Creating Animated Cartoons with Character

Another great book worth the purchase! Written by animator Joe Murray, creator of the Emmy-winning shows Rocko's Modern Life and Camp Lazlo, this book is essentially a guide-line for those of us wanting to get into the animation business. It features not only some neat production art from both shows and the short films he's done, but it also has some great pointers on how to make a TV-show with great characters in mind. I have to admit, the man gives great, solid advice.

I personally enjoy Murray's work, probably because I grew up watching Rocko and came to love Lazlo when it premiered. I ain't kiddin' when I say that Rocko was the only cartoon from the 90's to rival the insanity of Ren and Stimpy! Other than that, every character he's made has a distinct design and, most importantly, he has a GREAT concept of character. I love how every story he writes stays in focus with the characters and how they can relate to a modern audience.

If you're interested, you can get the book on Amazon.com for about $15. A good deal!

The Looney Tunes Show

This post is something that I wanted to get off of my chest for a while. Judging by the title, I think you already know what it is. So here we (Or I ,rather) go...

To begin, this show has been bashed by so many animation fans simply because of the new character designs by one of my favorite modern artists, Jessica Borutski. (And it's not even out yet!) I liked her two shorts, I Like Pandas and The Good Bunny With the Bad Teeth. That constellations idea she had for a show was really cool too. Overall, her art is very pleasant to look at and she definatly has developed a style of her own.

However, back last year, she was bashed for her designs on a new Looney Tunes show. If you haven't seen it, here they are:

That's just Bugs and Daffy. So why are people bashing Miss Borutski, you ask? Well first of all, some animation fans, like me, grew up with these characters and really don't want to see their appearances changed on this kind of level. If you noticed, the characters are more angular than before and they have extremely simplified shapes so that they can be animated easier on a flash program like ToonBoom or whatever it's called. A lot of animation fans really hate this kind of thing and prefer the lush style of traditional animation. I know I refer the old way over flash.

Even the plot of the show got people fired up in a bad way. Well, instead of being their usual, slapstick selves, we get to see what life is like for Bugs, Daffy, and the other Looney Tunes outside of the Warner Bros lot. We see the rabbit and duck (both voiced by Jeff Burgman for the first time in 10 years) living together in a house. Trust me, they didn't want to see them looking like this:

Now now it comes to this: what do I think of them?

Well, they are appealing in their own right. I'm not too angry about the radical change of appearances. Even 70 years ago, the great directors and artists of Termite Terrace had changed these characters slightly to fit their own styles. Jones, Avery, Clampett, McKimson, Freling, Davis, Tashlin, and all the other animation directors had their own way of designing these characters and modeling their personalities to their own desire. Even I do it! (I think I'll try this again in a while in color too.) For instance, I give Bugs' ears black tips, a feature not seen since Elmer's Candid Camera in 1940. Say what you want, I think they look kind of cool.

I actually like some of these designs myself. While Bug's new look mis growing on me, I really enjoy the way Daffy, Pepe, Marvin, The Gossamer, Yosemite Sam, Foghorn, Sylvester, and Petunia Pig. (kudos on Borutski for reintroducing a character not seen since 1937) I think my favorite overall is Sylvester's look. It kind of reminds me of McKimson's look for the cat: a big nose with short legs.

I accept the fact that these are Borutski's own versions of theses classic characters and as true admirers of animation, we should try to look at the positives. After all, she's doing something that not a lot of new artists get the chance to do: reintroduce these classic characters to a new generation with new concepts and ideas. I think it's only fair that we should at least honor Borutski for her efforts and goals for this show. If you have kids, then I would expose them to both this new show and the classics that are beautifully restored on the boxed DVD sets. If they like one over the other, that's fine.

As for the show's writing quality, well... look for yourself:

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I wasn't impressed by the first clip, but I thought that the second was a little better. (I just noticed Mac and Tosh made a cameo)

I think I'm going to wait until February when this show comes out and take a look for myself. To be honest, it looks better than some of the other attempts of reintroducing the Looney Tunes or classic cartoon characters in general. (Remember Loonatics?.... I thought not. And don't make me mention that godawful Yogi Bear movie!) Keep in mind that this is going to be completely different from the classics of the golden age because humor has changed over the years.

For now, I'm keeping my optimistic perspective for this new show and hope it turns out better than people claim it is. My only hope that after this Borutski can have a shot of doing more of her own original ideas for TV. So rest your sphincters, gentlemen.

Phew! Glad I got that off of my chest!

Oh, and Happy New Year to you readers.

Rooty Toot Toot

This is one of my favorite cartoons ever! I just can't see anything wrong with it. Even if I'm used to seeing more characters drawn like Bugs or Mickey, I love the way UPA drew their cartoons because they seemed to be the only ones who could do this style with perfection. (After all, they invented it!) I also like the way Frankie does almost every movement on tip-toe, like a ballerina. Wonder who animated her? Maybe Pat Matthews?

I also love the timing of this cartoon. Everything is in tune to the song, Frankie and Johnnie, even if they aren't singing. Oh, and Thurl Ravenscroft plays Honest John, Frankie's lawyer.

This one was also nominated for an Oscar in 1952 for Best Animated Short Film. It lost to the Tom and Jerry cartoon, The Two Mouseketeers. Shame. It's such a brilliant movie.

Peace on Earth

One of the best cartoons to come from Hugh Hartman's department at MGM. A great cartoon for the holidays.

Invitation to the Dance

I know I posted another scene from this movie, but I really wanted to share this clip from YouTube with you guys. It's a scene from a documentary about how the movie involved using a reference model for the animators. The end result is a very beautiful scene from the movies: the colors, the dancing, the music, the flawless mixing of Gene Kelly with this animated princess, everything was just beautiful. Just watch and see!

The Walt Disney Animation Archives series

I just bought the newest book from this series of books. I have to admit that like the first two books, this one is very captivating. The book covers almost every era of Disney animation, chock full of wonderful storyboards, character designs, and concept art. I'm especially fond of Mary Blair's contributions. Below is a picture by Mary Blair from Alice in Wonderland and a sketch from The Jungle Book.

If you're a classic Disney animation fan (like yours truly) then this book along with the other two in the series is worth the buy. The catch is that they're really expensive if you try to buy them at a book store (they're about $50 a pop!) Luckily, Amazon.com has this book and the other two for about $31.50 (37% off!) So yeah, I recommend reading all three.

Lucky

This is Lucky, a rabbit who surprisingly looks very similar to Ralph. Well, don't be surprised. In the show's history, Lucky was the original Ralph on A Day at the Zoo, being very popular until his contract expired and the studio heads quickly replaced him with Ralph. Ever since, Lucky had never been the same, plotting against and seeking vengeance on Ralph for what happened to him.

Lucky on the whole is a very twisted and evil character. He can be called the polar opposite of Ralph. Where Ralph is kind and good-natured, Lucky is cruel, relentless, and somewhat a glory-hound. He merely wants to be back in the limelight and will get there by any means necessary.

Professor Axel

A brand new character. This is Professor Axel, a highly intelligent and somewhat eccentric axolotl. He is an expert in virtually anything scientific and mathematical. He's also an accomplished inventor... in his mind. His only flaw is that he's limited to living in water, thanks to the gills on the side of his head.

Oh yes! He also is fluent in over 20 languages and has a German accent when speaking English.

Turkey Jerky

No, it's not the Tex Avery cartoon.

And now for something completely different...

I've been on an Animaniacs kick lately. I admit, it's a wonderful show with great animation and stories throughout. I could go on about this great show, but I want to keep this post short.

In a nutshell, this episode is the only Thanksgiving episode that I know of and it's a nice satire of the story of the first Turkey Day and Miles Standish, chock full of the zany, fast-paced, Marx-Bros-esque humor found in the Warner Bros cartoons. Enjoy it and happy early Thanksgiving.

Good night, everybody!

New Colors for Ralph

What do you folks think? These colors or the original light brown Ralph?