Capitol Critters


Capitol Critters is an American animated sitcom produced by Steven Bochco Productions and Hanna-Barbera in association with [20th Television|20th Century Fox Television] for ABC. The show is about the lives of mice, rats, and roaches who reside in the basement and walls of the White House in Washington, D.C. Seven out of the show's 13 episodes were aired on ABC from January 28 to March 14, 1992. Cartoon Network later aired all 13 episodes from 1995 through 1996. ABC Signature and Touchstone Television's successor company 20th Television currently holds the rights to the show.
The series was part of a spate of attempts by major networks to develop prime time animated shows to compete with the success of Fox's The Simpsons, alongside CBS's Fish Police and Family Dog. The latter two, along with Capitol Critters, proved unsuccessful and were quickly cancelled.

Premise

A young mouse named Max is forced to flee his home on a farm in Nebraska after his family is killed by exterminators. He travels to Washington, D.C. to live with his hippie cousin Berkley, rebellious rat Jammet, and Jammet’s mother Trixie. Max also befriends a hip cockroach named Moze and a former laboratory rat named Muggle who still suffers from the side effects of the experiments he is put through that often have him exploding.
The group has to deal with the White House's resident cats, which are caricatures of then-President George H. W. Bush and Vice President Dan Quayle. The episodes' themes reference current issues of the day, including gun control and drug abuse.

Cast

Reception

Capitol Critters was cancelled after less than two months. In its short run, the series dealt with such topics as politics, racial segregation, drug addiction, and mortality. In his review of the series, Variety critic Brian Lowry wrote that "at its best, the show seems to ape the work of film director Ralph Bakshi by using an animated setting to explore adult themes", and that "the bland central character and cartoonish elements will likely be off-putting to many adults, who won't find the political satire biting enough to merit their continued attention. Similarly, kids probably won't be as smitten with the cartoon aspects or look". Capitol Critters had their own Burger King Kids Club toys in 1992, which featured Jammet, Max, Muggle, and a Presidential Cat sitting on or emerging from miniature Washington, D.C., monuments.