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"Are You Pondering What I'm Pondering?" Pinky & The Brain return....

Started by Feralkid, November 14, 2005, 04:35:34 PM

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difbrook

Quote from: "Feralkid"

Re: Pinky, Elmyra and The Brain.  The one episode I did manage to watch was scripted by John Patterson and did at least have one great Spielberg referencing physical gag.

Brain shone a torch on the wall and told Elmyra that the light was a portal to a magical interdimension petting zoo.  He then urged her to "run to the light" a la that moment in Poltergiest.  She then bashed her head on the wall...obviously.

"see that light, Elmyra? It's the entrance to Chipmunk Heaven. Yes, Chipmunk Heaven! Run to it, Elmyra... run to the light..."

Catalogue Trousers

I'm amazed that no one's mentioned Tokyo Grows! -  the greatest Godzilla parody ever. The Brain uses a growth ray to expand Pinky into a giant monster, which he then enlarges himself to fight and win over to gain the support of a grateful Japan to aid the old world-conquest plans. Needless to say, things go awry, and the real Gojira and a giant-sized young Raymond Burr ("YES, I see...") get drawn into the fray as well. Genius.

Feralkid

Quote from: "Munday's Chylde"I'm sure I saw a pinky and the brain once where one of them kept saying "whats the story? morning glory." - it seemed very odd to me at the time.

It seems a relatively passable viewing fare to me but I think the same kind of thing I think when people tell me excitedly about spongebob squarepants that 'its a show for kids but theres a wealth of material for adults to enjoy under the surface.'... which is 'you know what else has a wealth of material for adults to enjoy? adult shows!'

Y'know many supposedly adult shows have far less substance, invention or wit than Pinky & The Brain.  Ditto Spongebob.  To be fair most kids cartoons are infantile and barely watchable but it is a TV genre which has spawned more than its fair share of top notch comedy.  More to the point just because something has cross-over kids and grown-up appeal is no reason to dismiss it.  I'd say such shows serve a useful purpose.  I'd rather kids watched something genuinely funny and inventive instead of some toy pushing Filmation nonsense and, though it's not fashionable, it's great to have comedy product which one can sit down and watch with the we'ans.

In fact in terms of plotting, characterisation and gags P&TB at its best was, to my mind, a lot better than say Family Guy.  Of course any similarity between FG's "Stewie" (seemingly benign looking character with hyper-intelligence which belies his station,  the diction of a great actor and designs for world conquest) are I'm sure entirely coincidental...

Admittedly from the mid-90's onwards there has been a great deal of 'intelligent' kids cartoons which were a far cry from what I used to watch and indeed if I had children of my own I would be very happy to see them watch pinky and the brain. But I dont have children. Its more the fact that 'its a kids show but...' is used as a selling point when adults are reccomending it to adults that I dont get - its origin as a childrens show seems to be part of the appeal. Perhaps its a case of contrasting it to our own unintelligent viewing habits as nippers that does it but theres definitely something about it being a childrens show that even childless 30 somethings like. Its not unusual to see cool musclebound thirty year old hunks sporting a spongebob squarepants t-shirt - you don't see them wearing an arrested development one though so it must be something more than just appreciating intelligent comedy.

On the subject of ironic adoration of olde kiddies shows has anyone heard about this?

http://www.rentaghostthemusical.com/

Ignatius_S

Quote from: "Munday's Chylde"

On the subject of ironic adoration of olde kiddies shows has anyone heard about this?

http://www.rentaghostthemusical.com/

Written by Joe Pasquele!

Go With The Flow

Quote from: "sick as a pike"Someone was very interested in your comments.

(picture)

Jesus, that's a tiny laptop!

gatchamandave

" A chain letter , I touched it , I touched it ,
agggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh , narf  ,  aghhhhhhhhhhh!!!"

Brain : "You are my manager Colonel Pinky. You discovered me playing guitar on the front porch
of my humble pig farm. Any questions?"
Pinky : "Oh just one. When you farm humble pigs , how far apart do you have to plant them?"

Feralkid

Well judging by today's broadcast of "Of Mouse and Men" the ep's the Beeb are showing are badly cropped to fit the new 16x9 shape and edited.  Only caught the last ten minutes but at least one of the more adult jokes had been removed.  All especially annoying given that it was the punchline to a scene.  

Of course the whole ep was broadcast uncut on Childrens ITV ten years ago but given the degrading effect that has clearly had on society the Beeb had no choice but to cut it.

idunnosomename

Quote from: "Feralkid"Well judging by today's broadcast of "Of Mouse and Men" the ep's the Beeb are showing are badly cropped to fit the new 16x9 shape and edited. .

The widescreen thing is terrible. If you watch in widescreen, then you miss the tops. If you watch it in 4:3 you miss the tops AND the sides. It's utter bollocks especially when you see a lot of people, pubs and electronics stores don't even have their sky/whatever boxes set up right for their widescreen TVs and are watching 4:3 stretched out.
And the edits - I remember seeing the Of Mouse and Men episode like ten years ago and there being the joke the only reason the company employed Brain was because he was a minority, when I saw it on BBC it was barely implied. And when the doctor was bribed with the suitcase it looked like there was an edit of the reveal of what was in it but I'm not sure.

Despite this annoying thing I try and watch as much of these repeats as possible and it's just as good as I remember. That Third Man episode that was on on Monday is just brilliant since it's got jokes in as well as being a big reference to a classic film.
There seems to be a trend of putting out old cartoons on DVD and I don't really understand how people would watch them more than once but I would really buy this show on DVD as much as the Armando Iannucci Shows!

Mister Six

Quote from: "Munday's Chylde"On the subject of ironic adoration of olde kiddies shows has anyone heard about this?

http://www.rentaghostthemusical.com/

Who put this website together?

Quote from: "Joe Pasquale, apparently..."'Errr .... i don't know what to say.... i like ghost ... but not as much as badgers ....
One thing i do know about is ectoplasm. I thinking of opening my own store called 'ECTOPLASM R US'.
I saw a little ghost the other day flying down the street, I chased after him to get some advice from him on the show, Next thing he flew into a shop door way, i grabbed hold of him and realised he was a plastic bag blowing in the wind.
... oh well i am on halib orange after all...

Feralkid

Quote from: "idunnosomename"[
And the edits - I remember seeing the Of Mouse and Men episode like ten years ago and there being the joke the only reason the company employed Brain was because he was a minority, when I saw it on BBC it was barely implied. And when the doctor was bribed with the suitcase it looked like there was an edit of the reveal of what was in it but I'm not sure.
Shows!

You're not mistaken.  They cut the reveal showing the suitcase to contain frilly lingerie which the doctor then holds to his chest for size...

Lotsa cuts to The Third Mouse as well.  When the Trevor Howard character reacts to the revelation that  Pinky's sweetheart is  a horse a  tearful Pinky is supposed to respond "People can be so intolerant."  

They also cut a cameo from the Warner sister.  In the Ferris Wheel scene Brain is supposed to echo Orson Welles' line about tiny dots before we cut to Dot Warner looking up....

Presumably cut because it's a reference to a series the Beeb aren't showing.  And yet the reference to Yakko's world remained intact.

Squidy





http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=5531

QuoteSteven Spielberg Presents...

ANIMANIACS VOLUME 1
And
PINKY AND THE BRAIN VOLUME 1

Two DVDs Sure To Make You Zany To The Max!

Available July 25, 2006 from Warner Home Video!

Burbank, CA (April 19, 2006) - Lock the Warner water tower and guard the laboratory because the Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain are escaping to DVD on July 25, 2006 from Warner Home Video. For the first time, fans can own Animaniacs Volume 1 including 25 episodes featuring the crazy Yakko, Wakko, Dot and crew. Fans can also add to their classic animation DVD collection the 22 episodes from the Emmy nominated series Pinky and the Brain as they attempt to take over the world in Pinky and The Brain Volume 1. Both DVDs are priced to own for $44.98 each and have an order date of June 20, 2006.

Follow the adventures or misadventures of the Warner Brothers, Yakko and Wacko, and the Warner Sister, Dot, in Animaniacs Volume 1. Executive produced by Steven Spielberg, the ensemble cast of off-the-wall Warner Bros. characters, appear in a wide variety of roles as they continuously escape the water tower and run amuck all over the Warner Lot. Animaniacs Volume 1 is a 5 disc collectors set filled with over 12 hours of zany adventures along with DVD bonus materials including Animaniacs Live! featuring comic Maurice LaMarche hosting an in studio style interview via satellite big screen TV with Animaniac friends as they comment on the historical show.

The witty, slapstick humor with pop culture parodies and cartoon wackiness is a must own for all collectors of classic animation. Animaniacs first aired on Fox where it ran successfully for 2 years. The show then appeared on The WB as part of the "Kids WB" afternoon block.

Pinky and the Brain are two laboratory mice living at Acme Labs whose genes have been spliced. Before each night is over they scheme to formulate a plan to conquer the world. The Brain is a genius who leads the master plan, whereas Pinky is quite insane and the comedic relief for the series.

Pinky and The Brain Volume 1 is a 4 disc collectors set, with 22 fun-filled, classic episodes from Steven Spielberg, executive producer of the Emmy nominated series. Observe Pinky and The Brain take on each attempt to conquer the world with a dry wit and humor. Originally aired on the WB Television Network, these are two mice allowed to enter your living room!

"We are very excited to bring these two one-of-a-kind animation shows to DVD," said Dorinda Marticorena, WHV Vice President WHV Vice President, Kids and Sports Marketing. "Fans of both shows have been eagerly asking about their availability on DVD and even created a petition gathering over 9,000 signatures. We are happy to make these fantastic boxed DVD sets available to their core fans as well as a new generation of animation viewers."

Animaniacs Volume 1 special features include:
# ANIMANIACS LIVE! - Comic Maurice LaMarche hosts an in studio style interview via satellite big screen TV with Animaniac friends as they comment on the historical show.

Pinky and the Brain Volume 1 special features include:
# Pinky and The Brain: The Start of All Things Wacky - Featurette with Senior Producer Tom Ruegger, Writer Peter Hastings, the voices of Pinky and the Brain stars, Rob Paulsen and Maurice LaMarche, and voice director Andrea Romano as they discuss antidotes and antics about Steven Spielberg and why they had so much fun at work.

Animaniacs Volume 1

   * $44.98 SRP
   * Street Date: July 25, 2006
   * Languages: English
   * Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
   * Running time: 750 minutes (With 20 minutes of enhanced content)



Pinky and the Brain Volume 1

   * $44.98 SRP
   * Street Date: July 25, 2006
   * Languages: English
   * Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
   * Running time: 660 minutes (with 20 minutes of enhanced content)

Catalogue Trousers

I'm just wondering if we're likely to get a release of Histeria! (the mock-educational Warners cartoon series from about the same time) as well. I loved Histeria!

Especially Pepper Mills. I loved it when she hit herself over the head with a hammer in sheer manic glee while interviewing some famous historical personage or other...





Edited to add:

I had found a cracking shot of Pepper cracking herself over the head with a hammer in glee to illustrate this. Alas, the fellow hosting it wouldn't allow a link to be made, so here's a nice general cast shot instead...

EFB

Quote from: "Feralkid"I love the Brainstem song

http://www2.umdnj.edu/~neuro/studyaid/song.htm

And from Animaniacs I was always very partial to their song about the Universe

"It's a great big universe and we're all really puny.  Just tiny li'l specks about the size of Mickey Rooney..."

I know all the words to Yakko's World.

I had far too much time on my hands...

TotalNightmare

eat this!!

Announcer:
And now the nations of the world, brought to you by Yakko Warner!

Yakko:
United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama
Haiti, Jamaica, Peru,
Republic Dominican, Cuba, Carribean
Greenland, El Salvador too.
Puerto Rico, Columbia, Venezuela
Honduras, Guyana, and still,
Guatemala, Bolivia, then Argentina
And Ecuador, Chile, Brazil.
Costa Rica, Belize, Nicaragua, Bermuda
Bahamas, Tobago, San Juan,
Paraguay, Uruguay, Surinam
And French Guiana, Barbados, and Guam.

Norway, and Sweden, and Iceland, and Finland
And Germany now one piece,
Switzerland, Austria, Czechoslovakia
Italy, Turkey, and Greece.
Poland, Romania, Scotland, Albania
Ireland, Russia, Oman,
Bulgaria, Saudi Arabia
Hungary, Cyprus, Iraq, and Iran.
There's Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan
Both Yemens, Kuwait, and Bahrain,
The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium, and Portugal
France, England, Denmark, and Spain.

India, Pakistan, Burma, Afghanistan
Thailand, Nepal, and Bhutan,
Kampuchea, Malaysia, then Bangladesh (Asia)
And China, Korea, Japan.
Mongolia, Laos, and Tibet, Indonesia
The Philippine Islands, Taiwan,
Sri Lanka, New Guinea, Sumatra, New Zealand
Then Borneo, and Vietnam.
Tunisia, Morocco, Uganda, Angola
Zimbabwe, Djibouti, Botswana,
Mozambique, Zambia, Swaziland, Gambia
Guinea, Algeria, Ghana.

Burundi, Lesotho, and Malawi, Togo
The Spanish Sahara is gone,
Niger, Nigeria, Chad, and Liberia
Egypt, Benin, and Gabon.
Tanzania, Somalia, Kenya, and Mali
Sierra Leone, and Algiers,
Dahomey, Namibia, Senegal, Libya
Cameroon, Congo, Zaire.
Ethiopia, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar
Rwanda, Mahore, and Cayman,
Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Yugoslavia...
Crete, Mauritania
Then Transylvania,
Monaco, Liechtenstein
Malta, and Palestine,
Fiji, Australia, Sudan














...and Wales.

Catalogue Trousers



Catalogue Trousers

Owen Glyndwr's coming to get mediaeval on your arse, bwah.

Anyway - Wakko's Wish. Some lovely stuff, but way too much slush - a flaw shared with a lot of the later Animaniacs material. Just where did all of that awful worthy/sentimental cack come from? Spielberg, I'm guessing...

TheWizard

I think some of the songs on Animaniacs are almost Python-esque, something like "It's a Great Big Universe" is much like Idle's song in Meaning of Life but aside from the closeness of subject matter many of the songs still make me laugh 15 years later (Magellan, Lake Titicaca, The Monkey Song and The Hello Song are all great. I can upload these if people want)

Catalogue Trousers

The whole lineage of the various Warners cartoon series from around this time gets somewhat tangled, doesn't it?

"Tiny Toon Adventures" begets Elmyra (presumably related to Elmer Fudd, from her name and facial features), "Animaniacs" begets Pinky & The Brain. The lab mice get their own series "Pinky & The Brain", before the Fudd girl leaps on board for "Pinky, Elmyra & The Brain".

Meanwhile, "Histeria!" appears. Very much "Animaniacs" in feel (in particular,the first season's theme song is suspiciously similar in structure), but with a few genuine educational nuggets among the comic skits and running gags - almost a latterday, cartoon version of the BBC's "Cabbages & Kings" from the 1970s.

And by and large, they're all very good. The only major problems are (i) the increasing tendency towards schmaltz/worthiness and (ii) the ever-increasing number of child characters - this is the one thing that really prevents "Histeria!" from being really marvellous, there are loads of the little bastards (see the cast picture above), and out of them all only Loud Kiddington, Lucky Bob, Froggo and the marvellous Pepper really leave any lasting impression.

(Of course, this also fails to take "Freakazoid!" into account, the one Warner cartoon series from about this time that really does seem to be doing its own thing, with no feeling of cross-over with any of the other shows listed above. It's still bloody good, though.)

I'm not quite sure where I'm going with this post, so I'll draw it to a close. I suppose what I really think is that we need a "Comedy Connections"-style documentary - or at least a nice long post taking a similar approach to these shows.

difbrook, I'm looking at you...

difbrook

did someone call?

The whole history is fairly tangled - witness the plethora of studio politics jokes within Animaniacs itself. The one thing I do know is that it's Spielberg you have to thank for Pinky and the Brain getting their own series. Apparently a direct order from the beard himself. The lengthy decline of Animaniacs is also rumoured to be a result of governmental interference, from someone in the education department who didn't want children being subverted on a daily basis by those pesky cartoons.

As for why Warners proved to be such a fertile spawning ground for animation in and around the early nineties - I have a theory that it's almost entirely down to Who Framed Roger Rabbit being such a huge success. Suddenly there was a massive appetite for characters with that particular attitude and sensibility, and Warners took full advantage of it. Also bear in mind that Cartoon Network (owned by Turner, who also have the rights to the original LT and MM post-1948 stuff) was in development (they started broadcasting in America at the end of 1992). Made sense for there to be a whole new raft of programming at that time to take advantage of a new outlet.  

It's quite sad, though - watch enough of PatB and Animaniacs, and you see the interference really wearing the production staff down. The animation becomes less fluid and lush, the sharper edges get blurred and the slush comes in full force. Watching Pinky, Elmyra and the Brain is enough to make me want to stick a pillow over its face to end the suffering.

CT has the lineage absolutely spot on. Here's a little something that might assist in making those connections, and which gives a glimpse into the early development of Animaniacs - the writer's bible, as handed out to prospective candidates. This version is dated Dec 02, 1991, and it's stuffed full of intriguing ideas for future developments (and have a look at the characters page at the back as well for some that didn't materialise at all).


http://www.megaupload.com/?d=V7IH1HW9


*none of this* explains Freakazoid, however. Which exists in its own little hermetic world...

TotalNightmare

as it goes... Tiny Toons directly begat Animaniacs in an episode where Buster finds an old film tin with Animaniac-style characters living in it who come to life once their forgotten film is finally shown in a cinema thanks to Buster...

or something similar.

But i fucking love Tiny Toons until the animation style went downhill fast and the stories lost interest.

i have a mammoth collection of vhs's at home with loads on...

i'll wait for the DVDs though.

Feralkid

Roxy and Foxy, the characters seen in the Tiny Toons ep "Animaniacs," bear little resemblance to the Warner Siblings.   They're more Felix the Cat/Steamboat Willie era Mickey Mouse than anything else.

But yes, Tiny Toons is Animaniacs parent.  

Never could get into Hysteria, though the Civil War episode has an inspired sequence mocking Ken Burns' documentary series.  

Of current Warner Bros TV animation only the frequently hilarious Duck Dodgers seems to be continuing the spirit of their 90's shows.

Catalogue Trousers

Feralkid wrote:

QuoteRoxy and Foxy, the characters seen in the Tiny Toons ep "Animaniacs," bear little resemblance to the Warner Siblings.

Erm, but as difbrook will doubtless be happy to expand upon, they are a genuine couple of Warner Brothers' very earliest comedy cartoon characters...

difbrook

Quote from: "Catalogue Trousers"

Erm, but as difbrook will doubtless be happy to expand upon, they are a genuine couple of Warner Brothers' very earliest comedy cartoon characters...

you call, I answer...

Here's a couple of grabs from "Lady Play Your Mandolin", dating from 1931.

Foxy...


and Roxy.


difbrook

Three more -

the quite remarkable Video Revue -
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=SMJYDZAW

More Yakko listmania - The Planets.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=LW1VPB1I

And yet more Shirley Maclaine bashing - The Senses Song
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=8ZUA1JU1