| Korgoth of Barbaria | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Black comedy Action Splatter |
| Created by | Aaron Springer |
| Written by | Aaron Springer |
| Directed by |
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| Voices of | |
| Narrated by | Corey Burton |
| Composer | Lee Holdridge |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 1 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Aaron Springer |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Production companies | Cartoon Network Studios Williams Street |
| Original release | |
| Network | Adult Swim |
| Release | June 3, 2006 (2006-06-03) |
Korgoth of Barbaria is an Americanadult animatedtelevision pilot created byAaron Springer forCartoon Network's nighttime programming blockAdult Swim. Produced byCartoon Network Studios, it was the first production by the studio to be co-produced byWilliams Street. It aired on June 3, 2006 and was picked up, but was cancelled by the network for high production costs.
The series creator, Aaron Springer, is a storyboard artist, writer and director forDexter's Laboratory,The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy,Samurai Jack, andSpongeBob SquarePants, who previously created another failed pilot atCartoon Network Studios calledPeriwinkle Around the World. He would later go on to produceBilly Dilley's Super-Duper Subterranean Summer forDisney XD.Genndy Tartakovsky, creator ofDexter's Laboratory andSamurai Jack, directed the animation for the pilot. This was not the only time he worked on a pilot created by Springer, as Tartakovsky also produced and directedPeriwinkle Around the World. Animation services was provided byRough Draft Korea.
AtComic-Con 2006, the show was scheduled to release sometime in spring of 2007. As of December 29, 2007, the only mention of the show on theAdult Swim website was an intro graphic with the words "You couldn't handle more than one anyway."
It was first aired in the United States on June 3, 2006, at 12:30 AM (EST) onAdult Swim. On June 18, Adult Swim ran abumper announcing thatKorgoth of Barbaria was officially picked up as a series, because of its critical and commercial success with garnering high ratings. Later events, including a formal petition to revive the show[1] and an Adult Swim bumper announcement mentioning its cancellation,[2] indicate that it was dropped before production began due to high production costs.
Adult Swim re-aired the pilot episode on the night of October 31, 2008, as part of an advertised "Halloween Stunt" night, where rarely seen programs such asWelcome to Eltingville andBoo Boo Runs Wild were aired, rather than the usual programming line-up for a Friday evening.[3]
In November 2010, Adult Swim ran a bumper listing shows that were not picked up and brief reasons why. Korgoth was listed with the explanation as "too expensive".[2]
Adult Swim re-aired the pilot (teased as a "surprise") on November 3, 2013, as a part of theirToonami block.
Adult Swim re-aired the pilot again on January 29, 2019.
From the Adult Swim website:
In a dark future wasteland, the great cities have risen and fallen, primordial beasts have reclaimed the wilderness and thieves and savages populate sparse, dirty towns. From the frozen north emerges a warrior known as Korgoth, and his merciless savagery may be his only key to survival.
Korgoth of Barbaria followed the exploits of the eponymous Korgoth (voiced by actorDiedrich Bader),[4] andparodiedConan the Barbarian, as well as thesword and sorcerysubgenre in general. The show was set in apost-apocalyptic world where sorcery and the remnants of technology exist simultaneously. The theme song in the style ofthrash metal was composed byLee Holdridge.[5]
Korgoth is infected with a deadly parasite by Gog-Ma-Gogg and extorted to steal an item known as "The Golden Goblin of the Fourth Age" from the wizard Specules, who Gog believes to have recently died. He journeys with a group of Gog-Ma-Gogg's henchmen to Specules' castle, picking up a girl and killing several things along the way. The group reaches the castle and begin to plunder it. As Korgoth searches for the Golden Goblin, Specules returns, explaining that he was on vacation. Specules uses his magic to kill or incapacitate all but Korgoth, who proves too strong for the ridiculous creatures that the wizard conjures throughchewing gum. As a last resort, Specules uses his magic directly against Korgoth, only to be knocked off-balance and accidentally kill Korgoth's girl. Angered, Korgoth takes a two-pronged candle stick holder and impales Specules through the eyes, only to find that the wizard has magically transferred his head onto the dead girl's body. Specules proceeds to fly out the window. Korgoth returns to Gog-Ma-Gogg with the Golden Goblin (a simple novelty item) and gets the elixir for the deadly parasite, though the elixir takes many seasons to take effect. Korgoth is last seen walking away, pulling a cart full of medicine bottles.
Warner Home Video releasedAdult Swim in a Box in October 2009, aDVD box set of a variety of different Adult Swim shows.Korgoth of Barbaria was featured on this box set on a special DVD along withWelcome to Eltingville, the pilot episode ofPerfect Hair Forever,Totally for Teens, andCheyenne Cinnamon and the Fantabulous Unicorn of Sugar Town Candy Fudge.[6] In June 2010, the bonus DVD from "Adult Swim in a Box" was made available for separate purchase on (the now defunct) Adultswimshop.com.
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