Trivia / Capitol Critters

• Celebrity Voice Actor: Doogie Howser, M.D.-era Neil Patrick Harris as Max (both shows shared a creator) and Bobcat Goldthwait as Muggle.
• Dueling Shows: Along with Family Dog and Fish Police, ...Critters was one of several attempts to cash in on the success of The Simpsons with a wider market of prime-time animated shows. The Simpsons won the ensuing ratings battle, then proceeded to hang a lampshade on it in the next "Treehouse of Horror" special showing tombstones with the competing shows' names. Ultimately Capitol Critters would have the last laugh, being lucky enough to gain a cult following later on.
  • To a lesser extent, it was this with Dinosaurs. Both shows were ABC's answer to The Simpsons, and were both done in a medium usually dismissed as for kids, but aired in prime time and with writing geared to adults. They even had their theme songs written by the same composer, Bruce Broughton. They were both short-lived by television standards, though Dinosaurs lasted longer and had the healthier syndication afterlife.
• Edited for Syndication: For obvious reasons, the German dub of the show removes the swastika from Kid Vicious' hat.
• Follow the Leader: As mentioned above, the show was failed attempt to cash-in on the success of the then-new prime-time animated sitcom The Simpsons.
• Friday Night Death Slot and Screwed by the Network: ABC ran the show on Saturday nights, giving it little chance to develop a wider audience.
• Keep Circulating the Tapes: Fox may have let the rights slip over to Turner/WB (as this show did air in the early days of Cartoon Network, when the channel was a 24/7/365 showcase of Hanna-Barbera animation, both popular^note like The Flintstones, Scooby Doo, Tom and Jerry, The Jetsons, and Yogi Bear and obscure^note like Wait Til Your Father Gets Home, Where's Huddles, and The Roman Holidays), but DVD rights apparently not so much. Even though the one that doesn't have it would probably release it if they did.
• Kids' Meal Toy: Although the show technically was not for kids, Burger King released a set of four toys featuring Max, Muggle, Jammet, and Presidential Cat situated on various buildings and monuments in Washington, DC in their Kids Meals in 1992.
• The Merch: Its brief broadcast life didn't stop it from getting merchandise. In addition to the aforementioned Burger King toys, there was also a line of action plushies by Kenner.