My 2 year-old review: https://www.deviantart.com/petralovescoffee/journal/The-Viva-Pinata-Franchise-882131984
I absolutely love the Viva Pinata franchise, and this show has been undoubtedly my favorite installment in it for the last few years. First, the visuals. Although some of the character designs and lighting aren't the best, the cinematography does the best job it could of directing my vision to what's important whilst also keeping funny background events... in the background for people who look off the beaten track to be rewarded with humor. Some of these things are in plain-sight, but something bigger or more attention-grabbing is there also. I love how unrealistic this show is, because it allows the writers and animators to really flex their artistic muscles. In something more realistic, you can't execute jokes like characters freezing in mid-air or using Hudson's magnetic personality instead of magnetism without obliterating the audience's suspension of disbelief. But in an unrealistic cartoon, that's just how the world is, so instead of slandering in disbelief, we laugh out of genuine respect for what the writers accomplished. And it allows for the most expressive characters I've seen. Visually, they not only have designs that can squeeze out the maximum amount of expression, but also animations. It's impossible to realistically be this expressive due to anatomical limitations, but when your characters are unrealistic and not even true animals to begin with, there's no reason not to take that opportunity to squeeze out the maximum artistic value of your show. Speaking of which, the characters are my favorite part- their personalities are so fleshed-out and unique, and the casting decisions are SO PERFECT! The writers bring so much charisma into them, and every casting decision selected actors who knew exactly how to best play their roles! Some of my favorites are Professor Pester (his always-backfiring diabolical schemes, funny dialogue, interactions with the other characters who are never similar to him, and amazing acting all make Pester a hilariously pathetic villain, but one of the greatest antagonists of all time), Paulie Pretztail and Fergy Fudgehog (they're living LGBT+ representation, they get volatile with each other sometimes, but not only do they become unstoppable when they put aside their differences and occasional, brief cheating, they also provide an amazing example of how beautiful true love between a well-written couple can be. See my music video if you doubt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bllF7JSuHOc I love how crafty, sly, intelligent, and snarky Paulie is on his own, and he has an amazing design. As unlikable and disrespectful as Fergy can be, he's so energetic that you can't have a boring episode when he's in it, he has such funny dialogue, and when he feels love, he feels love), Hudson Horstachio (he's had such a successful life before and throughout the series that I love seeing the history of, attracting a fandom that absolutely loves him, it's so funny to see him praising and advertising himself, or even occasionally narrating, in every context imaginable, and even if he cares about himself and his accomplishments an order of magnitude above everything else, he loves nearly everyone. Sal and Santo Sweetooth are the big exception), and Beverly Badgesicle (her introduction scene told me EVERYTHING important that I had to know to understand this character, and I LOVE how show stealing-ly ecstatic, funny, and charismatic she is, as she's Hudson's biggest fangirl of all time. Unfortunately, she IS a pervert, but I can't help how funny it is to see her unrequited love and how the other characters react to it. And it's also funny whenever someone surpasses Hudson in popularity and she chases after them instead! You never know what that Beverly will be up to, except that she's after someone!), and those are just the best! I could dissect almost the entire cast because of how well-written and fleshed out they are! Something else I love about this show is the soundtrack, which has beautiful instrumental music, but also songs by evidently very talented musicians and lyricists, which I, hopefully legally, uploaded at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qgKz_TUKKI I elaborate more in my old review linked above on why, so you should read it, but I absolutely love this show and the franchise it calls home. To 4KidsTV, and EVERYONE who made this show an amazing artistic masterpiece, THANK YOU!
WesternAnimation THIS SHOW IS AMAZING
My 2 year-old review: https://www.deviantart.com/petralovescoffee/journal/The-Viva-Pinata-Franchise-882131984
I absolutely love the Viva Pinata franchise, and this show has been undoubtedly my favorite installment in it for the last few years. First, the visuals. Although some of the character designs and lighting aren't the best, the cinematography does the best job it could of directing my vision to what's important whilst also keeping funny background events... in the background for people who look off the beaten track to be rewarded with humor. Some of these things are in plain-sight, but something bigger or more attention-grabbing is there also. I love how unrealistic this show is, because it allows the writers and animators to really flex their artistic muscles. In something more realistic, you can't execute jokes like characters freezing in mid-air or using Hudson's magnetic personality instead of magnetism without obliterating the audience's suspension of disbelief. But in an unrealistic cartoon, that's just how the world is, so instead of slandering in disbelief, we laugh out of genuine respect for what the writers accomplished. And it allows for the most expressive characters I've seen. Visually, they not only have designs that can squeeze out the maximum amount of expression, but also animations. It's impossible to realistically be this expressive due to anatomical limitations, but when your characters are unrealistic and not even true animals to begin with, there's no reason not to take that opportunity to squeeze out the maximum artistic value of your show. Speaking of which, the characters are my favorite part- their personalities are so fleshed-out and unique, and the casting decisions are SO PERFECT! The writers bring so much charisma into them, and every casting decision selected actors who knew exactly how to best play their roles! Some of my favorites are Professor Pester (his always-backfiring diabolical schemes, funny dialogue, interactions with the other characters who are never similar to him, and amazing acting all make Pester a hilariously pathetic villain, but one of the greatest antagonists of all time), Paulie Pretztail and Fergy Fudgehog (they're living LGBT+ representation, they get volatile with each other sometimes, but not only do they become unstoppable when they put aside their differences and occasional, brief cheating, they also provide an amazing example of how beautiful true love between a well-written couple can be. See my music video if you doubt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bllF7JSuHOc
I love how crafty, sly, intelligent, and snarky Paulie is on his own, and he has an amazing design. As unlikable and disrespectful as Fergy can be, he's so energetic that you can't have a boring episode when he's in it, he has such funny dialogue, and when he feels love, he feels love), Hudson Horstachio (he's had such a successful life before and throughout the series that I love seeing the history of, attracting a fandom that absolutely loves him, it's so funny to see him praising and advertising himself, or even occasionally narrating, in every context imaginable, and even if he cares about himself and his accomplishments an order of magnitude above everything else, he loves nearly everyone. Sal and Santo Sweetooth are the big exception), and Beverly Badgesicle (her introduction scene told me EVERYTHING important that I had to know to understand this character, and I LOVE how show stealing-ly ecstatic, funny, and charismatic she is, as she's Hudson's biggest fangirl of all time. Unfortunately, she IS a pervert, but I can't help how funny it is to see her unrequited love and how the other characters react to it. And it's also funny whenever someone surpasses Hudson in popularity and she chases after them instead! You never know what that Beverly will be up to, except that she's after someone!), and those are just the best! I could dissect almost the entire cast because of how well-written and fleshed out they are! Something else I love about this show is the soundtrack, which has beautiful instrumental music, but also songs by evidently very talented musicians and lyricists, which I, hopefully legally, uploaded at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qgKz_TUKKI
I elaborate more in my old review linked above on why, so you should read it, but I absolutely love this show and the franchise it calls home. To 4KidsTV, and EVERYONE who made this show an amazing artistic masterpiece, THANK YOU!