Harvey Birdman: Attorney at La

 

 

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Most superheroes go from dullsville jobs to exciting planet-saving adventures. Harvey Birdman did the opposite.

Adult Swim's late night programming is full of weird stuff, so a winged lawyer is right up their alley -- as is a world full of superheroes, Hanna Barbera characters, and general goofiness from an earnest lawyer who has more wings than brains. That, my friends, is the first two volumes of "Harvey Birdman, Attorney At Law."

Harvey Birdman was once a superhero in "Birdman and the Galaxy Trio." But now he's retired from his superheroing, and works for the law firm of Sebben and Sebben, with his purple eagle Avenger as his legal secretary. There's also his clever, mocking clerk Peanut ("Ooh, me likey the oppressive totalitarianism"), and his one-eyed, obnoxious boss Phil. Also a bear. And a hippo.

And Harvey is not a terribly good lawyer, but he bumbles through the various cases: Shaggy and Scooby-doo are suspected of possession, Boo-boo Bear may be the Unabooboo, Fred Flintstone may be a mob boss, Race Bannon fights his partner Dr. Quest for custody of his two boys.

In the second volume, the madness continues: the Jetsons attempt to sue everybody for global warming, steroids at the Laffalympics, Botox botching for Droopy the Dog, Quick Draw McGraw is arrested for carrying a concealed weapon, and getting sucked back in time to the Stone Age through a jacuzzi. I kid you not.

Our heroes have problems of their own: Birdman gets addicted to bronzing cream, gets sued by Murro the Maurader, and struggles to keep his job when a cost-cutting sweep hits the law offices (headed by "Dvd," who took out the vowels for efficiency). And Peanut undergoes "superty," while the crazed alien Reducto finally gets a girlfriend.

"Harvey Birdman, Attorney At Law" is one of those wonderful series that have absurd jokes, played with a straight face. As if the idea of a superhero law firm (and rival law firms) wasn't funny enough, the creators take the idea and run with it -- by having almost every episode feature a cartoon character in the courtroom.

The animation is pretty standard Adult Swim -- rather two-dimensional, flows nicely, and is full of visual gags, weird running jokes and courtroom scenes that always descend into chaos. It's not unusual for there to be giant spiked maces swinging through one of the offices at Sebben and Sebben, or a disco ball descending from the ceiling.

But the dialogue is pure hilarity, whether it's terrible puns ("I'll be keeping my eyes on you." "Eye." "I didn't know you were Scottish!") or just strange (a bazooka-wielding Peanut tells someone, "It is considered customary in our culture, once a business deal is concluded, to blow something up").

And Harvey Birdman is the kind of lawyer you would NOT want working for you -- a nice guy, dedicated to his job, but it's basically a matter of chance whether he wins his cases or not (especially since the judges are all insane). He's backed up by an increasing number of giant Apaches, winged people, obsessive fan-assassins, hammy mind-readers, and paranoid little aliens with shrink guns.

"Harvey Birdman, Attorney At Law" is a hilarious little comedy series, especially for anyone who likes to mock the judificial process -- and old cartoons. Very fun.

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