The animated sitcom that tried to integrate monsters into Manhattan

Cultures · Published 10 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In an alternate New York, social workers don't just deal with humans. From zombies to wizards, the characters of Ugly Americans navigate a bureaucratic nightmare of supernatural immigration, where the line between person and monster is as thin as a legal technicality.

Developed by David M. Stern and created by Devin Clark, the adult animated sitcom Ugly Americans ran on Comedy Central between March 17, 2010 and April 25, 2012. Stern. The series follows Mark Lilly, a 21-year-old social worker for the Department of Integration's Social Services Division. In this version of Manhattan, the Department of Integration—a subset of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security—specializes in helping non-human and demonic species integrate into human society. The series originated from a webseries titled 5 On with Alan Whiter. Pre-production for the show took place at the Brooklyn-based Augenblick Studios.

The show's cast features a bizarre array of inhabitants, including Randall Skeffugginton, an unemployed zombie from South Jersey, and Callie Maggotbone, a succubus and the daughter of the Devil. The workplace is far from stable; the director, Twayne Boneraper, slashed the department's staff to just two people—Mark and the wizard Leonard Powers—to redirect funding toward law enforcement. This bureaucratic tension is mirrored by the characters' personal struggles, such as Randall's battle with flesh cravings and Callie's physically painful skin-shedding process. The department's staff reduction was overseen by Twayne Boneraper. Leonard Powers, the wizard colleague, has often avoided actual work for over three years by discarding his files.

Despite its cult following, the series faced an abrupt end. On May 29, 2013, producers announced the show's cancellation, citing legal technicalities that prevented new deals from being finalized, despite efforts to find outside financing. While the television run ended after 31 episodes over two seasons, the franchise saw a brief revival in 2014 as a mobile app game for iOS. The show's second season began airing on June 30, 2011. Animation for the production was handled by various studios in Toronto, Ottawa, and Brooklyn.

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