For this list, I'm going to look at my favorite reboots of the cartoons I loved as a kid. Ones able to capture the spirit of the original and maybe in some cases lift it up above the source material.
5. GI Joe: Renegades
GI Joe has had a rough history. Ever since the original Real American Hero series, they've had a difficult time staying relevant. From GI Joe Extreme, the beefed-up 90s version, to their terrible movies, to the ultra-violent GI Joe Resolute. After the last one came GI Joe Renegades, following a small cast on the run from a massive terrorist organization that has already taken over America. In this series, Cobra has its fingers in everything including the government, turning GI Joe into the bad guy the American people blame for a terrorist attack, and sending another military organization to capture them. With the smaller cast, they can focus on the characters better, learning why Duke is such a compassionate leader and Snake Eyes's injury that left him mute. It's a great show that takes on aspects of the A-Team, and shows what the Joes can do when faced with insurmountable odds.
4. Extreme Ghostbusters
Man, I'm going to get a lot of shit for this one. I've never understood why this show isn't more loved. In the 90s Columbia made a handful of cartoons based off movies like Godzilla and Men in Black. Most were decent and did a good job expanding the lore of the shows while getting rid of the more comedic elements. One of the shows they created was Extreme Ghostbusters, but instead of just making a new adaptation of the movies, it followed up on the Real Ghostbusters with Egon and Janine mentoring a younger team of Ghostbusters. I thought the newer members were a good fit for the show, but the best parts are when it made connections with the previous series, including Kylie's own history with the Grundel, a ghost captured during the original show, and the appearance of the rest of the first team in the series finale, putting both groups together. The interaction between the two is so fun.
3. He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2002)
Update: With the release of Netflix's She-Ra and the Princesses of Power there's no way it's not making this list. I wasn't as big a fan of Etheria's champion as I was of her brother, but I did enjoy it with a bit. Even so, I like this reboot way more than the original. Where the new He-Man show stayed as close as possible to the source material while making it more mature, SPoP goes the complete opposite direction, changing a lot of the setting, the characters, and the lore, making a much more mysterious and connective story. Almost every aspect of this show is improved from the first one and thank goodness because the original She-ra was pretty dull compared to its companion cartoon.
2. Voltron: Legendary Defender
If only Netflix would pick more 80s cartoons and update them like this one. I was never that big a fan of the original series, but I absolutely love this reboot, which uses computer animation to bring Voltron to life and the excellent animation studio that worked on the Legend of Korra to make everything else. It's a fantastic update explaining the origin of the team and their robots, an overarching storyline instead of monster-of-the-week formula, and a few surprises thrown in to keep the show fresh. The best thing about it is it's the only show still in production, with a new season coming next week!
1. Transformers: Animated
No comments:
Post a Comment