Fort Smith native Brad Neely, who we called “the funniest man on web TV” in a 2007 profile, is headed to regular TV. At 11 p.m. on Oct. 2, his new show “China, IL” debuts on Adult Swim. It brings together characters from his cult-favorite “Neely Comics” series of web videos, including Frank and Steve Smith (A.K.A. the Professor Brothers) and Babycakes, all of which Neely will voice. Indie film star Greta Gerwig (“Baghead,” “Hannah Takes the Stairs”) provides the voice of Steve’s assistant, Pony, and Hulk Hogan voices the university’s dean.
As someone who’s watched pretty much all of “Neely Comics,” this new, cleaner look of the characters weirds me out to some degree. But as long as Neely’s voice hasn’t been sanitized or altered, I’m hopeful.
You can see a behind-the-scenes look at the show (without anything from Neely) here.