Web Series Observer - Pet Crazy

Created by Chris Bobay and Christopher Gallego

The Story: "Pet Crazy" is a new web dramedy about an entrepreneur named Peter who lives in Los Angeles and is referred to by the media as an "Animal Hitman." His talent to eliminate and dispose of problematic creatures of all sizes is rivaled only by his ability to maintain anonymity in the most high profile city in the world. With the help of his business partner and longtime friend, Emma, Peter runs a telephone service called Pet Crazy. They lend a compassionate ear to people that have been troubled in some way by other people’s pets. These are the people that need a sympathetic ear to listen, and can return to their normal lives after blowing off a little steam. However, if you listen very carefully, amongst these callers you’ll find the people that really need us; the people for whom Pet Crazy was created. The woman whose child was mauled by a vicious animal; the husband whose wife is destroying their marriage to save a terminal pet. It is for these pained souls that Pet Crazy exists. For these select cases, we offer a very different type of solution.

The Observation: It’s not every day one gets the chance to review a web series telling the story of a man whose job is to kill the pets of cheaters, swindlers and wrongdoers. And, despite the potential backlash I may receive from PETA, I can easily say that Pet Crazy is one of the most entertaining, original series I have watched. Don’t get me wrong, I had strong hesitancies before checking this series out. But I gave it a go, because that is what the Observer does. And believe me when I say that you will not regret watching this show.

Yes, this series is massively reminiscent of Dexter, where we get to see a well-groomed man who runs a peculiar business – that of exterminating the pets of those that have it coming one way or another. In the shows rather short four-episode season, we are shown this rather light-hearted world that showcases a dark undertone, again, very indicative of a certain serial killer that airs on Showtime.

My only issue with this show is that it is so short, I was clamoring for more. The creators hit the tone of this show with a perfect pitch – the bright, colorful landscape of Los Angeles; the pristine video quality; and a score to just enhance all of it even further. The performances are also top-notch; I only wish I had gotten to know the characters a little more. There were certain storylines, a romantic one in particular, that I was unable to get into because I did not know the characters well enough to find an emotional attachment.

But that certainly didn’t stop me from enjoying this show for what it had to offer. They considerably pushed their boundaries further in the final episode, which involved a man dubbed ‘Animal Lecter’. I don’t want to spoil anything for you – let’s just say I give their props and practical effects department an A+ for what I saw. I would love for that to continue, even embellished upon, in future episodes.

The Bottom Line: Though too short to form a relationship with the characters, Pet Crazy makes up for it in professional grade production and performances.

The Info: The four-episode first season is currently streaming on www.petcrazytheshow.com, and can also be followed on Facebook and Twitter.

The Interview: I had a chance to ask co-creator Christopher Gallego about his show. Check it out below after watching the trailer.

This is certainly a...unique concept for a show. What inspired you to create a show like this?

[Chris Bobay] sent me the early drafts he had written and my first thought was "wow, there's no way we can get away with this!" But I really liked the idea of doing something a little edgier, something that stood out from all the other shows out there. I also liked that the material lent itself to a more cinematic style which is how I prefer to shoot.

Producing and marketing a show with this concept must have been difficult to sell. How did you go about doing this?
We knew from the get go that this concept was going to be a touchy one, especially in a town like Los Angeles, where sometimes people treat their pets like they would their own children. So for me, I was determined to make a show that focused more on the complicated dynamics that animals create in people's lives. So we went through each scenario where an animal must be "taken care of" by Peter, and we made sure it was always a situation where good people's lives would improve by the removal of that particular animal. Although Peter Sullivan (our "animal hitman") is a businessman through and through, there is a least a seedling of desire to always help people. For him, if the situation comes down to making a choice between saving a person or saving an animal, of course you choose the human life. That's a sentiment which I can really get behind.

At first people tend to have a very strong reaction about what they think the show is all about. Once they see it though, the reaction is almost always positive. Even fervent animal lovers have watched the show and given us very positive feedback about how we've handled the material. People who have seen Season 1 really seem to get what we're going for, and as we reach larger audiences, I hope that sentiment carries on.

One of the only negative things I can say about this show was that it was way too short. I wanted more. What can we expect in the next season? Any spoilers you're willing to hint at?
Thank you so much! That's actually wonderful to hear, because we worked really hard to make sure viewers got just enough of a taste to enjoy it and want more. We have great respect for this new media platform and proud to be developing content specifically for the web. So your reaction of wanting more thrills us greatly, because we want our viewers to enjoy it on its current platform and say "Yes! We want more!" I will say that there are some really exciting things being planned, and although I can't give too many details about it right now, I will mention that we're working on adding to the cast a very dynamic actress who is internationally known and had such a positive reaction to the show that she offered to help us out in any way possible. So stay tuned!

What advice can you give to other filmmakers trying to produce/market a web series?
Pick up a camera and shoot! The genesis for creating our own series is that we were tired of waiting for Hollywood to come to us and allow us to work on our craft. We have stories we want to tell, that we have to tell, and there's no waiting around for permission to do that. I'm a big supporter of this new wave of emerging storytellers, and the democratization of cinema that's giving voices to people who otherwise may have never been heard from. Do the work, tell your stories, and don't wait for anybody else to give you permission to work on your craft. If you're passionate about what you do, the rest will take care of itself.