Reviews

BLU-RAY REVIEW: ‘The Venture Bros.: Radiant is the Blood of the Baboon Heart’

Over the past two decades, The Venture Bros. has taken audiences on a non-stop thrill ride of action and adventure. The original series was the brainchild of Christopher McCulloch, known by his pseudonym “Jackson Publick” and Doc Hammer. Capturing the hearts and minds of the Adult Swim crowd from 2003 to 2018, the show is a satirical parody of the adventure and superhero genres, mainly influenced by the action-adventure cartoons of the 1960s and 1970s. To this day, there is still nothing quite like on television.

The series would soon garner a dedicated cult following due to its unique blend of humor, nostalgia, and layered storytelling. The series predominantly concentrates on the Venture family, which consists of Dr. Thaddeus “Rusty” Venture, his two sons, Hank and Dean, and their bodyguard, Brock Samson. Dr. Venture is a failed yet pompous super-scientist who inherited his father’s scientific legacy but continuously struggles to live up to his father’s success. Hank and Dean are twin brothers who are often in danger due to their father’s misguided experiments. Brock Samson, the family’s tough and skilled bodyguard, is a former secret agent with the Office of Secret Intelligence (OSI). He is tasked with protecting the Ventures from various villains and dangerous situations. The Venture family encounters many eccentric characters throughout the series, including other superheroes, supervillains, and secret organizations. It’s one of the wildest rides you can take — and you don’t even have to leave the house!  With the recent release of ‘The Venture Bros.: The Complete Series,’ fans can experience the magic once more and binge until their hearts are content. Throughout the series, the innovative team behind the ground-breaking series never failed to push the creative limits with intricate continuity and rich character development. Yes, it’s totally binge-worthy!

However, all good things must come to an end. ‘The Venture Bros. Radiant is the Blood of the Baboon Heart,’ hitting Blu-ray on July 25th, is the finale that die-hard fans have patiently awaited for half a decade. Clearly, there is no easy way to tie up the twenty years of unresolved plot points to satisfy everyone. Rather than reinventing the wheel, the creators again leaned into what we love best about the series to deliver one more badass adventure. Returning to reprise their roles from the iconic series roles are James Urbaniak (The Fabelmans) as Dr. Venture, Patrick Warburton (Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events) as Brock Samson, Michael Sinterniklaas (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) as Dean Venture, Chris McCulloch (Superjail!) as Hank Venture and Doc Hammer as Dr. Mrs. The Monarch. This new installment also introduces several new characters, including Nina Arianda as Mantilla, Hal Lublin as Clayton, Jay Pharoah as Nuno Blood, and Jane Lynch as the mysterious Bobbi St. Simone.

Since this will likely be the last we see of ‘The Venture Bros.’ for quite some time, we’ll keep this review 100% spoiler free. It is vital for fans to know that this new adventure is jammed-packed with callbacks and Easter Egg-style reveals that serve as a love note to fans. The film features everything you know and love about the series’ original run turned up a notch! There is no shortage of twists and turns to keep viewers on the end of their seats. In short, ‘Radiant is the Blood of the Baboon Heart’ is a fitting finale for this long-running adventure series. With a bit of luck, we will all meet again in the future.

Official Synopsis: Doc’s latest invention will either bankrupt Team Venture or launch them to new heights, as Hank searches for himself, Dean searches for Hank, The Monarch searches for answers, and a mysterious woman from their pasts threatens to bring their entire world crashing down on them.

Special Features Include:

  • Commentary by co-creators Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer
  • Jackson and Doc Answer Fan Questions (Commentary)
  • Hodgman and Friends (Featurette) – John Hodgman digs deep with Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer to learn more about the making of Radiant Is the Blood of the Baboon Heart and untold tales about their series.

For those looking to catch up on this amazing series, ‘The Venture Bros.: The Complete Series,’ is now available Digitally and on DVD. This epic set includes all 82 episodes from the 7-season run of the action-packed series.