Blu-ray Review: SMILING FRIENDS: SEASON 1

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Aug 26, 2023 Posted by Kyle Nolan in DVD/Blu-ray, Reviews | Comments

Disclaimer: “Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray^TM I reviewed in this Blog Post. The opinions I share are my own.”

The first season of Adult Swim’s animated comedy series Smiling Friends, from co-creators Michael Cusack (Koala Man, YOLO: Silver Destiny) and Zach Hadel, arrives on Blu-ray and DVD from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment. The series follows the adventures of critters Pim, Charlie, Alan and Glep, who work at a company called Smiling Friends. People enlist their services whenever they or a loved one is down or depressed and is in need of cheering up. The Smiling Friends are quick to arrive to try to put a smile on their face. Pim (the pink one) and Charlie (the yellow one) are generally the ones who go out into the field, answering the calls, while the more Squidward-like Alan (the red one) takes care of things at the office, along with the tiny, gibberish-speaking Glep (the green one). Their odd and awkward human boss is usually the one sending the guys on their missions, often for some personal reason.

The first season of Smiling Friends consists of nine 11-minute episodes:

“Desmond’s Big Day Out” – The Smiling Friends try to cheer up a suicidal Desmond, taking him to meet Pim’s family, attempt make new friends, and visit theme park Dave Land, Meanwhile, Alan tries to catch a mouse terrorizing the office, but discovers an even worse Bliblie infestation.
“Mr. Frog” – Charlie and Pim set out to help rehabilitate the image of Mr. Frog, the former star of a long-running children’s TV show, after he has a breakdown, putting a TMZ reporter in his mouth. Meanwhile, Glep is hired as Mr. Frog’s replacement on The Mr. Frog Show.
“Shrimp’s Odyssey” – Charlie and Pim try to help a video-game obsessed Shrimp get his life back in order after his girlfriend breaks up with him, but Pim falls for and makes a date with the ex, Shrimpina.
“A Silly Halloween Special” – Pim is collecting firewood in the forest for the comoany’s Halloween party, but doesn’t heed the boss’ warning to not go beyond the rickety bridge. He soon finds himself lost and hunted by a mysterious forest demon.
“Who Violently Murdered Simon S. Salty?” – The owner of Salty’s restaurant, Simon S. Salty, is murdered, and Pim and Charlie are assigned to investigate. Each of the restaurant’s iconic mascots appears guilty, and they must figure out which one is the cold-blooded killer.
“Enchanted Forest” – The Princess of the Enchanted Forest has been unable to smile for her official portrait and needs The Smiling Friends’ help. As Pim and Charlie head to the forest, they cross paths with Hobbit-like forest creature Mip, who turns Charlie into the hero of many quests along the way to the Princess, which causes Pim to slowly devolve into a jealous Gollum-like creature.
“Frowning Friends” – A new company called Frowning Friends moves in across the street, and it’s employees Grim and Gnarly—the bizarro versions of Pim and Charlie—are going after their clients. This unfriendly competition sends the boss into a dark, jealous spiral.
“Charlie Dies and Doesn’t Come Back” – It’s Christmas Eve, and the boss sends the team out to find a Christmas tree for the office. Charlie is the only one not in the holiday spirit, complaining the entire time. But when he’s killed by a falling tree, he finds himself in Hell, trying to cheer up Satan to get another chance at life.
“The Smiling Friends Go To Brazil!” – The gang heads to Brazil for a vacation, but no one booked the hotel, and it’s Mardi Gras, which means everything is full. The group argues over what to do. This is like a bottle episode taking place in the airport.

Smiling Friends is a humorous, lively show, filled with cute animated critters trying to help people who are down. No matter what’s going on in their own lives, the critters remain positive as they try their best to put a smile on their clients’ faces. Many of the episodes have some some sort of musical montage or original song. In “Shrimp’s Odyssey”, there’s this great song that feels like a Diane Warren ballad from an 80s romantic movie. However, don’t let these critters’ cute appearances fool you—this is not a show for kids. It has lots of uncensored adult language, violence and gore.

The show’s colorful 2D animation style is often mixed with 3D elements and live action to give the series a very unique look. The Blu-ray presentation is solid, with a very crisp, clean picture, and bright, colorful palette. I don’t see how the show could look any better. The audio track provides clear dialogue throughout, and makes excellent use of the surround sound to make the show feel more immersive. This is especially noticeable in the “A Silly Halloween Special” episode when the rain is pouring down and Pim is out in the creepy woods.

All 9 episodes reside on a single Blu-ray disc (that looks like a big yellow smiley face), which is packed in a standard HD keepcase, with a cardboard slipcover on top. Unfortunately, as seems to be the new normal now with WB TV show releases, there is no digital copy included. As for bonus material, the disc includes exclusive audio commentaries on all 9 episodes from series co-creators Michele Cusack (“Pim”, “Alan”) and Zach Hadel (“Charlie”, “Glep”).

What’s Included:

Episodes: (1:41:56)

All 9 episodes of the first season:
“Desmond’s Big Day Out”, “Mr. Frog”, “Shrimp’s Odyssey”, “A Silly Halloween Special”, “Who Violently Murdered Simon S. Salty?”, “Enchanted Forest”, “Frowning Friends”, “Charlie Dies and Doesn’t Come Back”, “The Smiling Friends Go To Brazil!”
1080p / Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French Dolby Digital 2.0, Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish

Extras:

Audio Commentary (1:41:56)
Series co-creators Michele Cusack (“Pim”, “Alan”) and Zach Hadel (“Charlie”, “Glep”) provide a fun and informative commentary on every episode, discussing how the series came about, the process of animating the show, the voices, and more. They also point out some of the Easter eggs that can be seen in the season—such as Danny DeVito doing a voice in the pilot—and discuss things like the decision to change Pim from green to pink, the characters, some of their inspirations, and more.
- “Desmond’s Big Day Out” (12:04)
- “Mr. Frog” (11:13)
- “Shrimp’s Odyssey” (11:12)
- “A Silly Halloween Special” (10:54)
- “Who Violently Murdered Simon S. Salty?” (11:19)
- “Enchanted Forest” (11:13)
- “Frowning Friends” (11:14)
- “Charlie Dies and Doesn’t Come Back” (11:19)
- “The Smiling Friends Go To Brazil!” (11:28)

Final Thoughts:

My Rating

Episodes:

Video:

Audio:

Extras:

Recommended

Smiling Friends is a fun, humorous adult animated series with some really loveable characters. With episodes being just 11 minutes long, it makes for a really quick watch. Warner Bros.’ Blu-ray release looks and sounds great, and the audio commentaries on the episodes are entertaining and informative. There is so much happening in each episode of the show that it lends itself to a re-watch. The release comes recommended for fans of Adult Swim programming, and flks who are already fans of the series should appreciate the bonus material.