http://www.ign.com/articles/2018/01/04/animaniacs-ordered-for-two-season-revival-on-hulu
title is self explanatory
http://www.ign.com/articles/2018/01/04/animaniacs-ordered-for-two-season-revival-on-hulu
title is self explanatory
Wouldn't be against Weird Al coming back to voice Wacko
What? Jess Harnell was Wakko.
It all comes down to the writing and voice cast…and if Hulu gives them the freedom to throw in subtle adult humor. I remember being over the Warners antics by the last season, hope they make them fun again. There's always Slappy. If they really want to blow our minds they'll make the Hip Hippos relevant.
I just hope its still really funny.
Gotta get the big players back for the voices.
Can we have more references that only our parents would understand?
or perhaps more of Minerva Mink. she only had two episodes and a handful of cameos.
This didn't get its own thread when it was announced a year ago? Huh.
Well, same points as had then. As exciting as the news is, and as good as the old show was… half the skits were... kinda crap. Hopefully more of the good, less of the crap.
Warners are great, lots of song numbers. All three VAs are still super active so no issues there.
Skippy and Slappy are good, though Skippy's VA has grown up so thats iffy.
More Rita and Runt. They were my faves... and they cut them from the later seasons because Bernadette Peters was expensive. But having them do play ups on Wicked or Hamilton or similar musicals that have come along since last time would be fantastic. Their Les Mis episode was super formative for me discovering and loving Les Mis.
Please zero Hip Hippos or Mindy & Buttons.
Minimal Goodfeathers, their joke played out and Goodfellas, while a classic, is no longer current,. A couple shorts are fine but not dozens.
More Minerva Mink, she got shortchanged. Cartoons have moved along in the last decades, we can have sexy jokes now.
Mime Time, Good Idea/Bad Idea, Randy Beaman kid, Chicken Boo are all fine.
And I know this will be controversial but... very little Pinky and the Brain. They're great! But got their own show, we've had 65 full length episodes (and 13 shitty Elmyra episodes) with them. They've had more screen time than everyone else on the show combined.
Also, feel free to create new things, don't feel obligated to stick with just the old stuff, especially since some of it was crap.
Extra bonus: Throw in Freakazoid.
Update the Presidents song.
@Cyan:
Update the Presidents song.
Restore the original version of the song heard on the album where they said
"John F. Kenndedy he got shot" rather than "John F. Kennedy had Camelot"… and where the final line was "The current president is plain to see, Clinton, first name Hillary." rather than "the Clintons, Bill and Hilary."
Silly censorship.
The Nations of the World does have an updated verse at least.
Restore the original version of the song heard on the album where they said
"John F. Kenndedy he got shot" rather than "John F. Kennedy had Camelot"…
Well shit .
Moar Chicken Boo or I riot!!!
Not exactly my first choice (Pinkie & the Brain aside, I like TT & Freakazoid better), but this can be good. They'll need to update the theme song (the Bill Clinton reference was dated even before he left office), and a bunch of other things.
Well, same points as had then. As exciting as the news is, and as good as the old show was… half the skits were... kinda crap. Hopefully more of the good, less of the crap.
Warners are great, lots of song numbers. All three VAs are still super active so no issues there.
They could get really annoying, but they are the heart of the show (if the show had a heart, it was frankly rather cold) and when they worked, they worked well. So, I agree overall. They really should make Hello Nurse more than just a one joke character.
Skippy and Slappy are good, though Skippy's VA has grown up so thats iffy.
Not a fan of Slappy (though, I do like the Bambi episode), but that's really a matter of personal taste. She should come back, but… yeah, she does need Skippy.
More Rita and Runt. They were my faves… and they cut them from the later seasons because Bernadette Peters was expensive. But having them do play ups on Wicked or Hamilton or similar musicals that have come along since last time would be fantastic. Their Les Mis episode was super formative for me discovering and loving Les Mis.
I don't dislike them, but they never clicked for me, and to be honest, you're the first person I've met who has ever called them their favorite (most people are indifferent or find them boring in my experience).
Please zero Hip Hippos or Mindy & Buttons.
Yes. Unless, it ends with Mindy tumbling into a working wood chipper, I don't want to see these characters in this revival.
Minimal Goodfeathers, their joke played out and Goodfellas, while a classic, is no longer current,. A couple shorts are fine but not dozens.
Again, wood chipper.
More Minerva Mink, she got shortchanged. Cartoons have moved along in the last decades, we can have sexy jokes now.
Ehh, I don't really care if she comes back or not. There's always this tendency to overrate things that got pushed aside and weren't allowed to develop (especially if non-creative forces are the cause) and Minerva is one of those things.
I can get a lot of the same type of jokes from one of Tex Avery's Wolf/Red cartoons, and those gags are better timed, better staged, and better animated. Admittedly, Minerva has something of a character (unlike Red), but not enough of one for me to think this could have been a good reoccurring skit (the first one is fine, but the second one isn't because they tried to go for some pathos).
Mime Time, Good Idea/Bad Idea, Randy Beaman kid are all fine.
Good idea.
And I know this will be controversial but… very little Pinky and the Brain. They're great! But got their own show, we've had 65 full length episodes (and 13 shitty Elmyra episodes) with them. They've had more screen time than everyone else on the show combined.
Bad idea. Yes, they've appeared more often than the rest, but besides the obvious answer for why that's so (because they were much better than the others), it's been 20 years since they've had a new episode and therefore, you can update them to the present day. I'd like to see them try to take over the world through things like Social Media, and Silicon Valley.
Extra bonus: Throw in Freakazoid.
Honestly, I'd rather Dexter Douglas get his own show again, but failing that, yeah, I'm okay with this. Even if the internet has moved away from making Monty Python references on Usenet to the sheer mess that is Reddit, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and 4Chan, so that its living incarnate would probably be even more…. ugh. (Yeah, they won't do that, but the gimmick reminds you that this is a 90's show).
(Thinking about it more, I think I liked every character on that show more than Freakazoid: Cosgrove, Roddy, Fanboy, the parents, the Lobe, Cave Guy, Guittierrez etc. and the non-Freakazoid skits like Toby Danger, the Huntsman, that Gargoyles parody they did with the lawn gnomes, the most.)
Ditto on the 0 Mindy and Buttons. That poor dog's suffered enough.
Bad idea. Yes, they've appeared more often than the rest, but besides the obvious answer for why that's so (because they were much better than the others), it's been 20 years since they've had a new episode and therefore, you can update them to the present day. I'd like to see them try to take over the world through things like Social Media, and Silicon Valley.
They may not have done cell phones or computers specifically but they basically did any social media schemes already with television, music cds, brainwashing dolls on christmas, etc. It would be pretty much the same.
They haven't just appeared a little more than all the rest, they appeared a lot more. A LOT more. They had a short in 20 of the show's 99 episodes, 1 of which was the full episode and many of which were 2/3 of the episode. They were in the movie. And then they had SEVENTY EIGHT episodes all to themselves. We've seen their routine and their gags and about as many crazy scheme stretches and variants as we can get. Even on that show they had to start subverting it eventually and had to start doing plots with guest villains after the actual premise wore thin.
I have no doubt they could do another 400 episodes of the exact same, but it doesn't mean we need that much more. Yes, they were probably the best part of the show, but we've gotten a LOT of them.
I'm not saying leave them out entirely of the new thing… just... don't make them the focus too often. Don't make 30 of the 40 new episodes about them.
to be honest, you're the first person I've met who has ever called them their favorite (most people are indifferent or find them boring in my experience).
The musical aspect really hooked me in. And since they were doing (generally) more Broadway oriented stuff while the Warner were (generally) parodying more modern things and Disney, it sort of gave a window to something else that I ended up really liking.
I also liked the characters and the fact they actually had a dream, a goal, and real chemistry. Unlike say, the goodfeathers, who were based entirely on getting back around to the same couple recurring jokes as much as possible.
They have as yet not gotten in touch with Paul Rugg, Freakazoid's actor and one of the writers. They haven't even gotten Tom Ruegger on board yet. Kinda raises a red flag when they aren't talking to the guy who basically created the characters they're bringing back: http://www.cartoonbrew.com/internet-television/original-animaniacs-showrunner-hasnt-asked-back-can-revival-succeed-without-155789.html
New Animaniacs series premiering November 20th on Hulu
https://animaniacs.fandom.com/wiki/Animaniacs_(2020_TV_series)
"Slappy, Skippy, Hello Nurse, Minerva Mink, Buttons, Mindy, Rita, and Runt will not appear." Whelp. Its basically going to just be the Warners/Pinky and the Brain show then, which it basically was by the final season anyway.
Minerva being gone is no surprise, BS&P took her out of the show pretty quick and she was a one note sex joke gag anyway. Hello Nurse following suit is not surprising, though I wonder if the tagline remains intact..
Skippy and Slappy being gone surprises me (maybe because Skippy's voice is a grown ass man now and they don't want to recast?)
Rita and Runt being gone saddens me greatly, as they were my favorite, but Bernadette Peters is expensive and those bits weren't popular so it doesn't surprise me. Shame given there's been three decades of musicals since then. Given how well the show handled Les Mis, I'd love to see them tackle Rent or Hamilton.
Good Riddance to Mindy and Buttons not returning.
Of the goodfeathers, Squit is confirmed to be coming back, but as a cameo or with the whole group is unknown. That was also kind of a one-note gag, based on a now 30 year old movie, so not shocked if that doesn't really come back. As of now, there are no Goodfeathers segments.
Dr. Scrathcansniff will return, as he's a Rob Paulsen character that's not a shock.
Ralph the Guard is returning, not surprising since Frank Welker does a million things.
Thaddeus Plotz will retire and not be present as a new female Latina CEO will take over the studio
Paul Rugg is apparently voicing Freakazoid again for SOMETHING, but not Animaniacs, and not a Freakazoid reboot.
No word on Chicken Boo, Good Idea/bad Idea, Mime Time, Randy Beaman kid. I would not expect Flame or Hip Hippos to return, they were very unpopular..
The characters will be aware that 25 years have passed. This includes the Warners AND P&tB who I guess have been trying all this time.
They have little tufts of hair now!
No word on Chicken Boo, Good Idea/bad Idea, Mime Time, Randy Beaman kid.
Think it's safe to assume Boo is fried, The Tom Bodett segments were seen as a bad idea, the mime got the hook, and Colin well Colin won't be there anymore:ninja:
https://animaniacs.fandom.com/wiki/Animaniacs_(2020_TV_series)
"Slappy, Skippy, Hello Nurse, Minerva Mink, Buttons, Mindy, Rita, and Runt will not appear." Whelp. Its basically going to just be the Warners/Pinky and the Brain show then, which it basically was by the final season anyway.
Minerva being gone is no surprise, BS&P took her out of the show pretty quick and she was a one note sex joke gag anyway. Hello Nurse following suit is not surprising, though I wonder if the tagline remains intact..
Skippy and Slappy being gone surprises me (maybe because Skippy's voice is a grown ass man now and they don't want to recast?)
Rita and Runt being gone saddens me greatly, as they were my favorite, but Bernadette Peters is expensive and those bits weren't popular so it doesn't surprise me. Shame given there's been three decades of musicals since then. Given how well the show handled Les Mis, I'd love to see them tackle Rent or Hamilton.
Good Riddance to Mindy and Buttons not returning.
Of the goodfeathers, Squit is confirmed to be coming back, but as a cameo or with the whole group is unknown. That was also kind of a one-note gag, based on a now 30 year old movie, so not shocked if that doesn't really come back. As of now, there are no Goodfeathers segments.
Dr. Scrathcansniff will return, as he's a Rob Paulsen character that's not a shock.
Ralph the Guard is returning, not surprising since Frank Welker does a million things.Thaddeus Plotz will retire and not be present as a new female Latina CEO will take over the studio
Paul Rugg is apparently voicing Freakazoid again for SOMETHING, but not Animaniacs, and not a Freakazoid reboot.
No word on Chicken Boo, Good Idea/bad Idea, Mime Time, Randy Beaman kid. I would not expect Flame or Hip Hippos to return, they were very unpopular..
The characters will be aware that 25 years have passed. This includes the Warners AND P&tB who I guess have been trying all this time.
They have little tufts of hair now!
im a bit sad we wont get to see the other characters, but i am glad we wont have to wait long.
I take it the Hippos might not return too =P? No word on Katie Kaboom either? (Not that I really care much for that segment, overexaggerated metaphor for either teenage anxiety or… periods. Only thing I found interesting was the monster transformations they came up with.)
I actually didn't mind Buttons and Mindy, yeah it's a one note joke: Girl wanders obliviously into danger, Dog tries to save her, gets beat up for his trouble, essentially Anti-Lassie. But it got creative in a few places (The one in outer space being a stand out for me just for that ending). On the flip side, wasn't really into Rita and Runt though, it was cute and that they allowed the voice actiress for Rita to show off her pipes, but their segments never really clicked with me.
Sad to hear about Slappy and Skippy though, definitely one of my fave highlights of the show. But I'm guessing since they're gonna go for a time skip in this one and she was already fairly old... err yeah. Shame about Hello Nurse as well, "Wakko's Wish" was trying to move away from that last I saw, they could've followed up on that, that had potential for some good jokes that didn't involve sex appeal.
I do hope to see the Goodfeathers, I don't care if they were a parody of an old movie, it was still funny (heck I was in grade school when the original was running and hadn't seen Godfather or Goodfellas yet and I still enjoyed it). Not like there hasn't been other mafia related media since then and the writers can come up with some other things with them. Only thing I ask is cut back on the Bobby/Pesto "You Talking to Me" jokes. That did get annoying after awhile. Chicken Boo wouldn't mind seeing back too despite, again, being a one-note joke.
Everything else seems fine though, some old, some new. I am expecting the actors to sound a little older but long as they still got the chemistry, I'm down with. Looking forward to what material they come up with for this brave new decade.
I take it the Hippos might not return too =P?
Despite being in the intro they only had like 3 shorts in the original, and a handful of cameos, I doubt they're a priority ahead of any of the others.
No word on Katie Kaboom either?
She also only had two shorts, not counting the CHicken Boo episode. Also not a strong contender.
Minerva Mink is oddly the one with the huge fanbase that actually gets questions despite being in similarly few episodes. She actually comes up first if you do an Animaniacs search.
I really hope that with all these characters not returning, they at least have a roster of other new things they're going to try. It'll be dull if its JUST the Warners and P&tB the whole time.
I'm sure they'll have some fun new ideas too. It's a shame about Slappy and Skippy, they were among my favorites. But I'm definitely very excited for the revival!
I wouldn’t mind buttons and Mandy being background characters. On one hand these are the most popular ones by far, on the other hand, it was a whole package, is like reducing those danish cookies to just two flavors, even if it’s your favorites, you sometimes want a sweet/salty pretzel and you just don’t know it. That pretzel is Scrappy.
I wouldn’t mind buttons and Mandy being background characters. On one hand these are the most popular ones by far, on the other hand, it was a whole package, is like reducing those danish cookies to just two flavors, even if it’s your favorites, you sometimes want a sweet/salty pretzel and you just don’t know it. That pretzel is Scrappy.
I was under the pretense all danish cookies taste the same:ninja:
Slight teaser
That's disappointed there won't be any Slappy Squirrel shorts. Since those were my favorite part of the original show.
Two new trailers dropped while we were out:
The animation itself is…varied. Some shots look great, fluid and clearly hand-drawn: the horror scenes, man-splainy bit, the pegasus, the gladiator with the unfortunately-drawn nether region hair. Other parts were clearly auto-tweened: the trio walking across the girl's TV, Brain's robo-suit, and the worst example of all, the Hanna-Barbara shot. There's quite a few animation studios working on it, so it makes sense the quality would vary like it did in the first series.
Audibly, the trailers sound perfect. Everyone in the core cast has settled back in unquestionably well. We got Jim Cummings back on the show as the gladiator, and Jon Bailey joins the show as the pegasus. The music's also set to return with a full orchestra, and what we hear of the theme song sounds great so far to me.
It's still a darn shame they didn't get Tom Ruegger or Sherri Stoner on board. The former was the guy who basically gave birth to the thing, just as much if not more than Spielberg, and Stoner was the one who stole the show as Slappy. There will always be a hollow feeling to this revival with leaving them out.
But that's not to say it won't be good, possibly even great. Gabe Swarr, the head of animation, I know from his prior work and his comic Life in the Analog Age, and I've got complete faith in his ability. He and Wellesley Wild talk about their work on the show here: https://www.animationmagazine.net/streaming/rebooting-zany-to-the-max-wellesley-wild-gabe-swarr-talks-animaniacs/
I'm optimistic. I got Hulu again just to watch it this month, so here's hoping it lives up to the legacy.
First episode is free on their Twitter
! Pretty solid outing. Both songs were good but Yakko's singing sounds a little off. Pinky and Brain got some good solid laughs outta me. Tho I think I'd have liked the resolution better if it wasn't directly Pinky's fault and Brain just miscalculated how quickly people pass from meme to meme.
! Unavoidable references to Trump but at least it looks like hes being depicted as a loser wannabe overlord and not with playful ribbing.
! There were a number of scenes tbat could have had Goodfeathers cameos instead of generic birds. Ah well.
Both songs were good but Yakko's singing sounds a little off.
Well, Paulsen IS 64 now. He's kept his voice in shape (not as well as Frank Welker) but age is age. He's not going to sound like he did in his 30's.
Kinda like how the entire Inu Yasha cast returned for the new show and none of them sounded quite right.
Just watched the first episode. Yeah, the characters all sound a bit off since the cast is 20 years older, but they still have their personalities and the humor down. The animation is kinda hit and miss and it's a bit disappointing that it really does look like they're only bringing back The Warners and Pinky & the Brain, but I'll see how the rest of the season plays out.
I watched the first two eps so far, and it's solid. I really loved some of the animation and character design, especially in the second P&tB short. It has some Dumm Comics alumni working on it, which I dig: Gabe Swarr (Analog Age) like I mentioned earlier, and Katie Rice (Skadi). And the songs are fun if not particularly hummable, though I definitely noticed some stand in work in the reboot song. I'm skipping to the last ep to see the return of a character that apparently only shows up once, but I'll catch the rest soon.
UPDATE: The last ep was fine and all. But Ii went on to #3, and it's, dare I say it…perfect.
Saw the first ep, gotta admit it was a little off-putting and kinda sad without the other characters in the theme song. They might add more as we go on, but at the current there's just that nagging feeling in me it doesn't feel as wild.
Otherwise though, still just as funny as the original and all the VAs are still on point, though as mentioned, older sounding but that not a deterrent for me, especially if they're still having fun. Just awesome hearing them all again. The animation will take some getting used to, not as smooth as the original (well later half of the original) but does help with the snappier pace of the jokes. Not a bad kickoff, so let's see where this goes.
I watched the first two eps so far, and it's solid. I really loved some of the animation and character design, especially in the second P&tB short. It has some Dumm Comics alumni working on it, which I dig: Gabe Swarr (Analog Age) like I mentioned earlier, and Katie Rice (Skadi). And the songs are fun if not particularly hummable, though I definitely noticed some stand in work in the reboot song. I'm skipping to the last ep to see the return of a character that apparently only shows up once, but I'll catch the rest soon.
Oh yeah I remember Katie mentioning on Twitter she got hired on this show.
The animation will take some getting used to, not as smooth as the original (well later half of the original) but does help with the snappier pace of the jokes.
That's definitely a symptom of multiple studios working on separate segments. Ep 3 is exquisite in that regard, especially the first segment.
Left a good impression on me, as I hardly remember if I ever watched the OG Animaniacs.
More of a fan of Pinky & Brain, had a longer run of public tv here.
Well, Paulsen IS 64 now. He's kept his voice in shape (not as well as Frank Welker) but age is age. He's not going to sound like he did in his 30's.
Not only that, he beat Throat Cancer only a few years ago.
It felt like Animaniacs. Really enjoyed it.
Apparently the second season came out last week. And no one said anything? What are you folks even good for?
Overall I was fine with the first batch. Nothing amazing and really felt the lack of variety in not having other skits, but it felt like Animaniacs.
I've been watching it. It's…Warner Bros. and Pinky and the Brain. Just as good as last season. So if that's what you want, then yeah, you'll probably have a good time.
And yeah, it is a shame that they're limiting themselves to just those two cartoons. Gets kinda old after a while. I'm eight episodes in and they haven't even tried any one-off experiments like in the first season.
I really really hate the designs on all the human characters. They're really ugly and offputting.
It really does suck that there's zero variety. Yeah the Warners and P&B were consistently the stronger skits, but the VARIETY of having a huge ensemble… well... gave the show variety. Sure everyone hated Mindy and Buttons except for Spielberg's kids, but Slappy was great and RIta and Runt was my favorite that introduces me to a lot of musicals. Even Goodfeathers were fun a few times. Colin (the Randy Beaman kid) and Mime Time Good Idea Bad Idea were fun little short bursts. Even minerva Mink, who was too much for the censors and basically pulled out of rotation after two skits left an impression.
Only watched the first episode of the new season so far. ANd I did not like it.. I realize that these episodes were written two or even three years ago, but geez do they have to keep going after Trump as a target? The jokes are old and tired and in the first season they did Trump multiple times, and he's in the first episode of this season as well.
The tiny hands and toupee jokes are old guys. I understand the frustration but its just... dated and out of place the minute it airs?
And they even reused Model of a Modern major General? REALLY? When they'd already used that brilliantly? They even called themselves out on it!
And reuing the nitpicking nerd from the please please please get a life foundation didn't help either. Pointing out in the show that you know yhour rehashing things or doing a bad job doesn't make it funny... it just shows that you do actually know better and you just don't care.
Hopefully the rest of the season fares better.
I think the writers of the original Animaniacs (are they attached to the revived series? I don't know) wisely understood that, as great as the Warner Bros., P&B, and some of the other skits were, their premises were a bit thin and wouldn't hold up as half hour shows on their own. But then P&B got their own show that ran for 66 episodes, so…whatever.
Only watched the first episode of the new season so far. ANd I did not like it.. I realize that these episodes were written two or even three years ago, but geez do they have to keep going after Trump as a target? The jokes are old and tired and in the first season they did Trump multiple times, and he's in the first episode of this season as well.
The tiny hands and toupee jokes are old guys. I understand the frustration but its just… dated and out of place the minute it airs?
And they even reused Model of a Modern major General? REALLY? When they'd already used that brilliantly? They even called themselves out on it!
And reuing the nitpicking nerd from the please please please get a life foundation didn't help either. Pointing out in the show that you know yhour rehashing things or doing a bad job doesn't make it funny... it just shows that you do actually know better and you just don't care.
Hopefully the rest of the season fares better.
Well, there haven't been any more Trump jokes at least.
I think the writers of the original Animaniacs (are they attached to the revived series? I don't know)
It's my understanding that none of the original writers are attached. They were, understandably, upset about it.
Keeping the voice cast keeps it feeling familiar, the energy is there, but its just… not the same.
But then P&B got their own show that ran for 66 episodes, so…whatever.
It did, but they also completely ran it into the ground before the end. That's why they had to make Snowball and Billie recurring antagonists, because they just ran out of things to do.
They had some real gems in there but outside of the Christmas episode, the Pinky POV, Pinky Suavo, and the three part finale, I can't remember a single one of them without pulling up a list. And I only remember the finale AS "the three part finale", I couldn't tell you anything about it.
I'm looking at a list of episode right now and its like "yeah I guess that sounds familiar" but not a single one of them is actually memorable.
My wife and I just finished the season and thought it was great! At least a couple times an episode we were giving hearty chuckles. I actually didn’t mind the Trump jokes in the first episode because they didn’t make him sound like Trump, just said Trumpisms. The Ben Franklin episode was a hoot.
Finished the season. Yeah, it's pretty much the same as the first season, and no real surprises. So whatever you felt about the first season, you'll probably feel about this one.
! They tried another segment of Starbox & Cindy, which is still awful and the Gnome cartoon, which is still…okay.
! Also, kinda weird they didn't have a Pinky and the Brain segment in the final episode. Just full Warners.
! And it looks like they are doing a third season. I really hope they retool it a bit and add some more new segments and variety, but I'm not very hopeful.
Halfway through the season now. Just… eh. It's fine.
Was the old show better or was I just 12 at the time and didn't know any better and now its nostalgic? I really do think the lack of variety is what's hurting it... because the bad stuff just made you appreciate the other stuff more. At the very least they threw a LOT at the wall to see what stuck.
And it looks like they are doing a third season. I really hope they retool it a bit and add some more new segments and variety, but I'm not very hopeful.
Well they would have been doing seasons 1 and 2 at the same so any feedback or improvement wouldn't really be seen until the next batch. Same with Disenchantment, which despite Netlix's release schedule, was originally done in a big lump, but then season 3 was a reasonable improvement. Its still not Futurama but it is an improvement.
Was the old show better or was I just 12 at the time and didn't know any better and now its nostalgic?
Why not both?
Okay, hot take here. I've been rewatching the Spielberg 90's shows and…well, here's how I'd rank them (minus P&tB, which I haven't rewatched yet):
1. Tiny Toons
2. Freakazoid
3. Animaniacs
Don't get me wrong, the original Animaniacs is a good show, but I wouldn't say it's the bee's knees. The Warners' antics did end up getting on my nerves at times, especially when they were tormenting people who, honestly, didn't really deserve it. And of course crap like Buttons and Mindy and Hip Hippos still suck (though I did find them more tolerable, perhaps because I expected them to be bad). I guess I don't have any major complaints about the other segments, but, as I said before, the premises and characters are relatively thin and very formulaic. They always followed the same basic plot. It was cool when they mixed things up like the character-swap episode or the Buddy episode, but really I felt like they'd said all they needed to say by episode 50.
And yes, I really do think Tiny Toons was the best of the batch. Large cast of great characters that you can put in just about any situation, and the humor and pacing still holds up pretty well.
Freakazoid was brilliant in parts, but had trouble finding its footing as a show, and I wasn't a huge fan of the full half-hour stories shift in Season 2. Honestly, it is a tough call between it and Animaniacs as to which is better.
Of course, all of this is pretty much how I felt as a kid anyway and could very well be the nostalgia talking, so take it for what you will.
Looks like this will be the final season, which suits me fine.
Well, the third and final season of the Animaniacs revival came and went and I don't think anyone really noticed or cared.
I finished it up last night and...yeah, it's pretty much more of the same from the last two seasons. The writing is generally fine, but the animation is still kind of off-putting. Pink and Brain got another Christmas episode, which wasn't as good as the first one. Starbox and Cindy still sucks, so of course we got three segments of it this season. And there were bunch of minor minute-long one-off segments this season, so I guess that's something.
Oh yeah, and Slappy got a brief voiced cameo, and Sherri Stoner sounds just as good as she did in the 90's, so that's cool if you want to check it out on Youtube.
Not much else to say. I guess it was nice seeing these characters again, but probably not a show I'll revisit any time soon if ever. And right now I'm not feeling super optimistic about the Tiny Toons revival either.
@Nobodyman said in Animaniacs Two season revival on Hulu:
Not much else to say. I guess it was nice seeing these characters again, but probably not a show I'll revisit any time soon if ever. And right now I'm not feeling super optimistic about the Tiny Toons revival either.
I actually forgot they were doing this too.
Yeah I'm in the "It's okay" opinion too. I wasn't that major of a fan of the original but I did like the variety of different characters in the show and it had some memorable moments. Still love Wakko's Wish too, that was a nice little send-off to the series. The new version, eh. Wasn't really feeling a lot of the jokes and certainly not the more mean spirited demeanor here. Yeah the first series wasn't peaches and cream either but comparing series, it felt like the writers were trying a bit too hard here. Some of the meta-humor wasn't as clever either (why do writers insist on pointing out jokes these days?) And I sorely missed the other characters too, some I can understand they couldn't get back like some Rita and Runt, but no Slappy or Goodfeathers (And no I dont buy the "outdated Godfather joke" excuse the showrunners went with. The movie was several years old when the original came out and they didnt care then so why should they now? There's loads of crime drama potential for kid friendly parody, but they were just too lazy to notice. Also an aside, I call bullpies on Chicken Boo being the worst of the original toons. I have heard no complaints about that short in the interim from fans and find in no way dwarfs Hip Hippos as the worst of the lot. Sure it's formulaic but so were Katie Kaboom and Buttons and Mindy. So yeah clear writers bias there). I was more hoping this would be a new generation of characters when the show was announced, some new, some old. But focusing solely on the Warners and Pinky and the Brain got tiring fast.
Starbox and Cindy is...disjointed as a concept, like two story ideas smashed together and trying to make it work. An alien being unwittingly held hostage by a little girl and trying to press an invasion button but getting foiled. It has an interesting art style but it feels like an excuse just to have Cindy's VA ramble kid nonsense and her actions in the shorts don't really correlate what's happening with the plot with Starbox. And overall doesn't really jive with the whole tone of the show either.
Animation is a little jank in some areas and I seriously hate when the show goes for close up (S1 was more bad about this, later seasons eased up) but it's serviceable otherwise and I did like the art shifts when they happened. Some of the songs wee fun though, it's great to hear all the returning cast members again and I did get an old school feel with a few of the shorts now and then. Again it just an alright watch, I'll watch it again if I'm bored but I'm not rushing to re-view it again anytime soon.