KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 9 — Nathan W. Pyle’s Strange Planet comic strip came to life on the Internet but there’s nothing unusual about how it became so popular.
Pyle’s work then grew into a graphic novel of the same name and became a New York Times bestseller and has now made its debut on Apple TV+ as an animated series.
I’ve long been a big fan of Pyle’s art because beneath the droll premise of blue aliens living lives similar to ours is a deep understanding of human nature and a persistent, pervasive kindness.
My favourite strip is one captioned “Composure” that shows an alien musing on what a difficult day it has been and just as the alien reaches for a paper towel, it breaks in half.
The alien tries to make light of it but ends up weeping because that “small setback” is the final straw to make them break down after a hard day.
It’s charming and also so relatable; which I suppose is an excellent way to summarise Pyle’s work.
How then would an animated series take the charm of a strip that works by summarising a premise in four panels into a whole TV show?
Much in the same way as the strip I would say, retaining the same sweetness and light jokes about the human condition.
There is a pretty impressive line-up behind the scenes, with Dan Harmon (Rick and Morty, Community) co-creating and executive producing the show alongside Pyle himself.
Apple Studios and ShadowMachine are also joint-producing the show.
Voicing the quirky cerulean beings are Emmy Award nominee Hannah Einbinder (Hacks), Gotham Award nominee Tunde Adebimpe (Rachel Getting Married), Emmy Award nominee Demi Adejuyigbe (The Amber Ruffin Show), Lori Tan Chinn (Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens) as well as Critics Choice Award nominee Danny Pudi (Community).
The show touches lightly on everyday things, whether it be struggles at the workplace, children growing up and asserting independence and that awkwardness of navigating a new love relationship all wrapped up in the simple setting of a planet much like ours except maybe the people have fewer fingers and are a shade of blue.
Whether or not you’ve read or heard about Strange Planet as a book or online strip, you’ll still be able to appreciate the gentle humour of the show.
Strange Planet is now on Apple TV+ with the first two episodes out now and the remaining ones to be released weekly.
