85. The Tick
Nov 1, 2001
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Rated TV-14
"I am the wild blue yonder. The front line in a never-ending battle between good... and not-so good. Together, with my stalwart sidekick, Arthur, and the magnanimous help of some other folks I know, we form the yin to villainy's malevolent yang. Destiny has chosen us. Wicked men! You face...The Tick!"
The life of a superhero is not easy. There are not enough dangers. However, someone must fight evil and protect good. The few who face this challenge have to leave behind comfort, security and a little sanity. Jumping from roof to roof in one single jump, the mysterious blue justice defender The Tick (Patrick Warburton) patrols The City, and his limited knowledge of human life doesn't interfere with his desire to protect society. The frustrated and well-behaved accountant known as Arthur (David Burke) left his job to join The Tick as The Moth, and now they're a crime-fighting duo. Arthur has always secretly wished being a superhero. Well, not so secretly, since he used his moth outfit (which looks more like a bunny) to work. On this fight against injustice, The Tick also counts on Batmanuel (Nestor Carbonell), a Latino superhero who never promotes himself without a worthy cause. His kryptonite is Captain Liberty (Liz Vassey), the government's number one weapon on the battle against supervillains.
The Tick is based on the 'cult' comic character created by Ben Edlund. There was an animated version a few years ago. Check it out here.
Originally planned as a 2000-2001 midseason replacement after The Simpsons on Sunday nights, and apparently never thought of as anything more than strike filler for a writer's strike which never happened, FOX toppers Sandy Grushow and Gail Berman changed their minds, keeping Malcolm in the Middle in the slot for another year and pushing The Tick back to fall. When The Tick finally went on the air, it was dumped on Thursdays. They didn't promote it very much, and needless to say, it didn't last very long.
