• Are current cartoons on television REALLY all that bad?
    245 replies, posted
In the past, the cartoons in the 90's that we used to watch made up most to all of our childhood, nowadays the shows we used to watch were either replaced or still running, but more appealing to current audiences. You can take Spongebob, as an example. After Hillenburg left the production after the 2004 movie, apparently most teen audiences found Spongebob to be mediocre. Of course, current children in the specified audience still watch the show. [sp]NO MY LITTLE PONY DISCUSSIONS.[/sp]
It's different than what we all grew up with, so of course we'll find something wrong with it. The cartoons do need to change based on what's popular, or they won't stay on the air. If someone doesn't like what's popular they won't like the new direction the cartoon takes. I personally don't like them now, but I'm certain someone made this argument when I DID like them. So no, I don't think they're all horrible, I think we just don't like them.
Cartoons are shit these days. The premise of the television show "Almost Naked animals" has to be the most disturbing thing I've heard in years.
Oh jeez. I remember some programmes I used to like. Then they decided to replace some of the best with...baby programmes *choke*. If you'll excuse me...I'm just gonna...throw the TV out the window now.
Something went wrong somewhere when My Little Pony is rehashed 15 years or something after the original airing and it's still a grand hit with [i]everyone.[/i]
They are still decent, just compared to the older cartoons like in the golden days of Cartoon Network like Ed, Edd n' Eddy, Johnny Bravo and many other names compared to the Cartoon Network today ("CN") there is just not a chance. I'm pretty sure the same can be said about Nickelodeon as well.
[QUOTE=GameAdict;33581920]Oh jeez. I remember some programmes I used to like. Then they decided to replace some of the best with...baby programmes *choke*. If you'll excuse me...I'm just gonna...throw the TV out the window now.[/QUOTE] Pretty much this.
Yes, they really are that bad. I took a peek at some of the garbage they are showing on Cartoon Network (the whole network went to shit after Toonami ended, imo) and it's absolutely disgusting. Sexual references and cancerous humor galore.
I like a few cartoons these days mostly the ones who helped work with Cartoon Network when it it was first starting out, Laruen Faust, Craig Bartlett, Rob Renzetti, Larry Leichliter and a few other still pump out a few good cartoons that throw back to old style cartoon slapstick humor, Facail expressions to complete personality, and decent character design.
Considering many cartoons aren't really "cartoons" and are merely sitcoms aimed at children (more so on disney and nickelodeon), and said sitcoms use stupid, farcical premises, child actors, and humor that really blandly panders to its audience (that is a given though), I'd say children's TV programming is of a lesser quality these days. Consider things from the days of old, such as Tom and Jerry and Looney Toons... that was artistic. Stuff like iCarly is not.
Perception changes over time. I remember, as a child, feeling uncomfortable watching cartoons with my granddad in the room. Even at that age, I knew that other people probably didn't always think the same way I did about the shows I watched. I figure the shows probably aren't that much worse nowadays, but the way we view them has changed.
Each generation has new cartoons released in that time which they will always like.We've just grown up and will always find our generations cartoons the best and newer ones stupider as further generations come
I always found it strange how when I was growing up, it was as if the networks were trying to grow up with me. When I was younger I used to watch shows like Doug, Rugrats, Rocket Power, Courage the Cowardly Dog, and Dexter's Laboratory. But I noticed that when I got older, the shows they had on tended to become more and more geared toward teenagers, which became my age group, and strangely enough the TV shows seemed to try to become more accessible to my age group. Honestly, with this change the quality of television has decreased. I'm pretty sure it is just due to the commercialization and attempting to appeal to the largest age group that is the cause of this decrease in quality.
[QUOTE=kidwithsword;33582083]I always found it strange how when I was growing up, it was as if the networks were trying to grow up with me. When I was younger I used to watch shows like Doug, Rugrats, Rocket Power, Courage the Cowardly Dog, and Dexter's Laboratory. But I noticed that when I got older, the shows they had on tended to become more and more geared toward teenagers, which became my age group, and strangely enough the TV shows seemed to try to become more accessible to my age group. Honestly, with this change the quality of television has decreased. I'm pretty sure it is just due to the commercialization and attempting to appeal to the largest age group that is the cause of this decrease in quality.[/QUOTE] A lot of those shows didn't really have a specific age group they were trying to target. That's one of the reasons they were so popular
Shows these days are all sitcoms and about stereotypicsl teen problems. There used to be some badass shows but now it's all comedy, sitcom, or reality Tv. Also realize TV is allot more female oriented. No long is the key to success Dragon Ball Z, Batman, Spiderman, etc. Serious shows are looked down on. [editline]5th December 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=JohnFisher89;33582144]A lot of those shows didn't really have a specific age group they were trying to target. That's one of the reasons they were so popular[/QUOTE] Allot of shows did really grow up though, Rugrats did, and the DC Animated universe (Justice League was shown later at night, and is the more dark and graphic followup to the Batman and Superman shows, because we were now older)
[QUOTE=usaokay;33582076]Most 80s-90s cartoons contain moral messages the audience should follow. Combine that with a flowing animation, humorous writing, and likeable characters, you'll have a great cartoon. It's really an evolution from past cartoons. New writers who grew up with these cartoons tend to try one-up or have their writing the same as the cartoons they grew up with.[/QUOTE] On that first bit: What does that remind me of...? Hint: everyone hates it here.
[QUOTE=Ekalektik_1;33581860]It's different than what we all grew up with, so of course we'll find something wrong with it. The cartoons do need to change based on what's popular, or they won't stay on the air. If someone doesn't like what's popular they won't like the new direction the cartoon takes. I personally don't like them now, but I'm certain someone made this argument when I DID like them. So no, I don't think they're all horrible, I think we just don't like them.[/QUOTE]I disagree. My dad loved watching Spongebob with us, he thought it was hilarious. Now if my sister watches something he says "What is this annoying shit". It really has been getting bad.
My opinion on the cartoons of my childhood (Ren and Stimpy, Invader Zim, Rocko's Modern Life, etc), was that they covered and discussed/parodied topics relevant at the time, but in a way that children may not have picked up on and adults would, making it entertaining for the kids and their parents. When I was a kid, my parents loved to watch Zim and Ren and Stimpy with me, but now with my niece, they find it difficult to sit through a lot of the stuff on now a days.
There's alot of bullshit floating around. Although there still are some good things <---- Hinthint
Not all of it is that bad. (Source: Adventure Time)
It hit me like lightning when I realized an episode lost it's purpose without any kind of aesop(moral), explicitly stated or not.
The cartoons of yonder were brilliant (Spongebob before it got stupid, Ed Edd and Eddy, Dexters Lab). The cartoons of today are... meh, although at the age of 18 I'm not exactly in a position to judge children's cartoons. :v: Besides, nowadays cartoons are geared to younger kids (since the age group that watched cartoons 15 years ago is now more interested in getting care packages and throwing knives). There was a period of time between then and now that cartoons were just utter crap.
There are a few pearls (Adventure time, Regular show...) in a sea of mediocrity.
barring my little pony (or not), the hub probably has the best cartoons around. it plays all the shows I remember from my childhood like transformers, jem, batman beyond, plus a few new good ones like Dan Vs. [editline]5th December 2011[/editline] now if they'd just show animaniacs and reboot freakazoid
It all depends on the show and your personal preference. Almost Naked Animals and the Amazing World of Gumball are geared towards much younger audiences as opposed to Regular Show which is aimed at pre-teens to teen age groups or Johnny Test which is aimed at mental patients. It's not that these shows are stupid it's just the generation gap that makes us think its stupid. They're different forms of entertainment for a different target audience with different tastes. It's the same thing with your parents and grandparents who look down on video games. It's an age bias. Regular Show and Adventure Time only appeal to me because the concepts and plots they come up with feels like the crap my friends and I joke about. Crazy characters, random and obscure plot lines, and overall memorable concepts. Then you have shows like the ones on the Friday Night Line-Up: Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Generator Rex, Ben 10: Ultimate Alien, Thundercats, Young Justice, and Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Not only are they more action oriented but also deal with subject matter that is closer to mine/our age group. They are more appealing [to me] because they are more story and character driven. These shows bring me back to the 'Bruce Timm Cartoons' like Batman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, and Justice League. Shows that, while targeting kids, were not afraid to deal with some more mature content. There is probably a lot more I could say but, I think that is enough for now.
[QUOTE=Nitro836;33582427]On that first bit: What does that remind me of...? Hint: everyone hates it here.[/QUOTE] I think more people hate the flamboyant fanbase than the actual show, even Laruen Faust said some of the fanbase is creepy
[QUOTE=JohnFisher89;33583772]I think more people hate the flamboyant fanbase than the actual show, even Laruen Faust said some of the fanbase is creepy[/QUOTE] Too true.
The way I see it, the really old shows we watched have either: a) Died years ago b) Continue to the point where the writers can't care enough to write entertaining jokes/plots or c) Stopped being viewed by us on the count it was some childrens program that we just put on while eating our cereal before school when we were young (ie mangas like Dragon Ball Z, Pokemon, etc) The case of NEW cartoons on television, I can't be bothered watching any sort of TV, and I know a lot of people that feel the same way.
To be perfectly fair, I bet that a lot of the reason that we like older cartoons is because we watched them when we were kids. And the only reason we don't think they're shit now is because of nostalgia. Although, the shows today are definitely worse than the shows from when I was a kid.
[QUOTE=l337k1ll4;33584036]To be perfectly fair, I bet that a lot of the reason that we like older cartoons is because we watched them when we were kids. And the only reason we don't think they're shit now is because of nostalgia.[/QUOTE] This is pretty much a good summary on old stuff. I feel the same with video games as well. Really, pokemon is a terrible game, but when I was a kid it ruled my life.
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