Top 5 favorite sad cartoon moments.

Can anyone tell me what this is?

It's a illustration on a piece of paper. Nothing more. Cartoons creates an illusion of it being alive by using several pieces of paper, making it look like movement. It's not real.

So how the HECK can it makes us feel so emotional about it, knowing that it is noting but streaks on a piece of paper? And how come there are so many tear-jerking moments in animated shows that are suppose to be for children?

Cartoon Month is about to end, and I think I will take a look at some of the sad moments that animation has brought us.

OBS; These are not necessarily the saddest moment, but just my favorite sad moments. And it's without counting scenes from movies and anime.

Anyway, here is my top 5 favorite sad animated TV-show moments.

Number 5; Grunkle Stan fails as adult.

I think we can all agree that Stan from "Gravity Falls" may not be the perfect uncle, but he still cares for the Dipper and Mabel, and in his own twisted way tries to be an adult for them. So seeing him give up in "Gideon Rises" is pretty heartbreaking. He starts off by lying(how he usually solves his problems) to the twins parents over the phone, claiming that he has the situation under control. But he realizes pretty quickly that he can lie all he wants, but it won't change the fact that he can no longer provide the kids a roof over their heads. He can't even get them something proper to eat. It breaks Dipper and Mabel's heart, as well as his own, but he has to send them home.

Number 4; Tale Of X9.

X9 is one of Aku's many robots, build to destroy Samurai Jack. But what makes X9 special is that he has a personality chip, which gives him a reason and will to survive. But it also gives him other human-like traits, such as being able to love. We knows that he has to be destroyed, since he works for Aku(even if he does not wish to) but it doesn't change that it's a hollow victory when Jack defeats him. With his dying breath, X9 asks Jack to take care of his dog; Lulu.

If you didn't feel anything after watching this, then you are not human.

Number 3; Amethyst tormenting Greg.

The "Steven Universe" series got a lot more depth after the revealing of the Kindergarten, and the show turned a bit darker. One of the more depressing episodes is "Maximum Capacity" that shows a part of grieving that we do not see very often in cartoon shows; the anger.

Tons of feelings are involved in a person's death, not just the sadness over loosing her. Anger is surprisingly very normal. And Amethyst is VERY angry. As she and Greg revive their former friendship, they quickly remember WHY they stopped being friends to begin with; Amethyst blaming Greg for "taking away" Rose from her. She even goes so far to transform into Rose, while she mocks Greg who is paralyzed by despair over seeing his dead wife(?).

Seriously, that's messed up!

And very sad as well...

Number 2; Simon gives up his sanity.

I know that "I Remember You" from Adventure Time is by many considered THE tearjerker of animation(suck it, Bambi!), but I think that the story about HOW Simon completely lost his sanity and became the Ice King(in the episode "Simon And Marcy") is even sadder. 

A few years after the Mushroom War, a more or less sane Simon does all he can in order to protect and take care of the little Marceline. When they end up being corned by some sort of zombies, Simon knows that the only way he can save that little girl is by breaking his promise as well as her heart by using the magic of the grown. We get a bit of false hope as he takes it off and gets Marcy the chicken-soup she needs, and he seems normal.

Aaaand then we get kicked in the emotional balls as he calls Marceline "Gunther."

Number 1; Molly learns the truth about her mother's death.

Despite it's flaws, Oban Star Racers is still my favorite animated show of all time. The main reason for it is episode 11, where Molly is going to race against an alien she recognize as the murderer of her mother, the shape-changing alien Spirit. The race gets ugly as Molly tries to avenge her mother by making Spirit crash, but ends up destroying her own ship, almost killing herself.

As Molly lies unconscious in her wrecked racer, Spirit decides to find out why the young lady tried to kill him, and... I can't do it justice, you have to see it to truly understand this great scene:

The music is just perfect for the mood, and that we see that Spirit not only was innocent but also felt great sadness over the tragic day... it takes you by surprise, since everything about him screams "angel of death". And the fact that Molly's attempt or revenge not only wrecked her ship but also was for nothing makes it even more tragic.

And that's the end of Cartoon Month. Hope you enjoyed and that it may have introduced you to some good shows you didn't know.

I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Cartoon Month: Star VS The Forces Of Evil.

... I don't know what to say.
I have to, obviously, or else it wouldn't be a very good review.
This show...
I love strangeness. Especially in cartoons. I grew up with Johnny Bravo, Dexter's Lab and the Powerpuff Girls, all of them bizarre and utterly disgusting.
But this show...
Try to imagine that the Care Bears and the Powerpuff Girls had a baby. An ugly, evil, deform baby who shoots lasers out of it's eyes.
And then that baby started to hurl up rainbows on fire.
And then a kitten ate the puke.
And then it threw up a hairball.
That hairball would be considered normal compared to this show!
And that is EXACTLY why you should watch it!
I like that cartoons have evolved a lot the last couple of years. But sometimes, what you really need is a bucket of strangeness. And "Star VS The Forces Of Evil" delivers that.
That's all for now. I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Top 9 loose ends in Steven Universe.

You know what's great about cartoons today?

They all have such great build-up. We don't just get backstory and such slabbed in the face, it slowly builds up, we get small hints, and tons of the episodes has stuff that may not seem that important until it has been taken up in a later episode. We get that in Adventure Time, Gravity Falls and today's subject; Steven Universe.
Here is a list of 9 things that haven't been explained yet, but that I hope one day will be explained. I took the liberty to write what I think could be revealed, and would like to hear what you think as well.
Because that's what the internet is for; trying to predict what is going to happen, even though you do not have the faintest idea, and then feel humiliated because you realize that your theory was stupid and that you should never have posted it online to begin with.
Ladies and gentlemen; my top 9 loose ends in "Steven Universe".

Number 9; Is Garnet the first fusion?

In "Jail Break", Jasper claims that fusion is "a cheep tactic to make weak gems stronger", so it could be speculated that it is a common thought in the Gem Homeworld. And in "Keeping It Together", we see that Homeworld apparently does not understand what fusion is about, as they experiment on shattered gems, making them force into fusion monsters.
Garnet was overwhelmed by guilt as she saw the fusion experiment, and almost defused into Ruby and Sapphire, while Sapphire trying to tell Ruby that they couldn't know that this would happen. Sure, it could be that she(or they) just felt guilty about not being able to save their fallen comrades, but is it possible that Garnet felt guilt because she was the very first fusion? Is it possible that Ruby and Sapphire invented(or discovered?) fusion?

Number 8; How did Lapis end up in the mirror to begin with?

It most likely has to have something to do with the war. Lapis told Steven that she "never believed in this place", and that she resents the Crystal Gems for only caring for the humans instead of other gems, so it's possible that she fought for the Gem Homeworld. Some believe that Lapis was Blue Diamond, a leader of the Homeworld, but I find hat unlikely due to two reasons; A: if Lapis ever had any authority on Homeworld, then she wouldn't have been treated so disrespectful by Jasper who bossed her around and called her "brat", and B; I'm not sure Lapis is THAT powerful a gem, since she appear to need water to do anything, and we haven't even seen her use a gem-weapon.

Number 7; Will Mayer Dewey ever man himself up and ask Pearl out?

Probably not, since it has been made pretty clear that Dewey is pretty pathetic. But a lot of episodes are about Steven helping out the people who lives in Beach City because he wants to be friends with everyone, no matter how pathetic they are(*cough*Lars*cough*). And yeah, Pearl would without any doubt have no interest in a relationship with Dewey, but it would be healthy for Dewey to get it out of his system.

Number 6: What is the Gem Homeworld like?

It has been hinted that the Gem Homeworld is very class orientated and that it has colonized several planets, but besides that, we know nothing about it. Sure, we have seen some of the ruins of lost gemculture on the planet Earth, but that was 5000 years ago. Lapis said that the Homeworld has become extremely advanced, and that she can no longer recognize it, so we have no clue what it's like.

Number 5; Peridot a cyborg?

I know, I know! Gems do not have actual bodies, it's projections from their gemstone.
But here me out.
Even though the gems' bodies aren't "real," they can still get hurt. If their body get's too damaged, they retreat to their gemstone in order to heal. And if the stone get's damaged, then it will affect their human-like form(as shown in "Indirect Kiss" where Amethyst's stone get's cracked).
So... could it be that Peridot's gem is damaged? Is her legs artificial?
It could be, since we in the episode "Friend Ship" see her cut her leg of in order to escape. She could in theory just change shape and get away that way. But if I'm right, then her arms and legs are replicas, ´meaning that she can't change their shape, due to them not being part of her gem-body.

Number 4; Whatever happened to Marty?

Yeah, he is a dick, but wouldn't you like to know whatever happened to Marty? Apparently, he went back to Beach City after Greg left him and had a relationship with Vidalia and impregnated her with Sour Cream in(I assume) the late 90's.
Apparently, he doesn't have any friends(no surprise there) and he is dead to both Greg and Vidalia.
Where is he now? Is a still a manager? Or maybe he is a broke loser with no friends? Or maybe he has changed?

Number 3; Rose and Pearl's relationship.

It's safe to say that Pearl was in love with Rose. But what I would like to know is whatever Rose were aware of that love. It has been hinted in "Wee Need To Talk" that Rose, even though she had a great deal of love for everything, had no idea how love as in "I love you" worked until Greg made her understand it. So maybe Rose simply unaware of the fact that Pearl LITERATELY worshiped the ground she walked on. Or maybe Rose did know, and saw it as a fixation rather than actual love? Or maybe Rose just thought of her as nothing more than a good friend, possibly a daughter?

Number 2; Lost and defective Pearl?

In the episode; "The Return" Jasper calls Pearl "some lost,defective Pearl". And Pearl has later referred to herself as "Just a pearl who needs someone to tell her what to do."It could imply that there are more than one Pearl on Homeworld, and that they, like real-world pearls, are easy to mass produce. It's possible that Pearls are some sort of drones, which would also explain why Pearl has to rely more on her skills than Garnet and Amethyst, which would add up with her "not been made for fighting"(Sworn To The Sword).

Number 1; What's Lion's history?

Lion is possibly the biggest mystery in the series. He doesn't have a gemstone, but he is obviously not a normal animal. He most likely has some sort of connection to Rose, but how come Rose never told Pearl about him, when she told her everything else? Some has the theory that Lion IS Rose, but I find that very unlikely.

I guess we just have to wait.

That's all for now. Next time, I will take a look at one of the comicbook series based on an animated show.
I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Top 5 Finn And Jake episodes from Adventure Time.

The problem with some animated shows is that the supportive cast can often overshadow the actual hero of the show. Like Adventure Time, where Marceline steals the show with ease(she's even going to have her own spin-off in the near future), and some starts to wonder if Finn and Jake are even needed in the show at all.

OF COARSE THEY ARE, because they are awesome! And don't you DARE tell me anything else!

In fact, here is my personal top 5 episodes that has it's focus on the human boy and his magic dog buddy/brother.

Number 5: My Two Favorite People.

If you know the problem with spending time with both your girlfriend and your best friend, then you are a lucky bastard, so stop wining already!
Jake realize that he can't use as much time with both Finn and his girlfriend Rainicorn as he wish he could. But maybe it's not that big a problem if he spends time with the both of them at the same time!
.... But what do you do when you realize that your two favorite people likes to spend time with each other, and you feel left outside?
We have different kinds of friends that we prefer to be with and do things with that we don't do with the others. The problem comes when one of our friends meets one of your other friends, or in this case; your girlfriend. There can be several problems with this kind of situation, and the episode covers them pretty well.

Number 4: Jermaine.

Okay, I'm kinda stretching it here, but I still think of this as a Finn and Jake episode.
If you are a REAL fan of the show, then you know that Finn and Jake has a brother named Jermaine. But we never saw him, he was only mentioned from time from time, and it wasn't till season 7 that we finally got introduced to him and learned why he was never around.
"Jermaine" is actually a pretty sad episode. Once we are introduced to him, we realize that he is as anti-Finn-and-Jake as it is possible. Since the death of their father Joshua, Jermaine has been living in his father's house and never left it once, due to feeling that it is his responsibility to protect all the treasures and magical items that his dad had collected in his life. He never went out like his brothers to have fun and explore the amazing world of Ooo.

Number 3: Who Would Win?

Finn and Jake hear about a giant monster called "The Farm," and that beating him would make one a legend. Finn wants to train in order to become capable of beating the beast, but Jake is more interested in playing his video-game. One thing leads to another, and the two best friends end up beating the glob out of each other.
This is not a very honorable fight. They both use cheep moves, and acts pretty immature... well, more immature than they normally does. And that's what makes it so awesome.
And the fight is surprisingly even. Yes, Jake has the advantage of having actual powers, but Finn is a great fighter who thinks fast. And who knows better than anyone how to fight Finn and Jake than, well, Finn and Jake?

Number 2: Dad's Dungeon.

One day, Finn and Jake finds and old message from their dead dad. He tells them that he has made them the greatest dungeon to explore, filled up with monsters, traps and all kinds of fun stuff. But only Jake knows that their dad made the dungeon because he thought Finn was a wimp who needed to be toughen up. And it seems like it has the opposite effect.
Besides being good old AT fun, the episode is also what it's like being unsure whatever you live up to your parents expectations, or worse; if you parents expected anything from you to begin with. And the episode also gave us a good idea of what kind of guy Joshua was.

Number 1: Card Wars.

Oddly enough, one of the best episodes through he entire show is one of the least action-packed ones.
Jake is depressed because Rainicorn don't want to play the trading-card game "Card Wars" with him anymore, since he always win. In order to cheer him up, Finn asks Jake to teach him how to play, so that they can play together.
Only one problem; Finn is apparently a Card Wars prodigy, and Jake stops being depressed and instead gets grumpy.
I think we all know the feeling of being good at something(like a specific game) and wanting our friends to do it with you, only to learn that they are better than you at it, which can be kinda irritating.
It also reminds us cardgame players how weird and over-complicated it may look when we play and talk an entirely new language that no one understands but nerds(I floop the pig).
But what make this possibly the third best episode of the entire show is that it's about friendship being challenged by something as unimportant as a game. Jake almost becomes the villain of the e, and it's up to Finn to find a way to make sure that winning the game won't end up as the greatest failure.

That's all for now. Next time; more Steven Universe.
I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

W2 and Eyz talk "Steven Universe."

It wouldn't be a proper Cartoon-Month before I've giving my thoughts of what has quickly become one of my favorite animated TV-shows of all time; "Steven Universe".
And I even have with me today the guy who got me hooked on it to begin with.
What's up, Eyz? Glad to have you here again:)

Hey there Waez'!
Thanks for having me back here again!
So, Steven Universe! Such a great show, right?

Indeed. But before we talk about this animated masterpiece, we better explain what the show is about to those who haven't heard about it yet:
"Steven Universe" follows the adventures of the boy Steven. He lives with his dead mother's three friends; Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl, who are a team of magical alien ladies who calls themselves The Crystal Gems, protectors of the planet from supernatural threats. So besides raising him, they also train Steven to become one of them, just like his mother. But Steven doesn't have much control over his powers. Not that it stops him from tagging along on the girls' adventures.

I believe "magical alien ladies" already sums up the entire concept of the show!

It's already one of the more prominent new shows of this sort of "revival", this second Golden Age's Cartoon Network's being going through lately since the launch of Adventure Time.
Putting (indie) artists in charge of new series and letting them have entire creative freedom about whatever genres or themes they want to explore.
In fact Steven Universe was created by animator/storyboard artist and compose Rebecca Sugar, who previously worked on Adventure Time. (It's kinda sad to say) she is the first woman to create a show for the network. She used to do such a great work with stories and song on Adventure Time, I'm glad to see someone like her at the head of an entire cartoon!

I couldn't agree more. "Adventure Time" wouldn't have been the same if it wasn't for Sugar. "I Remember You" made me sad for weeks(and yes, I'm easy to tears, DON'T JUDGE ME).

And even though I'm glad that she created "Steven Universe," it made me sad that she left AT.
But enough about Sugar being awesome. Let's talk about her awesome show.
Eyz, what is it you like about the series?

Steven Universe is such a great show! It's not just a fun "all-age" cartoon, both kids and adults can enjoy it!
Characters aren't stereotypical in either design or personalities. Things are nuanced.
One episode can be a silly standalone goofy story and then be followed by some pretty impressive world-building on-going threads.
Steven himself is without a doubt the heart of the show. He might start a bit "stupid" (for a lack of a better world), but his enthusiasm carries the entire series.

Yes, the best way to describe him is as sweet, creative, considerate and only occasionally annoying. And since child characters in cartoons has a tendency of being... well, stupid, it says a lot about the shows quality.
So far, the shows universe(no pun intended) is a bit small and compact, but it has a nice combination of the magical alien girl adventures as well as the events in Beach City, one of those tiny towns that only exist because of, well, the beach.
And the towns function in the show is not just filler until we get some magic weirdness, we actually care about the people who live there. We care about the mayor who at first seems like a cheap gimmick politician, but actually means well. We care about Sadie and Lars who works at the donut shop. We care about Ronaldo who tries to make his life meaningful by writing a blog about the weird stuff that's going on in Beach City.

The characters get surprisingly well fleshed out. A lot of episodes are based or revolve around the inhabitants, keeping most of the cosmic-scale epic in the background.
What I really like is how it's basically a "magical girl anime" disguised as a fairly typical Cartoon Network comedy show. Taking the best of both worlds for much wider audience than you'd expect.Really, this show manages to do a lot of good and can get surprising deep sometimes.

Not to mention the whole family element. This IS a very strange family Steven has.
But before we dig into that, maybe we should talk a little about Steven's three moms/big sisters/aunts?
Let's start with Garnet.

Oh, yeah. Garnet. My "favorite". (To be honest, my favorite's always the latest the show's explored!)
She certainly starts the more enigmatic of the three.
She rarely talks at first. She seems the calmer of the three. But we later find out she's actually full of emotion(s) (literally).
The strongest of the team. She serves as a great mother figure to Steven, someone to look for.
Anything you want to add? What's your take on Garnet?

... And all those... "shipping" illustrations were made
because me and Garnet once danced together?

I'm not going to lie here; for a long time, Garnet  used to be my least favorite character in the show. Not that I didn't like her, I just didn't like her as much as the others. It had something to do with her seeming uninteresting at first.
But as I watched the show, she started to grow on me. One of greatest traits is that she is the one of Steven's three "moms" who takes Steven more seriously, and always value his point of view as well as suggestions to how a situation can be solved. And she is a rock to the other gems as well. She is the unofficial leader due to her level head, as well as the fact that she is the one with most raw strength.
And because she is so cool-headed , it makes it that more powerful when she panics or gets frustrated and don't know what to do(Like in "So Many Birthdays"). It's very rare that she makes a bad decision(like she did in "Coach Steven" or "Future Vision"). But not in a way that would be out of character, which is more impressive than it sounds.
But my favorite character is Pearl.

Peal, my "favorite"!

(Heh, favorite)

This one I liked from the start. She's the one to actively take the motherly role pretty seriously with Steven. Even if she doesn't seem to understand humans much at first.And also an excellent fighter with a sword!
With her apparent detachment from mankind at first yet being overly protective with Steven, a lot of humor seems to come from interactions with the others at first. Even if she tries to be the calm, quiet and wise one of the three.

Pearl is in theory the most calm and mature of the three gems. As well as the most intelligent one. I remember once wondering why SHE wasn't the one in charge, especially after learning that she used to be Rose's second in command. And she does take her role as a parent very serious( if anything a bit overprotective, such as watching Steven as he sleep). But unfortunately, she is a bit... emotional unstable.
Back when Steven's mother, Rose Quartz, was still around, she was the leader of the Crystal Gems, and she loved and cared for Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. But I think it's safe to say that Pearl had hoped for... a different kind of love. So it must be difficult to watch Steven grow up and see him become more and more like his mother. I'm not implying anything unhealthy, I'm just saying that it reopens some old wounds(as seen in "Sworn To The Sword"). And when she does something risky and impulsive, she does it big time(like in "Space Race" where she builds a spaceship).
Recently, she has been described as "a lost and defective Pearl," so I believe that we will eventually be told the story about her possibly sad past.
Speaking of witch, let's talk about Amethyst.

My final "favorite"! Like I said, it's difficult to pick a favorite!
Perhaps the only one I wouldn't call a mother figure to Steven, but Steven does appear to consider her one of his moms. Maybe she'd be closer to a big sister-type.
Amethyst's the fun one. The one that quickly grew up attached to more human-ly things (like bad TV shows and eating food). And for a good reason since she was basically "born" on Earth ('trying to stay vague and avoid spoilers here!).
She gets the best jokes and started as the more comical figure of the group but once they start hinting and exploring her past, she because just as deep as the rest.

I actually never thought about Amethyst's liking of human stuff like that. Kudos to you, sir!
And I agree on Amethyst being more of a big sister than anything else. And that is a good thing. We can all sometimes be in need of one of those. Someone older and more mature than you, but not THAT mature. The only problem can be that you follow her and listen to her when you shouldn't, forgetting that even though she is older than you, she is not an adult. I don't have a biological big sister, nor a stepsister, but I know a woman who has that kind of role for me.
Amethyst's past is the first element that made the series darker(It's actually the past who has her more than she has it). But still in a way that allowed the show to keep it's Steven-perspective, through a child's eyes. We see it in a way so that the adults has a pretty good idea what happened, and the kids gets that it was something bad without fully understanding it.
We have talked a lot about the characters. Maybe we should talk about the episodes? Eyz, do you have a favorite/least favorite?

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the most competent man in Beach City.
... I'm not even kidding!

Let's keep it around season one, shall we?
I think the first half of the show's debut season started pretty simple. A lot of emphasis on comedy, with world-building only kept in the far background. Like your typical Cartoon Network shows (in a good way).
But once past the mid-point the show really picks up and starts getting a lot more deep. More focuses. And the last few episodes of the show's first seasons are some of my favorite cartoon episodes in ages.

I think of it as that we see the world through Steven's eyes. At episode one, his world IS pretty simple, like it is for any ten year old kid(with the exception that his family is magic alien ladies). But it's also at that age that you REALLY start to notice the world around you, both it's wonders and flaws. It's the part of his life where he is losing a bit of his innocence.
But it's also about child raising. As we have pointed out, family plays a big ole in the series. The Gems are starting to take Steven with them on their adventures, struggling with preparing him for his future as the planet's protector. But sometimes, more often than one would think, it's actually Steven that teach them something. And there are surprisingly many episodes that centers around Steven and the girls just staying at home, and do something like making breakfast, celebrating birthdays or something normal like that. It may not sound that important or exiting compared to fighting a giant worm or flying eyeballs, but it's just so great seeing them interact with each other.

Yeah, like we said before the interaction is great on the show! Some episode simply just rely on the characters and no overall big arching plot.
The rest of the inhabitants of Beach City are just as interesting. A particularly good early episode revolves around Steven forming a friendship with this kid Peedee who already has to work at his dad's place. While Steven tries to stay overly positive and always enthusiastic, through Peedee we get an entirely different view on life ("I don’t see anyone smiling. You pick up a job to buy a house or raise kids or to...impress your Dad. You work away your life and what does it get you? You get cash, cash that can’t buy back, what the job takes", a great quote by the by).

Yeah... Peedee is kind of a party-pooper...

Which makes me think this half-human half-gem that is Steven is perhaps the combined best of both worlds, but that also means Steven doesn't know the flaws of both species at the beginning of the show. And his discovery of what it means to be both is the journey of the show.

It's such a great show. It is funny, it's deep, it's creative and colorful, has plenty of wonderful music and most important of all; it's cute without being cloying. And I can only remember ONE episode that I didn't like(Secret Team) and it wasn't really bad, just... meh.
But I'm unsure if all the... implications the show makes are alright in a kids show. Subtle jokes are one thing, but stuff like this:

DUDE!!!

Yeah. Fusions really push it, as far as children cartoons go (and we got a lot adult undertones in 1990s cartoons, but Steven can really stretch the limit so far sometimes..) 
It's a wonderful show than anyone can enjoy It explores a lot unique themes. A lot of life drama, despitie the overall comedy nature of the show at first. It's a great exploration of relationships, childhood adventure and what life revolves around. 
All this through a pretty innovative and provocative take on "Magical Girl" animes. Yet, perfectly in line with the great new shows Cartoon Network's been producing these last few years. All in all, I can't recommend it enough!


And that's all we can tell you without spoiling too much of the plot. Thanks again, Eyz, a pleasure as always.
And as usual, I will ask you readers to check out Eyz blog(eyzmaster.blogspot.dk/) as well as his Deviantart page(theeyzmaster.deviantart.com/)
See ya around, Eyz

Thanks for having me over!
See ya around folks!


And thanks for wasting time with us:)

Cartoon Month: Gravity Falls.

It's summer, and the twins Dipper and Mabel are spending their vacation with their granduncle(or "Grunkle") Stan, a professional con man who runs the Mystery Shack, a tourist trap filled with fake oddities and a overpriced gift-shop.

But after finding a old journal with the number 3 on it, the twins discovers that Gravity Falls apparently is the capital city for the paranormal. With the journal, the twins explore every inch of the weird little town, meeting all sorts of creatures, including gnomes, mermen, video-game characters and dinosaurs. It seems like this is going to be the most exiting summer in their life.

Now, how do I best describe Gravity Falls...

Um... Try to imagine... The Simpsons for kids.

The characters in the show are not unlikable, but they have plenty of flaws. Some of them are greedy, others unintelligent, some lazy, and some are just annoying. They are the people that you don't want to be with at first. But as we keep watching the show, notice the likable traits in even Grunkle Stan and that he may not be that bad an uncle, even if he is a lying, stealing, jerkish fraud.

The humor in the show is pretty mean-spirited from time to time, but that is the beauty of it. There are plenty of third-stringer characters who provides humor by simply being stereotypes while others are... GOD knows what. The best example could be Tyler.

Seriously, what is up with this guy?! What the heck is his deal?! Believe me, once you watch the show and see this guy for the first time, you will understand what I'm talking about.

But let's not forget what this show is about: Monsters and mysteries.

The weirdness and spookiness is varied. Some of the episodes are just weird(one word; Minigolf), while some of them are downright scary. Because of the changing level of weirdness, creepiness and so on, it takes you by surprise when you realize that you are watching a scary episode. One of the episodes is(without spoiling too much) about a very angry ghost who wish to avenge his friend who worked themselves to death for nothing. It's freaking creepy, as we see the graveyard... grow.

There are also an ongoing story-line, since Dipper wish to find out WHO wrote the journal, and if there is a number 1 and 2 as well. The hunt for the Author is twisted and has many dead ends. And it seems like that they get all kinds of answers to everything else BUT The Author's true identity.

So, like... Go watch it. Now! ASAP! Before ASAP!!! Travel back in time and watch it! GO!!!

Next up; A boy and his three(or is it four?) moms.

I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Cartoon Month: Adventure Time.

Meet Finn, the last human on the planet, and his best friend/adopted brother Jake, a magical shape-changing dog. Together, they go on all kinds of adventures in the land of Ooo. Anything from saving Princess Bubblegum of the Candy Kingdom from the crazy Ice King, fighting monsters or go on treasure hunt. Anything is possible as well as allowed in Adventure Time.

Weird cartoons are nothing new. But this show managed to give us something a bit... different.

Remember being a kid playing with Lego, or on a playground? It's not like a role-playing game with rules. Your imagination allows ANYTHING to happen. A huge dragon can come to your kingdom and throw up goblins in your face, and only your cool sword can cut that overgrown lizard to pieces. Or you are lost in a labyrinth, and has to run for it before you get eaten by a horde of bugs, and then Pikachu saves you. All those weird games you played as a kid had nothing to do with all that dumb grownup stuff such as LOGIC, REALISM, or any of that poophead junk.

That's the essence of Adventure Time. There are no rules. Anything can AND will happen. Finn and Jake goes on wild out-of-control adventures, yelling made-up word no one would normally use if they were older than 12.

... Aaaaand then it hits you in the feels.
This show manage to be surprisingly deep. Because of all the silly playground action, it takes you totally off guard when they decides to make a serious(or more or less serious) episode. It works surprisingly well, like when we take a close look at the Ice King, (a character usually ridiculed), and realize that he is actually pretty tragic. And we realize that the sweet and kind Princess Bubblegum MAY not be that sweet after all, and that she runs her kingdom with an iron fist. My favorite "serious episode" is the one called "'Princess Cookie" that is... surprisingly dark compared to the rest of the show. Seriously, it made me more depressed than anything else. I'm actually unsure if I would let a child watch it.
Adventure Time has something for everyone. The kids can enjoy the awesome, mathematical, fartastic adventures, and the elder siblings/parents/adults who watches kids shows for some weird reason can enjoy the surprisingly intelligent and subtle humor, as well as analyzing the episodes. And even though it's pretty chaotic at first, then it has a interesting fantasy-universe that you can explore, analyze and make theories about. And it has plenty of great characters, such as Marceline, 3/4 of the fans favorite character.
That's all for now. I'm Waezi2, and Bubbleline forever.
... DON'T JUDGE ME!!!

Cartoon Month: Dave The Barbarian.

This show only lasted ONE season?!

If it wasn't because I knew that there was a awesome and very vengeful god, I would claim that there weren't one.

... Please show mercy, Big G...

"Dave The Barbarian" follows the adventures of Dave, the most muscular wimp who ever held a sword. While his parents(the king and queen of Udrogoth) are away to fight evil across the globe, Dave must protect the kingdom with the aid of his magic and sarcastic sword Lula, his two sisters; Fang and Candy and their uncle, the useless wizard Oswidge.

None of them are the greatest heroes in history, not even CLOSE! But they are all Udrogoth has.

This more or less useless barbarian family must do their best to fight a horde of weird enemies, such as Chuckles, the ruthless(but adorable) lord of evil... Also, he is a talking pig.

As you may have deducted by now, this show was weird! Weird as in "stupid weird!" And that's a compliment.

The show has a charm that resembles Animaniacs. The show hits you with crazy stories, weird characters and insane plot-twist that makes you ask; "Dear god, WHY!?", while the show replies; "Why not?"

And Dave is simply to die for. Is is likable and unlikable at the same time, if that makes sense to you. Because he is really a nice guy. If it was up to him, he would devote his time to his interests, such as cooking and handcraft, all that stuff that would have been acceptable in our time period, but when you are an barbarian, living in the middle ages, you're a jackass.
And none of that changes the fact that Dave a coward. And the thing is; he has no reason to be a coward. He is big, strong and has the skills of a great barbarian warrior. But he is easily scared, and prefer to hide behind something instead of drawing his goddamn sword and fight, for Christs sake!!!

I highly recommend this overlooked family-show that is a lot like a fusion of "Animaniacs" and "Monty Python And the Holy Grail". Unfortunately, you can't get it on DVD, but it should be available on YouTube.

That's all for now. Next time, we will take a look at the show that teaches our kids that starting a nuclear war is a GOOD thing.
 I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Cartoon Month: Totally Spies.

You know, I realized from an early age that I was never going to become the next Chuck Norris.
One of my favorite toys as a little kid was a Polly Pocket-ish town. The first manga I read was NOT Dragon Ball, but DN Angel.
And I watched(and liked) Totally Spies...
Even the girls in my class made fun of me!
Totally Spies follows the adventures of Sam, Alex and Clover, three best friends and teenage girls. But when they aren't in school or shopping, they work as agents for the secret agency WOOHP(World Organization Of Human Protection), saving the world from evil masterminds of all sorts, like evil women wrestlers, rockstar managers, time-traveling disco dancers or cheerleader coaches.
... Yeah, the show was kinda stupid, now I think about it...
But in a awesome way!
The show usually has the girls doing a mission that is linked to a personal problem that they are going through in their school life most of the time. In this sense, the show is kind of repetitive in that regard, even if the normal lfe part of the plot is a bit weak. The villains are stupid as in Silver-Age-comic stupid, and their reason to join the dark side is as silly as well.

But the show IS a ton of fun, to be honest. If anything as a guilty pleasure.

The girls are a pretty stable group with Sam as the smart and mature one, Alex as the childish sporty one, an Clover... Clover is pretty much a valley girl, which makes her seem kinda out of lace here. But the show wouldn't have been the same without her, really.

But actually, it wasn't so much the girl that interested me, but their boss; Jerry.

Jerry is the British guy all spy-themed movies/TV-shows need. At first, he does not seem that important to the plot besides telling the girls what to do and providing them with gadgets. But as the shows go on, he starts to grow on us, and he even helps out the girls on their missions. Jerry was once a field agent as well, and he can still hold his on in a fight. One of the best episodes is the one where the girls and Jerry has to fight Terrence, Jerry's evil twin-brother.

I can't really recommend this show, unless you want a nostalgic blast from the past, or if you, like me, enjoy watching silly cartoons that you can't take serious at all.

That's all for now. Next time, I will take a look at a show a bit more... barbaric.

I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Cartoon Month: Medabots.

In the future, kids has pet-robots called Medabots, robots with advanced artificial intelligence thanks to a medal stored in the back(hence the name medabots=medal robots). And with such highly advanced robots who can think and feel like a human, what are they used for?

Why, to fight for fun, obviously! DUH!!!

Ikki Tenryou, a ten year old boy, is frustrated over being the only kid in school without a Medabot. He only has just about enough money to buy an outdated model, and that's without a medal, meaning that it won't work. And his parents won't buy him one.
But one day, Ikki finds a medal in a lake, and he can finally start to become a Medafighter(a guy with a Medabot). Only one problem; his Medabot(that he has named Metabee) doesn't like him that much, and unlike other Medabots, he doesn't follow orders automatically.

Remember the first episode of Pokemon where Ash and Pikachu becomes friend in ONE episode? Yeah, that's not happening here.

Through several episodes, Ikki tries to tame Metabee and gain his respect, but it's harder than one would think. Metabee KNOWS that Ikki needs him, so he really pushes his "masters" patience for no other reason than, well, he can. But he also knows that he needs Ikki to fight, something Metabee wants to. So the two of them tries to make it work as well as possible.

I might as well point out the show's weakest point: the low-budged animation.

This is a show from 1999, but the animation looks really, REALLY old. And that's not a compliment. There are some episodes that looked pretty good, but some scenes looked pretty horrible. There is also a awful lot of reused scenes and stock footage. But if you can learn to live with it, then you can enjoy a pretty good, if anything child-friendly animated show(it does have it's darker moments, though).
The series obviously reuse a couple of ideas from Pokemon, such as a gang of criminals called the Roborobo Gang who uses Medabots for their evil deeds.
... Well... more or less evil deeds.
They are actually not that evil to begin with. Their "crimes" are more mean-spirited or annoying than anything else. Until the evil Dr. Meta-Evil(Subtle!) takes over the gang and makes them steal rare Medabot medals.
This show may not be the greatest cartoon in history, but it was pretty entertaining. It had some fun battles, some nice designs for the Medabots, and some pretty good drama, especially the episodes that focus on Rokusho, the mysterious Medabot without a master. I can get a little TOO goofy fnow and then, but hey; it's a kids-show!
That's all for now. I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Cartoon Month: Duel Masters.

How come no one likes the stuff I like?!

Such as the trading card game Duel Masters.

The game, as well as the animated series, has been accused of being a cheep Yu-Gi-Oh ripoff. But the game is more like a child-friendly version of Magic The Gathering. And the show has little to nothing to do with the plot of Yu-Gi-Oh.

Shobu Kirifuda haven't seen his father since the day he left him and his mother, leaving nothing behind but a deck of Duel Masters cards for his son. Since that day, Shobu has practiced playing Duel Masters, hoping to be a Kaijudo-master(someone who can summon real monsters) like his father.

But when Shobu is invited to a temple that worships the game, he begin to realize that being a Kaijudo-master MAY not be as fun as he thought it would be...

Let's be honest here; the show is not genius. But it's still entertaining. And calling it a Yu-Gi-Oh ripoff is unfair. Sure, Shobu has weird hair that KINDA looks like Yugi's, but that's pretty much it. His personality is completely different, and he doesn't even dress like him. And unlike Yugi who doesn't rely on one tactic, Shobu is more of a "attack first, plan later" kind of guy. His goal is different as well(to become a Kaijudo master and find his father).

In fact, let's try to see who is ripping off who:

In the Duel Masters cartoon, we have a hero who are not exactly the brightest bulb on the porch, but has a talent for trading-card games. He loves the game, and enjoys every match, even if he ends up as the loser:

His best friend is a little dork with glasses who sucks at the game:

And his rival is a prick dressed in black, who think that he is better than everyone else. And even though he despise our hero, he ends up supporting him:

Our hero learns that the monsters from the game are real, and travels into the dimension where they live:

I think I speak for everyone when I say; What's wrong with this picture?!

Anyway, back to the review;

There are a couple of reasons to why I enjoyed the DM series more than Yu-Gi-Oh. The first being that the games goes a lot faster, so that we won't lose interest due to filler dialogue between the players who can use minutes talking about WHAT their cards can do, and HOW they will use them instead of, you know, DO IT!

Another thing I like about the DM show is that it doesn't take itself TOO seriously. The people who translated the series to English knew from the start that the entire premise was silly and ridicules and made the show part parody and yet make it possible to keep the heart of the show. And that was two years Yu-Gi-Oh Abridged episode 1!

All I'm saying is that if you like cardgame TV-shows and can accept that it in theory is a stupid concept, then you might enjoy Duel Masters. It has some nice games, a fair potion of drama and some pretty cool computer-animated monsters.

So, that's my thoughts of the Yu-Gi-Oh ripoff. Next time, I will talk about a Pokemon ripoff.

I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.

Cartoon Month: Oban Star Racers.

I'm more than just a comic-book nerd, you know.

I'm also a cartoon-show geek.

Even though I love the comic-book media, a break now and then can be a good thing. And in order to make sure that there will still be some activity in Comicsin5panels.com(and seriously, I needed some weeks ago), I will let July be the month where I tel you about animated shows that I love as much as comics.

Starting with what was my favorite show when I was a teenager; Oban Star Racers.

OSR is the story about the 15 year old Eva, who has been living in a boarding school for ten years after the death of her mother. But her father, the famous racing manager Don Wei, is still alive, and Eva decides to find him after she finally manege to run away from the school.

And she does find him... But he does not recognize her. Confused and intimidated of her father who has become a harsh man, she loses her nerves, lies that her name is Molly, and instead get's a job as a mechanic on his racing crew.

But fate has it that Molly shall be the pilot representing Earth in the greatest race of all time; The Great Race Of Oban, an event held each 10,000 years where racers from all over the universe compete for the Ultimate Prize.

Oban Star Racers is a great colorful adventure, if anything a bit short(only 26 episodes). The animation may be a bit odd(humans without noses), but still excellent. The races are action-packed, the landscapes wonderful and the aliens and their racing-verticals are very creatively designed.
As second season starts, we realize that if this competition was more than just a race, it is most defiantly more now. As the competition goes on, the races becomes harsher and the pilots more brutal, all of them ready to do anything to win. Each of them has a dream that they are ready to throw away their self-respect and decency for. Friendship and mutual respect becomes a luxury that you can't afford. Honor and fair play becomes irrelevant.
I highly recommend this overlooked gem of an animated TV-show. My favorite episode is episode 11, furthering my favorite character through the entire series; Spirit, a mute, shape-changing alien who can transform into his own ship. And he also plays an important role in Molly's past.
Unfortunately, the DVD is a little difficult to find due to it being A; a bit old, and B; a Jetix series. But it should be possible to find it on Amazon, and all the episodes can be found on YouTube.
That's all for now. Next time, I will take a look on a series about a boy with spiky hair who saves the day by playing cardgames.
I'm Waezi2, and thanks for wasting time with me.