I've heard a decent amount about Looped, none of it positive. A lot of people use it as a classic example of why Canada should be ashamed of itself for poisoning today's children with bad cartoons or something bullshit like that. However, I decided to check it out as it's from the same people behind Grojband (which I like). And honestly, after finishing 25 half-hour episodes (have yet to find the finale), I found that this show is... actually pretty decent.
I often hear people say the show's premise fundamentally doesn't work and results in the show being bland and repetitive. However, I was actually pretty impressed with how creative the writers are; a lot of insane stuff happens in the setting and the series manages to cram in a lot of potential plots because of that. That said, I do feel that there are many episodes where the time loop has absolutely no relevance or could be removed without impacting the plot. Regardless, the show manages to be decently enjoyable, with actually a fair few funny moments. I also appreciate the writers' attention to detail; I like how they often reference previous episodes and it's pretty clear that they put a lot of thought into the timeline of the loop. There is definitely toilet humor and grossout though, but I can live with that kind of stuff (although I am no defender of it).
The characters are pretty alright as well. Luc is a pretty typical dumb and selfish cartoon protagonist, but he's not insufferable and fairly enjoyable. I personally prefer Theo though. The two remind me of George and Harold, Bart Simpson and Millhouse, and Gumball and Darwin. The supporting cast is decent too; while all definitely stock school kids, they manage to be fairly amusing with their little quirks. They remind me a lot of Total Drama Island's cast (Jesse = Duncan, Sarah = Heather, Kelly & Kelli = Katie & Sadie, Kyle = Justin, Gwyn = Beth, Lester = Harold, Amy = Gwen), although definitely far less engaging (understandable since they're less important than Luc and Theo).
The animation is also solid, reminding me a bit of Grojband (they even use the same five-fingered hands). It's the standard modest-budget Flash many Canadian cartoons use these days, but it makes the most of it. The backgrounds are well designed and the characters are by no means hideous (although a few come off as a bit generic, like Kyle's), with a nice color palette too. Overall, not much to say about the show's visuals, but everything's passable to me.
Overall, Looped is not amazing, but it's still putting in an okay effort. It's a decently amusing show that I actually found myself enjoying a bit and it is certainly not the crime against humanity most make it out to be. I still personally prefer Grojband over Looped, but this is a show I would definitely watch when bored.
WesternAnimation Better Than Most Say But Only Just Okay
I've heard a decent amount about Looped, none of it positive. A lot of people use it as a classic example of why Canada should be ashamed of itself for poisoning today's children with bad cartoons or something bullshit like that. However, I decided to check it out as it's from the same people behind Grojband (which I like). And honestly, after finishing 25 half-hour episodes (have yet to find the finale), I found that this show is... actually pretty decent.
I often hear people say the show's premise fundamentally doesn't work and results in the show being bland and repetitive. However, I was actually pretty impressed with how creative the writers are; a lot of insane stuff happens in the setting and the series manages to cram in a lot of potential plots because of that. That said, I do feel that there are many episodes where the time loop has absolutely no relevance or could be removed without impacting the plot. Regardless, the show manages to be decently enjoyable, with actually a fair few funny moments. I also appreciate the writers' attention to detail; I like how they often reference previous episodes and it's pretty clear that they put a lot of thought into the timeline of the loop. There is definitely toilet humor and grossout though, but I can live with that kind of stuff (although I am no defender of it).
The characters are pretty alright as well. Luc is a pretty typical dumb and selfish cartoon protagonist, but he's not insufferable and fairly enjoyable. I personally prefer Theo though. The two remind me of George and Harold, Bart Simpson and Millhouse, and Gumball and Darwin. The supporting cast is decent too; while all definitely stock school kids, they manage to be fairly amusing with their little quirks. They remind me a lot of Total Drama Island's cast (Jesse = Duncan, Sarah = Heather, Kelly & Kelli = Katie & Sadie, Kyle = Justin, Gwyn = Beth, Lester = Harold, Amy = Gwen), although definitely far less engaging (understandable since they're less important than Luc and Theo).
The animation is also solid, reminding me a bit of Grojband (they even use the same five-fingered hands). It's the standard modest-budget Flash many Canadian cartoons use these days, but it makes the most of it. The backgrounds are well designed and the characters are by no means hideous (although a few come off as a bit generic, like Kyle's), with a nice color palette too. Overall, not much to say about the show's visuals, but everything's passable to me.
Overall, Looped is not amazing, but it's still putting in an okay effort. It's a decently amusing show that I actually found myself enjoying a bit and it is certainly not the crime against humanity most make it out to be. I still personally prefer Grojband over Looped, but this is a show I would definitely watch when bored.