Ah Animaniacs, the show that every kid in the ‘90s has such fond memories of, and why not? It was on 6 days a week…

Created by Warner Bros. animation and executive produced by Steven Spielberg, (He’d reportedly read the scripts while on the set of Schindler’s List, among other films.) The show had a simple concept: take a studio full of talent acquired from Spielberg’s previous animated venture, Tiny Toon Adventures and see if they can add to the legacy of original animated characters that Warner Bros. set forward with Bugs Bunny, Sylvester and Tweety, and the Road Runner. This was still at a time when Warner had a need to actually CREATE cartoon characters, instead of simply buying them off DC Comics or Turner Broadcasting.

The end result was something of a mixed bag, but a mixed bag to which people attribute very fond memories to. Some of these characters are memorable to the point that their exploits are legend. Others that are not as well remembered, but in hindsight are still very entertaining, and a few characters that seem like episode filler even when they were created.

This is also a series that has one hell of a first season episode list: 65 episodes, one-after-another, doled out since its premiere of 1993. The hefty first season was a necessity, as they hoped to run this as a staple of weekday afternoon network programming for kids. (Remember when that was a thing?) Later seasons only existed in order to help promote the overall series in key moments, such as its move from the Fox network to the WB, now known as the CW. Those first 65 episodes, however are the ones that people most fondly remember. 
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We’ll explore how successful this experiment in free form weekday afternoon animation was, point by point as we review the episodes, but first, as with the series proper, we have to begin with The Warner Brothers, and the Warner Sister.

Episode 1:
De-Zanitized
The episode begins with “Newsreel of the Stars,” a pre-episode bumper that explains the origins of the series’ anchor characters: Yakko, Wakko, and Dot. This bumper was re-used in so many first season episodes that the regular watchers of the series can recite the entire the entire thing from memory. “Dateline: Hollywood, 1930. The Warner Bros. studios…” To make a long story short, Warner Bros. (studio) created the Warner Brothers (retro cartoons of indiscriminate species), who instantaneously jumped off the page and went on zany shenanigans, until it was ordered that they be captured, and locked away in the landmark Warner Bros. (studio) water tower, where they can’t cause anymore trouble. They supposedly remain quiet for decades until they escape again in the ‘90s, and now you know the plot.

Almost immediately as this concept is introduced, a lot of inconsistencies show up, to the point the premise itself gets patched up and retconned in later episodes. But for now, this is what we’re going with as the first cartoon introduces us to Dr. Otto Von Scratchansniff. The Elmer Fudd to the Warners’ Bugs Bunny, Scratchansniff is a pseudo German/Swiss accented psychiatrist hired by the studio to provide psychoanalysis to many celebrities. In his opening narration, which he tells to another unseen psychiatrist, he admits that he used to love his job, until The Warners escape and he’s made into their lead caretaker. The rest of the cartoon is made up of mostly verbal and visual gags, as the Warner siblings run circles around Scratchansniff, forcing him to pull out what’s left of his male-patterned grey hair, until he’s completely bald. Once he rends himself of his last follicle, we return to the psychiatrist’s couch, where it is revealed he’s been telling all this to the Warners all along. He freaks out, runs through a wall, end of cartoon.

Almost instantly, the audience can pick up something odd about the premise: The Warners aren’t actually psychotic, just hyperactive, inquisitive, and physically exhausting, like most normal kids are. They’re also a lot smarter than Scratchansniff, possibly a by-product of them being around since the ‘30s. Add into that the fact that they’re cartoon characters, capable of multiple feats of “rule of funny” cartoon zaniness, and you find that logically bonded characters are never any match for them.

Except….Nobody ever tries to understand them. If Scratchansniff were TRULY a good therapist, he’d take the time to try to engage them on their level, instead of trying to fit them into a polite box that they don’t belong in. Of course, reasonable psychology, and well behaved kids don’t make for very funny cartoons, so let's move right along to some of the musical highlights and some of the adult themed jokes we find in this episode, starting with...

The Monkey Song
The Monkey Song is a staple of traditional reggae, most popularly interpreted by Harry Belafonte. Like most reggae songs, it combines a subtle, easy going, beat with lyrics that are supposed to induce dancing in a crowded hall of people. The Animaniacs version prefers pan flute, steel and conga drums, and has lyrics about The Warners further harassing Scratchansniff, Ralph the Guard, and Hello Nurse. Scratchy’s level of annoyance with the Warners is a bit more justified in this short: they’re literally running around annoying everyone, putting bugs down his pants, and flushing him down the toilet. There’s also a mass of cameos from every other character set to appear in the upcoming episodes: the Goodfeathers fight over a pan flute, Pinky and the Brain get caught in a mouse trap, The Hip Hippos play steel drums, Buttons chases Mindy, and Slappy doles violence upon a mime. You get a very small idea of the function every one of these characters before you’ve even seen any of their cartoons.

Nighty Night Toons
To round out the cast-introducing first episode, here’s a spoof of the popular children’s book “Goodnight Moon,” with narration by Jim Cummings impersonating Sterling Holloway. A lot of rhymes are really awkward and reaching. “Room” rhymes with “Log Flume,” the Brain resents being called a rat, but it rhymes better. “A big baboon,” is actually Ralph the Guard. Don’t know why they put two character-introducing skits in the same episode, but thankfully Rita and Runt are added in here. We also get the first “under the radar” moment, when Yakko ends the sketch by reciting “and goodnight Wakko’s Underwear.”

Adult jokes and Neat Moments:
Porky Pig drives through the studio gate. He’s voiced by Rob Paulsen, who really CAN’T imitate Porky, but it works for a cameo.
-One of Scratchansniff’s early patients is a young Ronald Reagan. (Well, I keep having this dream where I’m the president.)
-In regards to Hello Nurse, one of the lines in “The Monkey Song" (as sung by the Nurse then Yakko) is “I don’t know what to say the monkeys won’t do/for a nickel I’ll give you a clue.” Smooth, Yakko. 

Sometimes, you get an episode of your favorite show that in many ways, takes your breath away and leaves you at a loss for words because it decides to go all out and leave nothing on the table. These are the kind of episodes that turn out to be game changers if you will, simply because nothing will ever be the same after the story comes to a close and that's exactly the kind of episode that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. delivered to us last night. 

"Absolution" and "Ascension" were a pair of episodes that took incredible risks, with both the story and the characters and every single one of them paid off because for the first time ever in the history of the show, our beloved agents were truly put to the test against an invincible enemy. We've never seen them fail like this. We've never seen them hurt like this and we've never seen them suffer loss like this and well...this finale served as a crowning jewel for the series because this is exactly what the show has been lacking; solid challenges and stakes that force them to rise to the occasion and thanks to that powerhouse ending, the entire landscape of the show has likely changed for the better. 

But before we get to that, let's talk about those challenges that the team dealt with because at first, all was well. S.H.I.E.L.D. was able to take the fight to Hive at last and not only confuse and disable him mentally for a time; but they were even able to disrupt and defeat his plan to turn a sizeable chunk of mankind into his own special brand of Inhumans. But Hive's intelligence and foresight was finally on full display in this episode since he was able to undo everything that S.H.I.E.L.D. had accomplished and that's when things got ugly. 

When all was said and done, the team was bruised, battered and bleeding in their desperate last ditch effort to board Zephyr One and keep the Inhuman Nuke from detonating over Europe and well, they looked defeated and broken and desperate...but nothing was going to stop them. No matter the cost, they were ready to sacrifice their all to make sure that mankind would be spared from a horrific fate as one of those awful abominations.

But while it was incredible to see the team unite like this and fight with every ounce of their strength, nothing they did can compare to the sacrifice that Lincoln made to fly the Quinjet into space with Hive aboard to put an end to all of this. It was a beautiful and heroic scene, one that even redeemed Hive and Ward in its own special way as both men waited patiently for the end...but the effects of his sacrifice are what mattered more. Because the other hard part of this episode to watch was Daisy's downward spiral. Shattered mentally, it was painful to see her beg Hive to return to his world of bliss and then to see her lose the man she loved...you knew it broke her spirit completely.

Which is why the final ten minutes, when we flashed forward six months...made sense. Daisy had become a vigilante, using her powers to rob banks to become an Inhuman Robin Hood, giving to those less fortunate than her and running from the law and well...that ending leaves plenty of questions on the table for season four. For starters, what happened to the team? Since we only saw Mack and Coulson after Daisy, did the battle with Hive shatter the rest of the group as well? I'm also wondering now, is Coulson no longer the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.? His comments seemed to suggest that the mistakes he made this season had him removed from his position. Either way, what an incredible episode. Every single second of this one was an absolute joy to watch and I cannot wait to see what season four looks like after this game changer of a finale. Until next season. 

What a brutal week when it comes to television since we have seen one series after another disappear from the airwaves as the networks continue to wield the cancellation stick with impunity, dropping shows from the lineup that are either so-so performers to outright fan favorites. But there was some good news from this past week's cancellation fiesta, the fact that Supergirl survived the madness by getting its second season order, after months of speculation.

Granted it had to move to the CW to get it, but what matters more is that the series will continue, while the news was less than positive for fans of Castle and Agent Carter. Both of these beloved series found themselves on the chopping block and well...while we could discuss the merits of why these shows needed a second chance, we won't be doing that today. The bottom line is that both shows deserved a better send off and truthfully ABC made a horrible mistake in shutting down Peggy Carter's adventures and the severity and ugliness of the moves this year got me to thinking...there has to be a better way to handle renewals for our favorite shows.

You see, TV works on a strange model. Essentially, every show out there is basically coasting along on a year to year basis. The big ones get their renewal notices earlier in the season, but freshman shows or shows on the bubble continue their life on the edge, waiting until this time of year to find out if the cast and crew have jobs and this is no doubt a brutal part to the business. While I understand that hey, ratings are king and that's simply how it's done...some stories require a little more time to find their footing and working year to year tends to hurt the creative process. So...with that in mind, why not try something new?

Perhaps it is time that every single network out there do what seems like the impossible, and give every single new television show that goes from pilot to series order...a three or four year deal to do their thing. That would allow at last, for a multi year arc to be plotted out in the writer's room and allow for actors to truly dig into their characters and focus on their growth; and more importantly for us the viewer, it wouldn't leave us hanging, and obviously it allows for the executives at the network and the people behind the scenes to put a little more care into these stories so they come out of the gate stronger. Plus, to protect the business side of things as well, there could be a clause that allows for cancellation in the second year if the show is an unmitigated ratings and critical disaster.  

Either way, something has to change. The way the system is set up right now is simply not working. There's an incredible focus on ratings over story and that simply needs to stop. A concept like a three season order would have allowed for Agent Carter to say goodbye to the fans properly with a third and final season and imagine how many other shows out there we would have closure with if such an idea existed out in Los Angeles. Sure the idea may be imperfect and I'm sure there are lots of details to hammer out that I'm unaware of, but imagine how incredible television shows would become if given the chance to tell a proper story. 

Despite being part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. at times seems to be on its own island in this sea of incredible stories. Whenever a new Marvel movie is released that may have bearing on the show, the "tie-in" to it tends to be nothing more than a simple mention or television clip, with the exception to this particular rule coming in the first season with a decent Thor tie-in and the series making use of the events of The Winter Soldier to in essence change the format of the show completely.

So naturally when I heard that "Emancipation" was going to have a tie-in to Civil War, I was skeptical and as the episode opened with said tie-in, I have to admit it looked like more of the same. A television update on Steve Rogers, a newspaper blurb on the passing of Peggy Carter, Talbot discussing how the Sokovia Accords were the law of the land; it really seemed like business as usual for the tie-in and then the show decided to surprise us all. While Civil War made mention of Enhanced Individual Registration before moving onto the rest of its story, this week's episode of S.H.I.E.L.D. decided that registration act and its ethics needed to be explored. 

It made for a fascinating segment with Talbot finally setting foot inside Coulson's headquarters to get the grand tour and have a frank discussion with Phil about why the Sokovia Accords are important and why they need to be implemented as soon as possible and to be honest, hearing a little more about the Accords and what registration includes is actually quite concerning. Lincoln had a point that the giant list of Enhanced individuals and their true identities, complete with DNA samples is a touch frightening, not to mention May has a point as to how the Accords could also limit the movements and work of the team long term down the road as well. But alas, there would be no fix to that particular mess last night. Because while all of this was damn fascinating...there were bigger fish to fry story wise. 

After all, Hive is still working on his plan to alter mankind genetically to create a planet full of Inhumans and in order to see his plan come to fruition poor Daisy was put through the wringer, donating an insane amount of blood to help create a serum to accomplish Hive's goal and well, this is when the episode became downright brutal. Because as a gift to Daisy, Hive made sure that Hellfire kidnapped a group of Watchdogs to use for the experiment and while it turned out to be a success, what it created...was stuff straight out of a horror movie. 

In essence Hive created a more primitive Inhuman. One that is horribly disfigured and supremely loyal and what's worse, Hive was good with everything about them. This is most likely his vision for humanity, but before he could go any further in preparing more of the serum...the show injected a grand twist our way that I absolutely loved. The subplot this episode revolved around Daisy doing her best to seduce Lincoln to add him to Hive's collection and it looked like she had him hook, line and sinker since she worked the systems she designed to get him aboard a Quin-Jet to reunite with her and in the process be taken by Hive. But alas, it was all a ruse. Lincoln knew she would try this and working with Coulson and May they came up with a plan to send Lash in his place, believing that Lash's purpose as an Inhuman was to put down Hive. 

Turns out they, and anyone else who thought Lash was the answer (myself included) were wrong. While Lash was indeed a match for Hive, his real purpose all along was to cure Daisy and save her life, putting her on the Quin-Jet before facing his end at the hands of Hellfire. It made for a sobering finale where May quietly said goodbye to the shell of her husband and where Daisy, now free of her link to Hive, had to come to the realization of everything she has done under his control. This was truly a brutal episode through and through, and I loved every single second of it. This is how damn good this series is when it holds nothing back and I only hope they keep this kind of pace going from here on out because this episode was world class. Either way. The end is in sight. The two hour season finale arrives next week, and the team may never be the same if indeed an agent is going to die. Until next time.