If you’ve watched Llamas with Hats then you might have noticed that it’s a bit off kilter even for an animated show. It ran from 2009 to 2015 and had to be one of the more psychotic cartoons out there, as Carl and Paul created a kind of dynamic that made a person wonder why Paul would ever hang around Carl again. After all, Carl was a certified psychopath. He ate human hands, he collected the hands of human babies by creating a rift in the space/time continuum, and he seemed to have no conscience at all. Yet the cartoon did get noticed and did have a solid fan base which is a little surprising but not so out of left field that it can’t be understood. The thing is that it might be time for the series to endure a reboot, if in fact the creator is willing come back and either give advice and support, or perhaps just give someone his blessing to go ahead and try to capture the same magic that allowed the llamas to gain the kind of attention they had when they first came on the scene. Why anyone would want to reboot this is still kind of a mystery but maybe there was more to it than the creator originally intended, or maybe it’s time to see if the series can be rebooted, this time without anyone being the wiser to what each episode is going to be about.
Here are a few reasons why this show deserves a reboot.
It was too predictable.
From the start you got the idea that Carl was just going to keep on being the guy that did the most messed up stuff, even if he did have good intentions and even if he did mean well, which was hardly ever. This time around however it would be great to see some sort of variation that would allow Carl to be less predictable and more varied in his actions. How that might come about is anyone’s guess but it could be a challenge that the creator could be up to. Or maybe another writer could take over and come up with a few off the wall ideas that might make even the character of Carl gape in awe for a moment before he went and tried the same thing. Something needs to happen to make this show a little better than it was, and keeping that predictability low would be one big key to making it a success again.
Crazy is definitely the new normal.
With shows like Rick and Morty and other such programs running around during late night it might be time to unveil this again in a new format and with a bit more flair so that it could compete with the newer shows that have come out since its inception and decline. People are always willing to try something new and a rebooted version of this show could draw some attention if it’s done right. Of course this would mean revamping the whole series and possibly planning to make into an episodic TV show that would gain more exposure and be able to draw in a bigger crowd. It could be done, but it has to go through the proper channels and become something of a phenomenon that people don’t want to miss. Crazy is the new normal of TV and it has been for a while. Banking on the fact that you can get peoples’ attention with something that’s so off the wall that it makes them gape with open mouths is a safe bet. A good percentage of those people you just shocked will come back for more.
There’s a certain hint of tragedy to the show that kind of evens it out.
Granted, the ultimate tragedy is when Paul dies and Carl just can’t handle it, but it does even out the entire thing and eventually shows people that while Carl is nuts and highly immoral in many ways he’s still a feeling individual that can’t do without his best friend. It’s easy to see how many people would gladly demonize Carl since he doesn’t really care about those he hurts and makes some of the lamest excuses you’ve ever heard. But throughout it all he does have a heart, it’s just rarely ever shown in the series.
Rebooting this show seems like it would confuse a lot of people as they might ask why and even how it could possibly be the same as it was before. But taking the core elements and making the show into something new wouldn’t be too hard, in fact if the animation was improved a bit it might even help the show out. Instead of the most basic graphics that resemble something from early versions of Mortal Kombat, creating something more dynamic and unique could possibly spice up the show.
It’s worth a try.
