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Post by Jeremy on May 7, 2018 18:17:15 GMT -8
So... should we be excited or worried about the upcoming Rocky and Bullwinkle reboot? I chuckled a bit at the trailer, but the animation style is really pushing towards uber-slick and modernized territory, which isn't the R&B forte. (The animation is obviously going to be better than the original, but somehow, the crudely sketched and jerky character designs were part of the '60s version's charm.) I'm also not totally sold on Tara Strong's voice as Rocky (RIP June Foray). Still, there is a timeless quality to the characters (except how they're always battling evil Russians... oh wait that's timeless too), and I'm hoping the writers will at least respect the original enough to make a passable new series. And hey, it wouldn't be the first time the characters exceed expectations - their live-action film adaptation was a lot better than I thought it'd be. Guess we'll see where it goes.
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Post by ThirdMan on May 7, 2018 18:35:57 GMT -8
Tara Strong's certainly done a lot of voice work. The first time I took note of her was when she replaced Arleen Sorkin as Harley Quinn in the Batman: Arkham videogame series. It's too bad you don't play games, Jeremy, because the Batman story in that series is better than most of the live-action -- and even animated -- films. And it's got Conroy and Hamill doing some of their best work, and probably the most balanced (personal relationships, action, stealth, and detective work) version of Batman.
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Quiara
Grade School
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Post by Quiara on May 7, 2018 18:56:16 GMT -8
their live-action film adaptation was a lot better than I thought it'd be Because it was only forgettably bad instead of earth-shatteringly awful?
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Post by Jeremy on May 7, 2018 20:27:45 GMT -8
Because it was legitimately funny, and because it mocked the original cartoon while still respecting it. It definitely deserves more respect than it gets. (Especially since the script was written by a future Oscar-winning screenwriter! For a very, very different film, but still.) Tara Strong's certainly done a lot of voice work. The first time I took note of her was when she replaced Arleen Sorkin as Harley Quinn in the Batman: Arkham videogame series. It's too bad you don't play games, Jeremy, because the Batman story in that series is better than most of the live-action -- and even animated -- films. And it's got Conroy and Hamill doing some of their best work, and probably the most balanced (personal relationships, action, stealth, and detective work) version of Batman. Tara Strong is also Batgirl! (In TNBA, at least. BTAS is Melissa Gilbert.) She's right up there with Grey DeLisle and Jennifer Hale as one of the great voice actresses in modern Western animation. I can't even count the number of cartoons I've watched in which she's featured. And yeah, I've heard great things about the Arkham games, no question. If I ever get around to learning what video games are, maybe I'll check them out.
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 1, 2018 11:07:28 GMT -8
Okay, I tried watching the first episode of the new Rocky and Bullwinkle series, and... good lord.
Good lord, this show is awful.
It's loud, it's frenetic, and it's annoying. It's modeled after the classic "cartoony" style that was popularized by Cartoon Network in the late '90s (and still pops up occasionally, as in Teen Titans Go!), but its use of wacky designs and exaggerated poses just comes off as forced and desperate. The voice actors, while I've enjoyed their work elsewhere, are essentially reduced to YELLING THEIR LINES, because everything is apparently funnier when delivered at a higher decibel.
The show is trying painfully hard to wring a laugh out of its audience, but I couldn't even manage a chuckle. Maybe the new DuckTales has unfairly raised my expectations for what an animated reboot should be. Or maybe I just prefer my TV shows to have (like the original Rocky and Bullwinkle) the slightest bit of wit or nuance.
I'm not even joking here. Stay away from this show. Watch the original instead. It doesn't hold up especially well, but it will at least keep your brain cells relatively intact.
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Quiara
Grade School
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Post by Quiara on Jun 1, 2018 13:25:07 GMT -8
The show is trying painfully hard to wring a laugh out of its audience, but I couldn't even manage a chuckle. Maybe the new DuckTales has unfairly raised my expectations for what an animated reboot should be. Or maybe I just prefer my TV shows to have (like the original Rocky and Bullwinkle) the slightest bit of wit or nuance. I'm not even joking here. Stay away from this show. Watch the original instead. It doesn't hold up especially well, but it will at least keep your brain cells relatively intact. To be fair, much of the appeal of the original Rocky and Bullwinkle was the way it riffed on Cold War paranoia, which is... um... less fun in 2018. I don't know if they do "Fractured Fairy Tales" et al in this new one, but I'm leaning towards no-- that's another thing that's lost its novelty in the 60 year interim, fairy tale parodies. (Trivia: What do the Rocky and Bullwinkle movie and Manchester by the Sea have in common?)
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 1, 2018 14:22:29 GMT -8
To be fair, much of the appeal of the original Rocky and Bullwinkle was the way it riffed on Cold War paranoia, which is... um... less fun in 2018. I don't know if they do "Fractured Fairy Tales" et al in this new one, but I'm leaning towards no-- that's another thing that's lost its novelty in the 60 year interim, fairy tale parodies. Yeah, there are no Fractured Fairy Tales in this version - or any other vignettes, for that matter. (Some of that may be copyright-based - they don't have the rights to Peabody and Sherman, since that's been spun off into a show on another streaming service.) Maybe they're afraid that kinds today won't have the capacity to process multiple stories in a single episode. (Given the intelligence level needed to enjoy this show, that line of reasoning wouldn't surprise me.) Didn't I make this observation earlier? Or is there more than one thing? (Does Manchester by the Sea have Robert De Niro doing a Travis Bickle impression?)
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Post by Zarnium on Jun 20, 2018 16:03:55 GMT -8
Ok, this is stupid, but I've been chuckling over it for weeks:
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 21, 2018 11:39:48 GMT -8
Strange, confusing, and immature. But still better than the live-action version.
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 21, 2018 17:23:27 GMT -8
Daria is getting rebooted!
Insert obligatory statement about how there's no way it can be as good as the original, but it'll be interesting to see how it plays in the modern era, etc. etc.
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Post by otherscott on Jun 22, 2018 9:46:16 GMT -8
Strange, confusing, and immature. But still better than the live-action version. For a moment by "live action" I thought you meant the original cartoon Disney version and was thinking you were being blasphemous. Then I realized you meant "live action."
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 22, 2018 10:22:45 GMT -8
I was referring to the live-action film. And also the recent live-action show. And possibly the other live-action show, though I've never seen it.
Lots of live-action Beauty and the Beasts, is what I'm saying.
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Post by Zarnium on Jun 23, 2018 5:41:56 GMT -8
Just remember, in a spitting match, nobody swallows like Gastin.
On a more serious note, that song is one of the best musical sequences Disney has produced; I love all the ways that Gaston keeps exaggeratedly dismissing Lafou, throwing his beers into the fire, turning his chair around multiple times, and punching him across the room. It illustrates Gaston's character very well while being funny.
As for Daria, I too am curious how this reboot is going to turn out... apparently, it's going to heavily feature Jodie, which could either be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how her character is handled. Jodie was interesting because of the contrast between her being very privileged in some ways and experiencing alienation and dismissal on the other. She's black and receives all the baggage that comes with it, but she's also in one of the richest and most well-connected families in town, and the show doesn't shy away from showing how privileged she is, or how conflicted she is about it. This makes her a complex character that explores a theme I haven't seen many other shows tackle, the idea that privilege and disenfranchisement aren't binary concepts. Jodie's character shows how someone can be both privileged and disenfranchised at the same time in different aspects of their life, and that being viewed as one of them makes society ignore the other. I hope the reboot doesn't downplay her privilege in an effort to turn her into a more modern minority character that fits the current political narrative.
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PBTD
Newbie
Posts: 44
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Post by PBTD on Jun 23, 2018 8:21:49 GMT -8
I'm not super familiar with Daria, though I do know the general premise, but this in-particular has become such a huge problem lately when it comes to the integrity of many works of fiction. There is inclusion that is sound from a storytelling perspective, or in other words is used as a thematic exploration of the subject or as a clever subversion of a genre or trope, and then there's just pandering to the current political climate without care or appreciation for creating a deep and/or relatable character or narrative.
One reason BtVS is so exceptional, as I know we're all aware, is that it is able to take our preconceived biases for what entails a superhero and believably flip them on its head all while making its titular character complex, engaging, and most importantly relatable regardless of the viewer's gender. And despite being ahead of its time at the time and it garnering praise as a pioneer of empowerment and subversion in television, they still haven't been able to replicate its underlying brilliance in most cases and rather just take the superficial concept of "strong woman beats up strong bad guys" as the answer to all the problems with the lack of creative inclusion in the media of the past.
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 23, 2018 18:30:15 GMT -8
As for Daria, I too am curious how this reboot is going to turn out... apparently, it's going to heavily feature Jodie, which could either be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how her character is handled. Jodie was interesting because of the contrast between her being very privileged in some ways and experiencing alienation and dismissal on the other. She's black and receives all the baggage that comes with it, but she's also in one of the richest and most well-connected families in town, and the show doesn't shy away from showing how privileged she is, or how conflicted she is about it. This makes her a complex character that explores a theme I haven't seen many other shows tackle, the idea that privilege and disenfranchisement aren't binary concepts. Jodie's character shows how someone can be both privileged and disenfranchised at the same time in different aspects of their life, and that being viewed as one of them makes society ignore the other. I hope the reboot doesn't downplay her privilege in an effort to turn her into a more modern minority character that fits the current political narrative. The fact that the reboot will supposedly be titled Daria & Jodie concerns me a bit. Jodie was never one of the show's most integral characters, and most of her development was linked to Mack (also not a primary character). It seems like the show is trying to check a diversity box by putting the series' most prominent nonwhite female character into a central role. I'm hoping they do keep her character relatively similar to the original incarnation, and take the opportunity to develop her more thoroughly. There's potential for some interesting commentary re. the "race vs. privilege" contrast. Also, what's gonna happen with Jane? My avatar needs love.
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