28 years later and the streaming service HULU has brought back the classic 90's show 'Animaniacs' with somewhat mixed results. The first season aired in its entirety on November 20th and consists of 13 episodes featuring the beloved Warners along with fan favorites Pinky & The Brain. Sadly, seeing the rest of the show's cast not appear is somewhat a strike against this new iteration but it is understandable as the show is being given a much lower budget than before so trimming the fat was a necessity.
Thankfully the original voice cast return along with some great songwriting that may not beat the original's but are fun tunes by themselves. All in all the skeleton of 'Animaniacs' is there on paper but the show runs into issues with its writing and it seems the humor falls flat a lot more than it did previously. The genius of the original show was that it was timeless even when satirizing the pop culture of the 90s which I don't feel this update is capable of in its current form.
You can tell right away the show has been on somewhat of a hiatus since around 2018 given the outdated jokes about Snowden and especially the many jabs at President Trump or acknowledging themselves as a reboot ad nauseam. Where the show shines is when it goes back to the classic formula of the Warners terrorizing a ignorant hunter or a macho bodybuilder. The Pinky & The Brain segments are probably the strongest with the best written material of the season and the duo being just as funny as before.
'Animaniacs' feels a little dated but not in a good way. What used to be innovative for having the best in irreverent and pop culture humor now feels like it's lagging behind the modern animated fare it inspired. The show is still fun and scratches that nostalgia itch, but here's hoping it gets a bit more organized come the second season.
B-
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