Moonbeam City

This article is about the U.S. animated TV series. For municipalities, seeMoonbeam (disambiguation).

Moonbeam City
Genre	Comedy Adult animation Mystery Science fiction
Created by	Scott Gairdner
Directed by	Mark Brooks Juno Lee
Voices of	Rob Lowe Elizabeth Banks Kate Mara Will Forte
Theme music composer	Night Club
Opening theme	"Another One" (Instrumental)
Composer	Night Club
Country of origin	United States Canada
Original language	English
No.of seasons	1
No.of episodes	10
Production
Executive producers	Scott Gairdner Will Gluck Richard Schwartz Tommy Blacha
Producers	Rob Lowe James Merrill
Editors	Barry Kelly Jeff Picarello
Running time	22 minutes
Production companies	Olive Bridge Entertainment Alphapanel Industries Solis Animation Titmouse, Inc.
Original release
Network	Comedy Central
Release	September 16(2015-09-16)– December 9, 2015(2015-12-09)

Moonbeam Cityis anadultanimated sitcomthat was created byScott Gairdner,and starred the voices ofElizabeth Banks,Rob Lowe,Kate MaraandWill Forte.It premiered onComedy Centralon September 16, 2015.On March 30, 2016, the series was cancelled after one season.

Characters

• Dazzle Novak (Rob Lowe): Protagonist and Moonbeam City P.D. detective, despite being especially unqualified for the job due to poor impulse control, horrendous reasoning skills, ridiculous libido, and ego, and (often) even worse aim. He gets sidetracked from assignments to tend to anything he finds far superior. Any success is normally due to luck or the assistance of others (usually his junior partner, Chrysalis). Has an odd talent for invention and design, and is the son of stuntman Razzle Novak. Dazzle's mother died fromcancerwhen he was a child. He has personal animosity towards Rad in his attempts to outdo him as a cop—-even embarrassing him on a personal level.
• Pizzaz Miller (Elizabeth Banks): Police chief, and Dazzle's irascible supervisor. Though she is sometimes at odds with Dazzle due to his shoddy police work and defiance of authority, she fails to harshly discipline him for even the most severe infractions due to an intense mutual attraction and affection between the two.It is later learned that Pizzaz is an heiress (and eventual sole inheritor) to Moonbeam City's founder, laser prospecting mega-millionaire, Vector Azimuth Miller. Pizzaz also has four abusive and conniving sisters: Charisma, Panache, Sophistica, and Accoutrement.When passionate or angry, Pizzaz narrows her eyes and a slanted window blind-like shadow appears over her face and body, regardless of the location and ambient lighting.
• Chrysalis Zirconia Tate(Kate Mara): Dazzle's rookie colleague. A former lab tech, Chrysalis is the polar opposite of Dazzle (competent, level-headed, responsible), and often the unintentional victim of his irresponsibility and poor impulse control. Chrysalis' job usually entails the detective work and technical aspects of the job, and she is often blamed by Pizzaz for Dazzle and Rad's inept behavior. Chrysalis is the daughter of eccentric Naval Commander Blade H. Tate.
• Radward "Rad" Cunningham/Manning (born: Gregory Manning) (Will Forte): Dazzle's equally incompetent, yet even stupider childish rival/teammate from Canadain the Moonbeam PD. He fears authority more than Dazzle, and is prone to even greater lapses of judgment, usually when trying to outdo or outsmart Dazzle. While initially seeming fierce and threatening in the Pilot episode, Rad is eventually shown to be incredibly cowardly and immature, though not without moments of unexpected (and ill-timed) bravery. The series finale reveals (through Chrysalis' detective work) that Rad is the biological son of the billionaire computer founders of Canadian computer companyFlamingo Computers,but was kidnapped as a toddler by the con artist couple who raised him (he later changes his name to "Radward Manning" to distance himself from them). He has a unique condition called "Mono-Toeism" which causes his right foot to have only one giant toe.He is shown to be very poor as well as perverted.
• Genesis Jones (Scott Gairdner): News anchor who appears in every episode. He often acts as more of a shameless announcer or sensationalist rather than a real journalist.
• Mayor Eo Jaxxon (Powers Boothe): Mayor of Moonbeam City who acts as a lecherous tyrant. He speaks in a slow raspy register. He has an especially dark infatuation with Chief Pizzaz Miller. He uses his authority to continuously threaten to shut down the Police Department, and move the employees into the far more competent and successfulFire Department,to extort Pizzaz into having sex with him. He has afoot fetishand always travels with a pair ofleopards(which he says can tell when people are lying). He has at least one son, who becomes addicted to thedesigner drug"Glitzotrene". His name is a reference to the 1986 short filmCaptain EOand its lead actor, American pop singerMichael Jackson.

Production

Aparodyof 1980s cop shows such asMiami ViceandCity Hunter,the show was sponsored by theCanadian governmentand animated byToronto-based studio Solis Animation usingAdobe After Effectssoftware.Moonbeam Cityfeatured a distinctive 80s-influenced futuristic visual style with heavy use ofneon lighting,inspired by media such asTron;character designs were similar to the style of the artistPatrick Nagelwho famously designed the cover toDuran Duran'sRio (Duran Duran album).Asynthwavesoundtrack was performed byNight Club.

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Prod. code	US viewers (millions)
1	"Mall Hath No Fury"	Mark Brooks	Scott Gairdner	September 16, 2015(2015-09-16)	101	0.61
An incompetent police detective named Dazzle Novak promotes ashopping mallsinging sensation, while a petty thief Dazzle let slip through his fingers creates a cocaine empire and proceeds to overrun Moonbeam City, a crime-ridden beach city based on Miami in the 1980s. Guest starring Nick Corirossi andCree Summer.
2	"Lights! Camera! Re-enaction!"	Mark Brooks	Ryan Perez	September 23, 2015(2015-09-23)	104	0.52
While DJing for a mandatory month underage rave, Dazzle becomes famous for stopping a juvenile bike thief and creates an over-the-top re-enactment segment forCrimezappers,Moonbeam City's premier crime show. Guest starringJohn O'HurleyandAllison Janney.
3	"The Strike Visualizer Strikes Again"	Juno Lee	Tommy Blacha	September 30, 2015(2015-09-30)	105	N/A
Dazzle, Chrysalis, and Rad track down the murderous "Moonbeam Maniac", while Dazzle confronts a childhood hero. Guest voices includePeter SerafinowiczandCree Summer.
4	"Quest for Aquatica"	Mark Brooks	Scott Gairdner	October 14, 2015(2015-10-14)	102	0.53
Dazzle is tasked by Chrysalis' father with finding a missing dolphin, but falls in love with one named "Splasha". Guest starringPatrick Warburton.
5	"Glitzotrene: One Town’s Seduction"	Juno Lee	Andrew Weinberg	October 21, 2015(2015-10-21)	107	N/A
To prevent Mayor Eo Jaxxon from dismantling Moonbeam City's police department, the police hook the entire city on the synthetic drug "Glitzotrene", creating a drug epidemic. Guest starringPowers Boothe,Trace Adkins,andCarlos Alazraqui.
6	"Lasers and Liars"	Juno Lee	Andrew Weinberg	October 28, 2015(2015-10-28)	103	N/A
When the team gears up for the Laser Ball, Dazzle and Pizzaz become entangled with her hyper-wealthy (and despicable) family, while Rad's lies become increasingly ridiculous while trying to join a yacht club. Guest starringKate McKinnon,Paget Brewster,andKevin McDonald.
7	"Cop Con"	Mark Brooks	Ryan Perez	November 11, 2015(2015-11-11)	106	N/A
At the 3-day "Cop Con" event, Dazzle and Pizzaz enjoy their annual passionate tryst. Meanwhile, Chrysalis avoids an obsessed fan, a frustrated Rad starts "Rad Con", and a cop-free Moonbeam City undergoes a community renaissance. Guest starringJohn O'Hurley,Allison Janney,Cree Summer,and Nick Corirossi.
8	"Stuntstravaganza"	Mark Brooks	Scott Gairdner	November 18, 2015(2015-11-18)	108	N/A
Bitter in defeat from a racing challenge, Dazzle seeks out his estranged father to help him perfect a car stunt. Meanwhile, Rad faces the consequences of misplacing his parking validation card. Guest starringAdam West,Paul F. Tompkins,and Nick Mundy.
9	"The Legend Of Circuit Lake"	Juno Lee	Tommy Blacha & Ryan Perez	December 2, 2015(2015-12-02)	109	N/A
To get revenge, Rad attempts to dig up embarrassing footage of Dazzle from the police records room. But things go awry, rendering Rad trapped in its virtual reality computer system. Dazzle ends up being accused and convicted of Rad's presumed murder, gets sent to prison, and ends up having relations with its computerized artificially intelligent security system. Guest starringTom Kenny,Susan Sarandon,andMolly Shannon.
10	"The Wedding of Rad (Lie)"	Mark Brooks	Scott Gairdner	December 9, 2015(2015-12-09)	110	N/A
In the series finale, Dazzle hooks up with the daughter of a crime lord. Meanwhile, Rad's family coerces him into a bizarre arranged marriage to con the entire Moonbeam City police department. Guest starringKate McKinnon,Catherine O'Hara,andAndy Richter.

Broadcast

Internationally, the series premiered in Australia on November 15, 2015, onThe Comedy Channel.

Reception

On December 1, 2015,Moonbeam Citywas nominated for anAnnie Awardfor Best General Audience Animated TV/Broadcast Production, but lost toThe Simpsons.

The first season holds a 29% onRotten Tomatoesbased on 14 reviews. Its consensus states: "Moonbeam Citywildly overestimates the effectiveness of its attempts at over-the-top humor, leaving viewers with little more than a derivative disappointment ".OnMetacritic,the series holds a 52% indicating mixed or average reviews.

Mike Hale ofThe New York Timesstated that "the look ofMoonbeam Citymay catch your eye, but after a while, you may be tempted to say, I will bury you so deep the world's smartest worms couldn't find you ". He also stated that the pop-culture references and satire were forced and the dialogue" tries so hard you can see it sweat ".Daniel Fienberg ofThe Hollywood Reporterclaimed that the show would be able to stand "in a world withoutArcher"and called it thin and with limited potential.Bob Sassone ofThe A.V. Clubgave it a C+, calling it "more clever than funny withArchervibes ".Brian Lowry ofVarietyclaims that the show settles more for being puerile than clever, making it "less than dazzling".Katy Waldman ofSlate's review was scathing, stating that the series "is so willfully dumb that it might make you wonder if it is meta-dumb".

External links

• Official website
• Moonbeam CityatIMDb