Nostalgia Critic: Are Kids Shows New Than Ever?

Animation in its simplest form is the illusion of bringing inanimate objects to life. The most common examples are drawings, clay models and 3D models created with a computer. Technology has changed animation drastically from when it was first introduced, and for the best. People usually think of cartoons when they hear the word “animation”, and it’s understandable as to why. Animation did start out with cartoon-like drawings, and for a while most of the animation seen on TV was directed towards children. Of course it made sense, seeing as animation made it easy to exaggerate expressions of the characters, which kids could enjoy. Cartoons today vastly differ from the cartoons in the past, especially when they first started to become popular.

In Doug Walker’s YouTube video: "Nostalgia Critic: Are Kids Shows Better NOW Than Ever?" he expresses that since the animation in recent cartoons can be faster, there’s not a lot of need to have complex character designs for the show to solely focus on. Simplistic characters are easier to animate and they also capture children’s attention more successfully. He goes on to say that having simplistic characters also help move the focus and immerse the viewer into the world they’re put in; it allows the animator to show off backgrounds, worlds, and even visual elements such as color. Adventure Time, Regular Show, and Steven Universe are current cartoons and all have amazing characters, storylines and worlds the viewer can be engrossed into. These elements help make the cartoons become more memorable. Similarities can be drawn to older cartoons as well, seeing as almost everyone—including adults know the Looney Toons and old Disney characters by heart (Walker, 2015). However, there is a huge difference that separates cartoons from today and from then and why our current cartoons are superior. Those differences being specific subjects cartoons bring up to children who are watching. Media, especially cartoons are one of the easiest ways to enlighten children. Even subtlety can go a long way with young minds, so having cartoons that touch upon prejudicial issues can actually prevent a child from growing up to become that way. Steven Universe, Adventure Time, and The Legend of Korra, while having amazing stories and characters also bring up prejudice and even political issues at some points (Walker, 2015). Additionally, those particular cartoons have gay character subtlety to them, something that children should be aware exists and isn’t wrong. Prejudicial topics are not the only ones covered there are other deep subjects like death,