Johnny Bravo

Check out the last review here! (http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2016/03/the-lion-king-ii-simbas-pride.html)

    The animated television series Johnny Bravo was an iconic show that was a part of a lot of people's childhoods...and it also was not what I was planning on reviewing today but oh well, these things happen.

    "Johnny Bravo", like MAAANY Cartoon Network programs of its' day started off as shorts on "What A Cartoon!". Specifically, 3 shorts which aired in 1995, 1996, and 1997. Later on in 1997, Johnny got his own series which only lasted for 1 season before being put on hiatus. It was picked back up again in 1999 and lasted 3 more seasons before ending in 2004. Johnny was initially a show where each episode was made up of 3 segments, each 7 minutes long. In the 4th and final season, they lengthened each segment to 11 minutes long and made it so that each episode only contained 2 segments. Personally, I prefer the first way of doing things because Johnny Bravo was such a light show that it really didn't need segments that were too long, and also because the "3 segments" format of doing things has just become less and less common in recent years, but truely it didn't make a big enough difference to detract from the viewing experience.

     The series followed the titular "Johnny Bravo" a 20-something man who is very muscular and cares a lot about his appearance. Strangely enough, despite these two qualities that jjust scream "popular kid" he only really has two friends. Even more sad is the fact that one, Carl Chryniszzwics (wait what kind of name is that?) , a total geek, and the other, Suzy, is an elementary school girl. And to cement Johnny loser lot in life, we have the fact that he doesn't appear to have any job and definitely still lives with his mother (Bunny "Mama" Bravo). Oh, and even his mother doesn't ever really take him seriously.

    Now you'd think someone in Johnny's position would focus his life on getting a job, getting out of his mothers' house, and making some friends his own age (besides just Carl), but no. Johnny spends all of his time trying to pick up chicks and failing miserably despite his attractive appearance. Ironically enough, it's not even the fact that he's unemployed that repels the girls (he almost never gets far enough to let them know that). Instead, it's Johnny's dumb, shallow, and arrogant personality that manages to instantly repel women 90% of the time. The show generally focuses on the antics Johnny gets himself into trying to impress women. Now, the suspense is not in whether or not he succeeds, because he always fails. The suspense is instead in how ridiculous the way he fails will be and how exasperated Mama and Lil' Suzy will be with him afterwards.

    Honestly you'd think this would get irritating with such an obnoxious protagonist, yet Johnny always manages to balance on that thin line between "too obnoxious" and "not obnoxious enough". He's just ignorant enough of his surroundings to pull off that "lovable idiot" character and he shows on multiple occasions that he's actually pretty kindhearted. Notably, he once is running late for a date and stops to help a kitten out of a tree (though that ends up leading into a complicated time travel plot). INTERESTING SIDENOTE: Considering how appearance-centered and dumb he is, I always assumed Johny was a popular jock in high school who never grew out of it, but we actually see in a flashback episode that he was scrawny and unpopular in high school and bulked up BECAUSE of that. Now, you never see Johnny ever get a second date or a real girlfriend, and he always remains a loser, but you know he'll be ok so long as he has his supporting cast, and you know that so long as he has that cast, he will not only be a loser, but a hilarious, lovable loser. And THAT is why I love Johnny Bravo. If you're a fan of things such as the Flintstones or Tom and Jerry, this will be your cup of tea.

"Thank you, thank you very much."

The Lion King II: Simba's Pride

    Check out my last review here! (http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2016/02/tiny-toon-adventures.html)
   
    This sequel to one of my favourite movies of all time was oddly enough never released in theatres, only getting a release directly to home video (VHS and DVD), This was the custom when it came to Disney animated sequels at the time, they created countless direct-to-home video sequels through the 1990s and 2000s, yet you'd honestly think they'd make an exception for the sequel to the highest-grossing animated movie ever at the time. Hmm oh well.

    The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, is the sequel to the ever-popular "The Lion King", and came out 4 years after the original, in 1998. This runs just about 10 minutes shorter than the first movie, at 1 hour and 20 minutes and serves as the finale to The Lion King franchise....which is strange as it wasn't exactly a huge franchise at the time. Oddly enough, despite being such a popular movie, Disney never really milked The Lion King when it came to making movies or tv shows or things like that. Of course, they did it up with the merchandising and the storybooks for kids but they only made two "sequels": This one and the 2004 "The Lion King 1 and 1/2" which is less of another sequel and more of a retelling of the original movie from the perspective of the comedic relief side characters Timon and Pumbaa (a la Rosencrantz and Guldenstern Are Dead). Prior to this movie, the only Lion King anything we got (other than of course the first movie) was a very comedic show on Timon and Pumbaa. Only very recently, years after Lion King mania has died down, have we gotten The Lion Guard, a TV series more focused on the actual lion family...and it's totally aimed towards children. Either way, all of this previously mentioned media is set in the gap between this film and its' predecessor. To date, this is the chronologically last thing to happen in the franchise and I feel it might stay that way for a long time (not that I can't hope otherwise). Overall, it has much more of a feeling of an ending than the previous film. While The Lion King ends with the main character having a baby and than a title card flash, this movie ends with no hints at future generations and a card that actually says "The End" 

    But speaking of The Lion King ending with Simba's baby, this movie actually opens up with the exact same scene the last movie ended with, but with a lot more buildup and detail. You should note that there are a few differences between this version and the original, most notably the baby: The baby here looks chubby and also happy and excitable, whereas the original baby looked slimmer and also more confused yet serious, you might think i'm nitpicking but it's actually pretty noticeable. This of course has fueled countless conspiracy fan theories about the babies actually being two different babies but we're not going to get into that right now. Putting all that aside, you have to got to love the bookends with these movies. The first movie opens up with our main character (Simba) being presented as a baby and then ends with him presenting his own baby, but more rushed and less pomp as we're not setting up for a movie this time around. The second movie begins with the same scene as the first movie ended off on, but they redo it with all the pomp of the first movie's opening scene, as yet again we ARE introducing a protagonist who's gonna carry the movie. This time, Simba's daughter Kiara.

   If you've been living under a rock for decades and somehow do not know the story of The Lion King, you should read my review on that movie (http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2016/02/the-lion-king.html) but if you don't want to, I'll summarize it very quickly here as you really have to know that movie to understand this one: Mufasa is the king of lions and all of Africa, he gets killed by his own brother Scar who then tricks Mufasa's son, Simba, into running away, one day Simba gets brought back by his childhood friend Nala and he slays his evil uncle (just like Hamlet). Unlike Hamlet, this ends pretty good and Simba becomes king and lives happily ever after...until this movie.

    The premise of this movie is that Princess Kiara ends up falling in love with Kovu, a kid who's mom is the leader of the Outlanders: a group of lions who supported Scar and got exiled when Simba came back, and because of that, they hate Simba. So basically, two young people from feuding clans fall in love regardless of their family differences and then have to work through those family differences if they want to be together (kinda like...Romeo and Juliet....this entire franchise is literally Shakespeare but with lions, I love it). Like the first movie of course, this ends a lot better than the plays it based itself on and spoiler that isn't even really a spoiler: happy couple stays together, everyone gets along in the end. 

Special Note: This movie keeps the previous movies protagonistic comedic relief in the form of Timon and Pumbaa, and yet it loses the previous antagonistic comedic relief: Scar's minions, the hyenas. Their replacement is Kovu's brother, who is only one guy and is a bit more serious than they were anyways, so this film just isn't as funny as the previous one. However, for me at least, I watch the Lion King for the drama first and foremost so this doesn't take that much away. 

    This movie just will never get as much recognition as what came before it, considering it never got a theatrical release (or it's own broadway muscial for that matter), and frankly it doesn't deserve too: The story is just plain not as strong as it's predecessor. There are plenty of movies that outdo what came before them (Superman II and Star Wars Episode 5 come to mind) but this is not one of them. However, that doesn't mean it's a bad movie or even a movie that gets as much credit as it deserves. Many will tell you this is not a good movie, however I beg to differ. The animation is still great (probably even better than the previous one) and to be honest, I actually enjoyed this movie's musical soundtrack even more than the last one's. And though it might be stuck in the shadow of it's predecessor story-wise, it's still a good movie that's 100% worth a check-out.

Tiny Toon Adventures

    Please check out my last review here! http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2016/02/the-lion-king.html

    Sorry that I missed the last two weeks and I'm super late this week but I've been really busy with people's birthdays and the like. Anyways, we're back today taking a look at Tiny Toon Adventures!

    This series aired 3 seasons from 1990 to 1992 and is honestly the first thing I think of when I think of a "90s Cartoon" (after Animaniacs, of course). It aired a total of ninety-eight 22-minute episodes, the vast majority of which were one story each. On top of this, it released a 1 hour and 20 minute long direct-to-home video film in between seasons 2 and 3, and 2-3 years after the series ended it would air two 44 minute long TV specials (one of which was Halloween themed). Thus it ended in 1995 with 100 episodes and a movie. 

    The premise is simple. You remember all those Looney Tunes characters that you love? Well, here they are but they're kids. Enjoy. Interestingly enough, this actually worked really well but only because of a couple things. First of all, these are not simply the usual characters as kids (like the later Baby Looney Tunes would try to do) nor is it the usual character's children or grandchildren. Instead this show tries a far less cliched route and introduces us to totally original characters who serve as the OG Looney Tunes' apprentices. Sometimes they're similar to their mentors, and sometimes they're not. That was the beauty of it, they were their own characters.

    If you check out the picture at the top you can see some of the most important Tiny Toons kids (how old were they anyways? Apparently 13-14 and they act like it but they sure do not look it to me). These include: Buster and Babs Bunny: Bugs' students and the hosts of the show. The male Buster reflects Bugs' clever side while female Babs' reflects his zany side, they're the hosts of the show. Fifi la Fume (Pepe's apprentice). Calamity Coyote (Wile E.'s genius successor), and the Tasmanian Devil's heir Dizzy most notably. However, just like with the actual Looney Tunes the cast is VERY large, too large to list quickly. But a few key toons you don't see in the bus picture would include Hampton J. Pig (Porky Pig's analogue), Plucky the Duck (Daffy Duck's counterpart), and the "villains" (if you can call them that) Montana Max and Elmyra Duff. 

   The villains were probably the least like their predecessors, with Max being a lot less gunhappy than Yosemite Sam and Elmyra actually loving animals (too much) compared to Elmer Duff who hunted them. 

    This series led to Warner Bros. expanding a lot in the area of animated, televised comedy and can be credited for making one of my favourite shows of all time (Animaniacs) possible. It also led to Pinky, Elmyra, and the Brain but that's another issue for another time. And if you look at it completely by it's own merits, it's a honestly very funny show that managed to be entertaining for the kids and also sneak in some very adult themes. *Cough* episode where Buster, Plucky, and Hampton get drunk *Cough*. Point is, if you haven't seen this yet, go see it right now. Peace be upon you. 

The Lion King

 
 

   Sorry for the late post, I actually did this yesterday but my internet went out. Check out the last review here! http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2016/01/gi-joe-real-american-hero.html

     Today, I'll be doing something a little different: I'll be looking at a movie, as a matter of fact, my all-time favorite movie, The Lion King.

    The Lion King debuted in theatres in 1994 and told the life story of Simba, the Prince of the Pridelands: A lush sahara teeming with a variety of animals that live in peace and harmony, and the guardians of this balance are the lions. Simba's father, Mufasa, is the king, and is a pretty much flawless character. He's selfless,  he's brave, and he's wise. Simba is no Mufasa. Simba's a good kid with good intentions, yes. He's well-meaning and adorably energetic, yes. But Simba is not his father. He's a flawed main character who makes a lot of mistakes, lacks confidence in himself, often fails to see the big picture, and can be just a little bit selfish at times. But he's the hero of our story and we get to see him grow from a scared little kid to a big strong lion who ultimately saves the day.

    For all his great qualities, Mufasa is loved by all but one, his jealous younger brother, Scar (who........has a Scar on his face. Wow). Scar plots with the hyena clan (the mortal enemies of the lions) to get Mufasa killed. And when he succeeds (in one of the most heartbreaking animated scenes of my childhood). He convinces impressionable young Simba that it was HIS fault and gets Simba to run away (from his problems). Simba is taken in by a bromantic odd couple: Timon the Meerkat and Pumbaa the Warthog. Simba grows up and after a run-in with his childhood friend Nala, he returns to reclaim his rightful throne and defeats his evil uncle and the hyenas.

    The Lion King is a fast-paced, blink and you miss it, kind of story and it is fricking amazing. Honestly, it's a movie everyone should see at least once in their lives. It sounds like it's basically Hamlet with lions, and it is, but it's also so much more than it. It's one of the rare musicals I've watched where the songs haven't annoyed me but are actually very catchy, and it has grade-A animation. Perhaps it's nostalgia, perhaps it's the musical numbers that actually manage to be entertaining, plot-relavant, and not distracting, perhaps it's the compelling characters, or perhaps it's a combination of all, but the point is: it's pretty good.

    This movie was (at the time of its' initial release) the highest-grossing animated film of all time, a title it kept for over 20 years. It was famous for being the first Disney film to tell an original story (though i'd argue the story was a blatant ripoff of Kimba the White Lion. However, that's not what we're talking about today) and it was, interestingly enough, dethroned just a couple years ago by Frozen, another Disney animated movie that told an original story. Do I think Frozen was good? Yes. Do I think it was on the same level as this movie? No, but that's not the point. The point i'm trying to make is that this movie is a beloved part of a lot of childhoods, and if you haven't checked it out yet, you need to. My review honestly can't do it justice. If you happen to like it, there's some other material in the franchise you can read too including a direct-to-video sequel (The Lion King II: Simba's Pride), a direct-to-video retelling of this movie, showing it from the perspective of  Timon and Pumbaa (The Lion King 1 1/2: Hakuna Matata) and "Timon and Pumbaa" and "The Lion Guard" two spinoff TV series (the latter of which is still ongoing at the time I'm writing this). I'll probably get to reviewing those all later but for now, watch this movie. Even if you've seen it once before, it's honestly the type of movie that's worth a rewatch.

G.I Joe: A Real American Hero

   Check out my last post here! http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2016/01/samurai-jack.html

 Though a bit more of an 80s Cartoon, G.I Joe did air partially in the 90s and i'm sure enough people remember this that it's worth talking about. 

    G.I Joe aired 4 seasons from 1985 to 1992. Notably season 1 and 2 were produced by Sunbow and Marvel, while seasons 3 and 4 were produced by DIC. This resulted in the two halfs of the series being drastically different with the art style and even the voice cast changing between seasons 2 and 3. If you ask someone to remember G.I Joe, they are inevitably going to think of the Sunbow seasons however as they were far more popular and if you look at them on their own, they have a more satisfying conclusion than the DIC seasons, but we'll get to that later.

    The series followed the U.S.A Army Special Unit "G.I Joe" which is made up of the most manly, patriotic, stereotyped, and jingoistic band of men you could possibly find. They were unrealistically muscly men who spoke entirely in forced, clunky expository dialogue and cheesy one-liners. However, G.I Joe existed in a world of programming where if something was marketed towards boys, it was marketed ENTIRELY towards male children and no one else whatsoever. And 10-12 year old boys did not tune in to watch gripping, realistic, and cleverly-written drama, they tuned in to watch cool badasses (that they wanted to be like) shoot things up with lazer guns. 

And by damn, Sunbow was gonna give the boys of America what they wanted even if it killed them

G.I Joe was made up of a WIDE menagerie of characters (that each were cool in their own ways) but a few of the more memorable ones included: 

Duke, the attack leader of G.I Joe and the resident blond-haired, handsome, lady-catching hero (as pictured above). 

Flint: The second-in-command who was also a dashing hero (as pictured with the beret).

Scarlet: The fiesty ginger (who existed to stave away the feminists) as pictured above.

Roadblock: The token black guy who spouted a new catchphrase every minute, as though his purpose was to remind you that THIS CARTOON WANTS TO SELL YOU TOYS!!! (as pictured above)

and Snake-Eyes: The resident ninja (how?) of the team who saved Sunbow a fortune since he didn't speak and therefore didn't need a voice acotr. He too is pictured above, though he probably shouldn't be as ninjas are, as everyone knows, typically invisible. (But seriously, a ninja is an assassin, why would the U.S.A Army ever hire.......nevermind).

    G.I Joe mostly just dealt with one enemy all the time: Cobra, a terrorist organization  dedicated to taking over the world. Cobra also had a huge cast but a lot less of them were memorable. For the most part you simply had: 

Cobra Commander; The always-masked leader of the nefarious organization. Feared by most Cobra, laughed at by everyone from G.I Joe, he was kind of an arrogant brat who was more annoying than threatening half the time. 

Man was he cooler in the live-action movies

Destro and the Baroness: The 2nd-in-command of Cobra who was generally the first to call the Commander out on his shit and his girlfriend (COBRA'S token female)

Zartan: The leader of a gang of self-serving mercenaries who overtime become more and more loyal to Cobra, 

Let's play: Guess the Leader!

Storm Shadow: He's basically what happened when Cobra Commander saw that G.I Joe had a ninja and said to himself "I want one of those!" (NINJAS DO NOT WORK LIKE THAT)

Let's play: Guess the Ninja!

And last but certainly not least the man Cobra LITERALLY CREATED TO LEAD THEM (after they realized the Commander wasn't very good at it).......

Serpentor,

The Cobra Emperor:  

Only villain who was actually intimidating

  As I've gone on long enough describing characters, let's take a moment to describe the plot of the show. Cobra makes super-weapon. Cobra tries to take over the world. G.I Joe does not allow that. Repeat. For Two Seasons. 

    That was the entire show until we got to the movie. Than two more seasons of what was described above, Than two clip shows.........wanna talk about the movie? Let's.

    G.I Joe: The Movie was the crowning moment of the series. It's also where they jumped the shark (backflip). It revealed the Cobra had actually always been SPOILER ALERTasdfghjklacoverforanintraterrestrialsocietyofsnakepeopleasdfghjklSPOILERS END HERE.

I know you don't actually care and that you can't read that so I'm just gonna tell you anyways: Cobra was a cover for snake-people who desired world domination. I know it sounds ridiculous (it was) but it was actually kinda awesome. 

And that pretty much sums up G.I Joe?  Was i absolutely ludicrous? Yes. But did it give it's target audience what it wanted? Yes. Does that make it a failure or a success? You can believe whatever you want but i'm gonna go with success. 

See y'all next week. 

Samurai Jack

    Check out my last post here! http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/my-top-10-favourite-90s-cartoons.html

    First off, suppppppper sorry guys that I've been on hiatus for way too long now, hope to get back on track. Now, this is way overdue, a review for Samurai Jack!

      Samurai Jack was the only cartoon I listed on my 10 Favourite 90s Cartoons list (http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/my-top-10-favourite-90s-cartoons.html) that I hadn't reviewed yet and it 100% deserved to be there. it was an amazing show that was cancelled too early and luckily enough for us, that bad decision is finally being reversed! That's right, on the off-chance that you hadn't heard about it yet, Samurai Jack will be revived later this year. And what better way to celebrate that than by looking back on the original show!

    Samurai Jack aired three seasons from 2001 to 2003, meaning it's technically not really a "90s Cartoon" per say, but I think most of us can agree it was a great addition to our childhoods. The series followed the tale of a Samurai Prince who was thrusted into the far future by a demon and now has to fight a variety of baddies in the cyberpunk dystopia that is the future.We never actually get to know his real name but to the strangers he meets, he goes by the name "Jack".....and Jack is one of the coolest cartoon characters you will ever watch.

And he bares an odd resemblance to a certain Professor who....nah

    Jack's was a show that was pretty unique for the early 2000s Cartoon Network lineup. You had shows like The PowerPuff Girls, Dexter's Laboratory, and Ed, Edd, n Eddy, all of which showed kids doing some pretty crazy stuff that most people probably never would. But they were all very humorous and you almost never had to actually worry about a problem not getting resolved. In Samurai Jack, the problem was already beyond resolution. The world has gone to hell and the only way for Jack to save the world is to get back to his own time and stop his archnemesis, the Demon Wizard Aku, from ever taking over the world in the first place. And speaking of Aku, he was one of very few villains in fiction who pulled off alternating between being an intimidating threat and a comic relief within the runtime of a single episode. 

    Aku had a crazy design and a backstory that basically put him on the same level of evil as the Devil himself (it's so good that I couldn't possibly spoil it), and yet he was hilarious and light-hearted when he felt like it. A lot of credit has to go to the legendary Mako who voiced him. 

    Another unconventional thing the series did was that it really didn't have much of a cast. It pretty much was just Jack dealing with a different sidequest every episode. Helping a new town or something of the like on his way back to the past every day. The only real constant was Jack and the only villain you could expect to survive to fight another day was Aku. Only one stranger Jack ever helped got to get a second (and a third) appearance and that was the big galoot called the Scotsman. 

And damn, did he deserve it, another really funny character who could kick butt.

     Because of the nature of this series, it was one of the only shows that really needed a conclusion....and it DID NOT GET ONE. The series ended in 2004 with a simple episode that really left everything about Jack's quest un-resolved. We thought we might get a more satisfying ending with the IDW Samurai Jack comic book series that ran from 2013 to 2015 but alas, we didn't. Let's hope this upcoming Season 5 can finally give us what we've all been waiting for!

    All in all, Samurai Jack was a very funny series that knew when and how to tell a dramatic story, and if you haven't checked it out you should. It had a kickass opening theme song to boot and the animation is perfectly passable. I'd recommend the three-part premiere episode as well as "the Birth of Evil" Aku's two part origin story, if you're looking for a good starting place, but really this was a series with no truly bad episodes, ask anyone. To all my Samurai Jack fans, let's get hyped for Season 5!

Animaniacs Episode # 79 - The 12 Days of Christmas Day 2

    On the second day of Christmas, my TV gave to me 3 weird monkey-dog things! (Seriously, what are the Warner Siblings?)

    Animaniacs (http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/animaniacs.html) was a show that was....odd with its' Christmas-themed episodes. It had 4 of them. Now they had 2 in 1 December for some reason, but this (the third one) was the weird one......it aired in February. Now the 4th and final Christmas special aired in an even weirder time of year, but I'll be reviewing that episode later so I'll save that until then. But seriously, to the best of my knowledge, no one was ever informed WHY the Animaniacs Christmas-themed episodes aired on such weird dates

so I'm just going to presume it was a mistake.

Now this (like many an Animanicas episode) contained 2 cartoons and 2 short songs

My Mother, The Squirrel

Where Slappy ends up being imprinted on by a baby bird

The Party

Where Yakko and his siblings invite Mr. Plotz to a party with a "Steven" who Plotz presumes is Spielberg (Spoilers: He's not)

Oh Say, Can You See?

A bastardization of a classic American patriot song that sure has a lot more fun than the real song did, even anthropomorphising the candle that many American Revolutionists used to light their rooms when they needed to write

and

The Twelve Days of Christmas 

A bastardization of the classic Christmas song that inspired this series (SHOUTOUT TO THAT SONG, YOU THE REAL MVP) 

    All-in-all, not much of a special episode, and honestly not much to talk about. Just your usual Animaniacs episode, hilarious. I like it when we get to see how sad Plotz's love-life is. I like seeing Slappy have to deal with her total contrast: a happy-go-lucky newborn bird, and I like figuring out that it's NOT Steven Spielberg who the Warner Trio invited to their party. But what takes the cake to all that, the crowning achievement of this episode has to be.......the "say hello to Christopher Walken" meme

Why won't anyone say hi to me?

   But in all seriousness, this is not the best Animaniacs Christmas special and it's nothing special. Worth a watch for a giggle if you have the time but it's not a hard-hitter or a must-watch by any stretch of the imagination. See you guys tomorrow!

A Garfield Christmas Special - The 12 Days of Christmas Day 1

For the first day of christmas, my TV gave to me, A Garfield Christmas Special!

    Though many who watch this are going to assume it was part of the "Garfield and Friends" TV series (http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/garfield-and-friends.html) that I previously reviewed on this blog, (hell, even I listed it as part of that series, just yesterday) it technically isn't as it actually came out almost a year before the series did. As a matter of fact, it was one of 8 Garfield-based TV specials that were released from 1982 to 1988 (when the series started). Nevertheless, it features the same cast and crew so fans of the series might like this too. However, I'll be the first to admit that this TV special is rather....well, special. It takes up a whole 22 minutes (triple the average Garfield episode) and it's NOT all comedy. That's right, there is actually occasionally some serious moral subtext in this special's run time (shocker I know). It follows Jon, Garfield, and Odie as they try to survive Christmas Eve with Jon's family. We meet Jon''s mother, his father, his brother, and his grandmother, who are all characters we don't see that often so it is fun to see them here. Speaking of Jon's parents, in the original comic strip weren't they the ones who owned Nermal?

Truly, the world's cutest cat......and also sadly not in this special, MOVING ON. 

    

    A disappointing lack of Nermal aside, Jon's family....isn't that fun. They're just your typical, run-of-the-mill farming family. You've got the doting mother, the well-meaning but occasionally grouchy dad, and you have the childish younger brother. While it's sensible for such a usual family to proudce such a usual character, such as Jon, they still could be a tad bit more vibrant. 

Now, the one glaring exception to this rule is the Grandma, who is a know-it-all, attention-seeking, self-absorbed, sarcastic, glory hogging, cynic..........just like Garfield. And Garfield notices this too, he actually develops a special bond with her over this special (back to the part where I mentioned this actually has  moral subtext). Now, WHY she is so cynical is explained as a result of her husband dying a while ago. Ultimately, Garfield gets her the best gift of all when he's able to get her a Christmas present that pleasantly reminds her of her late husband. Christmas morning, while all these gifts are being exchanged is also when we see Odie unveil a gift he's been making for Garfield the whole special long....and Garfield actually likes it. You heard me right folks, Garfield got a gift for someone other than himself, and Odie was able to do something nice for Garfield, all in 22 minutes. All this is missing is an Orson's Farm cameo and a Nermal appearance,  and we could call this a doggone masterpiece. 

This is not to say the special didn't have a few problems. It's not quite as funny as the show would become, and the animation isn't as good either (though that is a fault of the times, not the show). And as I mentioned, Jon's family is bland and generic (to the point even their designs are kind generic)

For real tho, I've heard of strong family resemblance but this is a bit too much

Overall however, I've gotta say this special's successes far out way its' faults and it's worth a checking out if you haven't given it one already. So with that, a ho-ho-ho and a Merry Christmas to you! See you tomorrow!

HUGE Christmas Project Annoucement

Hey guys! Long time no see, sorry for the hiatus but I promised I'd give you something big, and I always deliver. In celebration of my favourite holiday of all time, my favourite way to spend said holiday, and my favourite song about that holiday, i'm going to be reviewing a different animated Christmas special that came out in the 90s' everyday for the 12 days leading up to (and including) Christmas! Now, admittedly not all of these are animated, and not all came out in the 90s, but I think I was close enough that it's not gonna bother anyone. That being said, I'll be reviewing what follows:

Day 1 (Dec. 14) - "A Garfield Christmas" (Garfield and Friends) 

Day 2 (Dec. 15) - "Episode #79" (Animaniacs) 

Day 3 (Dec. 16) - "It's A Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special" (Tiny Toon Adventures) 

Day 4 (Dec. 17) - "The Santa Experience" (Rugrats) 

Day 5 (Dec. 18) - "We Wish You A Turtle Christmas" (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) 

Day 6 (Dec. 19) - "Alpha's Magical Christmas" (Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers) 

Day 7 (Dec. 20) - "Dexter vs. Santa Claws" (Dexter's Labratory) 

Day 8 (Dec. 21) - "A Scooter for Yaksmas" (Ren and Stimpy) 

Day 9 (Dec. 22) - "An All Dogs Christmas" (All Dogs Go to Heaven) 

Day 10 (Dec. 23) - "A Pinky and the Brain Christmas" (Pinky and the Brain) 

Day 11 (Dec. 24) - "Episode #98" (Animaniacs) 

Day 12 (Dec. 25) - "Twas The Flight Before Christmas" (Powerpuff Girls) 

So that's all for tonight, but starting tomorrow, I'll be reviewing one of these every day until Christmas! Hope you guys are as excited for this as I am! :)

Brb Super Busy

Hey guys won't be able to post something new this week, super busy but I got a project I'm working on so don't worry, I'll be back next week at full force!

My Top 10 Favourite 90s Cartoons

In this post, we'll be doing something a bit different. I'll be listing and looking at MY own personal Top 10 Favourite 90s Cartoons. This is completely subjective so don't get upset if you don't see a show you loved. As a matter of fact, I may not have ever even seen it, so point them out to me in the comments. *Also keep in mind that my ratings of the cartoons at the end of their individual reviews are objective, while this list is not. Soooooo the ratings might not line up with my rankings.* 

RULES: 

1. No anime (so no Dragon Ball Z, Yu-Gi-Oh, Beyblade, etc)

2. Has to have begun and ended within 1990 to 2005 (so no Spongebob Squarepants or Fairly Odd Parents

3. Obviously, had to have been animated. And I mean traditional  handrawn 2D animation. No CGI  or for that matter  stop motion (sorry Reboot)

4. Obviously only TV series.

So without further ado, let's begin!

10. Samurai Jack

Haven't mentioned this one before but I probably will soon enough. I don't even think this one has to be explained, EVERYONE who's watched Samurai Jack has liked it. What's not to like in a show about a samurai who gets sent forward in time and has to adjust to a futuristic world while fighting to get back to his own? The answer to that question is nothing. There is nothing not to like in a show like that. 

09. Batman: The Animated Series

Batman is a great show and everyone knows it. It had some major high points and, despite just being a cartoon and not anything live-action, it was the most ambitious and successful Batman project (outside of the comics) to date. It was cinematic in scope, handled dramatic tension and serious situations better than any other kids show at the time, and it did the original Batman comics justice. Here is the full review for further detail. http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/09/batman-tas.html

08. Superman: The Animated Series

Superman: TAS benefited from the same genius creative team as the aforementioned Batman: TAS. And they sure brought their A-game here too, with top-notch animation, and gripping stories.Not much else to say. Here is the full review for further detail.  http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/09/superman-tas.html

07. Dexter's Labaratory

Because of this show, Dexter will forever be a supergenius little boy to me (and not a serial killer forensic scientist). Honestly, this show should've gone on longer as it could've told a lot more stories. It was a pretty simple series but it was fresh and original and especially in the first two seasons, funny. Here is the full review for further detail.  http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/dexters-labratory.html

06. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

The TMNT are a group that isn't really defined by any one iteration of themselves. I've grown up with their comics, movies, and multiple versions of their cartoon, and each where great in their own unique way. This variation of them however is really the one that defined them for a generation, and even though it's crazy silly, it's charming and endearing at the same time. It's 100% earned it's long shelf length. Here is the full review for further detail.  http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/08/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles.html

05: The Powerpuff Girls

This was a show that I really wasn't proud of because of its' "girlishness"....but at the same time, it kicks ass for a little girls show and honestly has aged very well.The action was suspenseful and the contrast between the girls superhero and everyday lives was a comedy gold mine. Absolutely can not wait to see the reboot coming out next year, I have high hopes. Here is the full review for further detail. http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/the-powerpuff-girls.html

04:  Garfield and Friends

Garfield and Friends was a show that lasted very long despite having a pretty average size audience. I am totally ok with that because this show can make me laugh like only one other can. (We'll get to that one in the minute). While other shows try to balance multiple genres, this one just does comedy....and it does it REALLY REALLY well. It works here because the characters are just perfect for each other and for us. Best incarnation of Garfiled, hands down. Here is the full review for further detail. http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/garfield-and-friends.html

03: Justice League

JLU was the cartoon everyone was waiting for. It had stories so big that every single episode had to be a 2-parter for the first couple seasons. The combination of all these big-name heroes working together for the first time since Super Friends made it really an epic, must-see show, and it did that in all the right ways. Here is the full review for further detail.  http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/09/justice-league-unlimited.html

02: Animaniacs

Animaniacs is the funniest production I have ever seen in my life so far, and it probably will remain so for a very long time. Every single episode made me laugh uncontrollably at least once and i think most other kids had this experience. It lasted for 5 seasons which is longer than most, but it definitely ould've lived for longer considering that its' popularity wasn't weaning at all. Here is the full review for further detail. http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/10/animaniacs.html

A couple honourable mentions: Tiny Toon Adventures, Ed, Edd, n Eddy, Timon and Pumbaa, X-Men: The Animated Series, and Batman Beyond. RIP, you magnificent TV series, you.


NOW A DRUMROLL PLEASE

01: Spider Man:  The Animated Series.

YOU ALREADY KNEW THIS WAS GONNA BE HERE. If you've ever read the full review (http://that90sguyreviews.blogspot.ca/2015/09/spider-man-tas.html) you know that it mentions that this is my favourite show of all time, and I am not lying when I say that. Spider-Man is a crazily relatable and entertaining character and I go nuts for him. So when I saw an adaptation of him that does him in the cartoons PERFECTLY ACCURATE to how he is in his original comics.....I was just blown away.

Thanks guys! Hope you enjoyed this little change and see you next week when I get back to my normal routine!

Dexter's Labratory

Dexter's Labratory was an animated television series that aired for two seasons from 1996 to 1998 before getting a finale movie in '99, "Dexter's Labratory: Ego Trip".....and then getting revived in only 2 years in 2001. The revived series lasted two more seasons, ending in 2003.

The series focused on the exploits of a young boy genius named Dexter who has a labratory in his basement. He carries out scientific experiments there and somehow manages to keep it's existence a secret from his parents.......but not his annoying older sister Dee-Dee. Dee-Dee managed to sneak into his lab almost every episode and would usually try to play with something and end up wrecking it. Dexter's family makes for a funny bunch, his parents are traditional: his mother does the cleaning and is pretty much a neat freak, and his father is a working man who values manliness, family, and paying the bills; and yet they produce the odd pair that is Dexter and Dee-Dee. Dee-Dee adores her little brother, she just is very bad at showing it. Dexter on the other hand seems to despise his sister for being unintelligent, nothing like him, and a danger to his studies.

But, even though they're the focus, it's not just all about this one family. Dexter is a genius however there is one boy his age who can rival him and that is Susan (or as he prefers to be called, Mandark). Mandark parallels Dexter in that, while Dexter uses his gifts to further humanity's knowledge, Mandark is only in science for the potential power it could give him, but he's not gonna go anywhere in the world so long as he has a rival, which is why he's always scheming up ways of disposing with Dexter.

Besides Dexter's family (which never gets a name) and Mandark, there is a recurring cast.  Mordecai is a geek and Dexter's only sorta friend, not quite as smart as him but just as nerdy. Action Hank is the stereotypical action hero and also one of Dexter's biggest role models, that is after the Justice Friends.

The Justice Friends are a blatant parody of the Avengers. You have Major Glory (Captain America), Valhallan (Thor), and Grunk (Hulk). But the absolutely hilarious part about it all is that you almost never actually see them fighting crime, instead their segments focus on their home life, such as picking a TV show to watch, or trying to get a bee out of the apartment they share (yes, they're roommates). It's interesting to note however, that they would later cameo in a couple episodes of the cartoon I reviewed last week (the Powerpuff Girls) and to this day, they serve to many, as evidence that the two shows take place in the same universe or are at least connected.

Dexter's Lab, like a couple cartoons I've reviewed before, followed the format of 3 7 minute segments per episode (and a 1 minute short to round it off). In the first season, the beginning and ending segments of each episode was about Dexter and the middle one would be "Dial M for Monkey" which followed the adventures of Dexter's test monkey.....who also happened to be an international spy with a smoking hot girlfriend.

In the second season, the middle segment switched to following the Justice Friends. But in the revival series, the middle segments tended to just be about Dexter's parents or Mandark or Dee Dee. To be honest, I think that that was a mistake. Having a second show within the show was a really fun concept and though the 2nd half of the series was alright, that was one of the reasons why I and many others don't really consider it as good as the 1st. Now, don't get me wrong, the 2nd half still had the character chemistry that made the original so clever and hilarious (I actually think they did Mandark better than before, elaborating more on his backstory of having hippie parents that don't approve of his evil). However, the middle segments were always a let down, and the biggest mistake of all was not having a grand finale.


In Ego Trip, Dexter travels through time to the future, where Mandark has taken over the world and he has to team up with several future versions of himself to stop it. This is a very dramatic concept and yet they still get a roar out of you. Honestly, this was a perfect finale and it was made less important by adding 2 more seasons afterwards. The episode the series ultimately did end on was just a boring old run of the mill episode about Dee-Dee and Dexter going to the zoo. Nothing special.

Overall, though the second two seasons weren't as good as the first, it was still an ingenious kids' cartoon and definitely worth checking out if you haven't already. 90/10.  And if you're an old fan, try the new comic book series by IDW, they're adapting all of the original Cartoon Network Cartoon Cartoons (including epic crossovers that I'll talk more about later).




Not sure what I'll be reviewing next week, so be prepared for anything!

The Powerpuff Girls

  The Powerpuff Girls aired for 6 seasons from 1998 to 2005 and was one of many series that went by the "two 11 minutes segments per episode" format that grew more and more popular around its time. The series, despite having a very girly seeming name, was packed with action and plenty popular with boy's crowd too (myself included). It is considered to have gotten worse with the later seasons (particularly season 5 and 6) and i'd be inclined to agree, but that's not to say it wasn't still GOOD, just not as much so.

 
  The series followed the lives of Blossom (the intelligent, responsible one), Bubbles (the innocent, childish one), and Buttercup (the angry tomboyish one), three girls who would spend their days in kindergarten, and their afternoons and weekends fighting crime on the streets of Townsville, They had been created by Professor Utonium, who just was lonely and wanted some daughters but who accidentally created superheroes.

  There was no lack of villains in the series, with Mojo Jojo (a previous experiment of the Professor's who was a hyper-intelligent monkey now bent on taking over the world) as the most recurring. Besides him, we had Fuzzy Lumpkins, The Gangreen Gang, Princess Morbucks, and *shivers* HIM. Him was the gayest and yet also darkest villain the show had to offer. His flamboyant nature could be switched to an angry, dangerous menace and the drop of the hat, and that was oddly captivating.

  But without a doubt my favourite villains (and also the most underused) would be the Rowdyruff Boys, male dopplegangers of the PPG created by Mojo Jojo and later brought back by HIM. Brick, Boomer, and Butch were hilarious in their interactions with each other, and how they contrasted with the girls, they stole the show every time they appeared, which was not often enough. 

  Besides just the villains, the girls had support from their kindergarten teacher, Ms. Keane. And The (bumbling) Mayor and his assistant, Ms. Bellum (WHO'S FACE WE NEVER GOT TO SEE)

  Overall, the series was hilarious as we saw the girls go through the struggles of your average kid, while having to deal with guys like HIM and Mojo Jojo. Action-packed, yet light-hearted, this one is a classic that definitely deserves the reboot that it's apparently getting next year. 87/100. 

LEMME REPEAT, PPG IS GETTING A REBOOT....AND IT'S NOT GOING TO BE IN SHITTY CGI LIKE THE LAST TV SPECIAL WAS. WOO HOO.....also, next week is Dexter's Labratory.