Exclusive: Universal Basic Guys Creators Break Down the Season 2 Finale and Tease What's Next for Season 3

Fox has quietly turned Universal Basic Guys into one of Animation Domination's sharper oddballs: big-hearted, super weird, and somehow still grounded. Season 2 is about to sign off, Season 3 is locked in, and the Malamut brothers have thoughts on everything from the show getting wilder to why they refused to change that throwback theme song.

Where they are now

Creators Adam and Craig Malamut say the machine is humming better than it used to. The team has gelled, the writers have a stronger feel for what these characters would actually say and do, and there's a real foundation to build on now. That leads to richer stories and the freedom to play with new faces rolling in for Season 3. Also, the familiar troublemakers are sticking around: Joe Lo Truglio's Mr. Bouchard is a keeper, and John Glaser's Jersey Devil remains a reliably chaotic presence.

"Expect the unexpected is the mantra."

That said, they swear every episode still feels like staring down a 70-page script while your hair is on fire. Par for the course.

About that theme song you refuse to skip

They went intentionally old-school: a punchy, on-the-nose opener that fires up after a cold open. In an era where most theme songs got cut to 3 seconds or nothing, they wanted a full vibe reset before each episode. The song actually started as part of their original pitch short. Adam mocked up an early version; Craig polished it, stacked vocals, and pushed it over the finish line.

Now the fun wrinkle: at one point they seriously considered renaming the show to something more family- centric (yes, even something Hoagies-adjacent) because the 'universal basic income' piece ebbs and flows in the narrative. But the title lived in the lyrics and fit too well, so they stuck with Universal Basic Guys. The brothers joke it might not be the prettiest name, but the song won the argument.

So... are Mark and Hank ever getting real jobs?

The premise gives them permission to dabble. Mark can try anything without getting chained to one gig, which is kind of the point. The brothers like playing in a near-future world where A.I. hoovers up wealth, regular jobs shrink, and UBI lets people actually chase creative or personal stuff. Sometimes the show pokes at that idea; sometimes it just follows the characters being themselves. If you're waiting for the big 'how does UBI actually work here?' explainer, Season 2's 'Markumentary' is meant to finally dig into those lingering questions.

And no, they're not saying free money turns people into spend-happy dummies. Mark is... Mark. If he blows his stipend on nonsense, that is very much a him problem. They could even give him a real job for a season at some point.

How weird can this thing get?

The answer is: pretty weird, but they try to earn it. The brothers are science skeptics by nature, so baking witches and ghosts into an episode (like the Poconos trip) actually stresses them out because now that stuff exists in the show's reality. Their workaround is escalation: start grounded, then build to the absurd in a way that feels inevitable. Example: 'Sheet Shock' starts with a memoir idea, pivots to Mark proving he can be a Navy SEAL, and somehow ends with him joining an Expendables-style squad while David gets trapped in a Smurf-ish fantasy nightmare. Also on the ledger: Mark has been cloned, a horse exploded, and the Jersey Devil keeps popping by. There is no carved-in-stone rulebook; if the character dynamics feel real, they let the craziness fly.

Merft Man gets personal

Season 2's 'Go Fund Mernft' cracks open Merft Man and, surprise, there is a lot of sadness under that shady-friend swagger. The creators admit they wrestle with how deep to go. Think Seinfeld: there's a version of the show where you never look under the hood. Here, they dipped in because the premise was too good, and it made him more interesting. The plan is to learn the backstory, then reset him to the lovable dirtbag who knows a guy who knows a guy.

Quick hits

• Season 2 finale airs Sunday, April 12 at 8:30pm ET on Fox.
• Season 3 is officially happening, and the writers are already at it.
• New characters arrive in Season 3; the brothers say it takes about six episodes to really figure out how a newbie fits.
• Side-character MVPs: Joe Lo Truglio's Mr. Bouchard and John Glaser's Jersey Devil are back.
• The theme song existed before the pilot and basically bullied the title into staying Universal Basic Guys.
• Season 2's 'Markumentary' is built to answer the show's big-world questions.

And now, hot dogs, because why not

Craig's pick is pure nostalgia: the humble convenience-store roller dog from childhood Wawa runs. Adam is an equal-opportunity hot dog person. He'll chase a proper Chicago Dog, but thick casings can be a turnoff, and the setting matters more than toppings. Stadium dog at a ballgame? Perfect. A simple apple-orchard stand dog with the family? Also perfect. He has even crushed a 7-Eleven dog for breakfast. The two sins they both flag: a casing that snaps like a tire and a dog so thick the bun-to-dog ratio goes sideways.