There's something about 80s and 90s cartoon theme songs that make them super memorable.
Among the many songs that continuously plays in my mind is the theme song from the late 80s cartoon series - "Comic Strip."
The concept of this show is just like its namesake. In the 30 minute episode, there are 4 mini-episodes of 4 different cartoon shows. My favourite? TigerSharks, of course.
While the main characters of the old Thundercats cartoon show were awesome in their own right, the characters that I'd often wait for to appear aren't the cats.
I'd wait for the bear.
Robear bill and Robear belle, in particular.
They were a touch of cuteness in the usual action-packed cartoon series.
You can say that they made the show more, uhm, bearable. Harhar.
This recycling area in Ormoc automatically caught my eye while passing by.
Yes, it's a pretty normal segregation stop-over, and kudos to Ormoc for putting something like this all around the city. That shows how they're serious about the 3Rs.
What caught my eye, though, is what they recycle.
They're recycling "Cartoons"!
I was almost expecting to see Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Mickey Mouse and Spongebob Squarepants inside the bin. But alas, everything inside the area were just "cartons."
For the longest time, the term “Acme” was often seen in Looney Tunes cartoons, particularly Road Runner. This is the brand of equipment that Wil E. Coyote would use to try and trap our beep-beeping hero.
Who would’ve thought that it was a real brand. In the Philippines, to boot!
It turns out, there used to be an Acme Supermarket here in Manila! It’s a factoid I learned while researching for one of the projects that I’m working on.
Oh, the things you learn while on quarantine! Harhar!
Back in 1972, Hanna-Barbera Productions - an innovator and pioneer in animation - imagined what life would be like in 2020.
In their minds back then, there would be a community of scientists living at the bottom of the ocean, studying the viability of living life underwater. They called it Sealab 2020.
Now, almost 48 years since its inception, we've come to the year 2020. And looking back at the crux of the series, it's amazing to think that they've hit some of the ideas spot on (underwater exploration) but parts of it are far off (creating an underwater city).
Growing up, Saturday meant cartoons. It was that day of the week when you can just sit in front of the TV, veg, and enjoy all your favorite superhero shows. Heck, that's why they had Saturday Fun Machine.
Now, thanks to channels like Nick and Cartoon Network, kids can enjoy cartoons everyday, 24/7.
That makes me miss the concept of Saturday = Cartoon Day even more. And because I miss it so much, I decided to go to youtube and check out the opening credits of some of my favorite shows.
Inhumanoids. Aside from the TV show, I also collected all the comics.
Visionaries. This show is a favorite of Mark's, too.
Silverhawks. Yup, I'd scrimp my allowance to buy Silverhawk toys at Nova Fontana.
It's cute how google is really into the World Cup in Brasil. Their mastheads change on a daily basis, and they're these cute cartoons about this year's biggest sporting event.
Now, I find myself checking out google just to see what cartoon they have on.
During our brainstorming sessions, we always end up talking about old kiddie shows and how they don't make show like they do.
Apart from the kooky characters and the incredulous concepts, what made them memorable were the opening theme songs. And among the lot, my favorite theme songs were:
The terrific and trippy "Tomfoolery,"
The spaced out "Great Space Coaster,"
The mystifyingly magical "Marlo and his Magic Movie Machine."
And of course, the ferociously funny "Felix the Cat."
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: "They don't make shows like this anymore."
During my daily conversations with Mark, these cute little cats usually find themselves in the middle of the conversation.
Every time they pop in, I can't help but think "Awww... adorbs!"
I've always loved cats. When I was a kid, we had 3 pet cats named Nimitz, Firefox and Kitty Hawk. (They were named after planes and aircraft carriers, which is quite geeky.) Despite always being scratched by these cats, I'd always play with them. That's how much I loved them.
Even in the realm of comics, my favorite characters were cats. I had a vast Garfield collection and had Heathcliff comic books.
When I was living in HKG, I considered taking in a cat as a pet. This was after I saw my colleague's big, fat cat. But since I was out of the house most of the time, I decided against it.
So yes, cats and I have a long history. And seeing these cutie cattaters during our conversations feels like reliving that history. And it never fails to make me smile.
