Rocko's Modern Life

Rocko's Modern Life is an American animated sitcom created by Joe Murray for Nickelodeon. The series centers on the surreal life of an anthropomorphic Australian-immigrant wallaby named Rocko as well as his friends: the gluttonous steer Heffer, the neurotic turtle Filburt, and Rocko's faithful dog Spunky. It is set in the fictional town of O-Town. Throughout its run, the show was controversial for its adult humor, including double entendre, innuendo, and satirical social commentary, similar to The Ren & Stimpy Show.

Murray created the title character for an unpublished comic book series in the late 1980s, and later reluctantly pitched the series to Nickelodeon, who were looking for edgier cartoonists for their new Nicktoons. The network gave the staff a large amount of creative freedom, with the writers targeting both children and adults. The show premiered on September 18, 1993, and ended on November 24, 1996, totaling four seasons and 52 episodes. A TV special was announced in August 2016 and is set to premiere on Nickelodeon, but no release date is currently confirmed.

The show launched the careers of voice actors Carlos Alazraqui and Tom Kenny. After the show's cancellation, much of the staff regrouped to work on SpongeBob SquarePants, created by Rocko's creative director Stephen Hillenburg.

Plot
Rocko's Modern Life follows the life of a timid Australian immigrant wallaby named Rocko (voiced by Carlos Alazraqui), who encounters various dilemmas and situations regarding otherwise mundane aspects of life. His best friends are: Heffer Wolfe (Tom Kenny), a fat and enthusiastic steer; Filburt (Mr. Lawrence), a neurotic turtle who often feels uncomfortable or disturbed; and his faithful dog Spunky (Alazraqui). Living next door to Rocko is a middle-aged couple, Ed Bighead (Charlie Adler), a cynical and crass toad who despises Rocko; and his compassionate and more friendly wife Bev (Adler).

All of the characters in Rocko's Modern Life are anthropomorphic animals of varying species, the vast majority of whom are mentally unstable. Murray said that he matched personalities of his characters to the various animals in the series to form a social caricature.