Xavier: Renegade Angel
Encyclopedia
Xavier: Renegade Angel is an American CGI
fantasy
-comedy
television series created by John Lee
, Vernon Chatman
, Jim Tozzi
and Alyson Levy. Lee and Chatman are also the creators of Wonder Showzen
. The show was produced by PFFR
, with animation
by Cinematico. It premiered at midnight on November 4, 2007 on Adult Swim
, and November 1, 2007 on the Adult Swim website.
Xavier features a style characterized by a linear, incoherent plot following the humorous musings of an itinerant
humanoid pseudo-shaman and spiritual seeker named Xavier. The show is known for its ubiquitous use of ideologically-critical black comedy
, surrealist
and absurdist humor presented through a psychedelic, Discordian and New Age
lens. The program is also normally rated TV-MA for intense, graphic, often bloody violence (V), as well as strong sexual content, use of racially/ethnically offensive language, and grotesque depictions in a comedic manner
Xavier: Renegade Angel premiered on November 4, 2007, and ended on April 16, 2009, with a total of twenty episodes
and The Sims
. The show features ribald
wordplay, nonchalant violence and transgressive sexuality, in deeply-nested
, often recursive
plots. These plots are often very nonlinear in their chronology; however, each episode seems to contain similar themes and motifs, as well as a single opening scene that has recurred in every episode of Xavier: a depiction of the titular character wandering through a desert (possibly a reference to the 1970s television program Kung Fu
) as he narrates a semi-spontaneous, often nonsensical philosophical thought that many times connects with the episode at hand, whilst the title card of the show itself flies overhead, usually varying in action or position. An opening theme presumed to be played by Xavier on his "shakashuri" is present during these.
Co-creator Vernon Chatman called the show "a warning to children and adults about the dangers of spirituality." The show has been known to mock Christianity
, Islam
, Middle America, redneck
stereotypes, and anarcho-punk
subcultures.
Xavier often incorporates underlying themes and concepts based outside of, though interconnected with, the plot of each episode. Philosophical or political concepts are often juxtaposed with the surrealistic and aleatory nature of the show. Society
and cultural psychology and phenomena, the meaning of life
, the existence of sentience
and the nature of reality
have been examined in one form or another throughout the program's 2 seasons.
Jokes and humor tend to be oriented towards Xavier's own philosophical inquiry and the "deep," "zen-like" diction of wisdom quotes from various spiritual systems (particularly Native American and Hindu
or Eastern
spirituality) that Xavier seemingly attempts to mimic. These are many times lightly mocked with Xavier's misuse of the phrases, reflecting on contemporary humor and taking the often circular logic of such statements far out of context.
"Taboo" topics such as necrophilia
, bestiality, homophobia
, abortion
, pedophilia
, Incest
, Islamic Extremism
, self-injury, and racism
may be hinted at, with Xavier ignorantly making light of such situations when trying to carry on conversation or simply speak to others. As well, racial and other epithets are frequently used by Xavier in a spontaneous and often non-meaningful way. In these aspects of Xavier: Renegade Angel, the program could be seen as containing a substantial amount of black comedy
.
released the series on DVD on Region 4 in Australia on February 10, 2010. It is rated MA15+ for strong themes, violence and sexual references. In addition to being available on DVD, the entire series is also available on iTunes
and the "Build Your Own DVD" feature on the Adult Swim website.
Computer animation
Computer animation is the process used for generating animated images by using computer graphics. The more general term computer generated imagery encompasses both static scenes and dynamic images, while computer animation only refers to moving images....
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
-comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
television series created by John Lee
John Lee (PFFR)
John Lee is an American television writer, producer, director, voice actor, and musician. He is best known for his work on the MTV2 comedy series Wonder Showzen and as a member of the rock band/art collective PFFR....
, Vernon Chatman
Vernon Chatman
Vernon Chatman is a television producer, writer, voice actor, stand-up comedian, musician and a member of PFFR, an art collective based in Brooklyn, NYC....
, Jim Tozzi
Jim Tozzi (PFFR)
James "Jim" Michael Tozzi is an American artist, commercial director, producer, voice actor, and musician. He is best known for his work on the MTV2 comedy series Wonder Showzen and the Adult Swim show Xavier: Renegade Angel and as a member of the rock band/art collective PFFR.Jim Tozzi grew up in...
and Alyson Levy. Lee and Chatman are also the creators of Wonder Showzen
Wonder Showzen
Wonder Showzen is an American sketch comedy television series that aired between 2005 and 2006 on MTV2. It was created by John Lee and Vernon Chatman of PFFR. The show is rated TV-MA....
. The show was produced by PFFR
PFFR
PFFR Forever Ltd., PFFFR or traditionally known as PFFR is a Brooklyn based production company/art collective/electro-rock band consisting of Alyson Levy, Vernon Chatman, Jim Tozzi, and John Lee...
, with animation
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
by Cinematico. It premiered at midnight on November 4, 2007 on Adult Swim
Adult Swim
Adult Swim is an adult-oriented Cable network that shares channel space with Cartoon Network from 9:00 pm until 6:00 am ET/PT in the United States, and broadcasts in countries such as Australia and New Zealand...
, and November 1, 2007 on the Adult Swim website.
Xavier features a style characterized by a linear, incoherent plot following the humorous musings of an itinerant
Itinerant
An itinerant is a person who travels from place to place with no fixed home. The term comes from the late 16th century: from late Latin itinerant , from the verb itinerari, from Latin iter, itiner ....
humanoid pseudo-shaman and spiritual seeker named Xavier. The show is known for its ubiquitous use of ideologically-critical black comedy
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
, surrealist
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
and absurdist humor presented through a psychedelic, Discordian and New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
lens. The program is also normally rated TV-MA for intense, graphic, often bloody violence (V), as well as strong sexual content, use of racially/ethnically offensive language, and grotesque depictions in a comedic manner
Xavier: Renegade Angel premiered on November 4, 2007, and ended on April 16, 2009, with a total of twenty episodes
Characters
- Xavier - A self-absorbed and oblivious, faunFaunThe faun is a rustic forest god or place-spirit of Roman mythology often associated with Greek satyrs and the Greek god Pan.-Origins:...
-like wanderer with delusions of grandeur, Xavier is the eponymous main character of the program, often shown to be a deeply insecure, near-sociopathic and child-like individual who can quickly turn against others if interactions with them lead to negative feelings about himself. Xavier's physical appearance is composed of various absurdities. His left hand is a snake from the elbow downwards. It usually acts like an ordinary hand, but in the episodes "The 6th Teat of Good Intentions" and "El Tornadador", it appeared to have a life of its own and spoke to Xavier directly. His knees bend at the joints backwards, he is covered in brown fur and has ocular heterochromiaHeterochromiaIn anatomy, heterochromia refers to a difference in coloration, usually of the iris but also of hair or skin. Heterochromia is a result of the relative excess or lack of melanin...
, having one brown eye and one blue. Instead of a nose, Xavier has a raptor-like beak, though he also has a mouth. He has six nipples and a giant eye in place of his genitalia. He typically wears tennis shoes and a loin cloth embroidered with varying symbols. Xavier's purpose seems to change slightly with each episode, with the initial plot setting him as a wandering philosopher, aspiring "wise man" or sage of sorts whose intent on hermitHermitA hermit is a person who lives, to some degree, in seclusion from society.In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Christian who lives the eremitic life out of a religious conviction, namely the Desert Theology of the Old Testament .In the...
ism seems to give references to Native American vision quests. At first hand and of initial importance seems to be Xavier's drawn-out search for an answer to the abstract question, "What doth life?" Later on in the series, however, the original plot seems to alter slightly into a more personal and less transcendent search: Xavier announces his reasons for roaming the world as the means to which he can help others, his purpose being to improve the quality of human existence and generally speaking, do goodGoodGood may refer to:* Good and evil - The distinction between positive and negative entities* Good - Objects produced for market* Form of the Good - Plato's macrocosmic view of goodness in living* Good...
. Much of the first season focuses on his search for the person who killed his father while the second season puts focus on his search for his motherMotherA mother, mum, mom, momma, or mama is a woman who has raised a child, given birth to a child, and/or supplied the ovum that grew into a child. Because of the complexity and differences of a mother's social, cultural, and religious definitions and roles, it is challenging to specify a universally...
, whom he believes to be alive due to digging up her grave and finding only the meat she had held for months, thus assuming that somehow his mother was still alive. In the series finaleSeries finaleA series finale refers to the last installment of a series with a narrative presented through mediums such as television, film and literature. In many Commonwealth countries, the term final episode is commonly used in regards to a television series...
, he finds her in a lunatic asylum and has sex with her, which makes him human. When he says "I'm cured," his psychiatrist says "Cured? who says there was anything wrong with you?"
- Chief Master Guru - This supposedly IndigenousIndigenous peoples of the AmericasThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
shaman took Xavier in after he became orphaned, and taught him mysticalMysticismMysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
and spiritualSpiritualitySpirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
practices (one such teaching being the power to heal others with the use of a fictional instrument called a "shakashuri"). The Shaman features frequently in flashbacks, and—despite Xavier's adulation—is shown to be abusive, sadistic, bullying and cruel. He eventually fakes his own death in order to get rid of Xavier, but it's later revealed that he gave Xavier the loin cloth and the inspiration to help people in order to get rid of him.
- Xavier's father - Being dead, Xavier's father only appears in flashbacks and visions. Xavier says he wants to avenge his father's death, but in one such flashback his father insists that Xavier himself killed him. He asks the Viewers to judge the contest in Episode 10. Xavier's father seems to have been just as neglectful as his mother. In a flashback, for instance, (one which Xavier later denies as being true), his father takes Xavier to a remote location and abandons him as a child, only leaving him with a bicycleBicycleA bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....
as a means of compensation.
- Xavier's mother - Xavier's mother is generally seen in flashbacks as constantly either drunk, drug-addled, or having sexSexIn biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
with other men or animals. In "Haunted Tonk", it is revealed that Xavier went back in time and told his younger self to give his mother only apple juice and sugar pills instead of alcohol and medication. Xavier's mother seems to have hated him for his appearances, calling him a "demon child", among other names. In "Braingeas Final Cranny", it is revealed that Xavier's mother tried to abort Xavier, though she found out that she was too far along into the pregnancy in order to do so. She instead allowed the abortionist doctor to torture her child while inside her womb with a cattle prod. In several episodes, Xavier is shown searching the world for his lost mother.
- Computer - Computer is a sentient computerComputerA computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
used by Xavier for analysis and information. He appears as a jerkily-edited live-action actor set in front of a jarring black and white background. Played by John FlansburghJohn FlansburghJohn Conant Flansburgh is an American musician. He is half of the longstanding Brooklyn, New York-based alternative rock duo They Might Be Giants, for which he writes, sings and plays rhythm guitar...
, half of the band They Might Be GiantsThey Might Be GiantsThey Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
.
Style and content
The computer-generated animation of Xavier: Renegade Angel resembles that of video games such as Second LifeSecond Life
Second Life is an online virtual world developed by Linden Lab. It was launched on June 23, 2003. A number of free client programs, or Viewers, enable Second Life users, called Residents, to interact with each other through avatars...
and The Sims
The Sims
The Sims is a strategic life-simulation computer game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. Its development was led by game designer Will Wright, also known for developing SimCity...
. The show features ribald
Ribaldry
Ribaldry is humorous entertainment that ranges from bordering on indelicacy to gross indecency. It is also referred to as "bawdiness", "gaminess" or "bawdry"....
wordplay, nonchalant violence and transgressive sexuality, in deeply-nested
Nesting (computing)
In computing science and informatics, the word nesting may denote several different constructions and activities where information is organized in layers or objects contain other similar objects. The rather general term is thus used in quite specific ways for various situations and concepts...
, often recursive
Recursion
Recursion is the process of repeating items in a self-similar way. For instance, when the surfaces of two mirrors are exactly parallel with each other the nested images that occur are a form of infinite recursion. The term has a variety of meanings specific to a variety of disciplines ranging from...
plots. These plots are often very nonlinear in their chronology; however, each episode seems to contain similar themes and motifs, as well as a single opening scene that has recurred in every episode of Xavier: a depiction of the titular character wandering through a desert (possibly a reference to the 1970s television program Kung Fu
Kung Fu (TV series)
Kung Fu is an American television series that starred David Carradine. It was created by Ed Spielman, directed and produced by Jerry Thorpe, and developed by Herman Miller, who was also a writer for, and co-producer of, the series...
) as he narrates a semi-spontaneous, often nonsensical philosophical thought that many times connects with the episode at hand, whilst the title card of the show itself flies overhead, usually varying in action or position. An opening theme presumed to be played by Xavier on his "shakashuri" is present during these.
Co-creator Vernon Chatman called the show "a warning to children and adults about the dangers of spirituality." The show has been known to mock Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, Middle America, redneck
Redneck
Redneck is a historically derogatory slang term used in reference to poor, uneducated white farmers, especially from the southern United States...
stereotypes, and anarcho-punk
Anarcho-punk
Anarcho-punk is punk rock that promotes anarchism. The term anarcho-punk is sometimes applied exclusively to bands that were part of the original anarcho-punk movement in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and early 1980s...
subcultures.
Xavier often incorporates underlying themes and concepts based outside of, though interconnected with, the plot of each episode. Philosophical or political concepts are often juxtaposed with the surrealistic and aleatory nature of the show. Society
Society
A society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
and cultural psychology and phenomena, the meaning of life
The Meaning of Life
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life is a 1983 comedy film by the Monty Python team. Unlike Holy Grail and Life of Brian, this movie's two immediate predecessors, which each told a single, more or less coherent story, The Meaning of Life returns to the sketch comedy format of the troupe's original...
, the existence of sentience
Sentience
Sentience is the ability to feel, perceive or be conscious, or to have subjective experiences. Eighteenth century philosophers used the concept to distinguish the ability to think from the ability to feel . In modern western philosophy, sentience is the ability to have sensations or experiences...
and the nature of reality
Reality
In philosophy, reality is the state of things as they actually exist, rather than as they may appear or might be imagined. In a wider definition, reality includes everything that is and has been, whether or not it is observable or comprehensible...
have been examined in one form or another throughout the program's 2 seasons.
Jokes and humor tend to be oriented towards Xavier's own philosophical inquiry and the "deep," "zen-like" diction of wisdom quotes from various spiritual systems (particularly Native American and Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
or Eastern
Eastern philosophy
Eastern philosophy includes the various philosophies of Asia, including Chinese philosophy, Iranian philosophy, Japanese philosophy, Indian philosophy and Korean philosophy...
spirituality) that Xavier seemingly attempts to mimic. These are many times lightly mocked with Xavier's misuse of the phrases, reflecting on contemporary humor and taking the often circular logic of such statements far out of context.
"Taboo" topics such as necrophilia
Necrophilia
Necrophilia, also called thanatophilia or necrolagnia, is the sexual attraction to corpses,It is classified as a paraphilia by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association. The word is artificially derived from the ancient Greek words: νεκρός and φιλία...
, bestiality, homophobia
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
, abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
, pedophilia
Pedophilia
As a medical diagnosis, pedophilia is defined as a psychiatric disorder in adults or late adolescents typically characterized by a primary or exclusive sexual interest in prepubescent children...
, Incest
Incest
Incest is sexual intercourse between close relatives that is usually illegal in the jurisdiction where it takes place and/or is conventionally considered a taboo. The term may apply to sexual activities between: individuals of close "blood relationship"; members of the same household; step...
, Islamic Extremism
Islamic extremism
Islamic extremism refers to two related and partially overlapping but also distinct aspects of extremist interpretations and pursuits of Islamic ideology:...
, self-injury, and racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
may be hinted at, with Xavier ignorantly making light of such situations when trying to carry on conversation or simply speak to others. As well, racial and other epithets are frequently used by Xavier in a spontaneous and often non-meaningful way. In these aspects of Xavier: Renegade Angel, the program could be seen as containing a substantial amount of black comedy
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
.
DVD release
Cartoon Network released the series on DVD in America on November 10, 2009. Madman EntertainmentMadman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment is an Australian company that distributes international films as well as Japanese anime and manga in Australia and New Zealand. The company is owned by Funtastic Limited and is one of the major entertainment companies in Australia. It employs 130 people and has an annual...
released the series on DVD on Region 4 in Australia on February 10, 2010. It is rated MA15+ for strong themes, violence and sexual references. In addition to being available on DVD, the entire series is also available on iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
and the "Build Your Own DVD" feature on the Adult Swim website.
| DVD name | Release date | Ep # | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seasons 1 and 2 | November 10, 2009 | 20 | "Xaviercise!", fan commentary and contest submissions |