Pour one out
(Update: Well, I guess that explains the fast turnaround I mentioned. Numerous tweets allege that the “renewed season” is merely the second run of episodes held back from season one. This, according to animation industry fans and workers, is a common tactic used to avoid production and animation studio payments from rolling over — technically meaning that the distributor bags two “seasons” of a show for the production price of one. For further reading, see “New Deal 4 Animation”.)
Netflix has announced that its critically muddled animated series The Cuphead Show has officially been renewed for a second season. The cartoonish adaptation of Studio MDHR’s excellent platformer launched on the streaming service mere weeks ago, but Netflix clearly sees a future in the property.
While the adventures of Cuphead, Mugman, King Dice, and friends are perfectly suited to the TV screen — the themes and style of the franchise being pulled from the classic Fleischer cartoons of the 1930s — it seems that critics and audiences were very tepid toward the show itself. While praise was heaped upon the slickness of its art, color, and animation, the show was criticized for its weak narratives, clumsy storytelling, and lack of legitimately funny, well-written comedy.
Netflix notes that The Cuphead Show season two will be available on the streaming service as soon as this coming summer, which somewhat suggests that the new episodes were produced either at the same time — or at the very least back-to-back — as season one. As such, I wouldn’t expect any major deviation from a stylistic or narrative standpoint.
Back in the digital world, Studio MDHR is busy beavering away at video game expansion Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course. The DLC has been in the works for almost two years now, (after all, it takes a helluva long time to hand draw and animate all of those awesome boss characters, but the add-on is scheduled to launch June 30 on PlayStation, PC, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch platforms. Can’t wait!
THE CUPHEAD SHOW IS OFFICIALLY RENEWED FOR SEASON 2!!! AND IT'S COMING THIS SUMMER! pic.twitter.com/gIam56ARp2
— Netflix Geeked (@NetflixGeeked) March 2, 2022
