Kid Saves Looney Tunes

[G.I.R.]

Clickey Linkey (http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/27/cartoon.controversy.ap/index.html)

Looks like we don't have to worry about the Loonatics anymore. At least not being the travesty that they were going to become.

[Dragonsbane]

This kid deserves a medal. He's a true hero.

[Patrat]

YES! THIS KID IS AWSOME! We should give him R-....wait...
nevermind.
Anyway, i wonder if we could send him a link to the loonatics thread. Heh.

[shiney]

Brian says he's a PR stunt. He's probably right. :B

[Bob The Mercenary]

Wow, I never thought those online petitions actually worked. I say good job to that kid. But, I still want to see what they meant by "softening the characters."

[RickZarber]

Ah well. Either way the kid gets to be a hero; he gets his 15 mins of fame.

Years later when he discovers the truth he'll become bitterly disillusioned, and probably kill himself by ingesting "softened" Loonatics action figures. But that's just life.

[Raiden]

Some people take their cartoons WAY too seriously. I mean, I don't think they needed to write a petition. If he didn't want to see the characters like that, then just don't watch the show. If as many people feel the same, then not many will watch it, and the show would die on his own. But to "soften" the characters?

Seems like a lot of work for a kid to do for a show that he probably never intended to watch anyway.

I wasn't too impressed with the characters, but it didn't bother me much.

But that's just me.

[Nique]

Modern renditions of classic cartoon charecters just lack so much ... well, sorry for the bad pun, charecter.

This loonatics thing is a stupid idea, but there would be a few kids, maybe enough to keep it going, that would eat it up. Its stylized action adventure - kids today are all about pokemon, yu-gi-oh, shaman king (whatever THAT is), dragon ball Z (GT? X? Gah!) and then a slew of stuff on the american side of things... W.I.T.C.H., power rangers, Kim Possible... bleh. I can't stand it.

It's a shame to alter charecters this way. I've always preferred classic cartoons. Origonal Disney cartoons, Looney Tunes... What was always great about those, was that they weren't JUST mindless-kid-stupid-funny, it was real humor... good jokes, great dialog, good visuals. Donald Duck Cartoons still get me rolling.

Very few current cartoons have emulated that kind of entertainment vaule. In fact, I can't think of any cartoons that have within the last few years. 'Animaniacs' was one really good show... I think its still funny to this day. Before that, 'Tiny Toons' delivered some decent punchlines (not really great, but I really liked that show when I was a kid)

Disney hasn't been able to do much good outside of the movie department, and recently, not even that. Their cartoons consist of Disney channel garbage..'kim possible' and the like, and the entirly depressing 'house of mouse'. House of Mouse is a noble effort to salvage the cartoon short, but it doesn't compare in quality to old disney cartoons... Modern Looney Tunes renditions fail in a similar manner.

I think that they should try and make cartoons like they used to, with minimal shows that are more storyline based - Ducktails is the only one I can think of that was a more storyline based cartoon that I really enjoyed... 'course everyone else was watching Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles... those weren't bad either.

[CHICAGO¤lollie]

Those "early drawings" have been revised into characters that are softer and less menacing, he said.
Oh, those cheap sons of--*explodes*

I was ready to welcome the new designs, to embrace them as the new "Usual," perhaps even emulate the style and eventually combine it with that of my own. I was ready to submit my soul to that of the "Loonatics."

But then came a child.

A child full of hope, hope to keep life within the old, within the current "Usual" characters that make Warner Brothers. It was he who got in touch with the family friend in the Internet design business, who traveled over to this friend's dwelling over several evenings to work on the content, to work on the petition.

It is he who gets my dooming.

The grimacing, hollow-eyed, power-fisted prototypes of a futuristic Bugs, Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner struck the boy as dark and scary. In the words of Daffy Duck, he found them "dethh-picable."
"Dethh-picable," BLASPHEMER! T`is the hopeful child and his petition that is worthy of such a dismantled example of the "English" language. His attempts to thwart such a fine example of the animated realm have succeeded to an extent. The extent of which Warner Brothers is revising the drawings into, as per the article, "characters that are softer and less menacing."

What is it with children? Is there something about the sharp look that doesn't appeal? Do the children of today prefer the look of traditional ink and cel, made to have about as much violence as a light switch, where energy comes and goes with the flick of a single finger?

No, that can't be it. Refer:
Thomas couldn't figure out what was up with the plans to turn the old Looney Tunes gang into their Japanese anime-styled descendants.
Odd. Japanese anime has a lot of violence backing it's history. Even the overlived likes of Pokémon have pretty explosions alongside physical and supernatural forms of attacks, not to mention the copious amounts of Brock's bad pick-up lines and Misty's ear-pulling to learn from. What is it that's ever so hard to figure out?

Unless this child was never introduced to the likes of Invader ZIM, its creator (Jhonen Vasquez) well known for Squee!, Filler Bunny, and Johnny the Homicidal Maniac. That may explain the child's dislikage of the dark atmosphere around the sharply tuned Loonatics.

A shame, really. Cartoons seem to have an effect on children. The lighter ones provide innocence, while the darker ones provide insight. Now that child will grow up to disregard life and treat it as another daily function, rather than appreciate what he has.

That sick, twisted little devil heathen.

[Kupo-chan]

As always, I think there is no better way to descibe my feelings then in something Chiago said. I really think I would have enjoyed seeing how this ew design would have worked out.

But on te other hand, these are targeted at kids, and kids don't really [b]want[b] insight, they want cheep jokes. Hell, That's what most people OUR age want.

[Nique]

The point is that they were changing established charecters. It wasn't the art itself that was the problem, it was what that art represented. "Loonatics" wouldn't have been cool, or funny, or origonal. It was merging Bugs Bunny with the same stuff they shill out hour after hour on saturday morning - action cartoons, not done paticularly well. It is very much so an imitation of anime, which isn't bad in and of itself, but they don't do it right usually.

I like some anime, and I like some american cartoons. The difference is that a lot of anime is more suited for older kids and adults - even if there is nothing *bad* persay, its themes are often more truamatic and troubling. Let children have some slapstick cartoons shorts. I prefer that in my animation. Sure, they'll eat up Dragon Ball Z, but thats becuase its the only thing that the TV is ramming down their throats anymore... Its like they are standardizing every cartoon to be action-karate-chop! [/rant]

[Kupo-chan]

Yes, yes, also some very good points, I could branch off of that and write a long rant about anime imitations themselves, but I think it would be better not to and just say what I am here to say.

I must admit I loved these cartoons when I was younger. Hell, I still watch a few of them from time to time. However, we all know the anvil gag gets stale as the years go by. I'm not saying the old one has to go to make room for the new. I grew up watching Loony Tunes, and I'll always have a place in my heart for them. I believe the answer would be to keep both on the air, at different times or on different channels. This "update" don't have to replace the original, perhaps it could just become something for the older kids to grow into. No harm in that, right?

[Arlia Janet]

"Insight."

Insight?
http://www.detnews.com/pix/2005/04/28/tech/tech-loonatics500.jpg does not equal insight.

Bugs Bunny and Warner Bros' other beloved characters are as much part of American culture as baseball, fast cars and apple pie. They are timeless.

If Warner Bros wants to make a dark, "insightful" anime-style cartoon, they can, but they should at least have to common decency and originality to leave characters (which have influenced 3 generations and counting) alone. Bugs Bunny already has a personality. It's not that hard to think of a new character. This is just a sign of laziness and a willingness to befoul something that is good in an attempt to make a new project look better.

[ChaosMage]

Wow, I never thought those online petitions actually worked.
They don't, which is why I'm skeptical. This probably is a PR stunt of some kind. Now I doubt that WB went this elaborate with it, they probably did really intend to debut those travesties we hate so much. However, no one gives a shit about online petitions. That said, WB is probably going to make some minor modifications, maybe change the name of the show. If that. I dunno, somehow they'll weasel out of it.

[Krylo]

Bugs Bunny and Warner Bros' other beloved characters are as much part of American culture as baseball, fast cars and apple pie. They are timeless.But baseball is boring, fast cars are worthless seeming as we have speed limits, and apple pie isn't even that good (unless it's made right, and no one but our, collective, grandmothers make it right).

I'm not saying Loonatics looks like a good cartoon... or that the 'artwork' isn't the most absolutely horrible thing I've ever seen (those two-tone characters just about make my eyes bleed), but to hate it merely because it is altering something that has become a standard is rather baseless and short sighted.

Besides, they are new characters. They're like... genetic freak clones of the old ones or some stupid shit like that. They're going after more profit by riding the coat tails of something completely unrelated to the content of their new project. This isn't the first time the entertainment industry has done this, and it won't be the last.

It's best to get over it, take a few deep breaths, and go watch some invader zim or some of the original Looney Tunes, preferably ones with Foghorn Leghorn and the Chicken Hawk, because, in the end, all the bitching and moaning in the world isn't going to do a thing. WB said they'd make them softer? That doesn't mean anything. They also said they were going to keep it as an action/adventure cartoon. Little Thomas didn't do a damn thing, and neither will you.

You know what the only thing that IS going to make a difference will be? Nielson ratings. That's it.

So just forget about it and don't watch. It's all you can do.

[Funka Genocide]

"I was thinking about doing one against homework,"

Another way of phrasing this might be, "I'm not a real little boy, I am in fact a socio-political tool in use by a corporation to drum up attention for a poorly thought out and poorly executed hodge podge of mindless tradition and ripped off cultural ideosyncracies."

Loonatics was never going to be good. It's there to make money. Children are fascinated by bright colors, if you let them they will watch anything. Look at the success of Barney. This ploy is aimed at parents who are uncomfortable with drastic change, who are quicly becoming alienated and frustrated by the recent influx of new and strange "childrens programming". haunted by hushed rumors of "pornographic Japanese cartoons" and the like, they waste precious brain cells and minutes obsessing over what to allow their precious little TV zombies to watch. Many I'm sure have reached such a point of distance from current animated programming that they refuse to allow anything unfamiliar to pass before their childrens eyes. Loonatics was quite simply, to alien for parents. Warner Brothers did not want to risk losing the parents approval by overtly identifying with those "strange violent Japanese cartoons". Thye know what kids want, they know what parents want, and unfortunately for us, neither of them give a damn about an interesting plot line.

also, Chicago is a genius.

and baseball can be fun. :P

[CHICAGO¤lollie]

Insight?Yes, Funka. I am a genius.[/ego]
Yes, if you go by whatever that mind of mine conjured up such a time ago (http://forum.nuklearpower.com/showthread.php?p=262824#post262824). Or this (http://forum.nuklearpower.com/showthread.php?p=262824#post262824).
Apologies for lack of topic addition. I was going somewhere with it.
I'm still rather annoyed by the outcome provided though the actions of this child/ploy-toy. I was somewhat curious to see what would become of the sharp-to-a-point character designs. Now I've gotta wait for the new, softer designs. Or someone who'll take up the "make sharp Loonatics kill stuff and look professional and violent and cool" animation challenge.