Pork and Konjac

Pork and Konjac
Genre	Comedy
Starring	Julie Rei Goldstein Stephanie Hsu Julia Wolov Lombardo Boyar Olivia Thirlby Charlie Day
Created by	Elliot Strange Sajeet Convoy
Composers	Morgan Kibby
Seasons	2
Episodes	20
Country of origin	United States
Running time	23 minutes
Production company(s)	Runnymede Pictures Convocise, Inc. Kapital Entertainment Temple Hill Entertainment 3 Arts Entertainment Bento Box Entertainment Sony Pictures Television 20th Television Animation
Original network	Hulu
Picture format	2023-2024

Pork and Konjac is an animated sitcom created by Elliot Strange and Sajeet Convoy and executive produced by Wallace Wolodarsky and for Hulu. The series stars Goldstein, Stephanie Hsu and Julia Wolov. Petosky served as a writer and consultant in regard to the show's trans lead.

Though the series received favorable reviews, the series would not be renewed for any more seasons.

Premise

The series centers on Alex, a trans woman who finds herself at odds with the world, being a moderate in spite of her associations. In trying to confront issues reasonably and understand others, she tends to make things worse whether intentionally or not. She is aided by her girlfriend Mace, who tends to encourage more negative habits. She was formerly embroiled with the far right and while she attempts to display some growth, old habits tend to slip through that make either look bad. Other characters include Colleen who previously appeared in The Halloween Kids and Anthony, a school guidance counselor and egomaniac. They would later be joined by Alyson and Drew, opponents to either of the four characters.

Setting and Connections

Pork and Konjac takes place 23 years after the events of The Halloween Kids. Both series took place within the fictional suburban Butts County, located in Western Michigan. The Halloween Kids took place in Shelby, a dormitory community known for its fishing and culinary scenes, while Pork and Konjac takes place in the county seat Crocker, formerly Crockerton; over the years the citizens petitioned to shorten the name, the deal coming to pass on April 1st, 2009, though the Crockerton name was kept for the police and fire departments. Crocker had gone through a recession following the closure of the city's biggest employer, LifeLine Batteries, with other factories gradually closing over the years. Crocker houses Jarvik University, and to maintain the economy the town would turn their focus to appealing to college age residents and those seeking low income housing.

Most Shelby residents would either move or commute to Crocker, many regulars in The Halloween Kids appearing occasionally, taking on various roles in the area.

Politics

Relating to the political content shown throughout most of the series, it reflects on the general nature of the city the characters reside in, from economic shifts to social attitudes.

Butts County was historically a liberal hotbed, having voted for progressive candidates Eugene V. Debs and Robert M. LaFollette in the 1912 and 1924 elections respectively. It became a reliably Republican county until 1960 where they voted for John F. Kennedy in 1960 and later Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, owed to shifts in the Republican party's views. Butts County would then on vote for Democratic candidates with some exceptions; the county would vote for Richard Nixon in 1968, owed to dissatisfaction with Johnson's approach to the Vietnam War, though they would later vote for his opponent George McGovern in 1972. The county would repeat this pattern in 1976, voting for Gerald Ford then voting for Carter in 1980. Though he didn't win the county, George W. Bush scored the highest percentage of any Republican candidate, though this was owed to concerns over Al Gore's environmental platform dividing residents.

Cast

• Julie Rei Goldstein as Alex Savadove: A transsexual woman, Alex developed feminine traits when she was a child, but was unable to act on them due to family and close friends downplaying her feelings. After graduating from college and moving to the city, Alex gained the confidence to transition. Alex had elected not to under go reassignment surgery and had kept her original name due to fear of permanence. She tries to take the high road when it comes to sensitive topics, just to live a normal life, but the pressures faced by transsexuals see her fall into that cycle of disparagement on a regular basis. Due to the election of Donald Trump and the general outline of Project 2025 seeking to harm transsexuals, Alex considers de-transitioning fearing for her life, ending the series on a cliffhanger.
• Stephanie Hsu as Mae Sung-Ri (Mace): A former alt-right grifter with a popular at the time YouTube channel. Mace, in spite of having some left-leaning views and being generally apolitical, had fallen to the right back in 2016. The loss of friends she knew for years, the onslaught of protests and general negativity led her to speak out against them in order to let off angst, not knowing of the consequences to Trump's inauguration. Mace would later abandon her right wing past after 2020 and had sought to redeem herself, managing to become friends with Alex and rebuild some good faith. The 2024 election however would see her potentially drift back to the right, but this was due to an influx of influencers guilting others who had either not voted or voted for Trump not of their own free will. Beyond that, Mace makes it a point to not bring up politics if it isn't necessary, she would typically give people the benefit of the doubt and look deeper into things in order to get the right context, only to be lambasted if she indirectly validates a negative side. Early outlines indicate she is Alex’s girlfriend, but this is now shown in the series proper.
• Julia Wolov as Colleen MacPherran: Alex's roommate. Colleen works at Planet Fitness and is considered the breadwinner of their shared space. Colleen is sarcastic but generally laidback, and not above influencing others to do devious things. She was a high school dropout, owed to her inability to remain awake during most classes and animosity toward a cruel teacher. Unable to face her family fearing they would disown her, Colleen would run away from home and gradually become a junkie, later finding outlets to keep her sober before confronting her trauma that led her down the path in the first place. Colleen previously appeared in The Halloween Kids in a recurring role.
• Lombardo Boyar as Anthony Jelnick: A school guidance counselor with sociopathic tendencies, living in an apartment next to Alex and Colleen's. Having been brought up in a religious cult, after breaking from his learned behaviors he would escape from the compound he was living at and would lead a bust against it. Anthony had developed a resentment toward religion due to trauma from his upbringing and would generally antagonize devotees who share similar behaviors. In spite of this, Anthony does not consider himself an atheist, though many consider him a gatekeeper when it comes to how people express their fate. Beyond that, Anthony is ironically the more sensible of the group, typically being the first to call out what seems like a bad idea conceived by anyone in his circle.
• Olivia Thirlby as Alyson Weil: A leftwing activist. Alyson is generally judgmental of those who don't share her views, while being arrogant over her own beliefs. She is the leader of a social club dedicated to left wing causes, one that shifts locations each episode, though she is the only one who takes its mission seriously. She and Mace are rivals, having previously fallen out while the two were in college, but by the second season both are working to mend their ties as she and the others would integrate with the group.
• Charlie Day as Drew Horowitz: A Eugene, Oregon native. Drew first appeared in episode six and would later become a recurring character. In spite of his interests and appearances, Drew is a metal fan and frequently plays more obscure songs from the genre. He is generally insecure about his sexuality, owed to trauma when expressing himself to his family, easily provoked at the smallest cracks made against him. Though assuming he was gay, he would later determine he was asexual due to his inability to be intimate.

Production

Strange developed the series alongside comic book artist Sajeet Convoy. The creation of the series was owed to a promise made by Strange to Convoy when the latter worked as a voice actor for the short film Wolf Catchers; when Convoy became an adult and gained experience they would work on a show together.

Wanting to build upon shows that sought to provide representation to minority groups, the new characters Strange would use would reflect that, with one of the characters being a transsexual female. Strange intended to go for a more ‘casual’ approach to featuring the characters, wanting their personalities to be demonstrated and reflect how those featured belong in society.

Writer Shadi Petosky was brought on to assist in writing for the show’s trans lead Alex. Strange and Petosky would initially clash regarding the extent of the character’s sexuality portrayed and the overall character; Strange wanted to focus on the personality and have the character appear less flashy, while Petosky wanted to make it more obvious. Petosky was said to have folded after Strange claimed she fit his intended depiction of Alex, while intending to use said portrayal to help normalize transsexuality and make the topic more accessible.

The series was co-developed with Wallace Wolodarsky, whom Strange worked with on The Halloween Kids. Due to Wolodarsky developing concepts that would be used in The Halloween Kids, wanting to avoid paying royalties or facing charges of copyright infringement, Strange would recruit Wolodarsky as an executive producer, with him, Strange, Petosky and Convoy developing the series bible, one that would bridge both series together. The show was released on Hulu in the United States, as well as on Paramount+ internationally. The show's music was composed by Morgan Kibby, who previously worked with Strange as a child actor in The Halloween Kids.

Hulu picked up the series as part of an "escrow deal", where they would agree to fund two seasons but held back the second unless the first proved to be popular enough to justify its release. The first season proved to be popular with viewers and Hulu would release the second soon after. While maintaining decent reviews, in December of 2024 Hulu announced that the series will not be renewed for any more seasons. Among the factors listed were the show's casting budget as well as the divisive reactions to most of the episodes, notably Obey the Shirt following a legal suit by actor Kevin Sorbo. However, it has been speculated the series was cancelled for political reasons; after Donald Trump won the 2024 election, Disney underwent an erasure of material that centered on or featured transsexual characters, Pork and Konjac included due to its transsexual lead character.

Pork and Konjac was removed from Hulu in 2025 after Trump was re-inaugurated, with official clips removed from the service’s YouTube channel.

Episodes

Season 1

#	Name	Description
1	Pilot	Alex seeks out other transsexual friends, but becomes ostracized due to her more lax nature, especially when she is forced to partake in an arson operation.
2	Date Vape	A businessman opens a smoke shop in Alex's neighborhood, with the group considering it to be a sign the neighborhood is depreciating. Mace's pretentious mother (Sandra Oh) is dating the businessman and tasks him with locating her prized chihuahua after the gang steals it for ransom. Alex learns more about Colleen's past as a drug addict.
3	Magic Words	Using a trick taught to her by Colleen, Alex would go on a journey that would see her gaining control of the city.
4	Differences	Alex gets into an online feud with a movie reviewer relating to either's stance on J.K. Rowling, and it would get to a point both would meet in real life.
5	Small Claims, Big Egos	Alex and Alyson get into a fender bender. Due to either's insurance claims expiring, both take it to court and do what they can to get the other to pay for the damages.
6	Save Stinky's	Anthony and Alex promote a wellness project, where students would take pictures of a toy at restaurants with unhealthy meals, and wind up angering Alyson and her group after the project would lead to the potential closure of a local restaurant, one where they host their meetings.
7	Obey the Shirt	Anthony attempts to help the son of a Jehova's Witness family, especially as they stifle his sociality, with the final straw coming when they refuse to take him to a hospital when he falls ill. Anthony winds up forming a mob to drive the family out of town.
8	Doom Stroll	Alex, Mace, Anthony and Colleen travel to Wyoming for a sabbatical, where they would find themselves in the middle of a trafficking plot after accidentally getting undercover agents killed.
9	Shelby	Alex attempts to reintegrate a woman who awakens from a 24 year coma. The woman would discover her son became an established asexual author and is planning to be part of his county's first asexual marriage.
10	Serial Squatter	An elderly woman claims to have lived in Alex's apartment and attempts to convince them to let her live there until she dies, the group unaware she is a wanted criminal.

Season 2

#	Name	Information
1	Talk and Think	Alyson becomes depressed after getting ousted from her group when a new member ousts her, with Mace and Alex attempting to help her get back in.
2	Sweet, Sweet Subtext	Colleen teams up with members of Alyson's group to create a fan made She-Hulk comic series, but the publisher they work with wants to stray away from their depictions.
3	Decentralized Conflict	Mace discovers her old YouTube channel was hacked by a cryptocurrency front, and the group plot to drain the hacker's funds as revenge.
4	The Theorem	The gang oversee the real time degradation of a hangout spot as the owner allows unsavory individuals to visit and drive away the regulars. Not wanting it to happen again, the group attempt to drive away those types from another spot, causing a fight.
5	The Four Year Plan	Alyson is kidnapped by a YouTube user who is hunting down those he claims to defend pedophilia, with the others gradually getting captured.
6	J.K. Got me Rolling	Facing eviction after their apartment complex gets bought out, Alex and company attempt to join Alyson's group hoping to find shelter. For their initiation they are tasked with raiding a Harry Potter theme park where they would happen upon a treasure hunt.
7	Investation	Alex and friends travel to Shelby to visit the former's parents, where they deal with Alex's abusive machine obsessed father. The family seeks to move in with Alex after claiming to have lost money in investing in political causes, Alex not realizing they blew their money through scam investments which they attempt to put her money toward as payback for her defiance.
8	League of Extra Ordinary College Students	The gang travel to Drew's alma matter to attend a reunion, where Drew's former fraternity brothers are plotting revenge for a hazing plan gone arwy.
9	Miracles Happen (Like Shit)	The gang attempts to help a man who opened a business on a loose hope get back on track, but in doing so enable him to think more critically and lead him out of his rut.
10	Escape to Canada	Fearing for the fate of the country as the 2024 election comes to a close, Alex and co seek to flee to Canada while fleeing from the enemies they've made along the way.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, 70% of reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes gave the series positive reviews, with the consensus reading "Pork and Konjac boasts a good cast and a surprisingly sharp tongue on issues, to varying degrees of success." Viewers praised the show's humor, depiction of transsexuality and characterization, but were more critical of the show's perceived mean-spiritedness. Noting the show's left lean, most critics compared the show favorably against similar productions, believing the show's absurdity helped to justify more extreme depictions of the opposition, while also seeking to give them an identity beyond their views.