SMRT-TV: Zoinks

March 13, 2006

Animation on television, child-safe and otherwise.

ZOINKS!
Cartoons Go Feature-Length, and Other Updates
by Adam Lipkin

There have been a lot of announcements coming out of the cartoon world over the last few weeks.

A few of the more interesting ones:

Although the previous announcement that Teen Titans was cancelled still technically stands, Cartoon Network has announced plans for a made-for-TV Teen Titans movie later this year. Teen Titans Tokyo will, not surprisingly, have the Titans traveling to Japan. I'd like to think that a good showing in the ratings might bode well for yet another season of the show. At the very least, it would probably greenlight another movie or two.

CN's also got a mixed live-action/animated movie (think Roger Rabbit) called Re-Animated, debuting this fall. In spite of the name, don't expect a very Lovecraftian feel.

Cartoon Network has also announced plans for movies based on Codename: KIds Next Door and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends. The latter (named Good Wilt Hunting) will introduce the creators of Eduardo and Coco, and take Wilt on a quest to find his creator. CN's also got a mixed live-action/animated movie (think Roger Rabbit) called Re-Animated, debuting this fall. In spite of the name, don't expect a very Lovecraftian feel.

Other CN announcements in recent weeks have included new seasons of Ben 10, Foster's, Codename: Kids Next Door, Ed, Edd, n Eddy, The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy (with yet another movie coming next year, great news for fans of the funniest kid's cartoon on TV), and the inexplicably popular Camp Lazlo. They've also acquired broadcast rights to four Miyazaki movies (including Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke) and three Marvel direct-to-DVD flicks (including both Ultimate Avengers movies).

In the final CN-related news item, although Justice League Unlimited is, sadly, still ending this season (bringing to an end a cartoon universe that has spanned six core shows, five movies, two web series, and thousands of hours of programming), Warner Bros is releasing a straight-to-DVD movie called Superman: Braniac Attacks that's set in the same universe. They've got a trailer up online that's a little cheesy, but still fun. The movie's due out this June.

Atomfilms, who have released a number of great short films over the last few years (animated and otherwise) have announced Atomfilms To Go, which currently offers a number of free shorts that can be downloaded onto a computer, iPod, or PSP. These films include Cheney's Got a Gun, Vampz (a cute dark film about vampire siblings), and other nifty shorts.

Although Disney seems to be moving away from new cartoons on their suite of networks (and, given the quality of things like The Emperor's New School, that's probably a good thing for now), they have announced a couple of new animated series. The most notable of these is The Replacements, about a pair of orphans who order two replacement parents, and end up with a spy and a stuntman as their parents. It's the sort of concept that could be hit or miss, but the voice talent (including Grey Delisle, Nancy Cartwright, David McCallum, and Brian Cranston) is top notch. The other high-profile new acquisition for Disney (other than nabbing reruns of Jackie Chan Adventures away from Cartoon Network) is Oban Star Racers, a CGI sci-fi show from French production company Sav The World. The trailer shows potential, and the racing theme will surely guarantee a successful life in videogame spinoffs.

Other new Nick shows include El Tigre (a show inspired by Mexican folk art), and Thugaboo, a series of animated specials about inner city kids produced by the Wayans Brothers, who are fast running out of chances to show that they're not creatively bankrupt.

Nickelodeon has announced a few new shows as well, including a cartoon series based on the PS2 game Tak and the Power of JuJu, and a CG-spinoff of the Steve Oedekerk movie Barnyard. In an interesting move aimed at the younger audience, Nick Jr. has been offering a webcast aimed at preschoolers called The Wubbcat, and they're planning on spinning the podcasts off into a broadcast seriers called Wow! Wow! Wuzzby! I believe that this may be the first time a podcast has spun off into a regular TV show. Other new Nick shows include El Tigre (a show inspired by Mexican folk art), and Thugaboo, a series of animated specials about inner city kids produced by the Wayans Brothers, who are fast running out of chances to show that they're not creatively bankrupt.

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