Julien Neaves, Caribbean Head Writer
I have been following the work of Bermudian artist Tashel Bean since I interviewed him about his animated series The Adventures of Raz and his adult animated comedy Bermuda Shorts Comedy Special.
The latter centred on struggling single father Mateo and his misadventures with his quick-witted girlfriend Zerlina and their family in Bermuda have continued in a series of hilarious Bermuda Shorts posted on Bean’s Facebook page and Instagram account.
In celebration of two years of Bermuda Shorts, the talented young artist has published a website compiling the more than 70 shorts and I am very excited to share the news with you Robo Mango Readers.
The Bermuda Shorts episodes all feature a simple, bubbly animation style, energetic voice work, and an enjoyable mix of situation comedy and wacky bits. And they are very short shorts too (no pun intended) ranging from around 30 seconds to a little over two minutes. You jump in, get smacked with the jokes, and then you’re out before your tea gets cold.
The shorts cover a wide range of topics including sports, shopping, holidays, festivals like Carnival, the Bermudian accent, family drama and Mateo’s struggles to make some money. Some of my favourite episodes feature Mateo’s Canadian friend being a fish out of water in Bermuda, but they are all quality offerings. And it is rare that I watch an episode and not get at least one good chuckle.
I’m from the Caribbean but I have not visited Bermuda (yet), so I am unfamiliar with all the Bermudian references and colloquialisms that appear in the series. But I am able to pick up what is happening from the context and much of the humour is universal enough to be enjoyed by audiences anywhere in the world.
So, this is not my traditional review or ranking, but I just wanted to let you guys know about the release of the website and all the great animated comedy available for viewing. Check it out, watch a few episodes and you can come back and thank me in the comments.
You can find all the Bermuda Shorts shorts on bdashorts.com by clicking here. And you can find more animated Cariwood content below:
Julien “Editor Jules” Neaves is a TARDIS-flying, Force-using Trekkie whose bedroom stories were by the Cryptkeeper, learned to be a superhero from Marvel, but dreams of being Batman. I love promoting Caribbean film (Cariwood), creating board games and I am an aspiring author. I say things like “13 flavours of awesome sauce”. Read more.