Solar Opposites is now in its fourth season and yet the outlandish animated science fiction family sitcom has never been smarter, sweeter, and more surprising. It can be difficult to rein in a limitless series like Solar Opposites and yet Korvo, Terry, Jesse, and Yumyulack continue to exceed expectations as layered storytelling tangents like “The Wall” and Silvercops break new ground. Solar Opposites is never lacking in laughs or ingenuity, but it takes a lot of work to bring all of this together.
Sydney Ryan, a producer on Solar Opposites since its debut, has helped bring this absurdist alien comedy to life and helped shape its versatile voice. As Solar Opposites beams down for season four, Sydney Ryan discusses expanding Shlorpian lore, finding a balance between fan service and justified storytelling, building upon “The Wall” and Silvercops without robbing them of their magic, and if Solar Opposites and its new Hulu neighbor Futurama could ever crossover.
Daniel Kurland: Dan Stevens is such a natural fit here and I love what he brings to the cast. Can you talk at all about how he came into the picture? Was he aware of Solar Opposites already? Were there other names or angles that were considered?
Sydney Ryan: When we started looking for a new Korvo, we knew that we wanted to make a big swing and totally change the sound of the character, but we also needed to maintain the comedy and keep the emotional aspects intact. We listened to a lot of auditions and met with some incredible actors, but it was Marci Proietto (Executive Vice President and Head of 20th Television Animation) who recommended Dan. As soon as Dan zoomed with us and read for Korvo, we all knew that he was the one. Korvo is tricky to play because he’s abrupt and pissed all the time, but you still love him, and Dan threaded that needle perfectly. Dan is hilarious, a phenomenal actor, and he was a big fan of Solar Opposites already! He’s been a great fit and we feel extremely lucky to have him on the show.
Daniel Kurland: This season begins with a really fun deconstruction of workplace sitcoms instead of just family sitcoms. Was that an exciting area to get to tackle? Was there an urge to keep Terry and Korvo there even longer?
Sydney Ryan: Mike McMahan and Josh Bycel have said that Solar Opposites is a show about watching sitcoms. They’re always looking for new ways to have fun with that premise, so they thought it would be really funny to transform into a workplace sitcom for a little bit. We had a lot of fun with it, but we didn’t want to change the entire dynamic of the show, so they made sure to get back to the family adventures relatively fast.
Daniel Kurland: This show is so good at fleshing out its more ancillary characters, whether it’s been the Pupa in the past or A.I.S.H.A. this season. Can you discuss how her episode came together and why that story was important to tell? It’s really beautiful.
Sydney Ryan: Thank you! Josh wrote this episode and it’s one of my favorites from the season. AISHA is such a great character, but we never got much of a glimpse into her life before now. I love the balance in this episode between comedy and the melancholy of being a computer that’s confined to the ship most of the time. Instead of doing a big, loud episode, Josh went with more of a Before Sunrise type story, which ended up being more surprising and sweeter than an audience might expect from Solar Opposites. The writers are always trying to play with expectations and this episode is a great example of that.
Daniel Kurland: Something that I truly love about this show is the way in which it returns to old ideas, like Gooblers or the Wooden City, but in completely new contexts. How does that process come together and is it difficult to determine which ideas should be revisited and which are just indulgent? Were there any “sequel” ideas that got vetoed?
Sydney Ryan: I remember Mike saying that a big part of the original pitch for Solar was that the show should seem like a normal family animated sitcom from a distance, but the more you pay attention, the deeper it ends up getting. Serialized stories like The Wall or Silvercops are broken sometimes years in advance, and Hulu understands that a big part of the show is the world-building. While the alien family side of the story seems to be less serialized than The Wall, the writers still consider their stories as world defining. After the Wooden City was introduced, Mike said that we have to remember from now on, this world has a Manhattan sized Wooden City. So not only do the writers try to involve that location in stories, but you’ll also sometimes see Wooden City characters walking around in the background in episodes that have nothing to do with the Wooden City. It’s something no one is asking for in this type of show, so it’s funny and surprising when we provide it.
Daniel Kurland: You guys have done excellent work expanding the series’ scope through The Wall material and more Silvercops. Can you talk a little on finding these tangents, building them out, and if there are plans to push this even further? Could either of these stories-within-stories even become their own shows?
Sydney Ryan: Haha, we get that a lot! People really want to see the side stories in their own shows, but the charm in those stories comes from being intertwined with the sitcom-y Solar stories. Mike has an over-arching plan for The Wall story that still needs a couple more seasons to tell! He and Josh start each season by talking about what kind of theme The Wall should have and they’ve had a lot of fun with it. Season one was an Escape From New York drama, season two was a murder mystery, then we had a creature feature, and now a cold war spy drama in season four. I feel like Mike treats Solar almost like his own network where can greenlight really weird dramatic stories that live within our show.
Daniel Kurland: This season tells a really beautiful story about family and togetherness, but what are you most proud about this season and is there a particular episode that you really think stands out?
Sydney Ryan: The writers really bring the family together more this season and I absolutely love the ridiculous adventures that they get to go on together. Korvo and Terry’s love story really builds; it’s beautiful that we’re getting to see more of it. They’re teammates, but they’re also partners, and I think they make the sweetest couple. Seeing their relationship grow over the seasons has been really rewarding and we’ll definitely see more of it in the future. The episode that stands out for me is 410 “The Re-Visibility Bouillabaisse.” It has the silliest plot, but Dan and Thomas’ performances really make the episode special. It’s a weird one, but I think it’s the funniest episode that we’ve ever made, and it has a lot of heart. It’s my favorite episode of the season and possibly the series.
Daniel Kurland: I love the tradition of holiday specials that you guys have started and last season’s Halloween special is one of my favorite things you guys have done. Why pick Valentine’s Day this time and do you intend to continue to explore new holidays in any future specials?
Sydney Ryan: I’m a big fan of the holiday specials as well! Valentine’s Day really felt like a fun holiday for the Solar’s to explore since I don’t think they have anything like it on Shlorp. I think the fans will enjoy getting the Solar’s take on Valentine’s Day and maybe we’ll all learn a little bit more about what love adds to Earth. I’ve pitched lots of holidays for future specials, haha, but it’s ultimately up to Mike and Josh to choose which ones we’ll explore next. We did our first holiday special in season two, and it came out of nowhere. The writers had finished writing the eight-episode season and McMahan just asked Hulu if we could have an extra episode and do a Holiday Special. They said yes and it ended up being hilarious! Our specials are usually making fun of real holiday specials, but with Valentine’s Day, there aren’t really a lot of specials out there, so they got to define it themselves and deep dive into the love between Terry and Korvo in a big, weird story, which is a lot of fun.
Daniel Kurland: Hulu is really building an impressive animated library of content and Solar Opposites is now in the same place as shows like Futurama and Koala Man . Is there any chance of a crossover in the future? Is that something you’d be interested in, especially with Futurama ?
Sydney Ryan: As a huge fan of both Solar Opposites and Futurama, I think that would be incredible!! The writers are always looking for ways to subvert expectations, so if we ever do a crossover, it’ll probably be a weird one nobody sees coming. That being said, I know Mike is also a fan of Futurama, and it’s a 20th/Hulu show as well, so maybe it could be a possibility. Honestly, on Solar Opposites, never knowing what you’re going to get is part of what makes the show so fun!
All four seasons of ‘Solar Opposites’ are currently available to stream on Hulu