In mourning for The Life & Times of Tim

Photo: HBO

Earlier this month HBO canceled The Life & Times of Tim, the animated series that features a lovable loser named Tim whose life consists of one awkward situation after the next. Its cancellation upset the small but devoted following that loved it who eventually created a Facebook page dedicated to saving it.

Creator Steve Dardarian, the former advertising copywriter who voices Tim, puts him into hapless situations where he usually fails to rescue himself with some bit of his dignity intact.

Tim’s world is populated by girlfriend Amy, besties Stu and Rodney, a horny priest with a bachelor pad loft complete with wet bar, and his boss (The Boss) and co-workers at Omnicorp, a typical cubicle ghetto, and Debbie, the neighborhood prostitute who favors wearing derriere-free pants.

Photo: Animation Magazine

Dildarian cites Larry David of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” as an influence but Tim is no curmudgeon like the fictional David. But the humor is just as awkward, politically incorrect and hilarious, and the positions Tim finds himself in never fail to end badly for him. Misunderstandings and humiliating situations, complete with sexist and other offensive remarks, are the order of Tim’s days. He is a sad sack who grows a beard after breaking up with his girlfriend, only to be compared with the homeless guy who lives outside his office building who becomes a favorite of his boss. Fortunately for Tim, the homeless guy finds Tim’s job much too demeaning for him and passes on the boss’ employment offer.

The animation is very crude and could be compared to the drawing of a school-kid. It’s two-dimensional with not much movement. The facial expressions basically consist of moving the eyes and mouths but it matches the flat and monotone delivery of the characters.

Photo: Animation Magazine

HBO paired the show with “The Ricky Gervais Show”, another animated show produced by the same production company, Media Rights Capitol (MRC)   (Bruno) which missed the cancellation axe. In an interview with New York Magazine, Dildarian acknowledged that the show’s second season renewal “was more based on the critics and the reviews we got, and the emphasis of the die-hard fans that were outspoken.”

But he recently told Rolling Stone Magazine that “we’re not True Blood,” referring to the ratings champ currently on HBO.  “There’s a big enough fan base that’s still growing, and we’ve received not just good reviews but rave reviews from prestigious publications. It just seems obvious that we’re on to something here and it has to be promoted properly and given the right home.”

So here’s hoping that the fans’ enthusiasm will help Tim see new life elsewhere on cable. Comedy Central, Adult Swim and TBS are rumored to be possible new homes for the series and hopefully one of these networks will give Tim a second shot at life. He certainly deserves to live on and there is precedent for similar situations. “Family Guy” was resurrected on Fox after picking up a new audience on DVD. Joe Hipps, VP of Production and Creative Affairs at MRC Television, told Rolling Stone Magazine, “We’re hoping that Tim‘s suitors will take into account the show’s growing viewership from Season One to Season Two, the fervent online fan movements, as well as past animation successes like Family Guy that needed time to incubate in pop culture before it could really take off as a big time hit.”