Monsters University Review (Major Spoilers)

[mattzimmer]

Also reviews for the first three episodes of Marvel's Avengers Assemble and the latest episodes of Ultimate Spider-Man and Mickey Mouse. I will also be reviewing the next Fantagrahics Mickey Mouse book "Mickey Mouse Color Sundays: Call Of The Wild". Beware for a Mickey who is a complete dirtbag in the Sunday strips.

Comments

[90scartoonman]

The Blue Umbrella: The Bright Side to this (or at least from my perspective, if you think they keep striking out, then maybe it's just me) is that these shorts are experimental and tend to vary widely, so the next one may be to your liking.

Marvel's Avengers Assemble "Avengers Protocol Part 1": Wasn't EMH canceled in part to make a show more in continuity with Ultimate Spider-Man? The fact that Falcon was already established on EMH and got his suit for the first time on AA seems to suggest they are different shows. I'm actually trying to give this show the benefit of the doubt here, letting them explain the Hulk situation rather than me infer it (and I'd STILL need an explanation as to what Banner was doing if the Avengers disbanded). We may have our answer in Ultimate Spider-Man and Agents of SMASH, so we'll see.

Marvel's Avengers Assemble "Ghost Of A Chance": They certainly did. I don't know, maybe I thought it was funny at first but they shouldn't have made it a running gag.

Mickey Mouse: That sounds great. How do you think Mickey became what he is today?

[mattzimmer]

The Blue Umbrella: I doubt it. I'm sick of them by now. I want a funny exciting short again. Preferably a non Toy Story one.

Avengers Assemble: Avengers Protocol: Wait, that was the first time Falcon used his suit? I thought that was just the first time he fought alongside the Avengers. Hmmmm. Also there have been SOME rumblings that this is a continuation of EMH's although that hasn't been confirmed yet on the show but it might be soon. As for EMH's "cancelation" it was ALWAYS supposed to only run 52 episodes and have a new Avengers show replace it after that. That's why they pretty much managed to wrap almost everything up by the end (except for maybe Surtur).

Mickey Mouse: Probably parental concerns. As Mickey grew more popular Walt Disney believed that he should have been setting a better example. Ironically it's funny how the Daily strip Mickey IS a great role model for kids, even from the beginning, but Sunday Mickey is not. Especially since both strips were overseen and drawn by Floyd Gottfredson.

[90scartoonman]

The Blue Umbrella: Funny is definitely welcome.

Avengers Assemble: Avengers Protocol: There was some line about Stark telling Sam he could use any of the armors he wanted and Sam finding an old prototype that hadn't be used, and that was the Falcon costume. Are you sure there always was supposed to be a new Avengers cartoon after EMH or did they only plan that when Loeb and Man of Action took over from the original show runners? This isn't a JL to JLU situation where they kinda made a new show but still continued the old one. Otherwise, why recast all the roles?

Mickey Mouse: I can see that, but how did the Rabbit manage to keep his edge? All those decades of his popularity increasing and he still manages to be a stinker.

[mattzimmer]

Avengers Assemble: Yes, there was always going to be a new Avengers toon after EMH's which was always designed to only run 52 episodes. They changed the voices to make it fit in better with USM although I'm pretty sure they are also trying to make it fit in with EMH's where they can.

Mickey Mouse: Because Walt Disney was a conservative square. I think maybe part of the reason the old Warner Bros. cartoons took off was because they thumbed their noses at Disney's treacle. Remember, the terms "Looney Tunes" and "Merrie Melodies" were parodies of "Silly Symphonies".

[90scartoonman]

Avengers Assemble: Which is sorta my point, they're moving closer to USM at the expense of drifting away from EMH. Look, I get the whole rebranding thing, it's how Ben 10 managed to last so long, but it still stinks on ice. I'm grateful for how many episodes EMH ran, but USM is the first Marvel cartoon to get a third season in over ten years? Bleck.

Mickey Mouse: Heh, Warners is crazy. It's still tough for me to wrap my head around the fact that Walt Disney died so many years ago, I really should read a history of the decade or so that followed. Disney's treacle?! But I don't understand. Where did they draw the treacle from?

[mattzimmer]

Avengers Assemble: I've said elsewhere what Avengers Assemble is doing is like the Uncle Scrooge comics in reverse. There Carl Barks is canon. However Don Rosa and William Van Horn are now ALSO considered canon. But they are not canon with each other and have a TON of contradictions with each other not the least that Rosa's stories are all set in 1952 and Van Horn's are all present day. They also have VERY different ideas about the McDuck Family Tree.. You have to pick one or the other to fit in your personal canon. Avengers Assemble is like that only IT'S the show that fits both and it's the earlier adaptations that don't gel with each other. I think it's quite ingenius actually and a good way for people to have their cake and eat it too.

Mickey Mouse: One word: merchandising. Disney assumed that parents wouldn't buy kids Mickey cr*p unless the cartoons were as inoffensive as possible and that Mickey was always a good and virtuous role model. The sad thing is he was probably right. And that is probably why the WB cartoons were never the big merchandising cash cow Disney was in the early years. They had no toy stockholders to placate. So yeah, big business ruined Mickey.

[90scartoonman]

Avengers Assemble: I see what you're taking, but only time will tell if they introduce new characters they had already met or do more directly contradictory things. I see EMH as kind of a "broad strokes" continuity.

Mickey Mouse: At least Mickey ended up shaping copyright law, so...it's all powerful! Is it weird how, since I've been to Six Flags more than the Disney theme parks, that I'm more used to seeing WB merchandise?

[mattzimmer]

Avengers Assemble: The rumor was that it's a continuation of EMH's and that it was ALWAYS designed to take its place after 52 episodes. EMH's wasn't canceled, it simply ran its course. That's why there were so few plot points that weren't wrapped up by the last episode.

Mickey Mouse: Ruining copyright law more like. I am still not happy about that. I go to the Disney Store a lot so I haven't seen too much WB merchandise near where I live. The plushies I HAVE seen (at Toys R Us and Walgreens mostly) are super cute.

[90scartoonman]

Avengers Assemble: Hmm, I suppose. But it has gotten a little out of hand, especially if there's going to be tighter crossovers with USM and H:AoS.

Mickey Mouse: Honestly, I kind of see what happened with Mickey and copyright as an inevitability. Even stuff like Peter Pan that was happening in the early 20th century was leading up to this sort of thing, and then characters like Superman couldn't have helped. Which part makes you unhappy?

[mattzimmer]

Avengers Assemble: Once I heard that EMH's wasn't canceled to make room for this show but that it was ALWAYS gonna only be 52 episodes I was willing to give the new show a chance. And I think you should too.

Mickey Mouse: That we overturned centuries of copyright precedent to protect one huge comglomerate's interests. That's bad for America.

[90scartoonman]

Avengers Assemble: I am giving this show a chance, and by doing that, I'm trying to not compare it at all to the old show, which I loved, and to see what it can really do on its own and without riding the coat tails of EMH.

Mickey Mouse: Were there really centuries of copyright precedent, though?

[mattzimmer]

Mickey Mouse: Now there are. And Disney has had all of the existing laws rewritten very recently.