Welcoming New Shows and Celebrating the Classics

Despite the major shake-ups we have seen in the streaming universe, animation continues to rank high on the most-discussed subjects in entertainment. We saw an impressive number of animated shows premiering on TV, cable and streaming platforms in the first two months of the year, and there doesn’t seem to be any slowing down as we glance at the list of upcoming shows and movies slated for the rest of the year. Now, if we could only find a way to stop streamers from removing completed shows from their platforms to cut costs and get tax benefits!

Our two cover stories this month — Disney/Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur and Netflix’s My Dad the Bounty Hunter — are perfect examples of innovative new shows that raise the bar both in terms of content and good-looking animation. Make sure you dive into Tom McLean and Devin Nealy’s excellent interviews with the creators behind these two new series that offer insights into their creative processes and long road from initial idea to final delivery.

On the adult animation front, the second season of Prime Video’s The Legend of Vox Machina continues to get raves from fans and critics alike, so we were very pleased to have two of the show’s brilliant exec producers and voice actors, Steve Riegel and Travis Willingham, chat with us about the secrets of their success, their special way of creating the world of Exandria and their (very secret) plans for the third season.

Warner Bros. Animation’s new Velma series has been quite divisive on all fronts. Whether you love or hate the show’s very meta, savvy and decidedly adult approach to Hanna-Barbera’s source material, it’s always good to know what the creators (Charlie Grandy and Mindy Kaling) were thinking as they embarked on their challenging journey. The results may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but maybe someone will solve the mystery of why the show became the object of so many hateful attacks online and also ended up as HBO Max’s most watched new show of the month ... Where’s Scooby when we need him?

While February is one of the slowest months of the year in terms of new movie releases, we had plenty of projects to write about thanks to Cartoon Movie’s big 25th anniversary edition. You can read about some of our picks for most-anticipated titles coming out of the Europe in this issue. We send Cartoon Movie’s general director, Annick Maes, all our best and congratulate her and her hard-working team on the global success of this popular event.

Speaking of anniversaries, let’s not forget that our favorite awards show, the Annies, is celebrating its 50th edition this month. We all look forward to raising a toast to the memory of the wonderful June Foray, who started this celebration back in November of 1972. Just like the animation industry it supports and celebrates, the Annie Awards have grown magnificently over the past five decades. We look forward to attending this entertaining event this month as we know ASIFA-Hollywood’s bigwigs Sue Shakespeare, Frank Gladstone, Jerry Beck and everyone else involved in this production are planning lots of cool surprises and one heck of a show this year. One thing’s for sure: Animation folks definitely know how to entertain. And we promise, no humans will be punched. (We can’t vouch for the animated characters!)

Ramin Zahed Editor in Chief ramin@animationmagazine.net

Quote Of The Month

“Yeah, man I tell you whot man, that dang ol’ Greg, talking about ‘O.G.’ and then that Mike Judge … inspirations, man … The original show, dang ol’ classic … Got my kids, man, walking around talking about,

— commenting on Hulu greenlighting the revival of Mike Judge & Greg Daniels’ King of the Hill

MARCH 2023

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