In celebration of its 10th anniversary, fans of the Big Blue Bug will get a second chance to enjoy The Tick, Amazon Prime Video’s cult superhero satire TV series starring Peter Serafinowicz and Griffin Newman, this July as the show heads to Netflix on the 15. The series, which debuted on August 18, 2016, is considered by many as one of the streaming network’s most underrated originals. And if you missed it during its peak, this is the perfect time to revisit the classic.
Where to Watch The Tick on Netflix (and Where You Can’t)
The Tick arrives on Netflix following Sony Pictures Television’s licensing of the show. See, despite it being a Prime Video Original, The Tick was actually distributed by Sony, and with exclusivity rights apparently having lapsed, Netflix has grabbed it.
While there’s currently no news about whether The Tick will be added in the US and Canada, fans from the rest of the world (including territories like Brazil, Argentina and other parts of Latin America, the UK and Germany in Europe, and Australia) will get to watch it alongside Patrick Warburton’s 2001 original.
It’s expected to stay on Netflix for around 6 months to 2 years, so there’s a chance that the US and Canada could get it at a later date.
The Tick’s Rocky Start: How the Pilot Almost Went a Different Direction
The Tick arrived at a very different time for TV (before The Boys and Spider-Noir). There were plenty of superhero shows and most of them were fairly serious. The Tick‘s pilot promised something very different from the get-go: humor.
But the show switched up its premise after a few episodes. Initially, it appeared that the Tick himself was just a manifestation of Arthur’s mental illness, but the writers quickly abandoned that approach and allowed the character to simply exist in his world.
At the time, Amazon put the pilot up for a public vote before committing to a full-blown series. Fans got it to stick around for two seasons before it was canned.
Editor’s Note: The review below was originally written by Rick Austin following the release of the show’s first episodes. We’ve kept his original take intact, with one small trim to a since-outdated point about episode count.
Our Original 2017 Review: Was The Tick Worth the Hype?
I love The Tick, from the comic books to the cartoons and the 2001 live-action series starring Patrick Warburton. When Amazon originally aired the pilot for this series and asked their viewers to vote on it, I endorsed it and urged readers to back this project – although I did point out that there were a few flaws which needed fixing.
Recently I was asked if I wanted to do a phone interview with the crew responsible for this, but I couldn’t do it. Instead, I’d hoped to do an email interview rather, but that wasn’t possible. Given my love of The Tick in all its other forms, I was hugely disappointed. There’s the danger of that huge disappointment making me negatively biased. Still, here goes.
The world may be full of superheroes and supervillains, but there aren’t as many of them as there used to be. The world’s greatest super team was destroyed in a weaponized syphilis attack years ago, and the villainous Terror was blown to bits with nothing left of him except his teeth. But Arthur, a mild-mannered accountant with Fishladder & Sons, believes the Terror is still alive. While researching his conspiracy theory, he meets the Tick – destiny’s righteous hero blessed with amazing strength, unlimited optimism and a lack of brainpower. When the Tick drags Arthur into the never-ending battle for truth and justice, they stumble across a criminal plot so dastardly it could only be the handiwork of one man…
I love it! You hear me, world? I LOVE THIS SHOW!!!
While the first episode is basically the same pilot which had flaws, from the second episode onwards this show goes to great lengths to fix them up and succeeds. Yet right from the beginning there’s such a dry sense of humour at play that it’s impossible not to chuckle at some of the jokes. Yet for all the laughs this show generates, it isn’t strictly a comedy and it’s clearly having fun with the world of superheroes and not mocking it.
The plot is simple but incredibly well executed, with two key components: Arthur’s quest to prove the Terror is still alive and bring him to justice, and the villains’ plot to acquire the armoured battle-suit which Arthur acquires. Because of this, the two key story elements keep crashing into each other and mayhem ensues to ridiculous levels, with some of the smartest writing seen on TV in years. There’s also a smart punchline-before-the-setup delivery system with some jokes, making you re-evaluate seemingly bizarre statements from earlier episodes with greater understanding, rewarding multiple viewings.
Equally, all the characters of the world Arthur and the Tick inhabit are given moments to shine. The wonderful Miss Lint, who struggles to balance being a supervillain with her personal life where she’s cohabiting with her ex-husband, steals almost every scene. Meanwhile, Overkill – a hero who’s part Deadpool, part Punisher, and too stabby for the Tick’s liking – is constantly having relationship issues with the hilarious Dangerboat, the AI system in his lair.
If there’s any one character who comes across as being weak, bizarrely it’s the Tick himself. For all his bombastic statements, he seems strangely small and on the sidelines for too much of each episode, although it’s more a case of Arthur’s story and the other characters being more interesting to watch, rather than through any fault of the writing or performance.
Are there any other flaws? A couple. The Tick’s suit still doesn’t quite look right, and the narrative may be a bit too confusing for some. But those are minor gripes against a show that clearly knew what it wanted to be.
This may not have the high profile as shows like The Flash, The Defenders and Legion, but The Tick is every bit as good if not better. With so few good superhero comedies out there, this is exactly the show the world needs.
Why The Tick’s Cancellation Still Stings 10 Years Later
A full second season of The Tick arrived in 2018, bringing the show’s total to 22 episodes, before Amazon cancelled it in 2019.
The news stung fans at the time because the show felt like it was finally finding its feet. By its final stretch, nearly every character was revealed to be quietly carrying some private failure, from Arthur and his sister Dot to Overkill and even the godlike Superian. The Tick’s relentless, uncomplicated goodness stopped being a punchline and became the show’s actual thesis on how to survive a messy world.
Today, 10 years on, The Tick seems more relevant than ever. It’s a good thing then that Netflix is giving everyone who missed it a second opportunity to enjoy this forgotten gem. In a genre now crowded with cynicism about what power does to people, The Tick remains one of the rare superhero shows willing to argue, sincerely, that choosing to be good is enough.
Where to watch The Tick:
