Workin’ Stiff and Friends is a show about the adventures of 3 look-alike characters going after Ronald McDonald and Company Industries. The show may just look like a dumb parody at first, (and yes, it is.) but it actually has some lore behind it. Let’s begin, shall we?
At first, the show was more of a contemporary parody of niche concepts that you’d usually see on episodic series, like going to a McDonald’s and getting scammed, getting nervous at a talent show, or worst of all, going to war and doing an immediate truce. The show also wasn’t that good at that time period, noticeably being rushed when compared to later works from the show. The episodes from season 1 only took about a day to make, while episodes from season 2 and beyond take way, way longer to make.
Then, life started changing for the folks behind the show. More specifically, the lives of John Tvs and Flex Central, the creators of the show. They have been exposed to more things than ever, including things with deep stories, like the book Animal Farm by George Orwell, and the video game Persona 5. Or, if the thing didn’t have deep stories, a lot of humor was involved. Like Aqua Teen Hunger Force, South Park, or even the very popular web-cartoon, Homestar Runner, which has always kind of been an inspiration for the series. This has inspired the two to make a better, funnier show, with more writing and humor involved.
The lore goes like this: The show takes place in our own universe, but things are drastically different. (This is fiction, after all.) Firstly, fictional characters roam the Earth, and they rule it. Second, capitalism is a much bigger issue in the series, being controlled by a company named “Company Industries”, which in the series, is the biggest company in the world, as they are always looking to own more companies for the sake of the green stuff known as money. Lastly, a lot of places exist in the series that are not found in real life, like the town the series takes place in, Weirdtown.
The show uses parody-style humor that makes fun of things like immoral capitalism, which is a huge problem in our world. (Especially with all the attempts to go to space, when we weren’t even made to go there.)
The show has its own style of humor, inspired by the inspirations we love. It has many new characters, also from the inspirations we love. The show has symbolism, like the characters of Workin’ Stiff, Workin’ Hard, and Workin’ Lazy representing average, everyday American citizens in the lower-middle class, while characters like Ronald McDonald and BugGuy representing the higher-upper class. While the show does not make fun of current politics, (In fact, it never will. Too many comedy shows do that these days!) it is more like a poorly-made social commentary on American society that has characters from all kinds of things.
So, now that you know all you need to know about the lore, go tell your buddies! (...or not.)