Is the house on fire?
Royal Crackers is an animated adult comedy series created by Jason Ruiz for Cartoon Network's late-night programming block [adult swim].
The series centers around the dysfunctional Hornsby family, owner of Royal Crackers, a once-popular snack food company which manufactures saltine crackers in Bakersfield, California. Once the CEO of the company Theodore Hornsby Sr. falls into a "super-coma," his two sons Stebe (with a "b" as in "biscuit") and Theo Hornsby must take over to keep the failing company afloat, with Stebe's wife Deb working to put a good name for the company with disastrous results, and Matt - Stebe and Deb's "loser" son - dealing with their antics and complete lack of faith in him.
A second season debuted on February 29th, 2024.
Royal Crackers contains examples of:
- Aesop Amnesia: Deb comes to love Matt after all the crap they endured in "Business Mom," only for Deb to revert back to her ungrateful bitch attitude the following episodes.
- Awful Truth: One of the company's cracker manufacturing factory is run by mutant chickens, with a huge mutated human chicken running it (just to pass the time).
- Brain Uploading: Theodore did this through a router so that he could make sure a part of him could find a suitable heir (or rather a host to put his brain and override their soul with his) to Royal Crackers (he abhors the idea of letting Stebe even be an option to download his brain into him).
- Biting-the-Hand Humor: At a luxurious yacht party for the .1% richest billionaires (that the family hijacks), Stebe is confused about some jokes that only plebeians would find funny (which he does find funny) but degrading to the richest people there. Deb criticizes him that said jokes are the kind of jokes you'd find in HBO Max.
- Came Back Wrong: Theodore's repeated attempts to upload his brain into a host has caused several workers to suffer permanent brain damage and left them very dumb. Stebe has no idea about this, but he keeps them all together in a single room and believes they're natural idiots.
- Cool Uncle: Theo is considered this by people in the company for being a (supposed) rock star in his younger days, but now he's a washed-out adult who still is trying to show off his glory days to promote his bad boy persona. He's a joke among other entertainment workers.
- Depending on the Writer: How successful Taint was during their prime varies heavily throughout the series. Some episodes show that they were fairly successful, with various people from Theo's past confirming many of his claims. Others seem to imply they were a flash in the pan at best and Theo is an aging rocker overstating his glory days.
- The Food Poisoning Incident: The first episode dealt with Stebe and Deb changing boxes to contain "random crap" in the crackers themselves, which led to many streamers dying for making eating challenges.
- I'm a Humanitarian: Theodore's wife Margerie and her entire family are cannibals. He still married her (perhaps out of fear of being eaten himself).
- I Just Want to Be Loved: Matt is the only good person in the entire show who only wants to be loved by his family and people, but he lives in a World of Jerkass kicking him down for his good intentions.
- Improbably Quick Coma Recovery: Playedwith, the rare times Theodore even briefly slips out of his coma are when things REALLY piss him off. Once briefly awakening so he can choke one of his (also crippled) rivals to death.
- It's All About Me: Though Stebe tries to come across as someone who wishes to be appreciated, he does so in a way that he belittles every other person so he feels better with himself. It didn't help his father was a total jackass to him.
- Manipulative Bastard: Theodore was (is?) this as the megalomaniac he was (is?). He was so much as this that he copied his brain into a router and attempted several times to download his brain into failed dysfunctional company workers to keep himself alive and nearly tried to do this to Matt.
- Not Quite Dead: Theodore is barely alive/dead thanks to his "super coma" condition.
- Nu Metal: One of the show's main sources of humor comes from referencing and parodying the genre.
- Overly Long Gag: Theodore falling down the stairs in the pilot. The time he spends falling makes the staircase look at least three times longer than it is; to take it even further he actually stops then starts falling again for no reason.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: Once Matt is appointed to be the next CEO, his parents and uncle start showering him with affection just to stay on his good side.
- Shared Family Quirks: Stebe and Theo inherited their cannibal mother's unsettling meat-eating habit.
- Shout-Out:
- The entirety of "Casa the Darby" is a homage to Home Alone, down to the two thieves looking just like the Wet Bandits.
- "Craftopia" is this to Minecraft.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Stebe and Theo resemble some of their cannibal mother's siblings.
- The Unfavorite: Theodore absolutely hates Stebe with a passion for almost no reason and even wrote his name with a "b" as a sign that he couldn't bother to give him a better name.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: At the end of "Mall," Matt gifts his parents an armadillo plush as a wedding anniversary gift. Instead of usually demeaning his actions, Stebe and Deb actually feel touched and thank him for the gesture (even Stebe points out that he can't be angry to Matt this one time). Though the plush is cursed and laughs at Matt, who reacts in horror.
- Try to Fit That on a Business Card: Theodore presented himself to his future wife with his full name and entire address (down to the country), which screws him over when he runs away from her cannibal family trying to eat him and she recites his entire introduction to memorize where he lived if he tried to run away from her again.
