"Rage of the Ape-Men" is the fifth episode of the American adult animatedaction-dramaPrimal, which aired on Adult Swim on October 12, 2019[1] as the mid-season finale of the series' first season. Directed by Bryan Andrews and Genndy Tartakovsky[2] and co-written by the two with Darrick Bachman, the episode follows Spear (Aaron LaPlante) and Fang (Joel Valentine) as they are captured by a vicious tribe of ape men who hold a brutal tournament to the death, which they are made to partake in.
Spear and Fang reach a seemingly peaceful oasis and relax before they are captured by a vicious tribe of ape-men that hold a brutal tournament to the death, with one of them eventually winning. After the gorilla-like gladiator Krog drinks an enhancement serum from the chimpanzee-like shaman, which mutates and enrages him, Fang is lowered into the arena for him to fight. Helplessly watching as Fang is beaten to near death, Spear breaks free from his bindings and drinks the rest of the serum, causing him to transform into a raging monster. After killing Krog, Spear proceeds to massacre the other ape-men overnight. When Spear eventually returns to normal, he runs to Fang's side as she lies motionless.
^While chronologically followed by "Scent of Prey", the later-season episode "Plague of Madness" would be released first after "Rage of the Ape-Men" for April Fool's Day 2020 before reairing within sequence later in the year.
^Pitman, Robert (October 18, 2024). "Samurai Jack & Primal Creator Genndy Tartakovsky On The State Of The Animation Industry [SCAD]". Screen Rant. Retrieved October 18, 2024. Genndy Tartakovsky: [Take] "Rage of the Ape-Men." I think I had a title, and I was like, "Oh my God, that's going to be such a great episode." Not even knowing what it's going to be, but he's just going to be fighting some big ape men. There's things like that where the excitement of the inception is great. That drives it. Usually if I come up with an idea, and it doesn't go anywhere, I'm like, "Oh, well, this needs longer thinking." It's not bad. So I tend to think of character first, then situations, then story, and then I circle back to what's at the heart of it, what's beneath the surface of it.
