Standing Up To Time
I've re-watched many of the cartoons I loved as a kid e.g.Pole Position,He-Man,Transformers,Mask and I think that Visionaries stands up to the test of time best - it was still awesome
shareIt's one of the best animated shows ever of any decade!!! It still puts a lot of shows being produced today to shame.
Strength of mind, force of will...
Shame it doesn't have a larger following, and without a DVD release here in the States it's unlikely to gain any new fans.
’Cause there’s thunder in your heart... Every move is like lightning!
I read that it DID get a DVD release in the USA in 2006. Must have gone unnoticed if it did. It got a DVD release here in the UK back in 2004, and I made a point of getting it.
Of course, this show is higher quality because it's lower quantity - only 13 episodes ever made, so there's no "inferior later series that strayed too far from the original premise" as was the case with shows like Thundercats. And also, the limited number of episodes was a consequence of the toyline selling badly, rather than necessarily poor ratings for the show (does anyone know how well the series itself did originally?).
I love this show, have the DVD here in the UK and so wish there was more to watch. Would love a movie version with realism like Lord of the ring knights and not so brightly coloured, the CGI would look awesome.
However one thing i always thought wouldn't translate so well onto screen would be the 10 seconds of time to cast the spell for their staffs in an emergency those 10 seconds are vital and wouldn't really work so well i think.
Such a shame it didn't get picked up to continue. Just like dungeons and dragons cartoon that never got an ending. :O(
I say the same. It is a shame there wasn't more.
I would also like to see a movie version of this someday. With remakes and "re-imaginings" being the rage in Hollywood, there is a chance someone might tap this one.
This may be wishful thinking. Much as I'd love to see it getting more public attention, this show is a bit on the obscure side, and I wouldn't bet one penny on it getting the big-screen treatment.
shareI love Visionaries then and now. The post-apocolype was ahead of it's time and allowing the tech and magic/knights to co-exist is so unique.
Nothing else is like it, and a reimagining could sooo work!
http://www.anticelebrity.net/blog/2009/6/4/there-are-only-so-many-storylines-so-thats-why-we-see-so-man.html
Of course, this show is higher quality because it's lower quantity - only 13 episodes ever made, so there's no "inferior later series that strayed too far from the original premise" as was the case with shows like Thundercats.
Visionaries was a top-notch cartoon for American television at the time. The animation was done by the Japanese studio TMS, which was among the best in the business. It had an excellent cast of voice actors. The stories contained more shades of grey than the typical good vs. evil plots from that era. Because it was a weekly series the show's makers didn't have to churn out the minimum 65 episodes usually required for cartoons in daily syndication. There were plans for more Visionaries toys, but they were never released. Supposedly the line was cancelled because the holograms that came with the toys were too expensive to make. Even if the toy line hadn't been discontinued I don't know if a second season of the cartoon would have been made, as other Sunbow productions based on Hasbro toys ended around that time.
I agree that the first season of Thundercats was the best. The Thundercats Ho! TV movie crammed in too many characters. Seasons 2 and 3 were okay, but I don't know who thought it was a good idea to give so much screen time to Mumm-Ra's pet dog Ma-Mutt and Snarf's more annoying nephew Snarfer. The series reached its low point in Season 4 after most of the villains were sent into exile and all of the Thundercats except for Tygra and Pumyra left Third Earth and moved to New Thundera.
The Transformers noticeably declined in Season 3. Most of the original characters were gone, replaced by characters introduced in Transformers: The Movie. Rodimus Prime went from being the energetic, confident character he was in Transformers: The Movie to one plagued by doubts that he was as good a leader as Optimus Prime. The truth was he wasn't, which is why Optimus was brought back from the dead at the end of Season 3. Galvatron went from being a powerful, competent villain to an irritating madman who was unfit to lead the weakened Decepticons. The overall quality of the animation worsened as the Korean studio AKOM took on more of the workload. Season 4 consisted of only three episodes and featured an illogical origin story for the Headmasters and Targetmasters.
Some think G.I. Joe "jumped the shark" with the revelation of Cobra-La in G.I. Joe: The Movie, while others think it happened earlier with the creation of Serpentor. The G.I. Joe animated series produced by Marvel and Sunbow was cancelled, but a new series made by DiC came out a few years later. The DiC series picked up where the movie left off, but ignored Cobra-La, returned Cobra Commander to humanoid form, and got rid of Serpentor. Unfortunately, the overall quality of the writing and animation in the DiC series wasn't as good as the Marvel-Sunbow series.
M.A.S.K. went downhill in its second season after M.A.S.K. and V.E.N.O.M. became racing teams. Miles Mayhem was given an idiot twin brother and several of the original characters were given little or no screen time.
The Real Ghostbusters suffered after ABC brought in a consulting group to supposedly help make the show more appealing to children. The consulting group insisted on changes to the voice, appearance and personality of the Ghostbusters' receptionist Janine to make her softer and more nurturing. Slimer was given a more prominent role. A group of kids called the Junior Ghostbusters were introduced. Writer and story editor J. Michael Straczynski left the series because he was unhappy with the changes forced upon the creative staff. After the series' ratings declined, Straczynski was brought back to write some episodes, including an episode that explained why Janine had changed.
Filmation's Flash Gordon was ruined by the addition of the baby dragon Gremlin in Season 2. The show's format also changed from being a serial in Season 1 to standalone episodes in Season 2. share