There is a certain reverence for the old Warner Brothers cartoon characters that should be held in place whenever someone new wants to do a little re-vamping. I think if you were to ask any young animator today if they felt their talent even approached the genius of those members of the Termite Terrace, most would say, "Not a chance." I'm sure there would be a handful of arrogant ones who think they are funnier or better… but arrogance is not substitute for talent. The rest of us know they would be wrong. So when I heard that the new suits at Warner Brothers were going to re-imagine Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and company with updated designs, I readied my picket signs. Then I saw pictures of these new millennia Loonatics and about had a cow.

They looked like Anime superhero versions of the classic characters. My expression was akin to that of a Tex Avery character, with steam coming out of my ears, my hair spinning in the air, and my eyes shooting out about 3 feet in front of my face.

Thankfully, these new animators were spared crucifixion when the news broke that these were indeed NOT re-imaginings of the characters, but were instead new characters loosely based on Bugs, Daffy and the gang. They changed the names and made them superheroes in the future city of Acmetropolis. Ace Bunny has laser vision, Danger Duck can teleport, Tech E. Coyote can regenerate, Slam Tasmanian can turn into a whirlwind, etc…. Each episode pits them against some villain (voiced by Hollywood big shot actors) out to take over the city.

I never saw a single episode when they originally aired, but did manage to make it through the entire first season which was released a few months ago on DVD by the folks at Warner Brothers. All 13 episodes were released and truth be told, I found them to be quite funny. Not as funny as the original Warner cartoons, but at least on par with the recent "Duck Dodgers" series. The writers and animators tried to capture the spirit of the old while injecting it with the new and the combination is entertaining.

The follow-up DVD of the second season offers up an additional 13 episodes, which were actually a little better than the first seasons. There are no extra features on the 2-disc set (the first season set had an asteroid shooting game). I was really hoping for some interviews, after seeing that some of the voice work included Tim Curry, Michael Clark Duncan and Vivica A. Fox. Still, the show itself was pretty fun and I think most parents will enjoy watching them with the kids.

Episodes:
A Creep in the Deep
Secrets of the Guardian Strike Sword
I Am Slamacus
The Heir Up There
Apocalypso
The Family Business
Cape Duck
The Hunter
It Came from Outer Space
In the Pinkster
The Music Villain
The Fall of Blanc: Part 1
In Search of Tweetums: Part 2

Starring (the voices of): Tim Curry, Michael Clark Duncan, Vivica A. Fox, David Faustino, Florence Henderson
Extras: None
Specifications: Full Screen, Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround Sound
Studio: Warner Brothers
Release Date: 8/14/2007
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website
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We'll give Loonatics: Season 2 a B.