Would A King Of The Hill Reboot Work?

[GlitchMarner]

I personally enjoyed KOTH a lot and found the plots more engaging than the plots of shows like The Simpsons and Family Guy. It also had a nice touch of dry humor.

However, I don't think it would go over too well today if it was brought back. The depictions of Kahn and his family and John Redcorn may bother some people (think of the Apu controversy The Simpsons has had to face). I I don't think I'd like to see the show revived, but I'd check it out if it was.

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[izzy]

its interesting that the group of people offended (vocally) by things like apu or kahn are the same people who quote michael scott in their social media bios

 

[Mr Fahrenheit]

Why would you have to reboot it? How did it end?

 

[The Night King]

I enjoyed it but, nah. Brittany Murphy and Tom Prett are dead. Wouldn't feel right.

I'd much rather Mike Judge bring back Beavis and Butt-head.

 

[KesselBuiltMyHotrod]

What's your problem with John Redcorn?

 

[Voight]

Society was much different when it was on so why do we need to change the show because some softies are offended?

Man I miss Boomhauer.

 

[GlitchMarner]

What's your problem with John Redcorn?

I don't have a problem with him. I'm saying some people might if KOTH was brought back. There's been a lot of controversy over Apu (who's a character that's decades old and that has never bothered me) for some reason.

 

[GlitchMarner]

Why would you have to reboot it? How did it end?

There was some talk that it would or might be brought back a while back, but I haven't heard anything about whether it will be lately.

 

[End on a Hinote]

its interesting that the group of people offended (vocally) by things like apu or kahn are the same people who quote michael scott in their social media bios

Why so? Not being sarcastic, I actually dont know (I barely watched The Office).


As for the OP, KotH is the one show I went from liking to hating due to 1 episode (Uh oh, Canada).

 

[izzy]

Why so? Not being sarcastic, I actually dont know (I barely watched The Office).


As for the OP, KotH is the one show I went from liking to hating due to 1 episode (Uh oh, Canada).

because michael constantly says racist and homophobic things

 

[ArGarBarGar]

because michael constantly says racist and homophobic things

They aren't really that comparable. Apu was an Indian caricature played by a white dude (where his heritage and Indian stereotypes are the jokes) which led to Indian people saying "hey this isn't the best look."

Michael Scott's remarks are almost always framed in a "that was a bad thing" context, which is the point of the joke.

 

[Babe Ruth]

Reboot would be completely unwarranted.. but that's never stopped any of the other reboots.

Judge did briefly reboot Beavis & Butthead about 10 years ago.. seems like nobody remembers that (?)

My opinion, the Judge series that could use a second chance is The Goode Family. Never really developed..

 

[93LEAFS]

Reboot likely coming set 15 years after the last episode. I can't wait to see where they've taken Dale. He was Q-Anon, before Q-Anon.

 

[Mantis]

I enjoyed it but, nah. Brittany Murphy and Tom Prett are dead. Wouldn't feel right.

I'd much rather Mike Judge bring back Beavis and Butt-head.

Tom Petty was a very minor character and Luanne was pretty bad as well (manger babies). You could just say they moved somewhere.
The 2011 Beavis and Butthead episodes were actually pretty funny so I would be all for bringing either show back.

 

[tarheelhockey]

The ethos of KOTH worked really well for its time and place. That was the era when small-town Texas was a crucible for not just American, but global politics. There was a lot of undercurrent to the humor, but they played it so straight that everyone could laugh for one reason or another. Much like All In the Family or Married With Children, it was just close enough to reality for people to find it relatable, but also to see the absurdity of it (I actually think KOTH did a better job selling the absurdity than the other two shows, which I think some people failed to see as satire).

It would seem a bit out-of-step if it were rebooted as a new show. Hank Hill would be almost 70 in real life by now. He's an iconic small-town Boomer white male, and that doesn't play quite the same way in their senior years as it did during their midlife crisis years. By the same token, a 2020s version of "50 year old white male Protestant former high school athlete from suburban small-town Texas" doesn't play quite as well right now as it did 15 years ago. You don't want to mock the guy to an uncomfortable level, but the political edges are too sharp to play it completely straight. It would be a hell of a balancing act to tune the humor for everyone to see it as funny, which is what KOTH did brilliantly in its heyday.

 

[93LEAFS]

The ethos of KOTH worked really well for its time and place. That was the era when small-town Texas was a crucible for not just American, but global politics. There was a lot of undercurrent to the humor, but they played it so straight that everyone could laugh for one reason or another. Much like All In the Family or Married With Children, it was just close enough to reality for people to find it relatable, but also to see the absurdity of it (I actually think KOTH did a better job selling the absurdity than the other two shows, which I think some people failed to see as satire).

It would seem a bit out-of-step if it were rebooted as a new show. Hank Hill would be almost 70 in real life by now. He's an iconic small-town Boomer white male, and that doesn't play quite the same way in their senior years as it did during their midlife crisis years. By the same token, a 2020s version of "50 year old white male Protestant former high school athlete from suburban small-town Texas" doesn't play quite as well right now as it did 15 years ago. You don't want to mock the guy to an uncomfortable level, but the political edges are too sharp to play it completely straight. It would be a hell of a balancing act to tune the humor for everyone to see it as funny, which is what KOTH did brilliantly in its heyday.

I think Hank is always fairly centered. Yes, he's right leaning but he hates idiots. I'd say the issues it could run into is that America has become too polarized to walk the middle ground of making ultra-progressives and the far-right/Q-Anon. I'd love to see what they do with Bobby. That's the key. I'm hoping for hipster pit-master who only cooks with Post-Oak, like true Central Texas BBQ, maybe running Sugarfoot's.

I think you are over-estimating Hank's age. My guess is he's in his early 40's most of the show. They only really aged up one or two years from its start in 1998. And I doubt he had Bobby going off the show's timeline at 37-40. I would think Hank is still under 60, Bobby is in his late 20's etc.

In my opinion, Mike Judge is the best person in entertainment at writing relatable satire.

 

[tarheelhockey]

I'd say the issues it could run into is that America has become too polarized to walk the middle ground of making ultra-progressives and the far-right/Q-Anon.

That's pretty much what I was trying to express. 20 years ago there was a deep political division, but very broadly speaking the culture tended to think in terms of the common middle ground. That culture has been laid waste by the emergence of social media, where we are all but socially engineered to think of every single thing in terms of polar political opposites.

That distinction, Middle America vs Polarity, drives to the heart of virtually everything we do anymore. It would be incredibly hard to write a character who could be truly relatable across those divisions, especially for the purpose of parody. If you lean even the slightest little bit in one direction or the other, it's labeled as propaganda for The Other Side.

I think you are over-estimating Hank's age. My guess is he's in his early 40's most of the show. They only really aged up one or two years from its start in 1998. And I doubt he had Bobby going off the show's timeline at 37-40. I would think Hank is still under 60, Bobby is in his late 20's etc.

Officially he was born in 1953, so about 45 when the show came out. That would make him 68 today.

Bobby was a 1985 birthday, so 11-13 in the show's timeline and 36 today.

 

[93LEAFS]

That's pretty much what I was trying to express. 20 years ago there was a deep political division, but very broadly speaking the culture tended to think in terms of the common middle ground. That culture has been laid waste by the emergence of social media, where we are all but socially engineered to think of every single thing in terms of polar political opposites.

That distinction, Middle America vs Polarity, drives to the heart of virtually everything we do anymore. It would be incredibly hard to write a character who could be truly relatable across those divisions, especially for the purpose of parody. If you lean even the slightest little bit in one direction or the other, it's labeled as propaganda for The Other Side.



Officially he was born in 1953, so about 45 when the show came out. That would make him 68 today.

Bobby was a 1985 birthday, so 11-13 in the show's timeline and 36 today.

True, I assume 15 years aged up from when it ended. They didn't age them up yearly (I think they aged up twice). So, I would think in their 50's and mid-20's. Bobby's still in middle-school at the end, likely making him 13/14.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

Here is the link

King of the Hill Returns? Animated Revival Series in 'Hot Negotiations' - IGN


All I can say is....YES!!!! One of my favorite shows growing up, it should have never went off the air. Can't wait to see bobby as an adult.

 

[tarheelhockey]

True, I assume 15 years aged up from when it ended. They didn't age them up yearly (I think they aged up twice). So, I would think in their 50's and mid-20's. Bobby's still in middle-school at the end, likely making him 13/14.

I'm just going by what's listed as official on their Fandom pages... apparently Bobby ended the series at 13 and Hank never had a birthday and just stayed stuck at 45.

Looking at the comments on that page, it seems they had to do some reconning about Hank's age because the series ran so long. At different times they said outright that he was born in '53, then moved it up to '54, then '59. But you have to figure, he's 45 and the show came out in 1997, so he can only be on the younger side if you're thinking about it from the end of the series backward, rather than from the beginning forward. In order for him to be in his 50s now he'd have to be born in the mid/late 60s, which seems like it would give him a fundamentally different set of life experiences.

 

[Guardian17]

I really enjoyed KOTH, but, after 13 seasons, are there any more stories left to tell especially with Luanne's voice actor deceased?

 

[discostu]

In my opinion, Mike Judge is the best person in entertainment at writing relatable satire.

I agree with this, and feel like his talents would be better served with an original project. There may be some value to going back to KOTH, although I agree with the idea that the current polarity would make it difficult.

It's better to see what modern targets he would hit.

 

[93LEAFS]

I agree with this, and feel like his talents would be better served with an original project. There may be some value to going back to KOTH, although I agree with the idea that the current polarity would make it difficult.

It's better to see what modern targets he would hit.

Not trying to get too political, but as someone who identifies as a relative centerist. I'm ecstatic to see King of the Hill return. Do sort of wish it was a niche streaming project though, where it can focus more on a loyal fan base who stream and not worry about the risk of pissing a ton of people off like a Network show will.

 

[93LEAFS]

I really enjoyed KOTH, but, after 13 seasons, are there any more stories left to tell especially with Luanne's voice actor deceased?

Yeah, since so much of the show is about satirizing society, and they are all getting aged up. I will say, I am going to deeply miss Colonol Cotton Hill. Although, I'm not even sure you could put that character on TV anymore, at least on over the air.

 

[SniperHF]

They should definitely not age the characters if they do reboot it and I will not watch it if they do so as it seems Judge wants to.