REVIEW: Common Side Effects

Last Updated on by Szuniverse

This Review is Spoiler-Free

 

In 2016, Toonami would air a short, titled Scavengers, animated by Titmouse, known for various series like the first season of Black Dynamite, The Venture Bros, and Superjail! The short, created by Joseph Bennett and Charles Huettner, gained positive buzz both inside and outside the Toonami community. It followed a team of survivors of a crashed ship who were stranded on a distant planet and trying to figure out a way to survive and leave the planet. It was so strong of an idea that WarnerMedia decided to greenlight it for a full season. Despite turmoil going on at Warner Brothers after its merger with Discovery, Scavengers Reign would, rather impressively, eventually premiere in 2023 on Max (formerly known as HBO Max). Despite all the chaos and cancellations of numerous other projects, Scavengers Reign somehow made it to the finish line and without a doubt, it remains one of the best series to premiere in 2023. Scavengers Reign took the base idea of the short and expanded it, giving more depth to its worlds and creating more characters that all have their reason for being in the situation they’re in. Unfortunately, despite the high praise the show received and it being added to Netflix in 2024, Max decided not to renew the show for more episodes. While deeply disappointing for those who wanted to see more from this world, Joseph Bennett, one of the creators, was not done. Their next project would be pitched to Adult Swim and would be picked up for a full series. Announced in June 2023 with Mike Judge and Greg Daniels (Office Space, King of The Hill, Beavis and Butthead) acting as executive producers on the series, the new series would be called Common Side Effects.

Common Side Effects follows Marshall, a pudgy man who comes across a mysterious blue mushroom in Peru that seems to have some miraculous healing effects, and Frances, a former female high school classmate of Marshall’s who gets tied up with his issues when he gets caught up in a intrigue of mystery and conspiracy between the US government and a pharmaceutical corporation. Despite its executive producers creating some of the most well-known comedy TV and films, Common Side Effects is not that at all. In a similar vein to Scavengers Reign, which was a sci-fi drama, Common Side Effects is a serialized thriller drama. It has moments of levity and laughs, but for the most part, it plays it straight and it’s a compelling drama to sit through. Through the four episodes that were provided to me for review, all episodes were great pieces of fiction to watch. Marshall is a very likeable protagonist where we’re given just enough to like him but not know everything about his past. Frances is also a good character despite her working for a total idiot who runs an entire pharmaceutical corporation. She’s not a bad character; she’s working for her own intentions, but they aren’t malicious in any way just the circumstances she finds herself in. She’s a character I can relate to the most and found the most interesting to follow. But that’s not to take away from the show itself, Common Side Effects is a fantastic drama and easily one of the best new shows to be greenlit by Adult Swim. It’s a great way to start off 2025 and I can tell that they have something special here. 

 

Final Verdict

8/10

Szuniverse

Senior Editorial Writer for Toonami Squad and former writer for Swim Squad. Host for Toonami Squad Sessions Podcast.