Cable network FX on Monday will
premiere Chozen, the new adults-only cartoon starring Bobby
Moynihan (Saturday Night Live) as gay rap artist Chozen.
In the pilot episode, we learn that
Phantasm (played by Cliff “Method Man” Smith) framed Chozen for
crimes he did not commit. After a decade in prison – where he
discovered that he's gay – Chozen is looking to reboot his rap
career.
Grant DeKernion created the animated
series, which is a collaboration between the producers of Eastbound
&Down and the producers of Archer.
“Sexuality is a big part of him but
not all of him,” DeKernion told gay glossy Out. “So I
added all these other traits as well: He's getting out of jail. He
is up for a crime he didn't commit. He's living on the couch at a
liberal arts university.”
In reviewing the show, The
Washington Post's Hank Stuever criticized Chozen's
obsession with prison rape jokes.
“None of this will come as a surprise
to fans of Archer, the profane secret-agent spoof (beginning
its fifth season Monday night) that crosses just about any line you
care to draw concerning sex, drugs and violent imagery. But where
Archer sort of stylishly crosses it, Chozen clumsily
trips and falls,” Stuever
opined.
But while conceding that the show is
based on an offensive stereotype, Out looked to a budding
romance between Chozen and frat boy Hunter (Ike Barinholtz) to find a
glimmer of hope.
“The notion of the romance alone is
enough to suggest that the show can potentially grow past the crude
jokes in its initial offering,” the
magazine wrote.
(A trailer for the show is embedded on
this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)