23 years ago today, Adult Swim aired the first episode of what would end up being one of their coolest and most original shows, but it never got to end with the final season it deserved. Adult Swim has been in the business of crafting original shows for nearly three decades at this point, and the offshoot network has made a name for itself through how many unique shows that fans have gotten to see over that time. But there was one ambitious project in particular that didn’t get to end on its own terms.
The Venture Bros. original pilot made its debut with Adult Swim 23 years ago today, on February 16, 2003. The series introduced fans to a unique kind of story following a Johnny Quest like hero in the years after having adventures with his dad as a kid, and had a much bigger story in mind that fans got to see over seven seasons. But it never got the final season it truly deserved before it was cancelled, and fans still have been holding out hope that we’d see a much fuller end for it someday.
The Venture Bros. Premiered on Adult Swim 23 Years Ago Today
Courtesy of Adult Swim
The Venture Bros. really got a lot of attention when it first premiered on Adult Swim. The series took place in the world of adventure classics like Johnny Quest, and imagines one where a brilliant Dr. Venture took his own son around the world while he battled all kinds of unique foes. Except now years later, that young son has become a bitter scientist of his own who now travels with his sons, Hank and Dean, and their bodyguard Brock Samson. Taking everything to the extreme, it was a fun twist of those classics.
The series really took fans by surprise from the jump because of how it twisted on those classic jokes and ideas, but then expanded on that much further in the seasons to come. The Venture Bros. started out small with a unique story, but then started to get much more complicated with its future seasons. Its story got more involved with many more characters in the mix (especially a deeper look into the grand villain society we had seen pop up before), and got much bigger in its scope. It was clear that series creators Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer had a bigger finale in mind.
The only issue was that The Venture Bros. took a lot of time to actually get made. There were long gaps in between each season of the animated series, and fans had been left on an especially long wait after Season 7 ended. But with Season 8 expected on the way, Adult Swim suddenly revealed that they were going to be cancelling the series. Instead of an eighth season, The Venture Bros. was able to come back for a special movie event to end the series’ story instead. It just wasn’t enough.
What Happened to The Venture Bros?
Courtesy of Adult Swim
The Venture Bros. was cancelled, and thus its creators had to scrap their plans while in the works on a potential Season 8 of the animated series. There was clearly quite a lot to explore following the end of Season 7, and only a fraction of that got to make to screens with the release of its feature film event, The Venture Bros.: Radiant Is the Blood of the Baboon Heart. This film was Adult Swim’s way for the animated series’ to get to have its ending, but not in the way fans had hoped for.
The Venture Bros. had to make its final key reveals within the short run time of the feature film, and what would have been season long events are instead reduced to just one explosive final adventure. It was certainly great to see the Adult Swim series tell its ending in some kind of way, but it was far from the kind of true finale it had actually deserved. After how much care the series had put into its long developments, seeing them being paid off in such a short burst just didn’t feel right.
It was also an ending that just doesn’t really fit The Venture Bros. as it seems more of a like a bandage to ease fans’ worries about the fact that the show had been cancelled. This truncated finale was great to see, but it’s so bittersweet in knowing that it’s by far the more complete version of the story that the show deserved to have. It just was never enough, and unfortunately never will be unless we get some kind of revival entry years from now.
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