What the heck is wrong with Adult Swim? No, seriously, I’m asking. I remember the days when AS was THE programming to watch. The cartoons were funny. It never really had the quality animation, but the writing made up for it. I remember when I LIKED Harvey Birdman. Now, they’ve abandoned the writing too. How can 12 oz. Mouse and Squidbillies even make it on the air? The positive side, I guess, is that there’s an opportunity for a creator to get their series on the air, and a lot of my old friends and classmates are now working on Adult Swim shows… but am I wrong to ask for a bar to be set? I mean… they are one of the leaders in creating and airing adult animation, they should set the gold standard. ESPECIALLY if they’re the home of great shows like Family Guy, American Dad and Futurama. ESPECIALLY when there are flash animated properties out there that are GREAT that they can air! Don’t believe me? Okay… how about these examples…
Happy Tree Friends – Have you seen this show? An old classmate of mine worked on it long ago. Imagine the Care Bears… now mix it with a ton of wild cartoon violence and blood. It is clever and shocking, and it’s already airing on some video game channel somewhere. I’m sure Mondo Media would work it out so it can air on CN.
Mr. Wong – One of the funniest shows from Icebox.com. Politically incorrect, funny and at least it’s animated a little better than 12 oz. Mouse.
Undercover Brother – Not sure if it could be done, but it started out as a Flash cartoon. I’m sure it could be made into a series. It would be a great companion to Boondocks.
I’m not saying they should use these, or even if they can, but…. See what I mean? They can do better. So why aren’t they? It’s hard for me to believe that their current programming is the best that the industry has to offer… or is that even what they are doing anymore?:confused:
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Adult Swim is kind of awkward.
Their programming is really weird. A lot of their original programs are pretty bad. Squidbillies, sealab....etc....etc...
Futurama is an awesome show so its nice to see it on....except they play the same episodes over and over again.
Basically to be on Adult swim you either have to be Anime, Made by Seth McFarlen, or 15 minutes of complete stupidity. (some of which does work)
"who wouldn't want to make stuff for me? I'm awesome." -Bloo
I only watch maybe four shows on all of Cartoon Network and I waste little energy complaining about the shows I don't watch. I'm just grateful that there's something on there I like, since 99% of the shows on the other networks are awful.
I don't agree that your three ideas would make good shows unless they radically overhauled them.
Happy Tree Friends is just cute animals getting mutilated; i.e., the same ironic joke over and over.
Mr. Wong is amusing but not very funny, and the characters are all pretty annoying.
Undercover Brother is a funny movie, but would make a terrible cartoon show. I think we'd have something of about the same quality as Stripperella or the Ghostbusters cartoon.
It just goes to show you: People have different tastes, and if CN only made shows that cartoonchaos liked, few people would watch it.
You should probably just watch the shows you like and move on. ;)
Harvey Human is right that there is a lack of good programming on television, and it does come down to personal taste. I usually don’t like reality shows, but I do like The Apprentice. I saw a few of you cringe at that. Personal taste.
I guess I just want to express my opinion that there should be a standard, you know? I look at shows like 12 oz. Mouse and Squidbillies… They make me think that it must be really easy to sell a show to AS. They make me think that just about anything passes as funny in those story meetings. They make me feel that everyone that really cares about production values must be in the movie industry… the same way that all the intelligent people in the world AREN’T in politics.
Am I wrong to feel frustrated about that? Or should I just kick back like Harvey and thank God that at least a few shows “got it right” and be thankful that Cartoon Network and Adult Swim even exist? Should I be a voice for “quality over quantity”, or should I be grateful that these animators have jobs?:confused:
Oh, and I think I have good taste, just the same as everyone else thinks they have good taste. I like Family Guy and a lot of people watch that. I don’t like Drawn Together, but a lot of people watch that too. There’s nothing anyone can do about people’s personal tastes, but can’t we do something about production values? ;)
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GOD!...are you kidding me, Happy Tree Friends is awful.Why substitute one bad show with another? I thought your point was about writting?Happy Tree Friends?Writting?
Anyway, its hard to get "good" shows on any network that has one goal, the bottom line. Im not complaining, this is America, they can put on anything they want and what they want is demographics. Harvey Human is right on if you read the thread about the Teen Titans...BUY,BUY,BUY!
Why does everyone think they are entitled to "good" programing?
Go on public television! Be gorilla!But dont complain.
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Well...im not sure that even if you pay for your cable bill you are entitled to good programming...I think you are more entitled to good service from said cable company.The cable company does not create programing, they provide service, moreover your bill does not pay for programming it pays for access.
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I just want to say that I work as a cashier at Best Buy (just until I get that big break in animation!;)) and A LOT of people would buy that DVD set of Aqua Teen.
Personally... I think there are good shows on AS. 12 oz mouse is definitely not one of them, and I'd rather stick a fork in my eye than watch squidbillies. But Home Movies is on AS.... I love that show. It's funny and clever. Venture Bothers, Oblongs, and Mission Hill are also shows I am glad I had the chance to see becuase they make occaisional runs on adult swim. I think some of the anime are great. I never watched or appreciated anime until I saw some of the ones on Adult Swim. I think it's great that they provide an outlet for those who don't believe in buying bootlegs to be exposed to Japanese animation. I will probably be ostricized for this.... but I like Sealab, too. The animation is terrible, but I think the writing is usually funny in a random way. I also like the concept of recycling really bad animation from old shows. I don't know why.... but that's funny to me. Maybe I just like to see how off-model the characters can be. I haven't yet decided about Boondocks.... I think the style is nice but the animation is bad. I'm usually annoyed by racial humor, but I have found myself laughing at it. We'll see, I guess. Also.... AS used a slot to air some Animation Show shorts by Hertzfeldt and Mike Judge.
Why, if they have access to this great programming, do they air crap like 12 oz mouse? I don't know. Maybe it's for diversity.... maybe it's to give some unknown a big break in case he can make something great someday. Who know? But I do know I'll continue to watch AS just in case I find another gem.
Sometimes cartoons are better because of simplified animation. This concept seems to slip by some people, who expect all animation to be Disney-fied.
Charlie Brown Xmas and Rankin-Bass Rudolph are more charming, and South Park and ATHF are funnier, because of simplified animation. :cool:
I just read an article in Film & Video about Adult Swim. CN's approach is to turn these shows out fast & cheap. If they hit, great; if not, at least they're not out of pocket for a wad of dough. They also repurpose existing footage like crazy - a trend that started with Space Ghost Coast to Coast.
Obviously this doesn't refer to Boondocks, which has high production values (if not the best animation), but more to shows like Robot Chicken, Aqua Teen, Harvey Birdman, etc.
Since when has Adult Swim ever been about production values? Actually I take that back. They have always been about production values. They put the cheapest shows they can get or make to put on the air. They don't want to spend a bunch of money on a new show, because if it tanks then, well, they didn't spend a bunch of money on it. If it does well, well then they can make a killing off the show since it cost nothing to produce.
If you want quality shows, watch and support the quality shows. I don't watch very many shows now a days. Not since my lifes been taken over by poker :p Besides I'm just waiting for a new season of Venture Bros. Brock Rulez!!!
Aloha,
the Ape
...we must all face a choice, between what is right... and what is easy."
Wow, I just used those as examples, and it goes back to personal taste. I'm sorry but if you take Happy Tree Friends and 12 oz. Mouse and put them both on a scale....
My point isn't just about writing, I guess. My point is more about what Harvey Human and Animated Ape is talking about. I want to know where the line between animation being art and a product begins and ends. Is it just a product now? I know that's what it's always been, but is that it? If someone just went and said that animation is definitively a product and nothing else, then I would at least feel better, so someone just go and yell "PRODUCT" really really loud. Then I can go and get a hairnet and some rubber gloves and be a content assembly line worker like everyone else.
Also, I'm just ranting and raving. I'm not complaining, I just see the way that television animation is going and it just bothers me. You guys are my free therapy, so thanks for being my couch. :D
Aw, you too? You know, I would love to go on that World Poker Tour thing. Even if I was the FIRST one to lose, it would still be a blast just to be there.:cool:
Cheers.
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Hey Chaos, sorry...I didnt mean to come off like an a@$hole! It's just that im an a@$hole. Medium is medium, its all there to sell something. You could kill your television (im so punk rock) or worship your productvision. I am going with the later. I mean you could go to the met and see a bunch of work in frames on a wall that is considered high art...but dont you think Chuck Close wants to sell his work too? He hasnt painted anything but enormous heads since the seventies because it sells. I understand your idealogical quams with commercialism vs. art or....i dont mean to make this complicated....but the only thing that is important is the art making process, it defines you to yourself and thats it, because when you put it out there the functionality of it doesnt belong to you any longer, it belongs to me...and everyone else hooked to the tube (we dont know how to play poker).
YES! That's exactly what I mean and what I was hoping someone would remember. MTV Oddities WAS the "Adult Swim" of the past. It was way ahead of its time and I feel its ahead of THIS time too. It CAN be done.
It IS old, and Matt isn't the first one to realize this. Jay Ward, the creator of Rocky and Bullwinkle didn't want to talk down to children. He knew that they were mentally capable to handle the jokes he told. Even the old Warner Bros. short cartoons with Bugs and company weren't for kids. They opened for VERY adult movies.
Thanks sajdera... same wavelength there. :)
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If you don't like Adult Swim don't watch it. It's that easy. If the viewership goes down then they will make changes if people keep watching then it will remain the same. I watch Family Guy and Boondocks and that's about it and neither of them are really very visually pleasing.
TV to me has become rather boring.
Anyway, that's my two cents.
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There's no point really. If you walk into a party and say "I hate this" and "I hate that," what have you really accomplished?
Do you think that suddenly people will start hating their formerly-beloved shows, food, or whatever? Probably not, unless they're complete sheep. All you'll accomplish is pissing people off.
If a show is bad enough, the marketplace will take care of it, and it'll be off the air shortly. I don't expect that Squidbillies or 12 Oz. Mouse will be on the air for long, unless they upgrade the concepts in a hurry. They're both just completely ugly to look at whereas I can at least look at a drawing of a delicious shake and fries. :D