What-a-cartoon!
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- AV Forum Member
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What-a-cartoon!
I am surprised nobody even made a topic on this show! Anyone remember this show? This show showcased alot of talent that would had made some of these people famous for various tv shows{people like Craig Mccracken, Seth Macfarlene, and even Butch Hartman}. And even showcased works from some people who were already famous, I am surprised enough that Ralph Bakshi worked on this show and even made two shorts for it.
The main problem with this is that like a lot of things is that while it's NOT the oldest show in existence it sure isn't recent, either!
What A Cartoon aired over 15 years ago. That's like at least a generation-and-a-half, or maybe two to three in general TV viewing generations! That's old, bub.
Another issue (unless CN owns these shows outright) is the issue of rights. Of course, if a short is based on an H-B cartoon or concept that spun off into a successful TV show (PowerPuff Girls, Dexter's Laboratory, Johnny Bravo), then it's owned by CN/WB. IF NOT, then there's a possibility that CN has to negotiate with the creators to release said-shorts on DVD/BD. CN and the creators may have negotiated a time window where rights revert back to the creators so that they can shop their shows to another network for possible series production.
Then you have the fact that the more successful shorts (which became TV series) have already been released or are on their onto TV series compilations. Most people are not crazy about buying anything for the third or fourth time if they already own a previous home video release!
Lastly, fact is that most of these shorts are fairly obscure to most people and there's a good reason most of them never made into TV series production... Most of these shorts were just not that good.
What A Cartoon aired over 15 years ago. That's like at least a generation-and-a-half, or maybe two to three in general TV viewing generations! That's old, bub.
Another issue (unless CN owns these shows outright) is the issue of rights. Of course, if a short is based on an H-B cartoon or concept that spun off into a successful TV show (PowerPuff Girls, Dexter's Laboratory, Johnny Bravo), then it's owned by CN/WB. IF NOT, then there's a possibility that CN has to negotiate with the creators to release said-shorts on DVD/BD. CN and the creators may have negotiated a time window where rights revert back to the creators so that they can shop their shows to another network for possible series production.
Then you have the fact that the more successful shorts (which became TV series) have already been released or are on their onto TV series compilations. Most people are not crazy about buying anything for the third or fourth time if they already own a previous home video release!
Lastly, fact is that most of these shorts are fairly obscure to most people and there's a good reason most of them never made into TV series production... Most of these shorts were just not that good.
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- AV Forum Member
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- Joined: December 16th, 2004
- Location: Burbank, Calif.
Re: What-a-cartoon!
The thing about the What A Cartoon! Show is that it wasn't really a 'show' per se; it was a 'pilots program'. The shorts were individually screened by Cartoon Network as "World Premiere Toons" during the mid-1990's .. usually at the top of the hour, during prime-time.
Viewer feedback was encouraged -- audiences voted for their favorite shorts (Which were shown in a 'top 10 countdown' toward the end of the year). Shorts which received strong response had a sequel short produced. Several shorts, of course, went on to become series of their own: The Powerpuff Girls, Dexter's Laboratory, Johnny Bravo, and Courage the Cowardly Dog all got their start as World Premiere Toons.
It was actually a couple of years later that the WPT shorts were gathered and aired as the What A Cartoon! Show.
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Mtv had employed a similar strategy earlier with its own Liquid Television (which spawned Aeon Flux and Beavis and Butthead) .. while Nickelodeon has aired its pilot shorts on Kablam!, Oh Yeah! Cartoons, and Random! Cartoons (one of which -- Adventure Time -- has, ironically, now become a hit series for Cartoon Network, instead).
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One of my favorite World Premiere Toons was a one-shot directed by Rob Renzetti (featuring designs by Craig McCracken) titled Mina and the Count: Interlude With A Vampire:
Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera also individually directed a couple of shorts each, proving to the young blood that they still 'had it.' Even so, the World Premiere Toons cartoons were to be the last productions at the studio which bore their names .. soon after, they were folded into Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank.
Viewer feedback was encouraged -- audiences voted for their favorite shorts (Which were shown in a 'top 10 countdown' toward the end of the year). Shorts which received strong response had a sequel short produced. Several shorts, of course, went on to become series of their own: The Powerpuff Girls, Dexter's Laboratory, Johnny Bravo, and Courage the Cowardly Dog all got their start as World Premiere Toons.
It was actually a couple of years later that the WPT shorts were gathered and aired as the What A Cartoon! Show.
--------------
Mtv had employed a similar strategy earlier with its own Liquid Television (which spawned Aeon Flux and Beavis and Butthead) .. while Nickelodeon has aired its pilot shorts on Kablam!, Oh Yeah! Cartoons, and Random! Cartoons (one of which -- Adventure Time -- has, ironically, now become a hit series for Cartoon Network, instead).
---------------
One of my favorite World Premiere Toons was a one-shot directed by Rob Renzetti (featuring designs by Craig McCracken) titled Mina and the Count: Interlude With A Vampire:
Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera also individually directed a couple of shorts each, proving to the young blood that they still 'had it.' Even so, the World Premiere Toons cartoons were to be the last productions at the studio which bore their names .. soon after, they were folded into Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank.
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- AV Forum Member
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Re: What-a-cartoon!
Any chance for a DVD release?
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- AV Forum Member
- Posts: 1927
- Joined: December 16th, 2004
- Location: Burbank, Calif.
Re: What-a-cartoon!
The Powerpuff Girls' What-A-Cartoons (Meat Fuzzy Lumkins and Crime 101) are included as bonus extras on the PPG complete TV series DVD boxed set.
As for the rest .. no idea if or when we might see those on DVD; The What A Cartoon! Show has aired on Boomerang, occasionally .. but it is not currently scheduled there, nor for the foreseeable future (although most of CN's other 1990's toons have been popping-up there, lately).
As for the rest .. no idea if or when we might see those on DVD; The What A Cartoon! Show has aired on Boomerang, occasionally .. but it is not currently scheduled there, nor for the foreseeable future (although most of CN's other 1990's toons have been popping-up there, lately).