Nov 21, 2001 12:39 PM
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(Updated Nov 21, 2001 12:39 PM)
I admit it. I still enjoy a good cartoon. Even now at the somewhat more jaded age of 23, I still like to kick back and watch a few episodes of Looney Tunes or The Flintstones or once in awhile even an episode of Scooby Doo. However it got to a point in the mid 90s where the only time you could catch cartoons was at 7:00 in the morning on TBS.
That problem was rectified by the arrival of the Cartoon Network circa 1995. Cartoon Network truly lives up to its title by featuring nothing but cartoons.
The programs shown on Cartoon Network cover a pretty wide spectrum. The station has made it possible to see Looney Tunes on a regular basis and for that I will be eternally grateful to them for. The annual ''June Bugs Marathon'' (A 48 hour marathon that takes place the weekend of June 1st and features many classic Bugs Bunny cartoons) is a yearly treat. Cartoon Network also has Tom And Jerry as well as the bulk of the Hanna Barbera lineup (Flintstones, Jetsons, Scooby Doo, Yogi).
Cartoon Network also has some good newer cartoons as well. There is Space Ghost, The Tick, Animaniacs and Looney Tunes 90s spin-off Tiny Toon adventures. In addition there is also the Saturday night matinee feature Cartoon Theater, which features a cartoon movie. The matinee programming is hit and miss (How many sequels to The Land Before Time were really necessary?). But occasionally a treasure may be unearthed such as the mid 80s ''Flintstones Meet The Jetsons'' movie.
However there are a couple of drawbacks. The first one is in relation to some of the older programming. Some of the older cartoons shown are ''classics'' that aren't really classics such as ''Josie And The Pussycats''. Those ones are easily remembered. But they're not actually ''classics''.
Then there are some of the newer cartoons. Maybe I'm partially biased toward the classic cartoons. But many of the newer ones don't do that much for me. Dexter's Laboratory for instance. That one is best appreciated in small doses. But Cartoon Network has a tendency to hype it quite a bit. Same goes for Johnny Bravo. Those shows are good in themselves. But they're not yet up to the standards of Looney Tunes or Animaniacs.
Cartoon Network overall is pretty good as it is. But could use some fine-tuning to become even better.
Also. To Cartoon Network execs. Where's The Smurfs?
