Top-Rated Network Adds Five New Series and New Seasons from Nine Existing Series

Top-Secret Details of Aqua Teen Hunger Force Feature Announced

Completing its first full year as an individually rated network, the late-night service announced the new slate of programming on deck for 2006 at today’s Adult Swim Upfront event in New York. New series for the year are Death Clock Metalocalypse, Frisky Dingo, Assy McGee, Saul of the Mole Men and Lucy, The Daughter of the Devil. Two pilots were announced and will air later this year: Korgoth of Barbaria and That Crook’d ‘Sip. New seasons of current series Robot Chicken; Family Guy; Tom Goes to the Mayor; Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law; The Venture Bros.; Aqua Teen Hunger Force; 12oz. Mouse and Squidbillies will also air throughout the year. Adult Swim completed the first quarter of 2006 as the top-rated basic cable network among men 18-24 and men 18-34.

In addition to this year’s schedule, Adult Swim outlined details of the highly anticipated feature, The Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie Film for Theatres, slated to open in theaters this fall. The film, written by Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis, is based on their successful series about human-sized food products Meatwad, Frylock and Master Shake. The first movie based on an Adult Swim original series is an action epic that chronicles the mysterious origins of the trio and the battle over an immortal piece of exercise equipment.

Following are highlights:

New Series:

* Death Clock Metalocalypse: The world’s most popular heavy metal band leaves a trail of mayhem and destruction wherever they go. The animated comedy, from co-creators and executive producers Brendon Small and Tommy Blacha, will debut in August and feature ear-melting heavy metal and guest appearances by musicians like Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield of Metallica. Twenty episodes have been ordered.

* Frisky Dingo: Destroying the world seems like a lot of fun, but supervillain Killface finds that it can be a very tedious and complicated process. His nemesis, Awesome-X, is equally ambivalent about stopping Killface, as stamping out his plot fully might crush toy sales. Frisky Dingo, from Matt Thompson and Adam Reed, co-creators of Sealab 2021, will debut in September. Thirteen episodes have been ordered.

* Assy McGee: In a world where crooks run rampant and City Hall is soft on crime, one cop has what it takes to make things right. He’s Assy McGee, the toothpick chomping cop sniper who looks like a giant ass. He’s not much of a talker, but Assy is willing to take the first shot if he needs to eliminate a scumbag criminal. Assy McGee, from Carl Adams, Jon Benjamin and Matt Harrigan, will debut in December.

* Saul of the Mole Men: During a scientific expedition to the Earth’s core, a terra-naut stumbles upon a strange civilization of Mole Men-and nearly destroys it. Deftly combining live-action, puppets, animation and green screen technology, Saul of the Mole Men debuts in late 2006. Twenty episodes have been ordered.

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* Lucy, The Daughter of the Devil: Lucy is living in San Francisco and dating a great new guy, who might just be the Second Coming. The only problem is that her dad always meddles in her life. And, since he’s Satan, he is using her relationship as an excuse to hasten the apocalypse. The series, created by Loren Bouchard, has been given the greenlight for 10 episodes and will debut in late 2006.

New Seasons of Existing Series:

* Robot Chicken: Co-creators Seth Green and Matthew Senreich enlist an army of toys and celebrity friends to skewer pop culture in this stop-motion sketch comedy. A new season begins April 2. Ten additional new episodes are slated for September.

* Family Guy: The fast-moving series about the Griffin family continues with 17 new episodes beginning April 30 and airing throughout the year.

* Tom Goes to The Mayor: The unique partnership between bumbling bureaucrat The Mayor and self-proclaimed “idea man” Tom Peters continues in a new season of the series from Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, beginning June 4.

* The Venture Bros.: With Hank and Dean Venture presumably dead, Doc and Brock carry on as Team Venture and seek revenge on The Monarch and other villains in the second season of the series from Jackson Publick III. New episodes begin June 25.

* Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Meatwad, Frylock and Master Shake swim in their neighbor Carl’s above-ground pool and destroy things. A new season begins in September. Aqua Teen Hunger Force was created by Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis.

* 12oz. Mouse: Mouse, fond of beer and firearms, unravels a conspiracy in a new season that begins in September. 12oz. Mouse was created by Matt Maiellaro.

* Squidbillies: Redneck squids scratch out a hardscrabble existence against a backdrop of brown-liquor-fueled heartache and loss in the north Georgia mountains. A new season of 14 episodes of the Williams Street series Squidbillies, from Jim Fortier and Dave Willis, begins this September.

* Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law: The winged superhero returns for a new season of jurisprudence and office politics beginning this fall. Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law was created by Michael Ouweleen and Erik Richter.

Pilots in Development:

* Korgoth of Barbaria: In a dark future wasteland, the cities have fallen, primordial beasts have reclaimed the globe and thieves and savages populate sparse, dirty towns. Korgoth emerges from the frozen north, and his merciless savagery may be his only key to survival. Korgoth of Barbaria is an animated fantasy-action-adventure-comedy from Aaron Springer. The half-hour pilot episode will air in September.

* That Crook’d ‘Sip: The Beauregard family, much like their Mississippi mansion, is falling apart. Relics of the Old South, this dysfunctional clan sits in stark contrast to the modern crunk-fueled Dirty South that has grown up around their crumbling estate, Frenchman’s Bend. The pilot for That Crook’d Sip, created by Jacob Escobedo and Nick Weidenfeld, is now in production at Williams Street and will air in the fall.

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Animé Acquisitions:

* Eureka Seven: Renton is a young boy in a world where “lifting,” an extreme form of hoverboarding, is common. Renton’s life is changed forever by a mysterious and beautiful young girl named Eureka. Eureka Seven will debut on Adult Swim on Saturday, April 15.

* Bleach: Ichigo Kurosaki is an average 15-year-old who never asked for the ability to see ghosts. He was born with the gift. When his family is attacked by a Hollow, a malevolent lost soul, Ichigo becomes a Soul Reaper, dedicating his life to protecting the innocent and helping the tortured spirits find peace. Bleach debuts this fall.

* InuYasha: The adventures of human girl, Kagome, and InuYasha, who is half-demon, continue with a new season. New episodes of the series, set in a mystical, feudal Japan, air on Wednesdays through September.

Adult Swim (AdultSwim.com), launched in 2001, is Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.’s network offering original and acquired animated comedy and action series for young adults. Airing overnights six days a week for a total of 45 hours weekly, Adult Swim shares channel space with Cartoon Network, home to the best in original, classic and acquired programming for children and families, and is seen in 89 million U.S. homes.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, is a major producer of news and entertainment product around the world and the leading provider of programming for the basic cable industry.