In the last few weeks, I've been noticing a lot of the stupid things people say about animation. Some of the things that have really got me angry:
- One of my coworkers stating that "King of the Hill" was the dumbest animated show FOX ever had
- People complaining about how The Incredibles needs a sequel
- One guy insisting that "Pokémon" doesn't deserve to be faithfully translated from Japanese to English because it's a kids' show
- People deciding that Seth MacFarlane's fourth show will suck before they even know what it's about
- Warner Bros.' attempt to hop on the Alvin and the Chipmunks bandwagon with live action movies based on Marvin the Martian, Tom and Jerry, Yogi Bear, and Speedy Gonzales
- The fact that the aforementioned Speedy movie will be produced by George Lopez, who vows to keep the character as far away from the classic cartoons as possible because he thinks they're racist
- The recent announcement that the Bone movie will be done with motion capture
- People insisting that Disney hasn't done a decent animated movie since 1961
- And finally, one joker I found on the GAC Forums who insists that all animation everywhere should be like Tex Avery's cartoons, and that anything that doesn't conform to that mold is utter garbage
How come all of a sudden, when it comes to animation, it seems like everyone's got their head up their ass?
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Just do what I've always done. Just ignore them like the diseases they are, and enjoy what you enjoy.
ReplyDeleteWe all know that there's more bad stuff than good out there. That makes the good stuff even better.
And really, I can't blame the guys insisting Seth's newest show is going to suck. Yes, it's incredibly minded, but I can understand that yet another show about a family turns some people off immediately.
I'm not exactly what one would call a KOTH fan at all, but...How can people say something like that when Family Guy exists?
Incredibly CLOSED-minded. Blasted typos...
ReplyDeleteI agree with most of those points, but especially Warner Brothers trying live action movies based on the Looney Tunes. Studio execs are spending just how many nanoseconds in the real world these days?
ReplyDeleteIt's all just opinions. You have yours, I have mine, they have theirs. Sometimes our opinions coincide, sometimes they do not. Getting angry when they don't isn't very productive since you aren't going to change anyone's mind with anger; you're stewing for nothing.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, attacking people with different ideas, rather than the ideas themselves, serves even less purpose. Hardening of attitudes and shouting matches/flame wars are often the result.
I never had a bit of use for King of the Hill, which has humor I don't find particularly funny and an animation style that leaves me cold. I don't really care where it ranks among FOX's cartoons. I just don't like it.
I don't know why anything actually needs a sequel, and The Incredibles (which I love) is no exception.
So, I would seem to disagree to at least some extent with your first point, and agree to some extent with your second. My question, then, is this: Where's my head?
This is where the ad hominem attack hits a snag. If you were to tell me my head is using my ass as a hat because of how I feel about KOTH, I would have no real incentive to try to discuss with you the nuances of our opinions on either matter, or any other. After all, you would have attacked me personally rather than stating a case for why my ideas regarding KOTH might be wrong, which indicates that you aren't interested in defending your opinion with reason. I am then left with two alternatives: Respond in kind, which is useless, or stop trying, which is rather a sad way to end a conversatio.
If you disagree with someone, by all means say so--but doing so respectfully is a better way to go.
Are the people on Toonzone getting to you too?
ReplyDeleteSometimes it feels like almost everyone there is a fricking idiot.
...Oh, crap- the "Bone" movie's going to be made using motion-capture (God help us all).
ReplyDeleteThat "joker" has a history of picking fights at other cartoon blogs and boards whenever someone dares to disagree with him on anything. It doesn't help that he graduated from the school of Spumco. :-/
ReplyDelete@MoonDarter: I don't mind when people have differing opinions, just so long as they've got legitimate reasons for having them. You explained why you don't care for "King of the Hill", and that's fine. But the people I've been encountering are offering no reason for their opinions and are just bashing stuff for the sake of bashing. That's what really hocks me off.
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame, JB, that bashing for the sake of bashing just so happens to increase the E-Peens of uncultured jokers like that one. These guys aren't just for animation, either, they come in all shapes and sizes...
ReplyDeleteA few words about a few things:
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't mind seeing an Incredibles sequel myself, but I don't necessarily think we NEED a sequel.
Any notion of a Bone movie triggers my spider-sense (and not in a good way), but motion capture? Did people suddenly forget how to draw?
I was never a Family Guy fan, given that Seth McFarlane's characters seem to go out their way to abuse each other (and the pop culture asides leave me cold). The art style on that show never did anything for me, either. So a fourth McFarlane series is not on my radar.
I read Lopez's comments about his Speedy Gonzalez move.
Short version: he's an idiot.
Long version: he's an awful comedian...and an idiot.
As to Disney, it could be said that the animated movies which it produced after 1961 could charitably be described as hit-or-miss.
Can you imagine The Princess and the Frog done in Tex Avery fashion?
It bugs me when certain people complain about how Disney is only about Hanna Montana and High School Musical and have abandoned animation, blah, blah blah. Well, what about the Pixar and Studio Ghibli films that are infinitely more well-crafted than your precious DuckTales, ya jerkwads! Sorry, I just needed to let that out. But seriously, I think Disney (at least their feature animation division) has gotten tremendously better since John Lasseter became head of. I just support Disney (their theatrical films, that is), and have far more respect for them as a film studio than pretty much all the other Hollywood megaconglomerates (which, admittedly, isn't saying much.)
ReplyDeleteYa know, I just can't bear to read Thad K.'s blog anymore, and I really don't want to go into detail about why (don't want to cause any riffs with Thad).
-"Warner Bros.' attempt to hop on the Alvin and the Chipmunks bandwagon with live action movies based on Marvin the Martian, Tom and Jerry, Yogi Bear, and Speedy Gonzales"
ReplyDeleteWell isn't this just great? The fact that George Lopez is producing doesn't help either, and besides that I hear this type of stuff a lot too, how everything thats made today is automatically horrible, when they don't have a valid reason why they think it's horrible, so I know how you feel.
Well, seeing as a lot of people said what I was going to say, I guess I have no choice but to give you this as a cop-out. Remember J.B...
ReplyDelete"Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best...
And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life...
If life seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that's the thing.
And, always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life...
For life is quite absurd
And death's the final word
You must always face the curtain with a bow.
Forget about your sin - give the audience a grin
Enjoy it - it's your last chance anyhow.
So, always look on the bright side of death
Just before you draw your terminal breath
Life's a piece of shit
When you look at it
Life's a laugh and death's a joke, it's true.
You'll see it's all a show
Keep 'em laughing as you go
Just remember that the last laugh is on you.
And always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the right side of life...x6"
Jesse, Seth shouldn't HAVE four. He's just a greedy egotistical snotbag now. Somebody else should be given a shot. Plus the odds that it's going to be the same thing AGAIN are greater than 2 to 1.
ReplyDeleteAlso: I was right; you're drawing a lot less now that you have a blog with a significantly smaller audience.
"And finally, one joker I found on the GAC Forums who insists that all animation everywhere should be like Tex Avery's cartoons, and that anything that doesn't conform to that mold is utter garbage"
ReplyDeleteIf I may ask, who exactly is this person?
I must say that it's somewhat troubling that two threads on Toon Zone right now are "Cartoons That Rot Kids' minds" and "Shows you hate that everyone loves". I quite frankly don't have the heart to read either one, and I couldn't read the "I Hate.." thread in the Cafe Toon Zone subforum,
It's actually George Lopez's wife Anne Lopez (who will produce the Speedy film) who said the old cartoons were racist, not George himself.
The Incredibles doesn't need a sequel at all, but I would imagine it would lend itself better to having a sequel than most of Pixar's other films (hey, it tons of great stories have been told about superheroes in comic books over the years, why can't Brad Bird come up with at least one more worthwhile adventure for the Incredibles). It's worth noting that there was a video game sequel to the Incredibles called "Revenge of the UnderMiner" and a comic book series from Boom! Studios.
Regarding the Bone movie, I pretty much agree with this quote by Ed Liu of Toon Zone:
"Either way, I find that mocap (and rotoscoping) tends to work best when it's used to convert a human character into something entirely other. The best characters in Beowulf were Grendel and the dragon, and I think Appleseed and Appleseed Ex Machina worked because they made their mocap characters look more like stereotypical anime characters than realistic people. However, given that, I think that might just mean that the Bones and the Stupid Stupid Rat Creatures will look great and Thorn will look like a blind zombie mannequin."
"King Of The Hill" has always been awesome. It should get more respect.
ReplyDelete@Jesse: Opinions that don't offer any explanation behind them, as if they're wholly self-evident, are rather too prevalent on the Web. In fact, you've done that yourself in your original post by not stating why it's a bad idea to use motion capture to do Bone. Oops! :) (No, you needn't go into it for me; I'm just pointing out how widespread the problem is. I'm sure I've been guilty as well.)
ReplyDeleteNevertheless, it still doesn't serve any useful purpose to attack the people behind the opinions rather than the opinions themselves. Those who might be receptive to your ideas, or at least are willing to discuss the issues, will be more likely to dig in their heels; those who can't be convinced by any means will be unfazed; and those who are just picking a fight will be delighted because you've stooped to their level where, as the joke goes, they have the distinct advantage of experience. So the best you can hope for is to maintain the conversation at a low level, which is just wasting your time.
I find it better to explain what I find deficient about an idea and, if I can't find anything nice to say about its holder, refrain from referring to that person in any manner. The worst that happens is that I get dismissed out of hand and/or called names by the people who can't disagree in an agreeable manner. But I do get more respect from the others.
If you disagree with something, say so. But do take the high road. It's less crowded. :)
Wow, this post has the most comments on the blog so far! And it's revolving around disappointment, no less. Goes to show what everyone on the internet likes! =D
ReplyDeleteThere may not need to be an Incredibles sequel, but I'd love to see one.
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way when people talk trash about traditional sitcoms. Seriously, what did the laugh track ever do to you?
ReplyDeleteSome of those shows have the best writing in part because the production staff suffers endlessly from the vehicle of stars headlining the series.