Shorts Review: Dead End

It is Summer (it is, honestly it is, it may not seem like it but it is) so it must be time for Cartoon Hangover‘s Summer shorts extravaganza. First up: Dead End by Hamish Steele.

Frederator Studios internet division, the almighty Cartoon Hangover (Too Hot for TV is their brilliantly descriptive tag-line) release some great shorts over the Summer months in the down-time between seasons of regular scheduled shows such as Bravest Warriors. Last year, the shorts festival bought us nuggets of joy such as Dr Lollipop, by Kelly Martin and Aliki Grafft, and the hugely popular Bee and Puppycat, which, thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign, is being made into a series.

This year, the festivities kick-off with Dead End by the hugely talented illustrator and animator, Hamish Steele. At Morningwood Road, flatmates, Barney, Norma, and Pugsley are faced with strange goings on coming from their laptops; could it be-gasp-that the internet is haunted? If so what does the vengeful spirit want from them?

There’s plenty to love about Dead End. For us internet junkies; us bloggers, tumblrs’, and lol cat (and doge) lovers there are lots of little in-jokes and Cartoon Hangover themed easter eggs that are easy to spot. The action moves quickly and the jokes are laugh out loud good, especially when Pugsley launches himself out of the window shouting “nope. nope. nope” over again after being confronted with the hideous spectral visage on his computer.

The animation is presented in Hamish Steele’s unique style and is easy on the eyes. This is truly a cartoon for the internet generation and it is a strong start for Cartoon Hangover’s Summer season, I eagerly look forward to what’s coming next! Dead End gets a spooktacular 8/10 from me, good stuff.

Follow Cartoon Hangover on YouTube and tumblr for news on more awesome shorts as and when they appear.