As we know by now, Dailywire is on a mission to provide quality entertainment in a world where quality entertainment seems to no longer exist. From Chip Chilla on their new kids’ streaming platform to The Pendragon Cycle, they have been trying to pump out as much content as they can without compromising on quality. However, while most of their projects have ranged from pretty-darn-good to mediocre, Mr. Birchum (their newest show that they just released on Sunday) would definitely go on the pretty-darn-good side of the scale, and here’s why…
#1: Animation
The animation, while not the greatest thing I’ve ever seen, is definitely on par with most other animation styles that you would see in shows like The Simpsons, Family Guy, Rick and Morty, etc. It’s simplistic enough where it’s easy to replicate while still looking fun and not like something your 5-year-old would draw. The colors pop, the characters look memorable, and it’s its own thing that doesn’t look like it’s copying anyone else.
The only problem I have with the animation is the fact that it is a little bit slow at times. By slow, I mean that sometimes in frames where one person is doing something important to the plot, the other characters will be stuck in the same pose with the same look on their face for that entire scene. While this might be just a pet peeve of mine, I would prefer it if someone blinked once in a while or maybe shifted on their foot. It would just help to make it look a bit less flat, but other than that, it’s fine.
#2: Mr. Birchum
Unlike the shows where the husband is a blundering oaf who needs to be constantly corrected by his patient, loving wife (like Marge and Homer from The Simpsons), Mr. Birchum is actually a good father figure in this show. He cares for his kids (though he may be a gruff about it) and also cares for the kids in his shop class, trying to help them gain some sort of real-life experience while they learn how to do carpentry, much to the anger of Karponzi, the social justice warrior. While some of his antics might be a bit over the top, he’s still much better than most of what we get nowadays.
#3: Karponzi
Karponzi (played by comedian Tyler Fischer) is the local JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion) officer at the school Mr. Birchum works at. Though he’s the antagonist of the show, I would say he’s actually one of the best characters as he completely offsets Mr. Birchum. While Mr. Birchum is gruff and no-nonsense, Karponzi is a total wuss and represents pretty much everything wrong with not just the school system, but society at large nowadays. He attacks anyone who disagrees with him, twists the facts, and is completely power hungry, while still being a character that you can laugh at.
#4: Voice acting
For the most part, the voice acting in Mr. Birchum was okay, but it still had some of the same problems that Runes did where sometimes people would be hamming it up to a ten while others would just sound normal. I don’t know if this is a problem with animated sitcoms in general, but some of the lines felt forced from the script, which is a problem I could see happening when most of your voice actors are podcasters or used to memorizing the script, not reading it.
#5: Comedy
In terms of comedy, the jokes are pretty good and most of the inappropriate ones will go over the heads of younger kids, making it something that’s safe to watch with the whole family. The jokes were also much more thought out than those in Lady Ballers, another comedy that Dailywire created, which could be attributed to the fact that the show was produced by comedian Adam Carolla and not Jeremy Boring. While some of the jokes are clearly written for the conservative audience, they keep most of them somewhat on middle-ground, so anyone could watch the show and laugh, not just the diehard Dailywire fans. This gives it a sort of Last Man Standing type feel that’s quite enjoyable.
Until next time,
M.J.
The Tanuki Corner 
Leave a comment