Early into the season premiere of King of the Hill Season 14, the taciturn and set-in-his-ways Hank Hill (Mike Choose) is confronted with a latest phenomenon of the 2020s: The all-gender public toilet. It’s an ungainly second for him, however when he talks to his spouse Peggy (Kathy Najimy) about it later, he’s not offended — he’s simply nervous a few girl strolling in on him whereas he’s doing his enterprise. “That’s the way you get canceled,” he says. It’s an alternate that does a tidy job of capturing the spirit with which King of the Hill returns: Able to acknowledge the methods through which the world has modified because the unique sequence resulted in 2010, however with extra kindness than you would possibly count on.
When a revival of Greg Daniels and Choose’s long-running animated comedy was formally confirmed in January 2023, it was simple to think about the lazy jokes that might outcome, the satirizing of “woke-ness” that could be anticipated in a time when the crimson state vs. blue state battle has solely gotten extra intense. As an alternative, it’s a pleasure to say that King of the Hill has a form coronary heart beating in its chest, and thus it continues to be a candy, character-focused comedy. The present does deal with loads of politically appropriate touchstones, however the focus stays on the Hills and their mates, simply doing their finest to get by in difficult instances.
Whereas there have been no exhausting date stamps on the unique King of the Hill episodes, the primary 13 seasons did exist largely in a Simpsons-esque bubble the place time didn’t go a lot — Bobby could have been 11 when the sequence started and 13 when it ended. Slightly than maintain the Hills in that bubble, the brand new present jumps ahead by eight years within the characters’ private chronology.
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In the event you had been to do some math primarily based on when Season 13 completed airing (2010), that may theoretically set the present in 2018. However we’re undoubtedly in a post-pandemic 2020s period when Hank and Peggy return to Arlen after residing overseas for years. It’s a intelligent manner so as to add some fish-out-of-water rigidity to the sequence, as they address the adjustments that even their small Texas city has skilled.
Whereas their home stays the identical (due to their neighbor Brian, voiced by the at all times welcome Keith David) and the again alley stays a sizzling spot for ingesting beer along with your buds, the established order has been altered in a single dramatic manner: Bobby (Pamela Adlon) is now 21 years outdated and working his personal Japanese-German fusion restaurant in Dallas. Whereas changing into a enterprise proprietor has helped Bobby develop up rather a lot, he’s nonetheless fairly younger in different methods, and a giant a part of the brand new season is concentrated on him navigating his relationship together with his dad and mom as a quasi-adult. (He’s additionally courting now, and his light spirit makes his quest for love simple to root for.)
Hank’s small cluster of mates have additionally gone via their very own experiences whereas remaining comparatively true to themselves — like, of course conspiracy-loving Dale (voiced by each the not too long ago deceased Johnny Hardwick and Toby Huss) was an anti-masker, and candy shy Invoice (Stephen Root) didn’t deal with the stress of the pandemic properly. By them and others, the present does an admirable job of each reflecting at the moment’s vibe whereas additionally holding the concentrate on the humanity of those characters. Even a vegan character launched halfway via the season isn’t outlined solely by her weight-reduction plan and different viewpoints — she will get a full backstory and actual dimension by the tip.
The animation type stays clear and easy, precisely the way you bear in mind it, whereas the jokes nonetheless pop and the tales nonetheless ship some sudden twists. (The decision to an episode the place Peggy opens up a free lending library is wry, ironic, and hilarious.) And each Hardwick and the late Jonathan Joss are memorialized correctly by the present, after delivering performances that solely spotlight how a lot they’ll be missed.
The most effective facet of those 10 episodes is that they do lean exhausting into the way in which society has advanced, even whereas Hank’s core values haven’t — seeing the way in which his dedication to these core values run up in opposition to ideas like “males’s rights” is the place a few of the present’s finest jokes and most fascinating rigidity comes from.
Later within the season premiere, Hank and Peggy run throughout some Woman Scouts promoting cookies, and Hank asks in the event that they’ve received any Samoas. One of many ladies informs him that these cookies at the moment are known as Caramel Delites, to be extra delicate to folks from Samoa. “That’s a great change,” Hank says earlier than shopping for a field. “It’s good to be good,” the Woman Scout agrees. Phrases that really feel particularly good to listen to proper now from anybody, however particularly from a present like this.
King of the Hill Season 14 premieres August 4th on Hulu. Try the trailer under.
