Sunday, March 30, 2014

Nostalgic for the "Afternoon"

It's been pretty hectic around here.  I'm behind on pretty much everything blog-related: DUCKTALES RETROSPECTIVES, My Little Pony-related reviews, book reviews, the works.  However, after grading three tests and a project this weekend, I am finally starting to get out from under.  You should finally see some activity around these parts as we move into April (and, hopefully, out from under winter's thumb once and for all).

Pan Milus sent word that the Nostalgia Critic had devoted a full-length show to a review of the history of The Disney Afternoon.  He did right by DuckTales -- more specifically, "Treasure of the Golden Suns" -- a while ago, so, naturally enough, I was interested to see how he'd cover the other shows, both good and bad.  I would have to say that I agree with him on most of these, with a few minor qualifications (e.g., Molly Cunningham as Webby 2.0??  I think not).  I also rather wish that he'd taken the more measured approach of his "Disneycember" reviews of Disney's animated features and live-action films.  I have never been the biggest fan of the shtick he does with other "cast members," as opposed to him just being himself (or his TNC persona) and doing the reviews with a voice-over.


For DAFT completists (and who isn't -- or doesn't want to be, for that matter?), here's a link to TNC's review of Gargoyles.

6 comments:

  1. As much I've love Nostalgia Critic I sometimes wonder do Doug Walker has way to big ambition about what his doing.

    The entire charm of the Nostalgia Critic is that It was just a guy analysing movies, with some goofynes. That's it.

    However Doug wanted to create a show with plots and characters. Now that's great, exept after his first "plot driven" show "Demo Real" got nothing but backlash (and to be honest felt like a very forced and uninspired idea) he started incorporating/forcing all of the Demo Real ideas to NC show rather then keep it simple.

    He also appear to feel obligated to gave his friend's screen time in each episode which sadly sometimes come out as very forced.

    On one hand I think the episode when he keep his supporting cast to minimum work out for the best but there where some like his "Cat in the Hat" episode I simple adored.

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  2. As for his review of "Disney Afternoon"... I especialy agree with all he said about "Quack Pack". I think that show had funny jokes but what they did with HD&L was just painfull.

    It's funny how he only points out the lack of Kaaa "Tale Spin". For me the "Jungle Book" character that's get's the wors treatment is Bagheera. His get's more screen time then Mowgli and Baloo yet the character is rearly used on DVD covers, posters etc.

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  3. I'll have to watch this later. I enjoy his on-screen persona (the one of the Nostalgia Critic himself, that is), and generally find his reviews to be informed, fair, and on-the-money. He seems to be around my age, so it helps that we're coming from the same place.

    I always thought of Molly as TaleSpin's equivalent of Webby. Why do you feel that's inaccurate, Chris?

    -- Ryan

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  4. Pan,

    "It's funny how he only points out the lack of Kaaa "Tale Spin". For me the "Jungle Book" character that's get's the wors treatment is Bagheera."

    In the case of TALE SPIN, it's probably more accurate to say "BagheeraS." To be more specific, all of those Khan Air Service panther pilots who looked like Bagheera. As for Kaa, perhaps the series tried to sneak him in through the back door by revealing at the end of "For Whom the Bell Klangs" that Thaddeus Klang was actually a snake.

    Chris

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  5. Ryan,

    Much as I like Webby, Molly is a more believable, "realer" little girl than Webby in many respects. While they both play tagalong, I've never thought of them as being interchangeable.

    Chris

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  6. Actually; I thought Klang was a descendent of Kaa until the end of For Whom The Bell Klangs; and then we find out that the snake looked nothing like Kaa at all. The Bahgeera clones were more obvious. I think Hathi's character design was used in several elephant furry characters in the show (I think the closest one was in Paradise Lost).

    @Pan: I think the reason for Bahgeera's disappearance was due to the fact that they already had Rebecca cemented in the role Bahgeera played in Jungle Book; for TaleSpin.

    @Ryan/Chris: Molly's tagalong moment was in Plunder and Lightning Part 2; which includes some really sneaky blackmail on Molly's part. Webby doesn't have the goods to pull that off and Webby is four years older than Molly. Every other time; she didn't tagalong as much as she was the focal point of the episode; or she was allowed to come along.

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