Tag: Ideas

In the 80’s, the animation industry was at a boom.
Western artists and storytellers collaborated with influences from Japan
To create the most memorable stories in western animation.
The recurring themes were
The exploration of the unknown frontier,
The synergy between man and machine,
And the study of the Institution.
This was the golden age of cartoons.

As most of the readers of this blog are children of the 80’s, I’d like to present an observation about how cartoons in the late 90’s till the present have degraded into a combination of the following formula:

1. slapstick humor
2. toilet humor
3. pop culture references to the 80’s (we’ve grown up, so we’re still the target market)

Here are my thoughts on why this has happened:

The dawn of CG in the mid 90’s put a refocus of the market to special effects rather than content. The toy industry, which kept the cartoons alive, dwindled as video games replaced die cast metal and plastic paraphernalia as the medium for entertainment. Great story still exists today, mostly in the form of Japanese animation that took over where Western cartoons died (Giant Robo, Ranma 1/2, Captain Harlock, Evangelion, and the like).

Let me take you on a trip back with the following intro links. I suggest you watch them in succession for maximum effect.

Spiral Zone
M.A.S.K.
Tiger Sharks (showed on Mondays as part of Comic Strip)
C.O.P.S.
Thundercats
Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors
Centurions
Inhumanoids
Mighty Orbots (only ran for one season)
Gobots
Transformers
Visionaries
Sky Commanders
Bravestarr
Silverhawks
Bravestarr
Bionic Six
Galaxy Rangers (this show had my ultimate favorite theme song)

So, can you name more? Which were your favorite 80’s cartoons? This fun 80’s flashback post is an example of how content will always be king. No amount of technology can compete with well-weaved stories. Either I have a point, or I’m just getting old. 🙂

P.S. Of course there were some really campy but otherwise entertaining shows like Captain N: Game Master (Nintendo’s marketing campaign) and … *snicker* Chuck Norris and the Karate Commandos. As for the latter, can you count the number of times the narrator says Chuck Norris’ name?

Several months ago, I was having a conversation with Joey Alarilla about how the Internet and social media are causing a phenomenon which I want to call “compartmentalizing” your life.

This phenomenon is most apparent, but not limited to, bloggers who have started several niche blogs – compartmentalizing their life to food, technology, travel, politics, pets, etc. It is even almost correct to even say that the sum of these blogs equal the person.

Because the Internet is the new Forum Romanum, our lives converge in the most visible places, making what was once private, now very public. We now know what the family did for lunch, what we ate for dinner, where we went for the weekend, what we bought… all good. Very interesting. What you do with your blog is a masterpiece that no one else can copy even if you write about the same topics.