Reviews

I wrote way more than I intended to about Moominvalley... minor spoilers

I've only watched the 1990 anime before this one, so take everything I say with a grain of salt. I haven't read any of the children's books, or seen any other adaptations, so there's that.

This one makes a lot of changes from the anime, and I think they're mostly positive. Some of them are smaller, and some of them pretty much change the entire show. Pros and cons list, go!

Pros: 1. All of the mistranslations, mediocre voice acting and headscratching dialogue has been sorted out. This isn't hard, but God, has anyone else noticed just how awful this is in the anime?

We'll suddenly cut to characters speaking in 100 mile per hour proto-English for no reason, and it just ruins every line. All of that is fixed here, which makes it waaaay more watchable.

2. Much better pacing. This show definitely understands that it's taking from several stories at a time, and changes the structure to suit it. The anime kinda just jammed them all together, which never felt right.

3. Does a good job of explaining some kind of confusing plot lines. In the anime, it feels like a lot of the events are just implied from the books, and are sort of explained in non-sequiturs. Like, this girl is sad, so sheeee's invisible, obviously. This fisherman is sad for emotional reasons and stuff. This show dives a lot deeper into it, and you know... tries to explain it.

4. The characterization is great. I really like how the show finally commits to giving everyone in the valley a consistent personality. My personal favorite was playing up the absurdity of Moominpapa, but everyone else is well-done too.

Moomin(troll) is sorta rebellious and teenage-ish, but tries to be a nice kid. Snufkin is mysterious, but has to learn to stop pushing his friends away with persistent independence. Moominmama is hilariously maternal, Little My sort of matures as the show goes on and it's rare to see anyone get legit angry. The fisherman arc is a billion times better as well.

I think this is my favorite improvement.

5. The style of humor changes a whole lot. I think this comes from Steve Box, who also worked on Wallace and Gromit, because it feels a lot like that. The anime is more cute and subtle, while this version has a lot more slick one-liners and clever writing. It gives the show real energy, but I'm still mixed on it.

Like, it's usually well-written, but it definitely clashes with the mysterious, out-in-the-forest atmosphere of the whole thing. I like it, but I can see why some wouldn't.

6. The theme song is incredible, Stinky, Snork and the alien episode are gone (wahoo!) and there's plenty of Snufkin if that's your thing.

Cons:

1. I don't like the character animation. It's just boring. No one looks like a magical far-away hippo thing, they look like dollar store piggy banks. Really, really takes you out of the atmosphere at times. The anime is hand-drawn, it captures the setting and is just all-around nicer.

2. Don't like some of the voice acting. It's not all bad, but I think Snufkin and Snorkmaiden are particularly obnoxious. Moominpapa is over-the-top, even for his character, and Sniff can definitely get annoying. Speaking of which...

3. Too much Sniff. No one likes him, c'mon. I think his inclusion is what really pushes the humor out of any kind of subtlety. He's fine as someone who shows up every once and a while, but not as a main character.

4. When the new style of humor doesn't work, it really doesn't work. When that happens, you're basically devoting a huge amount of the episode to bad jokes, while also sacrificing that mysterious atmosphere. It doesn't happen very often, but yeah.

Wow, that sure went on, didn't it? Anyways, if you can get past the animation and different style of humor, I think the show is a pretty big improvement on the anime. Is it as loyal to the books? Maybe not. It is a lot more Wallace and Gromit-y, but that air of mystery is still there, the characters are improved and what is different is mostly for the best.

Without a doubt, Cartoon Network has had good shows; Cartoon Network has had great shows. However, I feel that I couldn't call any of them (perhaps with the exception of Over the Garden Wall at times) a work of art. Yet Adventure Time, seems to be one of the most absurd, philosophical and intelligent shows on television. It's beautifully abstract with it's unique yet wonderful animation and new ideas. It's philosophical with its many rare morals and characters opinionated to their own ideas of a better world. This show has just captured pure genius in a bottle. Amazingly, the show isn't pretentious either. Instead of cramming their messages down your throat (which would be easier to do, considering how complex and difficult to present they can be) they let you experience the state of being around these characters, learning complex morals and philosophies. The only reason this isn't a ten is because there have been a few really bad episodes. And due to how risky this show is, that's bound to happen. I'd say about 95% of the huge risks Adventure Time takes are bulls-eyes. However, when the 5% of risks fail, it can result in a mess. However, these episodes happen extremely rarely. When Adventure Time gets it right, which is the vast majority of the time, it is some of the best stuff on television.

Extra note: I feel Adventure Time is my favourite CN show of all time. On IMDb, I have ranked it second (only behind Over the Garden Wall) but I feel Adventure Time is just so unique and artistic, that it is a beautiful thing at it's best. Some shows might have had great storytelling, animation or plot twists, but I haven't seen anything on Cartoon Network that can compare to the artistic brilliance in Adventure Time.

You know, as this shows has such a wonderful rating, and it's hard to find anyone who doesn't absolutely adore it, this is going to be pretty hard to write. Please only read my review if you are willing to change your mind about this show, and see it for the bad cartoon it really is.

I personally don't mind the animation. I mean, it's not good, but they were purposely going for that feel. What I hate is what this whole show represents. Basically: Genius scientist Rick takes his grandson on a bunch of 'wacky' sci-fi adventures.

My first problem with this show is the humour. When attempting to make a joke, the characters use this annoying and over-used sitcom cliché, where the character makes the joke very quickly, followed by the character saying "Uhhhhhh..." I am dead serious, this is popping up in every sitcom, and it's just not funny.

Secondly, I am tired of how many "Life is meaningless" jokes this show makes. Don't come telling me I'm too shallow to understand; that's not the problem. My problem, is that this is a trope that is so derivative, that it has literally just come to the point where you say "Life is meaningless" in a humorous way, and people think it's comic gold. Additionally, every single sci-fi flick seems to be making this joke now. Just take a look at how many sci-fis have done this. Hitchhiker's Guide did it, a Wrinkle in Time did... THIS IS THE MOST OVERUSED SCI- FI TROPE. Even Animaniacs cracked this joke, and everyone thought it would genius. The Amazing World of Gumball made a comical song about this, and every thought it was genius. I'm sorry, but when the main theme of your show is an overused sci-fi trope, it's just not very interesting. So, when I see people writing essays and making philosophical videos about the genius of Rick and Morty, I just don't understand. People need to stop counting humorous nihilistic messages as a strike of genius, and start viewing them as an overused brand of sci-fi.

I will admit, I found a few jokes funny in this show, but they are just outnumbered by the sheer stupidity of its typical sitcom setups and its "Deep" philosophical messages, that really aren't all that deep. People need to appreciate that this show is nothing special, and is just jumping on the new "LOL NIHILISM" bandwaggon.

Now, I'm gonna go out and say: this is not as good as 4-6, but definitely an improvement over 7. The story was enjoyable, the characters were better and they all gave good performances. While I didn't love the Spock-like robot in the movie, he definitely had a few laughs. He sort of acts as the comic relief in the movie; in a good way. Another thing that makes this a good movie are the fight scenes. They are very well done; but there is a small problem. For me, the pacing of the scenes was very poor. One point, they had about 3 fight scenes in 5 minutes making me thing, it's that kind of movie. But then they go a full hour without one? I don't know, it just didn't feel right.

The only major problem I really had with the movie were the clichés. This movie was really enjoyable when it stuck to an original story, but when the clichés came out, I wanted to fall asleep. There were about 5 clichéd "Oh no I'm gonna get shot but guy I thought didn't like me shoots guy who almost shot me's," and two clichéd slow death scenes along with a NOOOOOOOO!

Despite these problems, this is still an enjoyable movie. I would recommend this due to its good writing and enjoyable cast.

During the vast majority of this film, I came very near to falling asleep. Half of the actors clearly did not care about their roles, and the story was very clichéd and predictable. While being creative (as usual with Tim Burton) this movie was your stereotypical adventure film with some very low-quality acting. I can name about a dozen films off the top of my head with this exact premise: A kid who is the son/daughter of a famous (fill in the blank: wizard, demigod, magical figure, whatever floats your boat) is ordinary until he/she finds out he/she has some sort of magical power. Co-incidentally, some mysterious evil force is trying to take over the world in the process, so the new kid (who has become very powerful) now has to stop the evil force with the help of some friends. These movies are all overdone, and have nothing to be taken from them. They are bland and predictable. I would expect someone like Tim Burton to be better than this, but obviously he has taken a real nosedive. This movie was nothing special. It was just a typical fantasy movie with no important morals, walking close to the fine-line of 'Cash grab.' I did enjoy the ending however. Not because it had a clever twist or an original concept, but because Sam Jackson's Barron was spectacular. He was a three-dimensional character who scared you and made you chuckle at the same time. Jackson really deserved to be in a better film with such a good performance. Overall, I would not recommend this. The movie's not awful, but it's just bland and tasteless.

When I finished this miniseries, I was amazed by its sophistication and pure genius. With spectacular, spooky and old-timey animation, Over the Garden Wall provides everyone with a bit of appreciation for the effort obviously put into this world. The characters were also superb. I loved how they had realistic conversations which didn't always have a need to keep the plot moving at every second. Basically, this is the story of two boys who find themselves in a Limbo-like forest. They spend the whole miniseries encountering interesting and old-fashioned characters, while struggling with the fact that they may never escape the forest. I feel that every character represents a different view of the world. Wirt is sort of neutral about the world; his mental stability depends on his surroundings. Beatrice provides a negative view of the world. She openly states that she views the world as a depressing place, always maintaining a negative attitude. Yet, Beatrice grows to be a better person (or bluebird) over the course of the series. Greg is probably my favourite character. Some people probably think that his positive attitude is just due to his ignorance, but I think otherwise. Greg tries to keep a positive attitude regarding the journey through the woods, and is always a relief from the darkness that is the rest of the series. In conclusion, Over the Garden Wall is a CN masterpiece, with an engaging story, lovable characters and wonderful animation. If anyone is looking for something spectacular that can engage both children and adults, watch Over the Garden Wall.

During the first few seasons of AWOG, I thought the show was good. It was a good 7.5/10. It had plenty of slapstick with bits of clever humour thrown into it. But late season 4-season 5 of Gumball looks amazing! The humour has become cleverer, and every character has become more interesting and multi- layered. The stories are heartwarming, and the show has just become more sophisticated in general. Ben Boquelet is clearly putting his heart into the show, as it turns the corner, soon to conclude. Gumball and Darwin are perfect main characters with wonderfully different views of the world. Their humour and wit have only become cleverer and funnier. This cartoon has become a top-rate classic CN show with its fifth season, and I would recommend it to anyone.

I would originally have given this a 9, but I feel the later episodes in season 2 went downhill a bit. Nevertheless, We Bare Bears is a cleverly written, content and intelligent cartoon. I thought season 1 was great, and early season 2 was superb. When I first saw this show, I thought it would be a pandering snorefest trying to relate to younger viewers with social media. However, instead, the show cleverly mocks social media for its addiction, and never over-uses it in its episodes. Instead this show offers a bit of commentary on discrimination and, as I previously mentioned, mocks the addictive-ability of social-media. The three main characters are very likable, and express a creative commentary relating to the feeling of living in (or in the bear's case: near) a large city. I, however, absolutely cannot stand most of the 'baby bears' episodes. They take away all of the interesting commentary, and instead, you're just supposed to blurt out "Awwwwwww, they're sooooo cute!" But besides these episodes, We Bare Bears is a wonderful, relaxing and very relatable cartoon. I would recommend it to anyone. Do, however, stay away from the baby bears episodes and 'Bear Flu.'

Let's compare this to the 2012 movie, shall we:

Budget: 1972 version: Probably under $1,000

2012 version: $70 million

Runtime: 1972 version: 25 mins

2012 version: 1 hour 35 mins

Animation: 1972 Version: Hand-drawn

2012 version: Computer animated

Well, strangely enough, with enough effort, a movie with 1/70,000th the budget of a kid's sellout movie, surpasses it in every way imaginable. The 1972 version really has a message. While the 2012 version seems to avoid the actual 'we need to help the environment' theme, the 1972 version shows that we are not doing enough to do so. It has a meaning, and therefore gives everyone a reason to watch it. Watching it did not make you feel like you were being subjected to an advertising sellout and made you really think about the environment as a whole. I think the 1972 version is a brilliant masterpiece, that did justice to Dr Seuss' work. The 2012 version however, stuck the Lorax on a Mazda advertisement. This just shows how much the 1972 version respected the source material compared to the 2012 version, and why it remains a masterpiece.

I was completely and utterly stunned to see the quality of the work put into this sensation film. Disney and Pixar shocked reviewers and keen movie watchers alike with this work of art. When people tuned into this movie across the world, I doubt that anyone expected an allegory relating to real life in a film supposedly for kids. The beautiful animation and the superbly written script moulded together into a perfect animated feature. Judy Hoppes, the first bunny cop, goes on an extraordinary adventure along with con-artist Nick Wilde to find various missing animals who have been shot with queer chemicals and have been thus dubbed as "Savages." Along the way, adults and politically aware children are able to notice various allegorical messages which point at/mock several flaws in our society. The movie does this very thing to the occasional slowness of governmental decisions and racism. The movie also includes the shadiness of drugs an d drug-users. They even stuff a Breaking Bad reference into the script! This movie is sensational in every way. The story and the animation are both equally incredible! However, many people have given this movie a low rating claiming that people only gave it positive reviews because "Disney made it," and because they were apparently being forced to like it due to the allegories. This is just so incorrect. If any animation studio did this, I would have been equally surprised. If a movie that was not directed at kids did this kind of feature, I would love it just as much. This beautifully written, animated and thought-out movie deserves as much praise as possible.

I give this movie 9.8/10. (Rounding to 10/10)