Talk:The Boondocks (TV series)

Needs information on the animation studios involved and animation techniques used.

What happened to John Witherspoon, who had been cast as the grandfather? JHVipond 15:49, 17 September 2005 (UTC)Reply

He still is. I heard him on the promo. Pacific Coast Highway 01:17, 27 October 2005 (UTC)Reply

who sings the theme song?--Jaysscholar 04:33, 14 November 2005 (UTC)Reply

Asheru -- 68.234.239.109 09:18, 23 November 2005 (UTC)Reply

Is it a song he already made? or did he make it especially for the series? what's the title?--Jaysscholar 21:23, 28 November 2005 (UTC)Reply

As far as I know, it was written especially for the series, as doesn't really have a title other than "Boondocks Theme Song." 68.234.239.109 12:28, 13 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

Not that it matters much, but the song can be downloaded from "www.myspace.com/asheru1" 65.96.98.74 04:37, 7 March 2006 (UTC)Reply

Is it proper to note that the entire opening sequence is simular to Samuri Champloo?--The dez 09:58, 18 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

According to Aaron McGruder's fansite the theme song is written by Derryck "Big Tank" Thornton, Aaron McGruder and Gabriel Benn and performed by Asheru. Read the lyrics here: http://aaron-mcgruder.tripod.com/theme.html -mirshafie

Considering it airs right after Samurai Champloo (or did), I wouldn't doubt the authors took inspiration from that anime's artistic, hip-hop style opening sequence. I think what confirms this is that one of the kids is in Samurai apparel in the first few seconds of the opening, wielding a sword (I think).

McGruder said in an interview that Samurai Champloo is currently one of his favorite animated programs (alongside FLCL), so, yeah, it's possibly an intentional homage.

It is also said in the Wikipedia entry that the show and comic are "firmly rooted" in "anime style", which I don't really agree with. Big eyes? Check. Anything else? Nope. --velocd

Really? When I first saw the promos for this show I was sure it was an anime. Not being an expert in animation, I can't really point to a checklist containing anything other than "large eyes", but the whole coloring style screams anime. Also, in the episode where Riley, Ed, and Gin try to kidnap Oprah, the entire fight sequence between Huey and Oprah's security guard is exaggerated and dramatized with superhuman/high-tech combat moves. Workaphobia 05:30, 31 July 2006 (UTC)Reply

The N-word is 'nigga' not 'nigger'. Slight difference in the black community. Might want to edit that. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.234.239.109 (talk • contribs)

My closed captioning reads it as "nigger". Pacific Coast Highway 05:28, 27 November 2005 (UTC)Reply

Closed captioning isn't always right, though.--BPM 22:46, 29 November 2005 (UTC)Reply

True, in "Grandad's Fight" the on screen graphic says "nigga" moment. Pacific Coast Highway|^{Spam me!} 00:15, 25 July 2024 UTC [refresh]

what about when they use the word and it is very heavily modified on the series I.E.: stinkermiers' saying of it as nyuka

The word itself is nigger, regardless of the phonetic corruption in the "black community". Just because the context changes doesn't make is a different word. Capitan Obvio 04:55, 19 June 2006 (UTC)Reply

did you find this on friday noght fix or something? cuz it wasn;t listed on AS's episode guide--Jaysscholar 19:44, 4 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

guess that was vandalism--Jaysscholar 00:58, 5 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

Is there a reference to the whole episode being a parody of the war in iraq, I mean the store robber obviously was but the whole episode? --BerserkerBen 12:36, 8 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

The Xbox Killer is a parody of Bin Ladin obviously when they know where to find him they go to the store instead of to the killer... and attack them instead - this is a precise parody of the war we start after bin ladin but then we go for saddam hussein and (maybe the robbery was the oil theory?)iraq's oil but in the process bin ladin gets away. very cleaver very acurate. you dont really need a reference to figure that out.. just some knowledge of "what's goin on?" .marvin gaye

                                          -The Watcher

Where explicitly in the show is Ed Wuncler said to be a wigger? 209.195.139.131 16:43, 13 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

Well, I added a direct quote from the show -- Riley, at least, considers Ed a 'nigga', which is his explanation for why shooting him out a window earns him no punishment.

It doesn't have to be explicitly stated at all. Ed is a white man that acts like a nigga. A white nigga is a wigger, so i dont think it has to be explicitly said since its so painfully obvious.

How the heck does Ed Asner not rate as a notable guest star? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.218.198.104 (talk • contribs)

what episode? --Jaysscholar 04:23, 6 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

The Garden Party, he plays Grandad's neighbor, Ed Wuncler.--Bltpdx 07:42, 6 December 2005 (UTC) (that wasn't me above)Reply

I added him. There's lots of other potential guest stars such as Billy West, but we don't want to overdo it. Still, as anon above points out, Ed Asner is certainly notable.--Bltpdx 07:45, 6 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

Billy West was a guest star? Who did he voice? I say add him. TheronJ 19:37, 23 January 2006 (UTC)Reply

Don't you mean Adam West?

How is it stated or implyed that he is less intelligent than Huey. He may be slightly younger, but he seems just as intelligent, if not as articulate, as his older brother. I think the sentance that denotes him as being less intelligent should be altered.

He seems to be easily caught up in the moment, but it never says or shows any compelling evidence that he's any less inteligent, I don't know how you should alter it though, but go ahead.Pixelanteninja 03:24, 18 March 2006 (UTC)Reply

Can we get a few cites on what each character is supposed to represent? Some of them I'm particularly curious about: Wunkler III represents Bush? How does that one work? - 211.28.79.52 02:12, 15 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

The episode "A Date with the Health Inspector" was probably the most obvious indication that EW III is an parody of GW Bush in that he wears a "W" chain, which even McGruder hinted in an interview has a meaning, and when he and "Rummy" confronted the Mini-Mart store clerk (the one resembling Saddam Hussein) the clerk responded to EW III Me and your dad (Ed Wunsler II) built this place together. which was a reference to both G. Bush I and Ronald Reagan having funded Iraq in the 80's. I've seen the parallels discussed on message boards and blogs. Even in the premiere episode, when the elder Wunlzer told Grandad (in reference to EW III) that 30 years from now, he will probably be the president of the United States and still be a F@#%ing idiot, he was talking about "Dubya". I suppose it could have been more explicitly stated, but I suspect more parallels will be presented in future eps. Luke Cage 22:10, 15 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

Please people, Wunkler is Bush and Rummy is well, Rumsfield. Simple enough. The citation is the show. The two directly quote both Bush and Rumsfield in all of their appearances and their activities are direct metaphors for the war on terror and Iraq. Colby 04:50, 20 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

I think this article is definitely not as NPOV as it should be. The individual interpertations here are represented as fact. I.E. Tom Dubois is an Uncle Tom figure. I think perhaps to black people as in the Trial episode, he is an Uncle Tom figure, but McGruder's portrayal of Dubois seems to be mostly sympathetic. Does anyone mind if I make a few edits that state some of the conclusions drawn are personal interpretation? -Rapturerocks

Yes, I mind, because these are no one's "personal interpretations" but McGruder's. If you've never read the strip, then most of this you wouldn't know in the first place. The Adult Swim bumpers specifically stated that Tom DuBois represented "Uncle Tom", and McGruder has always portrayed him as something of a buffoon -- not to the comic extremes in the series, perhaps, but never completely sympathetic. --FuriousFreddy 03:00, 23 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

Without documentation of Mr. McGruder (or any newspaper critic, author, etc) saying, "this is what Character A represents, this is what Character B represents," any interpretation on our part has no business being in this (or any Wikipedia) article. D-Rock (Yell at D-Rock) 05:44, 23 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

The "W" chain probably stands for "wigger" more than anything else. --FuriousFreddy 02:57, 23 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

Or maybe "Wuncler", his last name? RickoniX (talk) 18:02, 10 January 2006 (UTC)Reply

Likely a double-meaning. McGruder has always been prone to dropping subtle hints like those. --FuriousFreddy 04:31, 24 January 2006 (UTC)Reply

Are we sure he's black? I always thought he wasn't. According to Adult Swim's website, "despite his appearance, he's part Cherokee, part Sioux and part Navajo with a splish splash of Irish" ...which to me implies that he looks black although he isn't. 68.226.61.4 03:36, 17 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

It's a joke. Of course Ruckus is black. --FuriousFreddy 02:56, 23 December 2005 (UTC)Reply

they even said on the show that he has irish blood... and that hes not black that he has "the grato" or something of the like... it makes him darker and darker but he really is indian...look at that baby hair lol

                              -The watcher

There is no such thing as "re-vitiligo." Again, that's part of the joke.

It's a joke. It's a play on many African-Americans quick to claim that they are 1/32 [insert another Native American tribe] - dizzle 06:41, March 18, 2006 (UTC)

I addressed concerns that I had about NPOV and the other concern about wigger, and also 66.226.61.4's concerns. I am not sure who affirms that Ruckus is of Indian ancestry, so we'll have to wait for that to be addressed in the show. --Rapturerocks 17:58, 17 December 2005 (UTC)

It is addressed in the Itis episode. --81.96.243.234 19:33, 23 January 2006 (UTC)Reply

I notice an "acclaim" section mentioning the show's nomination for an NAACP image award was removed.. why wouldn't this be included? Rob T Firefly 19:12, 21 January 2006 (UTC)Reply

No idea. Add it back, with proper citation. dposse 22:10, 31 July 2006 (UTC)Reply

I don't belive this is an issue. Robert Freeman's skin tone does not need to be related to his heritage because the majority of the African American populice is of mixed heritage. The Freeman's skin tone is basically a default of most african americans in this nation. And one person out of a whole family of really dark people an very little european in their family can have a fairly light complextion. If you're going to make a skin Tom Dubois skin is the same tone: the same could be said of him but it isn't. I motion it to be removed. Nadiasama 23:50, 7 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

Removed. They were referring to all of the Freemans being supposedly "light" in tone (it was the old possessive/plural grammatical error). For anyone wondering, the Freemans aren't the color they are (which isn't even light skinned; they're just on the lighter side of "medium-skinned") as some sort of subcontext; they're just rendered to be the same color as their creator, Aaron McGruder. --FuriousFreddy 05:42, 8 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

The skin tones of every black person on the show varies just as in real life. MrBlondNYC 14:41, 29 March 2006 (UTC)Reply

I thought a running joke was that Uncle Ruckus was supposed to be "Blacker" than the Freeman's and that drives him crazy.

132.241.245.49 02:42, 10 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

Seems to me the Wuncler/Once-ler allusion is an obvious one, shouldn't it be mentioned in the main article along with the other referential names? - Kevingarcia 08:47, 13 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

wow, i didnt catch that at all. good find--Jaysscholar 20:33, 17 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

Everytime he's in a crowd when something outrageous happens to him, he always says, "The f[bleep] y'all looking at?!!" WHY DOES HE SAY IT?!!! Wikifan06 01:16, 15 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

He needs a reason? Kevingarcia 06:54, 16 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

In Let's Nab Oprah, the three songs are from Madvillainy. should it be noted?--Jaysscholar 20:33, 17 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

I added that their parents died, as there is much evidence that shows they died. I have an image of the mual if anyone want to include it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Huey_and_Riley%27s_Parents.png MacUsr 06:43, 18 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

I don't think that was supposed to be the boys' parents. I think it was supposed to be a young Grandma and Granddad. Looking closely at the wedding album Riley borrowed from, I noticed two thing. One, the "just married" car doesn't look very modern and, two, all the photos are black-and-white. The boys parents' wedding photos would almost certainly be in color, whereas Granddad probably wouldn't be.

Not rock solid, I know, but something to ponder. Tony 03:51, 21 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

Dang but that photo took a long time to load. At anyrate, I agree. That could be their parents or it could be Grandpa and his wife (the wife being the one no longer with them). From the black & white photo album, pictured car and the fact that it sure looked like the images we've seen so far of young grandpa, I'd say it was the latter. Given that no clear statement was made, I would not include their parents being dead, if I were you. Unless of course this is stated in the comics, which I haven't had a chance to read yet (except for current strips). Kevingarcia 04:33, 21 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

That's really interesting, thanks for posting the image. Anyone have an image handy from one of the times we saw Granddad as a young man to compare this with? Young Robert Freeman was seen at least twice, on the bus with Rosa Parks in the MLK episode, and showing up late to a protest because he stopped to pick up his rain gear in one of the first episodes. Rob T Firefly 03:30, 23 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Young_Robert_Freeman_from_season_1_episode_9.jpg --> They do not look similiar. Nice try though--droptone 17:33, 27 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

I still think it's a matter of interpretation until a deffinative answer is given in the series... looking at both images, I see the same nose, same chin, same eyes, same head-shape. The only real difference is the mouth and expression, and this is a cartoon, so that expressions tend to be exaggerated. - Kevingarcia 08:00, 28 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

I agree that it will probably be explain throughout the series...but here is two reasons why it might not be granddad and his wife and be the parents.....1. Granddad wear glasses in all of his flashbacks just like he do in current scenes... see:MLK and first episode and 2. the guy in the mural was darker (not by a lot, but had a more medium brown complexion) than granddad in current and flashback scenes...just an observation..... - User:Christopher 08:00, 28 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

The man in the mural does not look excatly like the Young Granddad we've seen in flashbacks. But he does look he could be related to Granddad. The art teacher told Riley to paint someone that mean a lot to him. In the "Hoe" episode, Huey said he thought Granddad was gay because he's never seen him with a woman. So that means "Grandmom" was not alive in Huey's lifetime so of course she wasn't alive during Riley's. So I would think Riley's mother and father mean a lot more to him than his grandmother whom he never knew.MrBlondNYC 14:41, 29 March 2006 (UTC)Reply

The image is of the parents. Riley was asked to draw people who are not with them anymore (as in those who have passed on). Riley chose his parents. There would be no reason to have two people in the picture if it was meant to be a picture of the grandmother.

Inner City Blues 02:20, 25 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

I think the lack of emotion shown by both the boys proves that either it was their grandmother and Granddad rather than their parents. Huey was shocked when he saw it but when Riley came, Huey was back to his nonemotional self. Granddad, on the other hand, was tearing up the whole time. Either that was Granddad and grandma or Huey and Riley never knew their parents long enough to care about them.--Gdo01 04:41, 2 August 2006 (UTC)Reply

episode: Riley Wuz Here. mention is made of an author of a comic strip about talking penguins.

i know no other strip of such nature than Pokey the Penguin - could this be? i don't know of any other mainstream references to Pokey. hoorj.

Opus? Pacific Coast Highway|^roffles 06:23, 24 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

I agree, he was most likely talking about Berkeley Breathed. --UsaSatsui 08:38, 24 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

probably! i think Opus and the Boondocks are on the same page on Sunday.--Nod 03:40, 25 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

My impression was that it was a reference to Bloom County, another socially concious comic strip (I was not aware that new Opus comics were in publication). Also, there should be a mention of the (nameless?) art teacher as a parody (homage?) of Bob Ross. - Kevingarcia 07:41, 26 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

In the episode "Grandad's Fight," is Huey's dream sequence based off of the fight sequence between Jubei and the Blind Samurai? Rapidflash 04:17, 19 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

Let's not get into the habit of listing everyone who ever appeared on the show. Until Gangstalicious is a recurring character he should not be listed ("Thuggin Love" playing on the radio doesn't count and anyway you don't actually hear him rap). Also, Mos Def did the voice not DJ Pooh. Why not start a new category for guest stars? MrBlondNYC 09:39, 22 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

I changed a line in the overview because "animé" isn't technically correct if going by the Japanese pronunciation and that Asian animators doesn't necessarily equal anime. For instance, Comedy Central's Drawn Together used a group of Asian animators to do their animation, but it's hard to call that series "anime". A lot of times, studios will outsource animation to other places (like Korea) to do the inbetween animation. Masi58 00:55, 26 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

But the show is obviously anime-influenced. McGruder is an anime fanatic and his drawing style is influenced by it. It is more pronounced in the series because by McGruder's own admission he can't draw that well so he had Asian animators do it. The opening credits sequence is an obvious reference to Samurai Champloo. Many anime and American anime-influenced characters pop up in the background of episodes. And just look at the show. I don't know the slang terms but look at how the characters eyes bug out and their faces freeze when they are surprised. It is exactly in the style of Japanese animation. Or how there will be a close-up someone's eyes and their eyes vibrate. Or the horizontal camera angles and split screens that exactly in the anime style.MrBlondNYC 08:53, 26 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

I agree that it is, but just because Asian animators work on the show doesn't mean its anime. It's anime-styled because McGruder wants it to be, not because the Asian animators who work on it can't animate anything but anime. There's a difference, and I wanted that difference to be reflected in the article because it seems inaccurate and a bit offensive to me otherwise. Masi58 17:12, 26 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

I really don't see any difference between the way the article is worded now then it was before regarding the anime style. The only difference is see is the erroneous accent was taken off the e.MrBlondNYC 07:59, 27 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

Oh, it said that the show was in anime style due in part to it having Asian animators. I just thought that that was inaccurate. Masi58 05:52, 29 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

There is a reccuring woman in the background who wears a purple top and has a red afro, she usually agrees with disparaging remarks about black people by clapping, does anybody know who she is or what her purpose is?(shes mostly in espisode 14, but can be seen in 15 as well) --Chueyjoo 21:24, 12 May 2006 (UTC)Reply

Can someone word that better than I did? --Veemonkamiya 02:16, 31 May 2006 (UTC)Reply

Should it be noted that Huey Freeman is probably a play on Huey Long, a former aggressive populist governor.--Exander 00:44, 15 June 2006 (UTC)Reply

--Um, it's probably Huey P. Newton.

It is indeed Huey P. Newton. The strip explicitly stated so. --FuriousFreddy 23:50, 26 June 2006 (UTC)Reply

i have documented every episode and have watched the show in great deatial. no where on this page for information concerning the actual show does there mention the fact that there is a government spy following the family and tracking the movements and actions of huey. i think that there should be given consideration to review this important subject and reveal the importance of it. get with it, if you are going to try to get into detail at least get the important details as well as the stupid obvious ones. pick up on this stuff!!!!! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 130.199.3.130 (talk • contribs) 22 June 2006 (UTC)

• This is mentioned in the summary for that show in List of The Boondocks episodes. Not sure it merits too much mention, even if the spy is voiced by a very funny actor. HumbleGod 22:12, 6 July 2006 (UTC)Reply

"Uncle Ruckus, a self-hating black man originally intended to have been introduced to the strip before 9/11, was introduced into the strip in late 2004 and is being primarily developed in the animated series." I don't get it... how does 9/11 play into it? I think there needs to be some kind of elaboration here to explain what the significance is or the reference should be removed altogether. --Bri 10:46, 29 June 2006 (UTC)Reply

The focus of the Boondocks comic strip shifted signficantly after 9/11. While he still dealt with racial issues, much of the strip became political commentary, mostly liberal. Also after 9/11 (perhaps as a result of the shift in focus), the strip pretty much exclusively focused on Riley and Ceaser, and occasionally Huey and Granddad. A new character wouldn't really have fit. So it wasn't so much 9/11, but the direction the strip took because of it, that got Ruckus delayed. I'm guessing that since the series focuses more heavily on racial issues than the strip does, they decided to bring him in there. --UsaSatsui 04:36, 1 July 2006 (UTC)Reply

I love this show, but the sections "Running Gags" and "References" need to be cleaned up and shortened. I'm not surprised that they've grown out of hand, considering the rich level of allusion in the series, but I suspect much of this can be combined and/or eliminated. Additionally, many of the notes in these sections are poorly written, an inevitability considering the age of the target audience but still something that merits cleanup. HumbleGod 21:12, 6 July 2006 (UTC)Reply

Never mind, took care of much of it myself (thank goodness for free time). Some of the episode-specific references I moved to List of The Boondocks episodes; if they were already mentioned there, I just deleted them from this article. Some of the stuff I removed really didn't need to be there--a possible "unintended" resemblence between an unnotable crowd character and an anime character, a possible oblique reference to Harry Potter, other insignificant trivia. The rest I just combined together or left alone. Objections are welcome, but I hope this article doesn't get out of hand again. HumbleGod 22:08, 6 July 2006 (UTC)Reply

The reference section should be renamed trivia. We need proper citations for things like "McGruder has said he's a huge fan of anime". If proper citations cannot be given, then the infomation should be deleted. dposse 22:13, 31 July 2006 (UTC)Reply

Let's just call it by it's name, we're all adults here.