Animation Flashback..

[crimsonquill]

Since I was bringing up other '80s and '90s toons in my X-Men DVD thread... I was getting curious about what other animated series that we each love but have been mostly forgotten or never recieved the respect of a proper official DVD collection release.

I wanted to start this thread with my own wish list...
(click on images to see the show's intro)


1. Visionaries: Knights Of The Magical Light


While I was never a fan of the toy line that this animated series was created to promote.. It caught my attention as a fan of both fantasy and science fiction plus it featured many voice actors that were also part of Transformers and GI JOE. I believe there are VHS copies out there if you can find them.


2. Inhumanoids


As much as a kid that loved monster movies and classic Godzilla films this cartoon just jumped off the screen at me. And once again it's another toon that was pretty much a promotional gimmik for a toy line. This series was released on VHS in two-episode versions and was also released on DVD but the quality was poor because they used VHS tapes as masters for that collection and only released 8 out of the 13 episodes.


3. Hulk Hogan's Rock N Wrestling


I'll admit that my major wrestling fan days were during the '80s WWF years.. and there were so many professional wrestlers that showed up on that show. To this very day I'm surprised that WWE has still yet not found the master tapes of this show and collected them into a DVD set. The live action bumpers on the show featuring the real wrestlers are classic moments in my book because they were appealing to the kids and fans to see them live in the ring which only die hard wrestling fans do these days. There are VHS copies out there but extremely hard to find in good condition.


4. Mr. T


I pity the fool who didn't watch this cartoon! Mr. T was probably seen as a living superhero back in the '80s since he was popping up everywhere and The A-Team stood out among the prime time action shows. I don't remember if episodes were released on VHS or not.


5. Thundarr The Barbarian


This show is one of the top classic cartoons in my book. Alex Toth (of Space Ghost) designed the main characters and Jack Kirby served as production designer but also provided the rest of the character designs when Toth could not stay part of the show's staff. I would think it would be hard to find any comic book fan that wouldn't want a DVD set in his collection. Some VHS tapes of single episodes are out there but very hard to find.

That's my Top 5 list... and I'll probably list my Worst Picks at another time in this thread too...

- CQ

[zuludelta]

Good call with the Visionaries... I really liked that cartoon. There was even a short-lived comic published by Marvel under their now-defunct Star Comics imprint... IIRC, the comic book series ended with some of the major characters getting killed.

Some other childhood favourites (click on the images to see the intro clips) that I'd love to see collected on DVD:

1. Spiral Zone:

I wasn't really that into this cartoon but I really dug the theme song. It had a pretty rare premise for a Saturday morning cartoon... the setting was basically a post-apocalyptic future where most of the world's population has been infected by a mind-altering virus. 

2. Mighty Orbots:

Another somewhat obscure America-by-way-of-Japan cartoon. It's interesting to note that many of the most fondly remembered "American" cartoons from the 1980s were actually animated by Japanese studios (GI Joe, Transformers, Silverhawks, Thundercats... if I remember right, the studio that worked on Thundercats eventually became anime giant Studio Ghibli). It's funny reading comments on animation and comics boards every now and then where misinformed fans rail against "Japanimation" and point to stuff like Sunbow's GI Joe as the pinnacle of "American" Saturday morning cartoons.

3. Daimos:

Probably my second favourite giant robot cartoon. I don't know if this show ever made it to North American audiences, but Daimos was huge when I was a kid (according to a former classmate of mine, it's also one of the most popular shows in Poland. Go figure).

4. Voltes V:

There's no doubt in my mind that Voltes V is the most recognizable cartoon character in the Philippines (and probably one of the top 5 most popular giant robots in Japan). So imagine my surprise when, upon moving to Canada, I found that very few people had heard of the show (I think North Americans are more familiar with the "Americanized" version of his predecessor, Combattler V, who was repackaged as "Combattra" on Shogun Warriors, although a toy, named "Voltus V" was also released stateside). How popular is/was Voltes V during the show's heyday? Well, to put things into perspective, then-dictator Ferdinand Marcos allegedly banned the airing of the final few episodes of the series in the Philippines, fearing that the show's message of fighting for individual freedoms would spark a revolution (although the ban ended up having the effect Marcos wanted to avoid... kids and teens who were indifferent to politics but avid fans of the show now had a reason to abhor his rule as well).

5. Little Prince Cedie:

Another Japanese cartoon that found a massive following in the Philippines. Little Prince Cedie was an animated adaptation of the 19th century serial novel "Little Lord Fauntleroy" (talk about a strange premise for a cartoon). The show was such a huge hit that Nippon Animation actually signed off on a locally-produced live-action major studio movie based on their version of the story. That's the equivalent of say, a French serial cartoon adaptation of a minor 19th century Russian children's novel becoming such a runaway hit with American audiences that it spawns a live-action Hollywood film starring, oh let's say, the kid from iCarly.   

[The Hitman]

I can only think of one so far, but I have a long day at work today. Maybe I'll think of a few more.

1. Chuck Norris: Karate Kommandos:


Only 5 episodes, but man, it was a good time.

[lugaru]

I had two or three visionaries action figures with the cool holograms. I liked those...

[GogglesPizanno]

Whats funny is that I occasionally come across an episode or two of these kinds of series online and they are always soooo bad. For some reason, GI Joe has this amusing kitsch factor that I find really entertaining, but these other shows just are unwatchable to me.

My biggest disappointment had to be Galaxy Rangers. As a youngster, I LOVED this show. Now not even Jerry Orbach can make it palatable.

[JeyNyce]

I feel old now, because I remember all of those cartoons.....well most of the ones that came to the States.

[The Troll]

Does anyone remember the Thundercats-derivative Silverhawks?

http://i2.iofferphoto.com/img/item/348/331/31/o_silverhawks.gif


Or the even less-successful, less-know man/marine animal show TigerSharks?

http://i3.iofferphoto.com/img/item/282/339/72/o_tigersharks_cover.JPG

20 years ago a bowl of Fruit Loops and Silverhawks = good times.

[JeyNyce]

I remember both of them.  One of my co-workers still plays the Silver Hawks theme song.  He has it as a ringtone on his phone.

[thalaw2]

Silver Hawks was put on Cartoon Network a few years ago and I was really excited to see it again...unitl I saw it again.  It stunk!  Such horrible acting and animation.  I would really like to see a lot of these old cartoons again and can think of a few others to add (Turbo Teen, Go Bots, Pac-Man, Kissyfur, Paw-paw Bears, Punky Brewster the cartoon, Brave Star(The  Native American bounty hunter in the future, Big Foot).   But after the Silver Hawks experience I think some childhood memories should probably not be revisited. 

[GogglesPizanno]

Silver Hawks was put on Cartoon Network a few years ago and I was really excited to see it again...unitl I saw it again.  It stunk! 

I know... its exactly what I thought when i watched Galaxy Rangers on DVD.
Ah the rose colored glasses of youth.

[thanoson]

Ok, as a big fan of Combatra and the Shogun Warriors (Had all 20 issues) thanks for posting Voltes V. Always wondered why it looked so familiar to me.

[detourne_me]

M.A.S.K. was always a favourite of mine.
so was Sectaurs (or was that just a toy series that came with comics
There was another cartoon/toy series that I always watched... kind of like a dragon-riding Conan.   and on the toy he had a flint in his chest, so you'd flick the wheel in his back and the chest would light up...

oh, and for people that love theme songs....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKmys-Tys90
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IGkG0FOBlY

[Gremlin]

Silver Hawks was put on Cartoon Network a few years ago and I was really excited to see it again...unitl I saw it again.  It stunk! 

I know... its exactly what I thought when i watched Galaxy Rangers on DVD.
Ah the rose colored glasses of youth.

I'm glad I grew up in an era of good cartoons. Animaniacs, Batman: TAS, Beast Wars, X-Men, Freakazoid, Pinky and the Brain, Superman...I think it's apparent I had one of the best childhoods ever.

[Champion 2 of 11]

I would love to see skins/meshes of The Bionic Six or The Silver Hawks! 

[GhostMachine]

Thundarr the Barbarian not being released on DVD is a darn crime, I tell ya!

Wouldn't mind seeing Mighty Orbots or Inhumanoids on DVD, either.

Oh, and I don't really care if its ever released on DVD or not, but I'd love to see an updated version of Silverhawks. (Don't care if its a sequel series or a remake)

[zuludelta]

There was another cartoon/toy series that I always watched... kind of like a dragon-riding Conan.   and on the toy he had a flint in his chest, so you'd flick the wheel in his back and the chest would light up...

Are you thinking of He-man precursor John Blackstar? I remember all the kids in our little village gathering every Saturday morning to watch it (we only had two working TVs for the whole community back then, and only one could receive broadcast signals-- and very faintly at that-- the other one was reserved for "Betamax night")

oh, and for people that love theme songs....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKmys-Tys90
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IGkG0FOBlY

Man, 1980s cartoon theme songs were just so awesome. I'd forgotten how cool the Pole Position intro music was.

[thalaw2]

Now since we're just bringing up all the old stuff

The Snorks:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAYEAx31gi0

The Get Along Gang
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mffBVAwsr8Q

The Shirt Tales
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3FQGaqFJ7U&feature=related

[zuludelta]

One of my childhood favourites:

Mekanda Robo (links to the show intro with an updated theme song by Animetal, once again proving that everything sounds better with a couple of overdriven guitars and a screaming vocalist): I had a Mekanda Robo (spelled as Mechander Robo in Europe) toy when I was a kid... the thing was about 10 inches high and made of solid die-cast metal (it weighed at least a pound-and-a-half) and had all sorts of spiky metal projections jutting out of it, you could probably kill somebody by hitting them on the head with it. And the springs on his chest missile launching mechanism weren't just for show... those things packed so much power you could not only take your dog's eye out with them, the plastic missile could probably keep going until it hit the poor dog's brain.

[detourne_me]

Holy crap, i really want to watch an updated mechanda robo with that opening song playing the entire way through,  and this time when he flipkicks a robot in the back of the head, weird gooey slime blood should come spurting out the giant gash.
This guy has so many spikes, and he uses them too. amazing

[thalaw2]

Another oldie but goody:  C.O.P.S.

[zuludelta]

Another oldie but goody:  C.O.P.S.

Hey, I remember that show. The excellent intro sequence was directed by Peter "Aeon Flux" Chung, IIRC.

Interesting trivia tidbit: Comic book writer/artist Larry Hama, who wrote the filecards and came up with the code-names for most of the early GI Joe figures, also helped come up with the code-names and wrote the filecards that accompanied the C.O.P.S. 'n' Crooks toys. So it's interesting to note that a police specialist character named "Bulletproof" would appear in the GI Joe line in 1992 (three years after Hasbro cancelled the C.O.P.S. 'n' Crooks toyline). It's probably coincidence more than anything else, but as a kid, I preferred to believe that GI Joe's Bulletproof was the father (or maybe grandfather... depending on how far into the future the C.O.P.S. show was supposed to be set in) of the C.O.P.S. team leader of the same code-name.

[detourne_me]

wow! nice trivia.
that would be cool if they shared the same universe, 
i was always partial to longarm,  and tackleberry (whoops, wrong franchise)

[zuludelta]

that would be cool if they shared the same universe,

I remember reading somewhere (could've been a 1990s issue of Wizard or some similar magazine) that some of the guys working on the Hasbro toy-based Sunbow cartoons (and the DiC guys that took over Sunbow's role as Hasbro go-to animator in the late 1980s/early 1990s) like G.I. Joe, Inhumanoids, Transformers, and C.O.P.S. unofficially took the stance that they all inhabited a shared universe, which is why you'd occasionally see the same characters show up on multiple shows (i.e., Cobra Commander appearing as a character named "Snake" in an episode of Transformers, muck-raking TV journalist Hector Ramirez appearing multiple times on episodes of GI Joe, Jem & The Holograms, C.O.P.S., and Inhumanoids, etc.)
 

i was always partial to longarm,  and tackleberry (whoops, wrong franchise)

I tend to think that C.O.P.S. weapons specialist Mace was at least partially based on Tackleberry... it seems like they've got the same temperament and if you squint a little, Mace sort of looks like a stylized version of David Graf.