So, when we heard there was going to be a “carnival” sponsored by Adult Swim, we expected the usual host of “omg-free-stuff-none-of–which-I’ll-ever-actually-use” promotional goodies, and maybe some of those tacky beanbag-throwing carnival games. But when we got there we were actually quite blown away–and that means a lot coming from the Clog.

Lower Sproul Plaza was completely transformed into what looked like an old-school carnival, with its usual attractions, slightly tweaked for a more adult audience. The arcade was a gigantic Meatwad tent, featuring Family Guy pinball, video games and Whack-a-Chippy. The fortune teller was a “semi-functional clairvoyant cat” who gave us a fortune that read “No entering and no touching.” Instead of a petting zoo, there was a “heavy petting zoo animal,” which was basically just a guy in a bunny suit whose purpose seemed to be to try to stalk and/or annoy people. (At one point he tried to read the Daily Cal through his mesh eye holes.)

The “Peep Show” had clips of Easter Bunnies hopping and horses running, which–we might add–was the opposite of the adult version. There were also the traditional carnival faves: Test Your Strength, dart throwing, a photo booth, one of those grabber claws where the claw is too weak to ever actual pick anything up and, yes, even beanbag throwing. The coolest thing had to be “Xavier’s Tree of Infinite Sadness and Possibilities,” which was a plastic stump with a bunch of limbs dispensing endless amounts of random shit like socks, Meatwad stress balls, pins and sock puppets.

If you were willing to wait you could even choose from a box of random t-shirts and applique whatever Adult Swim logo you wanted. There may not have been a Ferris Wheel or any cotton candy but we’d say that this was better than your average carnival: no kids, no parking and it was all free.

Image Source: Ruby Lee
Earlier: A County Fair in Lower Sproul Plaza? Do Whatnow?