Hello and welcome to Project Nitsuj. Let’s turn the clock back to 2017. It was a big year for the videogame industry. Aside from Nintendo releasing the Switch, the year saw a number of great games get released. It was like every month we were getting a game of the year candidate. Horizon, Nioh, Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, South Park, Sonic Mania, NieR, and Persona 5 just to name a few. But one game that really got people’s attention was the indie game Cuphead. Created by Studio MDHR, the game follows the story of an anthropomorphic cup named Cuphead and his brother Mugman who lose their souls to the Devil. In order to save themselves they must now go around and collect the souls of others. The game was essentially a run and gun/boss battle marathon where the players would have to fight bosses who had multiple phases to their battles and you the player having to adapt to them. The game was no walk in the park as the bosses were tough and when you died you had to start over from the beginning thus the game required you to play and die in order to learn the bosses different phases, what items to use, and type of weapon as well. However, the real selling point for this game was the graphics. The whole game was a homage to the rubber hose style of animation which came before the golden age of animation where we got Disney and Looney Tunes. This was the era of animation that pretty much defined the principles of animation that are still used today and the game looks and sounds exactly like a cartoon from this era. The game was a big hit and would go on to be released on multiple platforms over the years showing just how popular the game was. And five years later the game is still being talked about and loved by everyone. The ultimate love letter being its own Netflix series. Yep, in 2021 Netflix announced that they were taking the game and making it a cartoon. This surprised a lot of people but at the same time made a lot of sense, if there was any indie game out there that could work as a cartoon it’s Cuphead and seeing as how Netflix had success with Castlevania everybody had a good feeling about the show. The question was what would they do? Would they follow the storyline from the game or do their own thing and would it succeed? Well let’s find out. Let’s see why old school cartoons are still great, this is The Cuphead Show.
Episodes 1-4
So the first episode right away establishes that this is going to be its own story separate from the game. We get introduced to Cuphead and Mugman who have the personalities you would expect. Cuphead is irresponsible, fun-loving, and reckless while Mugman is more mature, responsible, and the voice of reason (however, he’s not a stick in the mud and enjoys having fun too just like his brother). Once the two get tasked by their guardian, Elder Kettle, to paint the fence they shirk it off and instead go to a carnevil (no I did not misspell). Little do they know the carnevil is actually a trap set up by The Devil to steal souls (now one of the things this show does great is expand on the personalities of the characters. In the game, The Devil was just seen as nothing more than a standard villain you have to beat. Here, they give him more of a personality. He’s flamboyant, he’s evil, enjoys the suffering of others, he’s egotistical and cocky. The writers know that they can’t just copy and paste from the game, they have to flush these characters out more if they want this to work and be a hit. Scene here: https://youtu.be/Z-FtHrB-rQE). When Cuphead loses his soul in a game, The Devil comes to claim it but he and Mugman run away. We get a creative chase scene throughout the carnevil (they even go into the funhouse and actually expand on it which I like). The two manage to destroy the soul stealing machine to get everyone’s soul back and escape, but The Devil vows to take Cuphead’s soul (scene here: https://youtu.be/pdXjtf6tjM4).
In episode 2 Elder Kettle leaves the boys at home to get his mustache waxed where he tells them not to fight or touch his radio. Once he leaves the boys start to fight simply for the fact that they’re not supposed to (that is such a boy thing to do). Their fighting stops when a baby called Baby Bottle gets dropped off on their doorstep (scene here: https://youtu.be/_uuI2TyN6r8). The boys take in the baby where it causes nothing but trouble. It destroys the house and even the radio. When Elder Kettle arrives back home to see his house destroyed he’s surprisingly okay with it, but that all changes when he sees his radio destroyed. Elder Kettle gets beaten up by Baby Bottle who eventually tires itself out and falls asleep. The three then ditch the baby on the next house to get rid of it (scene here: https://youtu.be/iVnti87xKcE. Yeah, not as good as the first episode. In fact, this may just be the weakest episode in the season).
Episode 3 introduces us to Ribby and Croaks (respectable businessmen this time around and don’t you forget it or Croaks will pound you. Scene here: https://youtu.be/XP22Qq7tYFg). After the boys get their money stolen by the boxing frogs, they hop aboard their ship and sneak in to steal some ice cream (they’re children, they don’t care about the concept of money, all they care about is free food). Once again, the episode does a good job expanding on the cruise ship level such as the butcher having marriage problems and Ribby and Croaks always fighting each other. Once Cuphead and Mugman get discovered, Ribby and Croaks try to catch them which results in them sinking the ship and our cups getting their ice cream (scene here: https://youtu.be/nnsjydErQGU).
In episode 4 the boys accidently break Mugman’s handle turning him into a grotesque bowlboy (scenes here: https://youtu.be/H8YF69fn2uk and https://youtu.be/8dPcmn3HUqo). They go to Porkrind for glue but he’s all out and won’t get a new shipment until 3 months from now (such is the hardships of living on an island). Once they return home, Elder Kettle explains to Mugman that his handle fell off because it’s his baby handle and the handle fairy will bring him his new and improved man handle (https://youtu.be/4sJRkj9DP9Y). This cheers Mugman up and Cuphead wanting a man handle himself (https://youtu.be/jzA092H8Afk) breaks his handle as well (scene here: https://youtu.be/2J-y3tv4d_8). The next morning the boys have new handles which were done by Elder Kettle.
Episodes 5-8
Episode 5 sees the introduction of everyone’s favorite character from the game, King Dice, who hosts a game show called Roll the Dice which works as a cover to steal souls for The Devil (scene here: https://youtu.be/xYmIRkitnnQ, and he has the best voice. That’s Wayne Brady doing the voice of King Dice and he captures the personality of this character so well). Once Cuphead and Mugman walk into the theatre, Cuphead gets chosen to Roll the Dice and King Dice uses this chance to steal Cuphead’s soul for The Devil. What happens next is a funny series of events as King Dice does everything in his power to make sure Cuphead wins (and the interactions between these two is hilarious). When it’s time for Cuphead to roll the dice he rolls them so hard that they explode (Mira: Now how does that work? (Nitsuj): First rule of rubber hose, logic and physics are thrown out the window). King Dice says he wins anyway but the crowd calls rig and Cuphead wanting to save his dignity exits the stage and leaves. The Devil punishes King Dice for his failure by firing him from the show and letting one of his henchmen host it (scene here: https://youtu.be/OQIjrs2UkWw).
For episode 6 the boys got done seeing a zombie movie and in order to make it home on time they take a short cut through the creepy cemetery. They get trapped inside where they get haunted by the ghosts (and this is the episode where they do show off some of the animation effects. Scene here: https://youtu.be/Wwr1eI49g0M). They eventually escape and make it back home where Elder accuses them of being zombies and attacks them.
At the start of episode 7 Elder Kettle gets injured tending his vegetable garden and the boys offer to watch it for him. As you would imagine they get bored easily and when the Root Pack (no relation to the Rat Pack) shows up offering to take care of the garden for them, the boys accept and go to a movie (scene here: https://youtu.be/VBqBGxRqTlM). When they return home, they see that the Root Pack has taken over and thrown a party in their absence (now if only vegan parties were like this, I’d go to them). The boys try to stop the party and finally manage to succeed by making the onion cry (oh that means they miss the radish) and make everyone blow this pity party (now it is starting to sound like a vegan party). The Root Pack get revenge by sucking up all the nutrients in the garden to kill the vegetables. When Elder sees the well nourished Root Pack he mistakes them for his vegetables and gets ready to cook them (vegetable stew does sound good right about now). The Root Pack runs away to end the episode (scene here: https://youtu.be/I-01Jn_N1hk).
We return to the main story of the series in episode 8 where the episode funny enough starts off like the first episode before taking an unexpected dark turn. It turns out it was all a nightmare Cuphead had about The Devil. Despite his male bravado from the first episode he really is worried about The Devil coming for his soul (scene here: https://youtu.be/1_KpMCqDb4U). In order to save Cuphead, Mugman and him go to Quadratus for help where he gives invisible yarn to make a sweater that will keep The Devil at bay. Mugman has to knit the sweater himself as the sweater must be made with brotherly love in order for it to work (scene here: https://youtu.be/HdCx09Mxmw8). Speaking of The Devil we see him completely not care about collecting Cuphead’s soul until his auditor keeps nagging him about it (https://youtu.be/CEjFnlWst4A) and he goes to get Cuphead’s soul just to shut him up (I’ve been there buddy). Mugman finishes the sweater just in time and when The Devil tries to retrieve the soul he gets zapped (the power of brotherly love compels you). The Devil tries to trick Cuphead to take off the sweater but Mugman is there to point out the tricks and save his brother. In the end, The Devil fails to get Cuphead’s soul, but he does manage to shut the auditor up for the time being (scene here: https://youtu.be/ndqGV2DVBOY).
Episodes 9-12
The story continues in episode 9 where The Devil continues to try and steal Cuphead’s soul and he keeps failing (and the funny thing is Cuphead and Mugman start to see it as more of an annoyance as time goes on. Scene here: https://youtu.be/3SvLW-hMu0c). As the episode goes on we get a shout out to Fantasia with The Devil painting a fence and the boys sneaking off to ride a new rollercoaster (scenes here: https://youtu.be/qiUdmoD8F4g and https://youtu.be/yI8lokniS7k). While there Cuphead takes off the sweater and Mugman has to find it. This leaves Cuphead alone with The Devil where surprisingly the two bond with each other, but once The Devil discovers he’s no longer wearing the sweater the good times are over (scene here: https://youtu.be/XmtTUJ9oTFA). Mugman arrives with the sweater and puts it on The Devil to save Cuphead. The Devil retreats back to Hell with the sweater being moved to an undisclosed location and leaving Cuphead defenseless.
Nothing much to say about episode 10. The boys invade Porkrind’s shop and annoy him so he sends them on a quest to get rid of them. The boys mistake his request for stealing an egg when really it was to pick up his laundry. Thanks to Mugman the boys manage to retrieve the egg which just happens to belong to everyone’s favorite three-headed dragon (scenes here: https://youtu.be/2IByKclt2gQ and https://youtu.be/ISuuN5DeHIQ, looks like we’re having rare ham tonight).
Episode 11 focuses on Elder Kettle who after overhearing the boys talk about their dying pet worm mistakes it for them talking about him and decides to go all army on them and take them out instead (scenes here: https://youtu.be/PNVTsRzJYCo and https://youtu.be/etYH5sg9kp0). The plan doesn’t go as he would have hoped and they clear up the misunderstanding after a number of comedic antics (I actually do like how they hint at Elder Kettle being an athlete as well as a decorated soldier in his youth).
In the final episode we get introduced to Chalice or Ms. Chalice (because I work for her?). Now, out of all the character changes and expansions this is the one character who goes through the most change. In the game she came across as this wise spirit from the past who was mature, graceful, and mysterious (it was even hinted that she might have been the ancestor of Cuphead and Mugman). Here, she’s a troublemaker just like the boys only smarter and sneakier in her antics to get what she wants (scenes here: https://youtu.be/iQAj7H5eGFs, https://youtu.be/U4xfcwUT4r0, and https://youtu.be/2kf_s43R-JI. And I like this personality change). Cuphead and Mugman befriend her and she teaches them how to turn on the charm to get what they want (results may vary if you’re a male, but if you’re a female it’s guaranteed to work). She helps them sneak into a cookie factory where they trip the silent alarm and the cops show up. Chalice bails on them and the boys get arrested ending the season on a major cliffhanger with them in jail (scene here: https://youtu.be/yGuiJ_eboHM).
Final Thoughts
And that was the first season of The Cuphead Show. How was it? Well, it was good. While nothing spectacular like Castlevania, the show was a lot fun to watch. I like how they expanded on the world and the inhabits of Inkwell. The best episodes are the ones that feature The Devil. He is my favorite character followed by Mugman. The characters of Cuphead and Mugman are likable and I like the way they work off each other. It was also great to see other characters from the game as well. Some voices are better than others, but I enjoyed all the voices and after a few episodes they grow on you. While some might complain about the length and episodic episodes that bounce around from story to story it kind of works here. Most cartoons during this era were short and the cartoons bounced around from story to story with these characters caught in various situations and us getting a laugh at seeing how they would get out of it. The animation looks great. It looks like a modern-day rubber hose cartoon and I just love all the various background characters. Some are animals while others are anthropomorphic items or food. This show really does capture the beauty of a rubber hose cartoon where logic just gets thrown out and the only thing that matters is putting a smile on your face. The music is also great. I was always excited when I heard music from the game and the new music pieces are good too and fit well within the series.
Final Score
The final score for season one of The Cuphead Show is a 7/10. A good first season that perfectly represents the game and honors the legacy of the rubber hose cartoons. It’s already been announced that a second season is in the works and that the show will have a total of 48 episodes so that’s exciting. I can’t wait to see what happens next in the series. Will they continue this episodic route? Will we get a full ongoing story? Will we see more villains from the game make their appearance (please give me Hilda and let her be voiced by Tara Strong)? Only time will tell, but one thing is for certain, this show is a lot of fun watch. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.