I don’t even want the whole stable. 

Warner Bros. could keep Scooby-Doo and Tom and Jerry.. Oh, and Top Cat since he’s big in Latin American markets. And The Smurfs since they don’t want Sony to get ALL of that Smurf money these days.

Though to be fair, I even want The Flintstones, Jonny Quest, and The Jetsons at this point, especially in light of the recent announcement that Fred and Barney are being slowly removed from the Pebbles cereal brand (they’re absent from Flintstones vitamin ads)..

I just want the rest. 

Ruff and Reddy„ Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear, Snooper Cat and Blabber Mouse, Quick Draw McGraw, Auggie Doggie and Doggie Daddy, Magilla Gorilla, Space Ghost, Birdman, Space Kiddettes, Mightor, Dastardly and Muttley, Samson and Goliath, Herculoids, The Catanooga Cats, The Hair Bear Bunch, The Buford Files, Dynomutt, Clue Club, Fangface, Grape Ape, Jana of the Jungle,  Thundarr the Barbarian, Dirty Dawg, Krazy Klaws, The Puppy’s Greatest Adventures, The Snorks, Centurions, Goldie Gold, Galtar, Foofur, 2 Stupid Dogs, SWAT Kats, and so many others.

 want them lock, stock, and barrel mostly because Warner Bros has no clue about what to do with them. 

I have a plan laid out on how I could reinvigorate nearly every major brand from Hanna-Barbera (particularly the stuff they own outright).

Part of it would be introducing the originals for current audiences. The comedic stuff for the younger set and the action shows for the older kids. I’d do this on widely-available networks and online outlets. 

And then I’d recruit some of the best animation writers, producers, and artists from around the globe to give new life to these characters, putting their own spin on the characters while keeping the spirit that spawned them  Again, I’d do this on widely-available networks and online outlets.

This is something as opposed to the nothing Time Warner is doing with the Hanna-Barbera characters and brands that aren’t Scooby-Doo, Tom and Jerry, The Flintstones, The Jetsons, or Jonny Quest. I’m all about keeping the franchises and brands in their original medium - animation - for all endeavors. 

And in the end, I could give Hanna-Barbera a new beginning and preserving the legacy of a pair of creators.

Got a letter from “a very special friend” today. Here we go:

Dear Jeff,

Apparently, One Piece has surpassed Dragon Ball in Japanese volume sales: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2012-10-23/top-10-shonen-jump-manga-by-all-time-volume-sales

One Piece is getting closer to the 300,000,000 Japanese copies mark and when it goes past that mark, it will surpass DB in worldwide volume sales and will save anime.

Take that, Jeff!

Sincerely,
Liam

Take that, Jeff!

Take that, Jeff!

Take that, Jeff!

A little confused with what’s being said, or to put it in the vernacular, what I’m supposed to take. 

Is young Liam trying to say that when One Piece reaches 300 million volumes sold in Japan alone, it will not only outsell Dragon Ball but will save Japanese animation?

I … 

I … 

*ow, my head*

I … I don’t think that’s how it works out. I mean one thing doesn’t affect the other. They’re different mediums, and if one thing is successful, it doesn’t mean that the other thing would be successful. It doesn’t work like that.

Otherwise, Avengers comics would be the highest-grossing publication in the US right now. 

As for “saving anime,” I really, really doubt that one comic-based animated series could an entire industry because the book is a best seller. I mean, like I said, it’s cool that One Piece is poised to be a record-breaker, but the series that “saves anime?” No, it doesn’t work like that. One Piece has been on in Japan since 1999 and has been at or near the top of the ratings since day one. But that doesn’t mean the comic sales would make One Piece save the Japanese anime industry. 

It just doesn’t work like that. 

adventuretime:

Cartoon Net hands keys to millennials

Cabler renews emphasis on nurturing offbeat in-house productions

Variety, Sep. 11, 2012, 4:00am PT

By CYNTHIA LITTLETON

When Rob Sorcher returned to Cartoon Network as chief content officer in early 2008, he had a sense that a generational shift was underway in animation. The first generation of artists to grow up with the Internet (and Cartoon Network) as a household appliance were hitting the job market, fresh out of CalArts, Gotham’s School of Visual Arts and other art institutions. These millennial toonsmiths were coming through the door with very different sensibilities about material, characters and especially humor than even their older brothers and sisters.

“Their brains don’t work the same way,” Sorcher says. “You could just feel it as we started talking to young artists.”

One of Sorcher’s first official acts was to establish what he dubbed the Cartoonstitute, a development lab within the cabler’s Burbank production facility. Sorcher had been part of the Cartoon Network exec team in the mid-1990s, when a similar initiative yielded such hits as “The Power Puff Girls,” “Dexter’s Laboratory” and “Johnny Bravo.” He was surprised upon his return, after stints at AMC and USA Network, that Cartoon wasn’t devoting any resources to letting animators run wild in-house with ideas.

This time around, Sorcher admits he doesn’t always “get” the material that sparks the twenty-something artists at work for Cartoon Network Studios. But he surely gets that the first regular series to spring from the Cartoonstitute push has blossomed into a signature hit. “Adventure Time,” which originated as an online short for Frederator Studios before Cartoon nabbed it for development, is essentially a buddy adventure-comedy about a goofy teenage boy with heroic ambitions, his wise dog and their adventures with a host of good and not-so-good creatures in the Land of Ooo.

“Regular Show,” about the misadventures of a blue jay and a raccoon, is another recent success story. This week, Cartoon is greenlighting two more offbeat comedies from “Adventure Time” alumni. “Steven Universe,” created by Rebecca Sugar, is a coming-of-age tale of a teen who is part of the magical Guardians of the Universe. “Uncle Grandpa,” from Pete Browngardt, revolves around a guy who is magically an uncle and grandfather to everyone in the world.

In another sign of changing times, “Steven Universe” marks the first Cartoon series created by a femme in the cabler’s 20-year history.

“The soul of Cartoon Network brand is this genre of (offbeat comedy),” Sorcher says. “We shifted the whole environment so that gifted artists can take what starts as a spark and fan it into a fire. We’ve designed the studio around the fact that they’re relatively inexperienced in working in series TV.”

It takes a level of commitment from execs above and below Sorcher’s station to get behind projects that start not with scripts but on storyboards, to be as animator-friendly as possible. When Sorcher and others saw “Adventure Time” creator Pen Ward’s initial ideas, there was skepticism.

“We all said, ‘That’s a weird little show. Is it a kids show? It feels different,” Sorcher says. “But that’s the sense of humor we’re talking about. These cartoons have a randomness and a sincerity to them. It’s what the audience is asking for. They love the random humor that is packed with all kinds of references. It’s all informed by a generation that has always grown up with the Internet.”

Cartoon Network’s hits have never been as big or flashy as those of Disney Channel or Nickelodeon. But the cabler has long enjoyed a big edge over its rivals in the older boy demos and the hipster young adult cartoon buff demo, an advantage that extends into latenight with its sibling Adult Swim net. Sorcher knew that as successful as the cabler was with its more traditional fare — such as “Ben 10” (one of Cartoon’s biggest global hits) — they were missing a huge opportunity by not playing more to their strengths with oddball shows. It’s in keeping with the maverick spirit of Cartoon’s founder, Ted Turner, something that has been top of mind this year as the cabler celebrates its 20th anniversary.

“I think we have the chance to move the vocabulary of animation forward in a really important way,” Sorcher says. “That’s the magic of these new cartoons.”

Contact Cynthia Littleton at cynthia.littleton@variety.com

If they have no proper understanding of the subject they’re adapting, absolutely. If somebody is legitimately a fan AND has a proper understanding of a series, then by all means adapt the thing properly and with respect. I’ve gotten to the point that American filmmakers shouldn’t even adapt AMERICAN cartoons. The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo, The Last Airbender, all dreadful.

You know who would be a great director of Cowboy Bebop though? Robert Rodriguez.

Asteroid Blues was clearly inspired by Rodriguez’s El Mariachi/Desperado films and have been acknowledge as such. He’d be perfect.

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