By: Chris Suffield – Edited by Dutch Gordon
If you’ve ever wondered what your fruit gets up to when you’re not around, then the antics of The Annoying Orange is the web series you have waited your entire life for. Although a quick word of caution, you may never look at your fruit in the same way ever again.
Created by former MTV production assistant Dane ‘Danebo’ Boedigheimer in 2009, already an internet hit with the two Youtube channels Daneboe and Gagfilms he had set up and created original content for. After experimenting with different fruits he originally intended the star series to be The Annoying Apple, but after testing the anthropomorphic effects on the apple he decided it looked better on an orange and the rest is history.
The basic concept of the series chronicles the daily exploits of an Orange (voiced by Danebo), with his brash (but infectious) laugh and crude humour he is a constant source of annoyance to his fellow fruit friends who live on a kitchen worktop. There’s songs, puns galore, totally true tales and a parody of Rebecca Black’s Friday that’s every bit as annoying as the original.
Despite getting some negative reviews, The Annoying Orange has gone from cult favourite to internet phenomenon with well over 1 billion views on youtube alone. In just three short years the series has evolved into an animated version, video games, merchandise and a partnership with Relativity Media to promote the release of the movie Mirror, Mirror.
In 2011 making the transition that few web based shows achieve, a spin off series The High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange was commissioned by the Cartoon Network to be broadcast on television. The series ranks as one of the Cartoon Network’s highest rated shows and was also nominated for an Emmy.
The TV show relocates the action to the Daneboe’s supermarket (named after the creator) with Orange and his friends Passion Fruit, Grapefruit, Midget Apple, Pear, Marshmallow and the bitter Grandpa Lemon. In typical surreal style our heroes face off against alien broccoli, an army of evil vegetables and there are some famous voices bringing new characters to life.
Geek princess Felicia Day (The Guild) voices Peach and other guest stars throughout the series include William Shatner, Tim Curry, Scott Grimes, Jane Lynch, Billy Dee Williams, Weird Al Yankovic, Danny Trejo and Jim Parsons. Fellow internet sensation Toby Turner (Literal Trailers) also makes a regular appearance as super-market employee Nerville.
Some fans were concerned that the new TV series would mean the end of the web series but Daneboe wants both to co-exist and work in tandem. The TV show opens up a whole new audience, whilst a feature film might be a stretching the fairly weak concept too far there are millions of fans who want to see a big screen outing. Daneboe and his fellow writers Spencer Grove & Robert Jennings are talented and ambitious enough to make it work.
The key to a successful web series is sustainability, through a wide range of different formats The Annoying Orange continues to grow in popularity but hasn’t forgotten its roots by continuing to build a massive internet presence.
This won’t be to everybody’s tastes but if you like your comedy on the slightly strange, slightly childish side then check this web series out for your daily does of vitamins.
♦ End