Welcome all to another adition of Cartoon Quickie. This time we'll be taking a look at The Biker Mice From Mars.
On the planet Mars,there existed a race of anthropomorphic mice who enjoyed Motorsports and had a very similar culture and society to that of Earthlings.
Soon,however,they were all but wiped out by the Plutarkians, an alien race of obese, foul-smelling, fish-like humanoids who exploit other planets for natural resources because they've wasted all of their own.
Three survivors, Throttle, Modo and Vinnie, manage to find a spaceship and escape the Plutarkian takeover but they are soon shot down by a Plutarkian warship and end up crash-landing on Earth in the city of Chicago. There they meet a charming female mechanic named Charlene "Charley" Davidson and discover that the Plutarkians have come to Earth to steal its natural resources.
The Biker Mice discover that Chicago's leading industrialist, Lawrence Limburger, is actually a Plutarkian who disguises himself as a human. Limburger enlists two henchmen, mad scientist Dr. Karbunkle and the idiotic Greasepit to help him steal Earth's natural resources and send them to Plutark. Thus, the Biker Mice become Limburger's chief foils, felling his business tower at the end of nearly every episode.
The Mice and protagonists are: Throttle,the leader of the trio,has a cool attitude..and shades to match.; Modo is big and tough,but he's a nice guy at heart. Modo has a mechanical arm and is the strongest of the trio.; Vinnie is a thrill-seeker with a bit of an ego. He's also a self-proclaimed lady's man.
Joining the Trio is a beautiful human Mechanic named Charlene "Charley" Davidson. She's a headstrong woman, and is always ready to go into battle, though the Biker Mice try to keep her out of dangerous situations.
And what are Heroic Mice without Villains. Lawrence Limburger is the main antagonist of the series,he hails from Plutark and has an odd fascination for Earth's criminal society of the 1930s. He wears a mask in order to look human and a purple suit at most times. He's also highly resourceful and cunning,though always failing due to the biker mice's interventions. His headquarters is Limburger Industries located in Chicago.
Limburger's minions are: Dr. Karbunkle(a thin, sly scientist),Grease Pit (the stereotypical cartoonish bungling bad guy sidekick),and Fred the Mutant (a short and crazy freak,who is almost always happy)
Now,the Artwork and Animation are typical for a 90's cartoon.(ie. Good). The Action scenes are also nicely done. The errors themselves are minimal. The Music is pretty good,the music fits the show really really well.
The Overall Writing is really good as well. A lot of humorous lines to go with the cool action. As for the Voice Acting,it's pretty damn great.
There was a 2007 revival,but it was nowhere near as good as the original. All and all,the Original BMfM is a decent and badass show and is worth watching atleast twice.
That's gonna do it for this edition of Cartoon Quickie. See Ya Next Time and Stay Gold.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Friday, January 7, 2011
Cartoon Quickie: Jem
Sailor Moon: Hey everyone,Sailor Moon here,bringing you The very first Cartoon Quickie of 2011. On this edition of Cartoon Quickie,I'll be reviewing that 80's cult classic,Jem.
Sailor Moon: In a way,Jem is another American Henshin Heroine,like She-Ra. However,she doesn't fight crime. The story goes like this:
Sailor Moon: Jem is the lead singer and frontwoman of the rock group Jem and The Holograms,In reality,though,she's Jerrica Benton, owner/manager of Starlight Music. Jerrica adopts this persona with the help of a holographic computer, known as Synergy, which was built by Jerrica's late father to be "the ultimate audio-visual entertainment synthesizer".
Sailor Moon: Jerrica is then able to command Synergy to project "the Jem hologram" over herself by means of the remote micro projectors in her earrings, thus disguising her features and clothing and enabling her to assume the Jem persona. Looks like Ditzny ripped off this idea for their crapfest iof a series,Hannah Montana.
Sailor Moon: Anyway,the reason for this Henshin is to acquire money to support Starlight Music and the Starlight Foundation for Girls, a foster program founded by her late mother Jacqui Benton.
Sailor Moon: The band The Holograms consists of: Kimber Benton,Jerrica's younger sister, keyboardist and main songwriter for the band; Aja Leith,guitarist; and Shana Elmsford,who plays the synth drums. Aja and Shana are also childhood friends and adopted foster sisters of Jerrica and Kimber. Only The Holograms are aware of Jem's secret identity and the existence of Synergy when the series begins.
Sailor Moon: Episodes of the series frequently revolve around Jerrica's efforts to keep her two identities separate, protect Synergy from those who might exploit her, and support the twelve Starlight Girls who live with her and The Holograms.
Sailor Moon: The Holograms have two rival bands, one of which are called The Misfits: petulant rich girl Pizzazz and her cohorts: no-nonsense Roxy and kind-hearted,sensitive keytar player Stormer,who are later joined by the manipulative British saxophone player Jetta.
Sailor Moon: Most episodes of the series involve a plot by the Misfits to upstage Jem and the Holograms' latest glamorous escapade. This rivalry is encouraged and manipulated by their manager,the ruthless Eric Raymond (the once half-owner of Starlight Music who, during the series, plots constantly to be its owner again).
Sailor Moon: In the middle of the third season, the second band, The Stingers (Riot,lead singer and egotistical;Rapture,female guitarist and professional con-artist;and Minx,keyboard player and a man-manipulator),hit town and shake things up for both groups.
Sailor Moon: Now,some people say that Jem is a clone of Hannah Montana,but in reality it's the otherway around. Unlike,that crapfest of a show,Jem is a show with high quality. The story is kinda nice. The music is your typical 80's stuff. The Artwork and Animation are excellent.
Sailor Moon: In fact,The animation was provided by the Japanese animation studio Toei. Yes,the same company who made Dragon Ball Z and My show. Awesome huh?
Sailor Moon: I think Jem is a good watch. If you can find episodes on Youtube,watch them,you won't be disappointed. However,if you're not a fan of 80's music or 80's fashion,then stay away from this show.
Sailor Moon: I'm Sailor Moon and this has been another Cartoon Quickie. See Ya Next Time.
Sailor Moon: In a way,Jem is another American Henshin Heroine,like She-Ra. However,she doesn't fight crime. The story goes like this:
Sailor Moon: Jem is the lead singer and frontwoman of the rock group Jem and The Holograms,In reality,though,she's Jerrica Benton, owner/manager of Starlight Music. Jerrica adopts this persona with the help of a holographic computer, known as Synergy, which was built by Jerrica's late father to be "the ultimate audio-visual entertainment synthesizer".
Sailor Moon: Jerrica is then able to command Synergy to project "the Jem hologram" over herself by means of the remote micro projectors in her earrings, thus disguising her features and clothing and enabling her to assume the Jem persona. Looks like Ditzny ripped off this idea for their crapfest iof a series,Hannah Montana.
Sailor Moon: Anyway,the reason for this Henshin is to acquire money to support Starlight Music and the Starlight Foundation for Girls, a foster program founded by her late mother Jacqui Benton.
Sailor Moon: The band The Holograms consists of: Kimber Benton,Jerrica's younger sister, keyboardist and main songwriter for the band; Aja Leith,guitarist; and Shana Elmsford,who plays the synth drums. Aja and Shana are also childhood friends and adopted foster sisters of Jerrica and Kimber. Only The Holograms are aware of Jem's secret identity and the existence of Synergy when the series begins.
Sailor Moon: Episodes of the series frequently revolve around Jerrica's efforts to keep her two identities separate, protect Synergy from those who might exploit her, and support the twelve Starlight Girls who live with her and The Holograms.
Sailor Moon: The Holograms have two rival bands, one of which are called The Misfits: petulant rich girl Pizzazz and her cohorts: no-nonsense Roxy and kind-hearted,sensitive keytar player Stormer,who are later joined by the manipulative British saxophone player Jetta.
Sailor Moon: Most episodes of the series involve a plot by the Misfits to upstage Jem and the Holograms' latest glamorous escapade. This rivalry is encouraged and manipulated by their manager,the ruthless Eric Raymond (the once half-owner of Starlight Music who, during the series, plots constantly to be its owner again).
Sailor Moon: In the middle of the third season, the second band, The Stingers (Riot,lead singer and egotistical;Rapture,female guitarist and professional con-artist;and Minx,keyboard player and a man-manipulator),hit town and shake things up for both groups.
Sailor Moon: Now,some people say that Jem is a clone of Hannah Montana,but in reality it's the otherway around. Unlike,that crapfest of a show,Jem is a show with high quality. The story is kinda nice. The music is your typical 80's stuff. The Artwork and Animation are excellent.
Sailor Moon: In fact,The animation was provided by the Japanese animation studio Toei. Yes,the same company who made Dragon Ball Z and My show. Awesome huh?
Sailor Moon: I think Jem is a good watch. If you can find episodes on Youtube,watch them,you won't be disappointed. However,if you're not a fan of 80's music or 80's fashion,then stay away from this show.
Sailor Moon: I'm Sailor Moon and this has been another Cartoon Quickie. See Ya Next Time.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
The Cartoon Historian 1-year Anniversary Special
*Inside the Cartoon Historians classroom {a generic classroom,where the historian has taught so many times before},the desks are lined up in a half circle facing the main desk and freeing up some of the floor. sitting at the desks are famous cartoon stars of the past,who are cheering and applauding*
Announcer Voice: Welcome one and all to The Cartoon Historian 1st Anniversary Special.
[cartoon historian intro]
And Now live from the Historian's Classroom,here is Stefan,the Cartoon Historian and his beautiful assistant Mina.
*the crowd applauds stefan and mina as they enter the classroom. applause stops*
Thank you,thank you. And thank you Tom.
Mina: Welcome everyone. I can't believe it's been one year since you started,Stefan.
That's right,Mina. And What a year it was. We covered a crapload of Cartoons and Animation Companies. We also reviewed lots of shows,
*croud applauds*
Thank you.
Mina: Ok,Let's get on with the celebration. Now,I have mixed feelings about this. Stefan has gotten Extra Assistants, Now Pro: I get some free time and when I have something important to do,Stefan doesn't have to do these Lessons Solo. However,here's the Con: I kinda feel that I'm somewhat being replaced.
*chuckles* Don't wory,Mina. I could never replace you. You are too precious to me.
Mina*blushes* Aww,thanks Stefan *kisses stefan on the cheek*
Anyway,here is Extra Assistant #1. He is the Son of one of the greatest and strongest Heroes in all of Anime. Here he is: Gohan Son.
*the crouds appauds as Teen Gohan enters*
Mina: Our next Extra Assistants come from Brooklyn NY. Here they are,the most iconic plumbers in the world: Mario and Luigi.
*the crouds appauds as the Mario Bros enter*
She's the Pretty Suited Soldier of Love,Truth,and Justice. Say hello to Extra Assistant #3: Sailor Moon.
*the crouds appauds as Sailor Moon enters*
Mina: This next Extra Assistant needs no introduction. Here he is....2k3 Mikey.
*the crouds appauds as the 2k3 version of ninja turtle Michaelangelo enters*
And last,but not least..the final Extra Assistant...Shego.
*the crouds appauds as shego enters*
Alright. Welcome,my friends.
Gohan: It's great to be here.
2k3 Mikey: Great!! You mean Totaly Awesome! Stefan,I've been a big fan of this show for a long time and becoming your Assistant is a dream come true. You Rock,Stefan.
Uh..Thanks,Mikey. Sailor Moon it's good to have you onboard again.
Sailor Moon: My pleasure Stefan.
Mina: Hope you gained a sence of punctuality,Moon girl. Because,you're gonna need it. Because classes start at random times.
Sailor Moon: Hey,don't worry about me. I'll be fine.
Mina: YOu'd better be..or Stefan will fire you.
Don't worry,Sailor Moon. You'll do great.,I know it. and besides even if she is late,I could always get one of the other Assistants to help me.
Sailor Moon: Thanks Stefan. *hugs him*
Mario: Sorry about what happened to the Ultima Network,Stefan.
Luigi: And about our show.
Yeah,sorry about that.
Shego: So how much does this gig pay?
Um...Nothing. I thought I mentioned that.
Shego: Yeah,call me when you decide to offer me a Paying job. *begins to leave*
C'mon Shego don't do this.
Mina: And besides working with us will prove to be a better experience than working with Drakken...we promise.
*Shego stops*
Shego: *sigh* Alright,I'll stay.
Awesome,you won't regret this.
Shego: See that I don't.
Mina: Ok,now with that out of the way,Tom tell us what's coming up.
Tom's Voice: Well Mina,next we'll be taling about the Upcoming episodes of the Cartoon Historian, But first,here's a video message.
*goes to video*
Spongebob Squarepants: Hey,Cartoon Historian,just wanted to wish you a Happy 1-Year Anniversary. Hooray for Cartoons.
*goes back to live*
*audience applauds*
Thank you,Spongebob. Ok,coming up on future episodes of The Cartoon Historian,both me and my Assistant will be covering a whole mess of shows,program blocks,and animation companies. And as usual we won't be covering Anime. Mina,tell us what shows we'll be covering.
Mina: Well,some of the cartoon shows we'll be covering include: 'Inspector Gadget','Alvin and the Chipmunks',and 'Captain Planet'. For the Program Blocks,We'll be covering: 'Fox Kids','ABC's One Saturday Morning','Kids WB',and more. We'll also be covering some Animation Companies..though,I don't know which companys.
*audience applauds*
Thank You,Mina. Another thing we're gonna be doing is Redoing some of the earlier lessons....Including Ninja Turtles.
2k3 Mikey: I'm gonna be co-hosting that.
Mina: Way to spoil things,Michaelangelo.
2k3 Mikey: hehe..oops,Sorry.
We have more instore guys,Tom tell our audience what else we have coming up.
Tom's Voice: We'll be talking about the newest segment: Cartoon Theme Of The Month.
*croud cheers and applauds*
Tom's Voice: And now here are some more Video Messages.
*goes to video*
Phineas: Stefan,Ferb and I would like to wish you a Happy 1-year Anniversary as the Cartoon Historian and hope you have many more yeare. Because of you,Ferb and I learned alot about the Cool shows and Program blocks that were before our time.
Ferb: Happy Anniversary.
*transitions to another vid*
Hulk Hogan: This is The Hulkster, Wishing The Cartoon Historian a very Happy 1-Year Anniversary. Whatcha gonna do when the Cartoon Historian educates and entertains You.
*transitions to another video*
Mega Man: This is an awesome thing you have going here,Stefan. Happy Anniversary.
*goes back to live*
*croud cheers and applauds*
Alright. As you are all aware,The Cartoon Historian has multiple segments. This year,I'll be introducing an all New segment....Cartoon Intro of the Month. Y'see each month we'll be showcasing a Cartoon Intro Theme. This months theme will be shown soon,so be ready for that.
Mina: Alrighty,we're almost done. Tom tell us what's next.
Tom's Voice: Next,It's the Best of the Best. The Best Cartoon Historian Lesson of the year.
*goes to video*
Goku: Hey everyone,It's Goku. When I'm not fighting evil or training my butt off or eating like a starved beast,I'm watching the Cartoon Historian..it's a great show to watch while you're having a snack. Happy Anniversary,Stefan. Hey,Gohan.
*transitions to new video*
Kim Possible: Me an Ron would like to wish you a very Spankin' Anniversary as the Cartoon Historian,Stefan.
Ron: I Love Your show.
Rufus: Laters
*goes back to live*
*croud cheers and applauds*
Mina: Alright. Now,before we go to the Best of the Best. Stefan,why don't you tell us Why you created the Cartoon historian?
Sure. Well I'm a fan of cartoons and wanted to make a site dedicated to them. And Inspired by The Gaming Historian,I decided to make the site about the History of Various Cartoon shows.
Mina: Simple is the word for that answer. Anyway,Here we go with The Best of The Best...Starting with my pick,It's Cartoon Historian Leeson 20: The Rise and Fall of Cartoon Network.
*goes to video*
CH 20-B
CH 20-B
*goes back to live*
*audience chears and applauds*
And now here is my choice for Best of The Best. It's Cartoon Historian Lesson 21: From Games to Toons.
*goes to video*
CH21-A
CH21-B
CH21-C
CH21-D
CH21-E
CH21-F
CH21-G
CH21-H
*goes back to live*
*audience chears and applauds*
Mina: Damn,I forgot how long that Lesson was.
2k3 Mikey: Oooh,oooh,My turn,my turn. My personal favorite Cartoon Historian Lesson was Lesson # 18: The Spider-Man episode.
Mina: And my Debut Episode.
*goes to video*
CH18-A
CH18-B
CH18-C
CH18-D
*goes back to live*
*audience chears and applauds*
Mario: It took a while,but me and my Brother,Luigi,decided on which episode that we both liked the best.
Luigi: We decided on Cartoon Historian Lesson # 1, The History of DiC.
*goes to video*
CH1
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
Gohan: If I had to choose which Cartoon Historian I liked best,I'd have to go With the Toonami Episode...Lesson # 15.
*goes to video*
CH15
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
How about you Shego?
Mina: Yeah,don't you have a favorte?
Shego: Well,there is this one episode that I kinda like. Roll it,Tom.
*goes to video*
CH10
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
Shego: I'll admit,that big blue dummy,kinda cracks me up sometimes.
Sailor Moon: Well My favorite Cartoon Historian episode should be no surprise to anyone. It's Cartoon Historian Lesson 23: She-Ra.
You were a great help that day,Moon girl.
Sailor Moon: Why,Thank you.
*goes to video*
CH23
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
Alright,that's all she wrote. Thanks again for joining us. And a special thanks to muy new Assistants for being here for this 1-year Anniversary Special.
Mina: A very special thanks goes to those in attendence. Thanks for Joining us live. Take us home,Tom.
Tom's Voice: This has been The Cartoon Historian 1-year Anniversary Special. Thanks again for Joining us. I'm Tom Z,wishing you a great day.
[credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays. fades to black after the credits roll.]
Announcer Voice: Welcome one and all to The Cartoon Historian 1st Anniversary Special.
[cartoon historian intro]
And Now live from the Historian's Classroom,here is Stefan,the Cartoon Historian and his beautiful assistant Mina.
*the crowd applauds stefan and mina as they enter the classroom. applause stops*
Thank you,thank you. And thank you Tom.
Mina: Welcome everyone. I can't believe it's been one year since you started,Stefan.
That's right,Mina. And What a year it was. We covered a crapload of Cartoons and Animation Companies. We also reviewed lots of shows,
*croud applauds*
Thank you.
Mina: Ok,Let's get on with the celebration. Now,I have mixed feelings about this. Stefan has gotten Extra Assistants, Now Pro: I get some free time and when I have something important to do,Stefan doesn't have to do these Lessons Solo. However,here's the Con: I kinda feel that I'm somewhat being replaced.
*chuckles* Don't wory,Mina. I could never replace you. You are too precious to me.
Mina*blushes* Aww,thanks Stefan *kisses stefan on the cheek*
Anyway,here is Extra Assistant #1. He is the Son of one of the greatest and strongest Heroes in all of Anime. Here he is: Gohan Son.
*the crouds appauds as Teen Gohan enters*
Mina: Our next Extra Assistants come from Brooklyn NY. Here they are,the most iconic plumbers in the world: Mario and Luigi.
*the crouds appauds as the Mario Bros enter*
She's the Pretty Suited Soldier of Love,Truth,and Justice. Say hello to Extra Assistant #3: Sailor Moon.
*the crouds appauds as Sailor Moon enters*
Mina: This next Extra Assistant needs no introduction. Here he is....2k3 Mikey.
*the crouds appauds as the 2k3 version of ninja turtle Michaelangelo enters*
And last,but not least..the final Extra Assistant...Shego.
*the crouds appauds as shego enters*
Alright. Welcome,my friends.
Gohan: It's great to be here.
2k3 Mikey: Great!! You mean Totaly Awesome! Stefan,I've been a big fan of this show for a long time and becoming your Assistant is a dream come true. You Rock,Stefan.
Uh..Thanks,Mikey. Sailor Moon it's good to have you onboard again.
Sailor Moon: My pleasure Stefan.
Mina: Hope you gained a sence of punctuality,Moon girl. Because,you're gonna need it. Because classes start at random times.
Sailor Moon: Hey,don't worry about me. I'll be fine.
Mina: YOu'd better be..or Stefan will fire you.
Don't worry,Sailor Moon. You'll do great.,I know it. and besides even if she is late,I could always get one of the other Assistants to help me.
Sailor Moon: Thanks Stefan. *hugs him*
Mario: Sorry about what happened to the Ultima Network,Stefan.
Luigi: And about our show.
Yeah,sorry about that.
Shego: So how much does this gig pay?
Um...Nothing. I thought I mentioned that.
Shego: Yeah,call me when you decide to offer me a Paying job. *begins to leave*
C'mon Shego don't do this.
Mina: And besides working with us will prove to be a better experience than working with Drakken...we promise.
*Shego stops*
Shego: *sigh* Alright,I'll stay.
Awesome,you won't regret this.
Shego: See that I don't.
Mina: Ok,now with that out of the way,Tom tell us what's coming up.
Tom's Voice: Well Mina,next we'll be taling about the Upcoming episodes of the Cartoon Historian, But first,here's a video message.
*goes to video*
Spongebob Squarepants: Hey,Cartoon Historian,just wanted to wish you a Happy 1-Year Anniversary. Hooray for Cartoons.
*goes back to live*
*audience applauds*
Thank you,Spongebob. Ok,coming up on future episodes of The Cartoon Historian,both me and my Assistant will be covering a whole mess of shows,program blocks,and animation companies. And as usual we won't be covering Anime. Mina,tell us what shows we'll be covering.
Mina: Well,some of the cartoon shows we'll be covering include: 'Inspector Gadget','Alvin and the Chipmunks',and 'Captain Planet'. For the Program Blocks,We'll be covering: 'Fox Kids','ABC's One Saturday Morning','Kids WB',and more. We'll also be covering some Animation Companies..though,I don't know which companys.
*audience applauds*
Thank You,Mina. Another thing we're gonna be doing is Redoing some of the earlier lessons....Including Ninja Turtles.
2k3 Mikey: I'm gonna be co-hosting that.
Mina: Way to spoil things,Michaelangelo.
2k3 Mikey: hehe..oops,Sorry.
We have more instore guys,Tom tell our audience what else we have coming up.
Tom's Voice: We'll be talking about the newest segment: Cartoon Theme Of The Month.
*croud cheers and applauds*
Tom's Voice: And now here are some more Video Messages.
*goes to video*
Phineas: Stefan,Ferb and I would like to wish you a Happy 1-year Anniversary as the Cartoon Historian and hope you have many more yeare. Because of you,Ferb and I learned alot about the Cool shows and Program blocks that were before our time.
Ferb: Happy Anniversary.
*transitions to another vid*
Hulk Hogan: This is The Hulkster, Wishing The Cartoon Historian a very Happy 1-Year Anniversary. Whatcha gonna do when the Cartoon Historian educates and entertains You.
*transitions to another video*
Mega Man: This is an awesome thing you have going here,Stefan. Happy Anniversary.
*goes back to live*
*croud cheers and applauds*
Alright. As you are all aware,The Cartoon Historian has multiple segments. This year,I'll be introducing an all New segment....Cartoon Intro of the Month. Y'see each month we'll be showcasing a Cartoon Intro Theme. This months theme will be shown soon,so be ready for that.
Mina: Alrighty,we're almost done. Tom tell us what's next.
Tom's Voice: Next,It's the Best of the Best. The Best Cartoon Historian Lesson of the year.
*goes to video*
Goku: Hey everyone,It's Goku. When I'm not fighting evil or training my butt off or eating like a starved beast,I'm watching the Cartoon Historian..it's a great show to watch while you're having a snack. Happy Anniversary,Stefan. Hey,Gohan.
*transitions to new video*
Kim Possible: Me an Ron would like to wish you a very Spankin' Anniversary as the Cartoon Historian,Stefan.
Ron: I Love Your show.
Rufus: Laters
*goes back to live*
*croud cheers and applauds*
Mina: Alright. Now,before we go to the Best of the Best. Stefan,why don't you tell us Why you created the Cartoon historian?
Sure. Well I'm a fan of cartoons and wanted to make a site dedicated to them. And Inspired by The Gaming Historian,I decided to make the site about the History of Various Cartoon shows.
Mina: Simple is the word for that answer. Anyway,Here we go with The Best of The Best...Starting with my pick,It's Cartoon Historian Leeson 20: The Rise and Fall of Cartoon Network.
*goes to video*
CH 20-B
CH 20-B
*goes back to live*
*audience chears and applauds*
And now here is my choice for Best of The Best. It's Cartoon Historian Lesson 21: From Games to Toons.
*goes to video*
CH21-A
CH21-B
CH21-C
CH21-D
CH21-E
CH21-F
CH21-G
CH21-H
*goes back to live*
*audience chears and applauds*
Mina: Damn,I forgot how long that Lesson was.
2k3 Mikey: Oooh,oooh,My turn,my turn. My personal favorite Cartoon Historian Lesson was Lesson # 18: The Spider-Man episode.
Mina: And my Debut Episode.
*goes to video*
CH18-A
CH18-B
CH18-C
CH18-D
*goes back to live*
*audience chears and applauds*
Mario: It took a while,but me and my Brother,Luigi,decided on which episode that we both liked the best.
Luigi: We decided on Cartoon Historian Lesson # 1, The History of DiC.
*goes to video*
CH1
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
Gohan: If I had to choose which Cartoon Historian I liked best,I'd have to go With the Toonami Episode...Lesson # 15.
*goes to video*
CH15
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
How about you Shego?
Mina: Yeah,don't you have a favorte?
Shego: Well,there is this one episode that I kinda like. Roll it,Tom.
*goes to video*
CH10
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
Shego: I'll admit,that big blue dummy,kinda cracks me up sometimes.
Sailor Moon: Well My favorite Cartoon Historian episode should be no surprise to anyone. It's Cartoon Historian Lesson 23: She-Ra.
You were a great help that day,Moon girl.
Sailor Moon: Why,Thank you.
*goes to video*
CH23
*goes back to live*
*audience cheers and applauds*
Alright,that's all she wrote. Thanks again for joining us. And a special thanks to muy new Assistants for being here for this 1-year Anniversary Special.
Mina: A very special thanks goes to those in attendence. Thanks for Joining us live. Take us home,Tom.
Tom's Voice: This has been The Cartoon Historian 1-year Anniversary Special. Thanks again for Joining us. I'm Tom Z,wishing you a great day.
[credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays. fades to black after the credits roll.]
Monday, January 3, 2011
The Cartoon Historian Lesson 25: Ruby-Spears Productions
Welcome to the first Cartoon Historian lesson of 2011. As you can see,Mina is absent,so I'm once again doing this thing solo. Why she isn't here is a mystery.
Anyway,on this 25th edition,we will be taking a breif look at a once iconic animation company,Ruby-Spears Productions.
[cartoon historian intro]
If you grew up in the 80's,then you should be very familiar with Ruby-Spears Productions. Back in the day,it was one of the greatest animation companies ever.
Ruby-Spears Productions (also known as Ruby-Spears Enterprises) was founded in 1977 by veteran writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears in Burbank,California.
Both Ruby and Spears started out as sound editors at Hanna-Barbera Productions, and later branched out into writing stories for such programs as Space Ghost,Birdman,and The Herculoids.
In 1968, they were assigned the task of developing a mystery-based cartoon series for Saturday morning, the end result of which was Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. Aside from working with H-B,Spears and Ruby also worked for DePatie-Freleng Enterprises as producers.
Then in 1977,the 2 men bought their own animation company and called it Ruby-Spears Productions. It's also worth noting that Ruby-Spears Productions was also the first animation company to obtain a network commitment for a series before they opened their doors.
1 year later,The company was purchased by Filmways Television(you baby boomers should know these guys well) and was sold in late 1981 to Taft Broadcasting, becoming a sister company to Hanna-Barbera Productions.
"Fangface" was the first of a long line of hits from Ruby-Spears. Less than a year later this first series became part of a two-hour block called "The Plasticman Adventure Hour". Other R-S shows of that era included: "Mighty Man and Yukk,","Rickety Rocket,","Fangface and Fangpuss",and the famous DC comic book hero come-to-life "Plastic Man".
In the 1980s,Ruby-Spears had produced 34 television series including "Alvin and the Chipmunks," the highest rated series of the 1987-88 season. It would also become the cartoon series that Ruby-Spears is the most famous for.
Anyway,A&tC was eventually purchased for syndication by Lorimar Telepictures (the company that produced those nice sitcoms in the 80s and early 90s) for a sum of $25 million.
Their other 80s productions have included: "Thundarr the Barbarian,","Saturday Supercade","Mr. T.","Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos",and "Rubik the Amazing Cube". BTW,Rubix was the first cartoon series to feature a Hispanic family as its central characters.
In addition to their series,Ruby-Spears have produced a ton of animated specials, including: "I Love The Chipmunks Valentine Special" and "A Chipmunk Reunion" which dealt sensitively with adoption.
In 1988,Ruby-Spears acquired the rights to two heavily sought after properties. Debuting that September on CBS was the classic, "Superman", which celebrated its 50th anniversary, and it was with much acclaim that Ruby-Spears was selected to produce the animated series for the CBS Saturday Morning schedule.
A few days later, Ruby-Spears was again in the spotlight when they were selected to produce an animated version of the successful movie series, "Police Academy."
65 episodes were produced and released in the fall of 1989 for first-run syndication.
For the 1989-90 season, Ruby-Spears sold "Dink, the Little Dinosaur" to CBS. "Dink" was the only original program to be sold to the networks that year.
Another original program from Ruby-Spears, "Piggsburg Pigs," was sold to the Fox Network for the launch of their Children's Network for the 1990-91 season. The renewal of "Dink" by CBS gave Ruby-Spears two original series on the networks, breaking the long-standing "pre-sold" properties trend.
In 1991, most of the original Ruby-Spears library(as well as Hanna-Barbera's) was sold to Turner Broadcasting System, which in turn merged with Time Warner in 1996.
In the 90s,Ruby-Spears produced the "C.O.W. Boys of Moo Mesa" series for ABC and the surprise hit and highly rated series "Mega Man" for Fox..and later WB.
Like I stated in my 'From Games to Toons' episode,"Mega Man" was co-produced by Ashi Productions LTD. of Tokyo, Japan. So it's part Anime.
1995 brought to television one of Ruby-Spears most exciting series "Skysurfer Strike Force",which was launched on Bohbot Entertainment's 'Amazin' Adventures' Block. Bandai was also involved and created Action Figures based on the show. "Skysurfer Strike Force" lasted for 2 seasons.
Also in 1995,Ruby-Spears produced 13 additional episodes of MegaMan which was the number one rated weekly syndicated animated series. It was distributed by Summit Media, the company that once distributed the English-Dubbed version of the Pokemon Anime.
In 1999 and 2000,Ruby-Spears supervised the creative and preproduction work for a direct-to-video production for SSA Productions,entitled "Slammin' Sammy...the Sammy Sosa Story" The video is an animated biography of the homerun hero,Sammy Sosa.
Despite being conciderably weaker,Ruby-Spears Productions is still around today and continues to do what they like best,making cartoons. Though,their latest stuff isn't shown on TV.
Joe,Ken, You're company may be a shell of it's former self today,but back in the day,Ruby-Spears Productions was one of the all-time greats in Toon Making. Thanks for all the memories and awesome shows,guys.
Well there you have it,a breif history of Ruby-Spears Productions. That about wraps up another edition of The Cartoon Historian. See Ya Next Time.
[fade to black. credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays]
Anyway,on this 25th edition,we will be taking a breif look at a once iconic animation company,Ruby-Spears Productions.
[cartoon historian intro]
If you grew up in the 80's,then you should be very familiar with Ruby-Spears Productions. Back in the day,it was one of the greatest animation companies ever.
Ruby-Spears Productions (also known as Ruby-Spears Enterprises) was founded in 1977 by veteran writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears in Burbank,California.
Both Ruby and Spears started out as sound editors at Hanna-Barbera Productions, and later branched out into writing stories for such programs as Space Ghost,Birdman,and The Herculoids.
In 1968, they were assigned the task of developing a mystery-based cartoon series for Saturday morning, the end result of which was Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. Aside from working with H-B,Spears and Ruby also worked for DePatie-Freleng Enterprises as producers.
Then in 1977,the 2 men bought their own animation company and called it Ruby-Spears Productions. It's also worth noting that Ruby-Spears Productions was also the first animation company to obtain a network commitment for a series before they opened their doors.
1 year later,The company was purchased by Filmways Television(you baby boomers should know these guys well) and was sold in late 1981 to Taft Broadcasting, becoming a sister company to Hanna-Barbera Productions.
"Fangface" was the first of a long line of hits from Ruby-Spears. Less than a year later this first series became part of a two-hour block called "The Plasticman Adventure Hour". Other R-S shows of that era included: "Mighty Man and Yukk,","Rickety Rocket,","Fangface and Fangpuss",and the famous DC comic book hero come-to-life "Plastic Man".
In the 1980s,Ruby-Spears had produced 34 television series including "Alvin and the Chipmunks," the highest rated series of the 1987-88 season. It would also become the cartoon series that Ruby-Spears is the most famous for.
Anyway,A&tC was eventually purchased for syndication by Lorimar Telepictures (the company that produced those nice sitcoms in the 80s and early 90s) for a sum of $25 million.
Their other 80s productions have included: "Thundarr the Barbarian,","Saturday Supercade","Mr. T.","Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos",and "Rubik the Amazing Cube". BTW,Rubix was the first cartoon series to feature a Hispanic family as its central characters.
In addition to their series,Ruby-Spears have produced a ton of animated specials, including: "I Love The Chipmunks Valentine Special" and "A Chipmunk Reunion" which dealt sensitively with adoption.
In 1988,Ruby-Spears acquired the rights to two heavily sought after properties. Debuting that September on CBS was the classic, "Superman", which celebrated its 50th anniversary, and it was with much acclaim that Ruby-Spears was selected to produce the animated series for the CBS Saturday Morning schedule.
A few days later, Ruby-Spears was again in the spotlight when they were selected to produce an animated version of the successful movie series, "Police Academy."
65 episodes were produced and released in the fall of 1989 for first-run syndication.
For the 1989-90 season, Ruby-Spears sold "Dink, the Little Dinosaur" to CBS. "Dink" was the only original program to be sold to the networks that year.
Another original program from Ruby-Spears, "Piggsburg Pigs," was sold to the Fox Network for the launch of their Children's Network for the 1990-91 season. The renewal of "Dink" by CBS gave Ruby-Spears two original series on the networks, breaking the long-standing "pre-sold" properties trend.
In 1991, most of the original Ruby-Spears library(as well as Hanna-Barbera's) was sold to Turner Broadcasting System, which in turn merged with Time Warner in 1996.
In the 90s,Ruby-Spears produced the "C.O.W. Boys of Moo Mesa" series for ABC and the surprise hit and highly rated series "Mega Man" for Fox..and later WB.
Like I stated in my 'From Games to Toons' episode,"Mega Man" was co-produced by Ashi Productions LTD. of Tokyo, Japan. So it's part Anime.
1995 brought to television one of Ruby-Spears most exciting series "Skysurfer Strike Force",which was launched on Bohbot Entertainment's 'Amazin' Adventures' Block. Bandai was also involved and created Action Figures based on the show. "Skysurfer Strike Force" lasted for 2 seasons.
Also in 1995,Ruby-Spears produced 13 additional episodes of MegaMan which was the number one rated weekly syndicated animated series. It was distributed by Summit Media, the company that once distributed the English-Dubbed version of the Pokemon Anime.
In 1999 and 2000,Ruby-Spears supervised the creative and preproduction work for a direct-to-video production for SSA Productions,entitled "Slammin' Sammy...the Sammy Sosa Story" The video is an animated biography of the homerun hero,Sammy Sosa.
Despite being conciderably weaker,Ruby-Spears Productions is still around today and continues to do what they like best,making cartoons. Though,their latest stuff isn't shown on TV.
Joe,Ken, You're company may be a shell of it's former self today,but back in the day,Ruby-Spears Productions was one of the all-time greats in Toon Making. Thanks for all the memories and awesome shows,guys.
Well there you have it,a breif history of Ruby-Spears Productions. That about wraps up another edition of The Cartoon Historian. See Ya Next Time.
[fade to black. credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays]
Saturday, December 18, 2010
The Cartoon Historian Lesson 24-B: Filmation Part 2
And now the Conclusion.
Filmation produced a live-action series called The Ghost Busters in 1975 starring Larry Storch and Forrest Tucker and noted science-fiction fan and collector Bob Burns as "Tracy the Gorilla". The characters worked as paranormal investigators, working for an unseen "Chief" who delivered their "Shost Busting assignments" in whimsical disguised recording devices ala Mission Impossible.
For more on Filmation's Ghostbusters check out my Lesson about it Here
Filmation also ventured into the feature film business. In fact, one of Filmation's first projects was Journey Back To Oz, an animated sequel to the hit 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.
Started in 1964, the project was held back for eight years when Filmation did not have enough money to finish the film. It was only after its successes with their other series that the company was profitable enough to complete "Journey" for theatrical release in 1972.
In their final years, Filmation produced feature films of both He-Man and She-Ra. They also produced unofficial cult animated sequels to other established films such as Happily Ever After.
Like a lot of animation studios, Filmation had its stock company of voice-over actors. Some of the most famous included Larry Storch, Dallas McKennon,Adam West and Burt Ward,Jane Webb,Ed Asner,Linda Gary,John Erwin,Alan Oppenheimer,Ted Knight, George DiCenzo,Melendy Britt, Pat Fraley, Charlie Adler, Ed Gilbert, Susan Blu, Erika Scheimer,and even Lou Scheimer himself (either uncredited, or under the pseudonym of "Erik (sometimes "Eric") Gunden").
For the company's 1960s superhero efforts composer John Gart (under the stage name John Marion) and music supervisor Gordon Zahler created strong themes and backing cues using a large orchestra until 1968's Batman entry, which used sparser production and jazzier themes.
Legendary composer Ray Ellis had produced the background music for most Filmation series. Much of Ellis' background music in the early 70's had a distinct, richly orchestrated sound not found on many other made-for-TV cartoon series of that period; though as time went on, it became more synthesized. Ellis' work at the studio lasted from 1968 to 1982.
Haim Saban and Shuki Levy composed and produced the studio's music for He-Man and She-Ra (during 1983-1986), along with the other studios they produced music scores for. Frank W. Becker provided the music for Filmation's final animated series, Bravestarr.
The Filmation studio was owned by The TelePrompTer Company in the early 1970s, then by Westinghouse in 1982.
In 1988 Filmation was purchased by the L'Oréal cosmetics company. L'Oréal promptly closed the studio on February 3,1989 and ended Filmation's legacy. As a result, most of the staff was terminated on that same day.
This happened a day before a new law went into practice requiring companies to give employees 60 days notice before a mass termination, which is presumably why they did it so quickly.
Filmation's last production was the feature film Happily Ever After (a sequel to the story of Snow White), released to theaters in 1993. Also, at the time of the closing, two new animated TV shows, Bugzburg and Bravo (a spinoff of Bravestarr), were beginning production.
Since then, most of the Filmation back catalog had come under the ownership of Hallmark Cards,through their Hallmark Entertainment subsidiary. However,since a large amount of Filmation's shows and movies were based on licensed characters, many of it's titles are under the control of other studios (such as Paramount and Warner Bros.).
In March 2004, ownership of the Filmation back catalog was sold to a British company called Entertainment Rights. Entertainment Rights have since made the revelation that when Hallmark converted all of their Filmation shows to digital format in the 1990s, only PAL-format copies were made,with the original film prints apparently discarded.
This was due to Hallmark's previously un-stated short-sighted policy of only distributing Filmation shows outside of the United States. As a result, many of Entertainment Rights' DVD releases are based on the international versions.
Because they were taken from PAL-based transfers these releases exhibit the so-called "PAL speedup" effect in which the soundtrack plays 4% too fast resulting in the pitch being a half-step higher than it was originally.
PAL-NTSC conversion also include softness and ghosting. The exception appears to be four titles from ER's library: Groovie Goolies, Ark II, and both the live-action and animated "Ghostbusters" series.
On April 1 of last year,it was announced that Entertainment Rights would be acquired by Boomerang Media and on May of last year,it was announced that the subsidiaries and offices of Entertainment Rights would be absorbed under the name,Classic Media.
Well that was interesting. Filmation may be gone,but it'll never be forgotten. Thanks Filmation for all the memories.
See Ya Next Time on the Cartoon Historian. Stay Gold,guys.
[fade to black. credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays]
Filmation produced a live-action series called The Ghost Busters in 1975 starring Larry Storch and Forrest Tucker and noted science-fiction fan and collector Bob Burns as "Tracy the Gorilla". The characters worked as paranormal investigators, working for an unseen "Chief" who delivered their "Shost Busting assignments" in whimsical disguised recording devices ala Mission Impossible.
For more on Filmation's Ghostbusters check out my Lesson about it Here
Filmation also ventured into the feature film business. In fact, one of Filmation's first projects was Journey Back To Oz, an animated sequel to the hit 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.
Started in 1964, the project was held back for eight years when Filmation did not have enough money to finish the film. It was only after its successes with their other series that the company was profitable enough to complete "Journey" for theatrical release in 1972.
In their final years, Filmation produced feature films of both He-Man and She-Ra. They also produced unofficial cult animated sequels to other established films such as Happily Ever After.
Like a lot of animation studios, Filmation had its stock company of voice-over actors. Some of the most famous included Larry Storch, Dallas McKennon,Adam West and Burt Ward,Jane Webb,Ed Asner,Linda Gary,John Erwin,Alan Oppenheimer,Ted Knight, George DiCenzo,Melendy Britt, Pat Fraley, Charlie Adler, Ed Gilbert, Susan Blu, Erika Scheimer,and even Lou Scheimer himself (either uncredited, or under the pseudonym of "Erik (sometimes "Eric") Gunden").
For the company's 1960s superhero efforts composer John Gart (under the stage name John Marion) and music supervisor Gordon Zahler created strong themes and backing cues using a large orchestra until 1968's Batman entry, which used sparser production and jazzier themes.
Legendary composer Ray Ellis had produced the background music for most Filmation series. Much of Ellis' background music in the early 70's had a distinct, richly orchestrated sound not found on many other made-for-TV cartoon series of that period; though as time went on, it became more synthesized. Ellis' work at the studio lasted from 1968 to 1982.
Haim Saban and Shuki Levy composed and produced the studio's music for He-Man and She-Ra (during 1983-1986), along with the other studios they produced music scores for. Frank W. Becker provided the music for Filmation's final animated series, Bravestarr.
The Filmation studio was owned by The TelePrompTer Company in the early 1970s, then by Westinghouse in 1982.
In 1988 Filmation was purchased by the L'Oréal cosmetics company. L'Oréal promptly closed the studio on February 3,1989 and ended Filmation's legacy. As a result, most of the staff was terminated on that same day.
This happened a day before a new law went into practice requiring companies to give employees 60 days notice before a mass termination, which is presumably why they did it so quickly.
Filmation's last production was the feature film Happily Ever After (a sequel to the story of Snow White), released to theaters in 1993. Also, at the time of the closing, two new animated TV shows, Bugzburg and Bravo (a spinoff of Bravestarr), were beginning production.
Since then, most of the Filmation back catalog had come under the ownership of Hallmark Cards,through their Hallmark Entertainment subsidiary. However,since a large amount of Filmation's shows and movies were based on licensed characters, many of it's titles are under the control of other studios (such as Paramount and Warner Bros.).
In March 2004, ownership of the Filmation back catalog was sold to a British company called Entertainment Rights. Entertainment Rights have since made the revelation that when Hallmark converted all of their Filmation shows to digital format in the 1990s, only PAL-format copies were made,with the original film prints apparently discarded.
This was due to Hallmark's previously un-stated short-sighted policy of only distributing Filmation shows outside of the United States. As a result, many of Entertainment Rights' DVD releases are based on the international versions.
Because they were taken from PAL-based transfers these releases exhibit the so-called "PAL speedup" effect in which the soundtrack plays 4% too fast resulting in the pitch being a half-step higher than it was originally.
PAL-NTSC conversion also include softness and ghosting. The exception appears to be four titles from ER's library: Groovie Goolies, Ark II, and both the live-action and animated "Ghostbusters" series.
On April 1 of last year,it was announced that Entertainment Rights would be acquired by Boomerang Media and on May of last year,it was announced that the subsidiaries and offices of Entertainment Rights would be absorbed under the name,Classic Media.
Well that was interesting. Filmation may be gone,but it'll never be forgotten. Thanks Filmation for all the memories.
See Ya Next Time on the Cartoon Historian. Stay Gold,guys.
[fade to black. credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays]
The Cartoon Historian Lesson 24-A: Filmation Part 1
Welcome to the Cartoon Historian. First,I wanna apologies for the lack of activity here. I'm very busy with personal stuff. Anyway,in this lesson I will be talking about,Legendary Animation Company,Filmation.
{cartoon historian intro}
As you've noticed,My assistant Mina isn't here,she had to do some last minute X-Mas shopping,so I'll be doing this 2-part lesson solo. well,lets do it to it.
Filmation aka Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California,Filmation was founded in 1963 by Lou Scheimer and Norm Prescott,who were also served as producers.
A trademark of the company's productions beginning in '69 was a rotating "Produced by" (and on some shows, "Executive Producers") credit seen in the end credits and in the opening sequences of Filmation shows.
This was supposedly created to allow the producers to share equal billing,although later Filmation productions credited only Scheimer, in the form of his signature ("Lou Scheimer, Executive Producer"),starting with 1982's Gilligan's Planet.
Yes,Gilligan and Co. had their own Cartoon series. Strange,I know.
Anyway,Many of Filmations 70's and 80's shows carried a simple moral or life-lesson explained by a key character in the epilogue.
Lou Scheimer and Filmation's main director,Hal Sutherland met while working at Larry Harmon Pictures on a Popeye cartoon. Sometime after,Larry Harmon pictures closed down.
SIB Productions, a Japanese firm with U.S. offices in Chicago, approached Scheimer and Sutherland about producing a cartoon called Rod Rocket.
The two agreed to take on the work and also took on a project for Family Films. These were ten short animated films based on the life of Christ. The project enabled Scheimer and Sutherland to finance their own small Los Angeles animation studio True Line.
Paramount Pictures soon purchased SIB Productions, and True Line's staff increased; including the arrival of former radio disc-jockey Norm Prescott, who became a partner in the firm.
Prescott had already been working on the animated feature Pinocchio in Outer Space,which was soon released by a Belgian company. He also brought in the "Journey Back To Oz" project, which would be released over ten years later by Filmation.
Both Rod Rocket and the life of Christ series credited "Filmation Associates" with "Production Design" in addition to Scheimer and Sutherland as directors. However,True Line did not officially become Filmation Associates corporation until Rod Rocket entered syndication in 1963.
SIB Productions, whose logo bore a resemblance to the original Filmation logo, would soon go on to become "Sib-Tower 12 Productions" and produced the first couple of Tom & Jerry films for MGM.
The new Filmation studio would for the next few years make TV commercials. Soon they were approached by CBS executive Fred Silverman to do a Superman cartoon. This premiered in 1966, and was followed by several of the other DC Comics heroes.
In 1968, Filmation created the first Archie show,a TV show loosely based on the Comic series. Both series greatly helped Filmation's popularity. However,it wasn't until the 1970's when the company became iconic.
As with other producers of Saturday morning cartoons, Filmation was more concerned with quantity rather than quality; however, they did make a number of attempts to rise above the standard animated fare and produce reasonably well-written cartoons.
The best-known example of this is their animated adaptation of the Star Trek series, which included scripts contributed by well-known science fiction writers and starred most of the original cast.
Star Trek got a cartoon as well? Wow,Ya learn something new everyday.
Anyway,Other memorable (for some anyway) Filmation series included the 16-part animated serial of Flash Gordon,which was originally intended as a movie for theatrical release.
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids was another memorable series created by and starring Bill Cosby. Fat Albert was a show with an explicit educational focus,which enabled the actor himself to earn a Doctorate in education. Interesting little factoid.
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, based on the popular line of Mattel toys, opened up a vibrant new American market for first-run television syndication for animation in the 1980s.
In addition He-Man and Bravestarr were pioneers in cartoons of that time and paved the way for broader storytelling.
Examples include He-Man's "The Problem with Power" which dealt with He-Man believing he had killed an innocent bystander, "Teela's Quest" which introduced a now famous mythology on The Sorceress being Teela's mother,and the versed continuity shared between He-Man and She-Ra. While Bravestarr featured the First Native American hero in cartoons.
It's also worth noting that the scripts for the Star Trek animated series tended to be quite sophisticated, and garnered the first Emmy award for the franchise. Fat Albert is another pioneer cartoon show,as it was the very first cartoon that featured an all African American starring cast.
Filmation had a reputation for exploiting the technique of limited animation to produce a number of animated series with a distinct look. They made heavy use of rotoscoping in later years and they also re-used the same animated sequences over and over, many times, to the point where the Filmation style was instantly recognizable. Some Animation studios at the time also used this technique.
Filmation's animation often looked poor quality due to the limiting of the number of frames per second used to fewer than the regular 24 fps seen on film or 25/30 fps seen on video. Frames would be repeated to compensate for the deficiency, resulting in a jerky and cheap look. Remember,Filmation was going for Quanity instead of Quality.
This frequent use of stock footage saved production money, but often resulted in sacrifice of continuity. This was countered by cutting from one stock shot to another after only a second or two. This was long enough to set the scene but before the eye could notice all of the unexplained errors. This became part of Filmation style during a period when most TV and motion picture production tended to run minimum shots of 4-5 seconds.
In contrast to the rapid jump cuts during action sequences, another Filmation trademark was the recurring use of long establishing shots in which the camera would pan slowly across a very wide background painting, thus filling up screen time with sequences requiring little or no animation. Smart or Lazy...You Decide!
Filmation also pioneered other animation technologies, particularly in Flash Gordon, which included backlighting effects for the first time in American animation,including moire effects to represent energy fields. A technique that was later used in He-Man and later in She-Ra.
They also pioneered a unique method of generating 3-D vehicle animation by filming white-outlined black miniatures against black backgrounds using a computerized motion-control camera and high-contrast film, then printing the negatives onto acetate frame-by-frame to create animation cels which were then hand-painted.
This produced a dynamic,three-dimensional effect which had never been seen in cel animation before and predated the modern use of 3-D computer animation for vehicles in 2-D animated productions.
Unlike many American studios,Filmation never relied upon animation studios outside the U.S. for the bulk of its production. Ghostbusters and Bravestarr both state in the end credits that they were "made entirely in the U.S.A.".
However,Filmation did rely on outsourcing once,when the company created its animated Zorro series. It was animated by Tokyo Movie Shinsha of Japan. The storyboards and graphics however, were made by Filmation themselves.
Filmation is also noteworthy for its lavish background paintings under the direction of longtime department head Erv Kaplan.
Characters,as well as plots,were typically run of the mill for the time. For example, most episodes of Ghost Busters had the same scheme. Watch the series,and you'll find out what I'm talking about.
Although as previously mentioned, Filmation made various attempts to rise above the norm. Many of the sounds and explosion effects used in their cartoons were recycled from Hanna-Barbera,though the company's DC Comics cartoons of 1960s used more realistic sound effects.
There were very few original animated characters created by Filmation itself. Two examples were Fraidy Cat(about a cowardly cat,who lost 8 of his 9 lives)and Wacky and Packy (about a caveman and his pet mammoth in modern times). Both of these originally aired as segments of the Uncle Croc's Block show on ABC (hosted by Charles Nelson Reilly).
These cartoons were so lame that ABC ceased ordering programs from Filmation. And who the hell could blame them.
In a period where ideas for cartoons had run dry Filmation's strong point was its adaptations of popular TV shows, movies and other works. They even did a parody show of the hit Movie and T.V. series M*A*S*H,called "M*U*S*H".
Filmation incorporated live-action into some of their animated series. Shows like The Hardy Boys and Archie's Funhouse featured live-action footage of an audience watching the bands perform and Fat Albert had segments featuring series creator Bill Cosby.
The Kid Superpower Hour with Shazam!, was more of a hybrid,a live-action variety show with animated segments. Actors appeared as characters from the Hero High portion of the show,singing songs and telling jokes. Lame!!!
Filmation made six fully live-action shows, including Space Academy, its spin-off Jason of Star Command, Ark II, Shazam! (based on the DC Comics character Captain Marvel),and Isis.
Stay tuned,students,cuz theres more to come.
{cartoon historian intro}
As you've noticed,My assistant Mina isn't here,she had to do some last minute X-Mas shopping,so I'll be doing this 2-part lesson solo. well,lets do it to it.
Filmation aka Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California,Filmation was founded in 1963 by Lou Scheimer and Norm Prescott,who were also served as producers.
A trademark of the company's productions beginning in '69 was a rotating "Produced by" (and on some shows, "Executive Producers") credit seen in the end credits and in the opening sequences of Filmation shows.
This was supposedly created to allow the producers to share equal billing,although later Filmation productions credited only Scheimer, in the form of his signature ("Lou Scheimer, Executive Producer"),starting with 1982's Gilligan's Planet.
Yes,Gilligan and Co. had their own Cartoon series. Strange,I know.
Anyway,Many of Filmations 70's and 80's shows carried a simple moral or life-lesson explained by a key character in the epilogue.
Lou Scheimer and Filmation's main director,Hal Sutherland met while working at Larry Harmon Pictures on a Popeye cartoon. Sometime after,Larry Harmon pictures closed down.
SIB Productions, a Japanese firm with U.S. offices in Chicago, approached Scheimer and Sutherland about producing a cartoon called Rod Rocket.
The two agreed to take on the work and also took on a project for Family Films. These were ten short animated films based on the life of Christ. The project enabled Scheimer and Sutherland to finance their own small Los Angeles animation studio True Line.
Paramount Pictures soon purchased SIB Productions, and True Line's staff increased; including the arrival of former radio disc-jockey Norm Prescott, who became a partner in the firm.
Prescott had already been working on the animated feature Pinocchio in Outer Space,which was soon released by a Belgian company. He also brought in the "Journey Back To Oz" project, which would be released over ten years later by Filmation.
Both Rod Rocket and the life of Christ series credited "Filmation Associates" with "Production Design" in addition to Scheimer and Sutherland as directors. However,True Line did not officially become Filmation Associates corporation until Rod Rocket entered syndication in 1963.
SIB Productions, whose logo bore a resemblance to the original Filmation logo, would soon go on to become "Sib-Tower 12 Productions" and produced the first couple of Tom & Jerry films for MGM.
The new Filmation studio would for the next few years make TV commercials. Soon they were approached by CBS executive Fred Silverman to do a Superman cartoon. This premiered in 1966, and was followed by several of the other DC Comics heroes.
In 1968, Filmation created the first Archie show,a TV show loosely based on the Comic series. Both series greatly helped Filmation's popularity. However,it wasn't until the 1970's when the company became iconic.
As with other producers of Saturday morning cartoons, Filmation was more concerned with quantity rather than quality; however, they did make a number of attempts to rise above the standard animated fare and produce reasonably well-written cartoons.
The best-known example of this is their animated adaptation of the Star Trek series, which included scripts contributed by well-known science fiction writers and starred most of the original cast.
Star Trek got a cartoon as well? Wow,Ya learn something new everyday.
Anyway,Other memorable (for some anyway) Filmation series included the 16-part animated serial of Flash Gordon,which was originally intended as a movie for theatrical release.
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids was another memorable series created by and starring Bill Cosby. Fat Albert was a show with an explicit educational focus,which enabled the actor himself to earn a Doctorate in education. Interesting little factoid.
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, based on the popular line of Mattel toys, opened up a vibrant new American market for first-run television syndication for animation in the 1980s.
In addition He-Man and Bravestarr were pioneers in cartoons of that time and paved the way for broader storytelling.
Examples include He-Man's "The Problem with Power" which dealt with He-Man believing he had killed an innocent bystander, "Teela's Quest" which introduced a now famous mythology on The Sorceress being Teela's mother,and the versed continuity shared between He-Man and She-Ra. While Bravestarr featured the First Native American hero in cartoons.
It's also worth noting that the scripts for the Star Trek animated series tended to be quite sophisticated, and garnered the first Emmy award for the franchise. Fat Albert is another pioneer cartoon show,as it was the very first cartoon that featured an all African American starring cast.
Filmation had a reputation for exploiting the technique of limited animation to produce a number of animated series with a distinct look. They made heavy use of rotoscoping in later years and they also re-used the same animated sequences over and over, many times, to the point where the Filmation style was instantly recognizable. Some Animation studios at the time also used this technique.
Filmation's animation often looked poor quality due to the limiting of the number of frames per second used to fewer than the regular 24 fps seen on film or 25/30 fps seen on video. Frames would be repeated to compensate for the deficiency, resulting in a jerky and cheap look. Remember,Filmation was going for Quanity instead of Quality.
This frequent use of stock footage saved production money, but often resulted in sacrifice of continuity. This was countered by cutting from one stock shot to another after only a second or two. This was long enough to set the scene but before the eye could notice all of the unexplained errors. This became part of Filmation style during a period when most TV and motion picture production tended to run minimum shots of 4-5 seconds.
In contrast to the rapid jump cuts during action sequences, another Filmation trademark was the recurring use of long establishing shots in which the camera would pan slowly across a very wide background painting, thus filling up screen time with sequences requiring little or no animation. Smart or Lazy...You Decide!
Filmation also pioneered other animation technologies, particularly in Flash Gordon, which included backlighting effects for the first time in American animation,including moire effects to represent energy fields. A technique that was later used in He-Man and later in She-Ra.
They also pioneered a unique method of generating 3-D vehicle animation by filming white-outlined black miniatures against black backgrounds using a computerized motion-control camera and high-contrast film, then printing the negatives onto acetate frame-by-frame to create animation cels which were then hand-painted.
This produced a dynamic,three-dimensional effect which had never been seen in cel animation before and predated the modern use of 3-D computer animation for vehicles in 2-D animated productions.
Unlike many American studios,Filmation never relied upon animation studios outside the U.S. for the bulk of its production. Ghostbusters and Bravestarr both state in the end credits that they were "made entirely in the U.S.A.".
However,Filmation did rely on outsourcing once,when the company created its animated Zorro series. It was animated by Tokyo Movie Shinsha of Japan. The storyboards and graphics however, were made by Filmation themselves.
Filmation is also noteworthy for its lavish background paintings under the direction of longtime department head Erv Kaplan.
Characters,as well as plots,were typically run of the mill for the time. For example, most episodes of Ghost Busters had the same scheme. Watch the series,and you'll find out what I'm talking about.
Although as previously mentioned, Filmation made various attempts to rise above the norm. Many of the sounds and explosion effects used in their cartoons were recycled from Hanna-Barbera,though the company's DC Comics cartoons of 1960s used more realistic sound effects.
There were very few original animated characters created by Filmation itself. Two examples were Fraidy Cat(about a cowardly cat,who lost 8 of his 9 lives)and Wacky and Packy (about a caveman and his pet mammoth in modern times). Both of these originally aired as segments of the Uncle Croc's Block show on ABC (hosted by Charles Nelson Reilly).
These cartoons were so lame that ABC ceased ordering programs from Filmation. And who the hell could blame them.
In a period where ideas for cartoons had run dry Filmation's strong point was its adaptations of popular TV shows, movies and other works. They even did a parody show of the hit Movie and T.V. series M*A*S*H,called "M*U*S*H".
Filmation incorporated live-action into some of their animated series. Shows like The Hardy Boys and Archie's Funhouse featured live-action footage of an audience watching the bands perform and Fat Albert had segments featuring series creator Bill Cosby.
The Kid Superpower Hour with Shazam!, was more of a hybrid,a live-action variety show with animated segments. Actors appeared as characters from the Hero High portion of the show,singing songs and telling jokes. Lame!!!
Filmation made six fully live-action shows, including Space Academy, its spin-off Jason of Star Command, Ark II, Shazam! (based on the DC Comics character Captain Marvel),and Isis.
Stay tuned,students,cuz theres more to come.
Saturday, November 6, 2010
The Cartoon Historian Lesson 23: She-Ra
Welcome to another Cartoon Historian. I'm your instructor,Stefan and my assistant,Mina had some important stuff to do today,so I'm gonna be doing this lesson with a very very special guest.
Please welcome,the One,the Only,Pretty Sailor Suited Soldier Of Love and Justice,Sailor Moon.
[enter sailor moon]
Welcome Sailor Moon,it's an extreme pleasure to have you here with me today.As you know I'm a huge fan of your show.
Sailor Moon: Why Thank you,Stefan. It's awesome to be here. I'm a fan of your show as well. In this episode we're gonna be talking about one of my all-time favorite heroes. It's all About She-Ra on the Cartoon Historian.
[Cartoon Historian Theme Plays]
She-Ra: Princess of Power was produced in 1985 by Filmation. It is a spinoff of Filmation's highly successful He-Man series. She-Ra was aimed primarily at young girls to counter-balance He-Man's popularity with boys.
Sailor Moon: Same with my show. It was primarily used to get girls into Anime,since 90% of Anime fans,before my show even existed,were boys.Just another thing me and She-Ra have in common.
Anyway,Like with He-Man's Show,She-Ra's show was mostly used to sell her toy line(by Mattel). This toyline was called Princess of Power and was a spin-off from Mattel's Masters of the Universe line. The Show itself was produced with financial backing from Mattel to promote the toys. Typicle Early-Mid 80's Cartoon,I know.
Sailor Moon: The show follows the adventures of She-Ra, He-Man's twin sister, who is leading a group of freedom fighters known as the Great Rebellion in the hope of freeing their homeworld of Etheria from the tyrannical rule of Hordak and his Evil Horde.
She-Ra makes her debut in the Animated Movie He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword. The Movie was created by compiling together the first five episodes of the series: "Into Etheria", "Beast Island", "She-Ra Unchained", "Reunions" and "Battle For Bright Moon".
Sailor Moon: It's also worth noting that She-Ra was the first American Super-Heroine that wasn't based on a comic character.
Sailor Moon: The series premiered in 1985 and was cancelled in 1986, after 2 seasons and 93 episodes. Reruns aired on USA Network from September 1988 to September 1989.My show also reran on the USA Network,yet another thing me and She-Ra have incommon.
She-Ra is He-Man's twin sister,who was kidnapped at birth by Hordak and taken to Etheria,where she was made to believe that she was a general against the Great Rebellion. He-Man eventually finds her and turns her to the good side. With her Sword of Protection,just like He-Man,Adora becomes She-Ra.
Sailor Moon: She was the first American Henshin heroine. Her Transformation is similar to my own. How Awesome is that.
After reuniting with her parents she decides to return to Etheria and join the Great Rebellion.
The show revolves around Adora's adventures with the Great Rebellion battling against the evil Horde. It was virtually identical to He-Man's show in structure, even down to the show's opening introduction, some of the theme music, and the fact that Adora's secret identity is shared by three other characters.
In the storyline,the Horde ruled Eternia and Skeletor worked for Hordak as his second-in-command. The Horde was defeated by King Randor.Hordak fled Eternia,taking Randor's infant daughter with him. He also left Skeletor behind as the main bad guy on Eternia. Many characters from He-Man guest starred frequently on She-Ra's show.
Sailor Moon: The first season of the show ran five days a week,like He-Man,The second season was turned into a Saturday morning cartoon. She-Ra ended in 1987. The sad thing about this was that She-Ra was never again mentioned in any other version of He-Man.That Really Sucks,She-Ra is an awesome heroine,why is she treated this way?
Don't start crying,Sailor Moon. Anyway,on the subject,It was intended that She-Ra was gonna be re-introduced into the 2002 He-Man series. However, due to the series being canceled,this never came to be.
Sailor Moon: Those jerks deserve a good whoopin' for this.
I understand how you feel,Moon Girl,but let's keep our focus at the task at hand.
Sailor Moon: Ok,I'm cool. Sorry.
Anyway,The important characters on She-Ra: Princess of Power were predominately female. With the exception of Hordak,Bow and Sea Hawk,the male characters were secondary or portrayed as weaker comic relief type characters.
By contrast, most of the female characters on the show were usually powerful and authoritative or formidable and significant.
Sailor Moon: Another similarity to my show.
Anyway,The animation on She-Ra was also more vibrant and colorful than on the He-Man show. These were attempts to make the show appeal more to girls. Despite this,the action oriented nature of the show and its similarities in storytelling to He-Man made She-Ra popular among boys as well.
Sailor Moon: Again,Just like My Show. She-Ra is an inspiration to me. Whenever I'm in trouble or stuck with something,I would ask myself "What Would She-Ra Do?",I do it,and everything turns out all right.
That's great,Sailor Moon. Anyway,here's some thing just as great: On September 28 of this year,Classic Media released She-Ra: Princess of Power - The Complete Series,a 10-disc set featuring all 93 episodes of the series.
Sailor Moon: Well that great to know.
Yup. Well,That's gonna do it for this edition of the Cartoon Historian. Sailor Moon thank you for joing me here today.
[Stefan and Sailor Moon shake hands]
Sailor Moon: It was my pleasure,Stefan. I hope we work together again someday.
[the 2 let go of eachothers hands]
See Ya Next Time.
Sailor Moon: And If You Don't (does her signature arm pose) In The Name Of The Moon,I'll Punish You.
*chuckles* Stay Gold,guys.
[fade to black. credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays]
Please welcome,the One,the Only,Pretty Sailor Suited Soldier Of Love and Justice,Sailor Moon.
[enter sailor moon]
Welcome Sailor Moon,it's an extreme pleasure to have you here with me today.As you know I'm a huge fan of your show.
Sailor Moon: Why Thank you,Stefan. It's awesome to be here. I'm a fan of your show as well. In this episode we're gonna be talking about one of my all-time favorite heroes. It's all About She-Ra on the Cartoon Historian.
[Cartoon Historian Theme Plays]
She-Ra: Princess of Power was produced in 1985 by Filmation. It is a spinoff of Filmation's highly successful He-Man series. She-Ra was aimed primarily at young girls to counter-balance He-Man's popularity with boys.
Sailor Moon: Same with my show. It was primarily used to get girls into Anime,since 90% of Anime fans,before my show even existed,were boys.Just another thing me and She-Ra have in common.
Anyway,Like with He-Man's Show,She-Ra's show was mostly used to sell her toy line(by Mattel). This toyline was called Princess of Power and was a spin-off from Mattel's Masters of the Universe line. The Show itself was produced with financial backing from Mattel to promote the toys. Typicle Early-Mid 80's Cartoon,I know.
Sailor Moon: The show follows the adventures of She-Ra, He-Man's twin sister, who is leading a group of freedom fighters known as the Great Rebellion in the hope of freeing their homeworld of Etheria from the tyrannical rule of Hordak and his Evil Horde.
She-Ra makes her debut in the Animated Movie He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword. The Movie was created by compiling together the first five episodes of the series: "Into Etheria", "Beast Island", "She-Ra Unchained", "Reunions" and "Battle For Bright Moon".
Sailor Moon: It's also worth noting that She-Ra was the first American Super-Heroine that wasn't based on a comic character.
Sailor Moon: The series premiered in 1985 and was cancelled in 1986, after 2 seasons and 93 episodes. Reruns aired on USA Network from September 1988 to September 1989.My show also reran on the USA Network,yet another thing me and She-Ra have incommon.
She-Ra is He-Man's twin sister,who was kidnapped at birth by Hordak and taken to Etheria,where she was made to believe that she was a general against the Great Rebellion. He-Man eventually finds her and turns her to the good side. With her Sword of Protection,just like He-Man,Adora becomes She-Ra.
Sailor Moon: She was the first American Henshin heroine. Her Transformation is similar to my own. How Awesome is that.
After reuniting with her parents she decides to return to Etheria and join the Great Rebellion.
The show revolves around Adora's adventures with the Great Rebellion battling against the evil Horde. It was virtually identical to He-Man's show in structure, even down to the show's opening introduction, some of the theme music, and the fact that Adora's secret identity is shared by three other characters.
In the storyline,the Horde ruled Eternia and Skeletor worked for Hordak as his second-in-command. The Horde was defeated by King Randor.Hordak fled Eternia,taking Randor's infant daughter with him. He also left Skeletor behind as the main bad guy on Eternia. Many characters from He-Man guest starred frequently on She-Ra's show.
Sailor Moon: The first season of the show ran five days a week,like He-Man,The second season was turned into a Saturday morning cartoon. She-Ra ended in 1987. The sad thing about this was that She-Ra was never again mentioned in any other version of He-Man.That Really Sucks,She-Ra is an awesome heroine,why is she treated this way?
Don't start crying,Sailor Moon. Anyway,on the subject,It was intended that She-Ra was gonna be re-introduced into the 2002 He-Man series. However, due to the series being canceled,this never came to be.
Sailor Moon: Those jerks deserve a good whoopin' for this.
I understand how you feel,Moon Girl,but let's keep our focus at the task at hand.
Sailor Moon: Ok,I'm cool. Sorry.
Anyway,The important characters on She-Ra: Princess of Power were predominately female. With the exception of Hordak,Bow and Sea Hawk,the male characters were secondary or portrayed as weaker comic relief type characters.
By contrast, most of the female characters on the show were usually powerful and authoritative or formidable and significant.
Sailor Moon: Another similarity to my show.
Anyway,The animation on She-Ra was also more vibrant and colorful than on the He-Man show. These were attempts to make the show appeal more to girls. Despite this,the action oriented nature of the show and its similarities in storytelling to He-Man made She-Ra popular among boys as well.
Sailor Moon: Again,Just like My Show. She-Ra is an inspiration to me. Whenever I'm in trouble or stuck with something,I would ask myself "What Would She-Ra Do?",I do it,and everything turns out all right.
That's great,Sailor Moon. Anyway,here's some thing just as great: On September 28 of this year,Classic Media released She-Ra: Princess of Power - The Complete Series,a 10-disc set featuring all 93 episodes of the series.
Sailor Moon: Well that great to know.
Yup. Well,That's gonna do it for this edition of the Cartoon Historian. Sailor Moon thank you for joing me here today.
[Stefan and Sailor Moon shake hands]
Sailor Moon: It was my pleasure,Stefan. I hope we work together again someday.
[the 2 let go of eachothers hands]
See Ya Next Time.
Sailor Moon: And If You Don't (does her signature arm pose) In The Name Of The Moon,I'll Punish You.
*chuckles* Stay Gold,guys.
[fade to black. credits roll as the cartoon historian closing theme plays]
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