Reboot - Season III, Vol. 4: The Viral Wars
The third season of this computer-animated series stumbles to a conclusion in these last four episodes. Despite the numerous writing credits, each episode juxtaposes long stretches of filler, where nothing really happens, with periods of frenzied but difficult-to-follow action. In "Showdown" archvillain Megabyte, who sounds like George Sanders as Shere Kahn in Disney'sThe Jungle Book, prepares to escape in a reddish sphere after a duel with Enzo. Mouse does something on a keyboard that causes tentacles to sprout from the sphere and destroy Megabyte. What she does and how she does it is never explained, and her preemptive strike prevents Enzo from destroying the villain, as a hero should. Simulations of Megabyte pop up in the next episode, while Bob struggles to save the cybercity, only to vanish inexplicably. The first all-computer-animated television series,Rebootinadvertently showcases the limits of the technology. The motion-capture technique gives the characters an unsettling weightless look, which robs their fights and gymnastics flips of any power. The elaborate surface patterns, brightly colored special effects, and three-dimensional camera moves can't disguise the fact that motion capture is still inferior to limited drawn animation. Rated "suitable for all ages," but violence (including suggestions of torture), grotesque imagery, and ethnic stereotypes are inappropriate for children under 10. The show played in an edited form on the Cartoon Network.--Charles Solomon