If you asked a group of average comic book fans what it was that initially got them into superheroes, chances are some of them will point to a cartoon from their childhood. I know plenty of folks who cite the X-men and Batman animated series as their introduction to the world of comics, and I myself have mentioned before on this blog that I probably would have never delved deep into DC’s catalog if it wasn’t for the Justice League animated series which premiered around when I was starting college. Animation obviously lends itself quite well to adapting the illustrative story telling of comic books, but that doesn’t mean that every show produced is an exact representation of the work it is using as source material.
Stories and character history typically have to be condensed for a standard TV format, and alterations have to be made to appease much stricter content regulation. Also, because these shows don’t necessarily have to bow to decades of published history and can be written as self contained stories not connected with their paper-backed counter-parts, new ideas can flourish and stories that might not have been told otherwise can be shared with a wide audience. In fact, it is not uncommon for the more successful elements of these shows to find their way into the books that inspired them, the best example of this being the character of Harley Quinn who was created for the Batman animated series and who now has a solid hold as a fan-favorite villain/anti-hero(?) in the DC universe.
Of course, in less than capable hands, the potential that these cartoons have can quickly turn and become tedious or offensive. There are always going to be die-hard fans of the the books who will criticize changes to source material or choices that don’t fall in line with how they would perceive their favorite characters in an animated setting (such as voice acting decisions, character design, etc.) There is also the problem of dumbing down the concepts TOO much to appeal to a vaster/younger audience. One of my biggest pet peeves is the seeming lack of good production, such as cheap looking, re-used, or just poor animation and the heavy reliance on stock graphics and amateur-looking computer effects. That last one is a bit more subjective, but I’m sure some of you can think of a show or two where you personally had issue with some of the production as well (the old Spider-man animated series from the 90′s used to re-use animation ALL THE TIME and it bugged the hell out of me, even when i was a kid!)
So how are comic-themed cartoons doing nowadays? Are they still going strong and bringing new comic fans into the fold? Or are they just embarrassing parodies of the stories and characters we love? Let me give you my thoughts on the super-hero cartoons currently on air, and see if you agree:
They continue to hide the appearance of the Lizard in these trailers, and although the CGI looks great there is a serious concern with how the Lizard will look in the final film. Early renderings from test screenings and pictures of promotional materials have already leaked out and the design leaves MUCH to be desired. Gone is the purely reptilian beast and in its place we find… a Goomba from the Super Mario Brothers movie? But seriously folks, this design is far more reminiscent of the Killer Croc character from Batman: The Animated Series than any way I’ve ever seen the Lizard presented. Of course, I could be wrong and it could play very well in full motion on the screen. I’ll have to see.
The only thing I ever really knew about Hawk and Dove for the longest time was that one was a fighter and one was a pacifist, though I never really knew why. Also when I first heard of these heroes they were both men, and then when I finally started following DC titles they were both women, so that was a bit confusing. However, one of the benefits of the Blackest Night event was that it shined a light on these characters and it made me want to learn more about them. Dove in particular became an important part of the story continuing into Brightest Day, and I was a big fan of the interesting relationship that was formed between her and fellow hero Deadman. Needless to say I was hoping they didn’t erase all of this great character building in the re-launch and was looking forward to reading about them, especially once I learned that Deadman WOULD in fact be a supporting character in the series. Unfortunately in order to keep up with these characters I was going to be forced to endure the artistic stylings of the infamous Rob Liefeld. BLEGH.
from story and characters to lack of proper utilization of the reboot. However, I have yet to mention the WORST thing about this book…
Bad news folks! I have just fallen too far behind in my New 52 Reviews and decided to scrap the idea. They were coming off fairly bland in my opinion anyway, and i HATED being forced to do full-length synopses for some of the less interesting/bad titles. To make up for it starting next week I’ll be doing very short reviews for the remainder of the comic titles I haven’t yet covered. These will most likely range from about 2-4 paragraphs and just serve and a bit of info on the title as well as my own opinion of it. That way I can still get my thoughts out there and help you guys figure out what books you might wanna pick up.