#also what's new scooby doo had also started airing on one of the main cartoon channels here in the uk around 2010 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

unisex-muffin · 2 years

Text

We all know Freddy and Friends on Tour which is a canonical cartoon in the SB universe, right?

Well, I had an idea.

I like to think that at one point during the 90s it was sold at the restaurant as a promotional thing like those Adventures of Ronald McDonald tapes. This was back when Fazbear Entertainment was trying to get back its footing after the missing children incidents and the bite of 87. Some people called it tone deaf, but the kids really liked it so it was a big hit. (Granted, the videos on Steel Wool's channel were only a little under two minutes long. So let's just say these were the title theme openings.) There were four episodes in total each with its own tape that contained some bonus footage such as ads for the restaurant and previews for other tapes to pad out the runtime. Henry sunk a lot of money into the project to try and revive the business. (Which explains the 70's Scooby-Doo look and feel to it, he's not really in touch with what's popular with the kids and it was all just promotional so he couldn't care less.) Maybe they were planning on airing it on TV and made more episodes but that fell through after the closing of the restaurant in FNaF 1. Someone must have found the master tapes of the episodes somewhere, and now they show them in the Fazbear Theater much to the delight of parents and the confusion of kids.

Now, where am I going with this?

I'll admit, I saw this idea on a TikTok first, and I'm not copying the idea, just putting my own take on it. But since Fazbear Entertainment now has such a vice grip on pop culture in this universe, what if the Pizzaplex has its own cartoon for the new generation of Fazkids?

So this was in production for a couple of years but during that time Bonnie got replaced with Monty, so now he just isn't mentioned anywhere in the show in an effort to get kids to stop asking about him.

The show centers around the main four as rock star celebrities living in their mansion in Fazbear Hills, (which is conveniently located just outside the Pizzaplex.) with a few other characters thrown in purely for advertisement reasons. In each episode one of the main four (or occasionally a side character) runs into an issue and everyone needs to team up to fix it. They always succeed through the power of friendship and music. There's also some lessons tacked on for parental approval. It's very reminiscent of 2000's era shows like My Dad the Rockstar, Dave the Barbarian, and the earlier seasons of SpongeBob.

Freddy is presented as the levelheaded leader of the band, who is a gentle giant with a garden. In fact his main running gag is something or someone running over his flowers. He's usually one of the members to help fix the problems, and very rarely does he have a problem of his own. He's very much the "Dad Friend" of the group. His catchphrase is, of course, "Way to go, Superstar!"

Chica is, of course, the big eater and is very bubbly and friendly if she isn't the focus of the episode. Other characters will rarely comment on her eating habits but her main running gag of the series is that she's always offering to finish other people's food or asking if the band members are still saving something that's in the fridge. Her catchphrase is "Let's go, Popstar!"

Monty is the one with anger issues, of course, but in a twist the show usually shows him in control of his anger until something finally makes him snap (and he also meditates). His main running gag is that he'll start to get upset over something and as he gets progressively more upset one character will say "Uh oh, he's getting angry." Followed by another saying "Really angry!" Followed by a third character saying "He's gonna blow!" And everyone prepares for the worst, only for Monty to take a deep breath and be perfectly calm and take care of the issue. Only for whatever he was doing to go completely wrong upon which he'll go bezerk. (Almost always after a brief moment where everyone lets their guard down.) His catchphrase is "Rock and Roll, Lil' Guy/Gal!" Or simply just "Rock and Roll!"

Roxy is the haughty, a bit self centered but does care about her friends. She actually has two sort of running gags in the show. One where a character will hug her and she'll say "You have two seconds" wait, and either shove them off and say "Okay, times up" or give into the hug with a sigh (especially if it's a group hug.) The other one where after doing something nice or meaningful for a character they will thank her and she'll say "Don't mention it…literally." It's implied that she and Chica might be in a relationship, but it's all very subtle so as to not lose business. Her catchphrase is "Alright, Rockstar!"

Sunny and Moon are separate beings from each other but rarely seen by the others in the same room as each other, leading to a joke where Chica and Monty have a conspiracy that they're the same person. (Even if they've seen the two together.) They do live in the mansion with the others but are very, very rarely the focus of an episode, and if they are it's almost always a sibling rivalry type plot between the two. In episodes that feature both of them, their running gag is that thing where they accidentally speak in unison but everything they say is exactly what the other was going to say.

Sunny is of course very energetic and anxious while Moon is more chill and easygoing, Sunny is up very early and passes out at the same time every night while Moon sleeps during most of the day and only comes out when it's nighttime. Sunny has his own running gag where he'll ramble on oblivious to what the others are saying to him until one of them yells to get his attention, and Moon has his own running gag where he'll get woken up by one of the wacky ways the others will try to fix a problem and yell out his door or window "HEY! I'M TRYING TO SLEEP HERE!" Sunny's catch phrase is "Great job, Sunshine!" And Moon's is "Nice work, Starlight."

DJMM (Usually just referred to as DJ) is the character that very rarely speaks or even appears in an episode. He prefers to keep to himself and doesn't have a running gag or catchphrase. He lives in the large shed in the backyard of the mansion.

Captain Foxy was a weird addition to the show, since before the concept the show was even born his animatronic was the first one to get decommissioned due to the Afton virus, so not many kids remember him or even know he existed. (Oops, there goes my headcanons.) Even then, he's from a graphic novel series with a tie-in movie in-universe and not really related to the main four anyway. So his character is equally as obscure and only appeared in the first season of the show. He lived at the lake behind Fazbear Hills in his cabin. He was planned to have a mid-show segment where he would tell a story of his old pirating days, only for the character he's telling the story to to deny that it ever happened, and then something would happen to imply that it actually did once that character left. But, the company decided against it, and he was relegated to just a crotchety old man who would yell at the characters to "YARRR, KEEP IT DOWN OVER THARRR!" and then written out of the show completely in the second season.

#long post #fnaf security breach #fnaf

9 notes · View notes

thatcartoonnetworkblog · 3 years

Text

So I’ve been wondering, are we in another transformative period for Cartoon Network?

I feel like CN doesn’t have major years, as in one singular year standing out over the previous, but rather periods of around 18-24 months where they go through a change. Major years for the channel include:

1995-1996- The Moxy Show used original animation, with then-cutting edge CGI to boot, to introduce classic cartoons which were already the bread and butter of the CN schedule. Space Ghost Coast to Coast took animation from the original cartoons to rig something entirely different out of them. But it’s in 95 when the World Premiere Toon initiative started, and in mid-96, the first bonafide Cartoon Network original, Dexter’s Laboratory, premiered from this original batch of shorts. Also worth noting is The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest, which premiered across three separate channels, including CN proper.

1998-early 2000(?)- At this point, Dexter’s Lab became a megahit, while Cow & Chicken was also a sizable success, and Johnny Bravo was about to get a second chance to become a cross-generational favorite, and more fresh new shows were being made. Cartoon Cartoon Fridays premiered in the summer of 99 and became a holding place for these and other new cartoons that were growing big fanbases, such as Ed, Edd n’ Eddy, Courage the Cowardly Dog, and The Powerpuff Girls, which would end the new millennium as arguably their biggest show. 2000′s Big Pick would list it as their second most popular series, behind only Scooby. Speaking of which, the classics were being cut back, mostly to early mornings and the incoming Boomerang channel, aside from the heavy hitters- Flintstones, Jetsons, Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, and of course Scoob. This was the Powerhouse era, still arguably the most beloved period for CN, and one where all of these series thrived. Arguably the biggest success of Cartoon Cartoon Fridays was how it helped to make the shows feel interconnected, with it being possible for Blossom, Mojo Jojo and Courage to interact regularly with each other. This will show up later. And Toonami was just as vital for the channel, with Sailor Moon certifying itself as a household name at this point, while Dragon Ball Z and Gundam Wing would break records for CN as a whole.

2003-2004- Yes, this is when the City era started- a series of ads and bumpers which further helped to sell the belief that CN was interconnected, and made for memorable moments, like Johnny Bravo and Samurai Jack’s bond, or Megas racing the Mystery Machine. But besides these new bumpers, things were definitely changing. A lot of the old guard was being phasedout, with Dexter, Johnny, Powerpuff, Courage, and Samurai Jack wrapping up their runs around this period. Eds, Billy & Mandy, and Kids Next Door were brought to the forefront of the channel, although none came close to matching Powerpuff’s success on the toy shelves. Some more important shows were also being added, each suggesting different things. Megas XLR was arguably the last CN original that aimed to appeal just as much to adults than kids, if not more so. Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi was the last real grasp at CN trying to recapture that sweet PPG girl-friendly money, and it had mixed-at-best results. And then you had Foster’s, which took no time to become an anchor for the channel, and proved that Craig McCracken was no one-trick pony.

Also of note- CCF ended for Fridays, and would become a new place for premieres. Just like CCF, there was almost always at least one new show airing that week, and it wasn’t afraid to add non-CN made originals to the lineup, like What’s New, Scooby-Doo, Duck Dodgers, and even Teen Titans. This is also when the classics were being almost entirely phased out, with Jetsons, Flintstones, and even the original Looney Tunes being taken off the main channel at this point. Duck Dodgers and Baby Looney Tunes would be all you’d really see of the Looney Tunes at this point. Scooby and Tom and Jerry would still remain, but the former was increasingly replacing its classic episodes with more What’s New and the more recent movies, while the latter was primarily relegated to weekday mornings. Toonami was also pushed from weekday afternoons to weekend nights, but even despite DBZ wrapping up, there was still stuff to latch onto. Justice League, Teen Titans, and some additional anime kept the brand going for a little while.

2010-2011- Things were looking pretty dire at this point. Most of CN’s biggest hits had ended, or in the case of new favorites Chowder and Flapjack, were wrapping things up while live-action series were increasingly filling up precious space on the channel. Those particular series looked like the future when they premiered, but seem more like the past today. But something miraculous happened. That Adventure Time show that CN picked up from Nickelodeon became a giant hit with all ages, and would bring cartoons back into the forefront. Regular Show would premiere later that year and become a near-equal hit. Sym-Bionic Titan would also air but would be more like the last of something, the end of the action show. Or at least the CN-made action show, as Young Justice also premiered around this time. Also worth noting, the return of Looney Tunes! The classics had a New Years Day marathon which brought them back to the forefront, while The Looney Tunes Show would later air, alongside Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, arguably the most exciting thing to happen to the franchise since Zombie Island.

So what is 2021 and potentially 2022 offering to be of equal footing? Cartoonito, their big attempt at a preschool block is a big one. We’ve also seen CN and HBO Max collaborate to air some of Max’s originals, such as Jellystone and The Fungies. And we’re getting some exciting new projects, such as a new series from Genndy Tartakovsky and the long-awaited Gumball movie. We could use a change in Cartoon Network with how stagnant it’s become in recent years.

#cartoon network #my ramblings

7 notes · View notes

whyqueerbaitingisbad · 3 years

Text

movies & shows

cracks knuckles* alright this is going to be more of a rant than an analysis because i’m basing this on both my research, but also how it felt to personally be baited by these shows. there are obviously more pieces of bad (almost every horror movie) and good ones but these are the ones i’ve watched.

please keep in mind that i am but one queer and everyone has different opinions.

Supernatural (CW) 2005

This show is 15 years old and just ended. From season 5 till 15, there has been tension between two of the lead characters. They were constantly shipped together and not only did the entire fandom know about this ship but so did almost all of Tumblr. On top of that, the actors and show runners knew about it as well. Which is why it makes it ridiculous that it was constantly pushed aside while the romantic coding kept happening, even after show runners dismissed it as being intentional. The Destiel (Dean x Cas) case has been going on for years, and as the show came to its end, many fans had hope. But N O P E. Instead, we got a love confession from Cas where Dean looked like he was near constipated and the Cas was killed and sent into a fiery place that was not hell but s u p e r h e l l.

… w hy.

Sherlock (BBC) 2010

Just like Supernatural, this show was renown on Tumblr for not only how good it was, but its hinting at a potential relationship between Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. But again, like Supernatural, the intentional tension between the two characters was denied by producers. This caused an uproar within the fandom, and even left some people believing that, after the last season aired, it had been a joke and the producers were hiding a “secret, unaired season” because they had felt so robbed by this show that had implied something and denied it.

The 100 (CW) 2014

We got lesbians. We got background gays. We were happy. Then, all of a sudden, one of them is killed for no reason. Did it advance the plot? No. Was she fighting and died in battle? lol no. She was doing literally nothing and got shot and died. And then the producers kept bringing her back once a season in the form of a ghost or illusion because why? Because she was a fan favourite queer character. ✨bury your gays and sparingly bring them back for profit anyone?✨

Voltron: Legendary Defender (Netflix) 2016

*deep breathe* This one is a special disaster. Not only was there romantic tension and romantically coded scenes for 7 seasons, but producers, voice actors and artists working on the show repeatedly said “don’t worry klance (Keith x Lance) shippers, you’ll be happy”

. … w h e r e??? You code one of their scenes with a sunset in the background while they talk about love and then one of them goes on a date with someone who has declined his advances for 7 seasons but now in season 8 decides to do a full 180. Not only that, but you announce at a Comic Con (a convention) that a character is gay and has a fiancé, only to kill off the fiancé and never make it explicit in the show except at the last second of the last episode where he marries a no name character.

Personally, i’d like to say a big fuck you to the show that strung me along for 2 years and never stopped saying we’d be happy to then pull the rug out from under us and call us crazy for thinking anything from the past 8 seasons was intentional.

Scooby-Doo (2002)

While not being outwardly queerbaiting, this movie’s filmmaker has just revealed some shocking news, which wasn’t at all shocking to the gays who had watched this movie over the years. In July of 2020, James Gunn, the filmmaker of Scooby-Doo, revealed in a podcast that, initially, Velma was explicitly gay in his script, but then the studio watered it down until it became nothing. This isn’t an example of baiting as much as it is changing a character’s initial design to “better fit an audience”. The worst part of all this is that with Velma’s character having been written with a l i t t l e queer subtext, people had been theorizing about if since the movie came out, but were always yelled at by the internet for “imagining something that isn’t there”. But now, even with it being said that the initial point was for her to be gay, people have no objections to still refusing to accept it. Why?? So we can’t get the subtext gays OR the confirmed gays?? Make it make sense.

Brooklyn 99 (NBC) 2013

To have the queer characters firstly introduced without mentioning their sexualities and have it brought up naturally was so goddamn nice to see, because no one does a big deal about it unless they ask for that. This show is amazing in general but the way they show their queer characters is *chefs kiss*.

She-ra and the Princesses of Power (Netflix) 2018

This. Show. My heart SOARS. It's just a remake of an old show so absolutely nothing was ever expected, but then it was sprinkled in and ENDED WITH A BANG. And it was so beautiful and real to see the struggle of two friends who care for each other and want to be together but have different visions of the world fall in love. And they also had characters with disabilities, a non-binary character and jUST SUCH A GOOD SHOW.

Kipo and The Age of Wonderbeasts (Netflix) 2020

This is a case where you go into it not expecting anything and are BLOWN AWAY by the bare minimum. And not because it’s bad!! It's mind blowing because this is the simple representation we need!! Not something over the top, but an every day relationship. It’s just two boys falling in love and going on dates and being nervous around each other, yet i was so stunned. Because it’s not shown enough. I should not be this excited over something that should be this normal. 10/10 though this show is so good for all kinds of representation.

Steven Universe (Cartoon Network) 2013

This show did so much for queer representation with its general message of loving everyone and loving who you want. Especially since it was aired on Cartoon Network, a channel for kids, it was able to help normalize something so looked down upon in some circles. It made it easy to watch for s o m e people because it's a cartoon but it's so beautiful to see these ladies so in love with each other, both platonically and romantically and we see them have a family dynamic that isn’t a “nuclear family”. Rebecca Sugar (creator) really said “lemme just break all stereotypes real quick”.

Adventure Time (Cartoon Network) 2010

It's the “knowing a fanbase shipped something so hard that the creators made it canon” for me. This relationship had been theorized by fans for years, but it had never been explicit in the show. When the finale episode came out and the two shared a kiss, it was a moment of celebration. The producer of the show said that it had not really been planned but when the episode was being made, the choice of what happened was given to one of the artists (bless your soul Hanna K. Nyströmthe). And as the show releases little bonus episodes, its latest was centered around Marceline and Bubblegum and their relationship. AND WE LOVE TO SEE OUR DOMESTIC LESBIANS BEING HAPPY AND IN LOVE.

Yuri on Ice!!! (anime) 2016

The fact that an A N I M E gave us a love story between two men is mind boggling and it makes me so happy!! Especially because it's a Japanese show and they’re very conservative about these things just makes it more emotional. The creators said they wanted to make the anime take place in a world where gay/straight isn’t a thing, it’s just love (ladies, you’re going to make me cry). So as the weekly episodes came out and fans start speculating, THEY GAVE US THE LAST FEW EPISODES FULL OF ROMANCE AND EMOTIONAL SCENES BETWEEN THE TWO AND THEN THEY GET R I N GS?!???!! You watch for the figure skating, you stay for the figure skaters that are in love.

Shadowhunters (Freeform) 2016

*insert me being frustrated that the actors are straight so we can move on from that disappointment*

This show really said “let’s name a whole episode after this couple because they deserve it”. But seriously, they gave us two characters whose entire plot does not center around their sexualities while still showing us the differences in a relationship between someone experienced and someone new at this. They were both powerful and amazing characters apart from each other, with their own story lines and goals but they loved each other so much omgs. SO MUCH.

It was so great to watch.

Love, Simon (2018)

There’s a lot of disagreement on whether this movie is good representation or not. However, we need to take into consideration that this was Hollywood’s first movie with a main character that was gay, where the story’s focus was on Simon’s love story. The biggest problem, for me at least, was that the actor playing Simon is a straight man and not queer. My problem is not with him, but the fact that there are other actors that are gay and that could have played Simon just as well. (the love interested was however played by a queer actor so ✨progress✨)

All in all, this movie does represent what a lot of queer kids have to go through: being outed at school, how they then come out, the bullying and doubt they go through.

The book is also really good.

Call Me By Your Name (2018)

This movie is so aesthetically pleasing and was able to capture the confusion and heartbreak felt by a boy who’s struggling with his own feelings towards a man. His inner conflict and joy and l o v e he feels but doesn’t know how to deal with is so well communicated through the screen and just breaks your heart because it feels so real.

But again, they could’ve gotten gay actors to play gay characters…

through having this list here, i want to show you that it’s not hard for creators to give good queer representation. the LGBTQ+ community isn’t asking for much, we just want to be well represented on screen as just a regular character, not some token queer kid there for the diversity points. having been exposed to so much queerbaiting and just not seeing any representation on screen, i always get over-excited when i see a queer character, and that’s not how it should be. it should be a normal thing, something you can find in most pieces of media, just like there’s a straight white cisgender person in everything.

and they seriously need to start casting queer actors for queer characters...

57 notes · View notes

rachelbethhines · 3 years

Text

Vintage Shows to Watch While You Wait for the Next Episode of WandaVision - The 50s

So the first three episodes of Wandavision have dropped onto Disney Plus and like me you’re probably already obsessing over it. Also like me you’re probably jonesing for another fix while waiting for more as the episodes only come out once a week.

But never fear, we literally have decades of cheesy comedy sitcoms to sift through to keep us entertained during quarantine. Along with the occasional action and/or horror stuff if you’re so inclined. So if you’re trying to decide where to start I’ll be making short lists for each decade that coincides with each episode.

1. I Love Lucy (1951- 1957)

The granddaddy of all American television sitcoms staring the first lady of comedy herself, Lucille Ball. While not the first sitcom to air, tv had been kicking around since the late 40s, this show did pave the way for many technical innovations for the new medium both on and behind the scenes. As such Elisabeth Olsen cited Miss Ball’s work as one of her inspirations for her role as Wanda in the series, as do many a woman entering into the comedic field.

Also the show is just flat out funny. One of those rare 50s sitcoms that manages to overcome some of it’s more dated aspects through shear force of personality and peak comedic screwball antics. The only downside is you have to have Hulu to watch it as the copywrite is tightly controlled even to this day.

2. Amos ‘n Andy (1951-1953)

The 1950s television landscape was overwhelemingly white. It’s no secret that POC had a hard time finding work in the field of entertainment let alone be the stars of the show. Amos ‘n Andy, a spin off of the earlier same titled radio show, was one of, if not the first black led shows on television and so deserves a mention just for that alone.

Now I will not act as if this show is perfect or ahead of it’s time. The series was controversial even during its day for is depictions of racial stereotypes. Eventually the series was canceled because of protests from the NAACP despite being very popular in the ratings. However I’m a full believer that history should be observed and talked about in order to progress further so check out an episode or two on youtube and decide for yourself if it’s worth remembering or not.

3. The Adventures of Superman (1952 - 1958)

Ok, not a sitcom, but as we all know, Wandavision isn’t just a sitcom it’s also a superhero show and this is one of the first tv series in this genre. It and the Fleischer Superman cartoons from the previous decade helped to make the juggernaut industry that we know today.

Plus Superman did an official crossover with I Love Lucy, seriously.

4. The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952 - 1966)

Hardly anyone talks about it today, but Ozzie and Harriet is the longest running sitcom to date. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia being the only other show threating to up seat it come next year. However the two sitcoms couldn’t be any more different.

The series stared the real life Nelson family who had got their start in radio as comedians and singers who then crossed over into tv. While the show was completely scripted it tried to hew as close to real life as possible, kicking off American’s obsession with platonic voyeurism. Much in the way Wandavision has the meta storyline of being watch in their own home.

5. Father Knows Best (1954 - 1960)

Another radio to television entry here, however the series drastically changed the main character during the transition. During the 40s radio sitcoms were very biting and sarcastic, often either going the complete surreal screwball route or were satires of the day. This fell out of favor as tv became more dominated by commercials and advertisers feared offending their potential costumers. So things were greatly toned down as the decade progressed.

Therefore when Father Knows Best hit the small screen gone was the rude and domineering dad and in his place we got the very model tv father; affable, gentle, loving, devoted, and very congenial. All traits we love to see in Vision some six decades later.

6. The Honeymooners (1955 - 1956)

I physically can not make a recommendation list of 50s sitcoms and not mention The Hoonymooners. I just can’t. It’s one of the greatest sitcoms ever made and hugely influential. So much so that The Flintstones ripped off the series whole sale to the point that Jackie Gleason threatened to sue Hanna-Barbera. However there’s little such influence in Wandvision.

See what made The Honeymooners stand out at the time and what gave it such longevity is the fact that the main characters were poor. They lived in a cramped and over crowded sparsely furnitured one bedroom apartment in Brooklyn. They owed bills, they dressed plainly, they worked long hours at low paying jobs, and they were often dirty from said work.

Much like how Wandavision will pull back the curtain a little to see the reality hiding underneath their suburban utopia, so too did The Honeymooners defy the the ‘perfect American dream’ that was soled on tv during the 50s to show us the trauma of poverty and the only thing that you can do when you find yourself trapped within that reality, laugh.

7. Leave it to Beaver (1957 - 1963)

You can not get any more quintessentially 50s than Leave it to Beaver. The series has become synonymous with the decade and it’s take on the ideal American family life to the point where it’s become a punchline of numerus jokes criticizing the values and attitudes of the era.

Does it really deserve such mockery? Who knows. I think one needs to watch it for themselves to decide. However it slots right into the aesthetic that the first episode of Wandavision is trying to recreate and it must have been popular for a reason, right?

8. The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (1959 - 1963)

We featured wholesome family sitcoms and screwball comedies with married folks but we haven’t covered any surrealist humor yet, and Wandavision is seeped into that sort of stuff. That’s because there really isn’t a lot of fantasy in most 50s sitcoms. So while the trappings for episode one of Wandavision is very 50s the effects and premise is more 1960s.

That’s where Dobie Gillis comes into play. Like Wandavision, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis is based off a comic book, or comic strip rather. However that comic was very down to earth and tame compared to the tv show. More fondly remembered as the inspiration for Scooby Doo a decade later, Dobie Gillis quickly transformed from a typical coming of age show about teenagers to a surreal, sarcastic, tongue in cheek comedy, complete with get rich quick schemes, spys, bongos, and a giant chicken.

9. Bonanza (1959 - 1973)

Yeah, I know all of y’all are judging me right now. “A western in a sitcom/sic-fi list? What are you thinking?” Well one really can’t talk about 50s television and not mention westerns of some sort. They permeated all mediums and dominated the cultural air waves. And Bonanza is far more than just a western.

Bonanza is literally every thing. It’s every genre at once; western, historical drama, sitcom, action adventure, satire, crime drama, soap opera ,and yes even the occasional foray into science fiction, albeit with a more Jules Vern take than a typical spaceman theming.

If Wandavision is a melding pot of seemingly disconnected genres then it’s because Bonanza paved the way with it’s similar breakage of formula.

10 The Twilight Zone (1959 to 1964)

Yeah, you probably knew this was coming. When not being a homage to sitcoms Wandavision is a downright horror movie, but not one with gore and mindless monsters. Rather the show evokes old school surrealist horror, like that employed in the famous (or infamous) Twilight Zone.

What you probably didn’t know is that we have the I Love Lucy show to thank for it. See Lucille Ball and her then husband Desi Arnaz had created their own production company in order to make I Love Lucy. This production company, Desilu Productions, is responsible for picking up Rod Sterling’s pilot and producing The Twilight Zone.

Runner Ups

Good shows that have little to do with Wandavision but are good anyways.

What’s My Line (1950 - 1967)

Just a really fun game show. Stars of the day would sometimes appear on it including many of the sitcom comedians listed above

Have Gun - Will Travel (1957 - 1963)

One of the very few pure westerns that I can tolerate. The lead actually cares about people and justice and will stand up to bigots.

Dennis the Menace (1959 - 1963)

While I have fond memories of the 90s film, I thought it was a tad redundant to put on the list when there’s already Leave it to Beaver.

So there’s the 50s list. On Wednesday I’ll post a list for the 60s and cover some of the more obvious stuff Wandavision was paying homage to.

#wandavision #wanda #vision #sitcoms #1950s #marvel #disney #i love lucy

32 notes · View notes

leslieannefusco · 3 years

Text

Star Wars Episode I The Phantom Menace The New Batman Superman Adventures

Batman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern chase a time-traveling villain to the past, where they team up with the greatest heroes of the Old West.

The Justice League's adventures in time take them to a futuristic Gotham City, where they join forces with that era's Batman and his super team: The Justice League Unlimited.

When the evil Trade Federation plots to take over the peaceful planet of Naboo, Jedi warrior Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi embark on an amazing adventure to save the planet. With them on their journey is the young Queen Amidala, Gungan outcast Jar Jar Binks, and the powerful Captain Panaka, who will all travel to the faraway planets of Tatooine and Coruscant in a futile attempt to save their world from Darth Sidious, leader of the Trade Federation, and Darth Maul, the strongest Dark Lord of the Sith to ever wield a lightsaber.

The evil Trade Federation, led by Nute Gunray is planning to take over the peaceful world of Naboo. Jedi Knights Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi are sent to confront the leaders. But not everything goes to plan. The two Jedi escape, and along with their new Gungan friend, Jar Jar Binks head to Naboo to warn Queen Amidala, but droids have already started to capture Naboo and the Queen is not safe there. Eventually, they land on Tatooine, where they become friends with a young boy known as Anakin Skywalker. Qui-Gon is curious about the boy, and sees a bright future for him. The group must now find a way of getting to Coruscant and to finally solve this trade dispute, but there is someone else hiding in the shadows. Are the Sith really extinct? Is the Queen really who she says she is? And what’s so special about this young boy?

I’ve never experienced such delay in cartoons airing on TV as I have with the DC Animated shows. Ever since Superman: The Animated Series massive delays started it, it seems to have spilled over into every DC show since. Batman Beyond had it’s “Unmasked”, Justice League had it’s last half of Season 1 and almost all of Season 2 delayed for what seemed like forever, and now Justice League Unlimited it hitting every bump in the road: schedule changes, generic delays and problems with the episodes themselves, resulting in send-backs to the animation studios. “The Once and Future Thing” has been nearly every fans most anticipated story arc this season, and we’ve been waiting ever since June since the loglines were released. So was it worth the wait and agonizing speculation? Nothing ever is; fans over hype things to the point of exhaustion and by the time the episode airs everything’s been inadvertently spoiled via a careless lack of a spoiler warning. Nothing in this first part of “The Once and Future Thing” surprised me; things that would’ve excited me was the re-appearance of Jonah Hex (not seen since Batman: The Animated Series “Showdown”), Batman Beyond, Future Static and Warhawk’s appearance and the whole “Dad?!” line (I know I read somewhere that was going to happen). The Return of the Joker Jokerz gang did surprise me though, albeit if they are a bit changed (more on that later).

Where was I? “The Once and Future Thing” starts off with our first look at Future Gotham since Static Shock’s “Future Shock” crossover, bringing an already exciting mood to the episode (Batman Beyond is one of my all-time favorites, so I may be biased); we then meet the mastermind behind the episode, Chronos (“David Clinton” for those who are picky since “Chronos” was never directly named in the episode, aside from a quick throwaway comment on his suit). After a humorous scene with his verbally abusive wife, we’re thrown into present where he’s attempting to steal Batman’s utility belt from the Watchtower. The first odd thing in the episode occurs here: if an “intruder” alarm is sounded on the Watchtower, a supposedly impregnable fortress, wouldn’t more than just three heroes run to investigate? Batman, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman bolt right as the alarm sounds, while everyone else in the surrounding lunch room just sits and gabs away. I realize that’s probably an unavoidable hole due to only wanting Batman, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman to be the time travelers, but it’s still a bit odd, none the less. Before you sit down to watch this episode, you have to keep in mind that not all things are going to make sense; it’s time travel and that always manages to screw something up. We have mechanical Pterodactyls and Raptors with Cowboys riding on their back, robots dressed up as Old West Gun Slingers and a main villain who had a six-pistol gun. If you want to make sense of that…be my guest, but it’s really best just to sit and enjoy it as it plays out. Granted, you could justify everything that happened since Tobias just kept jumping into the future and hijacking this stuff back, but…dinosaurs? I don’t see the purpose for those, unless he wanted to scare people into doing his dirty work (ten foot robots and massive guns would do that for me anyway); regardless, they were fun to see, even if they were completely random. Heroes in the episode included El Diablo, Bat Lash, Sheriff Ohiyesa Smith and the aforementioned Jonah Hex. They were all great to see in animated form and I couldn’t help but laugh every time El Diablo talked, as his voice actor (Nestor Carbonell) played “Batmanuel” in the live-action The Tick! series (I think I’m one of few who loved that show). Jonah Hex was awesome to see again and Bat Lash was fun to watch as well.

The Wild West portions had their fare share of camp to them, but they were a fun little romp. Bruce refusing to carry a gun and then using his utility belt as a “Go on, I dare you” type move the cowboys used when reaching for their guns, Diana taking her time in deflecting the bullets (“These are the biggest, slowest bullets I’ve ever seen”) and John’s “Green Lantern” Ghost looked like something pulled from a Scooby Doo episode, were fun to watch. There were some nice character moments in this one, but honestly, I think we’re all just waiting for the second part. Speaking of the second part, we got a nice little teaser end to the episode. Landing in the future after chasing Chronos again, the League come up against the Return of the Joker Jokerz gang; descending immediately is the Future Static, Batman Beyond and Warhawk. Static appears much older than his “Future Shock” appearance and Batman seems to have lost the red on the interior of his wings, but Warhawk remains the same. The episode ends with the clinching “Dad?!” from Warhawk as he looks at Green Lantern, who then looks like he just saw Future Shayera in the shower. It was a great ending and created a session of out loud “I gotta wait a week to see the conclusion!?” cursing. Perhaps the most debated part of this ending was the reappearance of the Return of the Joker Jokerz gang; Bonk died on-screen (in both versions of the film, though one more graphic than the other) in the movie, while everyone else seemed to simply get taken away by the cops. One other thing to point out is Woof’s mechanical arms; definitely not on the original model and Chucko’s new look (different color shirt and is now carrying some sort of round object, similar to Ghoul’s pumpkin bucket), all suggest that the gang may be different. If they aren’t, I refuse to believe that one of the story writers of Return of the Joker and producers of Justice League Unlimited simply glazed over Bonk’s death or forgot; the gangs there for a reason that will have to wait for another week to find out. It’s sort of sad that all of the work that was put into the first twenty plus minutes of this episode are overshadowed by the ten second closer, but it’s to be expected. People have been hungry for more Batman Beyond and now that we’ve got him again, it’s gonna be hard to let go.

That was, bar-none, the most mind-twisting and blowing DCAU episode I’ve seen. It’s not that it was “crazy” or “kooky” or all together “spooky,” but trying to get everything straight with the Matrix code flying across the bat-computer screen and Bruce spouting off stuff about the “space time continuum”…just…ouchie. Confusing nature aside (and that will pass upon a few more viewings, I’m sure), this episode was pretty much what I expected it to be; not in plot points and twists, but just in that we’d get a fun romp through future Gotham City. I’ll be damned if it didn’t seem like time flew while watching it this though; commercial breaks came as soon as they ended and I had a goofy grin on my face the entire time, seeing the Jokerz back and Terry cracking one liners again…it was really was one of the biggest fan-moments I’ve had while watching Unlimited. The story itself, as previously mentioned, was quite the confusing experience. The first time I watched it I was just entertained by everything; by the second time I finally got a grasp on why Hal Jordan was appearing (other than to make everyone’s eyes bug out) and why everyone started to disappear. In the end, this trip to the future also ended up being an “alternate” trip to the future, as in the end everything was switched back to normal, albeit with Batman and Green Lantern only remembering what went on and Chronos stuck in a constant loop with his wife’s abusive language constantly recycling. D.R. Movie Co. threw in some new effects on the future Batman’s jet boots; instead of dissipating right away, they left swirly trails; though you only saw this once it was a great bit of animation. The city looked as dark and futuristic as ever and the Jokerz new designs were great as well. Chucko on a rolling ball, Bonk with a massive mallet, multiplying Dee Dee’s, a mechanical arm-enhanced Woof and a spinning saw blade on Ghoul. Anyone who didn’t get flash backs to Batman Beyond’s “April Moon” episode must’ve been delirious; then again, Chronos said he traveled into the future to get those upgrades, so either the doctor in “April Moon” didn’t exist yet or…ah hell I’m getting confused again. Regardless, it makes me long for more of Batman Beyond…but I’m sure I’ve said that enough by now.

Static was enjoyable as well; I never was one to watch the show much, sans the special appearances of other DCAU heroes, but an adult Static is definitely who I prefer. He’s got the wit of Flash and the strength of John Stewart and it was great to see the two interact as “old friends.” Warhawk’s “I’m shocked! Shocked! Well not that shocked…” revelation that he is Shayera and John’s kid and that they may have even gotten married (“Stewart” is his last name; he was named “Rex” after Green Lantern’s childhood friend, Rex Mason / Metamorpho) was nice to see extended upon. Even if we didn’t get much (due to the three Batman’s interrupting) else out of the two, it was fun to see where things progressed (and the look that John gives Shayera at the end of the show). The undisputed and best moment of the episode, however, was the scene with Bruce/Batman/Batman—we get the wise and old Wayne saying hello to his younger self and them both telling Terry to shut up in which Terry emits a “What’d they used to call it? Stereo?” quip. It was the things endless fan fictions are made of where the past meets future… I enjoyed this episode much more than part one; animation was awesome, music fit well with every scene and the characters were all handled nicely, even if there was an over abundance of them. Some may trash McDuffie’s writing, but I’ve enjoyed nearly everything he’s written on Justice League and Justice League Unlimited and this was certainly no exception.

Create sci-fi characters with this dress-up game inspired by the Star Wars movies, mostly the original trilogy with Luke, Leia and Han, and also with many items inspired by Padme, Anakin and Obi-wan. There are four themes in the game to approximate outfits from the show, and create new ones: Jedi martial artist, rebel, queen or princess, and slave. Complete her look with weapons, other types of accessories, body customization and a wide hair section. Also, to make the weapons brighter and the image altogether more dramatic, you can play around with the darkness setting!

This game inspired by the Star Wars saga lets you dress up a male counterpart to the original Sci-fi Warrior! Although the woman has more diverse clothes and some alien features, the man is more narrowly focused on the clothing style of Jedi and Siths (and restricted to humans). The religion of the Jedi, and this is reflected in their fashion style, is itself inspired by the Eastern martial arts and monastic orders such as the Shaolin monks, which combine a deep commitment to a spiritual path with the lifelong study of self-defense. While Jedi and Siths alike are warriors trained in combat, the difference between them is their power source: while Siths align with forces of destruction, and derive power from intense emotions especially anger and hatred, the Jedi curb their emotions and do not feel hatred for their enemy. The genius of this philosophy is that it holds the key to ending the cycle of violence: self-defense against an enemy who is not hated.

#Star Of The Universe

3 notes · View notes

hellosaltysaladcollectionstuff · 4 years

Link

In the '80s and '90s, a lot of things were turned into cartoons. We saw a long list of animated shows based on live-action movies and more than a few that existed simply to sell toys. One interesting subgenre you might not remember, though, is when an animated series would age down an established set of fictional characters. All of a sudden, characters you were used to seeing as adults were portrayed as children on another show.

It happened more often than you may think and, honestly, some of the properties that did this to squeeze a little extra money out of their intellectual property may surprise you. At the end of the day, they all had something that made them entertaining enough to stick to the back of our minds.

Let's jump in the time machine and revisit 18 of the absolute best animated shows that age-flipped characters you knew and love--and maybe a couple you were downright terrified of. Also, make sure to check out our list of movies that were based on beloved cartoons. He-Man, eat your heart out.

1. The Tom and Jerry Kids Show

It's not that Tom and Jerry Kids was a bad show, it was actually pretty good. However, the most memorable thing about it is its fantastic theme song. The series also included a kid version of Droopy Dog, in addition to little Tom and Jerry.

2. Muppet Babies

This is easily the most beloved and iconic example of this trend. Jim Henson's Muppets were portrayed as babies when they became a cartoon--complete with onesies, baby talk, and a parental figure named Nanny that was only ever shown from the legs down. Muppet Babies is hands-down one of the best cartoons of the 1980s. What's more, the recent reboot on Disney Channel is also quite fun, even if it doesn't cast tiny versions of your favorite Muppets in movie franchises like Star Wars and Indiana Jones.

3. A Pup Named Scooby-Doo

This was another show with a very memorable theme, though it's a confusing one. A Pup Named Scooby-Doo first debuted in 1988, and yet its theme sounds like a doo-wop song from the '50s. Regardless, this show is a blast as a young Scooby gang hunts monsters and solves mysteries, and of course, feeds the titular dog Scooby Snacks to keep him motivated.

4. Flintstone Kids

Flintstone Kids was good, but what makes this entry on the list special is the show-within-the-show. Captain Caveman and Son were shorts that aired as part of Flintstone Kids. Originally, Captain Caveman was a character that debuted in the 1977 animated series Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels. On Flintstone Kids, he teamed with his son Cavey Jr. to fight the forces of evil. As for the little Flintstone gang themselves, that part of the show was also very fun, though you might remember it most for the public service announcements that aired during the episodes.

5. Tiny Toon Adventures

This one is, admittedly, a bit of a cheat. The kids on Tiny Toons weren't actually the kid versions of Bugs, Daffy, Taz, and the rest of the gang. It doesn't get much closer, though. Baby and Buster were clearly a younger take on the different sides of Bugs Bunny, while Plucky Duck has Daffy's temper, Dizzy was the spitting image of Taz, and Hampton was so close to Porky Pig it was scary. What's more, sometimes the classic Looney Tunes characters made appearances on Tiny Toons, seeing them team up with their younger proteges.

6. James Bond Jr.

This is another one that sort of works, but only if you stretch the premise a bit. James Bond Jr. was the nephew of James Bond and a spy-in-training and, along with his prep school friends, was fighting the forces of evil just like his infamous uncle. What you may not know, though, is James Bond Jr. has his own novels. The Adventures of James Bond Junior 003½ was first released in 1967, written by an author under the pseudonym R. D. Mascott. Interestingly, the actual author of the book has never been officially revealed, though several names have been theorized.

7. Baby Looney Tunes

First debuting in 2001, this is a much newer series than Tiny Toons. What's more, it actually delivers what you might have been looking for in that show--this is the actual Looney Tunes characters as babies, in case the title of the series didn't hint at it enough. This series essentially Muppet Babies, but with Bugs Bunny and friends. What's not to love?

8. Yo Yogi!

If you've actually heard of this one, congratulations. You're as nerdy as we are. Yo Yogi! debuted in 1991 and only lasted for 12 episodes. It was the most over-the-top version of the '90s you could expect, complete with a neon-colored makeover of Yogi's clothes. The series casts the bear and his pals--Boo-Boo, Snagglepuss, Huckleberry Hound, Cindy Bear--as 14-year-old crime fighters. What else would you expect these animated teen animals to be?

9. Jungle Cubs

Yes, Disney's The Jungle Book for the kid treatment, even though the main character in the movie is already a kid. This version doesn't feature Mowgli at all. Instead, the animals are all kids, living it up in the jungle. They aren't crime fighters of ghostbusters or anything like that. Instead, they're just friends hanging out. Oh, and we have to mention the theme song, a hip-hop version of "The Bare Necessities."

10. Clifford's Puppy Days

If you were a kid in the early-aughts, you might remember Clifford's Puppy Days. Before he was Clifford the Big Red Dog, he was Clifford the normal-sized puppy that wasn't a menace to keep and maintain.

11. The New Archies

Before Riverdale turned Archie and his friends into a Twin Peeks-flavored murder party of teenage angst, The New Archies made them little kids. The gang is in junior high and, well, not much else has changed. It lasted 13 episodes and was still the incredibly wholesome Archie Comics you knew back then before it went full-CW.

12. Sabrina: The Animated Series

The animated Sabrina series was a spin-off of the live-action version starring Melissa Joan Hart and featured the titular teen as a 12-year-old. She was still learning her magical ways and getting into all sorts of trouble with her spells. In this series, Sabrina is voiced by Hart's little sister, Emily Hart. However, the original Sabrina does play a role, voicing Sabrina's aunts Hilda and Zelda.

13. Camp WWE

What if WWE did its own take on South Park? That's Camp WWE, an animated series that's definitely meant for adults. All of your favorite WWE superstars, including "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, The Rock, and The Undertaker, are little kids at a summer camp run by Vince McMahon, his teen daughter Stephania, and her boyfriend Triple H? That's all you need to know about WWE. It pokes fun at WWE and professional wrestling as a whole, is filled with more adult language than you'd find on Raw or Smackdown, and it actually one of the most entertaining WWE Network originals.

14. Ewoks

Yes, this is real. There's honestly no telling how old the Ewoks are in Return of the Jedi. But who cares? In this Star Wars animated series, viewers follow a younger version of Wicket and his friends before the events of A New Hope and, for some reason, they speak English now. Originally, this series aired with the half-hour show Droids for The Ewoks and Droids Adventure Hour, otherwise known as the coolest one-hour block of TV you'll ever experience.

15. Iron Man: Armored Adventures

This is the most recent series on the list, but need to be pointed out. Iron Man: Armored Adventures followed Tony Stark as a teen Iron Man, alongside a similarly-aged Pepper Potts and Rhodey. If you thought Stark might have less of an ego as a teenager, guess again. Still, this take on Iron Man was entertaining and it managed to introduce a long list of popular Marvel characters--from Black Panther to MODOK.

16. The Mini-Monsters

So, The Mini-Monsters wasn't a show. It was, however, a segment within the animated series The Comic Strip. The segment featured the children of the classic Universal monsters, including Frankenstein's son Franky and the Invisible Man's son Blanko. It's utterly ridiculous, with a premise of a pair of siblings (one of which is voiced by Seth Green) being sent to a summer camp filled with the children of actual horror villains for a year. This is the oddest entry on the list, but one of the best.

17. The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show

While this is a list of cartoons that turned adult characters into children, it didn't always work out that way. In some cases, the process goes backward, and this is a perfect example of that. On The Flintstones, Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm were the kids of Fred and Barney, respectively. That series ended in 1966, though, with The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show following in 1971. In that series, the two titular characters were teenagers, attending high school together and starting a band. What was the band called, you ask? The Bedrock Rockers. This sequel series only lasted 16 episodes, but it remains a cool idea that most cartoons won't dare touch. Bart Simpson has been in elementary school for three decades, and chances are that won't be changing anytime soon.

18. All Grown Up

This series also aged up popular baby characters. All Grown Up revisited the world of Rugrats. This time, though, Tommy Pickles and his friends were preteens and had more fleshed out personalities. It lasted five seasons on Nickelodeon, airing between 2003 and 2008.

from GameSpot - All Content https://ift.tt/2ZG6o5a

#Blogger

2 notes · View notes

xwaywardhuntress · 5 years

Text

Rock & Roll Mystery (Part Three)

Summary: Round 2 of Scooby-doo featuring Y/N.

Pairings: Dean x reader, Fred x reader

Warnings: Based on the Scooby-Doo & KISS movie. This part is kind of short.

Word Count: 1700+

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or Scooby-Doo or KISS. This is fanfiction only. Please do not redistribute my writings on other sites, horrible or not. Thanks!

Part One, Two

“Alright gang, let’s look for clues again and split up.” Fred suggested.

Immediately, Velma volunteered herself to be paired with Sam. Shaggy and Scooby were assumed as their own pair.

Fred made his way over to you, “Would you give me the honor of pairing up with me?” Such a gentleman.

You glanced over at Dean who was talking to Daphne. Of course, Dean probably wanted to be paired up with her. It looked like you were going to have to take blondie up on his offer with the two Winchesters paired up with the Scooby gang females. As you were about to answer, Daphne appeared out of nowhere pulling Fred away, “Fred, you’re with me.” Her voice was quite stern.

You blinked in confusion. Daphne had literally appeared from her spot with Dean to where Fred was in a blink of an eye.

Dean made his way over to you with a smile. “I guess that leaves you and me, sweetheart.”

The way the pairs were split up, you and Dean were given the task to check out the areas near the bigger attraction rides. It felt a bit odd to be walking around without some kind of weapon, but this was a cartoon, what could go wrong?

“Velma is really into Sam. I think they are cute together.” You joked.

Dean laughed, agreeing.

You continued, as you avoided looking at Dean this time, “Sorry you got stuck with me. You probably wanted to be paired up with Daphne. I know she’s on your weird fantasy to-do list.”

“Nah, I’d rather be with someone I know has my back if things go bad. I’m sure I’ll have other chances. Or maybe, I’m meant to be with someone else.” The older Winchester shrugged.

You couldn’t help but wonder about what Dean meant in the last part of his sentence.

Before you had the chance to ask, Dean spoke first. “Man, I still can’t believe we got to see KISS. Even though they’re technically the c-word, this is awesome.”

You chuckled, “Yeah, it would be cool if we got to see more of them. It would be way more awesome if we got to stick around for the concert too! I mean, they haven’t toured since 2016 and…” You continued rambling on that you’d been hoping they’d go back on another tour, since the last time they did you all were too preoccupied dealing with Lucifer.

Dean listened with admiration as he began to imagine the two of you singing aloud to ‘Rock and Rock All nite’.

You were both interrupted from your thoughts when two very recognizable screams were heard nearby.

“That sounded like Shaggy and Scooby.” You pointed out.

Dean and Y/N ran towards where they heard the screams, only to find the scarlet witch chasing after the pair of best friends.

“What the hell? She’s flying?” Dean questioned.

“She looks transparent too. A ghost witch?”

“Damn witches.” He shook his head.

“Dean! We need to get her attention away from Scooby and Shaggy!” You called out. Your thoughts went to wishing you had some kind of iron bar, especially if your speculations about the witch of actually being a ghost were to be true. Feeling as if something just appeared in your back pocket, you reached behind, pulling out the iron bar that you had just wished for.

Dean looked at you surprised. “Where did you get that?”

“I don’t know, but get the witch’s attention over here!” You yelled as you prepared to defend yourself, holding the iron bar like a bat.

Scooby and Shaggy had jumped into the water portion of the water ride to try to escape the witch.

Meanwhile, Dean had yelled insults at the witch, which did catch her attention, but also may have made her more irritated looking than before. “Do you have another one, by chance?” He asked.

You thought about having another one, which you ended up magically pulling from your other back pocket and handing it to Dean. “Here.”

“You’re going to have to tell me later how you do that.” The older Winchester commented as he too held the iron bar like a bat, ready to take on the witch as well.

As the witch flew towards you and Dean, the blast of rock music caught the both of you off guard. The sound vibration seemed to have passed you two but amplified as it reached the witch who halted in flight as she covered her ears.

From beside you and Dean, the rock music continued as four figures appeared. One by one, the KISS members made a grand entrance, identical to Sailor Moon and her sailor scouts. How did you know that? Dean wasn’t the only one with a nerdy side.

Dean looked very confused.

You did as well.

What really confused the both of you more was watching as each KISS member that announced their presence ended their time in the spotlight with a move that sent a magical attack, with or without a musical instrument, at the witch. The witch withdrew as the fourth member of the KISS band finished their magical entrance and attack.

You and Dean looked at each other bewildered by the sudden chain of events. You both would have to ask questions later as you spotted Shaggy and Scooby floating on top of the water of the water ride. They weren’t dead, but they were beat from the chase and had passed out from extreme fear.

- - -

After the KISS members led Y/N and Dean, who each carried Scooby and Shaggy, to the park infirmary, the whole gang was reunited. Fred, Daphne, Velma and Sam had all received the news of the attack, as well as had witnessed some of the chasings that occurred throughout the park.

Sam pulled Y/N and Dean off to the side. “You both saw the witch?” Both of you nodded. “So is it our kind of supernatural mystery? Or just the typical person in a mask?”

You looked at Dean as you both answered, “Definitely our kind of supernatural mystery.”

The younger Winchester frowned.

You continued to speak, “It was weird. She was almost ghost-like and floated above the ground…”

“Yeah, it was a good thing Y/N was able to get iron bars out of thin air.” Dean added. “By the way, how did that even happen? You did the same thing with the Scooby snacks from before.”

You shrugged. It just happened and honestly, you weren’t going to question it as it could come in handy in this mystery.

As curious as Sam was about your sudden ability to have items appear out of the blue, his main concern was the witch who may also have been a ghost. “So we’re dealing with a ghost witch?” Sam asked confused.

“Not entirely sure?” You questioned your own knowledge. “We didn’t get a chance to use the iron bars because then they…” You looked over at the KISS members who just entered. “…appeared and did some Sailor Moon moves that sent some crazy magical attacks towards the witch, causing her to leave.”

“Sailor moon moves?” Sam questioned.

“It’s another car-“ Dean cleared his throat. “c-word, where it’s five under aged chicks with really short skirts that fight evil and save the world.”

Both you and Sam looked at Dean surprised.

“And you’ve watched it?” Sam asked concerned for his brother’s hobbies now.

“What?! No!” Dean rebuffed as he started coughing. “Cross my heart and hope to –” He paused for a moment, realizing he probably shouldn’t say die aloud. “Look, I just saw videos about it and then caught this one…” He pointed to you. “…watching it one time in her room.”

Sam rose an eyebrow, still questioning his brother’s words.

Fred came up to the trio, interrupting the private discussion. “Hey guys, KISS wants to tell us all something. I think you three should hear it too.”

With everyone gathered together again around Scooby and Shaggy, who were on the infirmary beds, KISS introduced a woman who was covered everywhere besides her eyes.

“Meet Chikara. She’s a fortune teller in the park.” Starchild shared.

The fortune-teller introduced herself again, this time adding that she came from an alternate universe along with the KISS members. Unfortunately, due to certain circumstances, the KISS members don’t remember this other dimension as they were sent to Earth to protect it from the prophesied return of the Crimson Witch, the witch’s true title. Along with the band members and herself, the Crimson Witch hails from the alternate universe known as KISSteria. The Crimson Witch plans to use the Black Diamond that KISS uses in their song “Detroit Rock City” to summon the Destroyer to conquer the Earth.

Everyone had a hard time wrapping their heads around this new development, specifically Velma.

“The probability of an alternate universe called KISSteria is highly unlikely.” Velma commented, pushing her glasses up her nose. “You’re likely confusing this alternate universe with the theme park.”

As Velma continued to reason out how impossible it was for an alternate universe, Sam pulled Dean and Y/N off to the side again. “What do you guys think? Do you guys believe the story?”

“We’ve dealt with alternate versions of ourselves before. I don’t see why not.” Dean shrugged in thought. “To think there’s a world that is all KISS themed, that’d be awesome to check out.”

“Hm.” You began sharing your thoughts. “It could be true. Lately, Scooby-Doo and the gang have dealt with actual magic from what I’ve watched. This mystery could be another one of those actual magical mysteries.”

Sam agreed, adding on, “The last time we were here too, there was a real ghost haunting and people actually died, so I think the story could hold true. Who knows, us being here could’ve made it real like last time.”

“Alright then. We stick with the gang and make sure nothing happens to them.” Dean suggested.

Y/N and Sam agreed as all three of them turned their attentions back to the bigger conversation with KISS and the fortune-teller.

“Sam, do you agree with this plan?” Velma asked looking at him as if hoping he wouldn’t.

The taller Winchester was surprised by the sudden question as he looked at Dean and Y/N who both shrugged, “Sorry, what plan?”

Fred spoke up, “KISS got their memories of KISSteria back and are going to take us to defeat the witch before she has a chance to take the Black Diamond.”

“Hold your horses. We’re going to KISSteria?” Dean questioned almost too excitedly.

“How?” You asked the question that seemed to have been avoided.

Fred turned to KISS, “That’s a good question, Y/N. How are we going to get there?”

“Easy. We have a ship and a portal.” The Demon stated with a grin.

Next: Part Four (Final Part)

Here’s some fun gifs from the actual scooby doo movie:

R&RM Tag:

@22sarah08 @monkeymcpoopoo @shameless-danni @blackmissfrizzle @happylittlesuns @cheritzie @leahslovelylibrary @walkerchick007

#dean winchester x reader #dean x reader #Rock & Roll Mystery #spn fanfic #Supernatural #scoobynatural imagine

114 notes · View notes

ohrosalinds · 5 years

Photo

RETURN TO COOLSVILLE, COMING TO HBO 2020

rumors have been swirling around of a live action “scooby doo” television series for quite some time now. officially announced on hbo’s twitter and instagram pages today, with a short press release following was the title of said show. RETURN TO COOLSVILLE has begun principal photography in new york city and it’s surrounding areas in westchester county. there isn’t a full plot of the show but the premise released to the media is as follows

“return to coolsville is going to be a much darker scooby doo than we’ve known before, but with a core of the goofy mysteries most of us grew up loving. post-graduate life hits everyone different, and the mystery inc. gang is no exception. when a five year reunion letter emerges in everyone’s inbox, coolsville’s favorite detective agency is back in town for one last time. when the supposed reunion is ruined, it’s up to the gang to figure out if it’s just another ‘man in a mask’ or if something more sinister is afoot in their town of coolsville.”

the following blurbs have been released about the four lead characters

FRED JONES is coming off of a college career as a second string football player. after going from a first rate leader in high school, college was a letdown for jones. he spent many hours attempting to find his “niche” and came out with less than stellar grades and a job working at his father’s office. he’s worried to admit that he misses his old days of solving mysteries with his once closest friends and doesn’t want to admit that life isn’t going as he expected.

DAPHNE BLAKE immediately moved to new york city after graduation to start college at new york’s fashion institute of technology. she graduated the top of her class and got an internship at a well known designer. what she expected to be a prestigious opportunity turned out to be no more than running coffee and other errands for the office. no one takes daphne seriously as a designer or apprentice and she’s struggling with the job and her own desire to prove herself as somebody.

VELMA DINKLEY went to an ivy league college to study science, always the brains of her group velma grew up being the smartest person in the room. that turned out not to be as true as she thought growing up. velma has recently received her doctoral degree for psychology, with undergrad in two different sciences. she works at a big name lab, but doesn’t know who she is other than “the brainy one” and struggles to discover more of herself.

NORVILLE “SHAGGY” ROGERS went to culinary school after high school, he was really excited but soon struggled to keep up with the courses and eventually got kicked out after the school found out he had snuck scooby into his dormitory--but he was likely to flunk out anyway. since then shaggy and scooby have been traveling around without direction working odd jobs to keep himself busy. he often finds himself nostalgic for the old days woking with his friends and being around people who understood him.

hbo has confirmed at this time that ROSALIND COX will be playing DAPHNE BLAKE, and the iconic SCOOBY DOO will be played by a great dane, named SCOOBERT. casting for other main and reoccurring characters have not been announced yet!

throughout it’s years scooby doo has aired on multiple channels including CBS, ABC, THE CW/WB, and CARTOON NETWORK/BOOMERANG. scooby doo originally premiered during the fall of 1969. the franchise has also spawned two feature length films as well as multiple direct to video/on demand features as well.

for more information on return to coolsville follow their social media pages @coolsvillehbo

@ellvie | @ofcmargos | @fckncasey

#❥ ━━━ they sing and act ❜#me naming the dog playing scooby scooby's full name? u betcha #FIGHT ME IM SO FUCKING HYPE

10 notes · View notes

calliecat93 · 5 years

Text

SWAT Kats Episode 1 Review: The Pastmaster Always Rings Twice

In the early 90's, Cartoon Network made it's national debut to the public airwaves. With it not only gave people the chance to see all the cartoons that they grew up on when it only came on Saturday Mornings, but it also let them bring in some new shows... well before the Cartoon Cartoons era. Some of these titles included 2 Stupid Dogs, Space Ghost Coast to Ghost, and the one that is probably still the most fondly remembered, SWAT Kats. Debuting in 1993 on TBS and The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera block, the series was produced by Hanna-Barbera, finally getting them out of their rut since... IDK, since whenever Scooby Doo got rid of the “Where Are You?” part.

While the show sadly didn't last long, it is still fondly remembered by those who grew up on it through Cartoon Network and Boomerang. And who can blame the,? Great characters, fantastic animation, memorable villains, and of course a LOT of explosions and general destruction! It's a superhero show folks, is it a surprise? I grew up on the show (infact I was only six months old when it came out) and swathed it frequently when Boomerang aired it. I recently got a friend into it, so I thought “wow, this would be such a fun show to practice my reviewing on!”. So here we go! The first episode of the most radical squadron in animation, SWAT Kats!

Overview

We begin with the most child friendly of activities... grave-robbing! Sheesh, Batman just started with a giant man bat... though they got to have blood in their first episode. We watch two grave-robbers trying to find stuff that they can sell and come upon a coffin. Inside is a short little cat who seems to be trying his Dungeons and Dragons cosplay. But it turns out he's an actual wizard. He is The Pastmaster, a dark sorcerer from the Dark Ages sealed away long ago. Because locking away the dangerous, supernatural villain ALWAYS works out! While not at his full power without his spellbook, the Tome of Time, he DOES have enough power to create zombie cat skeletons to drive the graverobbers off. He doesn't get much time to look around though as he's spotted by The Enforcers, the police/military force for the shows main location of Megakat City. The skeletons are destroyed and they take the coffin tot he museum,t he Pastmaster hitching a ride.

We then cut to our main heroes... but there's not much to talk about so lets skip ahead tot he museum. Don't worry, we'll talk about the SWAT Kats soon but trust me, this 9sn't their best introduction. We meet the museum curator, Dr. Abby Sinian, and the deputy mayor Calico 'Callie' Briggs. Huh... a cat girl named Callie... who has glasses... why do I feel this weird sense of irony? Anyways, the good doctor explains about the upcoming exhibit, which is coincidentally about the Dark Ages. And also by coincidence, the Tome of Time is there. Pastmaster uses his powers to cause havoc, distracting the two women and occupying the guards. During his search, Pastmaster accidentally signs the SWAT Kats through a signal device that Callie has. They arrive and take care of the forces and the good doctor realizes who's behind this... too bad that the Pastmaster already got his book and is summoning dinosaurs! You Tried guys.

The SWAT Kats, of course, try to fight them with their badass jet... but get knocked through a time portal and straight into dinosaur times. Welp. So while they deal with surviving and getting their jet back in the air, The Enforcers led by Commander Ulysses S. Feral, deal with The Pastmaster. The city's mayor, Manx, gives Callie permission to negotiate with the evil sorcerer when he tries to use City Hall (a clocktower) as a point to bring back the Dark Ages. It fails. Luckily the SWAT Kats make it back to the present, destroy the spellbook, knock The Pastmaster through his own portal, and fly off triumphantly into the sun! Hooray!

Review

Wow, that is the shortest overview I have ever written in my reviews. But to be fair, I guess it's because there was very little of a plot. This was a very basic episode that you can probably find a better version of in any other Superhero cartoon. Evil Sorcerer? Been done. Time travel? Been done. Dinosaur invasion? Yep, been done. SWAT Kats is nothing groundbreaking, but they try to be at least a bit creative. This was just... basic. Basic, unoriginal, and The Pastmaster is every other 'world conquering demonic wizard locked away cause plot convenience' character in every show ever! He's the lamest recurring villain in the SWAT Kats Rogues Gallery who I think only got intimidating like... once. In his final episode. He's just lame, even if I do like his design and voice. RIP Keene Curtis.

While there's not much to say about the plot, the characters... are no different. This was not a good introductory episode. I mean don't get me wrong, it does introduce us to our primary characters, their roles, and we get a bit of a feel of who they are. The SWAT Kats may be the one exception. They're badasses... but that's about it. What do we know about T-Bone? He's a pilot...t hat's it. What about Razor? Well... he shoots stuff... and his name is Jake... and he's the smarter on... that's better, but still not much. At least with the others we see that Callie is a competent and hard-working deputy mayor, Feral is an arrogant but determined commander, and Manx is a petty loser. But that's it. Seriously, The Giant Bacteria should have been the premiere episode because it gives us a MUCH better showing of our characters, the SWAT Kats especially. We don't even learn T-Bone's real name. I'm surprised we learned Razor's. It gets the basic bit down, but it doesn't let our characters be.. well, characters. Also, really? Using volcanic gas as a fuel source? There is NO WAY that's scientifically accurate.

But probably the most telling is the pacing. This episode is FAR too fast for it's own good. It starts okay, letting us see The Pastmaster and establishing his power. But after that it just goes by SO FAST. From the point that Pastmaster gets his book, the entire episode is just a long fight sequence. One in the past, and the one in the present. We get no time to breathe or take in what's happening. Hell, IDT the SWAT Kats even face The Pastmaster directly. He just gets knocked into a portal, the book is blown up, and our dynamic duo fly into the sun with no sense of finality. When I finished the episode, I just went “Huh... guess it's over”. Then again with no real character stuff and lack of a subplot, guess there was nothing to give closure to. Ah well!

So a meh plot, a lame villain, and one-note characters. Are there any saving graces to this? Well... yes. First,t he action. The shows largest strength is it's action sequences, and it certainly delivers here. We get to watch our heroes, both the SWAT Kats AND The Enforcers, fight FREAKIN' DINOSAURS. That is BADASS. The Turbokat is a very awesome jet and has creative weapons, like the cement blaster. The Enforcers are shown to be competent and at least able to ho,d their own... trust me with how they're shown in later episodes, that is a VERY refreshing thing. The animation... it's not as good as other episodes, but it still overall fluid and expressive. The action is fun to watch and never felt like it dragged or got boring. With how basic the plot is, it really helped the episode be fun and enjoyable.

And despite what I said about the SWAT Kats characters, we DO get to see their chemistry. And it's great! There really this sense of friendly rivalry with their little competition on who can handle the most G's. Razor keeps passing out while T-Bone can last up to Mock 5 until the end where Razor finally lasts and T-Bone doesn't. Sedulously, Razor not ejecting just to see the look on T-Bone's face got the biggest laugh out of me. The banter, but it feels very natural and, again, very friendly. They act like brothers, which is the greatest strength of the two. They have a great relationship and truly care for each other, something that just gets better as the show goes. We may not know a lot about the two, but you get this feeling that they've been through a lot together and a truly brothers in arm. I like that.

Final Thoughts

So my verdict. Is this a good episode? No. is it a bad episode? No. My conclusion is that the episode is... average. That's it. It's not great, but it's not horrible. The plot is lame, the pacing is way too fast, the villain is average at best, and the characters get no time to be fleshed out. It's got plenty wrong with it, but plenty to enjoy form it. Awesome action scenes, some good character chemistry, some very well done voice acting (they had a 90's All Star Cast for this show) and overall fluid animation that keeps things fun visually. It's an episode I recommend, but not the one I would suggest starting with if you want to get into the show. Which one would I recommend though? Well tune in next time as we discuss Episode 2 where we gave mutants, garages, and plenty of child unfriendly deaths! Yay! Up next: The Giant Bacteria.

#swat kats #swat kats reviews #callie reviews

12 notes · View notes

dcarevu · 5 years

Text

Christmas With The Joker

“It’s not relentlessly cheerful, is it?”

So, only one episode in, and they do a Christmas special. One episode into this series that they wanted to be dark, serious, and adult…and they do a Christmas special. A Batman. Christmas. Special. Huh. Well, it is becoming that time of year. So let’s sleigh right into: Christmas With The Joker

SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT

Villain: The Joker Robin: Yes Writer: Eddie Gorodetsky Director: Kent Butterworth Animator: Akom Airdate: November 13, 1992 Episode Grade: B This episode holds the distinction of being the very first episode of Batman The Animated Series I ever saw. I had seen Mask Of The Phantasm prior (which was a glorious place to start), and eventually Warner Brothers started releasing these Batman TAS VHS tapes each featuring a particular villain. My mom bought me one featuring the Joker, which included this episode, along with The Laughing Fish. I picked it out specifically because of the screenshot of the Joker wrapped up in his straightjacket shown on the back, and I assumed this was from his origin episode. I didn’t get an origin episode, but I did get a Christmas special that I now watch every single year. I absolutely love it.

I’ve always been someone that enjoys the darker side of Christmas. Carol Of the Bells. A Christmas Carol. That one Twilight Zone episode featuring a drunk Santa Claus that ends up making Christmas magical for everyone. It’s funny, because despite this, I very much enjoy the more innocent side of Halloween (think of cute Beistle die cuts or Scooby Doo). This episode fits right into this archetype, and maybe that is why I love it so much. Of course, this isn’t the only reason. We also get the first appearance of the Joker, voiced by Mark Hamill (yes, that Mark Hamill), and overall a very entertaining episode, Christmas concept aside.

So it’s Christmas Eve, and Dick Grayson (Robin) is home for the holidays. All he wants to do is spend the night relaxing to Christmas dinner and It’s a Wonderful Life, but Bruce isn’t about to let up his night watch just because of the following day. He just knows that something will happen, and right as he finally gives in to Robin’s movie request, we see that the Joker has somehow interrupted pretty much every channel broadcast, and is airing a Christmas special all his own. Featuring a kidnapped Commissioner Gordon, Detective Bullock, and Summer Gleeson, a news reporter (I had no idea it was her before reading it on the DCAU wiki. Kinda cool that it’s not simply some unnamed character!). Batman, aware of the Joker’s love of destructive games sets out with Robin to find his broadcast, and put an end to the Christmas Eve havoc. Throughout the episode he gets sidetracked by an exploding train track (done by the Joker of course), a barrage of cannonballs being fired straight into the city (done by, again, the Joker), and a barrage of Christmas-themed dangers at an abandoned toy factory. At the end of the episode, with the Joker found, and the kidnapped three dangling above a vat of acid, the Joker has Batman open up a special present addressed specifically for him (complete with bat wrapping paper). “Don’t do it, Batman!” shouts Robin, but Batman knows that it’s the only way to save the three and Gotham City as a whole. What’s inside? A pie in the face, what else? Immediately afterward, although Joker tries to run, he slips on a roller skate and nearly falls into the acid himself…but is caught by Batman on the way down. Everyone is saved, and the two heroes even get to finally watch their Christmas special in peace.

Let’s talk about the two big things with this episode: Robin and the Joker. The idea of using an older Robin was obviously a way to bring some realism to the character, and to not ruin the tone that they were going for. Robin is historically kind of a goofy character, and was meant to be a role model for the kiddies. Wanting to avoid specifically kid elements in their show, they used a college-aged Robin. I think it works sometimes, and not so much at other times. It is a little weird seeing such an old character wearing the Robin outfit, but they also made an effort to tone down the silliness of it a little bit. Thank god we didn’t get those little elf shoes and those freshly-waxed legs. While Robin’s usefulness varies throughout the show, I think in this episode they work pretty well together, and for an episode like this, it gives Batman someone to talk to, and introduces some comic relief. Hearing Batman referred to as a Scrooge and seeing him bag on Robin’s choice of movies is pretty funny, and I feel like these two have similar exchanges about Christmas as a lot of us do in real life. The action scenes with Robin were also pretty good, and I never really felt like either of them had nothing to do/were a damsel in distress. That’s the one thing about Robin that bugs me sometimes, and it wasn’t until much later when they got consistently good at having more than one superhero on screen at once, balancing everything out. I will admit, some of it did get a little too corny for my liking…particularly the way Batman would bark things like, “Easy, Robin!” But it also reminded me a little bit of the Adam West show in a charming way that I accept much more with a Christmas episode. So take these comments how you take them.

And the Joker? Fantastic debut. He’s funny. He’s menacing. He’s batshit insane. He’s charismatic. He’s everything a classic, definitive Joker should be. I love Heath as much as anyone else, but being a great Joker vs being a definitive Joker are two different things. I wouldn’t get rid of either of them, and I think they both perfectly represent the type of character they are meant to be. I think the Joker changed a lot throughout this show. He giggles unlike later in the series here, and he’s clearly mentally unstable in a different, albeit very fun way. But then there are moments like where he laughs in someone’s face because he knows that her mother is on a train that is headed straight for a blown up bridge. He’s that character that you love to hate, and as much as you want Batman to sock each and every one of those yellow teeth out of his mouth, you also can’t help but root for him to keep getting away just so that you get more of him. It is kinda weird for me picturing this episode’s version of the Joker with Harley, and Harley Quinn may be the main reason why the Joker’s personality changed a little bit and got a hair more serious. In this episode he’s like, well, a cartoon character. More than usual. He has a stylized personality as much as he has a stylized look.

When I mentioned earlier that this episode fits alongside a lot of the darker aspects of Christmas, to clarify a little bit more, it’s not just because you have a psychotic killing clown and a scary guy dressed as a bat. It also has the vintage aspect to it. You have the “dark deco” 30′s aesthetic already in place. Then you add the vintage-looking wintery landscape...the Nutcracker music...and even the dark, snowy city that almost makes me think of Victorian England. I think all of this creates the old-timey Christmas feel without shoving religious morals, or Santa Claus, or greedy marketing down our throats. It succeeds in being a Christmas special almost exclusively through vibes, and mention of it being the holiday. Okay, and Robin’s green and red pajamas are pretty festive as well. The DCAU would do a couple more Christmas episodes later, another one of them being Batman, and while this one is also great, it communicates Christmas in a vastly different way than this one, a way which is much more modern. Both can be great, but this is the Batman Christmas special I will come back to year after year.

As far as my girlfriend Char’s impressions, she really liked this episode too. As someone who has never seen a single episode of the DCAU before this blog, she said that she expected and was hoping for Harley Quinn, but wasn’t necessarily disappointed that she didn’t show up. Picturing a world of Batman TAS before Harley’s existence is something that I feel like we all sorta gloss over since it’s almost like she’s always existed. And while the show got better with her first appearance, I’m glad that they could do a solid Joker beforehand. Char loved the Joker’s representation, and was surprisingly very much in line with what she expected from the character. She said that he was very creepy, but in a very entertaining way. She also noted his design, particularly his color pallet (wait till she sees TNBA). Some more comments about Harley Quinn were made, and she’s scared for Harley after seeing what a maniac the Joker is. She ships Harley and Poison Ivy, something that I see a lot. I don’t necessarily disagree 100%, but, well, we’ll save a lot of that conversation for later.

An older Robin was something that Char was really into, and I got the impression that she never really cared for the super young Robin, as, well, yeah, it is kinda strange. Back when the character was introduced, maybe not so much, nut nowadays? Yeah. What the hell, Batman. Also, Loren Lester provides a voice that she always sorta pictures with the character, and again, she noted how definitive everything seemed.

Some other stray observations she made: She agreed with me on some of Batman’s lines being corny, but she also found them a little bit creepy.It was a unique Christmas special. Batman and Robin sorta feel like father and son, but only sorta. This is something the show will get into much more as we go on. She thought the Joker would make a hilarious game show host if he weren’t, well, evil. She noted how shitty the star on the tree at the very beginning was. Apparently Arkham Asylum needs a better interior decorator. And lastly, she loved the ending. As do I. It’s so unsettling, yet so perfect. Better than what I expected when I saw the screenshot on the back of the VHS as a kid. Char’s grade: B

Major Firsts: The Joker, Robin, Summer Gleeson, Arkham Asylum, Xmas episode, we see the Batmobile has a TV, a musical number (The Joker sings) Next time: Nothing To Fear

#dcau #dc animated universe #batman #batman tas #batman the animated series #the joker #christmas #xmas #christmas with the joker #robin

3 notes · View notes

aion-rsa · 3 years

Text

Supernatural: The Best Episodes

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This Supernatural feature contains MAJOR spoilers up to and including the series finale.

Over the course of 15 years, Supernatural aired an extraordinary 327 episodes, every single one of them starring the same two people, a quite incredible achievement (there were two attempts at backdoor pilots, but both featured Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles at least briefly).

In 327 episodes, of course, there have been some stinkers, and there have been moments of brilliance. Supernatural did scary episodes, gross-out episodes, funny episodes, tragic episodes, tragically funny episodes and episodes set on its own soundstage. Here are 25 of the very best.

25/327*. Carry On (Season 15, Episode 20)

*delete according to preference, and see “Dishonorable mentions” below

We’re being controversial right off the bat, as the series finale has fans split right down the middle between feeling pretty pleased with it and absolutely hating it. And for the many fans that hate it, they really, really hate it. If that’s you, we understand your issues with it – see our ‘Dishonorable Mentions’ list.

But for others, while this ending was somewhat marred by coronavirus restrictions (which are surely to blame for Sam’s wife being blurred in the background instead of clearly shown to be Eileen, and possibly for the absence of Castiel as well), there were also moments of emotional catharsis and beauty. Heaven has undergone some drastic improvements since we last saw it and the afterlife is no longer strangely lonely and depressing. The music choices for the episode are perfectly on point – it almost seems strange we haven’t heard ‘Brothers in Arms’ before – and finally the promise of ‘Carry On, Wayward Son’ is fulfilled, as “surely Heaven waits for you”.

Best moment: Hearing the voice of Original Bobby (not Apocalypse World Bobby) for the first time since Season 11.

Quotable: “Always keep fighting” (Dean, to Sam)

Watch if you like: Tragic melodrama, great music, Bobby

24. Devil’s Trap (Season 1, Episode 22)

Supernatural’s very first season finale set the tone for many more finales to come. The arc plot kicked up a gear, Winchesters pointed guns at each other, and the whole thing ended in a nail-biting cliff-hanger. This episode sets up much of how the show will work, including the important detail that demons possess innocent humans, which led to our heroes spending some years trying to avoid killing them where possible (before they eventually gave up on that one). Most important of all, though, this is the episode that introduces Jim Beaver’s Bobby Singer, who would become the Winchesters’ surrogate father, and whose particular brand of caring, with a hefty dose of calling them idjits, was always entertaining with a warmth underneath the humour.

Best moment: Sam refuses to kill his father – the first of many times this sort of decision will be forced on the brothers.

Quotable: “The storm’s coming, and you boys, your Daddy – you are smack in the middle of it” (Bobby)

Watch if you like: Family melodrama, demon arc plots, Bobby

23. All Along The Watchtower (Season 12, Episode 22)

Death and life have always gone hand in hand in Supernatural, and nowhere is that clearer than in this game-changing season finale. We lose one of the show’s few regular characters, Mark Sheppard’s Crowley, along with a newer, highly likeable, recurring character, Courtney Ford’s Kelly Kline, both in moving self-sacrifices that honor the characters and their development. (Oh, and Castiel dies again too, but of course that doesn’t stick). On the other hand, we gain two new characters. We meet Apocalypse World Bobby, and while he can never really replace the Bobby the boys knew and loved, he brings some essential Bobby-ness back into the show. And Jack is born, Castiel’s (and later the Winchesters’) adoptive son, whom Cas is convinced will create a paradise in the future. This episode is full of great character work featuring numerous fan favourites, along with genuinely exciting plot developments that left viewers itching for the next season to start.

Best moment: Castiel took an online doula class in preparation for Kelly going into labour, but it didn’t cover quasi-celestial beings.

Quotable: “Whenever there is a world ending crisis at hand, I know where to place my bets. It’s on you, you big beautiful lumbering piles of flannel” (Crowley)

Watch if you like: Alternate universes, self-sacrifices, Bobby

22. Don’t Call Me Shurley (Season 11, Episode 20)

This episode has shifted down the list since we last ranked it, as the plot developments of season 15 have robbed it of some of its joy, but the episode itself still stands up. It’s well known that Supernatural is often kind of a grim show, and one of the pleasures of watching it is that, however crappy your life is at that moment, it’s not as crappy as Sam and Dean’s. There are occasional moments of satisfaction (like the killing of Azazel in “All Hell Breaks Loose”) and there’s certainly plenty of humour, but real, honest to Chuck, joy? That’s rare, and the best example (Dean’s Heaven) required both main characters to be dead. So there’s something really special about this Season 11 episode, in which God finally comes back (and reveals that He has, in fact, been helping out on the odd occasion all along). The rest of the episode, in which Metatron makes the case for humankind to God, is a philosophical and meta-fictional treat as well, but it’s that conclusion that really makes it something to remember.

Best moment: Dean pulls his old amulet out of Sam’s pocket – signalling that God has returned.

Quotable: “You know what humanity’s greatest creation has been? Music. That, and nacho cheese” (Chuck)

Watch if you like: Philosophy, happy endings

21. Lebanon (Season 14, Episode 13)

Supernatural’s 100th episode (“The Point Of No Return”) was an arc-plot heavy drama; it’s 200th (‘Fan Fiction’) was a delightful and comedic take on the show. For this, the 300th episode, the series went in a different direction again, and focused on the Winchester family unit, bringing Jeffrey Dean Morgan back as John Winchester for the first time since the season 2 finale. Sam and Dean’s whole story has been driven by their broken family life, and before this the closest they’d come to being together as a family was a brief car ride with their parents’ unknowing younger selves while time travelling. Here, they get to spend some proper time together as a family, before it’s inevitably cut short – and as a bonus, we get to see Zachariah (not seen since the 100th episode) and Scary Castiel again as well.

Best moment: All four Winchesters, all alive at the same time, have dinner together. It’s lovely.

Quotable: “Now you live in a secret bunker with an angel and Lucifer’s kid” (John)

Watch if you like: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, family dinners, anniversary episodes

20. Roadkill (Season 2, Episode 16)

Many of the episodes on this list are major arc plot-related episodes, or hilariously funny format-bending episodes, or both. But it’s also worth celebrating episodes that offer just a really good Monster of the Week, and this is one of them. Supernatural was inspired early on by urban legends, and this episode is a sad, scary and effective take on a classic, the Vanishing Hitchhiker. Guest star Tricia Helfer does a great job as Molly, whose perspective we follow throughout the story, keeping her true predicament from both her and the audience until the twist ending. The episode’s conclusion was also the first time we saw a suggestion of something potentially positive waiting for human souls after death, giving all the many, many dead characters on the show a glimmer of hope.

Best moment: The reveal of Molly’s true nature isn’t really a surprise if you’ve ever read a ghost story, but it’s very well done.

Quotable: “Follow the creepy brick road” (Dean)

Watch if you like: urban legends, scary ghost stories, plot twists

19. Scoobynatural (Season 13, Episode 16)

By Season 13, inevitably some viewers had drifted away from the show, as people will when something runs as long as Supernatural has. “Scoobynatural” had a concept so enticing, it brought some of those viewers back (only out-performed in the ratings that year by the season opener). Not only was the idea of Sam and Dean in a Scooby Doo cartoon too good to miss, Supernatural also has an excellent track record in comedy episodes. These can be hit and miss on most shows, but Supernatural’s comedy misses are few and the hits are plentiful enough that six of them are on this list. Viewers trusted the show to make this work, and that trust paid off – the episode is both very funny and touching, as all the show’s best comedy episodes are.

Best moment: Sam and Dean trying to explain to the Scooby Gang that no really, ghosts are real.

Quotable: “We’ve been stopping real estate developers when we could have been hunting Dracula? Are you kidding me?! My life is meaningless!” (Fred)

Watch if you like: Scooby-Doo, crossovers

18. No Rest For The Wicked (Season 3, Episode 16)

The writers’ strike cut Season 3 short (yes, Supernatural has been going that long), which meant the planned story arc, in which Sam and Dean desperately tried to find a way to get Dean out of the deal he made with a Crossroads demon, also had to be wrapped up in fewer episodes than anticipated. The solution was truly shocking – they failed. Dean was sent to Hell and viewers were left with an image of him being tortured and screaming out Sam’s name. OK, no one really thought he was going to stay there for ever, but it was still a bold move.

Best moment: Sam joining along in a singalong to Bon Jovi’s “Wanted” with his brother, knowing they only had a few hours left.

Quotable: “Family don’t end with blood, boy” (Bobby)

Watch if you like: Dante’s Inferno, soft rock anthems

17. All Hell Breaks Loose, Parts 1&2 (Season 2, Episodes 21&22)

Like “No Rest For The Wicked,” this was a real watershed moment for the show. Sam’s death and the deal Dean makes to bring him back set in motion just about every major storyline since. But these episodes don’t make the list just for that reason. The “only one can live” set up Sam is dropped into is always an intriguing premise, and these two episodes make up a dramatic, satisfying season finale in which the bad guy of two years is dispatched, the Winchester men get some closure, and the mythology gets a bit more development.

Best moment: Sam’s first death. The regularity with which the Winchester boys die and come back to life is a long-running joke and has even been the focus of more than one episode over the years, so it’s easy to forget just what a huge, horrifying moment that first death is, back when they used to take it seriously.

Quotable: “That was for our mom, you sunnnuvabitch” (Dean, to Azazel’s dead body)

Watch if you like: The Hunger Games, Jensen Ackles emoting

16. Abandon All Hope… (Season 5, Episode 10)

Season 5 was Supernatural creator Eric Kripke’s final season as show-runner, and it was written to be the final season of the show. The story arc followed the boys’ attempts to stop the oncoming Apocalypse and recapture the Devil himself, with the stakes getting higher and higher as the season wore on. “Abandon All Hope…” is a turning point, hammering home the seriousness of the situation by killing off half the regular supporting cast, after which the story became increasingly grim until our heroes faced an impossible choice in the season finale. It’s also the episode that introduces Mark Sheppard as Crowley, King of the Crossroads Demons, who immediately cements himself as much more fun than your average demon.

Best moment: Ellen staying with a mortally injured Jo as they sacrifice themselves to save the boys.

Quotable: “Your choice. You can cling to six decades of deep-seated homophobia, or give it up and get a complete bailout for your ban’s ridiculous incompetence” (Crowley)

Watch if you like: Mark Sheppard as Crowley, tear-jerkers

15. Nightshifter (Season 2, Episode 12)

Sam and Dean spent much of the first few years of the series on the run from the law, despite having several police officers in their debt. This would continue until the police thought they were dead, only for the pair of them to turn up again, and the threat of jail time if they were ever caught and identified never quite went away. This episode, in which a shape-shifter is carrying out bank robberies, really notches up the tension as they come to the attention of the FBI in the worst possible way, as well as observing the tragedy of a well meaning civilian caught up in something he doesn’t understand.

Best moment: The brothers escape to the tune of “Renegade,” by Styx.

Quotable: “We’re not working for the Mandroid!” (Sam, to Ronald)

Watch if you like: Bonnie and Clyde, The Lone Gunmen

14. Death’s Door (Season 7, Episode 10)

The decision to kill off Bobby permanently in season 7 was controversial, to say the least, but it’s hard to deny his final episode as a living member of the team is a great one. Poor Bobby’s backstory is revealed to be even more tragic than we already knew it was, but more importantly, his bond with the boys and the reasons their relationship is so important both to them and to him are explored. It also prompts the show to explore a fairly obvious question – we’ve seen plenty of ghosts on the series whose bodies were burned, so even with hunters’ funerals, how is it we haven’t seen more beloved deceased characters return after death?

Best moment: Bobby giving his alcoholic father a proper telling off in his imagination.

Quotable: “As fate would have it, I adopted two boys, and they grew up great. They grew up heroes” (Bobby)

Watch if you like: Bobby and Rufus, daddy issues

13. Dark Side Of The Moon (Season 5, Episode 16)

The earliest episode to acknowledge how often the boys have died and come back to life, “Dark Side Of The Moon” sets its cards on the table by abruptly killing them both in the first few minutes. We finally get to see what happens when you go to Heaven in the world of Supernatural, and it’s a little weird and oddly lonely (with the exception of “soulmates”, everyone is off in their own little worlds – thankfully this is eventually rectified) but it’s a satisfying journey nonetheless. Not that Dean or Castiel would agree, as this is the episode in which they give up on searching for God, having been told He isn’t interested.

Best moment: Dean’s Heaven – playing with fireworks with Young Sam. It’s a truly joyful sequence.

Quotable: “Gentlemen, I don’t mean to be a downer, but I’m sure I’ll see you again soon” (Ash)

Watch if you like: Family drama, nihilism

12. Baby (Season 11, Episode 4)

The Supernatural team have always been clear that the Impala is the third main character on the show (sorry, Castiel) so this Season 11 episode shifts focus to tell a story entirely from the car’s point of view. No, this isn’t a Herbie or Transformers situation – rather, the entire episode is shot from inside the car. What this means for the story is that we get to see different parts of Sam and Dean’s day – while they’re off investigating, we see the Impala get taken for a joy ride by a car park attendant, and Sam and Dean’s traditional emotionally-charged conversations are given a little more space to breathe. This is how you shake a show up while keeping its unique feel after eleven years.

Best moment: All of Castiel’s hilarious phone calls.

Quotable: “Never use Swayze’s name in vain, OK? Ever” (Dean)

Watch if you like: Classic cars, Bob Seger’s “Night Moves”

11. What Is And What Should Never Be (Season 2, Episode 20)

Towards the end of season 2, as the series started to grow in confidence, Supernatural started to do slightly more experimental episodes that took us away from the straightforward “Sam and Dean hunt a monster” set-up. The first meta-fictional episode was the fun “Hollywood Babylon,” while this was an early glimpse of an alternative timeline – or, rather, an hallucination of Dean’s under the influence of a djinn. The result was a fun “what if” scenario and a lovely penultimate appearance from Adrianne Palicki as Jessica, but it culminated in a truly heart-breaking moment for Dean as he confronts everything he, Sam, and their father have had to sacrifice in their attempts to help others, and is forced to choose life at the expense of happiness.

Best moment: Dean breaks down at his father’s grave.

Quotable: “Look, whatever stupid thing you’re about to do, you’re not doing it alone. And that’s that” (Sam)

Watch if you like: Alternate timelines, wishes gone wrong

10. The French Mistake (Season 6, Episode 15)

In this episode, Sam and Dean are pulled into a parallel universe where they are the actors Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, the stars of the TV show Supernatural. The story takes the highest of high concepts and makes it work beautifully, including an appearance from Padalecki’s real life wife and former co-star Genevieve Padalecki and Misha Collins sending himself up gloriously. There’s even a clip of a much younger Jensen Ackles on Days Of Our Lives thrown in. A joy from start to finish.

Best moment: Sam and Dean trying to act. They are not good at it.

Quotable: “You married fake Ruby?!” (Dean)

Watch if you like: High concept comedy, Misha Collins

9. The End (Season 5, Episode 4)

What better way to raise the stakes early in the season than to flash forward five years and reveal what the world will look like after the Apocalypse has come about? Funny and heartfelt in equal measure, this is a classic alternate timeline story with a twist. It is also a really important episode in the development of Lucifer as a character, here played with squirming intensity by Jared Padalecki, who gets to sit out most of the story while Jensen Ackles pulls double, only to come and steal the show at the end. It also features some advice from Chuck (i.e. God) to hoard toilet paper, which turned out to be remarkably prescient.

Best moment: The reveal of Hippie Future Castiel, who has taken a surprising attitude towards the end of the world.

Quotable: “When you get back there, you hoard toilet paper. You understand me? Hoard it like it’s made of gold. Cause it is” (Chuck – some people clearly took this advice too much to heart in 2020)

Watch if you like: Dystopias, toilet paper

8. Fan Fiction (Season 10, Episode 5)

The show’s 100th episode was an important moment in its then-current story arc, but it was the 200th that really celebrated in style. Watching a girls’ school put on a musical version of the Supernatural story (the Kripke years) sounds like a terrible idea but they pull it off brilliantly, making an episode that is both funny and sweet. Most of all, though, this is just a treat for long-term fans, full of call-backs, references, and in-jokes, and that finally ties up a loose end from “Dark Side Of The Moon” in an emotionally satisfying way.

Best moment: The lovely cover of “Carry On, Wayward Son” at the end of the show.

Quotable: “That is some of the worst fan fiction I ever heard!” (Marie, on hearing what happened after the end of Season 5 – a popular take on just about everything that’s happened since then in some quarters)

Watch if you like: Musicals, subtext

7. The Monster At The End Of This Book (Season 4, Episode 18)

Neither “Don’t Call Me Shurley” nor “Fan Fiction” would have been possible without the episode that introduced Chuck in the first place, though back then he was nothing more than a cowardly writer and (apparently) reluctant prophet. Supernatural had done a few meta-fictional episodes by this point but “The Monster At The End Of This Book” was the moment they took it to new places, creating the fictional Supernatural universe within the Supernatural universe and allowing the show to explore fandom, fan fiction, fan conventions and fan musicals further down the line. The whole concept is a real treat for the show’s real life fans.

Best moment: Sam and Dean discover online fandom and slash fiction.

Quotable: “They do know we’re brothers, right?!” (Dean)

Watch if you like: Fan fiction, meta fiction

6. Faith (Season 1, Episode 12)

This low-key Season 1 episode may seem like an odd choice for the sixth best episode ever out of 327. But there are two reasons for singling out “Faith” here. One is to highlight just how good Supernatural’s early ghost stories were. We could fill a whole list with classic examples of spooky tales done really well from the show’s early years (“Dead In The Water,” “Bloody Mary,” “No Exit,” “Playthings”). “Faith,” though not strictly about a ghost, centres around a faith healer’s wife controlling a reaper. But “Faith” is more than a good yarn done well. It’s also the episode that showed what the series could be, as it started to deal with the deep and complex philosophical themes the show would later explore in more obvious, explosive ways. There’s also a great guest performance from Angel: The Series’ and Dexter’s Julie Benz, and poor Dean finds himself dying from something fairly mundane – not for the last time.

Best moment: “Don’t Fear The Reaper” is put to great use here as the reaper hunts down a jogger.

Quotable: “You better take care of that car, or I swear, I’ll haunt your ass” (Dean)

Watch if you like: Theology, Blue Oyster Cult

5. Mystery Spot (Season 3, Episode 11)

The best comedy episodes of Supernatural are not only side-splittingly funny (and they are), they also have a dramatic punch, an element of real drama behind the comedy. “Mystery Spot” is based around a twist on the Groundhog Day concept, in which Sam has to relive a day on which Dean seems doomed to die over and over and over again, unable to prevent it. Dean’s many, many deaths caused by all manner of strange things (just how did he manage fatally to slip in the shower?) are very funny, but Sam’s increasing difficulty in dealing with the situation, and then his terrible three months without Dean (this was the first time that had happened since the series began) bring sincere emotions to the table as well.

Best moment: Sam working out that the Trickster is behind everything.

Quotable: “OK, look. Yesterday was Tuesday, right? But today is Tuesday too” (Sam)

Watch if you like: Groundhog Day, Final Destination

4. Pilot (Season 1, Episode 1)

Not too many shows can claim their pilot as one of their best episodes. But Supernatural’s Pilot really is a great episode of the show. It kicks off the series’ major plot arc, of course, but it also introduces the show’s humor and heart. On top of all that, the Pilot also features a classic Ghost of the Week that’s spooky and sad and ghoulish, as all good ghost stories should be.

Best moment: Our introduction to Dean’s “mullet rock” music collection, including two classics from AC/DC (“Back In Black” and “Highway To Hell,” of course).

Quotable: “We got work to do” (Sam)

Watch if you like: Mullet rock, ghost stories

3. Swan Song (Season 5, Episode 22)

The episode that would have been the series finale, if the show hadn’t been renewed and taken over (first by Sera Gamble, then Jeremy Carver, and finally Andrew Dabb and Robert Singer). “Swan Song” would have made a great finale as well – it’s thrilling, satisfying, tragic and funny all at once. The main reason it’s not higher on this list is that it is a little bit of a downer – if the series had actually ended there, there would have been a lot of Fix Fic out there online, sorting it out. Granted, that’s true of the series’ actual finale as well, but honestly, think about it, and take out the sequel hook shot of a resurrected Sam at the end of “Swan Song” which presumably wouldn’t have been there – this one is even more depressing.

Best moment: The opening narration, describing how the Impala has always been the boys’ real home.

Quotable: “Hey! Assbutt!” (Castiel, to Lucifer)

Watch if you like: Supernatural. Honestly, this one is the conclusion to five years’ story-telling – don’t start here!

2. Changing Channels (Season 5, Episode 8)

Is this the funniest comedy episode of Supernatural? It’s a tough contest, but the genital herpes commercial Sam is forced to star in might just give it the win. But “Changing Channels” is more than comedy. The reveal that the Trickster is actually the Archangel Gabriel in disguise really shouldn’t work, but somehow it does, and it brings a new dimension to the Trickster’s previous appearances (especially “Mystery Spot”) as well as a solid conclusion to this one. But really, the episode’s greatness lies in the fact that it’s just. so. funny.

Best moment: The Impala/Sam as KITT from Knight Rider.

Quotable: “Should I honk?” (Sam/the Impala)

Watch if you like: Grey’s Anatomy, CSI, Knight Rider, cheesy sitcoms, Japanese game shows, adverts for genital herpes treatments

1. Lazarus Rising (Season 4, Episode 1)

What with running for 15 years, Supernatural went through a fair few major upheavals and shifts that sent the show in a new direction, and several of them are on this list. Nothing, though, beats the appearance of real, possessing-someone-else’s-flesh-and-blood angels on the show. This was the episode that made Supernatural what it has become, for better or for worse.

But that alone isn’t the reason we’ve put it at Number 1 of 327 episodes. The episode is hugely emotionally satisfying – although Sam and Dean had both come back from the dead before by this point (Dean technically dozens of times) Dean coming back from being buried for months is undeniably huge. The series needed to show how much of a big deal this was, and they did. We immediately learn that angels are terrifying and that wherever they go, collateral damage follows (it’s easy to forget that the first thing Castiel does on this show is burn out an innocent woman’s eyes).

And then, we finally get to meet an angel face to face. Castiel, in his first appearance, is genuinely something to behold. The deep voice, before it became the subject of in jokes and deadpan comedy, was originally intended to convey gravitas and power, and it works. This is a force like nothing the boys have encountered before, and it is awesome in the classic sense of word – full of awe.

Later, of course, Castiel would become the third member of Team Free Will and one of the most important characters on the show, next only to Sam and Dean. Misha Collins has made the character funny and loveable and awkward and generally indispensable. We wouldn’t change Castiel for the world and certainly don’t mean to suggest that it’s all downhill from his first appearance. Indeed, that later legacy is part of what makes this episode so special.

But really, it’s that entrance we can’t get enough of. We get shivers every time.

Best moment: Castiel’s entrance, of course. Though the rest of the episode is very good as well.

Quotable: “I’m the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition” (Castiel’s first line)

Watch if you like: Castiel, angels

Honorable mentions

There were so many great episodes we didn’t have room for here – “My Bloody Valentine” (gory and funny in equal measure), “It’s A Terrible Life” (a classic Angel Shenanigans of the Week story), ‘The Born-Again Identity’ (Castiel’s return after it looked like they really had killed him off this time), “Houses Of The Holy” (the first references to angels on the show), “Everybody Hates Hitler” (a solid adventure during the course of which the boys discover the Bunker that has become their home), and “LARP And The Real Girl” (probably the best and most fun episode featuring fan favorite Charlie, played by Felicia Day) are just a few of the other greats.

Dishonorable mentions

We don’t want to spend too much time focusing on the negative, but we should probably acknowledge that, in 327 episodes, the show has occasionally got it wrong. Generally speaking, any time the show decides to feature dogs (the domesticated variety, not werewolves) the results tend to be less than excellent – “Man’s Best Friend With Benefits” is a real low point, and while many fans love “Dog Dean Afternoon,” we find it cringe-worthy. “Bugs” and “Route 666” (the one about the racist truck) are the two most often picked on by the writers themselves as examples of terrible episodes, though since both are from Season 1, they’ve long receded into most viewers’ long-term memories.

And of course, there’s “Carry On.” For every fan who found it a flawed but satisfying ending, there’s another who ranks it somewhere up there with Game Of Thrones’ and How I Met Your Mother’s finales in the All Time Terrible Series Finales Hall of Fame. There were too many people missing (largely the fault of COVID-19, but that doesn’t really help), especially Castiel and Eileen, whose absences were palpably felt. To leave Misha Collins and Castiel out all together after years of him sharing show-leading duties with Padalecki and Ackles seems very wrong, and many fans were disappointed that we never really see Dean react to Cas’s confession of love for him in ‘Despair’. Dean’s abrupt death felt anti-climactic to many, and the fact he was robbed of the chance to live a life free of Chuck was frustrating. And on top of all that, Sam’s grey-haired wig really was quite terrible. So all in all, while we would still say that for us it felt like a fairly well played conclusion to the story, we can understand that for many, it belongs at the top of the list of Dishonorable Mentions.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Did your favorite episode of Supernatural make the list? Let us know in the comments below…

The post Supernatural: The Best Episodes appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2UUdPmC

#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

0 notes

scoobert-doobert-fanclub-blog · 7 years

Text

Interview with Jon Colton Barry, Creator of Be Cool Scooby Doo

My Questions:

What inspired you to get into the business of cartoons? What does Scooby Doo mean to you? Do you have a message to the people who criticize your creation for sharing other styles of other shows? Do the characters have any little quirks that you've added in that you picked up from real life people? What's the behind the scenes look like for you? An average day in the life of being a writer/working on the show? Any tips for future writers and the like out there? Do you have a favorite line you've written in the show? Or a best moment? What inspires you to wake up in the morning? Any moments when you were bummed when something didn't make the cut? Or do you have all of the power?

Jon Colton Barry:

What inspired you to get into the business of cartoons?

I was actually writing sketch-like comedy for the stage, honing my voice and style in front of live audiences (which I'd recommend to every writer), when Dan Povenmire saw one of my shows. I'd known Dan for years and he liked the comedy in my show and offered me a job on a new animated show he just sold to Disney called "Phineas & Ferb." I had no particular inspiration to get into animation, but it was a good job and, from the beginning, Dan made it clear he wanted me to write like me, to just write naturally in my own comedic voice, plus I have a background in commercial art and songwriting - so the show was just a perfect fit, creatively.

What does Scooby Doo mean to you?

Before I began writing on BCSD, Scooby Doo was mostly just a feeling of nostalgia to me. Saturday morning cartoons as a kid, eating Apple Jacks in my pajamas. The character or show didn't mean more to me than, say, the Superfriends or any of the other crudely animated series we'd all stare at as the sugar kicked in. Now, after having created a new Scooby Doo series from scratch, I have more respect for the durability of the core ideas built into the show. There has been almost 50 years of different Scooby Doo series, most of them radically different from one another and, I've discovered, that, basically, whatever iteration of Scooby Doo was on when you were growing up will always be the "real" Scooby Doo to you and/or the "best" Scooby Doo. People have very clear ideas on what Scooby Doo is, which is so odd because the only consistent element in Scooby Doo is change.

Do you have a message to the people who criticize your creation for sharing other styles of other shows?

I just find it so strange. We literally got death threats because we pushed the art in a more cartoony direction. We, apparently, also "ruined" a LOT of childhoods. I think it was a mistake to allow the new (unfinished) designs to leak out a year before the series began airing because people built up this violent, irrational hatred for the show and made assumptions about the show's substance based on some rough drawings. I mostly feel bad for Seth MacFarlane for being accused of creating the new designs endlessly. The characters are just more cartoony, that's all - and it was essential that we pushed them that way because we wanted to have a broad comedic and tonal palette to play with, from broad slapstick to real, touching human moments and a lot of our humor would not have worked with the more realistic looking designs. I never heard anyone say, "Wow, the Simpsons are such attractive looking characters!" - but they had that ability to do surreal, broad comedy and also break your heart. That's what we wanted, as well. My experience has been that the vast majority of people who actually sit down and watch the show and give a few episodes a chance all in love with it and discover that it's actually one of the most conservative Scooby Doo series in terms of the original, classic 1969 series, but we simply fleshed out the rest of the Scooby Gang and gave them dimensional personalities for the first time, turning them into a real comedic ensemble. From what I understand, scientifically, once you give the show a chance and get what we're doing, your childhood becomes instantly "un-ruined," which is a pleasant side-effect.

Do the characters have any little quirks that you've added in that you picked up from real life people?

Well, as I mentioned, Zac and I decided to turn the entire Scooby Gang into an equal comedic ensemble, which, we were surprised to discover, no one had ever done before. There are so many Scooby shows where they just leave out Fred or Velma or Daphne because "people don't care about them," instead of saying, "Well, why don't we MAKE people care about them by actually giving them personalities and points-of-view as characters." They'd, historically, just been "The leader/jock," "The pretty one," "The smart one" - these one-dimensional stereotypes. We started with Fred and our main inspiration for him was young Gene Wilder, particularly in "Young Frankenstein." We sort of plugged Gene Wilder into Fred as an engine and gave him control issues - and he began to come to life. Daphne was the most radical change and we thought of her as a Rapunzel-type character, who had lived a sheltered, oppressive childhood under the thumb of her strict, eccentric mother, who came from old money and had great wealth. Daphne is now free and out in the world finally able to do all the things she was never allowed to do as a kid and the world is a candy store to her. She's also highly creative and eccentric, not caring at all what people think about her. It was important to us that nothing about her character, nothing about how you'd describe her personality or her behavior had ANYTHING to do with her gender. Oddly, people started calling her "stupid," which is just strange and clearly demonstrates they haven't actually watched the show, because Daphne is actually really smart and funny - she's just REALLY eccentric and bold, but she's also the soul of the gang, the most empathic and insightful where it comes to the others' needs and problems (although she does get a kick out of annoying Fred when she thinks he's being too uptight). Grey DeLisle, who does Daphne's voice is actually a LOT like our Daphne in real life - smart, quick-witted, eccentric and creative and she really met Daphne halfway and "got" her perfectly. From what I can tell, Grey is basically one oppressive childhood away from wearing a fake beard for no reason. It's actually much the same with Kate Micucci and Velma. We wanted to give Velma more social anxieties. She grew up around books and her superior intellect isolated her as a child, so she lacks some basic social skills, like not always knowing that the truth isn't always the best way to go in certain circumstances. Kate brought a really beautiful, nuanced neurosis to Velma and a vulnerability that humanized her in ways you can't see on the script page. There was so much more we wanted to do with Velma, but, sadly, we didn't get the opportunity. Warner Brothers was actually very open to the changes we wanted to make to Fred, Daphne and Velma, even though they were pretty radical, but they were, understandably, more conservative when it came to Shaggy and Scooby, who were seen as the most beloved and, therefore, least changeable. That said, we made our case that if Shaggy and Scooby were the comic relief before and we're now elevating the entire gang to a comedic ensemble, we HAVE to, somehow, raise Shaggy and Scooby proportionately or we'll lose them all together, bogged down in stale 1969-era puns and pizza jokes. We noticed that even in 1969, Shaggy and Scooby would defy the laws of physics and do some surreal things, so we decided to push that aspect and give Shaggy and Scooby the more absurd, physical and surreal comedy, breaking the fourth wall and sharpening their wit. Shaggy was always a jokester, but we injected him with a healthy dose of Groucho Marx, which played nicely and freshly because Groucho, as a character, is fearless and Shaggy is terrified of everything, so plugging that sensibility into a coward created a lot of fun, original scenes and moments for Shaggy. Scooby was basically Harpo on all fours. We held him to only four words per line of dialogue because we found it unsettling and strange when he talked too much in other series, like Mystery INC. Four words was a nice restriction because they had to count and we found that the more erudite we made them, the funnier he became. In the end, I think we got the math of the characters pretty right on and my favorite scenes are always the ones with the gang all together bouncing lines off each other like a pinball machine. Everyone's point of view is clear and unique from one another and the cast always brought that perfect sense of old, best friends who tease each other and joke around and get on each others' nerves in a really truthful and relatable way. I really feel like we created the most human, real and funny Scooby Gang yet seen.

What's the behind the scenes look like for you? An average day in the life of being a writer/working on the show?

An average day would be me holed up in my office, pacing around in a small circle holding a wooden pointer stick because I tend to write on my feet, twirling a stick (which became a habit back on "Phineas" when we'd pitch the episodes up on a wall with pointers). I'd often have freelance writers in and we'd break a story together and they'd go off and write a draft and I'd spend the rest of the day (and most nights) writing or rewriting scripts with unholy deadlines with a gun to my head, which is called "writing for television." It's great fun, actually.

Any tips for future writers and the like out there?

Tips for future writers... hmmm. Well, try dating Dan Povenmire's wife's sister. It worked wonders for my career. If, for some absurd reason, THAT fails, then I'd say develop your own style and your own voice as a writer. It's been such a pleasure for me to have been hired on shows with the expectation that I would be "writing like me," which was the case on both "Phineas" and "BCSD" and all the things I've worked on since. As I mentioned, writing for the stage - even small, equity theater - is GREAT for developing your writing and honing your unique voice. There's no money in it, but you learn what works and what doesn't and you learn to trust yourself - to know that if YOU like it, then there's an audience out there who will ALSO like it. Other than that, you know, WRITE.

Do you have a favorite line you've written in the show? Or a best moment?

I think my favorite lines are in season 2, so lemme think about what's aired already.... I loved Grey's read of Daphne doing the Fred puppet in the van, "I have a weird accent now. Bo bo bo." That just crystallized the character for me. I'm also fond of the vending machine sequence because it was something I made up off the top of my head with a lot of very serious-looking WB executives staring at me who had no idea who I was and were wondering what kind of fresh new food-related comedy I would be bringing to Shaggy and Scooby. I got up in the large conference room and just acted out that scene from "Mystery 101" pretty much exactly as you see it in the show. Thankfully, they all laughed and I was allowed to stay in the building another day. Oh, one more - I always loved Daphne's off-handed response to Bradford in "Party Like It's 1889," when he tells her she looks stunning, That Daphne doesn't give a crap about that kind of stuff and dismisses the compliment with a good-natured, "Yeah, that's me: set for stun. Pew! Pew!"

What inspires you to wake up in the morning?

I have a four-year old (at the time of this writing) son, Jones, who is all the inspiration I need to get up in the morning. Also all the noise and jumping I need.

Any moments when you were bummed when something didn't make the cut? Or do you have all of the power?

Yeah, there were/are plenty of times I was bummed by something not making it into the show or getting changed along the way. WB keeps a pretty strict hand in their large, beloved franchise properties like Scooby Doo and Batman, so I'm actually really pleased and grateful they let me get away with as much as they did with the series. That said, I had no real power other than the trust and faith of Zac, the show runner. He hired me to be in charge of the writing and he just let me get on with it. I was never actually a producer on the show, although I did equally create this version of the series with Zac and the whole tone of the show was technically "in my voice" (which made it VERY difficult for freelance writers to come in cold and write an episode), but, alas, I was still ONLy the writer and we all know the old joke about the dumb blonde who tried to break into Hollywood by sleeping with the writer - unless, of course, the writer or the blonde is related to Dan Povenmire's wife, in which case you're golden. For the most part, though, I'm extremely proud and pleased of the work we did on BCSD and I hope people will give it a chance and watch a few episodes to get a real sense of what we've done with these characters and this beloved property. I know they'll fall in love with it and, in fact, it will retroactively IMPROVE their childhoods.

#Be Cool Scooby Doo #Jon Colton Barry #Scooby Doo #professional writer #interview

2 notes · View notes

recentanimenews · 4 years

Text

Neo Yokio: Pink Christmas is the Greatest Anime Christmas Special

If you’re like us, there’s a good chance you grew up being surrounded by Christmas; even if you don't celebrate the holiday, it’s pretty hard to escape the festive decorations, music, movies, and television specials that aired in the weeks leading up to the 25th of December. Classic specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas, Rankin Bass stop-motion animation such as Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (and as an aside, our personal recommendation of the hard to find Life and Adventures of Santa Claus), and almost any popular cartoon character like Garfield, Scooby-Doo, Mickey Mouse, and even Shrek would grace our screens to get in on the festive action. Unfortunately, if you were also like us and a lifelong anime fan, you know that there aren’t really a lot of options when it comes to holiday themed specials to put on for the holidays. Thankfully, last year, we were gifted the greatest anime Christmas special of all: Neo Yokio: Pink Christmas!

Now, I know what you’re thinking: "Neo Yokio? REALLY?? The BEST Christmas special? How is that possible?!" Well, we first need to contemplate the fact that there really aren’t very many anime Christmas specials to begin with. While anime like K-On!, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Toradora! and more have Christmas episodes, these are generally wrapped into the larger and culturally more important holiday of New Year's Day. Further, Japan celebrates Christmas differently than most other places that celebrate it, with the focus of it being a romantic holiday between couples, and some light gift giving between friends, than any of the religious or cultural implications that America or other Western countries ascribe to the Winter holiday.

Basically, while Christmas episodes DO exist in anime, the focus of the holiday and the theming of the episodes is rarely actually ABOUT Christmas at all. Perhaps the best film of the bunch, Tokyo Godfathers, gets closest with its envisioning of the three main characters as modern Wisemen protecting a baby, but otherwise you’ll be hard pressed to hear Christmas carols, original songs, or other traditionally “Christmas” things in anime episodes.

Neo Yokio, however, has these in spades. From the very beginning, viewers can hear riffs of classic Christmas music playing throughout the special, the ambient sounds of the season filling the space as Kaz moves about the story. Characters debate ugly/gorgeous sweaters, stores are decked in garland and wreaths, and the holiday sights of Neo Yokio’s version of New York, such as Rockefeller Center, are presented in all their holiday glory. It would be hard to escape Christmas in Pink Christmas, as every scene seems to have some festive arrangement of decorations and music, and frankly that’s exactly what should be in a proper Christmas special: inescapable Holiday chotskies. From Rudolph and Frosty to A Muppet Family Christmas, Christmas specials are drenched in the holiday from head to toe.

Anime Christmas episodes tend to feature snow, Santa suits, and maybe a tree or some lights, but they never capture that magical mixture of Holiday warmth that comes from being surrounded by snowmen, reindeer, lights, red, green, and white, mistletoe, tinsel, and more. Even better, this extreme draping of holiday decorative cheer is key to Pink Christmas’ narrative points, making the overtly festive special even better for the way it incorporates everything.

For the unfamiliar, Neo Yokio is set in an alternative future version of Earth where Mecha Butlers and magic powers aren’t uncommon. The city is sometimes under siege from demonic entities, which rely on Magistocrats to defeat. Kaz Kaan, our pink haired, Jaden Smith-voiced protagonist, is the latest in a line of storied Magistocrats, who balances his familial job with general feelings of melancholy and clout chasing. Neo Yokio is a city in which the most eligible bachelors are ranked on a scoreboard, where Bergdorf Goodman is a way of life, and where money and consumption control everything. In its initial 6 episode season, Neo Yokio attempted to build a world for this concept, but left certain mysteries unanswered, especially where Demons, and Kaz’s powers, even come from.

One of the important aspects of the first season of Neo Yokio was Kaz’s growth, going from an unlikeable protagonist who is too focused on social position, comfort, and his own desires to see anything as it really is, but the season ends before that growth is ever really explored at all. Pink Christmas not only attempts to answer some of the mysteries of Neo Yokio’s overall plot, it also attempts to critique the modern sensibilities of what Christmas is really supposed to be “about,” and whether any of that really matters. Not only that, but the ending of Pink Christmas offers an interesting answer to whether Kaz Kaan has grown at all, offering a hint at what could have been if the show had continued past the movie.

Of course, Neo Yokio was initially fairly controversial when it came out, with many anime fans arguing that the show, produced and directed by Production I.G. and Studio Deen, didn’t qualify as an “anime,” despite its design pedigree. It's fairly obvious that Neo Yokio isn’t just an anime, but one of the most original (and tragically cut short) anime of the ‘10s, taking on topics and ideas that are pretty hard to find in other anime shows. Neo Yokio is also filled with anime references, from the first season’s nod to Ranma ½ to Pink Christmas’ obvious Evangelion trappings (that Secret Santa scene is sublime, really). Neo Yokio is a show for the generation of fans who grew up as celebrities, athletes, and fashion houses turned to anime for inspiration, clout, or simply entertainment. It’s an anime that lovingly pokes fun at anime as much as it does everything else, but saves its true satirical barbs for cultural flaws. The characters of Neo Yokio are likeable in their unlikeable-ness, with Kaz and his crew being dismissive, uppity snobs, yet their obliviousness makes them somewhat endearing to the audience; this is doubly true in Pink Christmas, which ramps up how self-absorbed everyone in Kaz’s world is, lending weight to his decision at the end of the special.

Many holiday shows focus on Dickensian ideas: family, togetherness, kindness, the “true meaning of Christmas,” and characters that are lost in their attempts at finding meaning in the holiday. Neo Yokio’s cast aren’t really “lost”, because they never cared to be found in the first place; their Christmas is one of shopping, partying, social hobnobbing and who will give the best gift, solely to make themselves look good. Pink Christmas has more than a few Evangelion references in it, and the Secret Santa scene alone is worth the price of admission in this regard, but the creeping sense of dread about what the holiday really “means” is a key part of Pink Christmas that many other holiday stories don’t bother to engage with. The bite of Pink Christmas is what makes it truly special; instead of a heartwarming but somewhat empty tale of holiday cheer, it leaves the viewer with questions to think about after viewing, which in our opinion is a true hallmark of great storytelling.

It would perhaps even be possible to say that Pink Christmas succeeds at being the greatest anime Christmas special because it is potentially even better than the original series instead of a holiday cash in. It presents a compact, tight narrative that makes sense, doesn’t require knowledge of Neo Yokio season 1 (but rewards it), and combines its criticism of rampant capitalist consumer culture into a discussion about the Christmas season, topped off with a music and dance sequence, original songs, and an ending that really needs to be seen to be appreciated fully.

Unlike any Christmas Carol adaptation or Rudolph, Pink Christmas doesn’t try and offer solutions to the human condition or the “real meaning” of Christmas: it is just a sublime, funny, and biting comment about modern, Western Christmas wrapped in an absurd plot. In a lot of ways, the melancholy nature of Pink Christmas seems like an odd mirror to perhaps the special that started it all: A Charlie Brown Christmas, a special that similarly managed to weave together the charm and bite of the Peanuts comic with a discussion of modern concerns about Christmas and what the holiday really meant, if it meant anything. Pink Christmas is like the Lo-Fi Hip Hop remix of Charlie Brown’s Jazz beats, and this unique identity really makes it stand head and shoulders above the rest of anime when it comes to Christmas theme and spirit.

Neo Yokio really did get the raw end of the deal back in 2017, with numerous voices focusing too intently on whether or not it was “anime” enough to engage with or give the show a chance. Those who actually watched it were surprised by the interesting world and narrative, the sulky, unlikeable Kaz, and the offbeat comedy bits that wormed their way into our hearts. A year later, Pink Christmas returned to really knock the socks off of people who dismissed the original series, with narrator Charles making a few snappy jabs at overly critical responses during the special to boot. Sadly, as seems to be the trend with Netflix shows, the future of Neo Yokio seems grim; as there have been no word on any future developments, it seems safe to say that Neo Yokio truly ended with Pink Christmas, but thankfully we’ll always be able to watch it during the holidays (assuming it doesn’t get delisted). And, if it does eventually go away, you really owe it to yourself to have made sure that you were able to see the greatest anime Christmas special of all time. With that said, we hope you all have a great holiday season with your loved ones. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

Is this your first time in Neo Yokio? What do you think the best Christmas special is? Let us know in the comments!

----

Nicole is a features writer and editor for Crunchyroll. Known for punching dudes in Yakuza games on her Twitch channel while professing her love for Majima. She also has a blog, Figuratively Speaking. Follow her on Twitter: @ellyberries

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: [email protected]

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

0 notes

ozma914 · 5 years

Text

Chapter One of Coming Attractions

Ever since we got Coming Attractions up on the website (www.markrhunter.com), I've been meaning to share the entire first chapter, which introduces both main characters and, I think, gives a taste of what's to come. You can also see chapter one on various booksellers' websites, but I thought it was worthwhile to have it right here, where people can check it out if they choose. This is exactly as it appears in print, including the opening materials.

After this I plan to go back to a semi-regular post about writing, such as creating characters, inspiration, setting, and such, starting with how they relate to the creation of Coming Attractions itself. Hey, I was bored. (Kidding! I've got a lot of issues, but boredom is not one of them.)

Remember, whenever you don't read a first chapter, the second chapter doesn't get its pages. (I think that's the line from It's a Wonderful Life. Something like that.)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Coming Attractions

Mark R. Hunter

Other titles by Mark R. Hunter

Non-fiction:

Images of America: Albion and Noble County

Smoky Days and Sleepless Nights: A Century or So With the Albion Fire Department

Slightly Off the Mark

Hoosier Hysterical: How the West Became the Midwest Without Moving At All

Fiction:

Storm Chaser

Storm Chaser Shorts

The Notorious Ian Grant

The No-Campfire Girls

Radio Red

Edited by Emily Hunter

Cover by Emily Hunter

This book is a work of fiction. Any names, characters, places, and events in this book are either are products of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. No popcorn was harmed in the making of this novel.

For book extras and additional books by the author, please visit: www.MarkRHunter.com

In loving memory of

Linda Taylor

Jean Coonts Stroud

Special thanks to the Auburn-Garrett Drive-In;

The drive-in movie theaters still upholding the tradition;

And all the drive-ins of our youth: especially, for me, the High-Vue of Kendallville, Indiana

Coming Attractions

Mark R. Hunter

CHAPTER ONE

Maddie saw trouble ahead as soon as she stepped off the company airplane.

The kid standing in the terminal held a slab of cardboard before him like a shield, with her name plastered in red across its surface. Maybe he was attempting to hide the fact that, beneath the wrinkled black suit coat, he wore a white T-shirt that should have been washed at least two meals ago. More likely he feared missing her, since a quick study of the shaggy haired young man told her he held little stock in appearances.

"Madison McKinley?" He gave her an equally appraising scan.

Stopping before him, she deliberately looked right and left. The closest other people stood at least two hundred feet away, gathered around the airport's gift shop. "Maddie."

Taking that as encouragement, he smiled. "Tupper. Welcome to Fort Wayne!" He still held the sign up.

"Tupper?"

"That's my name—well, my middle name, and that's what I go by. My mother sold Tupperware, and she's pretty hardcore. I don’t know if they still hold Tupperware parties, but if you want her to set one up—"

"I doubt I'll be here that long." Maddie tried not to judge people by appearances, but Tupper looked for all the world like Shaggy from the Scooby Doo cartoon series—without the goatee. Under other circumstances she might have been tempted to smile. "Tupper, were you expecting a company plane?"

"Oh, sure. I've been with the company over a week now."

"And did anyone get off the plane besides me?"

His brow knitted in concentration. "Nope."

"Then do you really believe the sign is necessary?"

Face reddening, Tupper dropped the cardboard. "Sorry."

“Trash can, Tupper—let's keep our planet clean." She blushed a little, herself—it wasn’t fair to take her mood out on him.

When Tupper turned to throw the sign away, Maddie realized he wore a fairly nice pair of navy slacks—and white sneakers. "Are you, by chance, related to one of the partners?"

"I'm Mr. Quincy's great-nephew—how did you know?"

"Family resemblance." Maddie despised lying, but saw no reason to hurt someone's feelings. Nepotism could be a powerful force—why else would this kid be hired by the stuffiest law firm in Boston? "You were to bring a car?"

"This way." Tupper turned, paused, then whirled around. "Did you have luggage?"

"I'm a woman, Tupper." This time she did smile.

He frowned.

"That means yes. Two bags."

After retrieving her luggage, Tupper led the way into the warmth of a sunny June midafternoon. "You'll love Fort Wayne. They have an orchestra, a zoo, a mall, three rivers ..." He trailed off, thinking.

"It seemed a bit small from the air." The poor guy might hurt himself if his brain doesn’t cool down.

"Well, it's the second largest city in Indiana."

As they walked across the crowded parking lot a breeze swirled the folds of Maddie's skirt and blew blonde strands of hair across her face. "Large by Indiana standards? Not a telling argument."

"But you come from Boston. Indiana's a lot bigger than Massachusetts."

"In square miles, maybe," Maddie murmured under her breath. She almost ran into Tupper when he skidded to a halt. "Where's the car?"

"Right here." He pointed to a deep purple Chrysler van.

She stared, trying to fend off a wave of nostalgia for her Porsche. "I asked for a sedan."

"Yeah, you traded up—isn't that great?" He produced a key ring from his pocket and pushed the unlock button. "It's got a digital audio system, sliding doors on both sides, an environmental readout, and you gotta love the color. It's a real love machine."

Such a statement could only come from a member of the Scooby Gang. Maddie stared at him, hands on hips, but held her temper—after all, her temper got her here to begin with. "I realize you've been by yourself here, but since you arrived with just two jobs—to get me a hotel room and a car—could it be that difficult?"

"I didn't actually arrive—I grew up west of here, in New Haven." He noticed her expression, and stumbled backward. "Um, there's a car show at the Memorial Coliseum—by the way, we have a Memorial Coliseum—and Jay Leno's going to be there and all the rental cars were taken and this is the only—"

"Tupper, Calm down." Maddie took him by the shoulder, which made the younger man flinch. "Maybe this is for the best. Don't people going to drive-in movies often take vans?"

He blinked at her. "Yeah, sure. I like to back my truck in, when I'm not working. Why?"

Oh, dear—He didn't know why she'd been sent. "Because I've never visited one, and I might have some free time while I'm here."

Tupper brightened instantly. "The best one in Indiana is about an hour north of Fort Wayne—you'll love it."

She very much doubted that. "Tupper, do you know why I'm here?"

"Um—" He paused, trying to focus. "To expand the agency's influence into business dealings in the Midwest."

"Which means?"

"Got me." He shrugged. "This is my first assignment since I visited Uncle Quincy, but he said it was real important, so I figure I'm on the fast track."

Uncle Quincy? What an image—like Luciano Pavarotti breakdancing. "You are, indeed." Maddie decided she liked the kid, after all. She couldn't help thinking of him as a kid, although he couldn't be more than five years younger than her, and he seemed sincere in his desire to help. Besides, in his own way he was exiled here, just like her. "Do you have transportation?"

“My truck—oh, you mean here?” He gestured to a yellow Volkswagen Beetle parked beside the van. Inside, a girl with spiked green hair waved, then went back to studying her eyebrow ring in the rear view mirror. How entirely appropriate.

"Tupper, you've obviously been working hard. Why don't you take a day or two off? Visit with your family, take a short break, and contact me at the hotel later."

"Really? Wow, thanks! I needed to take off for my part time job soon, anyway." He started to hop into the Beetle, but paused when she called his name.

"It might be helpful to have the information packet your great-uncle promised me. Not to mention the van keys."

"Oh!" Tupper handed her the keys and gestured toward the van. "There's a folder on the passenger seat with maps, directions, your reservation, and a really big book about John Adams. He's my ancestor, you know. I think he was governor, or something."

"Possibly the genes have thinned out since then." Ignoring his puzzled expression, she climbed into the van.

"Well, if you like to go to the drive-in you'll probably see me there. Take it easy!" The Bug roared away.

After a moment Maddie got back out, opened the rear door, and threw in the luggage Tupper had abandoned on the pavement. Sincere he may be, competent he may not.

Maddie spent some time reading the directions and comparing them to the maps. Smiling despite herself, she also leafed through the biography of John Adams. Inside the front cover she found a short inscription: "John Adams called himself obnoxious and unpopular—but he got the job done. Quincy."

Adam Quincy had been named for the second President, and according to rumor was a distant relative. Maddie considered John Adams a role model for his courage and perseverance, but that, and their occupation, was all she and Quincy had in common. Leave it to the law firm's founder to turn a gift into a subtle reminder of who was in charge.

She spotted some brochures in the folder. Tupper apparently thought her job involved sightseeing: He’d enclosed something about every tourist destination in northeast Indiana, from zoos and state parks to an Old Jail Museum. And a drive-in movie theater.

The colorful advertisement declared this to be the 50th anniversary of the High View Drive-In. Two features for the whole family every night, all summer long, plus weekend showings in the spring and fall. Photos showed happy families who munched on popcorn and other snacks while watching the latest flick from the comfort of their automobiles.

Maddie studied every detail, every letter, and then determined the hotel would not, after all, be her next destination. It was getting close to dusk. She had a van, and other than being a bit overdressed for the movies she should go unnoticed.

Yes, a visit to the drive-in was clearly in order. After all, she well remembered one of the first rules from law school: Know your enemy.

Despite her black mood on the airplane, the weather and the masses of greenery Maddie passed during her drive north cheered her a bit. She’d believed as a child that a field was a dirt lot for baseball, and the biggest patch of plant life no more than a Boston city park. Her preteen mind couldn’t have imagined these expanses of woods, or unlimited stretches of young corn and wheat.

It was cool enough to shut down the air conditioner and crack the windows, an act that would horrify her hairstylist. Considering the obscene amounts of money she paid the man, by now he should have come up with a wave that would last through a tornado.

She missed him. She missed her Porsche mechanic, her personal assistant, the doorman, and all the partners with their custom tailored suits, ten dollar cigars, and condescending attitudes. No matter how important this assignment, everyone knew it was punishment. She must prove herself all over again if she ever expected a corner office and her pick of cases.

A few miles after turning onto a two lane highway she spotted the sign, a gaudy red and yellow monstrosity guaranteed to attract attention. The top formed an arrow pointing toward the metal framework of the movie screen, and below the arrow stood a sign advertising a Pixar animated movie and a teen comedy.

To Maddie's surprise half a dozen cars already lined the drive. A van similar to hers waited first behind the closed gate to the ticket booth, with the adult occupants of the other vehicles gathered around it. They looked like they were having a conference, or maybe a tailgate party. A dozen young people, from teens to toddlers, played in a grassy area between the drive and a red fence that surrounded the property.

Maddie stopped behind the last vehicle, wincing at the crunch of gravel beneath her wheels. Clearly, Indiana needed to invest in more asphalt. After the dust cleared, she opened her windows all the way to admit the scent of freshly mowed grass and a far off barbecue, then shut off the engine. Country music played from the pickup in front of her, but it was the sound of kids screaming that made her stiffen.

She scanned around the lawn until certain they were screams of glee, not pain. Why didn’t these parents pay closer attention to their children? Wouldn't it be safer to keep them in their cars, instead of wandering around where they could get hit, or fall, or be bitten by snakes or rabid bunnies or something? Not to mention all the strangers.

Well, she must be the only stranger here, considering everyone else still gathered around the one vehicle. The scene would make someone nostalgic, if that someone held memories of going to the movies. Maddie remembered only a few trips to a more traditional theater.

She’d been led to believe little local support remained for the drive-in, making a buyout easy. Except for one lonely old house along the drive-in property, the surrounding land consisted of farm fields and small tracts of woods, most optioned by the development company her firm represented.

The drive-in's owner remained the holdout, and by bad luck his property made up the bull’s-eye in the tract of land the developer needed. The better his business, the harder her job—and here people already waited, on a weeknight, no less.

Perhaps this made up the hardcore locals with nothing better to do. You couldn't make profit margin with six customers a day.

That optimistic thought faded when an old station wagon pulled up behind her van, pumping rock and roll into the air, as a full house gyrated inside.

With a sigh, Maddie examined the customers. Their dress consisted of shorts or blue jeans, and tank tops or printed tees. She glanced down at her silk print dress, and determined not to leave the van under any circumstances. The average person might not know the difference between her expensive outfit and something from an outlet store, but she would still stand out.

Soon adults began to saunter back toward their own vehicles, while the kids ran, jumping and shouting, to join them. She held her breath until she was sure none of the children would trip or get hit by a car door, then turned to see a woman move the gate aside and climb into the ticket booth. Maddie switched the engine on and wondered if kid movies had changed much since "The Little Mermaid".

Soon Maddie caught sight of the ticket price, painted on the whitewashed side of the ticket booth, and took a sharp breath. It was a third of what she’d expect to pay in downtown Boston. How in the world could this man stay in business, with prices so low? The popcorn must be a dollar a kernel.

The ticket taker held an animated conversation with everyone in line, but managed to keep customers moving until Maddie stopped before her. Then the woman, who wore a white T-shirt proclaiming "The High View—50 years and counting,” did a double take and leaned in for a closer look.

"You're a little overdressed for the movies, ain't ya, hon?"

"The philharmonic was sold out." Maddie gritted her teeth, although she’d expected this reaction.

Now the woman leaned closer, to take in the clean, empty interior of the van. "Just you?"

"Is that all right?"

The woman arched an eyebrow. "Okay by me, just kinda unusual. Why go see a movie by yourself?"

"My boyfriend plays in the philharmonic."

"Well ..." With a shake of her head, the woman handed Maddie a ticket stub, then rattled off an FM radio frequency. "Enjoy the show. Oh! I almost forgot." She gave Maddie a bumper sticker.

Beneath a red, white and blue drawing of the movie screen, colorful letters spelled out: "Save the High View! Half a Century and Counting."

The woman leaned forward and hissed, "Some big company out east wants to turn it into an airport!"

"Oh, my."

"Don't worry, we'll fight 'em and win. You have a good time now, hon."

"Thank you," Maddie answered automatically. As she drove through the lot, she saw similar stickers on all the parked vehicles. The other van, she noted, differed from hers in only two ways: It was black instead of deep purple, and sported stickers on the back and side windows. As she passed it she saw a pair of bright hazel eyes regard her curiously through the rear view mirror, and wondered whether it was because of the twin transportation, or because she drove the only auto in the lot without a show of support pasted on every surface.

Where to park? In the middle of the lot sat a low concrete block structure painted white, with two doors on each side: one for a restroom and another for an entrance to the snack area. Maddie had no intention of abandoning her nutrition plan. Still, she could imagine a need for the restroom if, for some reason, she decided to stay through both movies.

Of course she would stay. She needed to know as much as possible about this business, in order to get it shut down. The best place for her would be at the corner closest to the women's restroom, but, ironically, the other purple van had already staked it out. Maddie settled for a spot at the other front corner.

All the old concrete speaker posts stood empty. Didn’t the ticket taker say something about a radio frequency? Dialing it in produced a crooning Norah Jones, but Maddie assumed she had the right place, left it on, and began watching the incoming traffic.

She made some quick calculations, based on the ticket price, the average number of people per car, and the cost of electricity, payroll, and other overhead. She factored in snacks, then cut food profit in half when she noticed many of the moviegoers brought their own. Despite that, by the time the sun disappeared behind a low, distant cloud bank, the place had already broken even. When the first preview for upcoming movies appeared, it was turning a profit.

On a weeknight. Not good at all.

Maddie sat back, paying little attention to the ads. She leaned forward again when a group of teens walked by, loaded down with nachos, popcorn, and soda. Her stomach began a low, rumbling litany of complaints. When did she last eat? Not dinner. Not lunch, come to think of it, except for a bag of peanuts on the plane.

So much for staying in the car. So much for her diet, unless the snack bar featured something no one she saw had purchased. But it was now too dark for anyone to notice her style of dress, and this could be the perfect opportunity to investigate the operation further. After all, she was here on a job, and if she wanted to erase her black marks with the company she needed to perform it well.

That determination lasted until she reached the door to the snack bar, and realized her miscalculation. Of course it was too dark to see her dress, and the expensive style of her blonde tresses, and the opal necklace and charm bracelet—outside. Inside, fluorescent light made it bright as day.

But with the movie starting, nobody stood before the long counter with its popcorn machine, soda fountain, and snack rack. At least, nobody until she came in one way while, at the same moment, a man burst through the opposite door.

They both froze, regarding each other. She recognized the twinkling hazel eyes and the sandy, disheveled hair at once, although he looked taller when out from behind the wheel. He wore jeans and a white T-shirt with the all too familiar drive-in logo on it, along with the words "Drive-Ins are for Cars, not Planes". Admirably muscled arms clutched an empty popcorn bucket.

The man smiled, flashing teeth so perfect it brought back memories of the thousands of dollars Maddie sunk into her orthodonture, and walked toward her. Of their own volition Maddie's legs also moved, until they met in front of the cash register.

"Are you lost?" His baritone voice sent a jolt up her spine, and suddenly exile in Indiana didn't seem so bad.

"I'm ... um ..." She glanced around to remind herself where she was. "I’m looking for healthy food."

"You are lost." He smiled again. "I meant you don't look like the drive-in type."

If you're the drive-in type, Maddie thought, get me a season ticket. "It was spur of the moment." True enough.

"I've been there." He held a hand out. "Logan. Logan Chandler."

She felt her hand enveloped in his warmth. His touch, firm but gentle, made her catch her breath. She tried to stutter out her name, and found she couldn't remember.

"Maddie!" someone else called.

The idea of anyone in Indiana knowing her came as such a shock that Maddie pulled her hand away and turned, almost backing into the wall. Behind the counter, swathed in an apron that didn't completely cover the drive-in emblem on his white T-shirt, a wild haired young man grinned at her.

"Tupper?"

"I told you we'd meet again if you came to the drive-in. This is my part time job."

Uh oh. Maddie glanced at Logan, who turned from her to Tupper with a raised eyebrow. While Tupper didn't know everything about her mission, it would be easy to put two and two together.

"I guess I assumed you’re not from around here at all," Logan said, eyeing her dress.

"Tupper and I just met today." Good, the truth. But Maddie couldn't grasp where to go from there. "It's a long story, and the movie's started."

"But you know each other?"

"Absolutely." Again, true enough.

Tupper pitched in, "We're like old friends, dude."

"Okay." Smiling again, Logan grandly gestured Maddie forward. "I just need to replace some spilled popcorn. After you."

What? Oh. She turned to Tupper, determined to get out of there before he gave her away. Logan might be a lost Greek god, but she couldn't afford to get involved with him, especially after the last fiasco in her love life. "Perrier?"

"Huh?" Tupper stared at her, open mouthed. "I don't know Spanish."

Behind her, Logan chuckled, making her even more aware of his presence.

"Do you serve any bottled water?" In truth, Maddie craved some decent coffee, but she had a feeling her definition of “decent” wouldn’t fit here.

"Oh!" Tupper grabbed a bottle of water with a brand name she didn't recognize. "This is local. It comes out of a spring well right by a church."

"And a cemetery," Logan offered. She looked back to find him grinning wickedly. "Imagine that."

She did, but took the bottle anyway. "Is there anything to eat that doesn't involve large amounts of sugar or carbohydrates?"

"Uh—" Tupper glanced around wildly. "No."

"Get her some of the world famous popcorn, Tupper," Logan said. "On me."

"Popcorn on you." For some reason Tupper found that amusing, and chuckled as he scooped the white kernels up.

“No salt or butter, please." Maddie felt a touch on her arm, and turned to see Logan smiling yet again.

"No salt or butter? That's cardboard."

Could she make herself look any more out of place? "I'm twenty-nine years old.” When he gave her a questioning look, she added, “I can’t eat whatever I want, not anymore." As if she ever could.

He raked his gaze over Maddie, making her gulp and shiver. "You don't have an ounce of fat on you."

That was a compliment, she assumed. Maddie didn’t have an ounce of fat, not even on her chest—or at least, that had been her ex-fiancé’s biting comment. "I plan to keep it that way. How do you—" Now it was her turn to look him over, from broad chest to white Reeboks, and she gulped again. "—um, stay in such good shape?"

"Hey, I don't eat this way all the time—it's a treat. If you don't treat yourself, how do you know what you're missing?"

"A look at the nutrition label tells me what I'm missing." Desperate to get away—she was much too attracted to this man, no doubt a rebound effect—she grabbed a bag of chocolate covered peanuts from the rack and slapped it down next to the water. "There. Four hundred calories."

"I'm humbled," Logan told her. "You might try sprinkling them on the popcorn."

"Thank you." She shoved a fifty into Tupper's hands and told him to keep the change, which made his eyes pop. "I'll remember you on my next trip to the scales."

"Wait—" Logan held his hand out, but became distracted when Tupper called his name.

"Say, that's a great idea. Chocolate covered popcorn, M&M popcorn, popcorn with nougats—it could be the next taste sensation."

Logan held out his empty popcorn tub. "Remember that one time when I told you to use your imagination? I take it back."

Maddie took the opportunity to sneak out the door, and hurried into the blackness before Logan could catch her. If he said anything remotely connected to getting to know her better, she would melt like the hot butter he kept talking about, and the whole nightmare of dating someone connected to her work would start all over again.

Shivering, she dropped the water and candy into her purse. Balancing the popcorn in one hand, she pulled open the van's door. What a relief to be away from that man—she'd never been so instantly affected by the opposite sex before, not even her ex-fiancé. With considerable relief, she sank into the driver's seat.

Or, more accurately, she sank onto the small body that occupied the driver's seat.

Two high voices shrieked. Maddie also gave a yell and leaped out, ready to run as her imagination conjured Munchkin muggers. But her purse caught on the empty speaker post, and she managed only to spin around.

In the hazy darkness, broken by the flickering reflection from the big screen, Maddie made out two small, round sets of eyes peering at her from inside the van. In the instant that followed, she realized this was not her van and that somehow, miraculously, she still held the popcorn without a single kernel spilled.

Then a much larger body plowed into her. She slammed down onto the hard turf, while someone else fell heavily on top of her.

In addition to the website, there's a list of where our books are available here:

https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/2018/12/coming-attractions-is-e-booking-all.html

#coming attractions #writing #romantic comedy #chapter 1 #preview #fiction #novels

0 notes