Streaming is a real heartbreaker — just tell the many subscribers of the recently murdered FilmStruck — but it giveth as often as it taketh away. Case in point: Hulu, the Frank Stallone to Netflix’s Sly, just got itself a respectable pile of Fox’s finest animated TV comedies. No, they didn’t get The Simpsons. But they did nab Futurama, Bob’s Burgers, Family Guy, American Dad, The Cleveland Show, and — perhaps most impressive at all, in its furtive way — the entire run of the little show that quietly stuck around forever, the eternally underrated King of the Hill.
King of the Hill debuted as a midseason replacement in 1997, and it never quite shook off that not-quite-real vibe, despite running for 13 seasons, all the way till 2010. That’s the third longest life of an animated show, after silver medalist Family Guy and, of course, The Simpsons, which is older than many humans.
The suburban Texas-set show is both beloved and semi-hated (because who could ever truly hate King of the Hill?) for its beyond-dry humor. When South Park poked fun at it — in a two-part episode arc mostly dedicated to dragging Family Guy, with a mostly harmless dig at Bart Simpson, too — it was as subtle as the show itself.
More than most animated shows, King of the Hill probably ages interestingly, being as it is a satirical yet loving (yet satirical) look at the Deep South. But then again, even the king of animated television comedies has some trouble with aging, as in the ongoing controversy about its longtime character Apu.
Anyway, this may mean that if you haven’t already added Hulu to your monthly streaming bill so you can cry over The Handmaid’s Tale, this is reason enough to do so. Have we mentioned they’ll have Futurama, too?
(Via The A.V. Club)
