I imagine a decent amount of you have been enjoying the Quick Draw McGraw Blu-Ray set that released a few weeks back. I'm currently rewatching it and preparing for a review of the set that should be out later this month, but in the meantime, here's a little something special. This is a bumper for Quick Draw McGraw that Boomerang played in 2002. It's essentially a music video, with the song featuring tons of quotes and sound effects from the series. A very cool bumper, especially when they could've easily just thrown out an ad saying the name of the show and when it aired instead. That would've definitely been the cheaper option, but they went all out, and I think that's one of the reasons so many Cartoon Network and Boomerang commercials are still remembered. You wouldn't see this amount of effort from any TV network these days, that's for sure!
Here's something rather neat I found recently. These are four "WeB Cards" based on different Cartoon Network shows that were available on the Warner Brothers website circa 1997. Many were offered on the site, ranging from Looney Tunes to Batman, but only four were derived from the Hanna-Barbera cartoons. These are more or less greeting cards that you could send via email with a personalized message. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but a fun blast from the past that was the early internet days.
Each of these follow a standard design format of the character under the Cartoon Network logo with a colored background and the character's name at the bottom. They also have a trademark notice to the left, in case you forgot that this Cartoon Network card was owned by Cartoon Network.
Though Cartoon Network had several original shows airing by this point in time, only one series was represented here: Cow and Chicken. You'd think they'd have gone with the more popular Johnny Bravo or Dexter's Laboratory, but I'm not complaining. This is the only card to feature two characters as well.
I think the most random character included in this assortment has to be Mr. Spacely. Not George or any other member of the Jetsons family, but Spacely, pictured doing what he does best. Maybe somebody at WB is a big Mr. Spacely fan? Then again, he is one of several characters Mel Blanc voiced for HB, so maybe that was why he was chosen.
25 years ago today, The Flintstones: On the Rocks premiered on Cartoon Network. Made at Cartoon Network Studios by much of the crew behind Dexter's Laboratory, the special is notable for several reasons. It was the first Flintstones project released after William Hanna's passing, and it would be the last for almost fifteen years. It's more adult tone and subject matter made it stick out when compared to most other Flintstones spin-offs. The special has also seen only a handful of TV airings, and has never gotten any kind of home video or streaming release.
While its tone and art style might be different from most Flintstones iterations, like many of them, it remains contentious among fans of the original show. Some love the special and consider it the best thing to be done with the characters since the sixties. Others were put off by its tone and see it as a low point for the franchise. The reaction was so polarizing that it actually led to Cartoon Network axing a Quick Draw McGraw special made by the same crew. Now, with all that being said, how do I feel about this special?
First things first, what's this thing about? On the Rocks follows Fred and Wilma during probably the lowest point of their marriage. Neither one can stand the other, so the Rubbles invite them on a trip to Rockapulco in the hopes it will repair their strained relationship. Things continue to deteriorate, especially when a jewel thief named Xavier becomes enamored with Wilma following a bag mix-up. It's up to the titular Flintstones to not only stop this thief, but more importantly, save their marriage. It's a story plucked right out of the classic series, but with a more adult edge, but I'll speak more on that later.
I'll begin with the positives of this flick, the first being its presentation. This special looks amazing. Craig Kellman's redesigns for the characters have never looked better, and the backgrounds wouldn't feel out of place in a classic Flintstones episode. Even the stop-motion segment looks fantastic, and is easily a highlight. While the visuals are great, I think On the Rocks is just as good in the audio department. Despite none of the original four cast members being present in this, all of their successors do an excellent job filling the void. Tress MacNeille is pitch perfect as Wilma, and Kevin Michael Richardson's Barney brings to mind Mel Blanc's take on the character in the original series earliest episodes. It's details like that that really make this feel like an episode that could have existed in those first two seasons. You can't go wrong with the great John Stephenson returning as Mr. Slate, either. The use of Hoyt Curtin's classic score is another welcomed addition, and something that was sorely missed from later Flintstones spin-offs.
The more adult tone of On the Rocks is maybe the "make or break" element for many. For me, I am firmly in the former camp. I'm all for the more serious vibe, and I honestly don't understand some of the criticisms against it. A lot of the hate this special gets is because of how Fred acts, but I don't think it's that out of line for him. Fred can be pretty despicable at times, even in later Flintstones media. I don't think he's out of character at all, especially considering the severity of the situation he's in here. I feel people's reaction to him has more to do with animation fans' weird disdain for "jerk" characters than anything else. And while this special does skew older with its story and humor, you have to remember that The Flintstones wasn't just for kids when it first premiered. That only happened with the later seasons and especially the spin-offs. For a franchise that became so kiddy it eventually turned its characters into literal children, it's a great return to its roots. Even if you despise this film, you have to at least give the team behind it some kudos for showing restraint. A worse creator would have heard "adult Flintstones" and gone as raunchy as possible, but these guys tried to make something that still felt in line with what had came before, and I applaud them for that.
If the special has any major flaws, it's the humor. It's not necessarily bad, but it's very "hit-or-miss." Several jokes go on for far too long, which isn't that bad when it's funny, but when the joke isn't amusing to begin with? Man is it rough. There's a gag early on with a bird repeatedly squawking and it's tantamount to nails on a chalkboard. A lot of director Chris Savino's work is full of jokes like this, and even in a one-hour special he couldn't help himself. It's not funny in an eleven-minute Dexter episode, and it's not much better here. The pacing is another element of the special that feels a bit off. Some scenes overstay their welcome, while others end before they really get going. Maybe it's a result of the one-hour runtime, but it leaves On the Rocks feeling not as tight as it could be.
Despite those gripes, On the Rocks is an entertaining entry in the Flintstones canon. It's nothing mind-blowing or earth shattering, but it accomplishes what it set out to do and does it well. This is basically an early Flintstones episode if the crew weren't held down by budget or animation constraints, and I think that's awesome. They didn't try to reinvent the wheel or make the characters something they weren't, which is where most of the problems with later Flintstones installments came from. Yes it's a little rough around the edges, but it's got charm, style, and genuine heart. Not too unlike Fred himself if you ask me. But what do you think? If you've seen this special, I'd love to read your thoughts on it, whether they be good or bad. Do you feel this special is an overlooked gem, or is this better off being forgotten?
It's always fun to touch on older Hanna-Barbera collectibles here, but something I love to do even more is talk about unreleased merchandise. And that's exactly what we're doing today. This is a set of four Jetsons glasses that were set to be released by Kraft in 1990, I imagine as part of the merchandising blitz that accompanied the feature film. Below you can see what they looked like with and without the original labels.
So, what's the inside story on why these never made it to retail? Unfortunately, the reason isn't anything particularly shocking. Hamilton Projects, who produced a huge amount of Hanna-Barbera goodies at the time, didn't get the licensing approval these needed, and so they never saw release. Those that were made were actually mandated to be destroyed, but considering the existence of photos like these, you can see that didn't quite pan out. Even nowadays these sometimes pop up on auction sites, so if you'd like to own one of these, you definitely have the chance. I probably wouldn't use them for their intended purpose at this point, but you guys do you!
Everything ends eventually, and today marks the end of "Space Ghost October." I hope you've enjoyed these posts, but I've got one more before I call it a day. And what could be a grander sendoff to this Space Ghost celebration than a reminder of the time he ran for president?
In 2000, Cartoon Network launched the first of two faux presidential elections, which pit dozens of the network's stars against one another to see who was the most popular of them all. The winner would receive their very own marathon on the channel. Though Space Ghost certainly gave his all in his campaign (as seen in these hilarious promos), the winner would ultimately be Scooby-Doo, with the Powerpuff Girls and Bugs Bunny in second and third place respectively. Anybody here recall participating in this event? I'd love to know who you voted for (or would've voted) in the comments down below.
Alex Toth has got to be one of my favorite character designers to work at Hanna-Barbera, if not animation as a whole. An exceptional artist who worked at nearly every other comic book company in the business, Toth brought a superhero sensibility to the world of Hanna-Barbera cartoons. Whether you love the likes of Space Ghost, Birdman, and The Herculoids is irrelevant. His work on these shows is nothing short of fantastic, and a big reason these characters are discussed to this day. And on this particular day, I'm sharing some of the great character artwork he did while working on the original Space Ghost.
This first piece shows some head turns from Space Ghost himself, alongside some notes highlighting things to keep in mind when drawing the character.
Second up, we have a collection of Space Ghost's most fearsome adversaries: Brak, Black Widow, and not one, but two designs for Metallus. The one on the right is what ended up in the show, but I must say the design on the left isn't too shabby, either. Of course, it also goes without saying that Brak and the Black Widow are great designs in their own right. A superhero is nothing without a good set of villains, and Space Ghost is no slouch in that department.
I'm not done discussing Space Ghost's villains just yet. Here's a look at one my personal favorites, Moltar. It's like a hazmat suit with an added dose of pulpy science fiction, how can you not love it? Whether it's with his original yellow and white colors or the more iconic red and gray, it remains one of the most memorable in the show for me at least. I'd love to know from you all what you're favorites are as well.
Lastly, ever wondered what Space Ghost looks like without the cowl? Well, here you go. Not exactly the most shocking reveal, but you never do see him like this in the show itself so I'm not surprised it's a little bland. It's also interesting that the model sheet mentions the show as "Space Ghosts," which makes me wonder if this is a remnant of the show from before it became a more straight forward superhero cartoon.
