Exclusive Interview: Mr. Pickles producers talk ‘influences’

pickles 

Richmond, Virginia has an artistic scene that you guys simply need to check out. The music scene is BOOMING, having already spawned the likes of Gwar, Lamb of God, Municipal Waste, and more for the heavy music industry, and now it looks like Will Carsola and Dave Stewart are looking to put Richmond on the map when it comes to helping spawn an animated series. They hope to do that with a brand-new series called Mr. Pickles, which is set to debut September 21, 2014 on Adult Swim @ Midnight ET/PT (check your local listings).

”(the late) Dave Brockie actually got to see the pilot for Mr. Pickles and he really loved it! ,” notes Carsola, who mentions that not only was he friends with the band Gwar, but he  actually produced EARLY Lamb of God music videos.  You would think this is where a lot of the influence for Mr. Pickles comes fromand when watching the pilot you can definitely see the DNA of producers that – even if not a fans of that particular music scene – certainly shows up in one form or another.

For those that don’t know, Mr. Pickles is an original animated series set in the small, old-fashioned world of Old Town that is slowly being taken over by the modern world. The series centers on the lives of the Goodman family and their innocent six-year-old son Tommy, whose best friend is the family’s lovable border collie, Mr. Pickles. Dave Stewart has noted that he doesn’t have internet nor TV in his house, so media really doesn’t influence him when it comes to producing content. Instead,  Mr. Pickles is just one of those ideas that either Dave or Will came up with while sitting around and jotting down notes all the while taking particular interest in something that is funny or weird.

Will told us about growing up in Bowling Green, Virginia (population under 1200) which would eventually be the launching idea for what would be the setting of Mr. Pickles :”It was like an old town, and I have a lot of memories being from there and stuck in there. I remember tiny stores and barber shops, and so i had a lot of inspirations of walking down the street with my parents.” Dave would note that the older style Waltons-flavored farm of which the Goodmans call home was a challenge to perfect. This would inspire the creators to bring in a more downtown area: ”That’s when the characters and the funny stuff we do with them REALLY started to open up,” he said.

The two (as in Tommy Goodman and Mr.Pickles) roam around Old Town together getting into classic adventures. Unbeknownst to Tommy and everyone else – except Tommy’s Grandpa – Mr. Pickles has an evil streak and frequently wanders off to kill, mutilate, and hump his deserving victims. But the one thing everybody knows about the sweet and adorable dog is that he loves pickles and he gets one every time he’s a good boy.

A real solid in this series is the character designs. Similar to a Titmouse produced series, Hothouse has managed to take normal everyday people and give them a look that is horrifying yet quaint. For instance, Floyd is a fat and gross looking mutant of a man that gorges himself on mayo and ranch dressing. ”We thought how could we make Mr. Goodman’s office just the worst place to work, and what better than the fattest and most disgusting thing you’ve ever seen,” says Will. We are also introduced to the town Sheriff, a roller-blading and fun-loving officer best known for moon-walking off screen right before a wipe and usually being the one the grandfather calls every time he’s just about to nail Pickles in one of his harrowing acts. Stewart would note that as the season progresses, we will see the Sheriff become more and more boyish. ”We didn’t want him to be like other police. He’s a good guy, and thinks he’s cool. Almost like a teenager.”

 And what of Mr. Pickles? While we didn’t get TOO far into what to expect from the show’s titular hero, the producers really didn’t have to. This dog is a satanic take on Lassie, and as episodes progress you begin to even root for him to take out characters that really come off as assholes. Other than the grandpa, Pickles either kills, rapes, or brings bad people to his own personal hell (and yes, the finale will definitely be showing us more of hell.) From mob families to bullies, Mr. Pickles fights crime in the most brutal way possible. Every kill, maim, or possession seems to cater to fans of Mortal Kombat, which makes sense as Dave Stewart notes he is a huge fan of horror films like Evil Dead, The Shining, and others. 

As for the future, the Hothouse producers note that they intend to do more live-action stuff, and a whole lot more with Comedy Central’s hit series TripTank (these guys produced the shorts Mr. Green and Gary the Wheelchair, and evidently a LOT was left on the table!) That said, Dave Stewart and Will Carlson are already talking about the future of Mr.Pickles. Dave mentioned that Mr. Pickles originally had a 30-minute episode produced, but felt that the 12-minute avenue suited the pace of the show a lot better. However, it sounds like the possibility of 30-minute episodes COULD happen for season two, not that the entire series would be 30 minutes, but maybe special longer episodes in the vein of Squidbillies. In the meantime, hell awaits and it kicks off next month on the only network that has the balls to air it: Adult Swim.

Check out preview stills for the upcoming season of Mr. Pickles along with the pilot episode.