Via io9: "The first nine Superman cartoons produced by Fleischer Studios from 1941 to 1942 are a wonder of animated retrofuturism, giving us a peek into a world that not only had a flying superstrong protector, but also filled viewers' heads with dreams of autonomous robots, comet-controlling telescopes, and machines that could shake the Earth. These films are in the public domain and have been available on the Internet Archive," but now Warner Bros. is releasing them (remastered) on YouTube. The first short, "Superman" (also known as "The Mad Scientist,") was nominated for an Academy Award. Also see: The Super Guide to the Fleischer Superman Cartoons. Find links to all nine episodes and more inside. [more inside]
posted by zarq on Nov 25, 2012 - 28 comments

Sombody once said,

"There is a beast with such succulent meat, it melts all over your tongue. There is a bubbling spring flowing with tastes of countless fruit juices, such as sweet musk melons and ripened mangoes."

It is the Gourmet Era. The era in which one will search for undiscovered tastes. [Hulu link for US-based viewers] [more inside]
posted by lemuring on Apr 17, 2012 - 9 comments

Carrying on the tradition of Woody Allen's What's Up Tiger Lily and Steve Oedekerk's Kung Pow, Dub of the North St*r takes a well-known, and frequently violent, anime and turns into a comical parody of itself.
posted by lemuring on Aug 30, 2011 - 15 comments

"Five orphans with a spacecraft battle a lipsticked maniac from the Crab Nebula and his unlikely big flying robots. No one gets hurt."

In 1972, the anime action-adventure show Kagaku ninja tai Gatchaman (Science Ninja Team Gatchaman,) premiered on Japanese television. Featuring graphic violence, extensive profanity and a transgendered villain, it was one of the most popular animated series of its time. Envisioning similar success in the US, Sandy Frank Entertainment acquired the series in 1978 but deemed it too graphic and shocking for domestic audiences. So they hired two Hanna-Barbera vets to "re-version" totally bowdlerize the episodes with new scripts, voiceovers music and effects, animation, etc., at a cost of $5 million and turn it into a brand new show: Battle of the Planets. Here are the original 1978 Battle of the Planets feature film (in 7 parts,) and the first 19 episodes of the show, all available on Youtube. [more inside]
posted by zarq on Jan 28, 2011 - 61 comments

Cromartie High School is a Japanese manga and animated series. It investigates poignant issues and themes in contemporary culture such as Internet Trolls, Denial, and Perception. Most importantly, it educates the viewer on what it takes to be an honest-to-goodness Badass. [more inside]
posted by lemuring on Jan 20, 2011 - 29 comments

Emile Hirsch plays the title character. Christina Ricci is Trixie. John Goodman is Pops, Susan Sarandon is Mom. And Matthew Fox plays Racer X. The Wachowski brothers are directing. Hollywood screws with yet another happy childhood memory.
posted by metasonix on Jun 4, 2007 - 60 comments

I Love Egg
posted by mr_crash_davis on Oct 4, 2003 - 10 comments

A short Japanese action cartoon rendered entirely in animated gifs. Really impressive stuff.
Would someone please translate the 'little match girl' one at the very bottom?
So many instances recently where I've wished I spoke Japanese...
posted by TiggleTaggleTiger on Jan 8, 2002 - 5 comments

Astroboy! Get out your red rocket boots and laser shooting behind. Sony is planning to bring the cult superhero/wonderboy to the screen in 2004 in computer-generated glory. Will the film feature Astro's evil brother Atlas, or Astro's slightly unnerving robotic parents?
posted by phatboy on Dec 10, 2001 - 6 comments

Cartoon Network begins its "Adult Swim" programming tonight: Toons aimed at the 18-35 audience. I'm most excited about Cowboy Bebop (Japanese site; English is under construction). (more inside)
posted by jpoulos on Sep 2, 2001 - 26 comments