With deer-dogs, baby clowns, ‘The Midnight Gospel’ grapples with life, death

A zombie apocalypse is an unlikely setting for in-depth discussions on psychedelic experiences. Likewise, discussing losing parents to cancer does not usually occur on a conveyor belt in a slaughterhouse. In “The Midnight Gospel,” an animated show on Netflix, this is simply the way of the world(s).

“The Midnight Gospel” is a chaotic and confusing show that embraces its weirdness with open arms, and if you give it a chance, you might widen your understanding of what it really means to be human.

Each of the eight episodes of “The Midnight Gospel” runs roughly 20-30 minutes. Set in a dimension called the “Chromatic Ribbon,” the show revolves around Clancy Gilroy, a “spacecaster” (a video podcaster who broadcasts his work around the multiverse), and his conversations with various beings on different planets. 

In each episode, Clancy travels to a different planet — usually on the brink of an apocalypse — and speaks with a character about, well, anything. Despite the preposterous experiences the characters endure — a journey through a water planet with a ship manned by a crew of cats or a prison that resurrects a prisoner after his daily death — the characters maintain an absurd sense of normalcy in face of each episode’s insanity.

The true highlight of the show, though, are the conversations that the episodes present. Inspired by actual conversations on the creator’s podcast, Duncan Trussell’s “The Duncan Trussell Family Hour,” each episode presents surprisingly deep discussions. While only a few of the show’s characters are human, each conversation grapples with a crucial aspect of humanity: spirituality, life and, most importantly, death. The outlandish settings function merely as a backdrop for the ideas shared between baby clowns, deer-dogs, octopuses and men with fish-heads.

While it may appear to be simply too random, off-beat or, simply put, weird, consider “The Midnight Gospel” for a heartwarming, thought-provoking show.