The Crucial Choice
Click to viewOne of my favourite questions to ask students at the junior high schools I work at here in Japan is, "Who do you like better, Chip or Dale?" The characters are popular here so most of kids know who they are. And they think it's a silly question so they laugh, which I think helps make the grammar memorable. I suppose it's not entirely meaningless, though. It's kind of like asking, "Which is better, the brain or the heart?"
Have you seen the trailer for the upcoming Rescue Rangers movie?
It's hard to imagine anyone thinking this was a good direction to go in. I suppose people at Disney thought this was a different tactic than the unsuccessful DuckTales reboot but it's really the same--lazy, heartless, postmodernist humour. And just like they gave distinct, adult voices to Huey, Dewey, and Louie, they've given distinct, adult voices to Chip and Dale. They want to use these beloved old characters, but somehow they fail to grasp the basic qualities that made them popular. I guess it's because they hire celebrity voice talent and they baulk at the idea of disguising those voices. And somehow they just can't shove their reasoning over the hill blocking them from seeing that they'd save money on casting and make a better product if they just did their voices the old fashioned way.
I was surprised to find Scrooge McDuck isn't well known in Japan. There's limited awareness of Scotland so that might be part of it. Also, he's not so cute and cuddly. It really is a shame the DuckTales reboot was so wrong-headed. David Tennant was such perfect casting. I'd love to see his Scrooge on some genuine adventures instead of just the usual tedious stream of self-aware gags.