Obviously I don’t agree with most of your remarks… granted, there is a degree of predictability in the robot assaults, and the Aku vs. Jack conflicts. And yes, the chicken episode is dumb, but not as silly as Naked Jack Down The Rabbit Hole or what even the most ardent Jack supporter must concede is the DUMBEST episode ever, the one with the Noxiously Flatulent Dragon. But I can recall quite a few clunker episodes of Batman and Superman, too.
Jack is not just about action. That may be all you look for, but that’s not all it has to offer. I suspect you watch it too infrequently and take too many potty breaks on the rare occassions you do tune in to appreciate its nuances. Batman and Superman are very good cartoons. But Samurai Jack is simply a step or three beyond. It has gravity and mood-- an ability to instantly make attainable Jack’s struggles and ambition without dialogue. There’s pathos, mythology, pop culture references, laugh out loud humor, outrageous characters, nice travelougues exploring different cultures, neat genre satires and homages, and the best damned fighting sequences done in animation, period. It’s split screen action editing and storyboarding make you pay attention to even the smallest details.
Aku is perfectly merciless and over-the-top. If you watch a TV kid’s cartoon expecting to be genuinely frightened and you’re not three, you got issues.
I don’t know… the more I defend Jack, the more I wonder if I’m being whooshed. Tell me, is there the slightest chance you’re mocking something you don’t understand?
I’m a rank amateur compared with a lot of you guys, but I’ll chime in with a couple I haven’t seen mentioned and one obvious choice.
First the obvious: Bugs Bunny, of course! Although I’m not sure that the WB cartoons were originally aimed at children. Didn’t that change in the fifties/in the Chuck Jones era?
When Gargoyles was on, I was a few years past graduating college. I enjoyed it a lot nonetheless, primarily because it had the moodiness of a gothic novel and an interesting Beauty/Beast type of arc going. Also, I had a mad crush on Jonathan Frakes from ST:TNG, so the fact that he did one of the voices was also in its favor.
A couple of years ago I discovered Braceface on ABC Family, and was charmed by Alicia Silverstone’s voice acting (as main character Sharon Spitz) as well as the depiction of Sharon’s high school/family life. It’s cool that she has a ten year old brother who’s a classical piano-playing genius and a mom who’s a psychologist; these seem like unusual choices for a kid’s show. The episodes usually have some sort of lesson, but they’re realistic ones that don’t feel too preachy. (There was even an episode about Sharon’s first date with cute guy Alden, which ended up getting ruined because she got her period for the first time.) In general it felt like a Paula Danziger or Judy Blume book turned into a cartoon. I don’t think it’s still being produced, and I don’t get cable anymore so I couldn’t see it even if it is.
Oh yeah, and when I was having some major insomnia last year, I used to leave Nick at Nite on after late reruns of The Cosby Show and All in the Family, after which they’d show Little Bill, Pinky and the Brain, and Doug. Enjoyed all three, especially P&tB.
