Cartoons!

[Kolzig]

My friend recommended the short first season of Rick&Morty to me after I saw the characters in The Simpsons opening sequence so I watched it about a month ago. Was quite fun! I loved the Mr. Meeseeks episode especially. Cool to read that the second season is starting this summer apparently, I will definitely watch that.

 

Now after the cartoon interest has risen again, I started looking at other stuff that is apparently famous these days. So I earmarked shows like Archer, Robot Chicken and Adventure Time. Are the other quite new shows that are said to be good? I am almost finished with Archer's first season and I can't make up my mind is it good or not. It's at least way worse than Rick&Morty.

[Brannigan]

Archer gets a lot better, though I've only seen through season 4

[N1njaSquirrel]

I dunno, I really liked the first season of Archer, and the second one is better, but I hear the later episodes it takes a real downhill dive. But then again I really don't like Rick & Morty, so what do I know!

 

I would strongly reccomend Bob's Burgers. It's our favourite thing atm. I love the adlib conversations between the cast, it's really funny and unlike so many cartoons where the scripts are so strict.

 

I would also strongly recommend Bojack Horseman. It's the bees knees.

[Mangela Lansbury]

Archer is more interesting to me than a lot of other cartoons, but I can't say it makes me laugh out loud very often so idk how much I can really say I like it? Also I have a personal connection to some of the production staff (visit Dad's Garage improv theater when you're in Atlanta, see the voices of Pam and Krieger in their natural habitat maybe if it's the right night!), so that's probably a factor too.

[SecretAsianMan]

I haven't seen the last couple seasons but I really like Archer.  Some of the jokes fall flat with me but when they hit I find it to be more hilarious than most.  The second season has what are probably my favorite episodes.  White Nights in particular cracks me up every time.

[tberton]

My friend recommended the short first season of Rick&Morty to me after I saw the characters in The Simpsons opening sequence so I watched it about a month ago. Was quite fun! I loved the Mr. Meeseeks episode especially. Cool to read that the second season is starting this summer apparently, I will definitely watch that.

 

Now after the cartoon interest has risen again, I started looking at other stuff that is apparently famous these days. So I earmarked shows like Archer, Robot Chicken and Adventure Time. Are the other quite new shows that are said to be good? I am almost finished with Archer's first season and I can't make up my mind is it good or not. It's at least way worse than Rick&Morty.

 

You should watch Steven Universe.

[Apple Cider]

*drives by* which way to the baby war

 

But no seriously, Steven Universe is amazing. 

[tegan]

You should watch Steven Universe.

 

*drives by* which way to the baby war

 

But no seriously, Steven Universe is amazing. 

 

I didn't wanna be the one to say it, but yes. Steven Universe is the best cartoon on TV.

 

Speaking of which, some of the music from the latest episode is really appropriately unsettling.

[Cleinhun]

I feel like this thread can't go 3 pages without someone talking about how good Steven Universe is.

 

And I'm ok with that.

[Twig]

I'm catching up on Steven Universe and let me tell you I could've done without this Uncle Grandpa bullshit...

[tegan]

STEVEN UNIVERSE PREDICTION:

 

Steven will fuse with Greg so he can share one last moment with Rose.

 

Alternatively, the same thing, but with Pearl.

[Apple Cider]

Considering some of the implications of fusion, I'd be super uncomfortable about that, given that Steven is also a kid and also not his mom. I mean, her lifeforce essentially created Steven but he's still his own person. Given that both Pearl and Greg's relationship with Rose was romantic, that'd be weird as hell.

[tberton]

This last week of Steven Universe episodes has been so good. I'd say "unbelievably good" but given the rest of the show up to this point, I totally believe. This is a whole cast and crew working at the top of their game and it's great.

[Mangela Lansbury]

I haven't bought into the whole Steven Universe thing. I don't know what it is about it -- I usually love everything about what it has going on! I just can't dig what it's doing

[tberton]

How much have you watched?

[SuperBiasedMan]

RE: SU

Fusions already have weird associations, from Lapis's manipulative one to Rose and Pearl fusing to 'spice up Greg's video'.

I think they wouldn't have that happen with Pearl though because her attachment to Rose is portrayed as unhealthy. Pearl needs to resolve those issues, and I don't think a fusion where Steven is a Rose surrogate would actually do that.

[Apple Cider]

Making Steven a Rose-Surrogate in general is kinda intensely creepy to me. He's not his giant woman mom. He's himself. A kid.

[tberton]

Oh yeah, I think that's supposed to read creepy. This show is not afraid to get into weird emotional territory.

[tegan]

So they announced that instead of regular weekly episodes, they're gonna air reruns until around this time next month, then air another Stevenbomb. I think I kinda like this idea of just delivering the show in monthly five-episode blocks, but I dunno if it's paying off for them.

[Mangela Lansbury]

How much have you watched?

I watched... most of season 1 of Steven Universe, I think? I watched through where

they find some other crystal lady in a mirror and she comes out and does a water pillar thing and goes to space, if I'm remembering it right?

There's just something about it that I don't like, and I can't put it in words very well. I like aspects of it a lot, but it never really came together for me as a cogent, likeable whole.

[Cleinhun]

There's just something about it that I don't like, and I can't put it in words very well. I like aspects of it a lot, but it never really came together for me as a cogent, likeable whole.

While I think the show has continued to get better the longer it goes on, I wouldn't say the difference is ever as noticeable as it was for the really early episodes. Basically, if the show was ever going to click with you, you're probably past the point where it would have.

[tegan]

Another, less stupid Steven Universe theory:

 

Jasper fuses with Steven, knowing that the Crystal Gems would never hurt him and assuming he'd be easier to keep control over than Lapis.

[tberton]

It hardly needs saying at this point, but the latest batch of Steven Universe episodes is killing it. The ending to today's episode was amazing.

[BobbyBesar]

An idle thought on the Garnet-as-fusion reveal: English doesn't really have a plural second-person pronoun (aside from regional usage of "'y'all"). However, many other languages do.

 

I wonder if you refer to a fusion as a plural or singular. And also, if, you would tend to use a formal / honorific form. i.e. Chinese: 你 / 您 / 你们, spanish : tú / usted / ustedes. I think that an argument could be made for plural-formal.

 

Because if you're supposed to use the plural, that kind of ruins the surprise. Although I guess they can define their own acceptable norms of address.

[Problem Machine]

I just watched through all of Adventure Time on the recommendation of my brother. It was pretty great. The first season is pretty stereotypical weird-humor-cartoon stuff, funny but kind of forgettable, but around the second season they started really getting into the characters and it got real good. A lot of people talk about the worldbuilding and stuff as what's cool about the show, but I don't think any of that would have worked without the glue of really interesting characters holding it together. That's actually something I would criticize about the sixth (most recent) season of the show, is that it seemed to focus a lot more on big P Plot and less on the characters and what they wanted. It's interesting that such an apparently lighthearted cartoon has such a consistent narrative theme of loneliness and isolation. When I grew up, cartoons were never really allowed to be sad. It's a nice change.

The high point of the show for me thus far:

Ice King going to Marceline's to ask for help writing a song and them creating an impromptu song of the notes he wrote to her hundreds of years ago apologizing for how he was losing himself to the crown. Ouch.