Bugs gets a makeover....

[Djaughe]

LOONEY TUNE-UPS
BY ADAM BUCKMAN

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For Kids' WB's new show "Loonatics," a futuristic bugs Bunny loses his light-and-fluffy look to become a fierce, sharpclawed beast with superpowers. ​

Warner Bros.


February 17, 2005 -- HAS Warner Bros. gone daffy?


That's what fans of the studio's classic cartoon characters might be asking after they get a look at the new, futuristic versions of some of their favorite animated heroes, which Warner unveiled yesterday.

The Looney Tunes characters — six in all — have been "reimagined" (in studio parlance) for a new series called "Loonatics," which is set to air next fall on WPIX/Channel 11 as part of the Saturday morning Kids' WB program lineup.

The show features new versions of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Wile E. Coyote, the Tasmanian Devil, Road Runner and Lola Bunny (the newest of the characters, who was introduced in the 1996 Michael Jordan movie "Space Jam").

For "Loonatics," the six characters are being projected 700 years into the future, given superpowers, and outfitted in tight-fitting, slenderizing space gear.

Apparently, falling anvils and exploding cigars are no longer enough to keep kids 6 to 11 years old entertained. "This is a kids show intended for kids today who are growing up in the Internet age, an age of technology, an age of hip, cool animation, and something that we hope will resonate with that age group," explained Sander Schwartz, president of Warner Bros. Animation, in a phone interview from Hollywood.

He said the characters' superpowers have not yet been finalized. And neither have their names, although they are expected to have names close to those of their ancestors (think Buzz Bunny).


And what of all the other classic Looney Tunes characters? What about Sylvester and Tweety, Elmer Fudd and Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, Pepe Le Pew, Speedy Gonzalez and Marvin the Martian?

And what about Porky Pig? Is poor Porky destined to stutter and remain fat and pantless for the rest of history?

Schwartz said Warner settled on six characters because that's as many as a half-hour ensemble show can handle. But he didn't rule out guest appearances by some of the other legends of Looney Tunes, although in futuristic form.

But cartoon purists, raised on the easy-to-understand hilarity of Elmer Fudd blowing Daffy Duck's bill off with a shotgun blast to the face, might rightfully lament the fact that their own kids won't get a chance to grow up exposed to that same kind of classic comedy.

To that complaint, Schwartz notes the old Looney Tunes cartoons will likely run forever on some channel or another, including the Warner-owned Cartoon Network and Boomerang cable channels. "And secondly," he said, "these are cartoons. Lighten up! They're fun and the existence of one doesn't preclude the existence of another."

 

[maddogkf]

just say no.

 

[FischerKing]

shawn

 

[Stout]

Ack! A cartoon remake!

 

[CaptTurbo]

I am no longer opposed to nukes and the ending of the world.

 

[azdad1978]

Worst idea ever!!!

 

[Djaughe]

I dunno...I guess i'm intrigued....

 

[Chaplin]

What's the big deal? They're doing it for a single television show at a time when most of you people will never see it. All this moaning about "not being able to grow up watching the originals" is bull. If it's that important to you, go out and buy the DVDs! There's over a hundred looney tunes cartoons already available. So who cares? They're updating Thundercats, and they've updated Transformers and other more classic cartoons, so I don't see how this is any different.

 

[FischerKing]

I dunno...I guess i'm intrigued....

are you serious? why not come up with something new and original instead of trying to continually cash in on retreads? what the hell do those people in hollywood get paid for anyway - it's obviously not original ideas. what next, remaking Underdog, Speed Racer, Johnny Quest and the Flintstones?

blech...

shawn

 

[Chaplin]

are you serious? why not come up with something new and original instead of trying to continually cash in on retreads? what the hell do those people in hollywood get paid for anyway - it's obviously not original ideas. what next, remaking Underdog, Speed Racer, Johnny Quest and the Flintstones?

blech...

shawn

Are you kidding? Several cartoons have already been redone or "reimagined" or whatever--haven't heard you complain about them...

 

[FischerKing]

Are you kidding? Several cartoons have already been redone or "reimagined" or whatever--haven't heard you complain about them...

this is the first one that i've seen - i would have complained about the others as well.

shawn

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Loonatics? You'd think they'd at least come up with an original name...

Raving Loonatics

 

[FischerKing]

seriously - why not just shut hollywood down now - because they aren't doing anything except putting out the same ole stuff. doesn't it get old for you? it's a bit disheartening imo.

shawn

 

[FischerKing]

Loonatics? You'd think they'd at least come up with an original name...

Raving Loonatics

uh...speechless...

shawn

 

[Brian in Mesa]

If It Ain't Broke....

HOLLYWOOD, CA-February 17, 2005 — The cartoonists at Warner Brothers have given one of the nation's most-beloved cartoon characters a makeover. Will you like what they have in mind?

The old look of the cartoon character Bugs Bunny is saying "That's all folks!" to the generations who grew up with him. Bugs, the Road Runner and other Looney Tunes cartoon characters are getting a new look and even new names.

The "reimagined" Bugs Bunny is going to be renamed "Buzz" and star in a new series called "Loonatics." The series will be set in the future and will feature a tough-talking rabbit with laser eyes who is a martial arts expert. Even Daffy Duck will get a techno-update with built-in sonar.

President of Warner Brothers Animation, Sander Schwartz says it was time for a change.

Sander Schwartz/President of Warner Brothers Animation: "What we're doing is taking Bugs Bunny, a classic and changing him for the kids – making him fresh, cool and hip."

"Loonatics" starring Buzz Bunny and friends will be set in the year 2772 and, according to Warner Brothers, the characters will display the same wit and humor as the classics.

But for the parents out there who still love the classic bugs – he'll still be around.

 

[Djaughe]

are you serious? why not come up with something new and original instead of trying to continually cash in on retreads? what the hell do those people in hollywood get paid for anyway - it's obviously not original ideas. what next, remaking Underdog, Speed Racer, Johnny Quest and the Flintstones?

blech...

shawn

If the are redoing the original story lines...maybe - but this version is in the future.

I see what you say...but are you complaining what 'new and original' is compared to you and me or to 5 year olds?

Where you just as mad when they did the 'baby' versions of bugs and crew?

Warner Bros. can't break into the current saturday format with the original characters...so it has to jazz them up. I still have to see the product before I can really offer an opinion though.

 

[Brian in Mesa]

They’re bugging out: Rad makeovers for classic 'toons

By Sean L. McCarthy
Thursday, February 17, 2005

This fall, Bugs Bunny will become a lean, mean crime-fighting superhero.

Have our Looney Tunes taken a wrong turn at Albuquerque?

Warner Bros. announced yesterday it has reinvented the classic cartoon characters after almost seven decades, introducing them to a new generation of Saturday morning TV viewers as the ``Loonatics.''

Bugs, Daffy Duck, Tasmanian Devil, Coyote, Road Runner and Lola Bunny have been ``reimagined as futuristic heroes'' for the new show, set in the year 2772.

All six characters underwent extreme makeovers, featuring sleek lines and lots of black.

Their look is more snarky than cheerful. Let's just say the new Road Runner looks even more like a literal speed freak.

The WB has done this sort of thing before. Remember its ``Tiny Toons'' collaboration with Steven Spielberg in the 1990s (``They're tiny, they're toony, they're all a little looney'').

The WB also has remade Batman and Superman - both in toonland and in live-action movie remakes coming out this summer and next.

Ned Hinkle, creative director at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, has liked the new-look Batman but not the futuristic adventures of ``Duck Dodgers,'' which sent Daffy Duck and Marvin the Martian into the 24th century. ``I don't think that was very good,'' Hinkle said.

Others disagreed, since the Cartoon Network also announced yesterday it was ordering 13 new episodes of ``Duck Dodgers'' for 2005.

The classic Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies from the 1930s, '40s and '50s still show up every weekend on the Cartoon Network. The Brattle's 10th annual Bugs Bunny Film Festival, which begins tomorrow in Cambridge, shows old-school, pre-1960 Looney Tunes films each day through Feb. 27. No ``Space Jam'' on that marquee.

Hinkle said recent Looney Tunes efforts on TV and film have fallen flat because ``it seems as though the humor and creativity has been lost along the way.'' The new ``Loonatics'' series could ``work really well,'' he said, ``but then again, good Lord, it could be a huge disaster.''

 

[Djaughe]

The Fall 2005-2006 program schedule....

Saturday:

8:00 a.m. YU-GI-OH!
8:30 a.m. COCONUT FRED'S FRUIT SALAD ISLAND *(New Series)
9:00 a.m. LOONATICS *(New Series)
9:30 a.m. XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN
10:00 a.m. POKÉMON *(New Adventures)
10:30 a.m. JOHNNY TEST *(New Series)
11:00 a.m. YU-GI-OH!
11:30 a.m. THE BATMAN

MONDAY-FRIDAY:
3:00 p.m. POKÉMON
3:30 p.m. XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN *(New to Weekdays)
4:00 p.m. YU-GI-OH
4:30 p.m. THE BATMAN (New to Weekdays)

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Johnny Test...the story of a fearless 11-year-old boy whose sisters use him as a human guinea pig as they experiment with new technologies...

 

[Chaplin]

Again, it's aimed at kids, and it's on the KidsWB Saturday morning, when most of the people on this board are either a) still sleeping, b) working in the yard, or c) working up a gargantuan hangover. Not really your kind of show anyway, huh?

Still don't understand why this is such a big deal.

 

[Stout]

are you serious? why not come up with something new and original instead of trying to continually cash in on retreads? what the hell do those people in hollywood get paid for anyway - it's obviously not original ideas. what next, remaking Underdog, Speed Racer, Johnny Quest and the Flintstones?

blech...

shawn

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Set on tiny, tropical Fruit Salad Island, Coconut Fred’s Fruit Salad Island features the adventures of a wacky coconut and a community of living bananas, melons, mangos, lemons and other fruit.

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[JPlay]

cartoon nowadays suck. They were so much better in the 80s and early 90s. What the F happened?

 

[FischerKing]

If the are redoing the original story lines...maybe - but this version is in the future.

I see what you say...but are you complaining what 'new and original' is compared to you and me or to 5 year olds?

Where you just as mad when they did the 'baby' versions of bugs and crew?

Warner Bros. can't break into the current saturday format with the original characters...so it has to jazz them up. I still have to see the product before I can really offer an opinion though.

i'm not mad - just annoyed. maybe i'm just noticing it more or maybe i'm just getting old but it seems like everything is a retread.

shawn

 

[Djaughe]

....maybe i'm just noticing it more or maybe i'm just getting old but it seems like everything is a retread.

shawn

Yup.

:crankyfischerking: