we've all watched at least one, or some of them in our lives.
& by watching them, i specifically mean an entire episode,
not just an accidental-few-second-glance when flipping through TV channels.
Cartoons. Anime. Animated series.
At a glance, one would say all three are the same.
Ah, that's where we're always mistaken.
Let's relook the definitions.
*Sources are from Wikipedia.
At a closer look,
When the word cartoon is applied to print media, it most often refers to a humorous single-panel drawing or gag cartoon, most of which have captions and do not use speech balloons. The word cartoon is sometimes used to refer to a comic strip.
Because of the stylistic similarities between comic strips and early animated movies, "cartoon" came to refer to animation, and this is the sense in which "cartoon" is most commonly used today. These are usually shown on television or in cinemas and are created by showing illustrated images in rapid succession to give the impression of movement. (In this meaning, the word cartoon is sometimes shortened to toon, which was popularized by the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit). Although the term can be applied to any animated presentation, it is most often used in reference to programs for children, featuring anthropomorphized animals, superheroes, the adventures of child protagonists, and other related genres.
Anime, an abbreviated pronunciation in Japanese of "animation", but typically is animation originating in Japan.
Animated series is a set of regularly presented animated television programs created or adapted for television broadcast with a common series title, usually related to one another. Cartoon series either appear once a week or daily during a prescribed time slot and are usually created to be open-ended, not with a predetermined number of episodes. These programs typically share the same characters and a basic theme.
I haven't really watched much of the animated series in the 2000's era.
But there has been a similarity that seems very obvious.
Most of them, in overall aspects, have come to be inferior to their counterparts in the 90's.
[i refer to those with a continuous plot, not stand-alone episodes like Tom & Jerry]
Usually i make the comparison by the show's intro scene.
Simple, nice & memorable tunes make them even more remembered.
X-Men, Rescue Rangers, Batman or Duck Tales ring a bell?
If u were a fan of those, u could take a stroll down memory lane with these videos...
Ah, the wonders of Youtube.
Duck Tales.
Chip 'N' Dale: Rescue Rangers
Disney's Gummi Bears
He-Man
Thundercats
Batman
X-Men
Dragon Ball.
As it was created by Akira Toriyama, a Japanese mangaka, it's best u see the original Japanese theme too. Catchy tunes =)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
At those times, the people behind the scenes emphasized on the makings of a good story.
These days, it seems that they're more focused on the merchandising power & the profits it'll bring in.
We seem it everywhere, really. Stickers, toys, video-game tie-ins.
A popular trend these days though, is Happy Meal collectibles. Welcome to McDonalds !
[think Monsters Vs Aliens]
I'm don't mind if they have movies about it too, as long as they have a good plot & good acting.
[x-men, x-men 2, x-men origins: wolverine]
Now, as the saying goes, every picture is worth a thousand words.
