Breaking the Animation Age Ghetto

I actually think that'd be a cool idea too. I'm pretty sure it's been done before, but I have no objections to more shows like that, or even just animated anthologies in general.

Insert witty 'n clever quip here.

Because The Twilight Zone is known more for its horror episodes than any suitably "deep" and "mature" ones.

I've never heard of such a thing being done before, at all.

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

I know I've seen something in that vein before, but I just can't remember what it was.

Insert witty 'n clever quip here.

Maybe you're just heavily misremembering What A Cartoon?

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

Not at all.

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If it was mostly horror, or drama, or science fiction, I might be able to help you there.

I can't think of any intended for adults, though.

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

Heavy Metal was structured like that, but was less focused on making commentary or dramatic stories than it was with BOOBIES! BLOOD! WE ARE SO NOT MAKING A KIDS MOVIE!

Of course, don't you know anything about ALCHEMY?!- Twin clones of Ivan the Great

Turner Classic Movies is airing a "Back to the Drawing Board" marathon of many landmark animated films this October like they did a couple years back. Is that another step forward for animation breaking its ghetto, getting its history (particularly the overlooked parks) highlighted on a respected movie network, especially at a time when very few old cartoons are shown on TV anymore?

I'm going to throw my two cents in here- my stepdad always thought that cartoons are for kids, and thought it was fine that I liked them, but was not the type to watch them. However, he sat in as I watched ATLA and went from reading the paper to watching the show, and eventually became so engrossed in it that he ended up buying all three seasons and tried to convince a friend of his to give the show a watch. So from personal experience, shows like ATLA can help open up the Animation Age Ghetto.

I think the ghetto is starting to break down- again, shows from 20 years ago were a lot more limited. Also, it's not just shows on TV we should pay attention to. The Awesomes, while being a superhero show aimed at being more comedic, is again targeted towards adults without doing gross-out humor, and is considered profitable enough by Hulu that it has two seasons. It's not grandiose in story, but it seems to be bridging the gap between 'The Simpsons' and 'Young Justice' in tone. If more shows like that appear profitable, then it could trickle into TV exeec's heads to give more shows like that a thumbs up.

Opinions?

I doubt it. While it's certainly exciting, I think if you don't think Winsor Mc Cay's comic pages are art, you won't think his cartoons are art, either.

I do think being a parent helps to break down the ghetto in individual people. You'll probably have to watch TV with your kids and you might find a show you actually enjoy. My mom, for example, was a fan of Sponge Bob when it came out, and is such a fan of The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy I got her to go to our local comic con when it turned out Richard Horvitz would be there.

And I will note that the ghetto was never really there in the first place. If Roger Ebert can put "Duck Amuck," "One Froggy Evening" and "Whats Opera Doc" on his Great Movies List, and if shows from Ren And Stimpy to Batman The Animated Series can gain adult followings to the point that the shows are parodied in MAD, the lesson here is that adults will watch cartoons of any sort.

edited 2nd Oct '14 4:21:30 PM by Aldo930

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

My parents enjoy watching classic cartoons like Looney tunes or Tom and Jerry.

I also believe that most adults (parents) don't really watch cartoons like Avatar. They typically watch ones that are funny. At least from my experience

edited 2nd Oct '14 4:18:59 PM by teddy

Supports cartoons being cartoony!

Well, my mom also liked Samurai Jack, so there ya go. Personal experience and all.

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

It's not that adults won't watch things, it's that the stigma around watching them breaks down, like with my stepdad and ATLA, and I used The Awesomes as an example of a cartoon aimed at adults that wasn't purely comedy like The Simpsons or Family Guy.

I never watched Archer or The Venture Brothers, so I can't say if they are examples as well.

Still, there seems to be a drift with comedy and then action comedy shows. Hopefully it will result in a greater variety of shows for adults. (Although I'm willing to bet that animation will still be more pigeonholed for shows that have high amounts of fantasy/sci fi because of how much easier it would be compared to the special effects of live action shows)

Well, I don't know, but the fact that they're willing to watch them enough to become a fan implies they got over their stigma...

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

Typically, an adult with children and a job who is a fan of cartoons is seen as childish. Unless they only watch them with kids.. eh

I think this ghetto will live on for a LONG time. I sorta have accepted it though. Cartoons, according to the general public, will always be seen as less than live action. I mean, why do you think there's a category for best animated features in the A.As? Or that it's labeled as one entire genre most of the times..Cartoon/Animation fans like us (well mainly ones on other sites) always say animation is a medium, but I'm certain they don't think it is.

edited 2nd Oct '14 8:39:15 PM by teddy

Supports cartoons being cartoony!

I keep saying that we ought to change how people think about animation. No matter how deep and mature and adult a show can be, it won't change someone's prejudices. You have to break the prejudices first, and only then will something happen.

edited 2nd Oct '14 8:45:25 PM by Aldo930

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

Then again, not for nothing, I think maybe part of the stigma might be due to how a lot of childish adults watch cartoons. A correlation thing, if you will, that causes the association.

I know my sister's boyfriend certainly doesn't help the stigma.

Insert witty 'n clever quip here.

Well, you can't change those guys so...

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

Well, there used to be a huge stigma around being into comics and being a nerd, and now some of the most successful films are superhero movies. Again, as the stigma breaks down, more people will give it a try/watch it, and the media will begin to cater to their new audience. So I'm pretty hopeful. After all, when I was little Simpsons was the only animated show directed to an older audience. Now we have a lot more- say what you want on the varying quality, but the fact is that there is a broadcast TV animation block aimed at adults.

may I ask what tv block that has cartoons aimed at adults you are referring to? I'm thinking Animation Domination, but that's not around anymore. Other than that, Adult Swim is the only block I can think of.

And a lot of times when people talk about appealing to adults, they usually mean older teenagers or young adults lol. Like around 18-25.

edited 3rd Oct '14 7:13:10 AM by teddy

Supports cartoons being cartoony!

How many people have been converted into comic fans by said superhero movies? Also, it doesn't do much to counteract the arguably even worse and more prevalent stereotype that "comics are all about superheroes..."

And while it is nice that we have blocks of animation for adults, when The Simpsons came out and was a smash hit, the other networks realized that they could get in on the new trend of cartoons for adults too... There was Fish Police, Capitol Critters and Family Dog. None of them lasted very long. Though there was also The Critic, Duckman, and Space Ghost Coast To Coast. And if you want to include teenagers as adults, Beavis And Butthead and Ren And Stimpy, even though the latter was for kids.

edited 3rd Oct '14 10:17:49 AM by Aldo930

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

I can't give a numerical value for those who became more interested in the comics because of the movies, but I got into Spider-Man thanks to the Raimi films, I have a friend who became a Loki fan thanks to Avengers, and several people I know started buying comics because of that and series like The Walking Dead.

Again, I'm no expert on the history of animation. I was born when BTAS was coming out, and I've never studied animation. However, just seeing what people my age/generation think of things, the Age Ghetto should get out once my generation gets to run things. After all, if everyone on my high school sports team was into ATLA, and there were plenty of kids into Phenius and Ferb and various other shows, it stands to reason that they will help break the stigma down.

And that's fine and dandy.

I was born even later and I have a firm grasp of history, myself...

The ghetto, if there ever really was one, pretty much died the moment The Simpsons became a smash hit. Oh, sure, there was a wave of primetime animation in the 60s. (The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Top Cat, and so on.) And in the 70s, Wait Till Your Father Gets Home ran for a couple of years... But after that, it was pretty much gone. Adults could watch cartoons and not fear.

You could also say Ren And Stimpy killed it even more. Now adults were watching cartoons on a children's network, of all things! Though more likely they were watching it on MTV...

edited 3rd Oct '14 10:37:56 AM by Aldo930

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."

Dang. The way you talk I thought you were born in the 80's.

The ghetto definitely is still there in some capacity, though. After all, cartoons are stereotyped as for kids, or in the comedy ghetto as well.

Can you actually tell when someone is born by when they talk?

The comedy ghetto for cartoons has been dead since about the late 60s, when action cartoons for kids became a viable thing with Space Ghost, The Herculoids, Birdman, etc. While that first wave died quickly, action cartoons did come back later on - by the mid-70s at least. They were actually more prevalent in the 80s than comedic toons! But since the 90s we've had a good balance between silly and serious - or with a pretense to seriousness, one can say.

edited 3rd Oct '14 11:24:40 AM by Aldo930

"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."