HBO Max is one of the best services out there because of how much premium content is available. The parent companies housed within the app are numerous. One of the coolest inclusions is Cartoon Network. Along with that work is Adult Swim, their nightly adult block of entertainment.
Adult Swim was a huge deal in the early 2000s for a variety of reasons. The Simpsons was widely acknowledged as the cartoon that broke the mold into more mature-themed cartoons. After that was South Park followed by many attempts by other networks. Adult Swim, for example, housed many oddball shows that were too off the wall and bizarre that even South Park may have blushed. These are just a few fun examples that can be binged right now on HBO Max.
8 The Venture Bros.
The Venture Bros. is still one of Adult Swim’s most prestigious shows. It was way ahead of its time, poking fun at pop culture and superheroes in a new light. It was new for animation at least as comics had been doing it for a while.
It was also one of the network’s longest-running shows since Adult Swim gave the creators, who had a very small team, plenty of time to make the show they wanted. After nearly two decades and seven seasons, the show was canceled. Fortunately for fans who have been waiting on a cliffhanger, a movie is on the way via HBO Max.
7 Space Ghost: Coast To Coast
Space Ghost: Coast to Coast predates Adult Swim and is easily the oldest show on the network. It took a novel concept of redrawing Space Ghost from his cartoons and repurposing his animations to fit a talk show similar to Conan O’Brien at the time.
Conan is a great example to bring up as his guest episode, “Fire Ant” is a hilarious one to jump into. The series began as an earnest talk show parody wrapped around silly segments. However, as time went on, the interviews became less of the focus and the gimmicks became wilder. The episodes are short, but there are nine seasons to check out right now.
6 Home Movies
Home Movies is the perfect show for fans of Bob’s Burgers. Loren Bouchard, who worked on this show along with Brendon Small, also helped create Bob’s Burgers. That’s one connection. Another is the fact that H. Jon Benjamin, who plays Bob in Bob’s Burgers, also plays several characters in Home Movies.
The basic premise sees Brendon, named and voiced after Small, and his two friends Jason and Melissa make home movies. They also play soccer and get wrapped up in a lot of ideas based on what their coach tells them to do. There are four seasons to binge altogether.
5 Metalocalypse
Metalocalypse was another show created by Brendon Small although Home Movies, and it couldn’t be further from their premises. This cartoon is about a death metal group, Dethklok, and how they pretty much control the global economy due to their popularity.
They may seem like a bunch of gruff metal musicians on stage, but they are completely lost without their giant management staff. They’re almost like toddlers. The music is amazing across all four seasons as well as being a funny adult cartoon. Unfortunately, HBO Max is missing the last special which was presented as a rock opera. It is also getting a new movie though.
4 Aqua Teen Hunger Force
Aqua Teen Hunger Force is almost as old as Space Ghost: Coast to Coast. The two cartoons had a crossover episode together. The show began with a detective premise but with fast food characters. As time went on it quickly became more about Master Shake going full evil.
He loved torturing Meatwad and bothering Frylock for cool things to play with. There are eleven seasons to binge right now but like most of these Adult Swim shows, it took a long time for these seasons to debut. Also like some of these shows, a new movie is in the works for HBO Max.
3 Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law
Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law was the biggest crossover cartoon that Adult Swim had ever attempted in their early stages. Hanna-Barbera’s library of characters was deep. So, the creators thought of the idea to take another hero like Space Ghost and give them a bizarre job.
Birdman became a defense lawyer, representing various classic cartoons like Scooby-Doo and The Flintstones. There are four seasons to watch. A spinoff started recently too, Birdgirl, and it’s still ongoing with two seasons.
2 Robot Chicken
Robot Chicken is the only cartoon on this list that is technically still on save for the upcoming HBO Max specials like The Venture Bros. Robot Chicken finished its eleventh season in 2021 and there should still be some more on the way. As a variety show mimicking pop culture on all fronts, it’s as safe as SNL.
It covers video games, cartoons, movies, and the list goes on. The content will keep coming out until the creators get tired of the show. It’s been almost two decades and things are still going strong though. So, this one probably still has plenty of legs left on it.
1 The Boondocks
The Boondocks is sort of like The Venture Bros. because it is not a typical Adult Swim show. It combined the bizarre comedy shows with the anime that was getting wildly popular on the network. It may look like a simple animated sitcom about a black family, but it is stranger than that.
The family can’t even go to the movies without it turning into a war zone. It’s a fun critique of pop culture through a black lens. It was something Adult Swim desperately needed at the time. There are four seasons worth a look right now.