December 13, 2005 – December 18, 2008
Moral Orel is an American adult stop-motion animated sitcom which originally aired on Adult Swim from December 13, 2005 to December 18, 2008. The series has been described as "Davey and Goliath meets South Park". However, Dino Stamatopoulos, the show's creator, is wary of the comparison with Davey and Goliath, telling The New York Times that Moral Orel grew out of a concept for a send-up of a Leave It to Beaver-style 1950s sitcom that would star Iggy Pop. The series is a satire of the archetypes of Middle American suburban life, modern-day WASP culture, alcoholism, and religious fundamentalism. As the show progresses, it begins to emotionally unravel the duplicity of fundamentalism, and the consequences that come with it.
At the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con, Stamatopoulos announced that the show would not be renewed for a fourth season. The final season was aired interspersed with repeats from the first two seasons, as many of the episodes took place in parallel with events of past episodes. The event, which was called "44 Nights of Orel", was hosted by Stamatopoulos and others and started on October 6, 2008, running through December 18, when the series finale premiered. A special entitled "Beforel Orel" later aired on November 19, 2012.
Synopsis
Clay-mation character Orel Puppington is a young boy who constantly deviates from his Protestant upbringing. Though his parents, school coach and Rev. Putty clearly impart their religious values upon him, Orel always misunderstands and for some reason believes that smoking crack is a good thing, euthanasia is OK, and impregnating women with a sperm-filled pastry bag is actually a moral thing to do.