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The Disney Toons Show (an idea)

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This morning, I was lurking on the Toon Zone forums. Someone at the Disney Animation forum suggested that Disney studios produce an animated series which would be the Mouse House’s equivalent to Warner Brothers’ The Looney Tunes Show on Cartoon Network centering on Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse. After thinking about this suggestion this afternoon, I think that such an idea could work for Disney, if it were handled properly. This would help the Mouse House because a) The Disney Channel would have another successful animated series besides Phineas & Ferb, and b) this series could be aimed at a more general audience (kids, teens and adults alike) could prove that the Disney shorts characters (aka Mickey and the gang) have broader appeal and are capable of doing more than just entertaining preschoolers. Also, I like the idea of there being a single city/town/area in which nearly every Disney franchise would reside (with the obvious exception of the Pixar movies, of course). Not unlike Marvel’s The Super Hero Squad Show. Basically, this series would take the Disney’s House of Mouse concept a step further by showing what the Disney gang does when they’re not performing at the club. I know that I’m in the minority here, but I actually like the idea of all the Looney Tunes characters residing in a single neighborhood. I’m calling this series idea Disney’s Toontown. This is more of a broad outline than an actual idea, but nonetheless, here the skinny:

The series’ main setting would be the Cartoon Suburbs, a suburban cul-de-sac in which the shows’ principal characters, Mickey & Minnie would share a residence (as newlyweds, perhaps-Originally, I was going to have Mickey, Donald and Goofy as roommates, but I figured that fans would want to see Huey, Dewey & Louie and Max Goof on the show and I didn’t want all of those characters living together under 1 roof, as that would make for 1 overpopulated house, so I instead went with this idea. Plus, having Minnie as a main character might attract more female viewers). Pluto would be the Mickster’s loyal pet, no mystery there. M&M’s neighbors would be other characters from the Disney barnyard shorts; Donald Duck and his 3 nephews would have a house. Goofy and his son Max would have a house. Horace Horsecollar, Clarabelle Cow and even Pete would be their neighbors.

Right beyond the Cartoon Suburbs would be the main metropolis. Let’s call it Big City. Big City would be a cross between Duckburg (the setting of Ducktales) and St. Canard (Darkwing Duck). Characters such as Scrooge McDuck, Launchpad McQuack, Drake Mallard/Darkwing Duck and Bonkers D. Bobcat would reside here.

Beyond Big City would be several specialized lands for the other Disney characters: a Fairy Tale Land where the characters from the Disney fairy tales (such as the Disney Princesses) would reside. An undersea kingdom where the characters from Disney’s The Little Mermaid would reside. A Jungle Land where characters from Disney’s The Jungle Book and The Lion King would reside, etc. there would also be an area called the Toon Underground, a seedy underbelly located within the bowels of Big City where the Disney villains would hang out.

Now, I’m not saying that this is the best way to introduce the Disney characters to a new more modern audience, nor is this the only way to do so, but it is a way. All things considered, I’d say that this is pretty good for something that I just pulled out of my pants this afternoon. If Disney made a show like this, I’d watch it.

What’s In a Name?

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Hey, guys and gals. This is the artist formerly known as Blackstar here. Just thought I’d give everyone a quick heads up on some very minor news:

Starting today, I’ve changed my username from Blackstar to Goldstar, so if you read any posts here at Astral City with the name Goldstar attached, you’ll know that it’s me. This is a move which I had planned to make back on Toon Zone, had I stayed there. Why the change? Well, it’s mainly that after some bad experiences that I’ve had with certain individuals at TZ, the username Blackstar has since become associated with unpleasantness and disdain, and I’d like to make a fresh start. I’m not that guy anymore, so I’ve decided to bury that username and all of the negativity that had become attached to it. Also, I just plain like the way that Goldstar sounds; The DC comics character Booster Gold was originally going to call himself ‘Goldstar’, but his high school nickname “Booster” stuck in everyone’s mind.

Anyway, I’ll be going by the name Goldstar from now on. Goldstar isn’t someone else; it’s still me, but with a different username. Thanks for reading.

The Game Plan: Reconstructing the Cartoon Networks

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On either of the 2 animation message boards that I’m currently on (The Big Cartoon Database and Toon Zone, respectively), it seems that invariably the subject of “Fill-in-the-blank network sucks now!” turns up, which leads to discussion about how to improve said network. And Cartoon Network is the channel most frequently placed on the chopping block. Seriously, just go to BCDB’s Cartoon Network, Nick and Boomerang forum; all they do there is complain about how bad they think CN has gotten. (I personally think that the Nickelodeon and Disney Channels are in far worse shape than Cartoon Network is, but that’s for another entry.) Having had to endure these nonstop debates for so long, I’ve come up with a way to improve Cartoon Network and it’s knockoffs, Boomerang and [adult swim]. I’m not saying that my way is the best way or even the only way to go, but it’s a way. It’s what I would do anyway.
And no, by improving the network, I DON’T mean just bringing all of the 90’s shows back and regressing CN back to the way it was 20 years ago. Just stepping back into the WABAC machine and regressing CN back its’ 1990’s form wouldn’t be improving the channel at all. Sure, that would please the fanboys, but it wouldn’t bring the channel the desired ratings and ultimately would do more harm than good, for the simple fact that nostalgia has a limited shelf-life. There are only so many times one can loop an old schedule of reruns before viewers start reaching for the remote because they’ve seen these shows 100 times already. TV is a business, and in order for a business to succeed, it must keep moving forward, not constantly be in a state of looking back. If you look back for too long, your neck starts to hurt.
Now, on to business.
For starters, I would give all 3 “networks” (I’m counting Adult Swim as a separate network here, even though I know that it’s really just a programming block on Cartoon Network. We all know that AS is just a mask that CN wears at night in order to protect its’ family-friendly image, but for ratings and demographics purposes, it’s considered a separate network, so let’s just call it that for the sake of this discussion) a unified branding. Cartoon Network, as the main default network and the one that started it all, will retain its’ present name and logo, viz:

But the others would get new names and logos, all based on the above design, similar to those of Nick’s current logos:

Under my regime, Adult Swim would be rechristened CNPM. Its’ logo would be the familiar CN tile logo with an additional tile next to it, white on blue, with letters P and M on it. Boomerang would likewise under go a name change, to CN2. Its’ logo would again be the familiar CN tiles, but with a 3rd tile, colored white on red (dang, I wish I had Photoshop!) with a number 2 on it.
Now on to the channels themselves:
CARTOON NETWORK

Despite what haters and nostalgia buffs will tell you, Cartoon Network doesn’t need a complete overhaul. The changes I propose making to CN are really only tweaks. There is, however, room for improvement in some areas. Let’s break them down:

  1. CN would go back to being a general animation lovers’ channel. It wouldn’t entirely lose its’ kid-centric focus, but no more trying to compete head-on with Disney and Nick. CN would be marketing itself as the alternative to those networks rather than trying to follow in their footsteps. CN’s revised schedule would be more reminiscent of early Teletoon. There would be several segments of programming devoted to certain content and it would show more mature fare as the day progressed, with a strong commitment to air diverse and international programming, as well as the ability to air a great majority of material uncut. Basically, it would be little kids’ time in the mornings, big kids’ time in the afternoons, general audience/family time in the evenings and adults’ time at night.
  2. There would be no more skewing the network primarily towards boys. CN’s shows, while some of them are quite good, are starting to look a lot alike. Nearly all of them have predominantly (if not exclusively) male casts. That would end immediately under my rule. This “anti-girl” stance that CN is on right now is ridiculous, especially when you consider that the network’s biggest commercial success to date is The Powerpuff Girls. The current boy-centric shows wouldn’t have to leave, but there would definitely be some girl-centric shows (both action and comedy) added to CN’s lineup.
  3. There would be corporate synergy between CN’s parents, Turner and Warner Bros. I don’t know how to do it, but even if it meant locking suits from each company into 1 room and beating them all about the heads until they all agreed to play nice with each other, but it would happen under my fantasy regime. This would mean that shows like Legion of Super Heroes, Tom & Jerry Tales and Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get A Clue! would start airing on CN, but this newfound synergy would be more noticeable on CN2/Boomerang (which I’ll elaborate on later).
  4. There would be a greater commitment to animation on the channel. The live-action shows like Dude, What Would Happen?, Destroy Build Destroy and Hole in the Wall have been putting butts in seats, so I wouldn’t ax them, but they would be relegated to 1 night a week. Wednesday has been working as CNReal day, so i’d keep that, but the live-action would air on that night and only on that night. Also, the CNReal shows as well as the movies on The Flicks would have to adhere to a new rule: they can be game shows, comedies, action or what-have-you, as long as they in some way embody or are reminiscent of or at the very least are inspired by or based on, animation. The scripted shows and movies can feature animation, CGI or puppety oddballs and costume characters, but anything that doesn’t won’t be seen there. Movies like Shrek and Over the Hedge are acceptable, the Spider-Man, Batman and Transformers movies also pass since they’re based on cartoons, The Mask, Ace Ventura and Angels in the Outfield also get a marginal pass since they either feature animation or are cartoonish in nature, but movies which have zilch to do with animation and contain no animation like Snow Day or School of Rock are out.
  5. CNPM (formerly Adult Swim) would be pushed back to 11 PM and reduced to just 2 airings a week. Adult Swim is doing too well on CN to just dump it, but I think it’s past the point where it needs to air every night. It’s only 4 hours of programming and it doesn’t have nearly enough programming to justify a 7 night a week airing. I’ve seen every episode of Metalocalypse several times. I’ve seen every episode of Robot Chicken several times. I’ve seen every episode of Aqua Teen Hunger Force several times. And I’ve seen every episode of Family Guy so many times that I can recite the dialogue to each one backwards and forwards. CNPM would go back to only airing twice a week: with a premiere on Sunday nights and an encore on Thursday nights. What would air on those extra nights and hours, you say? Glad you asked. I would initiate an action cartoon block which would air from 10 PM to 11 PM; this block would consist of some Western action cartoons as well as some anime (yes, even non-toy based action anime) as well as action cartoons from other countries. (Keep in mind, the new CN has an international flavor.) There would also be an expanded Night of Action on Saturday nights from, say, 8 PM to say, 2 AM, similar to the late Saturday Video Entertainment System (SVES). On all other weeknights from 11 PM to 6 AM, I would offer old-school CN lovers a retro block of Boomerang, spotlighting Turner owned cartoons from the 40’s through the early ’00’s. This would be for the benefit of those who don’t receive the CN2 channel.

Now, onto Cartoon Network’s sister channel.


CN2 (formerly Boomerang)

As with Cartoon Network, the changes I would make to CN2 wouldn’t need to be that elaborate. Between Turner and Warner Bros.’ collective vaults, there’s enough programming to sustain a 24/7 channel, I think. No need to acquire a bunch of 3rd party shows, which would require money and CN2 would have to become a commercial network in order to pay for them. Here’s what I’d do to CN2:

  1. MAKE SOME NEW BUMPERS. Boomerang has been using the exact same smegging toy bumps since its’ inception. They would be the first things to go. Something else, anything else, I don’t care. Just no more toy bumpers, and update the brand motif every year or so, for crying out loud.
  2. Bring back the Shorties and Groovies inserts between shows, and possibly make new inserts as well.
  3. Air more shows from the Turner vaults, and air every episode of said shows. The shows with low episode counts would air weekly, not daily.
  4. Add more latter-day defunct Cartoon Network shows to the lineup. Boom already airs some 90’s to 00’s CN shows like Dexter’s Laboratory, Johnny Bravo, the Powerpuff Girls, Cow & Chicken, Courage the Cowardly Dog and Mike, Lu & Og, so why stop there? I’d add Sheep in the Big City, Time Squad, Whatever Happened to Robot Jones?, Codename: Kids Next Door, My Gym Partner’s A Monkey and Camp Lazlo to the lineup, and there’s no reason whatsoever why Ed, Edd ‘n’ Eddy, Megas XLR and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends don’t air on Boom now, so they’d definitely air on CN2.
  5. Start airing more WB-owned shows. Since under my rule Turner and WB would play sharsies with one another, shows like Super Friends, Teen Titans, The Batman and Justice League/Unlimited would air on CN2, as well as Looney Tunes and several of the so-called Silver Age WB shows like Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, Freakazoid!, Taz-Mania, The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries, etc.
  6. Add blocks such as The Tex Avery Show, The Chuck Jones Show, The Bob Clampett Show and Down with Droopy D to the lineup.
  7. Initiate a late-night block to the channel (sort of a retro Adult Swim lite) which would include art-house shows like O Canada, Sunday Pants, early (pre-AS) episodes of Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, Popeye and Late Night Black and White.
  8. Add compilation shows spotlighting trivia and info on our favorite cartoons and the folks behind them, like Toon Heads.
  9. Re-initiate former CN blocks such as Toon-A-Palooza and 70’s Super Explosion.


Again, I’m not saying that the above strategy is the best way (or even the only way) to improve these networks, but it’s a way. It’s certainly a better solution than just regressing them back to the way they were decades ago.




The Looney Tunes Show So Far: What Works, What Doesn’t

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No, this isn’t the series review. We’ve covered that back in May. Rather, this is more of an analysis of what we’ve seen of Cartoon Network’s new animated series for the Looney Tunes franchise The Looney Tunes Show so far. Since as of this writing, TLTS will taking a short hiatus for next month or so and we’ve reached a midpoint of sorts, I’d thought that we’d take a look at what elements of this new take on LT/MM franchise are good and which elements aren’t working out so well. Before we begin, let me just state first and foremost to those who haven’t seen it yet that The Looney Tunes Show is not a reiteration of the classic theatrical shorts, nor is it intedned to be. Those who are complaining that TLTS isn’t the shorts should simply watch the shorts. I would suggest buying either the Looney Tunes Spotlight or the Golden Collections DVD sets. I should also point out that the latter collection costs a little more. having said that, let’s break it down now, shall we?

1. The Half Hour Episodes
I don’t personally have a problem with the main half hour episodes, provided that the stories of which actually lend themselves to being half an hour. Some of the episodes’ main plots seem to be 10 minute plots unnecessarily stretched out to 22 minutes. The series’ premiere episode “Best Friends” in particular seemed to go on forever, despite having a few good lines and gags. I don’t see why the TLTS can’t have some two 10 minute shorts, or even the occasional three 7 minute shorts as opposed to always being a single 22 minute plot. Some fans have complained about every main plot revolving around Bugs and Daffy, but I personally don’t have a problem with this, since the less celebrated Looney Tunes characters have other chances to shine in other parts of the show (which I’ll elaborate on later). However, this brings me to a sub-point within this point:

1.5 The Bugs & Daffy Dynamic
By now, most of us are well familiar with the whole “Bugs is a winner, Daffy is a loser” formula which has been in effect ever since Friz Freleng’s “Show Biz Bugs”, and this new series only continues with this formula. Here, Bugs is a successful entrepreneur (the inventor of the carrot peeler, as well as being a former star athlete, the President of Spain and Batman!) who’s living comfortably in a house in the suburbs, while Daffy is unemployed and unemployable (“No job, no education and a credit rating of negative 13!”), has apparently fallen on hard times before the 1st episode and is currently Bugs’ permanent house guest. Now, far be it from me to wish for the shows’ producers Spike Brandt and Tony Cervone to interfere with this familiar dynamic, but I feel that the way that Daffy and Bugs’ characters are portrayed leaves room for improvement. Daffy is supposed to be a lunatic, but on TLTS, he often comes off as being merely oblivious and stupid. Bugs, meanwhile, often comes off as being too calm and too perfect to be very interesting on his own. The Rabbit’s main purpose on TLTS is to react to the eccentric characters around him (although Bugs was great in the episode “Jailbird and Jailbunny”, one of the best episodes in the series thus far). Now I’m not suggesting that TLTS have villains, but it wouldn’t hurt to have some character(s) impose their will on Bugs from time to time, so that Bugs can then get his comic revenge on said antagonist(s). As Chuck Jones once noted, it gives Bugs a reason to act. I’d like to see more of the “rascally” Bugs in future episodes. Also, I know that is somewhat radical thinking, but just once, I’d like to see a Bugs VS Daffy competition where Daffy comes out on top, just to say that it happened. Plus, it might actually help Bugs’ character and make him seem more relateable if he lost once in a while.

2. The Setting
I’ve heard from some fans who flat out hate the fact TLTS has the entire cast (save for the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote) living in an all American suburb, as they feel that this fixed setting is too restrictive. Now myself, I don’t think that the suburban setting is the problem here. My problem with the setting isn’t that it’s the suburbs, but that the series takes place in the real world, not in Toontown, Acme Acres or some other separate cartoon world. On TLTS, there are no falling anvils, exploding bombs, characters getting flattened like pancakes, being mashed into accordians, inflated like helium balloons and then being perfectly fine again in the very next scene. The only episode (so far) in which we’ve seen this was the episode “Casa De Calma”, which was itself a leftover episode from Laff Riot, the shows’ original sketch comedy show format before it was changed to the sitcom format that we have now. I didn’t mind Granny having a World War 2 back story in the episode “Eligible Bachelors”, but I would have enjoyed it more if it had actually been, you know…funny! The flashback scenes were played almost completely straight, except for the bird parts. Why?? LT has done humorous takes on the war during the war, so why can’t they do the same thing decades after the war? Just because TLTS has a sitcom format doesn’t that the shows’ humor must be 90% verbal and only 10% visual. TLTS needs more “tooniness”. Also, where are the celebrity caricatures and pop-culture jokes/references that Looney Tunes has always been known for? I’m not suggesting that the producers make the shows’ humor overly topical, which would result in the series becoming extremely dated in 3-5 years, but the original shorts, as well as the Silver Age WB/Amblin animated series all employed this particular technique, so there’s no reason why this formula can’t or shouldn’t employed here on TLTS.

3. The Intermissions
Of course, I’m referring to the Merrie Melodies and Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote segments. These I actually don’t have a problem with. They’re usually a welcome part of the show and needed break from the half hour plots. The Merrie Melodies typically spotlight on Looney Tunes characters who otherwise only get supporting roles in the main story lines (The Goofy Gophers, Yosemite Sam, Elmer Fudd, Tweety and Sylvester, Henery Hawk, Marvin the Martian, etc.) I enjoy the Merrie Melodies segments and can’t think of any way to improve on them. Same deal with the Road Runner shorts. Most of them remain quite faithful to Chuck Jones’ original vision for the shorts, except for “Slient But Deadly” which actually violates 2 of CJ’s disciplines for the RR shorts: The Road Runner never leaves the road and the Coyote is never injured by the Road Runner. I don’t know why the RR shorts are done in CGI, but it’s good CGI, so I have no complaints about the animation.

4. The Nitpicks
Just a few minor points that I’d like to mention here: Some fans have complained about TLTS’s depiction of Lola Bunny, saying that they’d prefer to see Lola be more like the way she was in the movie Space Jam. To this I must ask “Why?” What was so great about the old Lola? Space Jam’s Lola existed to be nothing more than a Mary Sue and a furry fetishist’s wet dream. I’m personally OK with Lola being crazy, since she’s supposed to be a Looney Tunes character. My only complaint about Lola is that TLTS’s producers made Lola’s entire character be just about her stalking Bugs, and so Lola can never appear in a story or scene/sequence without Bugs. This goes back to the old complaint about female characters being girlfriends first and characters second. I’d rather Lola have her own things going in addition to her being obsessed with Bugs. Also, there’s been a curious lack of Elmer Fudd in these episodes (again, so far). Elmer has only appeared twice on TLTS as of this writing (thrice if one counts his non-speaking cameo in the Merrie Melody “Blow My Stack”); First, in the premiere episode’s Merrie Melody “Grilled Cheese” and again briefly giving a weather report in the episode “Fish and Visitors”. The series bio claims that Fuddsy is still a hunter, perhaps we could see some classic Bugs and Elmer confrontations in a future episode. We can hope.

Overall, I give The Looney Tunes Show a B-. Not perfect, but not the absolute worst take on the franchise either. To me, Loonatics Unleashed still holds that title. The series’ opening theme is downright infectious. I get the impression that the shows’ producers are mostly throwing stuff at a dart board and seeing what sticks. Here’s hoping that things will improve for TLTS during it’s 2nd season, since there’s always the chance of the producers improving on things during the season breaks.

"The Looney Tunes Show": Bedlam in the ‘Burbs

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First, for those who don’t know, let me start by saying that I’m a huge, HUGE fan of Warner Brothers animation, especially the Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes. Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and the gang were a quintessential part of my childhood. Since I’ve always felt like I’m half-human, half-cartoon anyway, I enjoyed and could identify with most of them (especially Daffy Duck, whom I consider to be my alter ego), and the Warner Bros. shorts helped shape me into the delightfully twisted individual that I am today.

Not only did I enjoy the original WB shorts, but I was also into the latter-day cartoon shows from the ’90’s which were inspired by the greatness of the Looney Tunes shorts, such as Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs and Freakazoid! (Pinky & the Brain, not so much; those characters were OK in small doses, but I never thought they deserved their own show. Now a Slappy Squirrel spinoff, on the other hand….)

In recent years, however, we haven’t seen much of Bugs and company. There have been the occasional single character shows like Taz-Mania and Duck Dodgers and the odd knockoff show like Baby Looney Tunes (an uninspired and unfunny babyfication that recalled the babyfication shows of the 80’s and 90’s, though it came out during the ’00’s) and 1 or 2 movies like Space Jam and Looney Tunes: Back in Action, but other than that, not much of anything at all for nearly a decade. The shorts even disappeared from Cartoon Network and Boomerang, not due to lack of popularity, but rather due to an extreme lack of corporate synergy between CN’s parents, Turner and Warner Bros. (I’ll spare you the details of why; the basic rub is that WB wanted Turner to pay them a royalty for the rights to air the shorts and Turner basically said “We can’t go for that. No now, no can do”, hence a years long standoff between those 2 stubborn Zax.) Had WB forgotten about us? Where are the Looney Tunes now? What have they been up to? Just where are they??

Enter The Looney Tunes Show.

 

First, a little history. The Looney Tunes Show project was first launched about 2 and a half years ago. It was originally conceived as a sketch comedy show entitled Laff Riot, and since went through a number of twists and turns (at one stage, it was even considered to make the gang younger, like teenagers. Please, no. It’s not the late 80’s to early 90’s anymore; the days of babyfication/kiddification/teenifications are over, and thank the Cathode Gods for that), until finally the idea of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck sharing a house was tossed around, leading to what the show is today.

Here’s the overview: Bugs Bunny has moved out of his hole in the ground and has settled into a house in a suburban neighborhood known as Royal Oaks Glen Oaks Oakwood Oaks in the suburbs of California. Along for the ride is Daffy Duck, who has apparently fallen upon hard times and is currently crashing in Bugs’ pad temporarily until he gets back on his feet…which hasn’t happened yet in 5 years and counting. In addition to this oddest of odd couples, the wascally wabbit and the little black duck have a score of Looney Tunes favorites as their eccentric colorful wacky neighbors:

  • Porky Pig has the George Costanza role of the lovable loser, the awkward square hanger-on who’s still eager and willing to hang with Daffy and Bugs; he’s just happy to be included.
  • Yosemite Sam is the resident grouchy, overly aggressive neighbor from hell who’s always got something shady going on. he’s a liar, a cheat and sore loser, but at least he’s consistent.
  • Granny lives next door to Bugs and Daffy, and is once again the owner of Tweety and Sylvester. T&S are still pets on TLTS, so Bugs, Daffy and the other anthros never talk directly to them. Otherwise, it would look weird how some animals who are owned are livng alongside other animals who live independently of humans.
  • Foghorn Leghorn is a self-made billionaire and adventurer, but still an oblivious blowhard.
  • Speedy Gonzalez (here voiced by Saturday Night Live regular Fred Armisen) runs the local diner, when he’s not residing within the bowels of Bugs and Daffy’s home.
  • Mac and Tosh, aka the Goofy Gophers, run an antique and curio shop (among other occupations; the 2 seem to be the commentators of every staged event on the show), but are still exceptionally polite to one another.
  • Elmer Fudd is a newsreader who puts a pleasant, simple-minded spin on even the worst reports.
  • Witch Hazel is now called Witch Lezah (Hazel backwards; perhaps a relative, acquaintance or doppelganger?) and is here voiced by actress Roz Ryan (regular viewers of Cartoon Network will probably know Ryan best as the voice of Bubbie the whale on The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack), though June Foray is still around to voice Granny. ‘Lezah’ is another neighbor and a practicing witch who acts as a single mother to Gossamer (the hulking, orange-haired, big finger-nailed, sneaker-wearing monster from Chuck Jones’ Hair-Raising Hare).
  • The Tasmanian Devil, aka Taz, like Sylvester and Tweety, is a pet on TLTS. (He’s Bugs’ dog, to be exact.) This may seem odd, but considering the last time that WB tried to portray Taz as an ‘intelligent’ animal a la Bugs, Daffy and Porky, he was met with criticism by a pressure group for allegedly making fun of teenagers with Down’s Syndrome (I am not making this up), so I’m guessing the show’s writers felt that making Taz a pet was just safer.
  • Pepe Le Pew is a Lothario of a wedding planner with 7 ex-wives.
  • Lola Bunny (introduced in Space Jam) is also back for more, though she’s nothing like her SJ self. Voice by another SNL cast member, Kristen Wiig, Lola here is considerably bubblier, goofier and crazier, and just a little clingy. Did I say a little?
  • A single new character makes her debut on TLTS: Tina Russo Duck, a female counterpart for Daffy. She works at a copy shop and tries to make a decent man out of the out-of-control mallard because she “likes a project”.

Each episode of The Looney Tunes Show consists of a single 22-minute installment with such plots as: Bugs and Daffy go on a game show for best friends, but Daffy is so self-absorbed and oblivious to everything around him that isn’t Daffy related that he muffs every question, including naming Bugs’ famous catch phrase (“Um….I don’t do Mondays!”) and even the rabbit’s last name; the duo going to prison and Bugs discovering to his delight that he can insult whomever he wants and not receive any physical punishment for it (“It’s a smart-aleck’s paradise!”); and the guys having to room with Sam (and briefly his Russian mail-order bride) after Sam’s plans to go off the grid are defeated by an extended rainstorm. In between the acts of the story are filler segments: “Merrie Melodies”, little musical interludes featuring various characters sending up various musical genres, such as Elmer crooning a smooth, sensual ballad about coming home to his beloved grilled cheese sandwich, Marvin the Martian doing a club-techno style number about how he just wants to be friends–unless you cross him, in which case it’s laser time; and a rap number by Sam about how he can’t help but blow his stack–accompanied by a trio of high-thighed female backup singers who seem to be bent on getting him to do just that. There are also dialogue-less shorts starring the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote (the only 2 characters who weren’t transplanted to the suburban cul-de-sac) rendered in CGI (my guess is that the RR shorts are done in CG so as to emphasize that they take place in a different setting than the rest of the show, but that’s just a guess).

Now you’d think that the first major Looney Tunes TV show in nearly 10 years would be greeted with open arms by the Looney Tunes faithful, right?

Well, yes and no.

While many folks are taking to The Looney Tunes Show, several more are not. Upon seeing the clips which are posted on CN’s website as well as the premiere episode, I was exposed to bile and hate-rants that I never would have expected to hear directed towards something Looney Tunes-related. One brain surgeon declared TLTS “a ruination of the Looney Tunes franchise” and the “WORST. SHOW. EVER.”

Really?

I realize that not everybody would be won over by TLTS, but the worst show ever? Seriously? You think that THIS is the worst thing WB has ever done with the LT franchise? Have we really forgotten about this???

Loonatics_titulo

 

Geez, was 4 years really that long ago? Have we all honestly forgotten what a steaming pile of suck Loonatics Unleashed was?? I can understand some people not taking to The Looney Tunes Show, but to imply that it’s anywhere near the level of utter badness of Loonatics Unleashed? Dude, what are you smokin’??!?

As I see it, the biggest problem that The Looney Tunes Show faces is that, well, it’s Looney Tunes. LT is such an iconic brand that any new adaptation of the franchise is automatically going to have ridiculously high expectations attached to it, and so any new version of Looney Tunes is going to be a disappointment to some.

The 3 biggest complaints I’ve been hearing about The Looney Tunes Show are:

  1. “It’s not the shorts”, as another rocket scientist emoted.
  2. The suburban setting and the sitcom-style format, and
  3. The new stylized character designs.

Allow me to give my takes on each:

Regarding points #1 and #2: Well duh, Einstein, WB never claimed that TLTS would be a 100% reiteration of the old shorts. There’s no way it could be as Friz Freleng, Chuck Jones, Robert McKimson, Bob Clampett, Arthur Davis, Milt Franklin and Mel Blanc are all no longer with us, and unless someone at Warner’s knows black magic or voodoo, they can’t be brought back. Nor do I think that it should be; if WB just wanted to rehash the old shorts format and formulas, they could just re-air the original shorts on Cartoon Network (which they’re doing right now in order to promote TLTS, making a shorts rehash even less necessary.)

If I wanted to see the exact same take on the characters and the exact same situations as the original shorts with absolutely NO changes made to them, then there’d be no point in Warner Bros. making anything new at all. Which is not to say that there shouldn’t be any consistency to the characters, but the “changes” made to the characters and situations aren’t really that different or beyond what we’ve come to expect (these characters have been portrayed as living in suburban homes and/or holding down jobs in quite a number of shorts), so complaining about the cosmetic changes the producers have applied on this show is, well, kind of stupid. The fact of the matter is that these characters have been re-interpreted time and again several times over the years by Termite Terrace’s various directors, so which interpretation are TLTS’ producers supposed to be faithful to? Very few things about the Looney Tunes are actually set in stone. Saying, “It HAS to be THIS way” is just limiting creating freedom and potential. Of course, that can go both ways. If they are forced to make things new just for the sake of being new, it can be bad as well. But I don’t see TLTS as being an example of the latter; I see it as merely being a modern-day take on the characters set in a fixed locale that’s familiar with its’ intended audience.

Regarding point #3: forgive my bluntness, but the people complaining about the new designs should get over it. The fact of the matter is that the Looney Tunes characters’ designs have changed each time that a different director took over for said character in the shorts: Tex Avery’s Bugs Bunny looked different from Bob Clampett’s Bugs, who looked different from Robert McKimson’s Bugs, who looked different from Chuck Jones’ Bugs, etc. despite this, Bugs was always still recognizable as Bugs, despite how each director had his own physical take on the character. What’s happening here on The Looney Tunes Show is no different.

As far as I’m concerned, TLTS came around at just the right time. The Looney Tunes have been off of TV proper for a considerable while now; we’re coming into a generation of kids who either don’t know or barely know who Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes are. Some kids who regularly watch CN might know them as those characters from Space Jam or Back in Action, but not intimately, and that thought both frightens and repulses me. Disney has managed to keep their shorts stars in the limelight for the past 10 years, granted they’ve mainly been using them as babysitters for wee tots, bit they’re still using them, so why can’t or shouldn’t WB do the same for their shorts stars?

Which is not to say that The Looney Tunes Show is all rainbows and lollipops. It’s not perfect. There are a few things that I’d like to see changed about the show. Minor nitpicks, but nitpicks nonetheless:

  1. I don’t think that every story needs to be one 22-minute episode; some of them are just 11-minute or 7-minute plots. I’d like to see some short length stories with only the occasional 22-minute episode. Sometimes the strain to keep the stories going is very noticeable.
  2. On this regard, I agree with the show’s naysayers: the lack of constant background music on the show is somewhat awkward. Maybe I’m just spoiled by the shorts and the Silver Age shows, but I would like to see that changed.
  3. Another valid point the detractors have is that there should be a little more slapstick on the show. there’s nothing wrong with the verbal humor, but this is Looney Tunes. The odd falling anvil, comical explosion or pie in the face couldn’t hurt.

So overall, I give The Looney Tunes Show a B+. Is it the best thing ever? No, but a total abomination on the LT franchise? Not by a long shot. The show’s ratings have been solid so far, so as a fan, I say more power to ’em. To all who aren’t fans, hey, it’s fine if this show isn’t your cup of tea, but I urge you to………

NEVER FORGET.
2005-2007