Cartoons are not just for kids

I've heard many an adult ask me why I still like cartoons? I'm an adult now, I have to stick to watching reality shows and sitcoms that need laugh tracks to actually make you feel like what they said was funny. Cartoons are not just a media for kids. Who do you think creates the cartoons? People fail to see how cartoons can have heart and an actual storyline, not just ask you where the map is. The creators of shows like Alex Hirsch, Rebecca Sugar, Pendleton Ward, Patrick Hale, etc. don't take almost a year for each episode to have giggles from small children. There is purpose behind their work. Alex Hirsch stated that he made Gravity Falls for him and what he would want to watch on television. The cartoons today like Over the Garden Wall, Gravity Falls, Star vs. the Forces of Evil, Steven Universe, Legend of Korra, etc. aren't just kids shows. They have emotion and depth in their episodes and honestly I wished more adults would see the heart in these shows.

Not all Pokemon games are alike

I am going to sound like a huge nerd right now but if you've played one Pokemon game, you have not played them all. Fans of this franchise can tell you that yes, the same type of plot is in every game, but that doesn't mean they are just alike. Each game has its own charm and different environments. The scenery changes and you get to explore new areas in every version. Since you only get one save file for every game, you choose your team wisely and take care of them. Each game you have a new team to love and care for. That is something that is special about this franchise. I know that Nintendo is making a bunch of games for money but that isn't the only reason. They create more of these games because they know their fans love it and want to take on the challenge of becoming the champion. I have loved Pokemon since I was little so it's dear to my heart. It's just an enchanting series and the feeling of finding and training your team is awesome. I'm done geeking now...

Bravest Warriors

This series on Youtube is created by Pendleton Ward who also came up with Adventure Time. The Bravest Warriors are four teenagers who are in the future and are searching for a way to rescue their parents from this place called the See Through Zone. Each teen possesses a sticker that they rub and an animal companion pops out. These animals can transform into whatever they would need to fight in a battle. Chris is the leader and wields a bee, Beth has a cat, Danny has a dog, and Wallow has an eagle. The journeys and dilemmas that these teens face are awesome and somewhat weird. Ward keeps the Adventure Time type writing with different atmospheres to create another big hit.

Kingdom Hearts

This series of games is my absolute favorite besides The Legend of Zelda. The theme of light vs. darkness creates an atmosphere that, for me, is hard to convey. It isn't super creepy or grotesque like Alice Madness Returns, but it still has creatures that you wouldn't want to meet. The hero, Sora, is one of my all time favorite characters in general. He is so kind hearted and wants to help everyone he can against the darkness. Sora is trying to find his friends, Riku and Kairi, who were snatched up by the darkness one night. Sora ends up on another world known as Traverse Town, where he meets a duo searching for their lost king; the duo being Donald and Goofy. Together, these three heroes embark on a quest for the king, Riku, and Kairi.

Sora wields a weapon known as a key blade. This key allows him to open gateways to many worlds where they find clues for finding their friends and helping defeat the creatures known as Heartless. This series is incredible and if you like to invest many hours into games then these are the games for you. Once you start playing it, you really don't want to stop.  

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is a series of graphic novels that eventually got transformed into a movie. The story follows a loser and our hero, Scott Pilgrim, who needs to defeat his girlfriends seven evil exes in order to continue dating her. I did call Scott a loser.. That is due to him starting out that way. He is kind of like Wirt from Over the Garden Wall when I say loser. They are both good characters, but not who you would expect to see save the day. Once Scott fights off Ramona's first evil ex, he begins to get more heroic and someone that you'd want to be victorious.

Now, I love these books a lot and I do think the movie did it justice. Some of the dialogue was to the wrong characters and there were things left out, but that is how films work most of the time. Six graphic novels turned into one movie is a tricky subject to handle. So, they arguably did handle it well. I would definitely recommend this series to anyone. It's hilarious, action packed, and is just a kick ass series in general. 

Gorillaz

The Gorillaz is a virtual style band that was created in 1998. The two creators, Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett conjured up this animated band that would send the music industry into a whole new world. These characters that didn't even exist captured people's hearts all across the globe. Albarn and Hewlett wanted their characters to be a bit broken and demented, which I think they did just right. They wanted for them to look cool and each one have their own personality and characteristics.

Once these four misfits became famous, they were able to do hologram concerts for fans and eventually go on to perform at the Grammy's. 

When we watched the live version of Clint Eastwood in class, I felt so nostalgic. I used to love the Gorillaz when I was younger and that video just brought me back to loving them. The amount of work that went into creating 2D, Murdoc, Noodle, and Russell is amazing for two guys. Albarn and Hewlett made a new type of music and were very successful with it. The Gorillaz are on hiatus at the moment, but I believe a new album is coming out soon. 

Mary Doodles

So, keeping to the theme of youtube artists, Mary Doodles is amazing. Her style is simpler yet intriguing. She mainly does inkings and watercolor creations. She is a huge role model for me when it comes to her techniques of drawing and painting. Her time lapse videos show how long it took her to ink and paint the picture and the list of materials she used. She also has a playlist of 'How to Art.' You can learn her style and ways of inking, painting, sketching, etc.

 Mary Doodles is a fantastic artist and I encourage everyone to watch her videos.

Vivziepop

Vivziepop is an artist that has a popular upload of an animation of Kesha's die young. I don't really listen to Kesha, but I could watch this video over and over. The animation is so bright and smooth and it just makes the viewer happy. I highly encourage everyone to watch it.
Their art is just wonderful. Honestly, I hope Kesha has seen this fan animation because if it was me, I'd be honored that someone made this.
Die Young (Kesha) - Fan Animated Music Video - VivziePop

Harley Quinn

Harley Quinn has become very popular in the DC universe from her first appearance in the Animated Series to her comics and now her leading role in the Suicide Squad movie coming out. What is it about this mad woman that makes basically everyone love her?

Harley isn't just Mister J's puppet. She may be bubbly and happy-go-lucky, but you'd be crazy to want to get on her bad side. She goes up against other villains and can take them done with her athletic abilities and her giant mallet she usually carries around. Even Batman can't keep up with her in some comics. She was only supposed to appear in the animates series a few times, maybe even once, but she resonated so well with the audience and the creators that they kept her. She has made her way to the top of the list of characters whose names you know that are associated with Batman like Robin, Joker, Batgirl, and more.  also has a very interesting story line that came along. She was a psychiatrist that worked at Arkham Asylum and her patient was the Joker. He got to her and she eventually was infatuated with him. Joker used her to escape the asylum and from then on, they were partners in crime. When he becomes abusive, she gets rid of him eventually and goes solo for a while before befriending Poison Ivy and also joining the Suicide Squad. She also helped Green Arrow figure out a better name for his hideout. In short, Harley Quinn is a complex character that is lovable and she is very human in impulsive decisions and her wavering conscience.   

Kara

I wanted to share with you guys a short demo called Kara. Kara is a robot that is being assembled and she is asked to perform certain tasks. As she does so, the mechanic who is making sure she is ready to go with the others checks everything off the list for her to do to be sold. But, as Kara says that "she thought.." he immediately starts to take her apart. She is overwhelmed and confused and begs him to stop dismembering her. The man has his robots put her back together and she is ordered to go stand back with the others. Kara thought that she was alive until he told her that she was just a robot.

       Kara - Heavy Rain/Quantic Dream Tech Demo     


I wish that this wasn't just a demo and that it was a real game. The concept was intriguing, the animation was awesome, there is so much potential for a game or a movie or anything really. I encourage you to watch this. I felt so empathetic toward Kara the entire time and couldn't decide whether I wanted her to stay assembled and be like the others or if I wanted her to be taken apart so she didn't have to be a slave basically. If she was taken apart, though, another one would just be built in her place and then I'd feel empathy for them.

DC v. MARVEL

Here's a fun debate that is completely out of nowhere. This is an age old argument for people and can make some get riled up as if it were their favorite sports team going against their rival. Honestly, though, is there a question of whose better?

I personally love both of them.. yes. I am one of those people. For me, Marvel makes way better movies and the only DC I can stand to watch are the Batman movies and not even all of them. DC, however, makes better comics, TV shows, games, etc. Teen Titans and Young Justice are some of my favorite cartoons and I can't really stand the Marvel cartoon adaptions. One reason, for me, that I believe Marvel makes way better movies is the fact that all of the characters are more lovable to me. I don dislike any of the Avengers.. however, X Men is a different story.. cough cough Scott and Jean.. With DC, I love most of the Justice League, but not all. I can't stand Superman (sorry.. maybe not..) I only respect him for being the first superhero and the story behind why he was conjured up in the first place and I can't stand Green Lantern either. For me, Flash, Green Arrow, and Batman are the main ones that I appreciate. Batman is the top for me, though. I've always loved Batman since I was small so I'm probably so biased, but I love heroes that can defeat villains without any powers. 

Don't get me wrong, I love superheroes also and I'd want to have a power if I could, but the fact that Batman doesn't need any and also that he doesn't kill anyone are some of the reasons he is my favorite. Not to mention Robin. Robin just adds to it for me. He is my favorite sidekick/hero, (Jason Todd ftw). Plus, Batman has the best villains. Joker, Harley, Riddler, Penguin, and Dr. Freeze are all names that most people know; they are iconic. That's where DC can beat Marvel in some aspects. We only remember Loki, Ultron, and Thanos and no one cans about Thanos or Ultron. 

I am rambling and so sorry for this being kind of long... 

Marvel's films are way better than DC with all of the heroes that are presented. If I wanted to watch a Marvel movie, I'd have to think about which one since I love most of them. DC is lacking in this department. Like I said earlier, I'd only watch Batman movies, not even all of them. I'd watch Batman Begins and Dark Knight and maybe Michael Keaton's Batman and that's it. Overall, I do love both industries and they each have something to offer us as far as entertainment goes. Comment on how angry I may have made you or if you agree or other opinions you may have on the subject. 

Indie Games

The film today was intriguing and it showed people who don't really care about games realize that it is a medium of art and still reaches people just like movies, shows, books, etc. I personally love to game video games and I can see where Leeper said it can consume your social life.. but that doesn't always happen and you can't take that stereotype and place it on everyone who plays games. Anyway, the movie was a good way to show just how much work goes into games. It takes from 3-5 for most games. That is as they stated, with a thousand artists and employees working their tails off. It made me pissed that the fans were bitching about Fez taking forever to come out when it's literally two guys working on this major project by themselves. Then when the game comes out, they act like they didn't bash the creators.

I really empathized with the creators when their game was to be released after all their work and Microsoft didn't release it and all of a sudden hell broke loose and when Fez couldn't get completed in time and because of the partner not coming through. I personally tried Super Meat Boy before and it was cool to see the progress of it. Fez looks phenomenal and I really want to play it. When they showed other games such as Ico, Journey, etc. I was super excited that those games were recognized. They have amazing gameplay and stories and the games are just beautiful. I did also agree with the creator of Fez whose name escapes me at the moment.. that games like Halo and Call of Duty and others like those tend to lean toward money and not the enjoyment fully. Sorry for the shots fired but that's my view on those games. 

Overall, this film was a great way to bring Indie games and video games in general into the spotlight. It shows the hardships that game makers can face just like film makers can and anyone else in the entertainment industry. 

Psych

Psych is one of those shows that you can sit and watch for hours. Shawn Spencer and his best friend, Burton Guster, (Gus), apply for jobs at the Santa Barbara Police Department and get the positions to help investigate cases. Shawn claims that he is a psychic and can solve the crimes based on his ability. However, he is a fraud who can observe things well and has a keen eye. Jules and Lassie, two detectives for the police department, don't know how to handle this situation with a psychic on their team. Jules accepts it and she is fascinated by Shawn's gift, while Lasseter doesn't believe anything he  says, even after the cases are solved. Eventually, the four cooperate together and get the cases to a close.

Each episode comes with a snippet of Shawn and Gus's younger selves that somehow becomes relevant in the case. It usually shows Henry, Shawn's dad, teaching Shawn how to strengthen each of his senses for when he becomes a cop when he grows up. The show has great suspense and comedy that intertwine well. I would highly recommend this show. Shawn and Gus's friendship and teamwork plays a major part in the show and you really connect with the characters. Some episodes are reference to things, such as the "Clue" episode and the episode "Here's Lasssssie" has many older horror movie references throughout it.  It's also great to listen to Shawn's new nickname for Gus in every episode when they go undercover. Psych is brilliant and isn't your stereotypical cop show. The creators and producers know when to keep the situation serious and when there needs to be some comedic parts in it. Psych is wonderful and the characters are so diverse that everyone can relate to a different character.  

The videos that we watched today were really intriguing and showed how society sees women. As a girl, you are told that you have to weigh a certain size, use this brand or that of makeup, wear certain clothes and not show too much skin for the sake of the men. The Dove commercial was a realistic, at least for me, representation of what the media says to girls on how to hold themselves up. If you aren't like the women in the magazines, movies, shows, etc. guys won't even look at you. Plus, I think the statistic is like 1 in every 7 or less women will be assaulted in some way in their lifetime. That's very frightening that this happens. With how awful that it though, I dislike how the media and society itself rarely, if at all, talks about the fact that guys go through this too. It may not be every 1 in 7, but it is still a problem and no one should have to go through that. Guys have expectations too. If you don't have abs or if you're not muscular, you aren't a true man. One thing that I've also noticed is that if a young couple has sex, the girl is called a whore while the guy is being praised. So, if she gets pregnant, she has to feel the judgmental looks and shame while he gets congratulated and pats on the back.

The video about the guy being a part of the girl was also relatable. It seemed to be what all us girls all agreed on how it'd be if we were in a relationship or if we are. Since we are more emotional, we can feel like we are one person.. I can't say this for sure since I wouldn't personally know.. It's just wonderful when a video can be relatable to everyone without some of us being in relationships.

Lastly, the video where she was represented by a hen for that portion of the video was a strong message. It was conveyed very well. The hen was vulnerable and he began to pluck all of her feathers until she was naked. She had no defense and no way out of the situation. Rape is a strong subject to deal with and it can take long periods of time to forgive the person who took advantage of you. All of these videos had strong messages that rang true for most girls.

Panic!

I'd like to share some music videos that I find really interesting and well done. I usually don't watch music videos, especially with where most of them lead to now, but I do like when it has a well thought out story to it. The videos are by Panic! at the Disco and I'm guessing that some people know who they are... The first of the two parts so far is This is Gospel.Panic! At The Disco: This Is Gospel [OFFICIAL VIDEO]
  

The main point that the video was trying to bring to light was how you need to let go of any burdens you have. But, if you watch this, I want you to interpret it for yourself. I've watched this video a ton of times and I can find new meaning every time I view it again. The main thing, though, that I wanted to point out is the newly released and second half of This is Gospel, Emperor's New Clothes.Panic! At The Disco: Emperor's New Clothes [OFFICIAL VIDEO]

This is after Brendon has died. He wakes up to light and white all around, fog rolling passed him and he is being judged. As he is in the presence of God, it suddenly goes black and he starts falling. He had a second of hope and now he is damned. I think that this video, even though it's a dumb little music video, can speak volumes. Most Christians would probably shy away because it's about him falling to hell. If that's the case then you better come up with a better excuse than that. If it is uncomfortable, I do believe that you should expand your mind sometimes. Brendon accepts his fate and slowly becomes what we all fear. I researched and found that he based this song off of a fairy tale about an emperor who asks two tailors to create invisible clothes for him to wear. The only ones who would be able to see it would be the smart citizens. The tailors end up acting like they made clothes and pretended to put them on him. When the emperor wears his 'new clothes', he goes out to the citizens and ends up being the fool instead of the people. With the video, Brendon was taking the place technically of the emperor and in his vain state, he ends up in hell because of this sin. 

Now, I am not a film student so I could be totally wrong, but the way the video is presented is spectacular to me. The whole environment is eerie and the effects are awesome. I just want for you all to watch these and comment what you got from these videos and how you interpreted them. 

I see that some people are discussing the darkness in children's media so I wanted to jump in too. Today in television shows designed for children, we tend to see some hit or miss series. For me, some newer hits are Gravity Falls, Over the Garden Wall, Steven Universe, and Young Justice. The stories in these cartoons are very well in depth and thought out and it shows in every episode. Even the ones to make the mood lighter before the next episode, when all hell breaks loose, have a lot of detail and time put into them. I think that it is a great idea to introduce some darkness into children's shows. As we have talked about in class, kids need to see some of these darker themes. We shouldn't shelter them from everything as parents tend to do. I think parents don't realize that it is the same themes they had growing up, just in different forms. Tom and Jerry was a very dark show. It was brutal and very violent, but kids would always laugh at Tom's misfortune and it is the same with Scooby-Doo. The gang always has to face a monster before finding out that it is just a person the whole time hiding something. You would think that with every episode of these older shows being the same basic plot, parents would enjoy these newer shows more since they go more in depth than the same occurrence, just a different criminal every time. But why do parents not want their kids to watch this new type of dark element?

Kids can experience these darker themes and empathize with the characters. The darkness of shows isn't to just scare them like a horror film is meant to. These scenes are there for a reason and can be critical for the plot to advance. Kids will come into contact with many dark things in their life, but cartoons shouldn't affect them like parents probably think. I believe that some of the cartoons we have today are better for kids than the ones that were around back then. The storylines are so much better and more complex than a mouse and cat running after each other and killing one another every episode. I am not bashing on older cartoons as it may strongly sound like it, I just wish I had these shows when I was younger. But luckily I can watch them now and can still enjoy them. I know I probably didn't get a good point across, but I think we need to stop sheltering kids so much and let them have some imagination. 

Over the Garden Wall

Over the Garden Wall, created by Patrick McHale, is honestly one of my favorite shows to date. I wanted to take a break from all of the discussions from class. I love the topics and comments that are going on in the blogs, but I really just want to make a different type of post for now and share why this miniseries is one of the best.

If you haven't seen Over the Garden Wall, I and probably many students in the DMA department will recommend it. The story follows two brothers, Wirt and Greg, who start out in a mysterious forest called 'The Unknown'. Greg hears a little cry of help from a bush and sees that there is a little bluebird that is stuck in its thorns. He rescues her and wants to do a good deal for the boys in return for them saying her. Since, they're lost, Beatrice the bluejay says that she will take them to Adelaide of the pasture. Adelaide would be able to help the boys get back home. So, the trio journeys through The Unknown and run into many interesting and sometimes creepy situations.

Patrick McHale takes his concept and conjured up a fantastic and whimsical world that can be hard to wrap your head around. He made a show that can be for any age. Children can watch this and experience what Wirt and Greg are going through and want to be there with them. We talked today in class about how fairy tales need to have some elements of terror even if it's aimed for children. Over the Garden Wall has this element and gave us this great sense of terror. Patrick also takes Wirt, a character that is so... boring and not someone that most people would want to hang out with, and gave us a connection to him since as the audience, you don't want anything bad to happen to Greg and him, and developed his character to where he's this great guy and he's such a big dork that you can't help but love.

This miniseries is by far, one of the greatest animated shows that has aired recently. Over the Garden Wall is a show that you can watch multiple times and not get tired of going through these whimsical adventures with Wirt and Greg. I highly recommend this show to anyone who likes mystery and darker elements.

P.S. It'd great if one day in class we just watched this the whole time... I know that won't happen. I just love this show.

The phrases,' tragedy is inevitable and comedy is best when it's unexpected' ring true in the world. I think it's like with your emotions, if you didn't have sadness or pain or loss, you couldn't really appreciate the joy and happiness in life to the fullest. Inside Out illustrates this beautifully. Joy was the first emotion that Riley ever experienced, so of course she'd feel like the leader and would want the best for Riley. Joy didn't appreciate Sadness though. She wanted to keep Sadness in her own little bubble so she wouldn't hurt Riley by making her feel gloomy.But, Sadness showed Joy that happiness isn't the only important emotion; all of them were important and there for a reason. I do believe the Bible is Comedy. You can't have the great stories in the Bible without the tragedy occurring before them. The Bible presents to us just how God can work best in the saddest times. 

“God is the comic shepherd who gets more of a kick out of that one lost sheep once he finds it again than out of the ninety and nine who had the good sense not to get lost in the first place. God is the eccentric host who, when the country-club crowd all turned out to have other things more important to do than come live it up with him, goes out into the skid rows and soup kitchens and charity wards and brings home a freak show. The man with no legs who sells shoelaces at the corner. The old woman in the moth-eaten fur coat who makes her daily rounds of the garbage cans. The old wino with his pint in a brown paper bag. The pusher, the whore, the village idiot who stands at the blinker light waving his hand as the cars go by. They are seated at the damask-laid table in the great hall. The candles are all lit and the champagne glasses filled. At a sign from the host, the musicians in their gallery strike up "Amazing Grace.” 

P.S. Do the emotions in Inside Out have smaller emotions of themselves inside their heads? Joy was crying and showing other emotions throughout the movie. Just a concept I heard about. 

Small hands

I'm going to talk about Keaton Henson's, 'Small Hands' for a second. That short was my favorite of the tragedies we watched. Even though it was just a bunch of puppets and rag dolls, it almost brought me to tears as I experienced the video. It resonated so well with me since I've lost people very dear and close to me and we couldn't say good-bye. Death of a family member or friend is excruciatingly painful. It isn't easy to get on with your life sometimes. People as a whole can relate to these inanimate stuffed animals since it has a plot that everyone has been through. Keaton made it personal to himself and what he was going through and therefore, made it personal to us as well. Maybe it was relatable to everyone in the room, but for me it was personal and it felt as if it was directed only toward me to help lift my spirit from all the grief I've felt lately.  'Small hands' means a lot to me now and I appreciate that you showed it in class, Professor Leeper.

Sarah Caine

Welcome to my humble abode!

I am Sarah. I am a lover of lots of cartoons that weren't intended for my age range, an example being Gravity Falls. My favorite heroes are Batman and Robin; Jason Todd being my favorite of the Robins. One of my favorite films is Scott Pilgrim VS. the World, along with the novels being one of the series I can always read again.

All Time Low and Relient K are my favorite bands. I've seen Relient K twice in concert so far and will gladly go to more when they tour again. Lindsey Stirling is another favorite artist. She plays the violin and has music videos on Youtube, (link to her Legend of Zelda Medley:Zelda Medley- Lindsey Stirling). My two favorite anime series are Soul Eater and Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood. I've been told by several people that I am the female version of my favorite Youtuber, AmazingPhil. I am a Gryffindor who loves Harry Potter a lot. Final piece of information about myself is my favorite game series are Kingdom Hearts and Legend of Zelda. My favorite Zelda game is Skyward Sword. I thought it was one of the most beautiful concepts and the gameplay was fun.. just shaking the Wii remote senselessly to kill enemies is my strategy. Thanks for listening to me talk about myself, I'm sure it was riveting to read.