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The Oblongs is an animated television program aimed at adults and teenagers. It was created by Angus Oblong and produced by Jobsite Productions and Mohawk Productions, Inc. in association with Warner Bros. Television and is very loosely based on a series of characters that Oblong introduced in a picture-book entitled Creepy Susie and 13 Other Tragic Tales for Troubled Children. The theme song for the show was done by They Might Be Giants.

The show focuses on the antics of a family who live in a poor valley community who, as a result of extreme pollution and radiation, all are severely disabled and deformed. The pollution is the direct result of the lavish lifestyle of a rich community known as "The Hills," who continue to exploit and harm the valley residents with little regard for their safety or well being.

The show was heavily criticized for its apparent mocking of the disabled, but the show's producers have rejected such accusations, saying that The Oblongs instead portrays the disabled in an honest, non-patronizing manner. Indeed, the show rarely focuses on the character's disabilities and instead is mostly about the Oblong family's adventures in dealing with common problems of modern living. Much of the humor comes from their often overly eager attempts to overcome their physical disadvantages; the Oblongs are portrayed as a generally happy family who usually display good values (at least in comparison to the people of the Hills).

It premiered on April 1, 2001 on The WB, but it failed to find an audience. On May 20, 2001 The WB aired "Disfigured Debbie," the second episode produced, as the season finale, leaving five of the episodes unaired. A fan of the series who was writing an episode guide at TV Tome informed creator Angus Oblong of the show's cancellation and rallied fans of the series to petition and encourage the network to renew the show. Ultimately, the petition was unsuccessful. Later that same year, Canada's Teletoon network began airing the series. Quickly, a large fanbase began to bloom. In August of 2002, the series found a home on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, where it received high ratings due to many American fans discovering the series for the first time. When shown in Australia on free to air television in 2003, the show was pulled in the middle of the first episode (but was later shown in a late night/early morning timeslot). In 2005, the show began airing on TBS Superstation and was released on DVD.

• Bob Oblong, the father, was born without any arms or legs and works at a poison factory. He can drive vehicles like any other person and is an accomplished pianist. Very chipper, he is seen as being modeled after various fathers from 1950s shows, complete with pipe. Voice: Will Ferrell
• Pickles Oblong is the chain-smoking, alcoholic mother who was originally a Hill resident but moved to the valley after meeting Bob. All her hair has since fallen out, and she is now regarded as an outcast by her former Hill friends. Voice: Jean Smart
• Milo Oblong, the middle child, is afflicted with numerous mental and social conditions, including everything from attention deficit disorder to diabetes. He serves as the de facto main character. Voice: Pamela Segall
• Chip and Biff Oblong are teenage conjoined twins who are attached at the waist. Biff is a hard worker obsessed with sports while Chip is more laid back. It's sometimes implied that Biff is gay, though other times the two are seen lusting after girls together. Voices: Randy and Jason Sklar
• Beth Oblong is the youngest child, who has an odd pink pickle-shaped tumor growing out of her head. Slowie is Beth's doll on a stick. Voice: Jeannie Elias
• Grammy Oblong, Bob's vegetable mother, resides in a motorized wheelchair and never speaks.
• Lucky Oblong, the family cat, constantly smokes cigarettes.
• Scottie Oblong, Milo's dog, becomes narcoleptic after being used as a test animal at Globocide.

Milo's friends "The Clubhouse Kids:"

• Helga Phugly (sounding close to "Hella Phugly," meaning f'n ugly) is an obese, toad-like little girl. She "lives in a fantasy world," always insisting that she is pretty and popular. At times she seems to have a crush on Milo. Voice: Lea DeLaria
• Creepy Susie is a goth girl who floats on air and speaks with a French accent. Voice: Jeannie Elias
• Peggy Weggy is a one-breasted girl who lacks a lower jaw, causing her to spit and talk with a terrible lisp. Voice: Becky Thyre
• Mikey Butts is a boy saddled with an unfortunate, dangling posterior. Voice: Jeannie Elias

Other characters:

• George Klimer (as in social climber) is Bob's rich, snobby boss. Voice: Billy West
• Pristine Klimer is the wife of Bob's boss. Pristine was friends with Pickles before Pickles married Bob. Now she spends her days condescending to her former friend. Voice: Becky Thyre
• Jared Klimer is the annoying and not-so-bright son of George and Pristine who likes to taunt the clubhouse kids, along with best friend Blaine. Voice: Pamela Segall
• The Debbies are a clique of annoying and identical-looking teenage girls from the Hills who are all named Debbie. One is the Klimers' daughter; another is the daughter of the Mayor. Their numbers are not known, but there are at least half a dozen. Voice: Becky Thyre
• Anita Bidet is a pre-op transsexual man who owns The Rusty Bucket, the bar that Pickles hangs out at. Though obvious to viewers, no one seems to realize her condition. Voice: Billy West
• Principal Davis is the principal of the school.
• Nurse Rench has a scary operating contraption in place of her right arm. Voice: Laraine Newman
• James is Bob's hunchbacked co-worker. Voice: Billy West
• Mayor Johnny "The Mayor" Bledsoe is the town's mayor and a masked professional wrestler. Voice: Billy West
• Mr Leland Bergstein is the kids' homeroom teacher. Voice: Billy West
• Sheriff Pepper is Hill Valley's inept law enforcer.
• Homeless Bill is Hill Valley's resident street urchin. Voice: Billy West
• The Girl with a Beak is an aptly-named classmate of the clubhouse kids. Voice: Becky Thyre
• Mrs. Hubbard is the town's conservative old biddy. Voice: Laraine Newman
• The Coach is Biff and Chip's school coach, whom Biff has an unhealthy obsession with. Voice: Will Ferrell
• Dr. Hofschneider is the Oblongs' condescending doctor.
• Verdelle Diver is the regional coordinator of The L'il' Amazons, a Girl Scouts-like troupe. It's implied that she is a lesbian. Voice: Lea DeLaria
• Tommy Vinegar is a spoof of Tommy Hilfiger and Pickles's ex-boyfriend. Voice: Maurice LaMarche
• Velva, the Warrior is The Oblongs ' version of Xena, whom young Beth adores. Her show has heavy lesbian/anti-male overtones.
• Funzie is The Oblongs ' spoof of Fonzie from Happy Days. Voice: Maurice LaMarche
• Dusty is Bob's one-time coworker, a lifeguard who's "fairly riddled with implants." Voice: Becky Thyre

Note: this list may not be in exact episode order and should perhaps be checked for perfect accuracy.

1. "Misfit Love"
2. "Disfigured Debbie"
3. "Narcoleptic Scottie"
4. "Pickle’s Li’l Amazons"
5. "Flush Flush Sweet Helga"
6. "Please Be Genital"
7. "The Golden Child"
8. "Milo Interrupted"
9. "My Name is Robbie"
10. "Bucketheads"
11. "Get Off My Back"
12. "Father of the Bribe"
13. "Heroine Addict"

There is one episode of the series where Biff is said to have "lots of potential but no initiative" while Chip is said to have "lots of initiative but no potential." This statement seems contrary to the rest of the series, in which Biff is hardworking while Chip is a "slacker."

• The Oblongs Official Site
• The Oblongs at TV.com
• The Oblongs… at IMDb
• Cartoon Network's site for The Oblongs