Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Agent Elvis’ on Netflix, an Action-Packed Animated Comic Book Littered with Adult Humor

He’s all shook up…and ready for vengeance. Agent Elvis is a bit of an odd one. It’s an animated series that revives the iconic King of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Elvis Presley (Matthew McConaughey), back to life in a high-stakes espionage adventure. Elvis is reinvented as a suave vigilante-turned-undercover spy who must save the world while keeping his rockstar identity a secret. Easier said than done, right? While the premise may scream “camp” to most, this is the rare animated series where it does its real-world inspiration right, pushing plenty of adult laughs, cool animation, and Elvis songs. Honestly, what’s not to like?

AGENT ELVIS : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: An animated Elvis Presley stands with his guitar slung over his shoulder and hand on his mic stand in the studio. This is NBC Studios in Burbank, CA in 1968. He chats with his producer about using the song “Trouble” during his ’68 Comeback Special but is quickly steered toward singing Christmas songs, just like in real life.

The Gist: Elvis is enjoying fame as one of the biggest stars in the world. But he’s also a vigilante who spends his free time taking on bad guys and evildoers. Typical rockstar stuff. He has his buddy Bobby Ray (Johnny Knoxville), pet chimpanzee Scatter (Tom Kenny), wife Priscilla (Priscilla Presley), and mother figure Bertie (Niecy Nash) at his side. And with that kind of family, he can do anything — including bash the bad guys’ heads in.

After a couple of run-ins with folks who seemingly want nothing more than to see Elvis dead, he meets a with a mysterious woman named CeCe Ryder (Kaitlin Olson) — yes, like the song — an agent who belongs to a top-secret organization that the first episode doesn’t quite cover. She mentions her job is making sure Elvis doesn’t end up dead, however, so she’ll undoubtedly be important going forward.

Elvis and CeCe work together to track down the mysterious band of murderers who want him dead for some reason: the Manson family. Why do they want to kill Elvis, specifically? What does Charles Manson (Fred Armisen) want with the star? Who knows? Who cares, really? Elvis can take him. He has a killer chimp as a pet and is, like, the greatest rock and roll musician of all time. And now he’s also kicking a ton of ass.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? There are strong Archer vibes from Agent Elvis, though Elvis is seemingly much more competent than anything Sterling Archer would tackle. Stylistically and thematically, the shows share some similarities. And given Elvis’s all-around “family-friendly” association, there are shades of animated series like Harley Quinn to be seen here, where a somewhat family-friendly character is rebooted with foul-mouthed friends and adult material to great effect. Did you know Elvis dropped this many F-bombs? Me either!

Our Take: Agent Elvis had the makings of a throwaway series all over it when it was first announced. But if you give it a chance, you’ll come away having thoroughly enjoyed yourself, especially if you were or are becoming a fan of the singer. And with movies like Elvis in the public eye, interest in the superstar has only skyrocketed in recent days. It may look like a silly spoof, but it’s actually quite entertaining, and makes Elvis seem, well, as cool as he probably actually was. Cooler, really.

There’s a little something for everyone, like high-speed car crashes, a Manson family beatdown, a monkey trampling someone close to death, and Elvis performing for audiences on TV while cuddling with wife Priscilla (Priscilla Presley). And it’s all done to the tune of Elvis standards, which will have you dancing in your seat.

Where Agent Elvis truly shines, however, is its stylistic, comic-centric approach to animation. While one might expect cheapness given its initial trailer and marketing materials, it goes to great lengths to make the series feel like a comic book crossover that’s come to life. Thick lines, exaggerated physical forms, and literal comic panels advance the story during action-packed moments. It not only looks good, but it feels good. It’s smooth, aesthetically pleasing, and perfect for the subject matter. Titmouse really knocked it out of the park with this one.

Parting Shot: After Elvis and CeCe part ways, he heads home to cuddle with wife Priscilla and their daughter, Lisa Marie. They watch Elvis’s comeback special together and Elvis closes out the show, but not until after we learn that the limo chase from earlier in the episode was planned by an unknown entity who had been testing the singer.

Sleeper Star: Hardly a sleeper star in real life, Niecy Nash is Bertie, who’s something of a mother figure to Elvis. Her iconic voice brings a spiced warmth to the character. You know who she is as soon as Bertie opens her mouth, and though she tries her best to keep Elvis reined in, at her core she loves and cares about the star, mentioning at one point that she had promised the star’s mother that she would help take care of him after she passed.

Most Pilot-y Line: Elvis explains to a potential assailant what his “deal” is, referring to his vigilante activities: “You see, a while ago, I decided I wasn’t just gonna sit around while this country’s torn apart by all the chaos, the dirtbag hippies, the drugs, the crime. No, no, no, not on my watch.”

Our Call: STREAM IT. You wouldn’t think that a show that transforms the King of Rock ‘n Roll into an animated spy would work. Surprisingly, it does – and well. McConaughey’s smooth Southern drawl is the perfect fit for Presley, the animation is fluid and attractive, and the laughs come at you quickly. It’s a raucous good time, and deserves a good, old-fashioned try – even by suspicious minds.

Brittany Vincent has been covering video games and tech for over a decade for publications like G4, Popular Science, Playboy, Variety, IGN, GamesRadar, Polygon, Kotaku, Maxim, GameSpot, and more. When she’s not writing or gaming, she’s collecting retro consoles and tech. Follow her on Twitter: @MolotovCupcake.