Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Flavio Commercials / Papers for Papa / Amazing Gladiators / Pinky and the Ralph - (Animaniacs Vol 4 Part 13) - 'Toon Reviews 39

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Episode 88

Flavio Commercial #1: Choco-Dot Candies
Throughout this episode is an interesting set of commercial spoofs, to say the least.  The character they focus on is, out of the entire cast, Flavio of the Hip Hippos.  The joke is the very shallow one that he’s fat and is showing it off to viewing audiences.  This would normally be very tasteless and fall flat easily, but this setup works thanks to the staging.  

As the commercial shows off the obesity of Flavio, it showcases it as something people would want to imitate as if it would make them look attractive.  In other words, it’s a disgusting image acting like something people can find appeal in.  What’s all this for?  It’s a box of little chocolate candies, the very thing that can fatten someone up, though it’s obviously an exaggeration that they’d easily get as fat as a hippo.  

This is only the beginning of a trend of something so weird yet oddly humorous to some extent.
Flavio Commercial #2: Soak Cola
Right after the theme song is another commercial with Flavio.  It once again runs with the idea of a disgusting body type staged as something genuinely attractive.  

There’s an office of women who immediately stop what they’re doing to watch him at a construction site.  It’s probably just him on his break or something, but all Flavio does is drink an entire bottle of soda.  It’s not exactly pleasing to watch the excruciating details of his gulps, but I do find a lot of humor in how the women go crazy over his drinking.  

In the end, all this commercial really does is advertise the drink, but I suppose attractive figures are a leading cause in getting people to buy things in real life.  That said, the joke is that the attractive figure is a really fat hippo.

Papers for Papa
It’s been a while since the Warners have interacted with a historical figure, so this cartoon can be seen as a bit of a return to some of the roots of the series’ glory days.  

The figure here is one of the more modern ones, the relatively known writer, Ernest Hemmingway living in the Florida Keys.  He’s portrayed as an ultimate superhuman walking through the ocean while also trying to make it as a writer, but he’s currently stuck with writer’s block.  That’s a solid fit for the familiar circumstance that these people known for big accomplishments were still human citizens like all of us.  Hemmingway’s writer’s block is so huge, he ends up breaking from the process completely to do something random. I seriously must question what making a paper clip into a rabbit that leads to a Pinky and the Brain cameo, and watching a parody of Lamb Chop has to do with anything.  

The real point of Hemmingway’s early scenes is to bring him to promise never to put pen to paper again.  This promise is a setup for the Warners’ role that also ties into how these historical figure cartoons work.  They come in with a completely random role that the featured figure gets roped into which solves their problem.  They’re office supply delivery people with a big supply of paper for Hemmingway.  A few humorous interactions where they’re quick to expose him making them think he’s not home get him annoyed enough to sign delivery papers so they’ll leave.  With the promise of never to put pen to paper in mind, he can’t go through with that, leaving the Warners to use their antics to fulfill their job and get things over with.  

From there the cartoon gets exciting as it turns into a literal chase around the world, playing to Hemmingway’s unique ways of travelling seen at the start.  With the versatility of animation on their side, the Warners are able to follow him.  Highlights of the chase include ending up in various locations instantaneously.  Everyone’s out on the sea fighting with fish ending with a funny sequence of photos leading to them going from being frustrated with each other to laughing as friends.  Then Hemmingway remembers why he’s running, and they end up in a bull fight in Spain and Yakko uses the delivery paper as a bull-fighting flag Hemmingway charges at.  He also gets a few surprise visits from the Warners when hiding in war trenches, and climbing a mountain, classic examples of these characters comedic skills.  

Then he suddenly arrives back home, and the Warners showing up again makes him realize he just can’t escape them, and he goes back on his promise.  Somehow though, marking a period after his name grants him a lot of ideas for his next work all of which relating to every element of the chase.  Now, I personally am familiar with him writing phrases like fighting with fish and running with bulls, but I’m not so sure if he wrote anything about trenches or climbing mountains.  It is at least a believable way of coming up with ideas when drawing from experience, even if more emphasis is on periods.  As for the Warners, they get their paper back with a cameo of Ralph scaring Hemmingway in a getup of Gertrude Stein in a harem outfit which they referenced earlier.  That’s a fine example of solving their problems with randomness and fourth wall breaking.  

Overall, this may not be the funniest or most memorable historical figure interaction, but it’s not without solid excitement, humor, and relatability.
B+
Flavio Commercial #3
Between segments is one last Flavio commercial where his fat is all there is too it.  A woman’s voice asks him if he works out, he unbuttons a shirt, and his fat completely exposes itself.  The only response he gets for this is a very believable shriek.  From the last two commercials and the first few moments of this one, you’d be in the right to think his fat would be seen as something attractive.  The most appropriate reaction is enough to catch you off guard, but since the setup is ridiculous already, it does so in a good way in my way of thinking.

These commercials take a bland trait of one of the Hip Hippos, and make something humorous of them from mostly treating Flavio’s obesity like something attractive.  It’s a fresh thing done with the characters that probably could have made them better liked.  Then again, it’s for the best that things like this were done for one episode since there’s really so much fatness people can take.  Also, all these commercials with Flavio lead to a type of starring role not explored on the show for a very long time.
A-

Amazing Gladiators

For the first time since Episode 42, the Hip Hippos are the stars of a cartoon.  This gap wasn’t exactly a point of concern for many since they really are some of the weaker characters in the cast.  There’s really not a lot that can be done with just a nice married hippo couple into modern day trends.  Truth be told, their cartoons fall very flat entertainment-wise for featuring the characters as observers of what goes on around them and being oblivious to problems they cause.  Their only true entertainment is when they star alongside more dynamic characters or work off some sort of a gimmick.  Thankfully, this cartoon is one of their better performances, but mostly because of where everything takes place.  

As a gift for Marita, Flavio appeases her interests by getting them both spots on an elaborate game show parodying American Gladiators called Amazing Gladiators.  That by itself isn’t too interesting or out of the norm from their dynamic, but getting there is smartly not the main focus of the cartoon.  The real focus is on the game itself as it should be.  All its different parts are marked by vibrant title cards and a very enthusiastic announcer.  There’s also solid interactions between the friendly and hospitable Hip Hippos and their uptight competitive opponents, the Petersons.  It works for the Hippos’ bland nice personalities to have them work off people who are essentially their total opposites.  They remain unmoved by the Petersons’ rude remarks, but given that these guys are actually jerks, this mindset isn’t as problematic as their usual obliviousness.  In fact, it’s really how smart people should deal with overly brash and egotistical people.  

The challenges themselves are, unsurprisingly, where the cartoon really gets great.  There’s a lot of creativity in structure from elaborate stunts as moving around in giant glass balls, or things as simple as putting on tight jeans.  That said, they mostly bring out the same shallow joke that the hippos are really fat, as their weight brings them both success and failure in the challenges.  One thing that’s worth noting is that the challenges that Flavio takes part in are what brings in the victories while those featuring Marita bring the losses.  It’s a strong suggestion that Marita is the true ditzy one in this relationship only there for the glamour and unable to put up a strong fight.  

The Hippos are eventually set up to win, but they and the Petersons tie.  To break the tie there’s a challenge of both families swimming through a pool of beans and wieners.  There’s tension for the Petersons who worry if they can eat more of it than the Hippos.  Then, for some reason, the Hippos don’t even try and stand at the starting line as the Petersons win the competition.  The catch is that they look sick and far against their fit image from all they ate.  I guess that justifies the Hippos’ decision.  Then, for the sake of parodying more shows, the cartoon ends with a thought of the Hippos competing on a Baywatch parody.  

It may put too much fate in the Hip Hippo’s weight to be truly great and some plot decisions may not be the best.  Still, with an exciting atmosphere and solid characters for them to work off of, I say this is one of Flavio and Marita’s better solo starring roles.
B
Pinky and the Ralph
Completing this episode’s feel of an actual TV broadcast is this ending consisting of a fake bumper for a fake new TV series.  

As Pinky and the Brain have had their own spinoff for a while at this point, the show now goes after it as something to be parodied.  Instead of Pinky and Brain, the featured characters are Pinky and Ralph the Guard humorously trying to fit into the mouse cage.  Even if it’s just a joke, it’s easy to understand why this wouldn’t make for a very compelling show.  All Pinky and Ralph do is ask what they want to do, and that’s it.  It’s the same phrase over and over and it’s not all that funny, simply building on the fact that both characters are unintelligent.  It’s likable enough since they enjoy each other’s company and get along well, but it’s still dull and goes nowhere for my taste.  

That may be the joke, but to me it’s not one very funny.
C-
Cartoon Ranking
1.      This Pun for Hire
2.      Wakko’s 2-Note Song
3.      Go Fish
4.      From Burbank with Love
5.      A Very, Very, Very, Very Special Show
6.      Valuable Lesson
7.      The Sound of Warners
8.      Night of the Living Buttons
9.      Dot’s Entertainment
10.  Boo Happens
11.  Buttons in Ows
12.  Cutie and the Beast
13.  Star Truck
14.  Boids on the Hood
15.  Our Final Space Cartoon We Promise
16.  Yabba Dabba Boo
17.  The Party
18.  The Girl with the Googily Goop
19.  Jokahontas
20.  Gimme the Works
21.  Papers for Papa
22.  My Mother the Squirrel
23.  One Flew Over the Cuckoo Clock
24.  Amazing Gladiators
25.  Soda Jerk
26.  Hercules Unwound
27.  Belly Button Blues
28.  Oh Say Can You See
29.  Soccer Coach Slappy
30.  Anchors A-Warners
Song Ranking
1.      The Ballad of Magellan
2.      Hello Nurse
3.      Noel
4.      The Big Wrap Party Tonight
5.      When You’re Traveling from Nantucket
6.      Panama Canal
7.      Multiplication
Miscellaneous Ranking
1.      Gunga Dot
2.      Mighty Wakko at the Bat
3.      End Credits
4.      Rugrats Parody
5.      The 12 Days of Christmas
6.      Flavio Commercials
7.      The Return of the Great Wakkorotti
8.      Pinky and the Ralph


Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where Wakko stars in a mixed amount of short films, there's a one-shot bird romance, and Chicken Boo gets his own network.

If you would like to check out other Animaniacs reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.

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