Television series

Metalocalypse

Name: Metalocalypse
Genre: Comedy
Released: 2006
Cast: Tommy Blacha, Brendon Small, Brendon Small, Brendon Small, Brendon Small

Parody
Strange

Metalocalypse is a flash-animated comedy following Dethklok, a hilariously incompetent death metal band whose stupidity causes apocalyptic chaos wherever they go. Brendon Small voices most of the cast and composes genuinely heavy metal while the joke remains that these guys are idiots. It's anarchic, absurd, and surprisingly dark—think Spinal Tap meets body horror. For anyone who loves metal, comedy that doesn't explain itself, or violence played entirely for laughs.

TVMaze rating

3.8

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love deadpan absurdist satire of rock-star vanity, where the band's idiocy is played with total seriousness and every gig turns into a gore-soaked set piece.

Skip it if you want a story that builds, since its episodes lean on the same bit of the band's stupidity and the gore can wear thin.

What it asks of you: Each episode is short and fast, so it asks for quick attention and a tolerance for escalating bad taste rather than sustained emotional investment across a long run.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Archer2009

Shares Metalocalypse's rapid-fire joke density, crude animation style that somehow works, and willingness to kill characters unexpectedly. Adam Reed's writing has the same anarchic energy and refusal to soften its edges.

But The spy comedy premise doesn't grab everyone, and some seasons prioritize plot over jokes in ways that slow the momentum.

Aqua Teen Hunger Force2000

Adult Swim's spiritual DNA is all over this—nonsensical plotting, characters who never learn, comedy that trusts you to find it funny without explanation. Same era, same channel, same beautiful weirdness.

But It's deliberately plotless and often seems pointless, which is the joke, but that doesn't land for people who need narrative momentum or a punchline signal.

South Park1997

Both shows use extreme violence and stupidity as the actual comedy rather than window dressing. South Park pioneered the 'make the characters aggressively dumb' approach Metalocalypse perfected for metalheads.

But South Park's topical satire obsession and moral lectures feel increasingly dated, where Metalocalypse's chaos stays timeless. Also, you might already know it.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Metalocalypse

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Heavy Metal1981

Metalocalypse takes the visual template—heavy metal culture filtered through surreal animation—but weaponizes it with plot coherence and comedy craft that Heavy Metal couldn't manage. Same source mythology, decades later refinement.

Rotoscoped animated anthology about hard rock excess, sex, and apocalypse. Brendon Small didn't invent the visual language of death and metal meeting animation—here's where the fever dream came from. Genuinely influential and strange.

But It's a 1981 attempt at 'edgy' that feels quaint now. Some stories are genuinely boring, the sexual content is male-gaze uncomfortable, and the animation quality varies wildly.

Robot Chicken2005

Stop-motion comedy sketch show with the same gleeful violence, surreal non-sequiturs, and complete absence of restraint. If you like watching terrible things happen to beloved characters for no reason, this scratches that exact itch.

But It's sketch-based so tone is inconsistent—some bits are brilliant, some land nowhere. The pacing can feel scattershot.

Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law2000

Adult Swim cult classic with the same flash animation, ridiculous voice work (Phil Ken Sebben is a masterpiece), and commitment to being aggressively stupid while looking cheap. The writing is sharper but the energy is kindred.

But The premise—a superhero lawyer—requires you to care about legal plots, which aren't why you're here. Later seasons lost their edge.

King of the Hill1997

Brendon Small's other masterpiece, and it proves he's a serious composer—the show has a genuine emotional core underneath the comedy about a propane salesman and his weird family. Shows range of what Adult Swim animation could be.

But It's fundamentally a sitcom about suburban Texas normalcy, which is a slower burn than Metalocalypse's immediate chaos. Requires patience with Hank's earnestness.

Superjail!2007

Psychedelic, ultra-violent animation comedy with zero regard for logic or taste. The visual style is even more deliberately cheap-looking than Metalocalypse, the violence more extreme, the plotting more insane.

But It's basically visual assault—intentionally ugly and disorienting. The shock value wears thin if you're not invested in the absurdist humor underneath.

Downtown1999

MTV animation that captured the same 'these characters are genuinely terrible people' energy, with a focus on style and attitude over plot. Period piece now, which adds to its charm—pure late-90s comedy DNA.

But It's very much of its era in ways that can feel dated. The animation quality is inconsistent and it lacks Metalocalypse's metal composition genius.

Clone High2002

Animated comedy written for adults disguised as a teen show. Has that same commitment to absurdist premises (clones of historical figures in high school) and jokes that trust the audience to understand satire.

But The Disney Channel tone clashes with the Adult Swim sensibility, and it gets melodramatic in ways Metalocalypse never does. Much shorter run means less time to build momentum.

The Venture Bros.2003

Both shows use the premise of 'horrible people doing things badly' as cover for genuine character development and even pathos. Metalocalypse seems shallow but Dethklok's dysfunction is oddly moving. The Venture Bros. does the inverse—looks like a parody until you realize it's about trauma, legacy, and connection. Same DNA, inverted delivery.

A show that seems like it's doing parody (of superhero cartoons) but is actually doing something much stranger—it's a character study where incompetence and failure are the whole point. Jackson Publick's writing is intricate, tragic, and hilarious in equal measure.

But It starts slow and takes three seasons to fully reveal what it's doing. If you want immediate payoff or easy jokes, you'll tap out before the show opens up. Also extremely dense—rewatching is required.