Bluff's Castle Corner

  The Proud Family  was probably one of the best Disney shows of its time. It managed to tackle heavy topics while being funny and memorable. Now we have a revival/continuation of it. I decided to release this review once season 1 had concluded. This is apparently supposed to pick up from the original series, but the show acts as if Penny had just turned 14, even though she was 14 in the original show and was 16 in the movie. The continuity can get a little weird. The whole show is updated for the 2020s, pop-culture wise and socially. For example, the theme song is updated to have a trap beat instead of being R&B. As for the social part, there are more openly LGBTQ+ characters. Michael is now openly gay and gender non-conforming, and there's a new character, Maya, who has two fathers. Animation - 2/2. On the whole, the animation and art is much better than the original's. Although I liked the original show, I was never too keen on the minimalist backgrounds, I felt that th...

  Diabolical  is the latest animated Amazon Prime series and a spinoff of their hit superhero show, The Boys. I don't watch The Boys, but because of the unique animation alone, I decided to give this a watch. I firmly believe that anyone can enjoy the show, even if they don't watch The Boys/know nothing about it. For starters, the whole show is a love letter to animation. Each and every episode has a different animation style, from Chuck Jones-era Looney Tunes to Rick and Morty to 80s anime. Each and every single one of these episodes are faithful to their specific style. For the aforementioned Looney Tunes parody episode, it is very obvious that the directors and animators did their research. For a second there, I thought Jones himself rose from his grave to animate this episode. I just love this recent trend of pseudo-classic cartoons, such as Cuphead , Looney Tunes Cartoons, Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse, Cat Burglar etc. Unlike other adult cartoons, this show's gore, ...

  I love indie video games, and Cuphead is no exception. Its' retro, rubberhose inkblot art style is quite appealing. Thus, it is the perfect video game to make into a cartoon. Let's take a sip of The Cuphead Show . Unfortunately, there are a lot of snobby elitists in the cartoon community who think every single show has to be dark and story-driven. Because of this, they all left bad reviews on the series because it is silly and self-contained. Prior to the series release, there were also ignoramuses who criticized the show's animation and directly insulted the animators. I hope you jerks step on a LEGO brick. Not everything has to be dramatic and deep. Why can't things be fun? And wouldn't you know it, the show IS fun! The show is not only retro in its bouncy animation (provided by the goated Mercury Filmworks), but the jazz music, general tropes used, and New York-accented voice acting genuinely feel like they are out of a classic cartoon, particularly the works o...

  (You get a cookie if you get the reference I put in the title) Smiling Friends is the latest [adult swim] series. It was originally a pilot, but proved so popular that [as] greenlit it. As expected, the full series received so much hype upon release, which surprisingly ran eight episodes at once. The show revolves about two Technicolor humanoids -- the ever-cheerful Australian Pim (pink) and the cynical Charlie (yellow) -- as they embark on a quest make people smile, hence the show title. Well, in every good show, you need conflict. Their attempts to bring happiness to the world prove to be rather difficult. Like with most [adult swim] cartoons, the animation is intentionally simplistic and choppy, yet it evokes a particular charm. It even mixes other mediums, such as CGI, claymation, and live-action, sort of like The Amazing World of Gumball.  Also, Zach Hadel, the co-creator of the series, is a Newgrounds user, which explains... a lot. There was a particular article b...

  El Deafo  is yet another awesome Apple TV production. It is based on the book of the same name by Cece Bell. It is semi-autobiographical about her being deaf, with cartoon rabbits. It is had now been made into a three-part miniseries.  Cece Bell narrates the series, while cartoon rabbit Cece is voiced by a real life deaf girl. The first episode demonstrates how a serious infection caused Cece to lose her hearing. It doesn’t hold back from showing all the new and scary thoughts little Cece head.  The sound design also muffles the characters’ speech, so you can really immerse yourself what it sounds like when you are hard of hearing. Bell’s narration also lampshades how back then, deaf kids didn’t use sign languages, so they use lip reading instead. And how TV shows didn’t have subtitles. Luckily, these have changed.  Speaking of TV, Cece witnesses a show where a deaf girl is bullied, and called "Deafo". While hurt by this at first, she reclaims this for her Sup...

  We Bare Bears was one of the best CN shows of the 2010s decade. It had a chill atmosphere and a lovable crew of characters. The episodes focusing on the trio when they were cubs became so popular that they almost overtook the show, and caused the main show to end and this presumably non-canon spinoff to be greenlit.  It seems as though baby spinoffs are making a come-back. First, Muppet Babies got a reboot. Then, we got Total DramaRama and Kamp Koral. Finally, We Baby Bears . If you haven't seen We Bare Bears, this show is still accessible, as it focuses on the characters traveling to different dimensions using a magic box, attempting to find a home. It's also VERY heavy on the anime influence, what with the shiny eyes, shoujo roses, and 'kawaii' aesthetic. Although, a K-pop group performs the theme song. The series also reminds me of the anime that Nick Jr aired in the 80s and 90s (yes, really) like Maya the Honey Bee, Adventures of the Little Koala, Maple Town Stor...

 In 2017, I made this video about some of my personal favorite cartoon Christmas specials. But truth be told, that list was highly weak and lacked some of my other favorites. The wait is over. It has come time to shine a light on other amazing Christmas specials. OLIVE THE OTHER REINDEER Olive the Other Reindeer  is an amusing little thing. It's based on a children's book, and so the special emulates the feel of a pop-up picture book. The result is very surreal and kinda awkward to watch today, but it was surely cutting edge for its time. Matt Groening was the director of this special (in fact, this is his only work aimed at kids), resulting in the special being incredibly hilarious and intelligent. Kids and adult alike will have a smile on their face almost the whole time. FROSTY THE SNOWMAN Frosty the Snowman  is one of Rankin/Bass' few works that aren't stop motion, but that's okay. Frosty is charming and adorable through and through. The character designs have ...