Don't Be Horrid Henry!

So it has come to my attention that the animated series 'Horrid Henry', the show based on the British children's book series is getting another season.

People's reactions: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

I've never said this to anyone at all, but I have somewhat of a history with this particular cartoon. The reason why is because there was nothing about it I wanted to share, it was honestly a show I didn't want my peers to know I saw (for fear of what they'd think of me). But I had an itch that I've been meaning to scratch, so it's about time to give my thoughts on it.

I'll start this off by saying that I never read the Horrid Henry books as a child, I was aware of them as they were a hit where I'm from. But something about them didn't catch my attention. That was until the animated series came out, so I thought that it could get me into the book series. The Horrid Henry series has gained a bad reputation, (mostly among older watchers) but if I could give an unpopular opinion, I didn't really mind it that much. For what the series is; the plots stayed true to the source material, the animation had effort put into it (if wonky at times) and the characters can have their moments. Much like 'The Cramp Twins'; the show exaggerates childhood situations that centre around a young anti-hero with a brother he has nothing in common with. Each episode would have Henry; this naughty brat who is faced with a certain problem, he then retaliates using trouble-making antics to achieve his goal. But more often than not, it would end with Henry facing the consequences of his actions. When it comes to TV shows based on kid's books, I was pleasantly surprised to see the amount of mileage to come out of it. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I ever liked this series very much. The writing wasn't high calibre, there were times where the characters could go too far with their traits and that it would relay on sophomoric/gross-out humour. Needless to say, it got obnoxious at times. But I think it was trying to appeal to the adolescence, much of it comes from how it tries to embrace a child's inner rebellion. There was a certain edge to it with how far Henry's anti-social behaviour can go, that it can be seen as a cautionary tale. So the juvenile nature is warranted for a show with this character. As long as the show wasn't too shocking, and as long as young viewers didn't imitate Henry's antics, I didn't find the show offensive (for the most part). So I was very indifferent towards it, that was until the third season. 

After the 'Horrid Henry movie', something went off with the TV series. I noticed that each episode

would get increasingly worse as it went on. The writing became very lacklustre, the stories stopped being as coherent as before, they either went nowhere or fell completely flat on its face. Not that the show was any good to begin with, but by comparison, the writing in the last 2 seasons felt very lazy. Even if you didn't like the show before, or you just thought it was okay, the later episodes would make the early ones seem not so bad. The antics became watered down, the dialogue made very little sense, the situations were no longer engaging in any way, that it would even resort to anti-humour which is not the least bit funny. Everything would drag on other than focussing on anything of importance, that anyone watching would lose any investment. The show had lost any edge it might have had, you could say I was too old to watch the show at the time, but even a child would find it dull. It doesn't even feel finished like the writer just turned in the first draft and did not add any further development to it. Whereas 'The Cramp Twins' had more story potential and should have gotten closure, the HH cartoon just kept going much longer without making much of a point. Now Horrid Henry's seasonal rot is nowhere near as bad as other shows, whereas those were noteworthy in how they declined in quality, HH just left me bored and underwhelmed. Even in its worst seasons; Spongebob at the very least had interesting ideas and concepts, with HH I could barely remember a thing. 

With how much source material there was to work with, you'd think the makers would be a lot more inspired. It feels like the producer was trying to sabotage the series. Why do I think this? Well, it seems that showrunner Lucinda Whitely has been calling the shots with the writing department; almost like she's become judge, jury and executioner. It's like people are afraid to tell her what she should and shouldn't do, as the episodes she' wrote show a lack of restraint. I'm sure she did put time into these scripts, but that has become very questionable as the final project doesn't show this. I don't see why they couldn't give creative control to Francesca Simon, seeing how it's her baby. I don't even know how much involvement she has with the series, or even she's aware of what's going on. It's like nobody is even trying anymore. Again the later episodes ain't remarkably bad, but that doesn't change how boring it got. I think children and fans of Horrid Henry deserve better than this. 

With all that said, how much more can they milk from this bratty child. I thought the franchise ended

3 and a half years ago, but it occurred to me that the show goes on these long hiatuses because the episodes do take that long to animate. Not only has the book series been around as long as I have, but the TV series has been on for nearly 13 years, even 'Johnny Test' didn't go on for that long. But if there's going to be another Toy Story and Shrek film, I guess any franchise has the chance to continue for an eternity. Even though I don't want to have anything to do with this series, maybe it might redeem itself. Perhaps Lucinda Whitely has listened to the criticism and that the upcoming season might be an improvement. But if this is going to be the last season, then I think it's for the best. Hopefully, it'll end on a relatively brighter note; rather than its soiled reputation. It would be better off that way. Or maybe the show will stoop to a whole new low and be a zombie of what it used to be. I'm not going to act like I was a fan of this show, but you could tell the makers did put their all into its early seasons. Even for how juvenile it was, many HH fans would agree it got as lazy as Lazy Linda. While I personally think people should put their focus on making a Cramp Twins revival, and just stop it with Horrid Henry. No matter how Season 5 turns out, this show needs to be left in the past with whatever dignity it has left. But at the end of the day, the Horrid Henry series is not great, nor is it "horrid", it's just mediocre.

A Stephen Hillenburg Tribute

I didn't think that 2018 would be as bad the previous 4 years in terms of how many icons have died, but unfortunately, this streak continues. This year, we've lost many people who have changed history; whether it be Dolores O'Riordan, Stephen Hawking, Will Vinton, Avicii, Barry (Chuckle) Elliott, Michael Jackson's Father, Anthony Bourdain, Tom Wolfe, Verne Troyer, R. Lee Ermey, Charles Lazarus, Stan Lee, Ken Dodd, Bernardo Bertolucci even Koko the Gorilla. I could go on. But one person's passing that has hit me personally hard was the loss of Stephen Hillenburg. I'm afraid to say that the rumours are true, the man who created 'Spongebob Squarepants' has gone to the great beyond. This man used his knowledge of marine biology to form an animated character that would eventually become a worldwide phenomenon for nearly 20 years, and would be recognised by people young and old. 

As some of you may know, I'm a fan of the naive sea sponge; from the age of 9, it has been one of my favourite animated shows from Nickelodeon. This cartoon really needs no introduction; it took the concept of talking sea creatures and did it in its own way. For many people who grew up in the early 2000s, Spongebob was more than just a silly cartoon; it was a cult television series that shaped our sense of humour. We the fans still remember the character's personalities, how they worked off each other, the quotable lines of dialogue, the unexpected humour that was woven into its storytelling, the juxtaposition of mixed media, how it took normal situations and adapted them to its underwater setting. It was a show that we shared because of how special it was to us; we shared it so much that it would become more and more popular. Which is why it's been a staple for not just Nickelodeon, but pop culture in general. It was funny to children and adults, hence why we hold the first 3 seasons in high regard. But I still hold this cartoon close to my heart for how much it developed my sense in humour, and I can't help but to admire how Stephen and the talented crew put so much craft into the jokes from those early episodes. In many ways, it taught us to be spontaneous with our ideas and to continue to be youthful at heart.

Even after Stephen left as captain, the show kept going much longer than he hoped. I for one didn't want to turn my back on the sponge; I still stuck with it through thick and thin. We can all complain how Spongebob became a hollow shell of what it used to be, and that it should have ended after the first movie. But you can still sense the effort; it still had good ideas and moments that could be just as good as the first 3 seasons. We had to accept that there were episodes that weren't on par with others and that a show from our childhood was no longer the way we remember it to be. It wasn't long till Stephen returned to his creation (though you can argue that he never truly left). This ushered in a new era for the sponge, we only hoped that it would return to form. It took the crew a while to get their groove back, but Stephen and crew knew that if Spongebob was going to continue for years to come, he should make the best episodes they can. 

Many visionaries continually make art and tell stories; some have that one claim to fame. Stephen may have created one show in his career, but it has left such a huge legacy. He was never a 'one-trick horse', he did many other contributions to our culture, but we can agree that his story of a childlike sponge has left an impact that turned out bigger than anyone could have imagined. His one creation has gone through many evolutions, for better or for worse, Spongebob is still ingrained in people's memories. There have been imitators of the sponge, but it could never be duplicated (like a sea sponge). Even those early seasons were a perfect blend of comedy, surrealism and great performances that could never be captured again. Stephen left his creation in the hands of other visionaries and encouraged them to interoperate it in their own direction. Even if it was his one creation, he was able to share it with the rest of the world. 

I had the misfortune to be around the time great musicians leave this world far too soon, I never thought I'd see the same for an animator. I was aware that he was suffering from ALS, but I thought that it would pass. But I did not anticipate this at all. It always hurts that someone who created something from my childhood passes on. Even as I got older and had to face bigger responsibilities in my life, I could still remember many of the quotes of this Nicktoon, even through it's changes, it meant something to me. It meant something to a lot of people. Now you're probably wondering if this means the end of Spongebob? No, with how much of a conglomerate phenomenon it has been over the years, I doubt it has to come to an eventual end. I also doubt the show will enter a second dark age of mediocrity, even without Stephen I know the crew understand what made it such a hit in the first place. They'll be many interpretations of the tales of Bikini Bottom from the people it inspired. No matter what your feelings are towards that one creation of his, the fact that someone made a children's program about a sponge that turned out to be a hit is a wonder to hold.

To quote Spongebob and Patrick; 'Goodbye friend, happy trails'.

So....Someone took a Piece of work I Did

It’s been a while since I wrote any updates or logs here, but I need to address this. About 4 years ago; I did a piece of fan art that shows Wayne and Lucien Cramp from the 2000s cartoon ‘The Cramp Twins’ as the 2 main characters of 'Pulp Fiction’. The piece in question would have Lucien as Vincent Vega and Wayne as Jules Winnfield respectably, as a homage to the both of them. I even did a reworking of it a year later.

 Now, why have I brought up this piece; well I was browsing YouTube one day when I discovered this video that uses a recent song by 'Russ x Buni’, that is named after the aforementioned series. I find it funny how these current rappers have songs dedicated to cartoons I watched in my youth, first J.I.D did one about 'Ed, Edd n Eddy’ then this. But that’s not what I want to talk about here.

In this video of the reworking of the song, you may notice that the image featured as the cover has my fan art. I was not aware of this till then, I was not even asked by anyone if they could use it, nor did I get any royalties for it. Not that I’m demanding to be paid for this, nor am I in any position to sue the person who edited the cover (or should I). I also noticed that the video was not uploaded on the group’s official channel, so it made me speculate that the cover used was a fake. It seems likely to be the case, as a matter of fact, I found another cover that uses another piece of fan art by HeinousFlame.

I did not find any information on where both covers came from, but I came to the conclusion that they were not official covers. At the end of the day, someone used my artwork without my permission. It’s ironic how a piece I did as an homage to both 'The Cramp Twins’ and 'Pulp Fiction’ would be associated with a song that’s named after that same cartoon. And for a reworked version no less. Now I’m no stranger when it comes to copyright, but whenever I do a project related to 'The Cramp Twins’; or any other existing property, I do acknowledge the original creators. After all, they do fall under the 'fair use’ doctrine. To the very least, am I being noticed for this? I really don't like being noticed for the wrong reasons.

A Bash on Teen Titans Go!

You may remember that I reviewed the British cartoon "Pet Squad", that short-lived series about 3 super powered animals that took the superhero genre in a comedic direction. The one that tried to imitate the works of Jay Ward; even though it didn't use their tongue in cheek charm and wit. And despite the fact it had talented people working on it, it never really took off. Well, I take back what I said about it. Hell, I take back what I said about Clutch Cargo, Mighty Man and Yukk, Transformers, Captain Planet, Jonny Quest and Dynomutt Dog Wonder. I take it all back because I'm convinced I've seen the absolute worst cartoon the action/superhero genre has had to offer. What is this cartoon that's so bad you ask, it's none other than Teen Titans Go!

Based on the DC comic book series, this franchise has a concept of a team of teenage crime fighters;

however, the characters people mostly associate with the Teen Titans are Robin, Cyborg, Starfire, Beast Boy and Raven. And their most well-known incarnation that featured those aforementioned characters was the Cartoon Network series from 2003. Now what can I say about the 2003 series, I'll admit when I was younger I remember watching some episodes out of morbid curiosity, but since then I haven't seen or thought of it considering I don't care for DC. Even though I didn't hold on to it; looking back there were admirable things like the voice acting, how it balanced action with comedy relief and its characters. Hell, there was even a tear-jerking moment, so I can understand why it had a strong and dedicated fan base.

Why I do I bring this up, well 10 years later there came a new cartoon based on the Teen Titans. Not only did it have the same main characters, not only did it adapt the same designs to a more cartoony style but the same voice actors returned to reprise their roles. So you can imagine it gained a bit of attention as well as hype. However this latest incarnation focuses more on the comedic aspect than the early one; fans were quite hesitant but when they saw the final product, it would be regarded as the biggest slaps in the face of the decade. Instead of giving us a revival of the 2000s series, they gave us a series that has become so infamous that even the mention of its name would strike fear to superhero and cartoon fans alike. In fact, it has gone by different names like Toddler Titans, Teen Titans No, Teen Titans Go F*** Yourself, but I would like to call it Teen Titans Go Away.
An animated series that has become so reviled in recent history, that practically everyone on the web has covered; now it's my turn.

To start this review off; I will not associate this with the 2003 series or anything from the Teen Titans franchise, I'll be strictly looking at this show on its own. Teen Titans Go! revolves around the same team of 5 titans; only in this comedic take on the superhero genre, it shows them in a variety of scenarios. And when I say variety, I mean it's less about fighting crime or trying to save the world; but more about the titan's goofy shenanigans! The plot basically has the Titans minding their own business, they get into a predicament, the story gets blown out of proportion as it goes on and it ends with the Titans either resolving the conflict or failing in a comical fashion. These plots have a typical set up you see in other comedic shows; but here, it's executed badly. This show seems to be trying to do what "The Justice Friends" segments from Dexter's Lab did; in this case, the writers did a poor attempt. Other than having consistent storytelling, it focuses more on telling jokes and being as silly as possible. Not only do the plots go in outrageous directions, but also it has this mean spirited vibe towards the protagonists.

But you know what else Teen Titans Go! offers in its subject matter? The titan's adventures would involve using the bathroom, eating vegetables, what to do on a rainy day, and seeing how many times you just say the word 'waffles'. I know this show is aimed at older kids and teenagers, but I think this show was secretly made for 4 year olds. You know those spin-offs that had well-known cartoon characters and made them younger; well this is what this show feels like. This is on par with 'Bobinogs' it's that bad. No wonder they call this "Toddler Titans". Even if that is the case, it doesn't work because there have been instances where it inverts lessons. There were times where it is seemingly trying to teach a moral, but they turn out to be false or spoof aesops. Yes, the show is playing itself for laughs, but I worry that the younger audience would take it seriously. And those kids who are expecting it to be action-packed would feel deceived.

But considering this is a comedy; is it at least funny. Well, this show is just as funny as cancer. This

series throws in every different type of joke it can, and none of them tickle my funny bone. Much like the stories, the "humour" tries its hardest to be over the top and lampoon the superhero genre. To put it simply, it really takes the mick here. Depending on who you are, it might get one or two chuckles out of you, but that's how desperate it is to make you laugh. But anyone with common sense would not laugh at all. I throw the phrase 'lowest common denominator around, but that's the best way to describe its brand of "humour". Much of the jokes contain very lowbrow toilet humour, pop culture references, they also have a tendency to use running jokes throughout one episode. It gets really frustrating and the jokes aren't even funny to begin with. It gets so zany and wacky to the point the stories become stupid and ridiculous. It's noteworthy how it's able to push your suspension of disbelief, but your patience as well. Now there's nothing inherently wrong with making a funny cartoon that includes action, but you have to capture the spirit of the specific genre. Play around with the conventions and make sure to have a balance of action and humour. The 2003 series did have moments of comic relief, it came from the character's expressions going really cartoony and exaggerated. However, those humorous elements were only an ingredient, with TTG it's like making a sundae only to end up serving a bowl of sprinkles. I also throw the word stupid a lot but that's the best way to describe this excuse for "comedy".  There's a difference between 'laughing with' and 'laughing at' someone, but in this case, it's the latter. What do I mean by this; because the only time you see TTG and 'laughing' in the same sentence, is that it would be a laughing stock to the animation industry.

As a comical show, the visuals are meant to be much more cartoony than your typical superhero fare. In a similar vein to 'The Powerpuff Girls', the character design has bold outlines and the heads are different shapes and sizes. But the whole look doesn't appeal to me; it's a very generic use of a style that doesn't do anything for me. The colours are also very saturated; I get sick of seeing the same colour scheme for each location. One detail I notice with the background designs is that there's this jagged pattern effect that gives a shading illusion from a distance. The movements are done in Adobe Animate (or Flash, as people used to call it); despite the fact that the tool has come a long way in the past decade, it doesn't make the designs look any better. I can tell that the timing is very fast, but by modern cartoon standards, the movement makes the show look awfully cheap and minimalist. I can't get by the lip movements and how obvious it cuts corners. When it does incorporate fight scenes, they don't lead much to the viewer's imagination. It uses the same basic composition as opposed to adding any depth or dynamic angles. It's able to think of wild expressions, but like the writing it gets overbearing. I must say the mediocre art direction does match with the quality of the writing. I really feel sorry for the artists and animators who had to work on this, because I'm sure they're doing the best they can with the material they're given. It's too bad what they have to work with are garbage scripts, it's upsetting that their talents are being put to waste. You know what's ironic; in the 60s when we started to get more action/adventure cartoons, I never cared for the action shows that went for a pseudo realistic look, yet I respect the shows that tried to take that genre for a comical approach. But when it comes to Teen Titans, it's the complete inverse.

Now let's get to what people really hate about this show, and that's its characters, starting with

the titans themselves. Robin, the leader of the group is a former sidekick who aspires to be a great leader and hero. Unfortunately, he often gets the short end of his staff and never catches a break. He gets into humungous tantrums whenever things don't go his way; he becomes so assertive and bossy towards the others that he comes off a loudmouth. Though can you blame him when he has to put up with the other characters? He just wants to take his missions seriously, yet no one else appreciates him and has to put up with his orders. Cyborg is a half human half robotic hero with hidden weapons and gadget at his disposal. Beast Boy, who is able to turn into every animal, is also the laid back one. He also speaks in slang and tends to use the suffix 'es' with certain words. They're both slackers who would rather ditch their responsibilities so they can lie around doing their own thing. While Cyborg is the 'party dude', Beast Boy is a dimwitted slob. The female titans are not much better. Starfire appears to be the one member who's gentle and kind, but even she has moments where she uses non sequitur phrases. She has a sunny disposition, in which she's shown to be happy and naive. Because she still hasn't gotten used to earth customs, she can get into misunderstandings and becomes obsessed over things (like cats). Raven is the demonic gothic member with dark, sinister powers. You'd think she would be the sensible straight man who acts as the voice of reason, but even she can act goofy and expressive at times. One of her traits is that she likes a girl's cartoon about ponies, which is obviously a reference to the fact that her voice actress Tara Strong voices the main character of 'My Little Pony Friendship is Magic'. The girls on the team are also the love interests for Robin and Beast Boy, yet they don't show the same feelings. I hate these characters; they're not even good at their jobs as heroes. They're utterly incompetent as they barely save the day or achieve what they set to do. They even cause more problems than solving them, and they don't develop through their lessons. It makes it hard to root for them when they act so immature. It's stated the titans are supposed to be teenagers, but they act too juvenile to be considered as such. They often yell out their lines in an over the top fashion, which makes them even more obnoxious. Now can you understand why people call this 'Toddler Titans".

The straight man in this show would have to be the supporting characters and villains. Each antagonist would have to put up with the titans' immature antics; even the other teenage heroes find them a nuisance. But if I could take a moment to compare any character from the 2003 series, it would have to be Terra. She is a villain with elemental abilities and is Beast boy's other love interest. Let me just say that it breaks my heart what they did to her in this series, it really does. As a kid's show, the titans don't even set any good examples. No child would want to look up to these so-called heroes at all.

Bottom line, I Hate Teen Titans Go! Folks I find that very a strong word, and I'm not one to hop on the bandwagon, but that's how I legitimately feel about it. What more can I say that hasn't already been said? The writing is awful and poorly executed, the humour is obnoxious, the characters are either puerile or ones you feel bad for and the animation is cheap by current animation standards. It's a show that fails on all accounts, it's super bad! I should have heed people's opinions on the show because I can completely understand why it's considered one of the worst animated shows of the 2010s. If there's anything positive to come out of this show, is that it made comic book fans appreciate the 2003 series more. Even if you don't know a lot about superhero comics, you'll be least likely to enjoy this regardless. My distaste for this show isn't based on any bias of mine either, I hate it for my own reasons. But your criticism of this show is also my criticism; it is the epitome of everything wrong with modern cartoons. At this point; hating on TTG has pretty become the equivalent of beating a dead horse, with gratuitously superhuman strength and special powers I may add.

To add insult to injury is the show's constant airing in the US. I really feel bad for the folks over there or anyone who has to be subjected to this tripe. It doesn't look good on Cartoon Network's part as well. The fact that such a show has become a ratings hit makes me worry for the children of this generation. I want to believe that the people working on Teen Titans Go had good intentions, but the end result tells me that the two creators Michael Jelenic and Aaron Horvath are some of the most incompetent people in the animation industry at the moment. Don't believe me, there have been episodes that are dedicated to argue with haters and critics. These two have used episodes like 'The Return of Slade' (the worst offender of this) as excuses for the show's quality, it's like they don't want to listen to people's criticism. We all make jokes on how the heads of bad superhero productions are the "real villains", but I couldn't have picked a better analogy for this circumstance.

Those who are looking for a cartoon that mixes comedy with action won't find anything to like here, and it's not the right show to expose little children to superheroes. But if you're courageous enough to check this show out for yourself, you better believe what people are saying about it. You better believe it. And if you happen to like TTG for whatever reason, I'm not one to judge, just explain to me why you like it just so I could see your point of view. As for me, this show gets a 1/5.
But you know what, I know children are smarter than this. I also know they deserve better quality programming than this. I hope that the younger viewers watching it will realise that they don't like this show, they'll probably learn to hate it as much as we do. I hope that producers will also smell the coffee and see that people have had enough of it and that we'd be better off without it. The only way we could defeat this menace of a series is if we could just ignore it, don't even bother bringing attention to it because it's not worth your time. If we just ignore it, then shows like Teen Titans Go! won't be the norm. And maybe, maybe this show will just go away. The sooner it does, the bett........

GOD DAMN IT!!!

All right; I also don't think this is worth seeing either, because I pretty much worry for the human race at this point. If there's any silver lining to this, then it'll probably get people interested in releasing hand-drawn animation in theatres again. I mean there's no way anyone in their right mind would give this any positive notoriety.........

...........SON OF A B****!