Gee, with character names like "Bobby Bolivia", it's bound to with Oscar gold.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
*sob* I fear this is going to slurp shit through a straw.
--Jonah
Posted by Aban Rune (Member # 226) on :
I accidentally changed into a station wagon once. Unfortunately, never a sportscar though. Maybe I should try out for the used car salesman-y guy. But, oh shoot... submissions had to be in by the 12th... crap.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
(Sigh)I heard this shit on TrekToday and I couldn't believe it. I mean Jesus, Transformers? God they don't know what to remake anymore. What next? Thundercats?
BTW, did anyone find it funny that the character of Mahfouz is referred to as a "Bedouin Boy"?
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: *sob* I fear this is going to slurp shit through a straw.
--Jonah
I think so too. There have only been two transformer series that I could actually get into. The original animated series and Beasties (Beast Wars) The animation style of the new shows is terrible.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Not just the animation style. The characterisation is ass. I know some of those voice actors. They can do just about anything. But the directors are asking them for such insipid, over-the-top performances. *sigh*
Not to mention adopting the current (well, for the last decase or so) anime trend of describing/declaring their special attacks before making them... usually in a badly exaggerated pose against a spiffy backdrop of shtreaking colours. And what the hell is with them having to tell themselves to transform? *facepalm*
Generation 1, Japanese Headmasters, Beast Wars. That's my "watchable" list.
--Jonah ("Saibaturon Senshi -- Durannsufoomu!")
Posted by Aban Rune (Member # 226) on :
Hey... a good thundercats movie would be awesome. Watching a sexy, spotted Cheetara going all Matrix on someone... And I'd love to see what they could do with the Sword of Omens.
Mmmmm... Cheetara...
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
Stop it your scaring me!
Posted by FawnDoo (Member # 1421) on :
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: Not just the animation style. The characterisation is ass. I know some of those voice actors. They can do just about anything. But the directors are asking them for such insipid, over-the-top performances. *sigh*
I agree completely on this one - any of the current shows from "Robots in Disguise" onwards (Armada, Energon, Cybertron) are unwatchable. Okay so it's a cartoon with giant robots in - I'm not going into it expecting Shakespeare - but the dialogue is nonsense. Characters shout at one another, finish off sentences with rubbish...it all comes off as if it's been badly translated. In addition half of the robots sound like they've just been pulled off a beach in California somewhere. Duuuuuuude, it's Megatron! Bogus!
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: Not to mention adopting the current (well, for the last decase or so) anime trend of describing/declaring their special attacks before making them... usually in a badly exaggerated pose against a spiffy backdrop of shtreaking colours. And what the hell is with them having to tell themselves to transform? *facepalm*
I liked the explanation they gave in Beast Wars for telling themselves to transform with the whole maximise/terrorise bit - activation codes for their onboard computers. Makes sense that the transformation sequence would be automatic and not handled consciously by the Transformers - they would let dedicated systems handle all that, leaving them free to fight. Well at least it helps bridge the gap anyway!
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: Generation 1, Japanese Headmasters, Beast Wars. That's my "watchable" list.
I would add Beast Machines to that one - okay it did have the occasional anime streaking background, but it was a show that tried some original things and was, IMO, unfairly treated by some fans just for trying to buck expecations a little. Plus the whole Tankor thing was cool.
As for the movie...I hope it's going to be good. You have to go some to top Orson Welles turning into a planet.
Posted by Krenim (Member # 22) on :
I haven't seen some of the Transformers series since they first aired, but if we're giving our opinions of them, here come mine...
Generation 1 - Haven't seen most of G1 since I was a kid, and haven't been able to afford any of the DVDs except for the movie. But... It's G1 people. Nothing but good childhood memories here.
Beast Wars - Easily the best Transformers series, hands down. Excellent characterization with the focus on a smaller cast, and Mainframe's excellent visuals still hold up pretty well. And I dare anyone to tell me that "Code of Hero" doesn't rank up amongst the best death scenes ever.
Beast Machines - For me, the problem with this series was not with the writing. I found the premise interesting, and the whole Tankorr arc was pretty good. It was the visuals that really made this Beast Wars' inferior. The Maximals just looked hidious in both beast and bot forms. And they morphed. In fact, I think a lot of us actually took to hoping Megatron would win. And the technoorganic trees? Blech.
Robots in Disguise - I didn't have a whole lot of expectations for this one, and maybe that colored my later memories of this, but I didn't consider it to be the low point of Transformers. Certainly a huge step down from what came before, but worse would come later.
Armada - I had huge expectations for this one; after all, Cartoon Network was collaborating with Japan on this one. Unfortunately, the first half of this series was Transformers doing Pokemon. The second half of the series massively improved, and it got to bordering on decent.
Energon - Started out about as strong as Armada ended. Unfortunately, it took what it had going for it and then promptly threw it out the window. The best example of this was the character of Demolisher. Demolisher was a one-dimensional Decepticon goon in Armada, but started out well in Energon by having him conflicted about rejoining Megatron. What's this? Characterization? We'll fix that! Let's erase his memory and make him one-dimensional again! By the time the series was almost over and Cartoon Network had moved it to a horrid early morning timeslot, I had no desire to watch it whatsoever.
Cybertron - Ugh. It's like they took everything that made Armada so bad in the beginning and made it worse. This is the low point of Transformers to me. I can't even stand to watch an entire episode of it.
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
I liked the explosions in Beast Machines, they were pretty neat. Also the evil flying guy, I forget his name. Jet Strike or Jet Dry or something like that, had some amusing comments once in a while.
Anything after that was just BLECH! I hated the way they moved. They were herky-jerky and pieces clipping through each other like a badly designed video game.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Beast Machines just made me ache. Cybertron looked so damn boring. OP spent most of the series contemplating his navel, and came out of it in time to trigger Cybertron's transformation into a techn-organic planet. WTF?
Beast Wars had a lot of cool characters, dialogue, and stories, but the CG left me a little meh.
If you can somehow acquire a copy of the Japanese Headmasters series, I highly recommend it. It was the first thing done after the movie, when G1 had ended here, so it didn't suck. The suckage came later when the Japanese had forgotten what Transformers was all about. And it's more than just another dairobo series.
Headmasters gave us another female Autobot -- Minerva. We got to see that Wheeljack had survived. Rocimus was actually leading, and not being a whiny bitch about how he sucked compared to Optimus...
TF: Victory was also pretty good, but you can see the beginning of what was to follow here.
--Jonah
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
OP had a navel in BM? I always thought he looked like the bastard child of E.T. and a gorilla...
The early seasons of BW were pretty shoddy CG wise. But they got a lot better near the end.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
I'm just an '80s cel animation kinda guy, I guess.
--Jonah
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
quote:Originally posted by Krenim: Transformers
Generation 1 Beast Wars Beast Machines Robots in Disguise Armada Energon Cybertron
Never knew there were so many Transformers shows - only seen the Traditional Transformers from the 80's. Seriously - people who grew up in the 80's - pretty much most of us - had WAY better cartoons than the 90's or 00's kids.
Transformers Thundercats Voltron Gummi Bears He-Man She-ra Danger Mouse Mysterious Cities of Gold Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea Astroboy Dungeons and Dragons Babar Ducktales Inspector Gadget Rainbow Brite Smurfs Snorks Superfriends Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
And others!
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
Heh, I found this page - it's quite funny - I've only read the pages on the Wondertwins, Samurai and Wonderwomen. The 'relabelled' cartoons are quite funny!
What, no Ulysses 31? No Battle of the Planets? No Hong Kong Phooey or Captain Caveman? Those are the shows of my youth (though, granted, some of them were likely already repeats), but then I'm old enough to remember TAS being on TV (and probably saw TOS on its first repeat run on BBC TV, given its first airing was in 1969).
Posted by Krenim (Member # 22) on :
quote:Originally posted by AndrewR: Never knew there were so many Transformers shows - only seen the Traditional Transformers from the 80's.
Well, now you know. And knowing is half the battle. (Sorry, couldn't resist!)
quote:Transformers Voltron Inspector Gadget
Three examples of great 80's shows that tried to come back later and generally failed (except for Beast Wars/Beast Machines), as opposed to...
...these shows that came back and (IMHO) surpassed the originals. Well, if you count the modern Justice League cartoon as being the sucessor to Superfriends, which I do.
quote:Smurfs
Don't even get me started on Smurfs. They ended the show with that horrible time-travel season and they never even got home. It was like the Quantum Leap finale except blue.
quote:Gummi Bears
How sad is it that I'm playing through the original Kingdom Hearts and my biggest complaint is that the Gummi Ship seemingly has nothing to do with the Gummi Bears?
quote:Danger Mouse Mysterious Cities of Gold Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea
Three great cartoons from the golden age of Nickelodeon. I got Seasons 1&2 of Danger Mouse for Christmas, and it was just as good as I remember it. What I really want is Spartakus on DVD. That was my all-time favorite show as a kid. I remember Mysterious Cities of Gold came on right before or after Spartakus, but I wasn't into it as much.
quote:Dungeons and Dragons
I don't think I ever watched it when it was first on, but D&D is one of those odd shows that just keeps popping up on TV every once in a while. It's actually airing on Toon Disney's Jetix block these days.
quote:Babar
I watched Babar when it was on HBO, but I was more into it's companion show: A Wizard of Oz cartoon that was based on the first several books instead of the movie.
quote:And others!
You forgot G.I. Joe! You... You're no child of the 80's if you forgot G.I. Joe! Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
I used to watch Beast Wars religiously. I would force myself to get up at 7:00AM every Sunday morning so that I could get ready to watch it by 8:00. Then they gave Beast Machines and though I liked it I felt that it did not reach the same stature of greatness as Beast Wars.
Finally, does anyone remeber Reboot? It was another show done by Mainframe which I believe is their greatest work to date, even though its one their earliest shows.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Reboot looked really cool but the story was (usually).....meh. It showed what Cybertron could have looked like instead of the dark alley look of Beast Machines.
Added to the "great old shows" list should be Galaxy Rangers. Man this was the best cartoon ever as a kid- I recall skipping class for the first time to watch it.
While it had already been around forever, I used to love Star Blazers as a kid (though like most of the shows on the list, it's nigh-unwatchable now).
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
I remember a few of those shows, some I was either too young to remember, or they stopped showing them before I was born.
I remember Transformers, vaguely. Inspector Gadget was cool. TMNT was my favorite show. He-Man and She-Ra were great. I seem to remember an old Disney show called Gummi Bears, Is that the one your thinking of? Ducktales ruled Didn't care for Babar. My sister was big into Rainbow Brite.
There was a Battletech animated series in the early 90's that I used to watch. It used very early CGI technology. It was pretty neat.
Reboot was ok. I was kinda mad when it came out because it replaced the new Speed Racer show I used to like.
I remember a show called Shadow Raiders, based on a toy line.
That reminds me. Why in the hell are they making anime shows about retarded little toys nowadays? Yu-Gi-Oh and Battle BDaman to name a couple. What the hell is the point in making a show about a card battle game! and having little animated children shooting steel marbles at each other with little toy robots!? THAT IS SO LAME!
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Get Star Blazers in the original Japanese, and you're good to go. Galaxy Rangers rocked. I also loved SilverHawks. Ah, hell, my list:
Star Blazers Loony Tunes Voltron (I preferred the vehicle team to the lions, except for the leader) Transformers Robotix Starriors Robotech Mighty Orbots G.I. Joe M.A.S.K. Dungeons & Dragons Visionaries He-Man (serious crush on the Sorceress, man...) Rocky & Bullwinkle Scooby Doo Kid Video The Great Space Coaster Thundercats Tale Spin Duck Tales Darkwing Duck Rescue Rangers (Disney Afternoon rocked) SilverHawks Galaxy Rangers Batman: The Animated Series/Batman & Robin I even watched Challenge of the Go-Bots in mute horror...
I'm probably forgetting a few. I also liked X-Men (ish) and loved ReBoot, but I consider those a little after my Golden Age. Batman barely squeaks in under the wire.
Incidentally, the Series 2 action figure for Dot Matrix has serious cameltoe... which, incidentally, so does the original Cheetara figure. I sometimes wonder about those sculptors.
--Jonah
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
I sometimes wonder about what kind of nasty perverts they get to work at Disney... I'm not gunna go into details because I think there's already been a thread about Disney sex references.
I forgot about Rescue Rangers. That was a sweet show.
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
The vast majority of cartoons in the 1980s were screeching toy commercials. I mean, seriously, He-Man? Have you actually watched it lately? It is stone awful.
Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
The Smurfs were all blue because there was only one Smurfette.
Always liked G-Force
Then there was the horrible Gilligan's Planet.
What I really need is my Illudium Q-36 Space Modulator so I can blow up the Earth. (It obstructs my view of Venus)
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: Not to mention adopting the current (well, for the last decase or so) anime trend of describing/declaring their special attacks before making them
Surely that would be due to Armada/Energon/Cybertron/RID being, y'know, anime.
(Also, RiD was much more fun than Beast Machines. Yes.)
quote:Originally posted by AndrewR: Never knew there were so many Transformers shows - only seen the Traditional Transformers from the 80's. Seriously - people who grew up in the 80's - pretty much most of us - had WAY better cartoons than the 90's or 00's kids.
Except, y'know, we didn't. Every generation reckons they have the best cartoons, and they are generally wrong. Have you actually, honestly tried watching the original Transformers series now? It has awful animation, awful stories, childish writing... the only good thing is the voice acting.
The fact that you've included He-Man in that list is a clear sign you haven't watched it for ages. He-Man was, easily, one of the worst cartoons ever.
Kids today are going to sit in pubs when they're in their 20s saying "god, you remember Dexter's Lab, X-Men: Evoltion, Xaiolin Showdown, Justice League? Compared to them, kids' cartoons today are shit."
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
Talespin and Duck Tales, now those were shows that I remeber fondly. I was also a huge fan of show called Mighty Max which was (no surprise) based on a toy line. I also used to love Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the first cartoon series not this horrible new one, and the Ghostbusters cartoon(the one that features the characters from the movies).
quote: I sometimes wonder about what kind of nasty perverts they get to work at Disney... I'm not gunna go into details because I think there's already been a thread about Disney sex references.
Well in the "Little Mermaid" I remeber when she loses her fish tail and sprouts hips and legs she doesn't seem to have any pants to cover her goodies. I hate that movie with a passion.
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
I was gunna quote Mars. But it seems redundant since his post is directly above this one. The castle towers in the Little Mermaid look like penis's, In Lion King the word sex is stuck in there, in Alladin he says "Take your cloths off" real quietly in the balcony scene. I'm sure there are a lot more.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
So your argument is based on urban legends and not anything actually true?
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
Just look at the castle in The Little Mermaid. I've seen the "SEX" in Lion King. And I heard the "Take your clothes off" Line in Aladdin.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
The "Sex" thing could easily be "SFX", people hear lines that they are told to hear all the time (Paul is dead), and you've actually got the Little Mermaid story wrong. It's not the castle towers in the films, it's the ones on the video cover.
Ok. so Maybe the Aladdin thing is a myth. When I noticed it I pointed it out to everyone in the room and they all heard it as well.
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: Get Star Blazers in the original Japanese, and you're good to go. Galaxy Rangers rocked. I also loved SilverHawks. Ah, hell, my list:
Star Blazers Loony Tunes Voltron (I preferred the vehicle team to the lions, except for the leader) Transformers Robotix Starriors Robotech Mighty Orbots G.I. Joe M.A.S.K. Dungeons & Dragons Visionaries He-Man (serious crush on the Sorceress, man...) Rocky & Bullwinkle Scooby Doo Kid Video The Great Space Coaster Thundercats Tale Spin Duck Tales Darkwing Duck Rescue Rangers (Disney Afternoon rocked) SilverHawks Galaxy Rangers Batman: The Animated Series/Batman & Robin I even watched Challenge of the Go-Bots in mute horror...
I'm probably forgetting a few. I also liked X-Men (ish) and loved ReBoot, but I consider those a little after my Golden Age. Batman barely squeaks in under the wire.
Incidentally, the Series 2 action figure for Dot Matrix has serious cameltoe... which, incidentally, so does the original Cheetara figure. I sometimes wonder about those sculptors.
--Jonah
You like M.A.S.K. He-Man & Thundercats but Batman TAS just squeeks under the wire? Crazy kid.
As for the filth cropping up in children's entertainment. Bare in mind that most animators an artist are relativly young men who spend far too much time indoors (said the pot to the kettle) so they're going to start to find subtle ways to amuse themselves. While we're chipping in examples if I recall Jessica Rabbit totally does a Sharon Stone in "Who Framed Rodger Rabbit".
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
quote:Originally posted by Reverend: You like M.A.S.K. He-Man & Thundercats but Batman TAS just squeeks under the wire? Crazy kid.
Chronologically, doofus. Look at the context of what I was saying. I meant that it barely made into my Golden Era before the shite took over.
--Jonah
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: Get Star Blazers in the original Japanese, and you're good to go. Galaxy Rangers rocked. I also loved SilverHawks. Ah, hell, my list:
Space Battleship Yamato was allright...still pretty awful by today's storytelling standards.
Silverhawks was...real bad. I mean, one of them used a sonic weapon in space. All of them flew around with ni helmets/masks on- talking to each other.
Only the time traveling Silverhawk (the green one) from the future was cool.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
There was one british Sci-Fi show I used to watch whenever I got access to Sky Channel in the 80's, I think I've asked about it earlier sometime on Flare but I don't recall.
It was set in the future, the walls were in spray-paint metal or tin foil, half the cast I think were cyborg or rag-tag rebels, the main antagonist was a tall, bald man with a Locutus eye-laser and large gauntlets I think, it must've been shot in 1984-86, pretty decent image quality ( shot with indoor camera).
Kind of L.E.X.X meets Babsian 5, if that helps.
Later, circa 1990-91, there was a show with a dark-haired girl as main character, she and her people seemed to live in a utopia of some sort and many of them were psychic or gifted in some way, and all were dressed in white. Like in that sanctuary place the Occampa stayed in, in "Caretaker". That show "felt" like Seaquest but stocked with british people in some sci-fi dimension. I only remember one scene from that one, the girl is running through an exploding or imploding corridor but you don't see if she makes it because it was a summary from the previous episode.
Whatcha think?
Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
Nope, not ringing any bells on either count.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Is that how it is? So, you wish to test your strength. Good. Good. So pointless, with you protecting people who don't care a thing about you. For what?
Come to think of it, it might have been a magic show, with those folks dressed in white doing magic instead of mind-powers.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Well, hell. If we're including live-action now... Anyone remember Misfits of Science?
--Jonah
Posted by CoffeeAddictMike (Member # 144) on :
Oh boy...
Posted by Captain Boh (Member # 1282) on :
quote:Originally posted by Nim: There was one british Sci-Fi show I used to watch whenever I got access to Sky Channel in the 80's, I think I've asked about it earlier sometime on Flare but I don't recall.
It was set in the future, the walls were in spray-paint metal or tin foil, half the cast I think were cyborg or rag-tag rebels, the main antagonist was a tall, bald man with a Locutus eye-laser and large gauntlets I think, it must've been shot in 1984-86, pretty decent image quality ( shot with indoor camera).
Kind of L.E.X.X meets Babsian 5, if that helps.
Later, circa 1990-91, there was a show with a dark-haired girl as main character, she and her people seemed to live in a utopia of some sort and many of them were psychic or gifted in some way, and all were dressed in white. Like in that sanctuary place the Occampa stayed in, in "Caretaker". That show "felt" like Seaquest but stocked with british people in some sci-fi dimension. I only remember one scene from that one, the girl is running through an exploding or imploding corridor but you don't see if she makes it because it was a summary from the previous episode.
Whatcha think?
The first one sounds to my like Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future, though I suppose cyborgs and eyepieces aren't exactly unique to it.
Posted by B.J. (Member # 858) on :
I'm sorry that my kids are missing out on all the great Looney Tunes cartoons because they've moved them off Cartoon Network and onto Boomerang, which is a digital-only channel. I know my son would love seeing Daffy, Bugs, Marvin, the Coyote, etc. if he would only get the chance.
And speaking of WB cartoons, how could you people forget the Animaniacs?!?? Hello, Nurse! That was, in my opinion, the last cartoon to really capture what the Looney Tunes cartoons had.
B.J.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Tiny Toona and Animaniace. Like I said, I knew I was probably forgetting a couple...
--Jonah
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Captain Boh, that might just be it. How cool, I'm going to run this by my brother, he's always been four years older than me so he usually has more lucid memories about things like this. He's helped me remember Auto-man, Gemini Man and Manimal before, from me just mentioning bits and pieces to him.
Regarding Captain Power, it's the first series I've seen with a recurring Sven-Ole Thorsen.
Strange also with the uncannily borg-looking Lord Dread. He must've been three or four years prior to "Q Who?".
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
MANTIS.
Posted by B.J. (Member # 858) on :
Auto-man. Manimal. Misfits of Science.
Help! My brain is melting! *gurgle*
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Voyagers? Greatest American Hero?
--Jonah
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Freakazoid! and the Tick were both great shows.
Animaniacs got annoying after a while (Slappy the annoying squirrel was just too much like the oldies on Miami Beach to be funny).
Freakazoid was done by the same people plus Paul Dini (of Batman fame) and was much better. I wish that was on DVD!
Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
Gemini Man is a funny one. I remember so much of it - the accident during a diving mission that went wrong making him invisible, the watch used to control it - bearing in mind it was almost 30 years ago and I was only about 6 at time. But then, over time, it got mixed up in my mind with the David McCallum Invisible Man show.
When, in the early 90s they repeated the McCallum show I was really looking forward to it. Imagine my confusion when a) it was nothing like I remembered it, with the lame latex head and hands etc., and b) it was shite. It was only recently that an idle wander through Wikipedia brought me to the page on the show, and revealed the existence of the other show which was the one I remembered. A DVD release is essential!
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
quote:Originally posted by Peregrinus: Voyagers? Greatest American Hero?
--Jonah
Aban wants an Omni prop and he made me a nice GAH symbol that I STILL have not put on a pitch black shirt like I planned....
As my dear old teacher used to (endlessly) tell me: "Jason: Procrastination is de tief of time." She was English/Jamacian and her accents became more pronounced the angrier she became. Kinda like a incomprehensible old black, female Hulk from the islands with a teaching certificate.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
Duuuuuuude, it's Megatron! Bogus!![[Wink]](wink.gif)
