Cartoon from Hell

I just finished watching the pilot for TBS’ new animated series “Neighbors from Hell.” It really kinda sucked, and based on the folks involved, it was really a disappointment.

It’s got the voice talent of Patton Oswalt, Will Sasso and former "South Park" producer Pam Brady, so this should be a lot better. Although, there were warning signs. TBS promoted the show as being from the same studio as "Family Guy." Hmmm. About the only things this has in common with "Family Guy" is it’s animated and it has a talking dog. And 'same studio'? They may as well have said that it’s from the same key grip as "The Simpsons."

The childlike plot involves a demon family from Hell who come to Earth, Texas, to be exact, to stop a drill from digging its way to Hell. And the simple plot is overexplained at least six times in the pilot, and in the weak excuse for a theme song. The family itself seems like lame imitations of the Addams Family and have almost no charisma at all. Only the dog, cleverly named Pazuzu, voiced by Oswalt, and ripping off Brian from "Family Guy" as the voice of reason, has any staying power.

If there is any saving grace to this show, it is the human, non-demon, cast. The human neighbors and the workers at the oil company with the drill are far more interesting and cartoon-bizarre than any of the demon characters. My question is – why even bring Hell into it? Just do an animated sitcom in the style of "The Simpsons" or "Family Guy" with these characters? The demons are boring, and bring down the rest of the show.