# Father of the Pride - New Show on NBC **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 1, 2004, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542 "2004-09-01T05:37:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/1 "2004-09-01T05:37:02Z")
Who saw the premiere episode? I, for one, though it was side splittingly HILARIOUS! Carl Reiner was perfect as the old lion and I hope Andy Richter reprises his role as Norman the Panda. The animation was perfect and the humor was excellent, but not a kids show by any means. I fully recommend it. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/2 "2004-09-01T05:40:48Z")
Oh, and I also wanted to say that it is good that Siegfried and Roy (exec producers) can have a laugh at themselves, even after the big accident. Though they may get some flack for the show being a bit more ‘adult’ than it comes across as. ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/3 "2004-09-01T05:44:16Z")
I didn’t get a chance to see it. It doesn’t look that funny, rather like a sitcom with a gimmick, but I’ll reserve judgement until I get a chance to watch it. Anyone know if it’s going to be repeated in the next week or so? ---
**Author:** ![hazel-rah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hazel-rah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hazel-rah)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/4 "2004-09-01T05:54:28Z")
The writing was tired as hell and the animals look creepy and gross. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/5 "2004-09-01T05:57:21Z")
There is no way, short of paying me six figures, that you could get me to watch this show. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/6 "2004-09-01T06:01:03Z")
Why not? An adult comedy based on Sigfried and Roy’s show has no value for you? It’s kind of like South Park. They can get away with much more by being a cartoon. The animation is incredible and the jokes are highly funny. I liked it much more than the Scrubs that came after it. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Silver\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Fire)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/7 "2004-09-01T06:19:21Z")
Meh. I wouldn’t compare it to South Park just because it isn’t live action. It wasn’t the most awful thing I’ve ever seen, but I won’t set my alarm to remind me when it’s coming on or anything. That Guy and I were discussing last night how long we think it’ll last. He says 3 shows. I gave 'em 7. The whining panda, and then Norman falls in love with a tiger, and blahblahblah. I can’t see myself investing much time in it. I’d rather see John Goodman as Fred Flintstone any day. And you’re right about Scrubs. I’d never seen it before. I see now I haven’t missed much. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/8 "2004-09-01T06:33:50Z")
Perhaps you are correct that it won’t last (it does cost a lot of money), but NBC has ordered a season of shows, so it should last the season. And the NY Times gave it a good review: > **[TELEVISION REVIEW; For a Vegas Cat Pack, Life Is a Cabaret (Published 2004)](https://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/31/arts/television-review-for-a-vegas-cat-pack-life-is-a-cabaret.html)** > > Virginia Heffernan reviews new NBC animated series Father of the Pride and A&E reality series Dog the Bounty Hunter; cartoon (M) > [@](#): > > While we wait for a very modern ethics panel to convene and render judgment, let’s just enjoy the show. “Father of the Pride,” the story of a group of jungle animals who live in Siegfried & Roy’s Las Vegas jungle habitat, is a delight - fast, witty and above all showy. Under cover of a prime-time cartoon, its creator, Jeffrey Katzenberg, evidently intends to make an old-fashioned extravaganza, a cartoon cabaret as risqué, corny and mischievous as Las Vegas itself. > [@](#): > > All this goes down easy. It’s funny, and, if it makes you laugh, just let it. So it may have a life. After all, if Friends could last so long, I don’t see why this can’t go a few seasons :D. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Silver\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Fire)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/9 "2004-09-01T07:16:35Z")
Well, I never saw even one complete episode of Friends, so what the hell do I know? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/10 "2004-09-01T13:10:24Z")
I caught like the last 10 minutes of it and I heard a few more funny jokes than entire seasons of most other shows. Certainly not “turn the sitcom crank” types of jokes and for that alone, I give it some credit. You don’t get to see monkey-fucking and ball-licking jokes on too many shows. The animation doesn’t necessarily SUCK, but it’s not even as good as say, the first “Toy Story” movie. I know they don’t have the budget to do something like “Shrek” but now that we’ve all seen state-of-the-art cgi, they throw something worse up there and it’s distracting. They showed the hand-drawn sketches during one of those promos and they looked more interesting than the CGI of the show. Anyway, I heard enough funny stuff to make me tune in while waiting for Scrubs to start. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/11 "2004-09-01T16:15:09Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > Why not? An adult comedy based on Sigfried and Roy’s show has no value for you? It’s kind of like South Park. They can get away with much more by being a cartoon. The animation is incredible and the jokes are highly funny. I liked it much more than the Scrubs that came after it. I’m no fan of Siegfried and Roy, nor am I fan of what’s considered adult comedy most of the time anyway, so no, not really. Comparing it to South Park doesn’t do anything for me either. I’ve seen maybe three episodes and maybe fifteen minutes of the movies over the years and I don’t see the appeal of it either. There might be some sort of subtext I’m missing but the layer over it is so obnoxious (and unfunny) that I’m not going to bother sticking around to try to find it. And, once again, saying it’s funnier than Scrubs doesn’t mean anything to me either. I’ve seen maybe three episodes of it and while they were adequately amusing, they weren’t funny enough to keep me watching, obviously. Humor is highly subjective and it looks like you and I have totally different definitions as to what’s funny and what isn’t. If I wanted to watch something “adult” that’s also funny, I’ll just turn my DVD player on and watch _Death to Smoochy_, _Igby Goes Down_, _Fargo_, et al. Primetime sitcoms do nothing for me. ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/12 "2004-09-01T16:26:28Z")
My sweetie downloaded it for me last night, and I thought it was hilarious. A bit over the top for prime time network fare, maybe, but not nearly so much as singing poop. And c’mon, who doesn’t know humans just like these animals? ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/13 "2004-09-01T16:31:08Z")
I thought it was funny. “Hi, I’m Nelson.” “I thought your name was Bong-Bong?” “No, that’s just my slave name.” Definitely not for kids. “IT’S MOUNTAIN TIME!” ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/14 "2004-09-01T17:01:04Z")
Yeah, Andy Richter was great as Nelson, that ‘slave name’ line was great! Though I loved the cat, especially how he was pleading with Larry to please eat him! LOL! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/15 "2004-09-01T17:08:46Z")
> [@Silver Fire](#): > > I’d rather see John Goodman as Fred Flintstone any day. From the previews alone, I’d say this is John Goodman as Fred Flintstone in a lion outfit. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/16 "2004-09-01T19:46:17Z")
I am amazed that anyone thought this show was funny. I thought it was terrible. My boyfriend and I watched out of curiosity and both agreed it was a huge waste of time and money for them to put so much effort into such crap. We both thought it was incredibly stoooooopid. ---
**Author:** ![LordVor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90ced4/32.png) [@LordVor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LordVor)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/17 "2004-09-01T20:03:05Z")
I just don’t get it. If it’s Sigfried and Roy, why are they white lions and not tigers? If they’re in Vegas, why the spaceship? Why have them in Vegas at all if it all takes place in a zoo-like utopia? Although some of the bits were funny in concept (Lisa Kudrow the cock-blocking panda, the Elephant and the Turkey are “just roommates”), the show as a whole didn’t make any sense whatsoever. -lv ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/18 "2004-09-01T23:55:58Z")
> [@LordVor](#): > > If it’s Sigfried and Roy, why are they white lions and not tigers? If they’re in Vegas, why the spaceship? Why have them in Vegas at all if it all takes place in a zoo-like utopia? The main characters in the show are lions, but there are white tigers around, just not as substantial characters, at least yet. And they are in Vegas because that’s where Sigfried and Roy did their show and they are exec producers and I guess they realize that they can be the butt of many jokes ;). ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2004, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/19 "2004-09-02T00:50:15Z")
I got a couple of minor chuckles out of it. Overall impression: Feh. Not worth 9 months of animation per episode. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2004, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542/20 "2004-09-02T02:25:04Z")
According to Tom Shales of the Washington Post: > [@](#): > > Take the worst idea for a TV show that you ever heard and double it, and there you have “Father of the Pride,” a diseased cartoon that jumps the gun on the fall TV season by premiering tonight on NBC. The jumping that should be done by “Father of the Pride” is right off the brown cliffs of Malibu and into the ocean below. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A48114-2004Aug30.html](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A48114-2004Aug30.html) I didn’t see it and don’t really care about TV shows one way or the other. Just providing an opposing review (to the NY Times one referenced above) for the sake of stimulating the discussion. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/father-of-the-pride-new-show-on-nbc/262542.md?page=2)