Probably my favorite collection of cartoons ever are the Looney Tunes circa the ’40s and ’50s. Among them, some of the best were consistently the Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner shorts. Those not only have stood the test of time, but they seem notoriously hard to duplicate. This has always perturbed me because of all the Looney Tunes, it would seem that these would be the most adaptable because they require no voice work from anyone. Only clever (and somewhat hedonistic) writing. Even Mel Blanc couldn’t recapture the magic he delivered during the original span of the Looney Tunes’ run. Check out some of those ’70s LT rehashings if you’ve forgotten.
The good news: it appears that Wile E. and RR are getting some love again. The bad, it’s of course in 3D. ComingSoon reports that there will be three animated shorts premiering in front of films this year as a precursor to a new animated series titled The Looney Tunes Show to appear on the Cartoon Network later this year.
The studio will attach the cartoon shorts to three of its upcoming family features—all three features to be released this year in 3D. The first short will be seen with Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore on July 30th; the second with Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole, on September 24th; and the third with Yogi Bear, on December 17th. The announcement was made today by Dan Fellman, Warner Bros. Pictures President of Domestic Distribution.
In making the announcement, Fellman said, “Audiences have always
delighted in Wile E. Coyote’s dogged pursuit of the Road Runner, with
hilarious, albeit predictable, results. We are thrilled to be
presenting these characters for the first time in 3D, which will
heighten the excitement and humor of the chase, not to mention the
impact—at least for Wile E. We’re sure these three new adventures will
entertain a new generation of fans while reminding us all why these two
characters have been beloved for so long.”
The new 26-episode show will feature Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck as roommates with the other Looney Tunes characters as their neighbors. On the item of the TV show, my thinking is: whatever. I’ve never seen any incarnation of the Looney Tunes even come close to those original shorts. The new show might be good, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it were geared almost exclusively at kids, and that’s what’ll probably be missing about them. The original shorts had plenty of jokes and references aimed at adults, and that was part of their magic. They were also quite (hilariously) brutal at times and I’m sure that just won’t play for kids of today.
And as to the 3D item: well, does it really need to be said at this point?