Propane rules! Fox has renewed King of the Hill for a 13th season. The down home hilarity of Hank and Peggy Hill, their son Bobby and dog Lady Bird, will continue for another year, likely remaining in Fox's strong Sunday night animation lineup that includes The Simpsons, Family Guy and American Dad -- although that's only speculation on my part.Creators Mike Judge (the voice of Hank and Boomhauer) and Greg Daniels (The Office) will continue at the helm, and all the usual characters remain. That means more of Kathy Najimy as Peggy, Brittany Murphy as Luanne, Pamela Adlon as Bobby, Johnny Hardwick as Dale, and Stephen Root as Bill.
The beauty of King of the Hill is in the quiet, subtle humor. It's not loud and raucous like The Simpsons, nor filled with topical inside jokes about pop culture like Family Guy and American Dad -- all of which are terrific and very funny.
King of the Hill, to me, is more observational and maybe even gentler. Peggy going to a Boggle Championship, Bobby learning to drive, Hank's obsession with the Dallas Cowboys and all things propane, and, of course, their odd gaggle of friends and neighbors.
It's especially gratifying that Fox has given King the thumbs up for another season considering how close they came to canceling it in the past. The show, which is an Emmy award-winner (1999) for its consistently excellent production -- and in many ways more realistic depiction of life -- has never been a ratings grabber for the network. In 2005, Fox nearly pulled the plug, but a surge in the Nielsen kept the show off the chopping block.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-04-2008 @ 11:57AM
Erica said...
I love KOTH, so this is great news, I hope Luanne has that baby next season
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4-04-2008 @ 12:17PM
Oreo said...
This trash gets 13 seasons, Futurama gets 4.
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4-04-2008 @ 12:26PM
Christopher said...
Speak on it!
4-04-2008 @ 12:44PM
Michael said...
@Oreo
"trash" is in the eye of the beholder..."King of the Hill" is a fantastic show...and I'd like to remind you that Futurama is airing new episodes on Comedy Central.
5-22-2008 @ 9:08PM
Mark "The Hobo" Watson said...
In addition to King of the Hill, Mike Judge is the voice of
one of the members of "The Goode Family," premiering
in mid-season exclusively on ABC. Start here, Oreo! I have posted a sneak peek below at http://www.tvsquad
.com.
4-04-2008 @ 12:36PM
ed said...
KOTCH is, at it's best, so dry and subtle it kills me with laughter. I hope they produce some more inspired episodes.
But I'd trade a renewal for an Arrested Development return!
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4-04-2008 @ 12:59PM
shawn said...
far from trash.
this is great news.
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4-04-2008 @ 1:04PM
JW said...
I don't know anyone who doesn't like King of the Hill. FOX has done something right it seems like; unlike canceling new shows after one episode.
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4-04-2008 @ 1:39PM
kevjohn said...
Hello, my name is Kevin Johnson.
Congratulations. You now know someone who doesn't like King of the Hill.
4-04-2008 @ 1:10PM
jayr2345 said...
KOTH is great, its so not over the top its hilarious. And if you don't like King of the Hill, all I can say to you is "I'LL KICK YOUR ASS!!!!!". (lol)
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4-04-2008 @ 1:28PM
Franklin said...
The subtlety of King of the Hill is exactly why I like it so much. It's nice to see animation that doesn't feel the need to be so over-the-top with everything. I long ago grew tired of The Simpsons, although I do enjoy an occasional episode, and I never could stomach Family Guy or American Dad, so KOTH is really one of the few animated shows I enjoy.
It's good to see FOX making sane decisions every now and then.
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4-04-2008 @ 1:49PM
Vito said...
Mike Judge has a... complicated relationship with FOX. Glad to see there'll be another season of the show, though. King of the Hill is easily the most underrated cartoon ever.
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4-04-2008 @ 1:54PM
Peanut said...
I don't want to speak for JW, but he or she probably should have said "I don't want to know anyone who doesn't like King of the Hill."
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4-04-2008 @ 2:49PM
kevjohn said...
Oh well. Can't undo what's already been done. :)
(that seems like a very Bill Dauterive thing to say) heh
4-04-2008 @ 2:03PM
John Howard said...
I didn't realize it was even still on. Actually, I thought it had been gone for several years.
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4-04-2008 @ 3:01PM
Prateek said...
Clearly those who say it's trash have not watched much of the show. It takes time to digest the characters but once you know what it's all about there's some quality here. It's a gentle show that never runs out of steam. I always tell people who aren't interested that it's by the guy who did Office Space and from the some of the writers of the Office and if you're an avid fan of Office Space and The Office you can definitely see a similarity in the humor. Anyways congrats to Mike Judge and Greg Daniels. Glad to see there's still some good FOX executives. And frankly having Futurama back in any form is good enough for me.
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4-04-2008 @ 3:07PM
MCW said...
Does anyone know, has Judge ever stated that he didn't want to do any more Beavis & Butthead? I miss it.
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4-04-2008 @ 4:20PM
ac said...
KOTH is my least favorite of Mike Judge's work. Bevis & Butthead, Idiocracy, and my favorite film Office Space are far surperior I think.
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4-04-2008 @ 7:00PM
GeoBQn said...
I'm happy for this, but I think the writers have been treating this like it's the final season since they have been wrapping up long-running storylines. In some cases (Cotton Hill), the closure is permanent. I hope that they can pursue other stuff that they haven't had a chance to, like having Bobby enter high school and making Luanne actually LOOK pregnant.
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