User Reviews

Based on other reviews here I believe this show has fallen victim to poor advertising, or a misunderstanding of what "adult animation" means.

This show is not really a comedy, by most measures anyways, it does contain jokes certainly, but that is not the main focus of the show. The show is more of a sci-fi mystery drama, with light humour scattered throughout, and on viewing it solely by that metric I think it's been quite good so far.

This review is being written after watching the first 4 episodes, which I found to be interesting enough to make me want to keep going and understand more of what's going on.

I will concede it's hard for me to say right now if the show is "good". We are only 4 episodes in as I write this, and shows of this sort often live or die by their endings, but the show is "interesting" for certain, that's really the best word for it.

The show has an eerie lonely tone, aided by the music and backgrounds which fill the show with an uncomfortable vibe... as do the series of errors made by our protagonist.

So, I want to talk about our protagonist Jeff for a bit here. Jeff is a fairly average guy by most measures, but he's very self-absorbed without even realizing it. He enjoys meeting people but only talks about himself, he seems very bad taking an interest in others. He has a surprisingly large ego, but it leads him to be totally crushed by even small setbacks, that leads him to make error after error as he tries desperately to find a place he can click into. It's interesting that despite his self absorption he doesn't seem to desire anything more than a fairly standard life, he wants a family and a nice house, and a job that he'll receive admiration for, but that noticeably doesn't put him at the top of the food chain, he's not a cut-throat gunning for an executive role, he just wants a consistent normal life... something I'm guessing he's never really had before, which has lead to his desperation to achieve this goal.

This is a lot to say about a character who I think many people will cast off as "annoying" or even "one note" if they're not trying to analyze him much. But Jeff seems to be an extremely consistently written character who has a consistent and understandable drive, even if it feels like we're missing some critical details about him. Jeff is, to be fair, an annoying person at times, this is on purpose by the scriptwriters, made clear by much of the cast of the show finding him actively annoying, but I think it works well for the show overall. Still, I can understand how this could be a turnoff to viewers... Jeff simply put it not a great guy, and not everyone wants to watch shows about kind of annoying guys.

Overall, if you went into this show expecting something in the vein of something like Family Guy or most "adult animated comedy" for that matter I do think you will be disappointed, this is a frankly dreary and anxiety inducing show, it is not a lighthearted romp you'd watch with your friends.... But it's a very interesting show, that feels like it has something unique and interesting to say, and I plan on finishing the show to see what that is exactly. I'll likely add an update to this review when I do finish the show.

For now I'm giving this show an 8/10, the show does have a few weird moments and things I didn't enjoy, but overall I think it does very little wrong if you're taking it at face value as a sci-fi mystery drama, it's a solid start.

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To be maybe a bit petty for a moment I want to add a note, and point to one other review on here, called "It's SUCH an original and fun idea! Right?" that was written when (like my review) only the first 4 episodes were available. This review is horribly misleading as whoever wrote it seems to have fully misunderstood a reveal in a particular episode. The review seems to imply the show has an "it was all a dream" type of moment, or that it becomes stuck in a dreaming format, but this is not true, at least of the time of writing this. I feel like this person got to a particular moment, assumed what was happening incorrectly, and then stopped watching and wrote their review. It is quite baffling because what they are complaining about simply does not happen as they describe it at all. Is it impossible something like that could happen? It's not impossible, but as of now it's not the case and I won't judge the show for an ending they "could do" before it even ends.

There is a lot to like about this show. I finished the 8th episode today and I'm still wanting to see what's next. Main character is someone that keeps having bad luck. Anyone that's around him he uses for his personal gain because he's kind of a leach. There is a lot of great cringe with his decision making. Which is the beauty of this show. He's attempting to become the unlikely hero. Once he's offered the easy life then he realizes that isn't who he wants to be. Truly a character hitting the bottom and emerging on top...

Question is.. is he the hero of his own story or building up to fail?

First off, I have seen every episode that's been released, unlike almost all the other reviews which only saw the first episode. The show has an interesting premise: main character is one of the first human colonists on Mars but gets fired because his job is no longer needed. Now he must struggle to find a new job or else he essentially becomes a burden on the colony: a mouth to feed that doesn't contribute.

That out of the way, the show isn't a comedy. There are some jokes/funny moments, but it's not meant to make you laugh constantly like every other Adult Animation out there. It's more of satire/statement on corporations, the work we do for them, and ultimately finding purpose in our lives. Even tho the show is set on Mars, a lot of people can easily relate to main character. Most of us aren't CEOs or Doctors or have big important jobs, we are just cogs in the machine forced to do whatever job we get just to be able to feed ourselves.

Now this show isn't a pro-socialism or anti-capitalism or political, it's just pointing out the reality and absurdity of life while using Mars as the perfect backdrop for exploring the shows many themes. And the main character, Jeff, perfectly explores these themes. He's very human. He experiences grief and loneliness, and a lot of self doubt and confusion. He makes A LOT of mistakes, to the point he is unconsciously self sabotaging. But he is also optimistic and determined, doing whatever job he can to stay be a valued member of the colony.

Give this show a watch if you want something different that you may fine you relate to rather well. Just don't go in expecting a full on endless laugh fest, because that's not what this show is.

The bleak depressing start of Jeff's life on Mars in this Sci Fi animated comedy series only keeps getting better in my opinion episode after episode. He is a very self absorbed character played perfectly by Luke Wilson. I finished episode 6 and it really plays into corporate dystopia and the lack of social awareness major companies have. Jeff unfortunately is a victim of this time and time again but I found it to be funny and dry and sad all at the same time. It's great show and concept! That being said there are definitely some moments that show can be dark, but that's to be expected with life on Mars in the first colonies.

Based on first two episodes, I'm undecided. Right on the line of meh and interesting.

There are moments that are compelling, but nothing really exciting. It's funny, but only from how it comments on the office worker/corporate machine dynamics, and not from the dialogue. Not much compounding good jokes onto to good jokes to create layers of humor. I'm not really laughing much.

Our main character is a bit woeful. I feel pity for him rather than relatable empathy. But a character arc has to start somewhere. What that looks like for this show? No clue.

There are moments that shine with effective use of soundtrack and score, and some nice looking shots.

Big fan of the hand drawn-style animation, which nicely matches the interesting hodgepodge of production design choices.

Fairly curious to see what comes, but I most likely won't put this on unless I'm already wandering through HBO Max (Max).

Animation used to be a genre of pushing boundaries and experimentation. Recently though the genre has become increasingly homogeneous with many shows having the same blueprint and goal.

Fired on Mars offers a refreshing alternative to this. While others animations rely on situational comedy and bits, Fired on Mars uses existentialism as a lens to explore humour. The premise is one that all viewers can relate to despite the show being set on Mars. While still achieving comedic effects, the tone is different from anything else in it's field.

The cinematography is stunning and the backgrounds are so beautiful. This is a labour of love.

Refresh yourself, experience something great: watch Fired on Mars.

First off, if you have only watched one or two episodes then don't review it.

This is an excellent show, it is not a comedy and doesn't pretend to be. There's a lot of uncomfortable situations, with super cringe from deeply flawed characters. The setting is a crucible for an unholy cocktail of these characters, limited resources, and a hostile environment outside and inside. Within their confines, it's almost like Office Space, outside it's any Mars film. We follow the main character as he confronts his flaws, always optimistic, searching for a higher purpose and meaning to it all.

Do yourself a favor and watch without judgement. This one has a unique vibe that is highly engaging with tons of subtle payoffs along the way.

What is this? Is it trying to be dark humor? It's not. Is it trying to be poignant drama? It's not.

This is miserable. It's just some miserable things happening with miserable people but without any of the intelligence, charm, or humor of something like Bojack.

I can't understand how this even exists. Who watched this and gave it a green light?

I suffered through 2 episodes hoping Luke Wilson's presence would eventually lead to something worthwhile.

This feels like the worst of some self insulated LA writers thinking it they are doing something smart and sardonic, but it's so flat and a bunch of absolute nothing.

I watched it so you don't have to suffer.

The first few episodes are pretty sad and depressing. This show isn't a mindless comedy but is actually pretty deep and intelligent after watching it through.

I started to realize this was a good show around episode 6 or so. I'm glad I didn't give up on it and kept with it.

The comedy it does have is subtle and often dark. It's not written like a traditional comedy but you can find humor in situations and characters.

You start to like Jeff more as the show goes on and his character develops from a pathetic depressed man to somewhat endearing and good guy. We can all feel helpless and worthless at our lowest times and as each episode goes by it shows how we can overcome that and build confidence.

Lastly, in the first couple episodes a lot of the corporate guys just seem like obnoxious assholes but as you get to know their characters even they become likable by the end. I feel like out of everything this show did the best with character building because they are all unique and memorable. Look forward to more episodes and hopefully a sequel.

This show is terrible. The writing is so bad. This happens, then this happens, then this happens. That's called bad writing.

The comedy is try-hard and tries to achieve it by overusing cuss words. Cue Pete Davidson (why was he casted? He can't voice act whatsoever.)

I watched 2 episodes. Insanely boring show. Super slow moving. How do animated shows like this keep getting greenlit? No joke, a 12 year old could write a better adult animated show.

Hey HBOMax, please go find some actual creative people to make animated shows. I have no clue how people are giving this show a good rating. They must have low standards and awful humor.

UPDATE: I don't know why, but I decided to watch all the episodes. I'm updating my rating to a 6/10. Could argue for a 7/10. It got better the more I watched, then I found myself actually wanting to watch the next episode. I judge too hastily. I think it's worth watching. I believe it's a unique show, although it does have its flaws. Not sure the point of having big names voice characters (Luke Wilson & Pete Davidson). I can't stand big names like that in animation, because then you just have characters who sound like Luke Wilson & Pete Davidson. It's like Beyoncé voicing a lion. It's distracting because these people don't have any sort of range (South Park is the best example of voices that have different range). Anyway, I'd watch Season 2 of this. I don't think it's supposed to be funny. More so a drama, so viewers should treat it as such.

This isn't a compelling show that is going to bring me back week after week. I feel bad for the main character, but frankly I lost interest and forgot about the show after the first episode. It's so funny that we went to the Netflix binge era and then reversed into a weekly release meta, but forgot that the show actually has to draw the audience back week after week. Maybe I'll give this another chance after all the episodes are out. For now, this show is too slow paced and depressing without the deeper thought provoking meanings behind it like Bojack Horseman. As someone who loves adult animation this one is a miss for me.

Can't believe the low reviews here. 2 episodes in and I'm unbelievably hooked. Maybe the reviews are people expecting some typical Fox animated sitcom??

I'm a sucker for any story set in bleak and realistic sci-fi. This show fits the bill perfectly for capturing the disparity around total corporate control, and these jobs that really have no reason to exist other than for the sake of expansion. It's Cyberpunk in the refreshing modern sense (still thematically consistent with the genre staples from the 80s, but adjusted for current New-Age, passive aggressive megacorps). It's witty in its environment and construction, but it's not exaggerative or over the top. Both episodes got some big laughs out of me, but also had these wonderfully bleak and somber moments. The dialogue and voice acting is all wonderful, and really made a lot of the characters feel complex and notable.

The animation should sell people on this show alone! It's absolutely stunning. It's thoughtful and colorful, and reminds me a bit of if Ugly Americans was a graphic novel. The style is really similar to the work of Daniel Clowes; it's a wonderful look that hits that perfect point of being unique to what's been done, while also still being very visually pleasing. So many shots are so thoughtful and truly feels like you're watching a graphic novel.

I can't wait to see where this show goes. The cynic in me says, great, another animated show for me to fall in love with that will undoubtedly get canned before it's time. I hope I'm wrong. I hope more people see this. Cause if for nothing else, this show should be admired for bringing something inventive in a landscape of, quite frankly, not a whole lot of exciting animated shows right now.

I've only watched the first two episodes, but so far it involves a not so exciting main character who is in a perpetual loop of failure. It's lazy commentary on corporate life but for some reason it's set on Mars. It's kind of like, "Don't you hate when your boss says this? Well, imagine he said it... on Mars!" The show reminds me of having a roommate who hates his job and that's all he wants to talk about. The good news is, you don't have to listen. You can just watch something else.

I was pretty excited for this show so I'll definitely stick around for the entire season. The animation is solid and there is potential if they ever decide to use it. Hopefully, the show comes around and I delete this review.

I have trouble with most sweaty, joke-a-minute "adult" animations. No stakes, lots of overdone adolescent gross-out stuff, or half-baked psychedelia.

This is something different. Real character-driven drama, action, adventure and comedy. Actually feels like it's for adults (though kids will no doubt like it, too). Like some kind of lost 1990s Mike Judge anime almost.

Luke Wilson is perfect. Love the supporting cast and characters too. All feel very lived in.

I guess the only knock is that maybe it has a little bit of a slow start? But it feels all the more earned when the plot really starts taking off. I should add that the plotting is really the star here. It's a twisty, unpredictable ride. In my opinion this is a lot more interesting than Bojack which was heralded for similar things.

This was a breathe of fresh air in gag-filled adult animation.the show is focused on steady personal development of the character and adult drama instead of trying to shovel another short sketch down your throat ! Not sure about you but I am sold.

While watching I have noticed a lot of respectful nods towards 80s sci-fi and workplace dramas.

The likes of Total Recall and Office sprang to my mind from the very beginning.

The character seems very annoying and spineless in first episodes but then he enters the way of a personal transformation which is quite honestly is very inspirational.

The parallels with Bojack Horseman are also quite apparent but it is rather for good than bad.

We URGENTLY need a season 2!

Nowadays the animated streaming series for adults are closed in the segment of being silly, explicit or low profile jokes, which are fair and valid likes, but it doesn't mean every adult animated project has to be like that. This is where it goes out of the trend.

Fired on Mars breaks out of this segment to explore the anxiety of peoples mind, so the public can be connected and identified with all the problems and fears Jeff (Main Character) goes all around the story.

It's acceptable the fact that the first episode feels cringy at certain moment, but that feeling turns to a menace towards Jeff that will be kept after that bases built on the episode. It's a more serious animated program than the actual trends, meaning that treats topics for reflections towards people's life and goals at the future.

I would also be afraid to say this, but if you like Bojack Horseman by topics like traumas, affections and feelings, you will like Fired on Mars as an interesting approach.

I didn't even give this show a chance when it popped up on Max. Jump ahead two months and I'm on Twitter. There were a few people talking about it. I jumped in to ask about it and they all told me the same thing: just watch the first couple of episodes. So I did. I was immediately pulled in to the story. This is not a comedy. It's a story that examines corporate structure, relationships and show much more that I'm nit going to give away here. I immediately connected to Jeff Cooper and so many other characters on the show. I finished the eight season episode tonight and I must say, it's not only the bet animated show in a very long time but probably the best show of any kind in the last year. I only hope the show gets more attention because it would be a tragedy if it doesn't get a season two. Excellent from start to finish. Please give it a chance if you come across it. You won't be disappointed.

I thought this was going to be totally different like maybe goofy and fun. It's completely not this at all. It almost is like watching a person be in their own personal hell. I stayed interested, but I was not laughing. I don't think I grinned. I don't think there is a single character that is likeable at all. They're either mean, annoying, douchey, ditzy, just completely unlikable. I felt sorry for Jeff from how he is treated by others, but I also see why some people would be just done dealing with him if they had to do it all the time. He's that one person that you work with that is just too much and they are grating! That's Jeff.

I'm really excited to see where this show is heading. There's a sense of familiarity and uniqueness to it. Like one of the shows I would go to for the vibes. I was surprised when I saw it on HBO Max because there was no marketing, perhaps it was seen as risky. Nevertheless, I feel a lot of potential for this show!

The ending of episode 2 is so funny, in a disastrous sort of way. It truly left me wanting more. The soundtrack is great as well, I even had to Shazam the ending of episode 2.

Im surprised by how polarized the reviews are, I guess it's one of those shows where people either love it or hate it. Im a big fan of shows that are odd and humorous, I can easily say this has a lot of potential to be one of my favorite shows.

This show so far has a good start it's not annoying like other adult cartoon shows like family guy my only disappointment was finding out that there's only one episode a week. Not sure why there's so much hate for the show with some of the one star reviews it's most likely because the show is different and most people that watch adult cartoons are into what Seth McFarland makes. These people are way to brutal without reason saying it's unbearable there's only 2 episodes out there's nothing to nit pic about it yet. I'm just writing now because I need to have 600 characters in order to post this review lol.

If you are looking for constant laughs than this is not for you. It's more of a drama than comedy. The bad reviews are people who only like to watch feel good shows. The main character played by Luke Wilson can't catch a break while simultaneously being stuck on mars which gives him very limited options for potential. I love watching the decline of his life because the come back with be 100% worth it. The show needs more time to play out before people write it off just because it isn't happy go-lucky BS that every other network is pumping out. This show has great potential! It's unique and very intriguing.

Within the first five minutes, and I wanted to fire the main character myself. He grated on me, and everyone else in the show grated on me as well. The least believable aspect of the show wasn't that a person could get fired on Mars, but that the main character managed to survive a flight to Mars without being shoved out an airlock.

If, at least, the show was funny, I might have been able to tolerate a show with so many unlikable characters. I mean, there has to be a reason to tolerate so many cringe-worthy characters in order to want to spend time with them, and so the degree to which the characters are unlikable has to be balanced by a similar degree of humor. But this show didn't quite make it. I thought maybe to try to force myself to sit though the entire show with the hope that eventually there would be something to laugh at. But no, there was nothing more than unpleasant cringe to this show.

This is just awful. I've seen this story before, loser thinks he's great, optimistic attitude until life just grinds him down and shoves the truth of everyone hates him down his throat. Then he continues to make stupid mistake after stupid mistake until he crosses the line and then either comes redemption or demise. An old cliche story. Why they thought putting it on mars would make it new or better is beyond me.

The characters are unbelievable and the same cliches you see in every show like this. Move along, nothing new to see here.

The writing is just dumb and the characters are so out there ridiculous that if they're are real people like that out there, it explains a lot. And they're not out there funny there out there like, just dumb. I tried I just really tried but when you know what's gonna happen before it happens, it makes it even more boring.

I dunno maybe it's like the office or Wil ferrell movies. They just aren't funny to me or most of the people I know but some people think they're hilarious.

If you like the office maybe you'll like this but I can't think of anything good to say about this.