It's Time For ANIMANIACS

 Article first published as TV Review: ANIMANIACS on Seat42F.

You may be surprised to learn that the original run on ANIMANIACS was only ninety-nine episodes long. It has such an oversize place in our culture that I assumed it boasted more seasons under its belt than that. The gently subversive cartoon that brought original music and adult humor (of the kind that easily flew over kids’ heads) in the 90s is well-remembered by my generation, and found great popularity a few years ago when it arrived on Netflix.

So it shouldn’t be much of a surprise to learn, if you didn’t already know, that the series is back on Hulu this week with the first new batch of new episodes in twenty-two years (and a second season already ordered). That’s right, Yakko (Rob Paulsen), Wakko (Jess Harnell), and Dot (Tress MacNeille) Warner have returned to the Warner Brothers movie lot and moved right back into the tower as if they’d never missed a beat.

The first episode back (the only one I’ve yet reviewed, though I’ll surely watch more) spends a fair amount of time breaking the fourth wall and discussing not only their time off the air, but everything that has transpired since. Some of this is done in original music, with full orchestral accompaniment. Later, the focus is on reboots specifically. Of course it’s funny, of course it’s timely, and of course it’s smart, because that’s the ANIMANIACS brand. It would be insincere for them not to comment on their return, and comment they do, in spades and in song.

As much as the difference is acknowledged, though, the show feels exactly the same. Jokes are topical and fresh, but they were back in the 1990s, too. The brand of humor espoused is unchanged, not quite biting, but not exactly tame, either. Ralph the Guard (Frank Welker) is still chasing the trio and easily being bested. There is acknowledgment that the characters may be a bit more accepting and forward-thinking in a socially liberal way, as the culture has gone, but ANIMANIACS never spent too much time commenting on that, so that doesn’t feel like a focus. And possibly problematic characters like Minerva Mink and Hello Nurse are nowhere to be seen, though not missed.

When it comes to the side stories, though, that’s where fans will likely notice the difference, though not right away. The most successful characters, which garnered their own contemporary spin-off, Pinky (Paulsen) and the Brain (Maurice LaMarche) are fully intact. The pair have the middle of three segments in the new premiere, with updated technology, but little else different for them. (The opening and closing segments are given over to the Warners.) But the theme song indicates we shouldn’t expect to see Slappy Squirrel, the Goodfeathers, Buttons and Mindy, or the others anytime soon. They’ve been cut from the show. The opening credits only hint there will be new characters, but other than a fresh network exec, none are revealed in episode one.

Unsurprisingly, a saxophone-playing Bill Clinton is also absent for the opening title sequences. References to W., Hillary, and Trump are in the first episode to acknowledge there may be some political jabs, though it’s doubtful there will be any true opinions expressed about such people. So worry not those who aren’t looking for culture wars in their cartoons. Celebrities and pop culture characters are familiarly referenced.

In short, the differences are minor, and though I’m anxious to see what the new side segments are, the premiere is a return to form. I’m sure it will perfectly give most people tuning in exactly what they want. ANIMANIACS doesn’t seem likely to jar fans or disappoint. I do wonder how long more-of-the-same will be able to continue, but for the moment, I’m just glad the Warners are back on television.

The first new season of ANIMANIACS premieres Friday, November 20th on Hulu.

Blu-ray Review: ‘Futurama Volume 8′

Article first published as Blu-ray Review: ‘Futurama Volume 8′ on Blogcritics.

Finally, the last episodes of Futurama have hit Blu-ray. No, seriously. The series, which was canceled on FOX, found new life on DVD and in four straight-to-disc movies, and was resurrected for a few more years on Comedy Central, has been canceled again, and Futurama Volume 8 has the very last 13 episodes of Futurama that will ever be made. For now.

Most of Volume 8 is good. Better than the other Comedy Central episodes, hands down. Something that plagued the series all during its reboot was an inability to stick to continuity in terms of character relationships, and because Futurama is more heart than laughs, that’s important. This batch, in keeping with the trend, is amusing, but not overly so. More importantly, though, even though Fry (Billy West) and Leela (Katey Sagal) finally get together just prior to the start of the CC run, the show can never seem to make up its mind if they are a couple of not. Until at the end of this set, the matter is (mostly) settled, making for better installments near the conclusion.

The episodes on the two DVDs are presented in production order, not broadcast order. This means that the two that aired first, “2-D Blacktop” and “Fry and Leela’s Big Fling,” are episodes two and four on the discs, respectively. Though, as Futurama rarely has plot that extends from week to week (with returning threads coming back much later, not in consecutive installments), that shouldn’t matter.

The best episodes in Volume 8 include: “T.: The Terrestrial,” in which Fry is left behind on Omicron Persei 8 and lives out E.T. as an alien’s pet; “Saturday Morning Fun Pit,” a take off of traditional weekend cartoons in a trilogy of minisodes; “Calculon 2.0,” in which Bender tries to resurrect deceased ham-of-an-actor Calculon (Maurice LaMarche); “Game of Tones,” a mission back to 1999 and the series’ pilot, and Fry visits his mother; “Murder on the Planet Express,” where the crew are killed off on the ship, a la Alien; and “Stench and Stenchibility,” in which Zoidberg (Billy West) finally finds love.

I did not include series finale “Meanwhile,” on the list because it deserves its own paragraph (or more). Perhaps knowing their time was at an end, the Futurama writers sought to match the stellar previous series finale, “The Devil’s Hands Are Idle Playthings.” Knowing that the element of the show serious fans are most invested in is the relationship between Fry and Leela, “Meanwhile” seeks to finally make good on that romance as much as can be made.

The result is a bittersweet world in which Fry and Leela are the last two people on Earth. Their friends (and everyone else) are frozen in time, and the pair spend an entire lifetime together, traveling the globe by their lonesome, happy to share each others’ company. It’s incredibly sweet and moving, and we get to see them find the ending they deserve at long last. Plus, there are cameos from most of the beloved recurring characters through their journey, a nice capper.

The end of “Meanwhile” is a bit of a cheat, leaving the door open to make more episodes or movies, should the series have the chance to do so (please let it be so). Yet, at the same time, it also pays off for the marriage, too. For a full review of the episode, click here.

Volume 8 boasts audio commentary on all 13 episodes. I can’t remember the last time a series did that, and it’s certainly welcome. There’s also a second commentary for “Game of Tones,” the second best episode in this set after “Meanwhile,” featuring the animators. Plus, deleted scenes are included, as well as a look at both the writers’ room and the animation process. It’s a satisfying bunch of extras.

I have found that animation that was originally made in high definition (as Futurama is) pretty much always looks great on Blu-ray. More than film, cartoons have the ability to shape the image exactly how they want, and there’s little better than watching sharp, finely detailed, well-drawn shows like this. Futurama doesn’t typically break new ground in effects, but the quality is high and consistent throughout the episodes. The sound is equally clear, even without many frills, providing a very pleasing viewing and listening experience.

Futurama Volume 8 is available now.

Futurama - "Neutopia; Benderama"

     It's hard to know which season Comedy Central's Futurama is currently on, since different sources disagree, what with the cancellation and straight to DVD movies that followed. But the latest batch of new episodes began this Thursday with two episode, "Neutopia" and "Benderama." The first finds the Planet Express crew opening an airline. After crashing during the very first flight, a mysterious creature takes away everyone's genitals to increase cooperation and harmony. The second concerns Bender (John DiMaggio) using the Professor's (Billy West) new machine to make smaller and smaller copies of himself, eventually threatening the Earth. But an overflow of Benders may just come in handy when a very ugly giant (guest star Patton Oswalt, United States of Tara) attacks.

     These two episodes, while funny, are disappointing. Unlike The Simpsons, also created by Matt Groening, Futurama sometimes does some things that are part of larger arcs, and continuity is often respected. Not only are there no scenes pointing at Amy (Lauren Tom) and Kif (Mauriche LaMarche) being together or not, but events happen in the first that are gone by the second. For instance, there is no mention in "Benderama" of Planet Express being an airline, nor is there any indication that it stopped being one at the end of "Neutopia." Also at the end of that episode, when everyone is restored to their proper sexes, Scruffy (David Herman) is not, but he's back to being a boy in the next episode. "Benderama" nearly destroys the world, and leaves open a disastrous possibility that there are still many Bender copies around, but that will likely not be followed up on. 

     Futuama is not perfect, nor has it ever been. But it used to respect the things that happened before on the show, and having changes stick is a refreshing departure from other, less creative animated series. To have the show devolve into a standard story of the week format with no connecting threads is beyond disappointing. It's an insult to those diehard fans who called for its return to television years after cancellation.

     Neither "Benderama" or "Neutopia" are particularly bad episodes. Both have plenty of funny lines and situations, and much of what happens is perfectly in line with what Futurama is about. But those big twists that suddenly drop make it an inferior show than it used to be, and possibly signal a decline. Last season, the first new year back, danced back and forth between the two formats. Clearly, a decision has been made, and it's the wrong one.

     I will continue watching Futurama, at least for now, but Mr. Groening, please fix this show! It used to be better and could be again. Futurama airs Thursday nights at 10 p.m. ET.

Good news everyone! Futurama has returned!

    In 2003, after five seasons on the air (released in four DVD volumes; Wikipedia wrongly lists the four volumes as four seasons), Fox canceled Futurama.  Like so many bad decisions the network has made (canceling the amazingly awesome Firefly and Dollhouse and renewing the terrible Human Target spring to mind), this one was unacceptable.  However, luckily, the story doesn't end there.  In the last three years, four straight to DVD movies of the Futurama crew have been released.  And then Comedy Central asked for more episodes.  Last night, the culmination of that effort was gloriously realized when the first new Futurama episodes in nearly seven years premiered: "Rebirth" and "In-A-Gadda-Da-Leela".


     Producers and creators Matt Groenig (The Simpsons) and David X. Cohen are back at the helm.  The voice cast, including Billy West (The Ren and Stimpy Show), Katey Sagal (Sons of Anarchy, Married With Children), John DiMaggio (Kim Possible), Tress MacNeille (The Simpsons), Maurice LaMarche (Pinky and the Brain), Phil LaMarr (MADtv, Samurai Jack), David Herman (Office Space, MADtv), and Lauren Tom (King of the Hill, Man in Trees),  has returned.  There were disputes over salary, and talk of recasting, but it all was worked out in time.  If it hadn't been, it may have killed the new episodes before they even got started.  The setting, the animation, it's all like it never left.  Fans of the show should not notice anything different.


     Plot wise, the first episode picks up right where the final movie left off: with the ship and all the main characters being sucked into a wormhole.  This was intended as a series finale, just in case nothing else was ordered, but the writers were able to transition it seamlessly into the new plot.  Unfortunately, the ship crashes almost immediately and almost everyone dies.  Luckily, the Professor has murdered a few adults and harvested their stem cells, so he is able to bring everyone back.  Someone explain to me how stem cells regrew Bender, a robot?  Not only that, but due to a comedy of errors, a Robot Fry and Robot Leela are created.  And there were the obligatory puns, acknowledging their new network.

     Loyal viewers know that Fry's love for Leela was always an unresolved plot, winding through each episode, and taking center stage in a couple of the movies.  The fourth movie had them together, and the new episodes thankfully continue that thread, rather than setting them back.  My sincere hope is that the two remain a couple, and I think it likely.  Although only the first of last night's two new episodes developed their relationship, in the second one they kissed goodbye as she left for a dangerous mission.  Futurama is the rare cartoon that allows it's characters lasting growth, and it's part of what makes it so special.  That aspect should be nurtured.


     Twenty six new episodes have been ordered.  If it's rebirth is like Family Guy's, we can look forward to even longer run than the original series, although since it has been resurrected for cable, that may be wishful thinking.  However, I know of no other show that was off the air for as long as Futurama was and then brought back, so this whole situation sprang from wishful thinking.  It gives you real hope to see that anything is possible.

     Futurama will be airing Thursday nights at 10pm on Comedy Central.

Doh! 20 Years of The Simpsons

     Can you believe that Matt Groenig's The Simpsons has been on Fox for twenty years?  The longest running primetime show on television, it started as a short on The Tracey Ullman Show, and became a cultural phenomenon.  I was six when the show premiered, and was not allowed to watch it for many years.  However, I, of course, did become a fan awhile ago, and though some people think the show has lost its freshness, it still consistently delivers the funny.

     The anniversary kicked off last night with an episode featuring Krusty the Clown.  It wasn't anything special, but fairly good, as most episodes are.  Krusty was forced to share his show with a young woman dressed as a princess (voiced by Anne Hathaway).  The two fell in love, and it was a sweet story, ending with them together.  Meanwhile, Homer and his friends were wooed by another power plant after Mr. Burns dropped the daily doughnuts in the break room.  The episode was not earth shattering, but provided a few chuckles, which after twenty years, is pretty good.  As the credits rolled, the following words appeared on the screen: "Thanks for 20 wonderful years.  The best is yet to come."  Eh, maybe not, but it's still certainly worth watching.  Other guest voices in the episode included Eartha Kitt, Maurice LaMarche, Gary Larson ("The Far Side" cartoonist), and Jackie Mason.

     Following the regular episode, Fox aired a one hour special ("In 3-D!  On Ice!", though it was neither)  Hosted by documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock (Super Size Me), it featured interviews with Seth McFarlane (Family Guy), Trey Parker and Matt Stone (South Park), Conan O'Brien (The Tonight Show), Sting, Bryan Williams, Hugh Hefner (Playboy), Seth Meyers (Saturday Night Live), David Cross (Arrested Development), Dan Rather, and many others, including many people that worked on the show, and even fans.  The opening was very cool, featuring a variety of bands, well known and not, playing the theme song.  It chronicled the way the creation of the series, and the effect it has had on the world.

     Whether you like them or not, The Simpsons has certainly left its mark on the world.  And it shows no signs of stopping.  There are currently no plans to stop making the show.  It airs Sunday nights on Fox.