Downtown (1999 TV series)

The show follows a diverse and multiracial group of young adults who live in an urban area on East Village of New York City, and presents their everyday lives. The series is based on interviews with real people. == Characters ==

• Alex Henson (voiced by Gregory Gilmore) is a nerdy 24-year-old virgin and Chaka's older brother. He harbors a crush on goth girl Serena. Alex lives in Lower East Side apartment. • Chaka Henson (voiced by Leyora Zuberman) is Alex's rebellious 17-year-old younger sister. • Fruity (voiced by Marco H. Rodriguez) is an Afro-Latino ladies' man who has a crush on Chaka. • Scott "Goat" (voiced by Scot Rienecker) is Alex and Jen's stoner friend. • Jen (voiced by Tammy Lang) is Alex's chubby, sarcastic Asian-American best friend. She runs a used-clothing shop, with a minimum-wage. • Matt (voiced by Hector Fontanez) is Fruity's artsy best friend. • Mecca (voiced by Aurora Lucia-Levey) is an African-American hopeless romantic and Chaka's best friend. • Serena (voiced by Phoebe Summersquash) is a resident goth girl, and Alex's love interest. • Leah (voiced by Rosanna Plasencia) is Jen's promiscuous roommate. • Lizzie (voiced by Christina Campanella) is a raver girl who Chaka and Mecca mock behind her back. Additional voice actors include: Cheese Hasselberger, Kirk Randolf, Mike de Seve, Eric S. Calderon, Guy Maxtone-Graham, Trish Ward-Torres, Paul Williams, David Toney, Joseph Buoye, Jay Daniels. ==Episodes==

According to Chris Prynoski, when he watched early-1970s Ralph Bakshi films in the mid-1990s, he felt that his films from that time were "much like a time capsule." This inspired him to create Downtown, "so that when people watch the show 20 years later, it feels exactly like 1999 in New York". Soundtrack of Downtown was composed by Massive Attack and DJ Shadow. Music tracks involving drum-and-bass however, was composed by Kimson Albert. == Release ==

Downtown was first shown at the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE), in January 1999. It was later shown during Comic-Con International in August of that year. The show was broadcast for 13 episodes, airing from August 3, to November 8, 1999. Due to licensing issues with the music, the series was never officially released on DVD or in any physical form. It wasn't released on any streaming service or VOD. Years later, Chris Prynoski started to sell promotional units of the show for $25, promoting them through his personal blog. All 13 episodes of the show, sometime later, were unofficially released on YouTube. A collection of merch of the show was also released by Prynoski and Titmouse Inc. in 2024, for the celebration of the show's 25th anniversary, as it also was never officially released by MTV. ==Reception==

While Downtown did received a lackluster interest during its release, aside from being nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program for the episode "Before and After" in 2000. During COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the show gained larger interest from the audience in retrospect online, on YouTube and TikTok. with users praising and citing the show for "its abstract imagery and realism." Greta Rainbow of Vulture, called it a "Feat of naturalistic dialogue", describing the series as a "hyperspecific time capsule". Brad LaCour of Collider, expressed that "The writing of Downtown is sharp and natural, finding its humor naturally within conversations without making detours for jokes. The voice acting is superb and naturalistic, like you’re overhearing a conversation and not watching a produced script." ==References==