, anxieties, or phobias such as cooties or venturing into the girls' restroom, but enhanced comically. Many of the slapstick antics involve the main characters getting physically abused. Production. Development. David Feiss first created "Cow and Chicken" as a story for his daughter. Feiss was an animator who had worked  with Hanna-Barbera and related projects since 1978. Years later, Feiss was called to submit ideas for "What a Cartoon!", a series of various animated shorts from numerous creators and writers, created by Hanna-Barbera president Fred Seibert. Feiss submitted three ideas to executive producer Larry Huber, one of which was "Cow and Chicken". Cow and Chicken premiered on "What a Cartoon!" in 1995. Later, Hanna-Barbera decided to turn "Cow and Chicken" into a full series, following many letters from fans asking for more. Voice actors. A single actor, Charlie Adler, voiced the three leading roles of Cow, Chicken , and the Red Guy. Supporting voices included Candi Milo and Dee Bradley Baker as Mom and Dad, and Dan Castellaneta and Howard Morris as Earl and Flem. Guest stars included Feiss, Will Ferrell, Carlos Alazraqui, Tom Kenny, Jill Talley, Dom DeLuise, Michael Gough, Mark Hamill, Jess Harnell, Pamela Adlon, and many others. Episodes. "Cow and Chicken" has a total of 52 episodes in 4 seasons that were produced from July 1997 to July 1999. Each half-hour contains 2 "Cow and Chicken" and 1 "I Am Weasel" segment. "Cow and Chicken" premiered as a full half-hour on July 15 , 1997. The series ran for 52 episodes through 1999. As a supporting segment, the show included a cartoon called "I Am Weasel"; this segment was spun off as an independent series that premiered on June 10, 1999. Typically, an episode would consist of two seven-minute "Cow and Chicken" shorts playing back-to-back, then followed by a seven-minute "I Am Weasel" short before the end credits. The exception to this structure was episode 105 ("The Ugliest Weenie"), which had the "Weasel" short ("I Are Big Star") play in-between the two "Cow and Chicken" shorts, possibly because said  shorts were one storyline. Section::::"Buffalo Gals" controversy. The second season segment "Buffalo Gals", first paired with "Cow and Chicken Reclining", was banned by Cartoon Network after receiving one letter of complaint from a parent about the episode's liberal visual and verbal innuendo about the titular biker group being lesbians. In the segment, the Buffalo Gals break into people's homes to chew on the carpet, a biker named Munch Kelly has a carpet swatch for a calling card, and when Dad freaks out over the Buffalo Gals in the house, Mom says, "They're not after you." In addition , the Buffalo Gals play softball and talk about pitching and catching. Although it was only shown on air once, it was replaced by "Orthodontic Police" in future airings, including on Netflix streaming and reruns on Boomerang. The episode was also discussed on an installment of Rob Paulsen's "Talkin' Toons" special featuring "Cow and Chicken" creator David Feiss and voice actor Charlie Adler when an audience member asked why "Buffalo Gals" only aired once. Other media. Chicken made a cameo near the end of the "Cartoon Planet" episode "Tom Foolery". Cow makes a cameo in the beginning of "The Grim  Adventures of Billy & Mandy" episode "Herbicidal Maniac" giving General Skarr fertilizer. During the "Mad" episode "Once Upon a Toon", Cow and Chicken are among the classic cartoon characters reunited in a spoof of ABC's "Once Upon a Time". The two main characters, Cow and Chicken, made cameo appearances as aliens in "". They were the second Cartoon Network characters to make cameo appearances in the "Ben 10" franchise, Billy from "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy" being the first. Adler reprised his roles for the cameo. In the "OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes" episode ""Crossover Nexus"", Chicken and I.M.  Weasel (with Michael Dorn reprising his role as Weasel for a speaking cameo) made cameo appearances as two of the Cartoon Network heroes that were summoned by Strike, and also Cow (as SuperCow) appears as one of the Cartoon Network heroes that Ben Tennyson ("Ben 10") shapeshifts into. Home media. "Cow and Chicken: Season 1", a two-disc set featuring the complete first season which contains 13 complete episodes, was released by Madman Entertainment in Australia (Region 4 PAL) on September 12, 2007. "Season 2" came out on February 10, 2010, by the same company in Australia. The entire series  got partially released on DVD in Thailand as 4 season sets, containing Thai and English audio, with the segment "Buffalo Gals" banned from these releases. The video game "Cartoon Network Racing" contains the episodes "Black Sheep of the Family" and "Child Star" (PS2 version only) as unlockable extras. All 4 seasons were released on iTunes and Amazon as of August 16, 2018. American releases Video games. Cow, Chicken, and the Red Guy are playable characters in the game "Cartoon Network Racing". The PlayStation 2 version includes Flem and Earl as playable characters. Cow/Supercow, Chicken, and the Red Guy are  playable characters in the kart racing video game "Cartoon Network Speedway", which released in North America on November 17, 2003. In the video game "FusionFall", one of the character items is based on "Cow and Chicken". Cow and Chicken's cousin, Boneless Chicken, can also be seen on a billboard in the game. Though not in the game, Cow is seen as Supercow as a statue at Mt. Neverest.