Has the animation industry improved, stayed the same, or gone down since the '90s?

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To me, the animation industry, as far as "mainstream" animation was at its peak in America in the '90s...early '90s Nick, late '90s Cartoon Network (as well as into the early '00s), Kids WB, animated movies of the time, and everything else. Throughout the '00s and into the '10s it seems like it has decreased in quality, but at the same time I suppose it could partially be because I'm getting older. What do you think, has the industry improved or fallen since the '90s? Or even just leveled off?
 
If we don't count anime, (which most dubs sucked in the early 2000's), then I'd say the animation industry has declined.

Most shows now are just copies of older shows that were done better. The comedy shows CN and Nick come up with seem like slightly altered version of older shows I had watched.

In terms of superhero cartoons, I'd say its gotten both better and worse at the same time. B:TAS is still the best Batman show, but Spiderman and X-men did have better cartoons in the 2000's. TMNT 2k3 was also a great and overlooked action cartoon. Teen Titans was also fun as was Justice League.

But sadly the "golden age" is long gone. Tiny Toons, Animaniacs, etc. were never topped.
 
I think it has declined since the 90s, but I don't think this is the first time it has declined.

If you look at the history of animation then you see periods of peaks and troughs, but they don't last forever. I have a feeling that the current slump is just temporary, eventually the animation industry will recover.
 
We have had some terrific films in the last 10 years. Wall -E stands as one that should have gotten best picture. Deep, haunting, biting, satirical in ways few know. Rantolle (sp), the mouse that makes french food was outstanding as was "CARS"
There is so much more than before. UP was great. It is kinda hard to really judge trends in time. I would say we are getting films as good as before. Much more talent in the industry, cause there is more money in the industry. That means there will be more lousy films in the industry too. Even a lousy animated film can make money. And that is all that matters in my opinion to most film makers.
 
Um, no. The people who are in it just for the money are called media whores. People don't make movies just for the money, If they do, their material sucks
 
I say that it has stayed the same. There are still many movies/shows that are good and appeal to all/most age groups. Sure the '90's had the Disney renisance (sp?), but the 2000's had Pixar.
 
There's very little under the sun that hasn't already been tried. Even the shows from your childhood were based on or inspired by older shows, so you can't really fault the current shows for not being 100% original.




Um...Cyber? Civilization hasn't come to an end yet. That's being just a tad pessimistic, don't you think? Just because that "golden age" is over doesn't mean that we'll never experience another one. The 1990s certainly wasn't the 1st golden age of animation and it certainly won't be the last. I'll concede that the quality level of the world of USAnimation isn't presently the highest that it's ever been, but it's definitely not the lowest. That would be the mid to late 1970s and 1980s, at least for me.
 
I honestly think its on an uphill or in its way right about now.

Cartoon Network for the most part, seems to be over its attempts at being a Nick/Disney Channel clone, evident by how many cartoons were announced as in production during their upfront. They're clearly aware of their tainted image, which is probably why they went back to spotlighting creator driven cartoons and some older WB properties. They're even trying to be a bit edgier on what they can air.

Nickelodeon is focusing more on acquisitions now over original programming. I think it makes sense since a lot of their output from the last decade didn't exactly take off, or it was overshadowed by the more successful programming like SpongeBob and iCarly. They've got Dreamworks movies to work with and action properties like TMNT, Avatar and even going for a cashcow like DBZ Kai. I think they're prepared to go beyond being known for kid comedy.

Disney also seems to be getting back in the game. They've apparantly got some of the CN alumni working on some shows and Disney XD is stocking up on boy properties too. Just look at that Marvel purchase and what it means for them in the long run. They don't have to worry about catering to boys because they have a whole archive of characters that already appeal to them.

Lets also not forget the broadcast blocks. I think PBS has done a great job reinvigorating the educational toons. I definitely enjoy watching Word Girl and Martha Speaks with my sister. Arthur is still going strong and there's Curious George that is good for some laughs. Also, 4kids is rebranding themselves and giving anime another chance to succeed on the air. I'd be hesitant if they weren't teaming up with Funi to deliver DBZ Kai on over the air TV. If that relationship works, we might see more fan favorites on TV.

Oh, and it seems animated movies are doing fine at the Box Office as well. Aside from the typical Dreamworks and Pixar fare, Disney is getting back into their roots and releasing more traditional animated films. Also, the success of the Studio Ghibli films and smaller films like Coraline can only mean good things for smaller studios, as long as they can get a good distributor.

You can color me optimistic, I'm excited for the future of animation now.
 
Hotchie Mothcie. There's so much negativity on this board regarding the current animation industry.

Am I the only one who doesn't think today's cartoons are that bad? In fact, I actually think cartoons have progressively gotten better over the past 3 decades.

Maybe the toons of today aren't quite at the same level as the toons from the 90's, but I wouldn't say that there's been a dramatic decline. Things are still pretty good now, I think. The cartoons of the '00's and the 10's (so far) are still head and shoulders above a good portion of the the toons of the 70's and 80's.
 
I agree with most of that and I'd like to add that it seems like there isn't as much variety now as there was a few years ago. I'd say that from the late 90's to about 2004 or 2005 it was still pretty good but the last 5 years have been all over the place with live-action and other forgettable shows.

The networks that show animation have all been trying to be similar instead of different and that's not good. It seems to me that cartoons nowadays have to appeal to a certain demographic which goes back to variety. If anything I think it's kind of saturated the industry with generic animation and carbon copies, at least on tv animation. That's why I don't watch that many cartoons now as I did 5 or 6 years ago, because there's nothing that stands out or that appeals to me.

The only cartoon channel's that I'll watch now are Nicktoons, Disney XD, and I'll see what Cartoon Network has on but that's it.

Overall though I'd say the industry has gone down a little bit. Hopefully in the next few years things will get better.
 
American TV animation has declined, certainly. Saturday mornings are dead, CN's way past their prime, Nick's done a few good things but really doesn't seem to be doing much with animation in general as of late, and primetime animation is now pretty much entirely Seth MacFarlane.

Theatrical animation, however, has improved. Say what you will about the need for a Best Animated Feature Oscar, but I'd say it has done some good in getting creative edgy animated films that might not be made or released otherwise some time in the spotlight.

Anime's been really up-and-down throughout the decade, so can't really comment there.
 
Since the 90s, I'd say theatrical animation has improved, thanks to the rise of Pixar efforts like "The Incredibles" and such, while Dreamworks gave us "Shrek" and the like. Also a rise in stuff like "Coraline" and "Fantastic Mr. Fox", as well...

Television animation, on the other hand, has IMO gone downhill vs. the 90s... between a lack of variety, stiff-looking Flash animation, few decent comedic shows, the death of animation anywhere besides CN/Nick/Disney (and even that shoved out by live-action shows on all *three* of those channels), Fox's lineup just "Family Guy (and its clones) and season 87 of the Simpsons", etc., I still think the 90s was a higher point. Here's hoping the 10s sees a pickup on the television side of things.

Interent-wise, guess there's way more animation thanks to the rise of Flash and high-speed Internet access being more widespread, but not much that strikes me as a "must see" or "true game changer" (a la the debut of Bugs Bunny in 1940, or "Huckleberry Hound" coming along in the late 50s, or "The Simpsons" in 1990)...

-B.
 
Hmmm...looks like people are turning this into a "is cartoons better now then they were back then" thread.

The animation industry have changed since the 90's. Syndication and animation for broadcast have almost died out and moved to cable. The success of Disney's movies and then upcoming Dreamworks led to an increase in competitive pay rises.
Though animation production has shrunk compared to the 90's, there's animation trying to target numerous demographics, mainly trying to succeed in making popular cartoons for older audiences. For the first time in history, Disney is in serious competition in animated features with Dreamworks and Blue Sky, and was pretty much losing until they acquired Pixar. The pay isn't as great in the 90's and it's harder to find work, but people still manage.

In short, the industry was doing a little better back in the 90's.
 
American TV animation has seen a decline, though with The Hub announcing a significant animation slate it may improve, at least on cable. Competition has a lovely way of forcing current players to step it up, and Cartoon Network's recent moves show signs that it's feeling threatened, with a massive animation palate on the way from that network after a disastrous 2009. Japanese animation has also seen a general decline, and Europe's slate hasn't been anything to write home about either.

Movie animation, on the other hand, is just as good as it was in the 90's, my 2D preference being mostly unsatisfied exempting. Japan's released some epic stuff, Pixar's been A-grade the entire decade, and there's been impressive indie animation work besides. Dreamworks films haven't been doing it for me, though How to Train Your Dragon shows at least a willingness to put story over pop culture references that shows promise for that studio's future.

It's not quite as good as the 90's, but we haven't seen it hit the pits either.
 
Not nessercarily just the 90's. Like I said, the first half of the decade was pretty good as far as variety and quality but the second half has seen decline with the hodgepodge of live-action and forgettable shows.

That's just my opinion though, agree to disagree.
 
Comparing to the '90s decade, I think the animation industry has been relatively stable during the past decade. The American animation studios continued to have buoyancy about new cartoons, hiring workers, and finance; a few other industries may not have been as lucky.

I understand the Warner Bros. Animation Studio experienced difficulties circa 2007-2008. But now that studio is getting back on track by producing new series The Looney Tunes Show and Young Justice, and other projects that are in the works now. As for Nickelodeon, the people of the network just never run out of ideas for new cartoons, which that has been the trend for twenty years.

There are dozens of cartoons that debuted between 2000 and 2009 which I enjoy, with plenty of new shows coming soon. So they give me a trace of concern to the overall situation of the animation industry.
 
I was just thinking about creating a thread kinda similar to this, but not quite the same. But similar enough for me to just bring up the question here instead: Do you guys think the 2000's and beyond should count as a different "era" than the "renaissance era" or not? There doesn't really seem to be a consensus on that. If you don't know what im talking about, then allow me to explain; whenever the entire history of american animation is divided into eras, everyone seem to agree about this much:

The first era was the silent era, that lasted from, well, the beginning (which means 1906, when the first American cartoon was created) to 1928 when soundcartoons came along.

The second era was the golden age, when short theatrical animation was at it's creative and commerical peak. This era lasted from the 1928 to about 1960.

Then came the dark age (sometimes known as the "television age" by people who doesn't want it to be called by such a utterly negative sounding name) that lasted from the 1960's to the late 80's. One thing that defines this era is that from the late 60's and onward, almost all american television animation only tried to appeal to kids, and thus, this is the era from which the "cartoons are just just for kids"-mentality comes from. (sometimes, but not often, people consider this era to have ended as early as the early 80's, since a few fine animated theatrical films were released then. But as i said, this isn't often).

Then in the late 80's started the renaissance era, when new creative sparks started flying throughout the entire animation industry. This era lasted untill...

Well yeah, that's the question. Is it still going on or not? Most people seem to say it does, but there are also a lot of people who think that the state of animation (like for isntance the style of the typical televison cartoon) is different enough today from what is was from the 90's to grant it being considered a different era altogether. The name "the millenium era" is sometimes used to decsribe it. And my question is simply, what do you guys think of this?
 
Oh, I'd say this is certainly a new era. The "Creator-Driven Cartoon" from the 90s is still around, but so much has changed - CGI prevailing in theaters, the "Saturday Morning" tradition evaporating, and the anime industry swelling (that happened this decade, right?) - that I can't see it as a continuation of the 90s.

"Millenium Era" sounds... over-confident, to me, though. I don't think we should be allowed to name these things until they're over.:p
 
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