Over seven seasons on Adult Swim, the Cartoon Network’s nighttime programming block, “The Venture Bros.” brought to the small screen a fantastical world steeped in absurdist humor, rooted in pop culture and presented in the style of old-time cartoon adventures. Within this exemplar of animated brain candy dwelled a host of glorious weirdos: chief among them, Dr. Thaddeus Venture (voiced by James Urbaniak), a man-child flailing in his superscientist father’s shadow; his goofy, fatality-prone sons, Hank (Chris McCulloch, a.k.a. Jackson Publick) and Dean (Michael Sinterniklaas), whose demises were easily remedied by a basement full of clones; their sex-and-death-machine bodyguard, Brock Samson (Patrick Warburton); and Dr. Venture’s equally petulant frenemesis, the Monarch (Publick), and his gravelly-voiced bombshell wife, Dr. Mrs. the Monarch (Doc Hammer).
When the series was unexpectedly canceled in 2020, its creators, Hammer and Publick, told NPR they hoped to bring the gang back to the screen at least one more time, a wish fulfilled by “Radiant Is the Blood of the Baboon Heart.” The film, directed by Publick, picks up where the show left off: with Hank embarking on a dissociative cross-country trip in search of himself and his mother; the Monarch chafing at the Guild of Calamitous Intent’s continual constraints on his mischief; Dr. Venture facing financial catastrophe yet again; and a new villain, Mantilla (Nina Arianda), making her presence known.
Hammer and Publick give fans countless Easter eggs to feast on (though the uninitiated and less-avid admirers might benefit from a recap before viewing). More important, the film sticks the landing metaphorically and literally: Toward the conclusion, the Ventures’ skyscraper is brought back to Earth after being sent moonward — a bit of madcap hilarity nicely scored by the composer JG Thirlwell. If we were never to see the Ventures again, “Radiant” lets us part with them on a high note, but hopefully this end is just the beginning.
The Venture Bros.: Radiant Is the Blood of the Baboon Heart
Rated R for potty-mouthed heroes and villains, full-frontal pantsing and threatened kicks to the throat meat. Running time: 1 hour 23 minutes. Buy on most major platforms.
