MK 22

infobox television
show_name = MK 22


caption =
rating =
format = Animated cartoon sitcom
runtime = 25 to 26 minutes
creator = Asaf Harel
starring = Danny Steg Haim Barbalat Inbal Luri Adib Jahschan
country = Israel
network = Bip (channel) Channel 2 (Israel)
first_aired = March 7, 2004 (estimated)
last_aired = June 13, 2004
num_episodes = 10
website =
imdb_id = 0413583|

M.K. 22 (Hebrew: מ.ק. 22, transliteration: Mem Qoph 22;) is an Israeli comedy animated cartoon series produced by Shortcut Films, broadcasted on the cable television's Bip channel and later rebroadcasted, slightly censored, in Channel 2 (Israel).

The series won the 2004 Israeli Academy of Cinema & Television award for Outstanding Comedy Series Fact|date=March 2008. Despite its popularity and critical acclaim Fact|date=March 2008, the 2004 negotiations for a second season [cite news|url=http://www.nrg.co.il/online/4/ART/820/764.html| title=Negotiations for a second season of MK 22| publisher=NRG (Maariv)| language=Hebrew language| date=2004-11-14| accessdate=2008-03-24] seem to have failed.

Etymology

M.K. stands for Mahane Keva, which is Hebrew for a "permanent military base". 'Mem Qoph 22' sounds like 'Milkud 22', the Hebrew title for Joseph Heller's novel Catch-22.

Premise

Satirically dealing with Israel Defense Forces manners, it is situated in a secret logistics military base in the south of Israel storing its nuclear missiles.

Major characters

*Camp Commander Warrant Officer Gabriel Shukrun (Albert Iluz) - a stubborn and manipulative NCO.
*Corporal Shlomi Hanukkah (Danny Steg) - a narrow minded soldier and a Mizrahi "pimp".
*Corporal Itai Shulman (Haim Yafim Barbalat) - Hanukkah's friend, an Ashkenazi wimp.
*Michal Levinstein (Inbal Luri) - a handicapped volunteer, generally hated by the other involuntary soldiers. She not only volunteers by free will, but wishes to become a fighter pilot, while the other involuntary soldiers just wish to stay away from combat.
*Abed Abu Jamal (Adib Jahschan) - The "Good Arab" living near the base, whilst secretly being a terrorist training shahid sheep.

Resemblance to South Park

'M.K. 22' openly draws much inspiration from Matt Stone & Trey Parker's South ParkFact|date=June 2008. It satirizes many aspects of Israeli culture and current events, and challenges IDF taboos, usually using parody and black humor. The characters and backgrounds of 'M.K. 22' are made to appear deliberately crude, though not as if they're made of cut-out pieces of paper. There is only one round shape in the entire series (one of the soldiers' helmet), whereas other naturally round shapes look quadrilateral or polygonal. The Sun for instance, is a plain yellow square in the sky.

References

External links

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