Anime Diet

Thundercats: Season One, Book One
Warner Bros./Cartoon Network, 2011
88 minutes (8 episodes)
Language: English (Spanish, French subtitles)
$19.97 SRP—Buy from Amazon.com

I’ve been a fan of ThunderCats for long time, and I’m not alone in that. In fact, due to the success of the original ThunderCats (1985), Rankin/Bass Productions tried to recreate their success with two other interesting but ultimately less popular titles: SilverHawks (1986) and TigerSharks (1987).

Although the original ThunderCats ended in 1990, with 130 episodes in the can and fans still desiring to see more, the series was only kept alive through syndication. Interest in the show was largely revitalized by Cartoon Network airing reruns of ThunderCats (along with Voltron and a few other beloved 80′s shows) in what they called the ‘Toonami’ block in 1997.

Fast-forward fourteen years to 2011. 80′s nostalgia is at its peak. Virtually all the popular properties from the 80′s—A-Team, Transformers—are being remade or rebooted. ThunderCats is no exception.

A new ThunderCats series began airing on Cartoon Network in July 2011, with animation by Japanese animation studio ‘Studio 4°C’ (best known for their work on Warner Bros. films The Animatrix and Batman: Gotham Knight). While the series has finished airing its first season as of November 25th, only the first eight episodes are available on what Warner Bros. is calling “ThunderCats: Season One – Book One.”

PACKAGING

The packaging is normal fare, with two (2) DVDs within a standard, black DVD case and with no clips on the side. They are using the environmentally friendly “Green” cases though (see pics above), so be aware of that (i.e, don’t grab your case too hard or you’ll damage the case artwork, the discs inside, or both.) The artwork on the front and back are both promotional artwork pieces, which I found to be a little odd. In fact, there are no screen captures on the packaging at all. Also, there is no booklet or additional artwork inside the packaging—just the two DVDs.

VIDEO/AUDIO

The video quality is excellent, and it was indeed a treat to see the episodes again after their broadcast. Colors are clear and crisp and blacks are nice and solid. Being a DVD, it’s not Blu-ray quality, but it looks really good, especially on a PS3 with its upscaled resolution. I didn’t notice any artifacting, static, or smudging. It was also nice to see the episodes clear of any additional logos, commercials or news/info bars. (i.e no Cartoon Network logo in the bottom right corner.)

As for the audio, It sounds good to me. Audio levels are standard and clear. No static or ambient sounds were apparent. Good job, Warner Bros.

EXTRAS

This is the weakest part of this DVD set, by far. The only extras are two thirty-second trailers on the first disc; one for MAD and the other for the Green Lantern Animated Series. That’s it? What’s particularly frustrating is that there’s so much more that they could have done. A ‘Making-of’ featurette would’ve been cool. How about a brief historical synopsis of the series: where it’s been, where it is and where they plan to take it in the future? Concept art? Animation stills? Behind the scenes at Studio 4°C? Talks with the voice actors?* Perhaps they’re saving all of that for the ‘Special Edition’ DVD, should they decide to make one. If you want to own the first eight episodes of season one, this is the DVD set for you. If you want anything else, however, you’re going to be sorely disappointed.

*Side note: I was really excited when I found out that Will Friedle was voicing Lion-O. He’s done tons of stuff: Eric Matthews from Boy Meets World, the voice of Terry McGinnis in Batman Beyond, the voice of Ron Stoppable in Kim Possible, etc. He’s awesome. What’s also cool is that the voice of the original Lion-O, Larry Kenney, is voicing Lion-O’s father (Claudus) in the remake. That’s an awesome connection to the original show! But NONE of that is mentioned or even discussed. Arghh! *runs away screaming in fanboy rage*

CONTENT

As stated above, this DVD set contains the first eight episodes of the series on two DVDs, with four episodes per disc. I’m not going to summarize each episode here, but I will give my impressions on the series as a whole so far.

So far, I’ve been pretty satisfied with this reboot. The show both honors the original and takes things in a new direction. The animation is gorgeous, especially in episode one, and the voice acting is solid. Wiley Kat and Wiley Kit seem younger than I remember them, but it works. I also like the idea that Snarf doesn’t talk. Ha!

What bothers me is that fact that entire show is very flashback heavy—there’s a long flashback sequence in almost every episode. Sometimes I feel less like I’m watching an episode and more like I’m watching people remember an episode that happened some time before. It doesn’t feel particularly good. The best episode to me is the set’s final episode, “The Duelist and the Drifter.” The flashback in that episode is fleeting and the pacing is improved because of it. If this is a sign of things to come, I look forward to the stories told in future episodes.

Also, while the animation is always solid, I would like the show to be a bit more exciting/dynamic. This is Studio 4°C! I should be seeing some of the most dynamic shots ever put on film! Alas, it feels like Warner Bros. is making Studio 4°C play it safe in a lot of the stuff that they are doing. It also needs to be said: while Thundercats is drawn by a Japanese studio, this is not anime. This is an American cartoon—think Ben 10, Batman: The Animated Series, Sym-Bionic Titan, etc—drawn with an anime aesthetic. The effect can be jarring to watch. The visuals are heavily anime-inspired but the narrative is distinctly American. Honestly, it took me awhile to get used to.

The pacing could be improved quite a bit. Oftentimes the episodes seem to drag on. Speed things up! Makes things more exciting! When an episode finishes I should be saying, “What? It’s over already?” Now, when an episode ends, a part of me says, “Finally.” That’s not cool.

Not to say it’s a bad show. It isn’t. It’s actually quite good. I just see a lot of areas where things can be improved. The standard I hold is this: I’ve watched cartoons, movies, played video games, and straight up cried at the end. And I don’t mean a single tear. I mean all-out sobbing. That was the level of emotional connection that I had with the media. Now, ThunderCats may not be aspiring to those heights of emotional truth, but they can’t be ignorant of the fact that people out there have been affected by such shows. As such they have to do their best to make me care more for the characters. Take me past nostalgia and make me care about the characters right now. That’s what I’m looking for.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The ThunderCats: Season One – Book One DVD set is quite good. It’s a solid show and the video/audio transfer are excellent. That being said, HD junkies may want to wait for the Blu-ray so that they can see Third Earth in all of its 1080p glory. Also, while the first eight episodes are present and look great, there aren’t any extras to speak of, which defeats the purpose of a DVD in my opinion. All in all it’s a good set, but there’s nothing life-changing or extraordinary here.

Final Verdict: B-

Press Release Info: Join Lion-O, Panthro, Cheetara and more as Warner Home Video releases ThunderCats: Season 1, Book 1 on DVD October 18, 2011. The two-disc set features the first eight action-packed episodes of the new anime-inspired feline fantasy form Warner Bros. Animation, based on the 1980s animated classic. The DVD set is priced to own at $19.97 SRP.