Netflix Animation General Thread

Remember how Netflix would be doing animated ventures based on the works of Roald Dahl?

Taika Waititi will be helming not just Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but also an original series on the Oompa-Loompas!

Sounds interesting, I want to see how he'll handle a kids' show

Our first look at The Willoughbys has dropped online:

Never heard of it.

https://mobile.twitter.com/vevansart/status/1244835457072091137

Victoria Evans is the character designer for Craig Mc Cracken's new show Kid Cosmic. She previously served as character designer on Hilda .

Netflix sparks a first-look deal with Boom! Studios for cartoons (and live-action shows)!

(*starts relentlessly pushing for Netflix cartoons on Lumberjanes, Diesel, and Giant Days*)

EDIT: For those who think me daffy, Noelle Stevenson apparently pitched for a Lumberjanes toon not long ago...

Edited by TargetmasterJoe on Apr 14th 2020 at 1:33:34 PM

Huh. I wonder if a MM Power Rangers series could happen.

Got around to watching and completing Tuca & Bertie. Holy fucking Too Good to Last. It may not be as grim as Bojack, but it's still such a wonderful time that even with its enhanced wackiness factor doesn't totally shy away from heavy subject matter when facing it head-on (though I have no doubt it'd grow to be as grim as its bigger brother if Netflix didn't give it the axe so soon). Highly recommended.

Season two trailer for The Hollow:

I adored the Hollow and really don't think it needs a continuation but the trailer has caught my interest.

As for the Willoughbys, I watched it. I found it was harmless but not really good either. The humour didn't work and its writing was all over the place.

Edited by ChicoTheParakeet on Apr 27th 2020 at 1:24:22 PM

You know I'm just curious, is there anyone else who has watched F is for Family? I'm pretty sure that there's a thread for it on this forum, but it's totally dead.

I'm gonna make guess on the hollow based on "its a game" being the twist in first one: This time twist is "we aren't real" hence why they really shouldn't die :p(I'm few episodes in but I had this guess based on first episode alone and even then its not really based on anything but me trying to guess "okay if they know its a game what are the stakes"

On sidenote, it is fun that while first season had whole amnesia thing, second season plays with "now that they have memories back they have different dynamic"

Edited by SpookyMask on May 8th 2020 at 8:21:09 PM

https://www.theinformation.com/articles/netflix-plays-new-role-budget-conscious

Netflix is sending a clear message to all content producers. No more free rides for the sake of industry credibility. How do you think this will affect their animated output?

Eh, hard to say, executives never appreciate animation, but its a niche in itself that needs filling

Having just finished the season, You weren't that far off. [tongue

What is topic for discussing netflix anime anyway? Or whatever is the chinese equivalent?

I'm kinda shocked that Scissor Seven's second season is actually fairly serious battle anime for most part

Between Bojack Horseman, Tuca & Bertie, Aggressive Retsuko and Beastars, I have the impression that someone at Netflix is really into Darker and Edgier Mature Animal Story set in a World of Funny Animals.

Edited by Snicka on May 20th 2020 at 10:25:24 AM

A producer like that existing wouldn't surprise me one bit.

Edit: I forgot to include how Netflix has provided a good amount of Mecha anime also. Anime/Kuromukuro, Anime/Revisions, ID Zero, and more.

Edited by Matchingbone on May 20th 2020 at 9:47:00 AM

Considering some of the stories, like one Netflix executive being a hardcore fan of Masters of the Universe and actively courting Mattel for MOTU projects according to Kevin Smith (while ensuring Dreamworks stays far away) it wouldn’t surprise me if there is some personal taste affecting pickups.

Edited by Beatman1 on May 20th 2020 at 9:47:48 AM

That sounds mean-spirited, don't you think?

DreamWorks can't help it if She-Ra was what got people to remember MOTU in the first place. Noelle Stevenson and the She-Ra crew just made lemonade with the lemons Mattel left them with and managed to make a complete series revolving around She-Ra without even the slightest hint of He-Man.

They don't think that constitutes for something?

Edited by TargetmasterJoe on Dec 27th 2020 at 7:21:13 AM

The rumors were that Mattel was not happy, and that the executive went to Mattel, when usually it’s the licensor approaching the platform. That’s all I know. Most of this is from Smith’s podcast, and he’s repeatedly gone on record saying he’s not viewing his show as a Take That! to Stevenson and praised her when the question came up.

Edited by Beatman1 on May 20th 2020 at 1:43:37 PM

Eh, this is kind of Mattel's fault, they allowed MOTU to lay fallow from 2004 to 2018, till DreamWorks decided to bring back She-Ra. Without this new She-Ra cartoon we may not have seen Mattel bring back He-Man to animation. I think if you like MOTU you are getting a lot of content, some of it proven to be good like the She-Ra cartoon and some sounds interesting like the Kevin Smith cartoon. I am not sure about the CGI cartoon or the movie though.

I'm actually more optimistic about the CGI series since it doesn't have the burden of having to follow up the old series with a darker tone and an "anime" art style. It can reinvent the Mot U lore with little restriction. Plus, I like a lot of the creative crew for it.

The only thing I find interesting in the Kevin Smith mini-series is the voice cast.

That's fair, my only hesitation is I am the CGI cartoon is how good the CGI will be on a TV budget and I am looking forward to the metal anime take on the Flimation series, it sounds over the top enough for me to like it. I still have serious doubts about the movie though, I wonder if MOTU works better in comics and animation over live action.

Depends on how much Netflix and Mattel spend on it, but the Dreamworks CGI is usually pretty decent. All Hail King Julien and Kung Fu Panda: Paws of Destiny have noticeably better CGI than their predecessor shows. The same studio behind Trollhunters is working on it, so that's a probably a good measuring stick.