Needless to say, I'm aware that it's an anime blog, but sometimes before we hear of anime, the make a basic cartoon out of a series beforehand. Such is true in the case of series such as Sonic The Hedgehog, among others. I'll do a review on the animated series X-men as well as its predecessor, both of which deriving from the comic book franchise by Marvel. On a personal note, I can't really verify this as an anime or a cartoon, since the word "anime" is used as a blanket term in Japan, unlike here where it pertains to a specific art style. Some consider this as a cartoon, well, MOST do, so let's stick with that for the time being.
Those familiar with the comics, or have seen my post pertaining to another X-men series, should be familiar with who's in it somewhat. In addition, it's tough for me to explain what takes place, as most of the series, if not all, are loosely based of the comics themselves, some episodes based around a specific saga. The animated series features the team of the commonly known mutants, and many others making a guest appearance. There were even a few cameos, among which being Deadpool, however, at the time, Shadowcat wasn't introduced in the animated series at all. Certain episodes also dealt around social issues, while remaining true to the comic stories somewhat.
The successful animated series was actually the second to be made. The preceding title X-men: Pryde of the X-men. That series featured Kitty Pryde, known to most fans as Shadowcat, in her earlier days when she isn't quite acquainted to the other X-men as of yet. The title itself was a pun on Shadowcat, being the youngest X-man into the group. Staying true to the comics, Magneto is the mainstay antagonist of both titles.
Pryde of the X-Men was made in 1989, only having 1 episode that ended up on VHS after it's very brief run. The reaction was mixed for the most part, but purists, or hardcore fans of a franchise, blasted the title because of how the characters were portrayed. While Kitty Pryde's portrayal was one of them, the biggest complaint came from the accent Wolverine had. Perhaps due to the error on casting, Wolverine had an Australian accent, despite being born Canadian. This, as well as other factors, prompted the creators to go back to the drawing board.
Three years later, X-Men: TAS was released, and it received grand praise. It ran for 5 seasons, showing 76 episodes. They made reruns on television in 2000 with the emergence of the first X-Men live action film. After Saban was brought out by Disney, all of their works, including the Power Rangers series and X-Men: TAS, would be shown on Toon Disney and ABC Family. Currently, the animated series is featured on Disney XD, another channel owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group.
X-Men is a name that everyone knows, and today it's still popular with the release of X-Men First Class earlier this month. That's all for now, and keep an eye out for the review of the third work: X-Men Evolution
Showing posts with label Toons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Toons. Show all posts
2011/04/20
XXXVI: "Speed Racer: The Next Generation"
Ugh... look what they did to you, Tatsunoko. To those who don't know, Tatsunoko is a production team responsible for Gatchaman, the Time Bokan series, Casshern, and one of my favorites: Speed Racer. After seeing the original and Speed Racer X, I thought that the third series, Speed Racer: The Next Generation, would be something up my ally. Boy... was I ever wrong when I thought that.
Speed Racer: TNG is a cartoon series that is not really based, but stemmed from the original. In truth, this cartoon was made the same time as the live action movie Speed Racer (which is based from the original), and the toon's pilot feature was released before the movie hit films. Now before I somewhat bash this, let's go into the cartoons background a little. To my understanding, the original Speed's second son, Speed Racer Jr., was a orphan, and he serves as the titular character. For some time now, the original Speed Racer has disappeared. He has an older brother, X, and Spritle, the only original character to return initially, serves as his uncle. X and Speed are shown as rivals on the track, much like how it was in the original show. Speed Jr's attire, minus slight changes, is homage to his lost father's wear, the primary difference being Speed Jr's red collar, while Speed Sr. had an ascot. This series does have its antagonist as well, this one being Zile Zazic: an adversary of Speed Sr.'s past, and enemy of Speed Jr. The famous Mach 5 vehicle makes a brief appearance, before Zazic destroys it, only to inadvertently give rise to its successor, the Mach 6: a car based on the previous iconic car that is capable of running without gas, though that is still used.
To be fair, the production that made this was also responsible for Kappa Mikey, something I actually liked. Speed Racer: TNG had a more toon like style that differed significantly from the classic, and the cars were all CGI, something that kind of irked me throughout the series. I won't go as far to say that this series was a joke, but I was really disappointed in the series. I grade it a 3 of 10, because while somethings, like the Mach 6 were introduced, it had animations that were cheesy at best, and the plot, despite how much it may influence a real-time possibility, was laughable. To me, this is one era of Speed Racer better left unheard of.
Speed Racer: TNG is a cartoon series that is not really based, but stemmed from the original. In truth, this cartoon was made the same time as the live action movie Speed Racer (which is based from the original), and the toon's pilot feature was released before the movie hit films. Now before I somewhat bash this, let's go into the cartoons background a little. To my understanding, the original Speed's second son, Speed Racer Jr., was a orphan, and he serves as the titular character. For some time now, the original Speed Racer has disappeared. He has an older brother, X, and Spritle, the only original character to return initially, serves as his uncle. X and Speed are shown as rivals on the track, much like how it was in the original show. Speed Jr's attire, minus slight changes, is homage to his lost father's wear, the primary difference being Speed Jr's red collar, while Speed Sr. had an ascot. This series does have its antagonist as well, this one being Zile Zazic: an adversary of Speed Sr.'s past, and enemy of Speed Jr. The famous Mach 5 vehicle makes a brief appearance, before Zazic destroys it, only to inadvertently give rise to its successor, the Mach 6: a car based on the previous iconic car that is capable of running without gas, though that is still used.
To be fair, the production that made this was also responsible for Kappa Mikey, something I actually liked. Speed Racer: TNG had a more toon like style that differed significantly from the classic, and the cars were all CGI, something that kind of irked me throughout the series. I won't go as far to say that this series was a joke, but I was really disappointed in the series. I grade it a 3 of 10, because while somethings, like the Mach 6 were introduced, it had animations that were cheesy at best, and the plot, despite how much it may influence a real-time possibility, was laughable. To me, this is one era of Speed Racer better left unheard of.
XXXV: "Wolverine and the X-Men"
I'm not one to be all pro-comic, but when it comes to animated things, I prefer the original better sometimes. This is one of those times. Wolverine and the X-Men is the 4th animated tier of the popular Marvel superhero mutant team: X-men. Hence the title, Wolverine is the main, and returning character.
Preceded by X-Men Evolution, the X-men team has disbanded, with many of its core members being either missing or going their separate ways. The government-powered Mutant Response Division was on the move to detain mutants, suit to favor the human protestors. This action causes Wolverine and fellow comrade Beast to team up one more and restore the X-men to glory. Along the way of finding Professor Xavier and Jean Grey, junior members of the X-men are recruited, along with the return of some of the original members.Many of the X-men sport wither new styles of their trademark clothing or a new outfit overall. Threats like the MRD, and the Inner Circle are prominent threats to the X-men while they continue their search.
This series, despite good intentions, kinda makes me weep. Props to giving Wolverine more screen time, but it just lacked the flair I had for the original. X-men Evolution was the same way, but I liked it a little. I don't like Wolverine and the X-men, but not enough to hate it. While it does not sit too well with me, I must say, I'd rather watch this than the now absent Speed Racer: The Next Generation. Good mindset, lackluster execution, so 4 of 10.
Preceded by X-Men Evolution, the X-men team has disbanded, with many of its core members being either missing or going their separate ways. The government-powered Mutant Response Division was on the move to detain mutants, suit to favor the human protestors. This action causes Wolverine and fellow comrade Beast to team up one more and restore the X-men to glory. Along the way of finding Professor Xavier and Jean Grey, junior members of the X-men are recruited, along with the return of some of the original members.Many of the X-men sport wither new styles of their trademark clothing or a new outfit overall. Threats like the MRD, and the Inner Circle are prominent threats to the X-men while they continue their search.
This series, despite good intentions, kinda makes me weep. Props to giving Wolverine more screen time, but it just lacked the flair I had for the original. X-men Evolution was the same way, but I liked it a little. I don't like Wolverine and the X-men, but not enough to hate it. While it does not sit too well with me, I must say, I'd rather watch this than the now absent Speed Racer: The Next Generation. Good mindset, lackluster execution, so 4 of 10.
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