TMC
05-21-2018, 03:33 AM
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.arts.tv/-BFXfm7zsSA
Back to the Future (CBS) 1991-1992
https://youtu.be/r8TQKOkjuAk
The Back to the Future trilogy of films are classic in terms of
adventure, storytelling, humor and special effects. The short-lived
animated series tried to expand on the end of Back to the Future III by
having Doc Brown living in the present with his wife Clara and his two
sons Jules and Verne. Rather than learning the lesson about the dangers
of time travel, Doc used the time machine to teach his sons lessons
about history. It was an interesting enough premise, but the animation
wasn’t that good and the plots were forgettable. the only standouts
were Doc performing an experiment at the end of the episode and Thomas
F. Wilson reprising the voice of Biff Tannen from the films.
Rambo: The Force of Freedom (Syndication) 1986
https://youtu.be/eliQEStzhu4
Someone, in their infinite wisdom, thought it was a good idea to make
an animated series about a Vietnam Vet suffering PTSD while rejecting
both the military and his country to live alone. Someone decided to
take a character who barely spoke and not only make him relatively
shirtless in every scenario, but also to give him an animated series
where his signature knife is never used. In the age of G.I. Joe, kids
wanted shows about heroes, but I guarantee most of them hadn’t even
seen First Blood or Rambo II before this series came out on Saturday
Morning.
Conan the Adventurer (Fox) 1992-1993
https://youtu.be/HT3cl4GJIDs
On paper, an animated series about Conan the Barbarian should have
worked. Masters of the Universe was based on many elements of the
Robert E Howard Conan stories from 1932 forward and there were no new
episodes of He-Man on the horizon. The problem was that the last Conan
movie Conan the Destroyer bowed almost ten years before this series
came out. There was no interest in either Conan as a character or this
particular genre of animated series/ toy line. Most toys were looking
towards the future and not many kids at that time were interested in
this type of fantasy style storytelling. That and it was just cheesy.
RoboCop (ABC) 1988
https://youtu.be/GaZGEFE30U0
This one just can’t be justified by anyone. The original Paul Verheoven
film is a classic and a perfect example of 80’s action movie
sensibility and ultra-violence. There are scenes in the original film
that still make me cringe (Murphy getting his hand shot off) and there
was a level of violence in that film and its sequel that you’d be hard
pressed to see even in today’s action films. So of course it should be
made into an animated series for kids!! You know kids want a Saturday
morning cartoon about a murdered police officer in a corrupt city ruled
by an oppressive global corporation.
Police Academy The Series (Syndication) 1988-1989
https://youtu.be/QCUoYIECWAY
Take a raunchy 80’s comedy and turn it into a slapstick children’s
cartoon and for good measure, add a separate group of talking dog
sidekicks and you have the ill-conceived Police Academy animated series
based on the 1984 classic comedy. I’m sure the producers were convinced
that the kids who were not allowed to see the live action films would
jump all over an animated series with none of the humor and a group of
animated dog cops. They didn’t and this series faded from memory to
live on in the fever dreams of its creator.
Those are a few of the clearly adult themed films that people thought
would make excellent children’s entertainment. The only thing I can
really think about when I watch the intros to some of these shows is
how much of the budgets went to the mountains of cocaine they were
sniffing.
Back to the Future (CBS) 1991-1992
https://youtu.be/r8TQKOkjuAk
The Back to the Future trilogy of films are classic in terms of
adventure, storytelling, humor and special effects. The short-lived
animated series tried to expand on the end of Back to the Future III by
having Doc Brown living in the present with his wife Clara and his two
sons Jules and Verne. Rather than learning the lesson about the dangers
of time travel, Doc used the time machine to teach his sons lessons
about history. It was an interesting enough premise, but the animation
wasn’t that good and the plots were forgettable. the only standouts
were Doc performing an experiment at the end of the episode and Thomas
F. Wilson reprising the voice of Biff Tannen from the films.
Rambo: The Force of Freedom (Syndication) 1986
https://youtu.be/eliQEStzhu4
Someone, in their infinite wisdom, thought it was a good idea to make
an animated series about a Vietnam Vet suffering PTSD while rejecting
both the military and his country to live alone. Someone decided to
take a character who barely spoke and not only make him relatively
shirtless in every scenario, but also to give him an animated series
where his signature knife is never used. In the age of G.I. Joe, kids
wanted shows about heroes, but I guarantee most of them hadn’t even
seen First Blood or Rambo II before this series came out on Saturday
Morning.
Conan the Adventurer (Fox) 1992-1993
https://youtu.be/HT3cl4GJIDs
On paper, an animated series about Conan the Barbarian should have
worked. Masters of the Universe was based on many elements of the
Robert E Howard Conan stories from 1932 forward and there were no new
episodes of He-Man on the horizon. The problem was that the last Conan
movie Conan the Destroyer bowed almost ten years before this series
came out. There was no interest in either Conan as a character or this
particular genre of animated series/ toy line. Most toys were looking
towards the future and not many kids at that time were interested in
this type of fantasy style storytelling. That and it was just cheesy.
RoboCop (ABC) 1988
https://youtu.be/GaZGEFE30U0
This one just can’t be justified by anyone. The original Paul Verheoven
film is a classic and a perfect example of 80’s action movie
sensibility and ultra-violence. There are scenes in the original film
that still make me cringe (Murphy getting his hand shot off) and there
was a level of violence in that film and its sequel that you’d be hard
pressed to see even in today’s action films. So of course it should be
made into an animated series for kids!! You know kids want a Saturday
morning cartoon about a murdered police officer in a corrupt city ruled
by an oppressive global corporation.
Police Academy The Series (Syndication) 1988-1989
https://youtu.be/QCUoYIECWAY
Take a raunchy 80’s comedy and turn it into a slapstick children’s
cartoon and for good measure, add a separate group of talking dog
sidekicks and you have the ill-conceived Police Academy animated series
based on the 1984 classic comedy. I’m sure the producers were convinced
that the kids who were not allowed to see the live action films would
jump all over an animated series with none of the humor and a group of
animated dog cops. They didn’t and this series faded from memory to
live on in the fever dreams of its creator.
Those are a few of the clearly adult themed films that people thought
would make excellent children’s entertainment. The only thing I can
really think about when I watch the intros to some of these shows is
how much of the budgets went to the mountains of cocaine they were
sniffing.