Denis la malice

I remember this cartoon from the 1980s, when I was just entering high school. I sat down and watched it every day before starting my homework.

However, there's something about this show that I think needs to be pointed out here. That has to do with Mr. Wilson and his relationship with Dennis.

Yeah, yeah, I know it's just a cartoon series, and that one of the major components of the "Dennis the Menace" storyline is the relationship between Dennis and his neighbor, Mr. Wilson.

However, I've found Mr. Wilson's whole attitude toward Dennis very unnerving, as I'm sure many people would agree. Simply put, Mr. Wilson yells at Dennis because he's trying to be a kid.

Dennis is just that, a simple, red-blooded American boy. He's inquisitive and (of course) mischievous, and his well-meaning attempts backfire on others -- usually, with Mr. Wilson on the worst end. But what young boy hasn't been that?

Mr. Wilson's response? He yells at him and tells Dennis to go away. Mr. Wilson constantly tells his wife, Martha, about how he looks forward to peace and quiet and must always add that he's glad Dennis won't be around (usually, just seconds before Dennis shows up).

I agree that Mr. Wilson's boorish demeanor is much less severe here than in the 1993 theatrical release (which contains a segment where Mr. Wilson basically tells Dennis to go to hell). There are even animated shorts in this series where Mr. Wilson sticks up for Dennis.

Maybe I'm missing the whole point of this show, but it seems to me that Dennis worships Mr. Wilson and wants to be a friend to him. All Mr. Wilson does is throw that offer back in his face and tells Dennis to go away.

If Mr. Wilson were any sort of man, he would sit down with Dennis, tell him I would love to be your friend but you have to allow me some time for some peace and quiet, and then informally spell out a few guidelines to follow. I'm sure Dennis would agree to Mr. Wilson's wishes if he did it right.

As for the cartoon itself, it really hasn't held up with me. It's more in the execution than in the general idea, which remains good. Sure, the stories are family-friendly (except for what I described above), that they're geared toward a younger audience and everything works out well in the end. But older viewers (i.e., parents, grandparents and college students who don't play drinking games with whatever TV show) might think the stories are too simple and think the animation is somewhat below par.

Still, the 1980s version of "Dennis the Menace" is enjoyable for many viewers, and that in itself merits a recommendation.

One morning back in 1987, while I was home on leave (I was in the Navy stationed overseas and I was back stateside for some leave), I was up early one morning armed with the TV Guide and I saw "Dennis the Menace" listed.

Thinking it was the old TV series from the 1950s that I grew up watching, I decided to check it out, only to discover that it was a new cartoon series.

What I thought would be a disappointment turned out to be a pleasant surprise! The series was actually more true to Hank Ketcham's great comic strip than the old black & white series. Actually, the old black & white series was not true to the comic strip because the PTA, which was a pretty powerful force to deal with, managed to reduce "Dennis the Menace" to more of a "Dennis the good boy whose good intentions somehow went haywire".

The artwork of the cartoon series was true to Hank Ketcham's style. And the animation was very good, which was unusual for a TV cartoon of the time.

Being a cartoon, the writers had a lot more leeway and were free to allow Dennis to be as much of a menace as he was originally intended to be.

This series is not only entertaining for children of all ages, but is also entertaining for the child that still lurks in every grown up as well.

dennis the menace was a great 80s cartoon. and it brings back memories for me. i remember having to wait until 3 o'clock when all my mom's soap operas were over, before i could watch cartoons on the big tv, and right at 3 o'clock, this one was the one i went to. i enjoyed the cartoon a lot. it was very funny and had many good plots. if you're a cartoon lover like me, you'll love this one!

All the show is just a boy torturing his family, friends, and neighbor. He never even gets punished. I agree with the user who said this should be banned lost media. It is an awful disgrace to the entire television industry. I mean, come on? Who would watch a boring garbage show about a dorky kid who goes around torturing the entire universe with his dorky little "plans" and his little dopey friends? The show's animation is awful, and it is NOT anime. Seriously? How is this an anime? It's AMERICAN. Anyways, Speed Racer, which IS an anime, is so, so many times better than this hunk of junk, that's for sure!

I didn't think TV's original version of "Dennis the Menace" (way back in the '50s) was enough of a menace to earn the title. Let's fact it: it was the '50s, how much COULD he get away with?

That's part of the reason that this 1986 reinvention works so much better. Also the fact that here he's actually a CARTOON! Yes! Hank Ketcham should have been proud: this is the proper venue for a character born in the Sunday funnies.

But where Jay North was limited as to just what kind of mischief he could get into, this model of Dennis (voiced by Brennan Thicke) could literally get into ANYTHING! Here, he played with dinosaurs, foiled bomb-carrying spies, interacted with movie hero Cowboy Bob straight from the movie screen (a la Woody Allen's "Purple Rose of Cairo"!) and regularly thwarted aliens, opera singers, bullies, rude adults, criminals and, of course, frazzled neighbor George Wilson.

Wilson (as voiced by LaMarche and, especially, Phil Hartman!) stayed the same in every episode and rightfully so: any simple task he would start or try to start would consistently be thwarted by Dennis' misguided attempts to be neighborly, help him out or otherwise simply be there. Mr. Wilson knew what he was capable of, so why shouldn't he be wary of his mere presence? You know the equation: Mr. Wilson + Dennis = disaster!

I thought this was another great series distributed by DIC Entertainment and if you appreciate the mischief a child can get into (and get others into), you'll agree - this "Menace" was never better!

Ten stars. catch it, and enjoy this master of "Menace"!