The Best and Worst of 2021

 

Be very afraid of what's to come next....new lockdowns, more
bad stuff similar to 2020?????

2021 was filled with hopes and dreams.  Some of them did come true, but others seem hesitant.  Especially near year's end.  We wanna see a better year than 2021, but will it?  I decided NOT to use "Woody" this year because I decided instead to go from "what a rotten year" to "proceed onto the next year with full caution."  Not everything was good in 2021, but the good, I believe, outweighed some of the bad.  We have a vaccine, restrictions (until somewhat recently though not as bad) are being lifted, big events returned, and of course some interesting animation moments this year

This year I decided NOT to pick a winner for each category like I always did (or losers for that matter).  Instead, I'm going to be summarizing what happened in each category with the perspective of my own two eyes.  If you had a favorite moment in 2021, let me know in the comments below.  Let's get started.

Animated Features

COVID still played a key roll in movies not being in theaters.  However, as movie theaters slowly opened up, more movies than last year came out theatrically.  HBO Max and Paramount + (which we'll talk about later) had decided that their movies would be released simultaneously.  So movies such as Tom and Jerry and Space Jam came out both ways.  Disney, meanwhile, got confused on what to do.  Some of their features came out theatrically such as Encanto.  Others, like Luca, came out only on Disney +.  The Addams Family, which was critically bad, ended up only in theaters.

Despite everything, Disney was dominant.  Not every movie was a hit both monetarily and critically, but those that saw films like Encanto and Raya and the Lost Dragon liked them.  Luca, had it gone into theaters, would have been the biggest success.  It's been suggested that some of the reasons for not being box office hits per say is because they would end up on Disney + almost soon after.  And in some areas, hesitancy is still around with the virus.

With movie theaters opening back up, however, allows for more stinkers to show up.  The first one...Tom and Jerry.  This was a live action/animated hybrid.  While Tom and Jerry themselves look great in their classic iconic selves, storytelling and gag writing fell flat.  And the less we talk about Clifford the Big Red Dog, the better.  Which by the way note to self....Update the Worst Ever Tom and Jerry post.  

Space Jam a New Legacy had the most mixed reviews.  Like last time, it was basically another commercial for a commercial.  There is one big Nike logo at the beginning of the animated sequences.  Also, Lebron James has a...mixed fanbase.....to say the least.  I will say this, his cocky personality matched better with Bugs Bunny (another cocky personality) than Michael Jordan ever did as he felt confused as to what to do.  This may be due to Lebron's acting
experience.  However, all is not bad as it did prove entertaining and it did help introduce a new generation to the Looney Tunes.

The worst thing to happen to animated features has to be the closure of Blue Sky by Disney.  Disney defenders continue to claim that it's all due to COVID causing to cut costs.  Well, that may be true to an extent, but I think it was Disney's plan all along when the Fox merger happened and COVID just sped it up.  While I am not a fan of most of their movies, they did create one of my favorites: The Peanuts Movie.  A shame that they did this, but everyone knew this was coming.

Animated TV series

When we last left the TV scene, it appeared hopeless but with some bit of hope.  Over the air would have classic cartoons again, and potential for other hit shows would be as I said....and uphill battle.  Well....somehow cable networks were finally able to figure out the uphill battle.  It's not perfect, the battle is still going on, and streaming is still the big thing, but I think cable networks are up to the challenge.

When the clock struck 12 and 2021 came into our lives, the right to air the Warner Bros. Theatrical Cartoon Library went full affect on Me-TV.  Certainly not the first time Me-TV aired cartoons, far from it (what say you, should I do a history of cartoons on Me-TV?).  But what did happen was astonishing.  Saturday Morning Cartoons include 1 hour of Popeye, 1 hour of Tom and Jerry, and 1 hour of Looney Tunes under the Bugs Bunny and Friends label.  Popeye also included Betty Boop.  Eventually Popeye would be reduced a half and hour to make room for The Pink Panther.  Unlike Boomerang and Cartoon Network's Tom and Jerry block, Me-TV's included as much of the MGM Cartoon Library as possible.  This includes Tex Avery, Barney Bear, and Happy Harmonies.  Still, Me-TV had cold feet with the Mammy Two Shoes cartoons, but everything else seems fine.  Also unlike Boomerang, Me-TV's broadcasts of the Looney Tunes have been more vast causing Boomerang to go into panic mode advertising "THIS is the right place" despite only playing 20-30% of the cartoons.  By year's end, approx. 70% of the Looney Tunes have aired at one time or another on Me-TV.  For Bugs Bunny and Friends, The Bugs Bunny Overture/This is It made its triumphant return to television introducing the show.  On Mondays-Fridays at 7am, Toon in with Me aired 5 cartoons a day hosted by Bill Leff and Toony the Tuna.  Criticized at first, the show only got better with time with facts about some of the cartoons treating them with the upmost respect while mixing in some corny comedy sketches.  In May, a week long tribute to Bugs Bunny occurred.  In December, a 2 hour special of Christmas Cartoons aired.  On Sundays on the new Me-TV +, a three hour random Sunday Night Cartoon block premiered in May.  Fans loved it for them just playing the cartoons and mixing them up just as Cartoon Network did on Acme Hour so many years ago.  The first year ended exceeding everyone's expectations.  Many new restorations premiered on Me-TV.  Many cartoons not shown in nearly 15 years came back.  By December, the library included those from Warner Bros., MGM, some from ViacomCBS (though all are public domain), and some from Sony.  And there are no signs of stopping now.

While the older cartoons had better reruns this year, new and interesting things were happening on cable.  Nickelodeon started off with a new experiment: the NFL Wild Card Game Nick-ified.  This

meant that graphics would appear.  Slime cannons and Spongebob goal post netting appeared during live action while replay highlights included added graphics from strange objects to slime to characters from The Loud House, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and The Casagrandes.  We all thought it was gonna fail (there was an F bomb that was clearly heard from one of the players and the game stunk), but the ratings proved otherwise.  Nickelodeon has plans to do it again next year, and during the fall of this year, NFL Slime Time premiered.  Hosted by Nate Burlison and Young Dylan, it showed highlights from the past weekend's NFL games.  Wait did I say highlights?  I meant to say......SLIME LIGHTS!!!  All highlights featured additional graphics the same way they did during the Wild Card Game.  More Loud House characters, more Casagrande characters, and.....Smurfs?????  Yup, Nickelodeon began airing a new Smurfs series.  The new CGI series would help bring a new and better era to the classic blue creatures, though now causing more competition as Smurfs are now both Nickelodeon characters and Hanna-Barbera characters.  

It should be reminded that Smurfs is an independent series made in Belgium over 60 years ago.  As if there was no more tricks that year, Nickelodeon premiered a game show for their Nicktoons in February.  Tooned In seemed like a rushed job airing an episode a day, possibly due to COVID restrictions causing severe delays, but they made do.  Hosted by Nicky the cartoon loving robot, kids competed each other testing their knowledge of the Nicktoons or get slimed.  The next season allowed plenty of time to fix it up.  Now hosted by Jerry Trainor of iCarly fame but still co-hosted by Nicky.  Axed was the Nicktoons Nick-goon (he probably disturbed kids with his creepy cos-play).  Also, anyone can get slimed at any time.  It was not perfect, but it was fun trying to play along.  Casagrandes had an

Just one of a handful of awesome 
Casagrandes episodes

awesome season, Loud House not so much.  Although The Loud House as a franchise had a great year.  Lincoln Loud awarded the NVP each week on NFL Slime Time.  We'll talk streaming in a little bit but they had two movies including the live action A Loud House Christmas.  When announced, there were doubts, but as we saw clips and behind the scenes footage getting us more familiar with the cast, the end result is one of the highest rated Nickelodeon programs.  The Loud House is here to stay but so is Spongebob with the spin off series, The Patrick Star Show.  Going the Tex Avery route, Patrick Star received mixed reviews.  

Disney had some of the biggest hits this year.  Amphipia had a major episode leak on itunes causing a major controversy showing how popular the show was.  The Owl House tended to decrease in popularity.  Meanwhile, Disney Channel is having a hit on its hands.  After years trying to find a good home, Miraculous Ladybug was getting the fanbase it deserved.  Mickey Mouse got a new show for Disney Junior, Mickey Mouse Funhouse.  A new show began to be hinted with an intro video and some animatics.....The Ghost and Molly McGee.  Finally, something different for the Disney Channel including great songs, great representation, and lovable characters.  The fanbase began forming for the show.  Alas, Disney is focusing more on princesses, superheros, and Star Wars.  None of these shows are guaranteed the future past this year.  We hope fans will change their minds in the coming year.

Cartoon Network would have been the one having the most issues, but then fall came with major changes.  Half of Cartoon Network became Cartoonito, which showcased educational series based on research, the same research, thanks to being on HBO, being done by the people at Sesame Workshop.  Not all was great, the new Thomas the Tank Engine is heavily criticized, and Little Ellen, well, Ellen has some issues of her own not to be

covered on here.  Reruns of Baby Looney Tunes began airing on Cartoon Network everyday as a result of Cartoonito with hints of more Looney to come in the future.  The actual Cartoon Network pulled some surprises.  The Iron Giant, The Year Without a Santa Claus, reruns of older Christmas episodes from original Cartoon Network shows like Ed Edd n Eddy and The Powerpuff Girls took everyone by surprise.  By the end of the year, constant episodes of Teen Titans Go came to an end giving a fair balance for other Cartoon Network shows.  Adult Swim lost the rights to Family Guy though, thanks to Disney stealing away the rights for its networks like Freeform and FXX, but they allowed them to have a few more shows making their return in reruns: King of the Hill and Futurama.  FXX would be the ultimate home for the Fox adult shows from The Simpsons to Family Guy.  We all hope these changes lead to something big.

Streaming

A new player was added to the streaming wars.  Rebranding from CBS All Access is Paramount+.  The rebrand started out weak and bad with its new show and it's yet another Spongebob Spin Off, not a very good one.  Kamp Koral was the aged down versions of Spongebob and friends and was not well received.  The animation library on the service was lackluster with incomplete series selections.  That would turn around real quickly as new shows were added, shows not seen in a long time like Kablam, and complete series (save for music clearances).  The next big show for them with big fanfare would be the reboot of The Rugrats.  Sure it's in CGI, but it's the whole gang returning to the screens.  Promotion was high for The Rugrats and introduced a new generation to one of the first 3 Nicktoons.  

Most of the big things happening in streaming however was more scattered than just one place.  The first big thing was a major update to the Cartoon Network section of HBO Max with a lot of older originals returning in repeats just for them.  HBO Max also continued premiered new Looney Tunes Cartoons episodes with more to come in 2022.  Animaniacs, meanwhile, continue to be a big hit for Hulu.  For Netflix, The Loud House Movie, the animated one, was a big hit for the service, as would a few animated features added that year.  HBO Max would wait until Christmas for the biggest loser, however, with the politically woke Santa Inc.  It is currently the worst rated series on Rotton Tomatoes thus far.  And yeah, well deserved.....it's bad.

Underdog reruns return on Tubi

Sneaking onto the streaming game is Tubi.  Using Disney money for selling off the Fox library, Rubert Murdox's company was able to build Tubi up as something to be dealt with.  So many different shows from different companies were picked up both new and library product.  The Flintstones and Scooby-Doo would be rescued from Warner Bros's paywall streaming wise.  Streaming rights of other cartoons include but certainly not limited to include a lot of DIC shows, Underdog, Tales of the Wizard of Oz, Garfield and Friends, Zig and Sharko, Gumby, Popeye, and last (yet least) public domain cartoons.  Streaming services like Peacock better watch out.

Peacock's still the weakest.  No major updates, just a handful.  Some cool things were added like Garfield and How the Grinch Stole Christmas, but it's the same junk and no new stuff from their own library.  C'mon man, you are an embarrassment.

Anime

I must fully admit, I haven't been keeping up on the latest anime news.  It could be due to some lack of interest as of late.  But I do believe anime could be kicking some more western's butt at the moment.

Shows like Beastars, Attack on Titan, and My Hero Academia continue to be hits.  We even got some more Sailor Moon as Sailor Moon Eternal finally came out after being on hold due to COVID.  Also finally coming out after an even longer hold was Evangelion 3.0+1.0.

Most of the news comes from the industry itself.  Funimation closed the deal to merge with Crunchyroll.  This in theory means that Funimation will be the monopoly of anime, but the proof of that is somewhat untrue as Netflix and Amazon got big names this year.  Still, the vast majority would be controlled in the states by Sony.  It is a scary thought, but let's see what happens.

Speaking of Crunchyroll, we waited and waited and waited and waited for High Guardian Spice to appear.  It finally did this year..........and it stunk.  If it were for Cartoon Network, maybe

it'll pass, but it wasn't, and it was a cheap show.  Made only worse when the money to make it was supposed to go to Japanese creators, not original Crunchyroll shows and how it was originally promoted ONLY for its diverse crew (NOBODY CARES ABOUT THAT....they just want to know if the show's good or not).  Perhaps it was a trap because they knew that this was going to be a disaster? Also, the less we talk about Netflix's failed live action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop, the better.  

 

The Unusual History of Santa and the Three Bears

 Christmas movies come, Christmas movies go.  Many are considered timeless, others you have to dig deep.  Some involve saving Christmas, other simply tell the joy of Christmas.  Most are obviously live action, but there are good number of them animated.  Those, in my biased opinion, are the most memorable of the bunch.  Even if it becomes obscure, chances are if you've seen it, you remember it.  The same could be said about this little film, Santa and the Three Bears.

Depending on where you lived and when you were born, you may remember this film.  It was one of those cheap kiddie matinee movies released during the 1970s.  But was it really that much of a B picture?  Who made this picture anyhow?  That is our story which has bizarre twists and turns along the way.

The story goes back to the 1960's.  Tony Benedict was a writer at Hanna Barbera.  Perhaps his most famous creation was Astro the Dog on Jetsons.  He approached Joe Barbera with an idea of a Christmas special since Rudolph, Charlie Brown, and The Grinch took off.  His idea was about two bear cubs trying to stay awake until Christmas.  The problem already is that there was no villain for Hanna-Barbera.  So Tony self financed this movie himself.  He was able to finance this by telling the story to the children of some CEO in Vancouver.  The children loved it so much that Tony walked away with a check to get this project started.  As a result, Tony Benedict Productions was formed.  Many people from Hanna-Barbera helped out along the way.  Iwo Takamoto designed the characters.  Ed Love was one of the animators.  Jean Vander Pyle did the voice of Nana (Wilma Flintstone, Rosey the Robot) while Hal Smith (Otis on Andy Griffith) voiced the ranger.  Originally it would be called A Yellowstone Christmas and would be pitched to TV stations, but didn't sell. 

In came Warner Bros who became interested in it.  At first from what I can surmise is that Warners picked it up as is perhaps as a featurette the same way Winnie the Pooh was for Disney.  Proof of this could be seen on original prints for A Yellowstone Christmas.  However, they decided that it should be longer than 30 minutes for Saturday Afternoon matinee.  Songs were added, live action footage was added, and new animation/voice acting was commissioned.  It was believed this is where A Yellowstone Christmas was renamed Santa and the Three Bears. The title could be misleading to some thinking it's like Goldilocks and the Three Bears when in all actuality it's nothing like that.  Plus instead of a Papa, Mama, and Baby Bear is a Mama (Nana), Brother (Chinook), and Sister Bear (Nikomi). However at the same time this was all happening, Warner Bros. would merge with 7arts and while Warner Bros/7arts titles were placed on the film (even before becoming Santa and the Three Bears), eventually they decided to say no to the project all together despite it pretty much being all done.

Enter R and S Films in Hollywood, FL.  "R and S films distributed two kinds of films," recalls Tony Benedict, "children's films and soft core pornography." It also had deep ties with the now defunct Pirates World theme park.  Tony also recalls seeing posters of a children's film and a porno film side by side having the exact same actress.  They found interest in the film and bought it.  Tony was able to buy it back from Warner Bros/7arts and the film got distributed nationwide in 1970.  A contradicting story, however, is that it was R and S Films that renamed the film Santa and the Three Bears, not Warners:

“Following multiple new rejections one opportunity arose. Shelly Schermer operated a small distribution company that specialized in children films and soft corn porn. It was the only offer I had so we made a deal. Shelly re titled the film as SANTA AND THE THREE BEARS and booked it in more than one hundred movie theaters on Saturday and Sunday for a matinee weekends release Thanksgiving Day through Christmas in 1970. At fifty and twenty five cents a ticket is racked up half a million dollars in it’s first year. Precious little of that money found it’s way back to me.”

Special thanks to Greg Ehrbar for the quote taken from Cartoon Research.  

Many different prints were made of this however, and since it was a success that first year different versions of the film were released.  This is where things get tricky for us as we have been exposed or not been exposed to several different versions of the film causing us to ask ourselves "which one is the real version" and "which one is the best version".  This blog is no stranger to going deep diving, and I am not stopping now!  So here we go, these are the many versions of Santa and the Three Bears:

1. A Yellowstone Christmas version

The shortest version on our list, this was the original version pitched to TV networks and Warner Bros.  There are even a Warner Bros/7arts title card at the beginning and a Warner Bros/7arts logo at the end of the film during the credits.  It could be seen why the TV networks turned it down.  The story was not exciting, epic, or dramatic.  It was short, sweet, and simple.  Then again, Charlie Brown was short, sweet, and simple.  Sometimes TV executives are the dumbest people in the world.  Sure I could see where someone could be bored by this version, but it feels very wholesome.  I can't say that a whole lot with Christmas specials today.  This version was never released widespread due to not being sold by a network and the changes being made by Warner Bros/7arts later on.  Tony Benedict at one time uploaded his 35mm copy of this version (omitting any reference of Warner Bros to make it look like it was made for TV), but it has since been taken down.  Don't worry, I backed it up.  

2. Hal Smith version

This version is believed to have been the original theatrical version and may be one of the most common.  At this point is when the movie is longer with more songs and new animation, all still done by Tony Benedict Productions.  The intro and outro features Hal Smith in live action.  In the intro, he begins to tell the story to his niece and nephew about how when he was a park ranger and two little cubs wanted to stay up and enjoy Christmas bringing us into the actual movie.  At the end of the credits, the children have fallen asleep but Hal wakes them up to show that Santa Claus had come while the song "Wonder of Christmastime" finishes up.  Wikepedia claims that Barry Mahon directed the live action sequences with Hal Smith.  This is false information.  First, he nor R and S are given no credit.  Second, R and S is a third rate movie production company based in Hollywood, FL.  They reused actors and actresses from their production companies.  There was no way they could have afforded Hal Smith to do scenes for them as he was in bigger time productions like Andy Griffith, and the only reason he did Santa and the Three Bears in the first place is his close ties with the folks at Hanna Barbera including Tony Benedict who considered him for the role.  Finally, this version while officially released by R and S still bared a "distributed by Warner Bros/7arts" trademark.  This made me believe that these were commissioned by Warners to help pad out time for theatrical release.  Many streaming services as of late have been using this version, though the quality appears to come from 2nd generation VHS tapes.  Goodtimes Video allegedly put this version out without the live action sequences.  

3.  Pirates World/Porpoises version

R and S made their own version of the film which would be the longest version made.  A handful of new animation was added, though it was mostly for the title sequence and additional footage at the beginning of the animation sequence.  All live action scenes take place in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area.  More specifically, the now defunct Ocean World Marine Park.  Perhaps it too was owned and connected to Pirates World?  The live action scenes were up to R and S quality standards......all bad quality.  Here, another ranger is with his own nieces and nephews from Florida (much much older nieces and nephews I must add).  They are complaining about not being in the Christmas spirit because of the Florida weather.  They decided to do something fun by going to Ocean World and seeing the porpoises.  The tour guide shows them all the animals in the park and they get to watch some of the dolphin shows.  After a while, they sit and have lunch once again complaining about how it's too warm for Christmas.  So the uncle tells the story about his co-ranger staying at Yellowstone for the winter and dealing with the two bear cubs wanting to stay up for Christmas.  So wait, one ranger in one version is going to Florida to tell this story while the other ranger in another version, the real Mr. Ranger who experienced it all, goes to his own family and tells the same story..........ok.  After the cartoon portion, the kids go back to seeing more animals and watching the porpoises perform.  There was even a Christmas themed show with the dolphins getting their Christmas gifts to help brighten Christmas Spirits.  The last of the performances ends the movie with "Wonder of Christmastime" playing the whole time (cause when I think of the magic of Christmas, I think of Dolphin Shows....DUH!!!!!).   The film ends with a card advertising Pirates World showing some of their rides and attractions.  Thus, turning a charming little film into one big commercial for Florida parks.  Of all the versions of Santa and the Three Bears, this is the most cringe-y.  The acting is bad, it's all about Ocean World as opposed to the cartoon itself as would R and S's next Christmas film, Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny.  It gets worse, the film was not shy about talking about the capture of porpoises describing how "they finally give in realizing they could not escape".  WHAT?!  Why would you do that making these creatures feel emotionally traumatized by that?  This is why I cringe the most at this version.  Only to cringe more when you realize this park had connections to animal abuse.  Fortunately, this version is very uncommon.  Multicom Entertainment Group has this version well preserved as they have the original masters.  More on that later

4.   Modern Sound Pictures version

Finally, Modern Sound Pictures licensed this movie for non theatrical distribution.  This now defunct company used to rent out 16mm prints of movies and short subjects both owned and licensed.  Usually this meant showings at churches, schools, etc.  However, as one would expect, this resulted in pirates going the extra mile renting out these prints and making multiple dupe copies of the film, which obviously was against the law.  This resulted also in many bad prints of the film in circulation even to this day.  Modern Sound Pictures took the Pirates World version but edited out the live action sequences and any references to those said sequences or Ocean World.  This includes cuts and new titles created in some slots.  This version is also very common because of the dupe prints made.  Many copies of it gives an eerie feeling with the muffled sound, splices and dices, warped music, scratchy soundtrack, and a sudden spliced in Modern Sound Pictures title card.  Oh, and sometimes faded too.  If a fair print is shown, however, and is transferred properly, this version is not that bad.

There were also other versions to have allegedly appear including one in Dallas with sequences made for the Dallas locals.  But as you can see, this movie has been altered multiple times with multiple versions during its peak run.  When it was all said and done however, Tony Benedict received zero money for the film.  R and S and its shady practices said "Oh...we need to recuperate funding."  This shady practice forced the company to close and the copyright of the film to lapse.  Not before, of course, being released theatrically for many years and also syndicated to local television.  In later years, it appeared on TBN, USA, and Fox Family during their annual 25 Days of Christmas.  But, because of it entering in the public domain, it has appeared several times on VHS and DVD in various quality from multiple companies like UAV and Goodtimes.  Streaming companies mostly put this out in VHS quality with the Hal Smith introduction including Peacock and Tubi.  However, only one company (outside of Benedict himself with his Yellowstone print) has tried preserving it in great quality, Multicom.  After research from what I have concluded is that Multicom has the original masters to this film.  But again, the library they have are dirty films (not necessarily porn though) and those God awful Goodtimes Video ripoff movies.  This showed up on Youtube in 360p and on The Archive.tv in 486p.  It even appeared (with ads) on IMDB/Amazon Prime.  However, Multicom claims it's 4k ready.  This all came out recently. Has that version or Tony's been released on home video?  As far as I know, nope.

Santa and the Three Bears is no Rankin/Bass or Charlie Brown, but it is an enjoyable film.  It's probably the best of those categorized low budget Christmas flicks because its original purpose was to be a higher budget film in the first place before having to steep so low.  The characters are well designed and well animated.  It gives me a little bit of The Berenstain Bears vibe as Nana is a lot like Mama Bear and Chinook and Nikomi remind me of Brother and Sister Bear.  If one watches a good copy of it, it looks really cute and neat.  It deserves to be preserved, restored, and presented better than what it has been these past 50 years.  Because the kids that watched it and remembered it enjoyed it, be it in theaters or on television. 

My special thanks to Tony Benedict and Stu Shostak who interviewed Tony on an episode of Stu's Show.  Many of these stories you are reading today come from the show.  I also hope you enjoyed reading about this rarely seen Christmas movie.  I wish you all a Very Merry and Safe Christmas and here's hoping for a Happy New Year!