Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared enters the digital age with a new nightmare-inducing episode

Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared is a twisted take on the children’s edutainment show. Previous episodes have dealt with time, creativity, and the love that exists between a puppet and its vengeful god. The latest episode delves into all the possibilities that computers offer the world in trying to solve problems, present multiple graphs, or slowly take over reality until it’s just a glitchy assortment of chaotic occurrences. The series, from creators and directors Becky Sloan and Joseph Pelling, adheres to a DIY public television aesthetic that then runs counter to the slow nightmarish freak show that begins to insidiously invade the the three main characters’ otherwise idyllic existences. Basically, if the Children’s Workshop took some bad acid for an episode of Sesame Street but was still mildly dedicated to teaching some lesson, the result would be this darkly absurd series.