The ETRF

The ETRF is a British animated sci-fi drama created by BaconMatthew for Dessin. The series follows Steven and Anne, two scientists who work for the Extra-Terrestrial Research Facility, which holds aliens in captivity to research their habits and abilities, in the year 2108.

The series premiered on Dessin on April 6, 2018 and was renewed for a second season on June 4, 2018. The second season premiered on August 6, 2019. The series quickly became one of Dessin's most popular, averaging 0.2 - 0.3 million viewers per episode.

Premise
Main article: List of The ETRF characters

In the year 2076, trips far into space were made easier after a breakthrough in fuel was discovered. In 2085, the Extra-Terrestrial Research Facility was opened to research aliens.

The series is set in the year 2108 and follows a branch of the ETRF located on the moon. The series mainly follows Steven O'Hare and Anne Evans, two researchers at the branch who are also skilled in stopping alien escapes.

Cast

 * Alexander Armstrong as Steven O'Hare
 * Morwenna Banks as Anne Evans, Specimen Z, additional voices
 * BaconMatthew as Joseph, Bob the Orb, additional voices
 * Matt Berry as Mr. Renoda
 * Tamsin Heatley as Mrs. Thornburn, additional voices
 * Daisy Haggard as Janitor
 * Tress MacNeille as Facility AI, additional voices
 * Wayne Forester as Health Inspector, additional voices

Development
In 2014 BaconMatthew said he would like to create a drama series as something to differentiate from his mostly comedy-based series. The series was later greenlit to air on Dessin.

The series' pilot was mostly developed in 2015. Positive feedback from viewers when it was posted online helped BaconMatthew push to greenlight the series.

Production on the series began in mid-2015.

Casting
In early 2017 BaconMatthew said that Alexander Armstrong and Morwenna Banks were cast for the two lead roles, and that he would also be playing a secondary character (Joseph) as well as a few others. In May 2017 the series' full cast was announced.

Animation
The series is storyboarded at Deep Fried Productions in the UK, with full animation being produced at Rough Draft Studios Korea.

Episodes
Main article: List of The ETRF episodes

Release
The first promos for the series started airing on Dessin in January 2018, with more being created and shown in the months leading up to the series' premiere.

The series premiered on April 6, 2018. A second season premiered on August 6, 2019.

The series also airs on Dessin in all territories it is available in (France, Spain, Italy, Germany and Poland). Most other territories have the series on Netflix. The first season was added to Netflix UK on July 1, 2019.

Critical reception
The series has received generally positive reviews, with most of the praise going to season one's final episodes. Matt Berry's performance as Mr. Renoda has also been particularly praised.

On IMDb, the series has a 7.6 rating based on 718 reviews.

While its earliest episodes received a mixed reception, there was more positive reviews by the end of the first season. For example, Den of Geek gave the series' first two episodes a "B-" rating, and gave the last two a "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

Ratings
The series has had somewhat high ratings, with most episodes receiving around 0.2 - 0.25 million viewers. Its highest rated episode to date is the second season premiere which was viewed by 0.29 million people.

Future
In July 2019, while giving a presentation on the series' second season, BaconMatthew said he would likely end the series after about four seasons so it "wouldn't drone on and deteriorate".