Animaniacs

Recently, director Christopher Columbus complained about Disney's plans to remake HOME ALONE. He pointed out that when something has staying power, you cannot recapture that lightning in a bottle, no matter how much money you throw at it. That's kind of the way I feel about this reboot. While it often imitates the style of the original cult series, everything feels so much safer-- and dare I say it, a little more mean-spirited.

Good things first: the Pinky and the Brain segments are amazing. They understand these characters and what made the original shorts so funny without saturating themselves in nostalgia. Also the animation is pretty good on the whole as is the orchestrated music in the style of the old Looney Tunes cartoons.

Unfortunately, the rest of the show doesn't live up to the old one. Firstly, there's something off about this presentation of the Warner siblings. They seem to be going for a more "the 21st century is so insane that the Warners are the sane ones now" approach, which doesn't really work. These characters as originally presented were essentially the Marx Brothers filtered through classic cartoon logic: they spread anarchic madness wherever they went, to both the innocent and the not-so-innocent. The Variety review of the reboot is on point when it says that the Warners were agents of madness driving an uptight world insane, not "snarky pundits commenting on its flaws." To be fair, the Warners shorts do have good jokes and flashes of the old style-- it's not a total failure, but the smug attitude gets old fast, especially when they make the same jokes about being sellouts to Hulu.

But the bigger problem is the lack of other characters beyond the Warners and the mice. I once read that ANIMANIACS was in a way THE MUPPET SHOW of its generation: a variety show that appealed to adults and kids with its vaudevillian sense of humor and willingness to take creative risks. The original series featured several reoccurring characters, ranging from the cartoony to the more dramatic. Not all of them stuck or worked, but the variety made the show interesting to watch. There was a willingness to play around that the reboot lacks-- making all the show's self-aware jokes about the creative bankruptcy of reboots hit a little more sourly.

I seem to be in the minority, but that's fine. There is a lot to enjoy, but it doesn't work for me. Personally, I think the most successful modern reboot is still DUCKTALES 2017, which remembers what made the original series good while updating it in ways that add to its charms.

'Animaniacs' is one of my favourite animated shows, loved it when younger but love it even more so due to understanding the references and humour more. Likewise with 'Pinky and the Brain' (don't like its spin off very much at all though), due to absolutely loving Brain as a character. Although 'Tiny Toon Adventures' is not related to this really characters-wise, that was a show that was brilliant at its best though 'Animaniacs' and 'Pinky and the Brain' were a lot more consistent.

Expectations were mixed for this 'Animaniacs' reboot. Part of me was fascinated, being a fan of animation for goodness knows how long and some reboots have been better than expected. Also was interested with how far the humour had come on and how the Warners would fare in a more contemporary setting. Having said that, the point of it was questioned. Part of me was questioning, is this even needed and was worried about how lacking in new ideas animation has become. The 'Animaniacs' reboot was actually better than expected. When it hits, it does so incredibly well. It is though a very uneven show and when it is not so good it's disappointing.

Shall start with the good things and they are many. The animation is bright and beautifully detailed with some suitably wild expressions in faces, eyes and body language, despite preferring the bolder and more traditional look. The music fits well and while it may not enhance the action it adds to it in a way that's appealing and accessible. The theme tune is hip and catchy. The voice acting, done by some of the best and most prolific voice actors in the business now and ever, is impeccable. It was a masterstroke bringing the voice actors back and the right thing to do. Cannot for instance imagine Brain being voiced by somebody other than Maurice La Marche.

Do agree with everybody that has said that the Pinky and the Brain segments are amazing, true in spirit to the segments in the original in atmosphere and writing and the two characters were clearly written by writers that understood the characters and loved them. Brain alone is worth seeing the show for. Enough of the writing is funny, smart and witty, there is a liveliness to the pace, and mostly the target audience is not a problem (some of the references are adult-oriented).

The humour though is inconsistent. Too many instances where it is too smug and tame. There are also too many political references that are very heavy-handed, repetitive and add nothing, the show also forgets the target audience with these references as younger viewers are very likely to not understand them. Yes there is political humour in the original too, but it was clever witty humour that wasn't beat around the head.

Furthermore, the storylines do lack variety and the energy could have been more consistent, especially in the Warners segments. The supporting characters are too few and are fairly forgettable. Also inconsistently written are the Warners, the writers don't understand them as much as Pinky and the Brain and their writing isn't as affectionate or witty. Sometimes they are suitably absurd and then at other times their writing is too safe.

Overall, not as pointless as feared but uneven. 6/10.

The Animaniacs have returned and the Warners have come back to wreak havoc in the 2020s. How does this make me feel?

I was excited from day 1. As a loyal fan of the original, I loved the skits and satire that the original had and I'm glad it's been upgraded to poke fun at current events. I've seen 4 episodes so far and I've enjoyed every segment. The writing is still naughty as it was before, and the comedy is mostly solid. The only thing I dislike is that only the Warners and Pinky and the Brain are the only characters in it, so it does get a bit repetitive. I hope they introduce more in the future. Also, it's still funny, but not as funny as the original, but that's to be expected, since almost no reboot is as good as the original. But it's a reboot done right in my opinion, and we have too many failed ones (a.k.a. Teen Titans Go)

The animation is quite nice to watch. Episode 4 had an anime sequence that really amped and hyped fans to watch the show, and man it did not dissappoint.

With that said, I'll be giving the reboot an 8/10, or a solid B. I'll be watching the rest of the episodes and will give a proper youtube review on my channel too.

I finally caught up on all 13 episodes of this reboot and it's.... alright. The show starts out kind of weak but it progressively gets better. Warners and PATB are just really fun characters to watch. It can also be pretty funny at times and the songs are pretty decent. I don't mind the political stuff, I think people are just overreacting especially when the original had political jokes in it and made fun of famous figures. Animation is also really good. Overall I recommend it.

I would say the first season of the reboot was... pretty good. Not perfect, definitely stuff I think they could improve upon, but there's plenty enough to enjoy for fans old and new alike.

The show's strengths definitely lie with the hillarious animation, the top notch voice acting (Paulsen, Harnell and MacNeille still got it), the orchestral music and for sure, the writing is often more hit than miss. I could understand why some critics might believe the same charm isn't there -- mainly due to the original creators not being invited back -- but no doubt there is still a lot of effort being put into this by people who respect the source material. Nothing about it feels lazy.

That being said, there are a few segments that could have been condensed down and this is especially where the lack of most of the original series' cast (the irreplacable Slappy Squirrel, the Goodfeathers, etc) is sorely felt -- whether this was a creative choice or the studio, one can't be sure. The first season's desire to be timely also runs the serious risk of some episodes and jokes being dated. It's widely agreed Animaniacs is at its best when it's being timeless and when they are here, it's a barrel of laughs. I just hope the writers tilt the scale more towards timeless going forward, and with any luck, maybe we'll see some of the old cast again. I mean, who doesn't miss 'Good Idea, Bad Idea'?

I'm looking forward to Season 2 next year. There is definitely something of worth here and I'm interested in seeing what they do going forward.