It’s not often you find avant-garde animation within mainstream media—unless you’re watching the late night blocks on Adult Swim or something. So when I discovered Interface, it was a nice breath of fresh air amongst a lot of the good to bad Netflix schlock that’s been coming out lately.
What Is It?
An animated web series created by Justin Tomchuk AKA u m a m i on Youtube, Interface takes place in an alternate reality in which the Philadelphia experiment—a rumored U.S. military experiment that attempted to create cloaking devices to render their ships invisible—actually happened. In the series, the consequences of the experiment were catastrophic, suddenly merging two worlds together—tangible reality and the intangible world of spirits.
In this setting, we follow two supernatural entities. The immortal protagonist, unnamed at first, is a silent mustachioed man who always wears a deep blue suit. His companion, aptly named Mischief, is a shape-shifting pink worm monster with a clown face—creepy but oozing charisma. Throughout the series, the blue man’s past unfolds, leaving Mischief to somehow know and remind him of things he’s forgotten. Over time, they build a solid friendship, and Mischief helps the blue man on his journey—to find his great grand-daughter, the only family he has left.
Outside of this duo is the series’ antagonist, a man-made god designed to separate the world of man and spirit once again. Without spoiling much, this thing is designed to absorb what is essentially the essence of the spiritual world—described as “cerebral electricity.” The creator of this god, CEO of a robotics company, hopes to take control of it for unknown reasons.
A Series Full of Animated Ennui
What really gets me about this series is how solemn it is. While there is a plot to follow, much of what is shown isn’t directly told to the viewer. We’re given story crumbs by Mischief, who often performs vague monologues to help connect the loose plot points and background of the world. This is accompanied by a haunting soundtrack, a crude art style colored by heavy, gritty outlines, and various historical references to real-life events and classical art. The atmosphere is wistfully melancholic. And like many non-linear stories, the scenes leave you wanting more.
Clown Worm Shenanigans
The highlight of the series is, of course, Mischief, who can be considered the mascot for Interface. True to his name, he likes to create light mischief for the blue man as he leads us further into the story. He provides comedic relief to lighten the tone at times, but his main role remains that of the unreliable narrator. In addition, he has a background that connects loosely to his companion’s, and is hinted to have his own agenda all the while. We may see much of the story through the protagonist’s eyes, but Mischief is the one who colors in—and erases—the sparse details we so desperately need.
So if you don’t like clowns or creepy wormy things, maybe don’t watch this series.
Despite already having 22 episodes released so far, there’s still much to be explored with this world and its characters. The slow pace certainly adds to this series’ charm. Each time, we get a little more about the state of its world, the protagonist’s and Mischief’s past, and the ongoing changes being made by the antagonist. It would take an entire essay to connect all the dots—which is what makes the series so captivating. And like many successful animations before it, the art continues to improve as the series progresses.
If you’re interested in Interface, you can check out the entire series on Youtube or watch the Part 1 of the series below.
The Dang Void 