By Robin Jones
When I was a young warthog…. WHEN I WAS A YOUNG WARTHOOOOOOOOG…. Wait, no. Stop plagurising Disney Robin! When I was younger, I loved characters like Batman, Superman, the X-Men and such and very much enjoyed the TV shows that were on offer at the time. There were classic like Batman The Animated Series, The X-Men cartoon, which to this day has one of the most recognisable (and immense) theme tunes, Spider-Man,The Tick, Earthworm Jim, Bucky O’Hare and so so many more! The problem I had as a kid though, wasn’t a lack of TV but a lack of actual comics! I used to read the Beano and Dandy but when it came to the big two I honestly couldn’t tell you what children’s comics there were available to a 7 year old back in 1992. I have vague memories, from when I was about 12, of going into my local hobby shop on Lowestoft’s High Street to buy my latest fix of Warhammer as I expanded my Blood Angels army with a Whirlwind tank…and in the corner there were twirly book racks covered in comics of all shapes and sizes. I distinctly remember Witchblades breasts staring out at me from the front pages of her comic, her metal clasped nipples threatening to have my eye out, and I also remember seeing Priest and Preacher glistening at me. However, what I don’t remember is comics specifically aimed at the little fat kid I mentioned before hand.
However, things changed, the Internet took over our lives, Geek Chic became the new mainstream, fuck you jocks and fuck you popular kids. The meek HAVE inherited the earth. And if we can’t protect it, you’ll be damn sure we will avenge it… I’m being sidetracked, basically, it is now so easy to access the geek life, comics, films, TV shows etc. And now that us 90′s kids are all grown up, there are comic books galore catering to our spawn and offspring. Some would say that back when I was younger that the medium of comic books were aimed squarely at children, however when you look at the comic book stories of the 90′s, with Batman getting his back broken, Superman dying, Spider-Man having a clone and it all generally being doom and gloom, I don’t think I could happily let my 9 year old read them! Either way I’ve got my children tablets for Christmas and absolutely rammed them full with some amazing comics, Tiny Titans, Mary Jane loves Spider-Man, My Little Pony, Adventure Time and loads of others.The choice and quality of said comics are simply staggering! So, what I’m going to do is take a look at Marvel’s Oz series and DC’s Tiny Titans and look at why they are so appealing!
Let’s start with a modern adaptation of a classic work. Adapting L. Frank Baum novels, Eric Shanower and Skottie Young bring Dorothy, Toto, the cowardly Lion, the Scarecrow, the Tin-Man and all of Oz’s wealth of memorable characters to life! Adapting six of Baum’s novels into comic forms, Young and Shanower have captured the spirit and innocence of the novels, with Young’s very famous style perfectly suited to such a book. It was recently announced the series was to end, which in my personal opinion is a massive shame since it has earned much critical acclaim, several Eisner Awards and achieving a place on the coveted New York Times’ Bestsellers list! One of the best parts of these adaptations is there dedication to the original source material, this isn’t a modern, gritty re-imagining of Oz like the Sci-Fi channel attempted a few years back with the rather forgettable Tin-Man. (Staring none other than Dum-Dum Duggan: Neil McDonough, Nightcrawler: Alan Cummings and New Girl’s Zooey Deschanel to name but a few) Eric Shanower, in an interview with Examiner.com stated ”These adaptations are very close to the original material. The only changes I make to the stories is to incorporate, when appropriate and useful, other versions by Baum, such as stage scripts and introductions for excerpts” and that he ”hope(d) readers of [his] comics adaptations of the Oz books [got] a thrilling and humorous experience that’s fresh and direct.”
The Oz series is an excellent introduction for children to get into the world of comic books, and to the world of Marvel as Young’s artwork appeals to adults and children alike. (Myself and my Fiancee are starting to collect his variant covers due to how BRILLIANT they are!) It is captivating, charming and delightfully fresh in today’s market of dark, gritty visuals. Young himself had this to say about the series ending:
“I’ve never been emotional about a book I’ve worked on. As an artist in today’s comic landscape, you get used to spending 6-8 months on one title and then moving onto another. The long run of characters being yours and yours alone is very rare. To come to work every day for nearly 6 years and spend time with the same characters in the same world is something I grew to love and depend on. Leaving it behind is bitter sweet. I’m excited face new challenges but a bit sad to leave one of the most reliable things in my life.”
That sadness is mutual Mr Young… very mutual.
Next up, we have the simply fantastic Tiny Titans. This comic absolutely captivates myself, and I’m a 28 year old man, so imagine being the 5 – 10 year old this comic is aimed at! Mind…BLOWN! If you aren’t familiar with Tiny Titans, let me give you a brief, set in the DC world, it followed the various sidekicks of many of DC’s major heroes as they deal with life at Sidekick City Elementary School. The school is run by Principal Slade, yes…Deathstroke and the children think of him as a mean guy, and generally, they’re right. notable characters include Robin, Batgirl, Aqualad, Wondergirl, Cyborg, Kid Flash and Beast Boy. Created by Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani, Tiny Titans encapsulates everything that was good, in my eyes, about the Beano and Dandy, mixes it up with a little bit of Schultz’s Peanuts adventures (I think Robin looks like Charlie Brown) and adds a dash of Bill Watterson’s Calvin and Hobbes magic. The result is wonderful for children and adults alike!
Baltazar and Aureliani won Eisner Awards in 2009 and 2001 for Best Series for Kids, and it was a New York Times best seller, and it’s easy to see why! Throughout the whole series, there are many references to wider DC continuity, with the kids finding the different Spectrum rings of the Lantern corps, Lunch Lady Darkseid declares the kids exams as their “Finals Crisis” and Robin even has to battle for Batman’s cowl…with a cow. It had a fantastic initial 50 issue run, with each issue containing several different stories, my personal favorites being the Beast Boy ones! What Tiny Titans does is introduce our children to the characters we love, in a method and means they will love. And recently, it was announced due to the popularity of Baltazar and Aureliani’s work on titles like Itty Bitty Hellboy, Super Family Adventures and Super Pets that DC are bringing Tiny Titans back early next year! Art and Franco talk about the series returning here with an interview they gave to Newsarama. Thus it is a time for much rejoicing and a whole heap of shouting “AWWW YEAAAH COMICS!”
What Art and Franco do is summon up a wonderful feeling of nostalgia when you read Tiny Titans, like a warm fuzzy blanket. You know the cool, wholesome fun that’s contained within, you’re familiar with the treehouse, the canteen and the classrooms, because it’s your childhood and the programs you watched growing up, all wrapped in a bright, colorful bubble of comic goodness with your favorite sidekicks leading the fun! i for one, am certainly looking forward tot heir return!
Since this a new volume of my incoherent ramblings, I figured it was about time I included a Twitter/Facebook chatathon like we’ve all done before! This time around I asked you all, what was your favorite comic/comic related TV show from when you were young? Lets take a look at your answers:
Aka legless ninja @Jetjaguar67 – The flash, that shows legit I still watch it! Conan has to be the worst comic book show though! Do you count tales from the crypt cause Its up there too?
Joe Havard @KroganSushi – Toss up between 90′s Spider-Man, 90′s X-Men, or Justice League!
Mathew Wilmot @HiMyNameIsOften -Batman the animated series. Still the best animated show there is, don’t get me wrong, loved the xmen and spidey cartoons but bats is still king! Also can’t beat the tick and lest we forget, Earthworm Jim!
Sean Favager @Seanfav1 – Haha this is a no brainer batman animated series. If anything else even gets a vote then its bullshit haha 
Steve Taylor-Bryant @OpinionGeeks – I was in my teens but the original The Flash tv show was a favourite. Wonder Woman as a child was good although I was quite young when it was on so didn’t ‘get’ it til I was older
Mattiiiiiiiiiiiie @Super__Cyan – X-Men TAS > Batman TAS #justsayin
Inter-Comics @InterComics – If its actual super hero shows surely the camp Batman one should be up there I used to love Battle of the Planets too as a kid
PaJi @DrPaji – Batman the animated series. It’s a no brainer. Don’t ask stupid questions you should know the answer to.
Stephen McDonnell @McDoodil -Don’t forget the Spiderman series either!! Best has to be Batman though #Fantastic! Top episodes have to be “Heart of Glass” and the Joker fish one LOL
Bekki Short @ALoadofBekkiS – Grew up watching Lois and Clark new adventures of superman with my ma. Freakazoid…does he count?
K.J Stewart @KevJStewart – The Mask, from back in the day!
Rob Richardson – Transformers!
NightOfTheLivingEd @ed_pool – Batman The Animated series and 90′s X-Men. I’ll put them up against anything
Jason Webb™ @jaybwebb – Surely the 90′s Spider-Man cartoon gets a mention! But Batman TAS rules
Russ Hagan @russy_h – As I’m an old fart, gotta be the original Transformers cartoon (shown on Wide Awake Club!)
Ephrain Silva @ComicBookGuy90 – Real tough choice for me but it’s between Superman: The Animated Series and Justice League.
Haddonfield Horror @HaddonfieldHor -Uum Spiderman probably!
The Cult Den. @TheCultDen -For me, it was either spiderman, x-men or Banana Man. Good shows, but honestly, Xmen. The scene where Cyclops is staring off into the sunset after Jean dies? FEELS! Also, it was a better ending than the actual phoenix saga. There, I said it.
Shaun Balliah – The X-Men animated series. Interesting to note there are two episodes that, it would seem, the latest x-men movie is based on and named after. “Days of future past”.
Hcmoviereviews – Defiantly the 1994 Spiderman series! They are unreal!
Ross Xander Diprose – Even though the Spider-Man cartoon from the 90s can muddle a lot up and Peter did come across as too whiny at times.. What a show! So many characters and awesome storylines! My fav by far. Followed by the tick! A cartoon I would love for them to have another crack at in comics form though? Disneys Gargoyles! THAT was a good show!
Jordan Kroeger @jkroeg – The Tick!
Mikael @alsoMike -Can’t pick between the animated shows Batman, X-Men or Spider-Man. I loved all of those. Also I kept renting a tape with 2 eps of Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends from the store over & over again. It was Swarm and 7 Little Superheroes for the record. #Swarm #Swarm #Swaaaarm #SWAAAAARM
Charlotte @lottiejonesy – The Spider-Man cartoon from the 90′s!
Well there we go. Apparently there’s people ready to fight anyone else who disagrees that Batman: The Animated Series is the greatest kids comic cartoon. I loved the Bat, don’t get me wrong, but I’m going out on a limb here and saying that the X-Men cartoon was the best. Furious, full of fights, grown up and THAT Intro music… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZAhqEiq4cA
Yup, this was the formative cartoon of my childhood…come at me Bat-Kids! Lets rumble!!
Until next time…
For more comic views and reviews follow Robin on Twitter at @Hulksmash1985
Posted on December 4th, 2013
Category: NEWS & VIEWS, PAPERCUTS AND INKSTAINS VOL. 2, REVIEWS
Tags: Animated comics series, Batman The Animated Series, Oz, Robin Jones, Skottie Young, The Tick, Tiny Titans, X-Men