It's Looney & I Like It

Despite myself, I just can't hate The Looney Tunes Show.  It's just a really fun spin on a classic.  Given some of the recent manifestations of Bugs Bunny and his cohorts such as Loonatics Unleashed, we obviously could do far worse.


Loonatics Unleashed - Really?


But quite honestly, I can't find anything wrong with the new Merrie Melodies program.  And frankly, I laugh out loud at it consistently.  You see, they've managed to capture the what made the originals great.  Whether it be spot-on snide humor or the expression on the face of the characters and their personalities, it's tapping into the 'Old School.'

One of the aspects which make it different, of course, is the character and setting designs.  When first promoted, it didn't sit quite right with me.  I never outright disliked it.  But it seemed off... Well, that changed once I actually saw it in action.  It fits well with the whole package.  As do the voices.  Okay, yes, they're not dead ringers for the originals.  But really, how could they be?  No one, not even relatives, can be the master vocalizing genius Mel Blanc.  That said, they're more than unacceptable.  They're excellent.  A bit off, but again, like the newly drawn version, it's enough to pay homage but keep it as it own version.

What has really changed, however, is the entire premise.  Imagine if you will:  Bugs and Daffy are roommates.  Well, more like Daffy is mooching in Bugs's house.  Yes, house.  They live in suburbia, where their neighbors are the likes of Yosemite Sam, Porky Pig and Witch Hazel.  I know what you might be thinking... and I didn't think it would work either.  But it does.  It's as if the mundane life of everyday activity is precisely what these beloved characters needed to bring them into the spotlight again.  It's delightful to see these strong personalities evoked into minutia.

Perhaps you don't believe me or don't agree with me if you've seen it.  In fact, not so long ago I'd been "defending" to an acquaintance of mine.  She'd been saying, and rightly so, that Bugs and Daffy aren't meant to be shown in daily lives.  I told her I thought so, too.  Until I watched it happening.  She agreed to give it a try... as she also admitted that she avoided it on circumstance and preview alone.

One other thing... one of my favorite Looney Tunes characters has always been Wile E. Coyote.  In The Looney Tunes Show his misadventures with Road Runner are CGI.  That's just not right.  Looney Tunes shouldn't be computer renditions of themselves.  But, darn it.  It's funny.  It, too, harbors the core of what we love about the coyote's capers.  And darn it, it looks good.  It's not fully rendered to a horrific degree, nor is it watered down or "over-smooth" looking (if that makes sense.)  It's pleasing, and as I said, despite myself I just can't hate it.

They also have musical vignettes during the show.  They've written clever songs about characters and feature them in music videos for the tunes.  They're good, but not great.  But they are entertaining rather than annoying.

Another music mention:  The theme song is wonderful, too.  It's a tweaked version of the original.  It sounds familiar yet fresh and in my mind also matches the spin that's come to be so appealing.

So, yes, send me hate mail if you must, but I love The Looney Tunes Show.

And that's all, folks.

A Rose By Any Other?

I’ve been struck with one of those ideas which is either vaguely brilliant or alarmingly dreadful. The kind that both wants to be seen and also never come to light. At least I think so. Before I tell you what it is, please note that I do not intend to tackle any such project. I’m just as much on the fence about it as I suspect you will be.

Let me begin with a terse rant about the Hollywood remakes. Yes, they exist. And yes, they always have existed. Lately they seem to be dominant. Love them or hate them (generally I hate them) they are here to stay. Some have been good, most bad. But I’m not going to pontificate on those. Point being they do exist, for better or for worse. If you want to hear me rant more on this subject, you can find it here.

Sometimes, however, a good reason or outcome is included with the re-do of films. I’ll give you two examples. Oddly (or not so oddly), they both deal with horror movies. Not surprising, I suppose, taking into consideration that horror movies, especially, are getting remade. (Now that’s an entirely different subject of exploration: why are we bent on remaking horror?)

Clive Barker had been approached to remake Hellraiser. For those of you who do not know, the Hellraiser series, as it pertains to Barker, is more than initially appears. I’m not trying to convince you it’s good nor that you should like it. I’m just relating that a great deal of thought and inventive mythology went into its creation. (As well as the comics it spawned.) When approached, Barker declined. Told that the remake would be done with or without him, Barker responded (paraphrasing): “Okay then, I guess I could stand to revisit my work and see what I can come up with now…” I love that…an author “invited” to rework their own work.

Sam Raimi, before Spider-Man, had a big hit with the Evil Dead series. This series has its own inherent oddities of creation, but perhaps I’ll discuss those another time. When the prospect of an Evil Dead remake came up, Raimi gave his blessing! I love the reason why. He wants to be able to watch his story through the eyes of another director and creative team. Curious how else it might be done, he allowed it gracefully. Very cool. I have to say I had not been charmed to remaking Evil Dead. Until I read Raimi’s reaction.

Now I’d like to turn your attention to the comic book world. I’m the peripheral sort of comic book guy. I like them a lot and a know quite a bit about a great much of it. In other words, enough to get by. But one of the things that anyone can see is: character design evolves. It may be obvious that it would…but that doesn’t make it any less important. New artists draw the character differently. Or perhaps new elements are introduced. All in all, fresh styles and visions come about. There may be exact guidelines touching upon it, but it’s a new perception all the same.

It also applies to characters from other than the comics. It might seem that they are static at first thought, but even icons Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse have undergone changes throughout time and artists.

Another area that has benefited from re-imagining is video games. From "re-inventing" 2-D to 3-D to upgrades in character desgins and the like, there is no denying that the world of video gaming has had many guises under the same umbrella.

Let us not forget the stage. Re-staging is a common term and practice, one that is even desired.

The music industry is no stranger to the idea either. Songs are "covered" all the time. To both sweet and sour results. And it's not just the "mainstream" music. We are always delighted to hear a different orchestra's rendition and/or a noted conductor's take on classical pieces.

Wondering what my point is? What is this "big, crazy-enough-to-work but please don’t try it" idea? Remakes of Novels. An author who writes the same story of another author into his or her own style. All of the same story elements, characters (and names) would exist and the sequence would be the same…but written anew, with different language and words to tell the story. For instance, what if Stephen King “rewrote” Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland? Re-read Peter and Wendy written afresh by Richard Bach (Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Illusions).

I bet you can think of a great many “What Ifs?” along this vein. I’m trying not to…

(I’m sure someone will tell me that it’s already been done. If that is the case, then it’s mea culpa for not hearing about it. But it's just as well I not know.)