APAC: NO ONE SUSPECTED THE CAT: SEASON ONE REVIEW

A totally unique Fresh Blood series that’s heavy on improvisation and absurdity.

Ideas like No One Suspected the Cat are perhaps the best argument for why the Fresh Blood program matters. Without a conscious effort to inject originality to Australian television, it’s hard to imagine an improvised, adult animated sitcom ever being made. Regardless of its overall success (and I’ll get to that shortly), I’m glad that ABC took the risk of making this show.

Even though Ibis Queen is the only Fresh Blood animation that demonstrates a clear sense of continuity, the anthology structure of No One Suspected the Cat still feels oddly liberating. The same group of actors (Rebecca De Unamuno, David Collins, Daniel Cordeaux and Carlo Ritchie) improvise every episode, but you’re free to read each one’s description and decide where to jump into the season. To be honest, I recommend this approach, since the same problems with inconsistent quality often found in improvised content (see Dr. Katz’s Audio Files) are present here.

For instance, the third episode, RBT, is laugh out loud hilarious. The actors take a dumb premise, which I won’t spoil here, and take it so far past a logical conclusion that it never grows tiresome. Any viewers unsure about the show should consider watching this episode first, since the entire sketch represents the show at its best. By contrast, Ta-daa is a regrettably weak opener to the season, and suffers from a lack of cohesion, even for improv, that may discourage anyone without extensive prior knowledge. However, that episode does feature a brilliantly funny cold open cleverly styled as a YouTube ad, which offers hints of the show’s potential. Indeed, its single joke premise will be even more recognisable to those who have already seen RBT, and suggests that solid foundations are crucial to the show’s success, as anyone familiar with improv likely knows.

Meanwhile, Perverts of Mars, the second episode, is probably most indicative of what No One Suspected the Cat would look like if it were to continue. The cold open is much more forgettable, and the main sketch has a few solid jokes but mostly just goes through the motions. It’s an unfair comparison, but there are clearly reasons that Rick and Morty have a maximum of one Interdimensional Cable episode per season. It’s hard to guarantee the quality of improv, especially once the sketches get longer. ABC have stated that Fresh Blood finalists are eligible to receive funding for a half hour pilot, but in the show’s current form I struggled to see how that would work.

As a final aside, perhaps the greatest advantage of using animation for improv is that both genres are almost infinitely creative. The show’s crude visual style is reminiscent of Cyanide and Happiness, and is a perfect fit for the zany world its stories inhabit.

No One Suspected the Cat is wonderfully ambitious, and hopefully will inspire Aussie comedians and animators with unique visions to apply for programs like Fresh Blood. As I suggested above, viewers who are amenable to the infinite possibilities of improv will love it. Ultimately though, the show’s premise also limits its scope, and it has likely found its niche in the short sketch format.

All 3 episodes of No One Suspected the Cat are now streaming for free on ABC iView.

 

Score
6/10