From: rjung@aludra.usc.edu (Robert A. Jung)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.tiny-toon
Subject: Re: More comments on Startoons
Date: 11 Apr 1992 22:47:46 -0700
Organization: Southern California Lynx Enthusiasts
NNTP-Posting-Host: aludra.usc.edu

In article <1992Apr11.031945.1649@midway.uchicago.edu> sado@midway.uchicago.edu writes:
>In article <kuce95INNjf@nunki.usc.edu> rjung@nunki.usc.edu (Robert A. Jung) writes:
>I'll mildly disagree.  While they do take some liberties with drawing the
>characters on model, they were fairly consistant with their style.

  I guess my biggest gripe here is that it's "their style" and not "Warner's
style". Admittedly, Startoons isn't the only studio that applies a unique
interpretation of the 'toons -- Wang's Buster looks different from Akom's
Buster, who differs from Encore's Buster, etc. -- but something about
Startoons' characters doesn't click too much with me. Maybe it's those short
rabbit ears.  B-)

  ("I'd like to teach the world to draw / in perfect harmony
    I'd lead the class with TMS / In cartoony symphony.")

>Also, as someone pointed out, ST
>does a good job with providing smooth motion, unlike Kennedy.

  Good point. One credit to Startoons is that their art moves a LOT. And if
they are going to be the second-season's Kennedy Studios whipping boy (grin),
at least they got rid of that !#$%&!^&!?! "Kennedy Shuffle" schtick...

  (Hey, longtime alt.tv.tiny-toon readers: Wasn't Larry Greenfield the guy
who defended Kennedy's use of the shuffle as "adding characterization to the
'toons"???)

>I chopped the comments about the bunnies, but I really disklike the 
>Kennedy-esque short ears which seemed to make more than their fair share 
>of appearances.

  Agreed. As mentioned before, the short ears make the Bunnies look _too_
young. Yeah, the title is "Tiny Toons", but we've already established that
the characters are in the early 'teens...

>TMS is clearly head and shoulders above the rest.  If Wang concentrates 
>on doing a good job and uses a light stroke (I _hate_ the dark black line
>syndrome that characterizes some of their work) I'd have to say that they 
>are also high on the chart.

  The only Wang episodes with the heavy dark strokes seem to be the very
early work (CAREER OPPORTUNITIES and ROCK 'N ROAR, to name two). I think if
we correlate the dark-strokes-episodes with the WB house numbers, we can
see them all clustering in the early scripts.

  (I'd do this, but I lost my "TTA episodes sorted by house numbers" list)

>But Startoons, with a little more attention to
>model could be right up there.  While you (we?) may not have liked their
>character stylings, the animation was smooth and had a quality feel to it.

  Right. Being close to model is what I want the most -- I would like for TTA
to have a consistent appearance, given a choice. I wonder how much Warner
Bros. coud "demand" that the animation contractors could "follow the models
or else", though.

>As an aside, I dislike Akom more and more every time I see them.  Too cutesy,
>not smooth enough, IMO, very 'Muppet Babies'-esque.  

  Akom is only passable at best. I can tolerate them (and Kennedy) if the
script is spectacular enough. On the other hand, a well-animated Wang or
Tokyo can salvage a slightly-above-average episode IMO...

                                                --R.J.
                                                B-)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      Plucky: "Right and wrong have no place here -- This is Hollywood."
~~~~~~~~~~~ These opinions are all mine, but you're welcome to 'em. ~~~~~~~~~~
Stay Tiny Tooned!                     Send assorted silliness to rjung@usc.edu

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