In the 21^st century, content tends to have more backstory and lore. There are callbacks to previous events, antagonists once thought dead can return and it’s not via soap opera means. We find out what they were doing since their demise and how they survived. Hell, we might even get lore on them to keep them from being cartoonishly evil.

Mad Max has typically kept things simple storyline-wise with the comics and Furiosa giving the biggest bumps in lore in regards to Max’s world. That’s different from the hard world shift from Mad Max and The World Warrior.

We’re getting into what rocker about the first film and get more into what I feel is its biggest flaw.

Mad Max: Highway Patrol Extreme

The first movie takes place in the not-so-distant future of Australia. Max is a highway patrol officer known for being the best of the best and the most feared. At this time, Australia was hit with a lot of crime and the roads are the playground of gangs. So, the Main Force Patrol is established to handle road crimes.

One gang terrorizing the roads is a group of wild bikers led by Toecutter. The MPF has a rough go of it dealing with them as the biker Johnny avoids jail time for his crimes thanks to intimidating witnesses. Over time, the MPF is whittled down to just Max and Captain Fifi following the gruesome injury suffered by his friend Jim Goose.

Rattled, Max—a husband and father—looks to retire. Instead, Fifi gives him vacation time. Tragedy would strike during the vacation with Max losing his wife and kid. This kicks off the best stretch of the film with Max going on the offensive.

Mind you, the film had most been Toecutter’s gang just terrorizing the roads without being checked. Now that he has nothing to lose, Max Rockatansky is out for blood. We get the start of some film consistencies. Max’s injuries never actually heal up. It’s the wasteland, so good luck finding skilled doctors and surgeons in the apocalypse.

Highs and Lows

One of the highs included a rapid pace for the story. It was fantastic and remind me of watching Death Race 3000. Things kept moving and we were evenly introduced to both the MPF and Toecutter’s gang in a way that didn’t bog the film down to mostly extended scenes of just dialogue.

The black Pursuit Special making its road debut was awesome. It’s my favorite fictional vehicle and is iconic in the franchise. Much like Max, it takes its bumps and bruises…only Max is taken through the ringer multiple times and in each movie.

I felt the biker gang was a good foil to Max and the MPF. It’s the origin of Max and Toecutter’s actions really set this youngster on a fun revenge quest.

The main con is that there wasn’t much Mad Max continue post-Beyond Thunderdome. Max is a wandering hero, so his adventures are mostly one-offs with little continuity between them. There was a lot to explore without being super layered with the story.

A television show would explain what happened to the MPF before Mad Max 2. I bring that up because a lot happened between MM and Road Warrior. Like, nukes were dropped but Max is still alive and kicking. What occurred is explained but what a quick turnaround to get the post-apocalypse going.

That’s an area that could be explored as well as what other MPF-like forces were doing at the time and following Max’s departure. Hell, The Dark One—simply mentioned in Mad Max–could finally make their debut. The thing is: load us up on Max content.

My final gripe against this film is that while as good as it is, it suffers from the first movie curse. Mad Max 2 was a movie that could’ve been considered the start of the franchise since that version of Max is who many think off when Mad Max is mentioned. It’s like the first Friday the 13^th or Evil Dead.

Part of that is because of the timeline of the first three movies. The first and second film are pretty much different franchises with the world in full-on apocalypse rebounding just three years after the incident with Johnny. Sure, the nukes were going to f**k some stuff up but they’ve already started establishing raider parties with tactics and cars!

Just three years for society to end up on a ventilator but Max is the same as he’s been following his son’s death and his wife going into a coma.

All of that aside, I love my post-apocalyptic stuff and Mad Max was always an example of adventures in the wasteland. The films often put more of the character focus on those around Max and building them up so that Max sees some hope for humanity and himself. It doesn’t hurt that there’s heaping handfuls of action and villains with great catchphrases throughout the franchise.

In the OG film alone, Nightrider’s “I am rocker, I am a roller, I am a out of controller” is probably the banger quote!

What did you like or dislike about the original Mad Max film? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Myself, I came in expecting a decent starting point for the DCU. Even if it didn’t absolutely wow me, it was a strong enough reset of DC film for other films in the universe to grow out of.

Well, stick around because this film actually had my brother and I speculating and expecting by the end of it.

Superman Returns

Some time prior to the film’s release, James Gunn noted that moviegoers would be introduced to an experienced Superman. No, he’s not decades into this save-the-world jazz but he had been doing this for a while now. I loved this part because we’ve seen Clark Kent done the cape and try to figure this out for decades.

Just skip scene this time and boom: 30 minutes of film saved on origin story. Instead, we’re dropped into a situation where Supe has recently gotten involved in a border dispute where a larger, better armed and financed country has focused its aggression on a smaller country.

While his involvement becomes a philosophical point about Superman’s choices and responsibilities, it’s actually a underlying plot to Lex Luthor’s plot against the Man of Steel. Again, we’ve skipped the origin story of these two, they’ve tangled multiple times by this point, and this is the end game for Luthor. He’s breaking out every piece from the evil super scientist besides a giant robot spider that fires lasers and approaching this as a multi-layer assault on Superman.

I enjoyed this approach because it was like getting multiple Superman vs. Lex stories in one film. However, it wasn’t like Lex was endlessly bombarding Supe with issues—that would just be cartoonishly 50s evil villainy. No, it’s all part of a plan involving subterfuge, distractions, and so on.

I mean, this is the most powerful being on planet Earth, you’ll need more than bioengineered super beings and super soldiers to clap Clark.

Gunn’s Strength Shines

What I’ve always liked about James Gunn’s work is his ability to write likeable characters. Likeable to the point where I’m like “Give these guys a film or a series.” He used the late 2000s All-Star Superman comic book series as heavy inspiration as far as characters. After watching Superman, I had to go back and give it a read after a decade. As Chris from ComicTropes pointed out in his dive into the series, it’s inspired by my favorite Greek myth tale: The 12 Labours of Hercules. It made for a digestible series where the reader didn’t have to bounce among books to fill in details.

What really stood out in this series handled by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely was how the characters featured were depicted. Some could be sympathized with despite their actions, some you felt for, others you could get behind. It was a mix but it was all rooted around how Superman treated them all with compassion and understanding, their impact on him, his on them. It was a Greatest Hits of Superman with the Man of Steel being showcased as this beacon of humanity. The best of us in every extreme or odd situation.

That was reflected very well in Superman. Clark is just up here doing the best he can while being questioned about it—even when it’s obvious that something had to be done. The world turns against him with a surprising revelation that was nabbed from his Fortress but he keeps on keeping on.

Gunn’s character work came to the forefront with his writing of Jimmy Olsen, Guy Gardner, Lois Lane, Metamorpho, the Kents, Lex Luthor, and Mister Terrific. Some characters interacted more with each other than Superman himself—mainly because the state or situations Supe found himself in—but the characters are done well enough that those interactions were either interesting or humorous.

Get the Ticket – Yay or Nay: Yay

Some superhero film fans like the grim-dark approach of the late 00s-early 2010s but the colorful and vibrant approach of Superman—coming with a good amount of banter—is something I dig.

I didn’t even get into the fight scenes or depiction of Superman’s powers. Both were good, I could’ve used more heat vision—my favorite Superman power. Featuring foes who could throw hands with the Man of Steel really showed just how much Lex needed to offload to take him down or distract him.

Ultimately, I had a blast watching this and the theater was into it. I never got the feeling that the film was dragging at any point and some of those lines—especially from Jonathan Kent—really hit. I’m really hoping Gunn explores a film with the “Justice Gang” because they shined here but who knows what Earth’s next threat will be. At least it won’t be a total scramble to get some heroes onboard and working together to tackle it.

Score: 9/10

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Now, when I became a fan backstory and history in anime series was often chopped up into scene-appropriate bits. So, if we take a break from the battle at rest period or when the heat is really on and an attack is being charged, we have enough time for a quick story.

If this story had to be told by anyone other than the narrator, it was often kept brief and the rest might be revisited. This could be done in an episode or two without eating up more than a third of the episode.

Lore Dumping in Anime

Brevity and pacing with lore are probably the only two things I miss from older writing. In series now, it’s not unusual to be lore dumped as the viewer. Now, lore dumping is when you’re hit with a lot of backstory, world building, history, and explanations of power systems all at once.

In writing, the equivalent is the dreaded wall of text. Sure, there’s punctuation in there but this is a firm brick of writing you’ve dropped there, champ. Or while reading a comic, a character talks so much that there are speech bubbles upon speech bubbles.

Oddly, I rarely run into this in comics because it’s a different pacing for the same material. You just have to read and take in the dialogue or narration. Reading speed and comprehension determines how fast you get through a story. Anime pacing is dictated for the viewer because our main involvement is sitting there and watching with our undivided attention.

Explanations can soak in as they were meant to, other characters can react verbally, you can see everyone’s “live” reaction to these revelations. It’s the power of animation. However, there are times when the same source material can go from an enjoyable read that has you craving more story to something that can stop the pace of the episode.

The Prime Example

The prime example for me was the exploration of everyone’s childhoods during the chunin exams in Naruto. It was surprising at first but welcome because I liked the character, then it kept happening. Now, in OG Naruto, lore dumping happened often. First you had the story of Haku and Zabuza where we learned so much about them that they might as well remained on as characters.

Instead, they were first story arc villain deaths. So when we get to the chunin exams, everyone’s chewing up screen time in the anime—which one of these moody teenagers are getting put in the dirt? That was my thought when watching. I mean, Haku and Zabuza not only gave Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura the business for several episodes, we got their backgrounds. You’d think we were going to see them again or that they escaped death. After they were put in the dirt by Team Uzamaki, it was like “Anybody can get it. The writer doesn’t care.”

Something about that is admirable but also unacceptable because of how much time some people get to cook in anime only to end up being killed off. I mean, at least the deaths are rarely anticlimactic. That’s just another middle finger to the reader or viewer.

What are some series or franchises in anime—or beyond—where you’ve been lore dumped? Let us know in the comments. Also, what series or franchises do you recommend that are good with how they handle their lore?

Maybe they don’t dump on the fan? Share your thoughts.

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

It’s something he’s always been applauded for because it’s one of the works that heavily influenced fantasy literature, games, and television going forward. One doesn’t simply decide to do fantasy.

Hell, one doesn’t simply decide to write fiction but if you’re going to do it, a lot planning is in order and depending on the genre, you’ll need to use that imagination, play God, and create some history, landscapes—a whole planet maybe—what else? Oh, you’ll need a lot characters, maybe some politics, definitely cultures, wars—a lot goes into world building but that’s the beauty of lore, right?

All of this stuff that writers think of is incomplete to some degree. That’s because the worlds that are created are so vast and often feature so many people and cultures, there’s no way things just end where the story ends. There will always be room for more adventures, opportunities to follow new characters, new challenges, mysteries, threats, and changes to the world.

In reality, no fantasy or sci-fi series should truly end. Most should eventually be moved on to a protege if the creator wants to move on but since these are living, ever-changing worlds that writers create—where is the actual end? Sure, a character’s story might end but that’s just them. That’s the end of a particular franchise.

Tying It All Together

Without knowing it, a series automatically spawns a franchise just by introducing some characters and letting others live on. Beyond the character, the world itself spawns a franchise because we’re just focusing on this particular story.

It’s why Star Trek and Star Wars are great franchises. You’d think these were stories told over centuries but only a few series are told far from the modern day of the franchise. Actually, the entries would all fall within decades going by the pivot events in each franchise. The events of The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine occurred in the same timeline and at the same time, for instance.

Things that occurred in The Original Series and its films impacted TNG, DS9, and Voyager. Having a tight timeline goes a long way in solidifying your world building and introducing characters. Without it, you get some willy-nilly stuff where characters and events are constantly retconned—like DC and Marvel’s stuff after the big summer storyline seems like a great idea.

Until a new team of writers comes in, look at what they’re working off of, and whip out the red pen. Remember, writers, game developers, artists—they’re all fans of this stuff too. A lot of the work by future, younger writers and teams is professional fanfiction to a degree—if they were fans of the character they get to write.

Fans would know the ins and outs of a character and have their own ideas of shaping that character going forward. Their ideas might build on the lore, but changes and adjustments will be made. It’s why Peter Parker hovers between being a broke college student in the super science field who lives off pictures of himself and a cutting-edge researcher.

Someone comes in and decides either “Peter is a grown ass man and it’s time for him to move on in life” or “Everyone liked Peter when he was down horrendous and staying with his aunt.”

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Now, I’m going through Speed Racer—as well as Ultraman, Godzilla, and Kamen Rider—on Tubi. Oh yes, it’s all there, folks. It’s been a blast to relive this series after first experiencing it on Cartoon Network in 1996 and later here in there. As far as I remember, I’d never watched Speed Racer start to finish. Sure, I’ve watched it in sequence several times but as far finishing all 52 episodes in order? I’m not certain.

The Episode Set Up of Speed Racer Was Interesting

Going through the first half of the series is very convenient. The first 28 episodes bar for one are a mix of the episodic approach I dislike and the serial approach to series which I love. Mind you, most of Speed Racer is episodic in nature, it just has a lot of two-part episodes in the first half.

That means that while there are the persistent storylines of Speed wanting to be the best racer in the world and his brother Racer X watching over him in dangerous races, you could honestly slot in any adventure in the series out of order and miss nothing.

The only story that has some sense of chronological order involves the Mach 5 Team’s run-ins with the Car Acrobatics Team. I’ll get into the story with them in another piece because these episodes are different in that they’re the only episodes that seem to be revisited in the series.

As for the rest of Speed Racer, you have your intro episode and conclusion episode—usually in some sort of dangerous race. Although, we’ll have to revisit the “Mach 5 vs. Mach 5” episodes which ended on a different note.

Once you get out of the first 28 episodes, the episodes become more standalone adventures with some two-parters sprinkled in. What we’re going to focus on here are the first two episodes. I find them to be some of the best examples of flawless anime introductions. You know, the episodes that let you know who the characters are, what all of this is about, what are the important tools/weapons/skills, and the pace of the series.

Before We Continue: All of he Mach 5 Team Are Powerhouses

Listen, in watching these episodes, I found that everyone but Mom Racer had those hands. Speed was spanking henchmen, Pops is a former wrestler who is spanking henchmen, and Trixie is tossing them easily and can fly a helicopter. Then you Spritle and Chim Chim who can lift rocks the size of their head over their heads and drop them on a henchmen’s head.

Also, Speed’s racing ability? Insane. Everyone else is crashing and driving over the rails—blowing up below. But Speed? A spin out at worst. They are never in any actual danger of losing but I don’t mind it at all.

“The Great Plan” Parts 1 and 2

Without going into the whole story, the first episode introduces 18-year-old racer Speed Racer, his family, girlfriend, and later his main mechanic Sparky. Pops Racer quits his job with a major car manufacturer after disagreement in engine plans. Speed would like to race but his father isn’t a fan of the idea. After finding out about a $5,000 race, Speed decides to enter it anyway to help his father get his independent engine work off the ground.

Again, this is the 1960s—apparently a lot could be done with a couple thousands because some company execs show up in either these episodes or the “Challenge of the Masked Racer” episodes offering thousands for Speed to race for them. I’m talking low thousands before talking bigger money—yet they started basement low—lower than the prize money of the Sword Mountain Race in episodes one and two.

Speaking of side-but-not-supporting characters, the antagonists of this episode are Mr. Van Ruffle, a board member at Pops’ former employer and Ace Deucey, Van Ruffle’s goon. Van Ruffle wants Pops’ engine plans. It’s the focus of the episodes and the cause of much danger and issues with Ace and his gang.

These episodes set up the common enemy of shady-guy-with-a-weird-beard-and-evil-eyes wanting something related to the Mach 5 Team. This could be secrets, Speed Racer himself, or the Mach 5 itself. If it’s none of those, we see Speed and the gang getting involved in some larger plot where a race just so happens to be scheduled with these shenanigans ongoing.

However, my favorite thing in these two episodes comes in episode two where Speed explains the buttons on the Mach 5’s steering wheel and what they do. It made this car seem like a Japanese version of the Aston Martin from the James Bond films of that time. It was introduced in such a cool way in this very fast-moving series—and we would get to see these abilities in action throughout.

Were you a fan of Speed Racer? Does it hold up? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Introducing Kung Fury

One such film was Kung Fury, starring and directed by David Sandberg. The film, released in 2015, is a time-spanning martial arts short film. It runs for roughly 30 minutes and has a great pace to it where you’d think you simply watched part one of a web-based mini-series. A detective in crime-riddled early 80s Miami is shocked by lightning and bitten by a cobra after witnessing his partner sliced in half by a ninja. The double trauma gives the detective kung fu abilities and he avenges his partner on the spot.

Yes, a lot happens early into the film. Jump to 1985 and Hitler has found his way in modern times and guns down some Miami PD officers through the phone—yes, this movie is pretty outrageous. Hitler, now the Kung Führer is the target of Kung Fury after killing the Chief of Police. He has to rely on Hackerman’s tech knowledge to travel back in time to kill Kung Führer in Nazi Germany.

Mind you, Kung Führer hasn’t been apprehended in 1985. The play is to use time travel to kill him before he travels into the future. After an accidental detour into the ancient Scandinavian times, Kung Fury arrives to face off against Kung Führer and his Nazis.

Why You Should Check Out Kung Fury

Look, it was hard to not entirely spoil the film in four paragraphs because it’s a fun as hell 30-minute short film that moves snappily. This film doesn’t drag at points or have a lull in the action. When there isn’t action, there’s absurd comedy. For this guy, it’s the perfect film because it hits everything I’d want from a film three times the length.

Of course, those are high demands when you’re looking at an hour-and-thirty or two-hour film that has an hour or an hour and change to fill. Keeping that pace for an action-comedy could be possible since the drama portions wouldn’t be necessary or could be shortened—or make it pieces of lore.

You definitely need some lore nowadays but we had Kung Fury’s origins in the first film. If anything, we need to know how Hitler got into the late 20^th century when he was supposed to be a pack. I don’t even care why there is a triceratops as a police officer or an aggressive arcade robot—that’s just 1985 Miami. Google that sh**. You had Colombian cartels, robots, roving street punks, and time-traveling Hitler, alright?

So, why should check this film out? First, it’s only 30-minutes, that’s a TV show with commercials or a short weekly YouTube video on your hobbies. To a degree, you wouldn’t be losing much time since Kung Fury actually feels like a shorter watch than it actually is.

The other reason is for the fans of beat ‘em up games. Kung Fury is basically the film adaptation of a late 1980s-early 1990s video game that could’ve existed. It’s Double Dragon, Streets of Rage, Final Fight, and Rival Turf with a splash of Wolfenstein Nazi killing. Off the rip, I love that. I’m not hard to please theme and aesthetic-wise—it’s just the pacing of things where I become a severe viewer.

At any rate, Kung Fury will have a sequel slated to be released in November 2023. From the synapsis, it will feature more time-traveling, another villain, and it won’t be a featurette but a feature-length film. Now, I’m a fan of KF but the feature-length has me a little uneasy. At the same time, I’m extremely intrigued and want to see how this plays out as well as what it leads to for the Kung Fury series.

If you’ve seen Kung Fury, are you anticipating Kung Fury 2? Also, share your favorite 80s-inspired films—action or otherwise—in the comments!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

The Toxic Avenger or Toxie was a weak-bodied janitor who fell victim to bullying and Tromaville’s chemical dumping problem. Bullied into falling out of a second-story window and into a container of toxic waste, he was transformed into a mutant monstrosity with superhuman strength.

While he would become a vigilante and fight crime in Tromaville, his methods involved killing criminals. His targets also have ties to the Mayor of Tromaville and wiping out his partners and conspirators made Toxie a target. Without giving away the ending, let’s just say there are four films in the original series and a remake.

The Toxic Avenger in the 21^st Century

The series’ first three films were based throughout the 1980s with the fourth, Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV premiering in 2000. The interesting thing about its release is that it dropped at a time when superhero movies hadn’t yet benefited from 1998’s Blade walking so that the rest of Marvel and later DC could run.

It was in a similar place as Spawn only it wasn’t exactly a film ahead of its time. It was definitely a film of the 2000s but it was also my favorite Toxic Avenger film because the story seemed better written than the first and third and had a fun adventure like the second film. I’m a sucker for time travel and alternate dimensions as themes and Troma Entertainment delivered a film that was fun, low-budget, and featured so interesting cameos and casting.

I’m not saying this is Troma’s magnum opus—the films were mostly low-budget comedy hybrids that are an acquired taste—but it does show how writing improves with the decades in all mediums. After 23 years, The Toxic Avenger returned as a remake starring Peter Dinklage. We’ll review that film later this month.

However, will that film see sequels and spin-offs?

Taking Tromaville Mainstream

The Toxic Avenger got the same treatment that Kung Fury received: a bigger budget and some name actors. The thing with Toxie is that it’s part of a larger franchise—Tromaville—and there are several characters who could make appearances in a sequel or get a spin-off.

Actually, the remake should’ve resulted in some comics to fill the time between films or continue the established story if there isn’t a remake. This should’ve been the case with most of Tromaville’s stuff simply to have recent source material and create new characters for when the film opportunity came around.

The series that should’ve gotten this treatment include Sgt. Kabukiman, Class of Nuke ‘Em High, and Troma’s War. The first two would definitely fit in with a Tromaville cinematic universe and introduce new characters and maybe even villains that don’t get killed. In some films, you get really good villains that you’d like to see again but were killed in the most definite fashion. We’re not seeing them again, they’re a pack.

Now the comics would definitely have reoccurring villains but the films would most likely kill these guys off—as expected of Troma. Also, some characters do make appearances in the flagship Toxic Avenger series such as Sgt. Kabuki man, a comedic kabuki-themed NYPD officer who appears in Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV as both himself and an evil alternate-dimension version.

However, we don’t know too much about Sgt. Kabukiman and what he’s done between his own film and Toxie. A comic would’ve filled in a lot of that story. Of course, the Troma stuff has never really focused on backstory. You get an origin and the adventures. The thing is that for films nowadays, you need the backstory and to keep building on that character—which Kaufman and Hertz did with Toxie.

Ultimately, Tromaville—existing for just about 40 years—has the characters and adventures but not enough the backstory to keep things going and hold interest. With that said: they have the characters. Writing is much better than it was in the late 1970s and 1980s because some consumers became nerds of these franchises and a few became writers.

They know the material or are willing to learn it. They’re also the same fans who wanted more out of the source material and can add more while remaining true to the source—as is the case with Macon Blair heading up the 2023 The Toxic Avenger.

What do you think? If you’re a Troma fan, do you see the franchise hanging in the mainstream realm or would you rather see it in different media? Or a mix? Let us know!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Patrick Cloud: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Gold Tier Pick

As a kid in the 90s, my first two animation favorites were TMNT and The Real Ghostbusters. Both shows aired Saturdays on CBS and ABC respectively with older episodes airing on syndication—UPN, the WB/FOX during the school week. At least here in Birmingham.

Of the two, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was the cartoon to held up the best. It went from episodic, spanking Shredder and the Foot Clan every week to crossovers with Stan Sakai’s award-winning Usagi Yojimbo and more of a serial approach towards the end.

The stories were multiple-part affairs in the later seasons, new characters were introduced with their own storylines and it was as if the series grew with the audience. While the aesthetic of anamorphic and other morphs being crime fighters at night and teaming with understanding humans, it was the structure of the show that had long-lasting influence as the FOX Kids cartoons Batman, Spider-Man, and X-Men all followed similar formats early on before providing episodes you had to be on time to catch.

Hell, the fact that most of the SquADD—in their 30s—remembered the theme song of a cartoon that ended in the mid-90s is a testament to how dope the OG Ninja Turtles was.

Tony Barker:  Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends – Silver Tier Pick

So, Barker picked a toon from 1981 which ran for two seasons. This isn’t unusual for cartoons made in the 60s into the 90s. After all, cartoons were meant to be 20-minute commercials and not high-level storytelling for elementary school kids. Of the cartoons presented, this and the next option were the best for kids who just wanted color and an adventure.

No, it’s not FOX Kids Spider-Man but it was a fun cartoon in the adventure vein of Jonny Quest, Space Ghost, The Herculoids, and other Hanna-Barbera toons. Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends was very much a villain-of-the-episode cartoon that got the job done if you didn’t need much story or character development.

Khleo Thomas: Darkwing Duck – Silver Tier Pick

I’m giving Darkwing Duck silver-tier honors. It’s basically a parody of Batman and had an action-adventure approach similar to Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. As it was pointed out, Darkwing Duck’s villains were actually more interesting and powerful than him—like Batman’s rogues gallery—and similar to TMNT, it had a memorable enough theme song.

Actually, the theme song endeared longer than the series itself.  If Disney didn’t mind going as hard with it’s friendly anamorphic characters as it does with the some of the Marvel and Star Wars stuff, Darkwing Duck could be a fresh new series for those who liked the Duck franchise. Low key, I’d entertain a DD remake.

Tacarra Williams: Gargoyles – Gold Tier Pick

I believe I’ve discussed Gargoyles before but that was probably Mummies Alive. If I haven’t discussed it, just know many other Blerds and Black writers who grew up in 90s have praised Gargoyles over the years. I was a fan of the series as it had a little more bite to it than other weird vigilante cartoons of the decade.

Content and story-wise, it was similar to late-Batman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, and X-Men. Definitely not as hard as HBO Spawn but harder than Freakzoid or The Tick. The animation had that detailed but sharp style that I liked in 90s American animation. Remember, this was the extreme 90s so softer lines and a variety of face and body shapes for all characters wasn’t a priority.

You’d definitely see big-bodied villains and goons as well as rail-thin sneaky masterminds in cartoons of the decade. Gargoyles, while darker aesthetically, ran with that art style and delivered long-running storytelling.

Of course, this didn’t make for a cartoon that would rock more than two seasons. It was essentially a cartoon that was a decade or so early and would’ve thrived on Netflix for a few seasons.

Doboy: The Jetsons – Foil Tier Pick

Look. I was a fan of The Flintstones, Wait Till Your Father Gets Home, and The Funky Phantom. Hanna-Barbera cartoons were my sh** but I just didn’t care for The Flintstones in the Future. That’s all The Jetsons was, honestly. It’s like back in the 1960s, you had a few sitcoms focused on a married couple then by the 70s and onward you had endless family sitcoms.

The Jetsons was a family sitcom as George Jetson didn’t have friends of note. Meanwhile, Fred Flintsone was a loyal member of the Water Buffalos, had friends, and often went to see the Big Fight. Hell, The Flintstones didn’t become a family sitcom even after Wilma had Pebbles.

Finally, The Jetsons was just boring. Not even mid.

Brent Taylor: X-Men – Diamond Tier Pick

The last pick we’re going into was presented by Brent: X-Men: The Animated Series. First off, I live X-Men and the mutant world of Marvel. The 90s series started out in as serious a tone as it could because the X-Men’s original goal was to fight racism against mutants while other superhumans whose origins weren’t public knowledge got praise for their exploits.

Well, except for Spider-Man but he was a victim of tabloid-grade slander by New York’s main newspaper—and his employer. Also, J. Jonah just had an irrational hate of Spidey, the X-Men were dealing with racism from fellow citizens, future problems, problems from the future, and another group of powerful mutants—perceived as terrorists—wanting extreme change for mutants.

A Saturday morning cartoon explored these themes and made you want to tune in every weekend to see what happens next or to watch a conclusion. It was a great can’t-miss-an-episode cartoon throughout its run even when a story wasn’t that engaging.

With diamond being the highest tier and tin being the lowest—diamond, gold, silver, bronze, and tin—what tier would you rank these cartoons? Let us know in the comments!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

We’re going to look at these three and determine which is truly the best film and shorts studio.

Hanna-Barbera

The youngest of the three studios we’re looking at, Hanna-Barbera was formed out of MGM closing its animation studio in 1957 after 20 years. While with MGM, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera created Tom and Jerry. When the duo struck out on their own and began building up H.B Enterprises—later Hanna-Barbera Productions—cartoons were still in it’s shorts phase for the most part.

Going a different route, HB would begin producing cartoons in 1957 with their first success coming via The Huckleberry Hound Show in 1958. What was different with Huckleberry Hound is that it was more of show that had a slot as the lead-in to prime time. There were different shorts to make up the show and it gave the studio its first Emmy.

It also served as a blueprint for the animated sitcom with the studio creating the award-winning The Flintstones in 1960, the first animated sitcom to air during prime time on ABC. Hanna-Barbera would produce other classic cartoons such as Scooby Doo, The Jetsons, The Smurfs,  Jonny Quest, and so on before being purchased by Turner Broadcasting System in 1991. Ten years later, it was closed down and was purchased by Warner.

HB’s strengths were in series and volume. The studio produced full-length features but it was closer to Warner Bros in that it was a very strong studio when it came to holding a TV slot with its programming. Not only that, HB material was the main material floating Cartoon Network throughout the 90s and morphed into the Cartoon Cartoon model shows that worked so well in the 90s and 00s.

While Hanna-Barbera never got it done with animated film and most of their stuff was very much direct-to-video, the studio had a Warner Bros-like roster of TV series spanning decades and laid the seeds for newer series and CN Studios/Ghost Planet Industries, and Williams Street—studios that defined the decade in a way Disney and WB didn’t.

The main way is that it produced cartoons for kids, all-ages, and for what is supposed to be an adult audience. Disney and WB lean heavily into modernizing their classics with Disney not going all in on giving the characters updated personalities or putting them into situations like WB does with Looney Tunes. Then again, Cartoon Network being 24/7 made it necessary to create new classics in the 90s and 00s.

Strengths: Volume of shows, influence on animation in the 1990s into the 2010s, embracing modern times, ability to produce new content rapidly

Disney

We all know Disney, most of us have grown up on the company’s films and TV shows. It’s the House That Mickey Built. It’s the main reason we’re not going to dwell on Disney and Warner Bros as they’re still active and better known as brands. The company gave us the likes of Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, the Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Snow White, Lion King, and Fantasia among others

While the company is a powerhouse in classic animation,  Disney’s strength has always been in film. The company can really produce an animated classic that will hold up for generations after its release. That isn’t to say that Disney can’t do shows, it’s very capable but the classic shows tend to be movie spin-offs.

See, the stuff with their OGs Donald and Goofy tend to be good. DuckTales and Goof Troop are bona fide classics. However, if you really want to present Disney toons in a discussion or ‘debate’ about cartoon classic shows, you have to include spin-offs such as Chip n Dale: Rescue Rangers, Darkwing Duck, Timon & Pumbaa, The Emperor’s New School, and other 90s and 00s series. There were a few originals like Recess and Bump in the Night which aired on Disney-owned ABC as well but those shows are rarely mentioned as Disney toons.

And that’s just so that Disney has a comparable pool of shows to Hanna-Barbera and Warner Bros. Again, Disney’s strength was more in film than shows but those series produced some great, memorable shows. Also notice that studio ace Mickey Mouse never popped up while discussing shows. Not good.

I believe one reason is that Disney’s cartoons never went as hard with the comedic violence like Warner Bros, MGM, and HB. Having content primarily targeted towards kids can be restrictive creatively and tends to result in stale characters and shows. A studio can mix up the series but Disney tends to be protective of its OG characters—especially since those characters print money.

Strengths: Animated film game, main character roster, spin-offs, influence on animation, high animation quality

Warner Bros

Of the three studios, Warner Bros is closer to Hanna-Barbera—which explains why WB purchased HB and why we see HB successor and WB characters on the same network today. Like Disney, Warner Bros is well-known in animation and entertainment. It also delivers quantity animation. Like HB, WB leaned into producing for television.

Warner Bros is something of a hybrid because there was a period in the 90s where the animation for shows that were only going to be around for one season wasn’t so good. Then WB, HB, and Disney came in with these well-animated, great looking cartoons.

When it came to the actual comedy in a show or drama, WB had that down pat. Again, it’s a hybrid because HB was strong with comedy while Disney could tug at your heart strings but the comedy was wholesome and comedic violence from or between sociopathic characters has always dunked on wholesome, whimsical comedy in cartoons.

Warner Bros does take the Disney approach of keeping your classic OGs relevant by pulling them into modern times but it does a better job with shows like Tiny Toons where the OGs are teachers to a new generation of cartoon characters, Taz-Mania which focused on the Tazmanian Devil (Taz) and his family, and The Looney Tunes show where the OGs are modern day adults and the original music element of Merrie Melodies returned.

However, it also embraced other licenses—many of which were absorbed—such as DC Comics series. In the 90s, Warner Bros was producing on par with HB/Ghost Planet Industries/Williams Street/CN Studios family after the HB collective flooded 1960s-1980s television with series. In addition to Taz-Mania, you have Animaniacs, Pinky & The Brain, Batman series, Superman, Static Shock, Freakazoid, and many more. Not only that, but WB could get it done with spin-offs as is the case with Animaniacs and Pinky & The Brain as well as sequel series such as Batman-Batman Beyond and the Justice League shows.

Strengths: spin-offs, sequels, volume, quality animation, shows that can fill TV blocks, vast OG roster, fluid modernization of OG

Now, I’m more of Warner Bros and Hanna-Barbera fan because I grew up in the 90s and those two studios flooded TV in the early 90s with toons. When it came to Disney, it was mainly to see their movies but their presence on TV was never as great or enticing as WB and HB. Plus, I’ve always been bigger on TV than film because I like the flexibility TV allows in case a season starts out meh, it can possibly rebound by the end of the season.

That’s another discussion. What’s your favorite of the classic animation studios and what were some of your favorite shows, animated films, and shorts from them? Also, what studios of 90s would you like to see compared to Nickelodeon Studios?

Let us know in the comments!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

The Spinach Thing Was a Bit Much

What I didn’t enjoy was spinach. I hated the stuff and was annoyed about having to eat it but Popeye was beating folks up after squeezing a can with one hand and throating the spinach. He’d eat the green mushy stuff—these were 1930s or 1940s cartoons now—and his strength would increase. Now, given he could open a can by squeezing it if necessary, so I figure he should’ve been able to spank Bluto easily.

The spinach element smacked of promotion or advertising for Allen’s variety of spinach. To a degree it probably worked and had some kids eating the spinach. So, the promotion worked? I’m certain Allen’s didn’t expect kids around the world to get on board with it at all—but they definitely moved cans. Especially when you think of how kids will badger their parents into getting stuff from cartoons and shows because their favorite whatever endorsed it.

I will say that the cartoons mixed it up every now and then with Popeye opening cans with his pipe’s fire or Olive Oyl eating the spinach and beating up Popeye and/or Bluto. That was an unusual short where the two foes were pressed and found each other while Olive viewed the two as immature.

What Does Popeye Do?

Again, these cartoons were released in the 1930s and 1940s but the writing was generally mid. These shorts were meant to be quick watches and weren’t going to involve the deepest writing. Just enough was necessary to get Popeye to the point of fighting. While he may have had a variety of jobs depending on the short. The thing is that with today’s writing, the classic cartoon characters either have a job or are established within their universe as was the case in The Looney Tunes Show.

With Popeye, we knew he was a sailor man and had his own house in what appeared to be a good part of town. His land job always changed and sometimes he was still a sailor man. Who knows, maybe housing was more affordable during the peak of Popeye in cartoon and comics. His job is often mentioned as “adventurer” which makes sense if he’s getting treasure and the like.

It was always a mystery and as you know cartoon and video game mysteries will have me pondering for a while.

Battles with Bluto and Obsessing Over Olive Oyl

The crux of most Popeye shorts was he and Bluto’s obsession with Olive Oyl, a tall, gangly woman with an annoying voice. It was as if she was the only woman of note in the world of Popeye because they would start the short as the best of friends then start brawling over her. It was very ridiculous because Olive didn’t seem like anyone worth fighting over.

I mean honestly, there were times when she could be wishy-washy about which one she wanted. While she was often presented as Popeye’s girlfriend there were times when that was in jeopardy. This was even when Bluto—often presented as a bully and rival—was being a brute. Other times, the sailor man was risking brain, spine, and jaw trauma throwing fists with him to save her after she’d been kidnapped.

Now, it could be funny at times but as I got older, there were times when Popeye shorts just didn’t hold up because the situations just left me scratching my head. Again, this was an old cartoon for kids and adults that was shown in theaters—often before a film or as the feature. There’s just something about getting a cartoon was funny sometimes but it still using the same formula.

Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies could get away with this because it always had bangers. The Wonderful World of Disney, Hanna-Barbera, Universal Studios—those studios’ shorts could repeat the same gags and have it work. For some reason Fleischer Studios couldn’t really get that down with Popeye or Betty Boop. Ultimately, you had to really be a Popeye fan for the characters’ adventures and misadventures to really tickle.

This wasn’t like dropping in on an episode of Tom & Jerry and just enjoying the constant cartoon violence. No, you had to be pretty invested in Popeye winning in the end regardless of the situation.

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.