Hellooooooo Nurse! ANIMANIACS is Being Rebooted By Steven Spielberg and Warner Bros.
One of my favorite animated shows to watch in the 90's besides Batman: The Animated Series and Gargoyles, was Animaniacs. That show was hilarious and it always made me laugh. I've been watching the series with my kids on Netflix and they're loving it.
It looks like we haven't seen the last of the Warner Brothers and their sister Dot because Steven Spielberg is working with Amblin Television and Warner Bros. to reboot the classic cartoon series.
According to IndieWire, the series has experienced a "new surge in popularity since arriving on Netflix last year" and that popularity prompted the reboot. I'm excited about this and worried at the same time. It could be awesome to see these characters come back and see what zany new adventures they find themselves in. Of course, there's the chance that the updated series won't live up to the greatness of the original.
The report goes on to reveal that this is all in the early stages of development, but the revival of shows from the 90's have been pretty successful recently. The reboot doesn't have a home yet, but it seems like the kind of show that could find a lot of success on Netflix.
What I loved about Animaniacs was its mix of humor that both kids and adults enjoyed. It has a sophisticated humor to it with lots of fun pop-culture references. The series won eight Daytime Emmy Awards while it was on the air and it won a Peabody Award in 1993. Here's the reason why it won:
“Too often today, animation on television is produced in a workman-like manner, with little attention paid to characterization, illustration, and above all, narrative storytelling. This series, with appeal to adults as well as children, reminds us of the glory days of Hollywood animation and brings that period up-to-date with sparkling characters, witty dialogue, and stunning production. The magic touch of executive producer Steven Spielberg is in evidence in the work of senior producers Rich Arons and Sherri Stoner, and the rest of the outstanding production team. For restoring quality to the daily animated television series, and for doing so in a thoroughly engaging and highly kinetic manner, a Peabody to Steven Spielberg Presents Animaniacs.”
I'd love it if this new series captured that magic again!