11 - Transformers : What can I say? When you're eight years old, you get impressed easily. Looking down on it, the actual series was pretty lame, but it paved the way for other shows that had enough action and enough plot to grab the kids that just couldn't get their attention spans into the love triangles of Robotech. The series started out as a simple Autobot versus Decepticon mentality and then eventually turned into Autobots against just about everything in the Transformers Movie. To this date, the Transformers Movie was the only time in any young boy's life when their fathers would allow them to cry. The deathbed of Optimus Prime scene was a real tear jerker for the loyal fan. Cry it out, just let it all out big guy... that's it... Also, the Transformers occasionally died. No more of that cheesy G.I. Joe parachuting just barely before the Jet Stryker explodes...
10 - The Lion King: Even if Disney did blatantly steal this from the original Japanese series, Kimba the White Lion, by Tezuka, creator of Astroboy, the Lion King was actually pretty good. The only reason it scores this low is because the story was stolen. Otherwise, the animation was great, the rotoscoping done well enough so as not to be obvious and the animal techniques were flawless. Humor was also good, but I could have done without most of the songs, except for the Circle of Life.
9 - The Black Cauldron : This movie wasn't all that it could be. It seemed cursed from the beginning by a low budget and later suffered a loss when six animators decided to walk away from the production of the movie. However, it was the one film in the eighties that Disney had the balls not to put any singing in. If there's one thing I'm tired of, it's singing animals. This Disney flick was dark, a no-no in most of their films which usually have so much sugary sweetness that diabetics have to be careful when watching. Despite its rushed production and lack of over all quality, I commend Disney for taking its shot at doing songless animation.
8 - Dexter's Laboratory : Hysterical, simple, rampantly silly and a classic in its own time. All of these things come to mind when I think of Dexter's Laboratory. I had been waiting for a series like this for a long time. It combines the whole outrageous science scene with that of the strange, surreal world that lurks in the back of every child's brain. It is just so damn inventive and so outrageous that it cannot be denied as a true Hanna-Barbara comeback.
7 - Animaniacs : Steve Speilberg ain't the at the top of the Hollywood hill for nothin'! The Animaniacs prove it. This series has a huge list of occasional and regular characters and parodies almost anything that has ever happened in showbusiness. Led by the lovable Warner Brothers (and the Warner Sister, Dot), the show resulted in many spinoffs involving the likes of the Goodfeathers and Pinky and the Brain. It is to date, the only cartoon I like that has intentional singing in it. United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama, Haiti, Jamaica, Peru..... Sing along, you might know the words!!!
6 - Batman: The Animated Series and Movie (not Sub-Zero) : I saw this my freshman year in high school and fell in love. It is so simple, yet so moody due to the color palletes chosen and the overall style of everything from backgrounds to characters. The plots hold true for the most part to the comics and the mood is unparalleled. The series inspired the creators to make the only good Batman movie since the one with Michael Keaton. The Mask of the Phantasm was excellent. It was a great flick in its own right and has earned a special place in my heart.
5 - Fantasia : For the forties, this was some heavy stuff. I still can't get over how detailed and powerful this movie is. Uncle Walt took and out-did himself with this one. While the subject matter is strange, and somehow hallucinogenically inspired (c'mon, watch the scene with the mushrooms and tell me there wasn't a direct link to drugs...), the motion is incredible and the music just adds to the effect.
4 - Anything by Tex Avery (especially Looney Tunes) : This man is God. Not a God... The God. This guy is the director and artist who is responsible for the Warner Bros.-Style "Wild Take". He animated in several different Hollywood studios, and is by far one of the most accomplished faces in animation history. I shall forever pay homage to this man responsible for so much silliness and laughter. I hope he's still animating in the great beyond. I want him to sign my lightbox when I get to the afterlife.
3 - The Maxx : I am a magnet for the weird. It was no surprise to me then, when I heard of the series known as the Maxx. The story was so surreal, yet so intriguing and compelling. It sucked me in, and to this day, I still can't get enough. It is well composited and well drawn, with a story so deep it hurts. Go get it. Now. What are you waiting for, I said NOW!!!
2 - The Simpsons : Yes it's minimalist. Yes it's insensitive. Yes, it's downright sacreligous (That God, he's my favorite fictional character, is muttered by Homer in one episode). But damn is it funny! The truth is, you will never find anything funnier that's animated in the states and they're not going away anytime soon. There are over two hundred episodes today in syndication, and is most likely the single most popular cartoon show anywhere. Guest voices span from one end of the Hollywood spectrum to the other. It is just great. Sunday nights at eight, my life stops. Mmmmmm, Simpsons....
1 - Toy Story : Ironic isn't it? My favorite American animated feature was a Disney flick. But, that's what they'd have you believe. This was really a Pixar flick at its heart. Disney merely swooped in and bought it, truth be told. But this story is just so well done, so meticulously thought out and brought to life by adding all of the toys that the children of the eighties were familiar with that it cannot be denied. Let it be heard in all the hills and valleys, mountains and rivers, Toy Story is as good as it gets. And it annoys my ex. Heh heh heh. I'm such a bastard.
