The Fourth Wall

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Diceboy42

New member
This is a simple thread. I just wanted to ask what your thoughts are on animated programs that break the fourth wall. Some people love that sort of humor, while others are frustrated by it because it trivializes some of what takes place. Personally, I have no qualms with animated comedies that break the fourth wall. In fact, one of my favorite episodes of an animated program completely broke the fourth wall and had the characters of the series hosting a cast party that documented the making of the series. However, I do not believe animated programs that have an actual plot should break the fourth wall.

Feel free to share your thoughts on the subject.
 
It works great in comedy (esp. in Anamanics and Freakazoid), but not so much with drama. It's hard to keep the serious mood if you're constantly reminded that it's a cartoon.
 
The 80's TMNT show was consistantly breaking the fourth wall, like when Shredder was recapping a plan to Krang.

Krang: Why are telling me? I came up with the plan.

Shredder: I wasn't explaining it to you. (points to the audience) I was explaining it to them.

The Critic made several references to ABC cancelling the show.

Jay: I had a show on ABC... for about a week.
 
Warner Bros. Animation's shows like Tiny Toons, Animaniacs and Freakazoid! have the fourth wall breaking a lot. Freakazoid appearing in a obvious 1995 of Animaniacs, Animaniacs and Pinky and The Brain appearing in the Freako Universe. Tiny Toons in the Animaniacs universe, all of it. Hell, even Batman in silhouette form appeared in a Freakazoid! episode.


Both Launchpad McQuack and Gizmo Duck appeared in both DuckTales and Darkwing Duck. Crossing over to another universe.


The Simpsons and Futruama makes fun of Fox (which broadcasts The Simpsons and broadcasted Futurama), and its parent News Corporation, ultimately breaking the wall. Bender appeared two times on The Simpsons in 2000 and 2005. Peter Griffin appeared in a 2002 episode (Treehouse Of Horror segment Send In The Clones).



The 1994 Spider-Man series had a lot of breakings, in a kind of good way. Mentioning the Fox Network, The Tick, X-Men, making references to Eek! Stravaganza. Speaking of Eek!...

While the first two seasons of Eek! The cat and the first season of Thunderlizards were original no wall breaking, once the retooled Eek! Stravaganza came in 1994, the third season had chock full of wall breaking, like mentioning Melrose Place most of the time, mentioning Fox Kids a couple of times, Nelvana also, Eek appearing in Thunderlizards Universe, Thunderlizards in Eek's world, but it was still good. Except for the ultimate breaking, which was Klutter appearing in 1995.
 
Crossovers really aren't the same thing as breaking the fourth wall, John.

Now Raphael pointing out Leonardo's lame straight lines to the audience in the '87 TMNT series. That's breaking the fourth wall. Kuzco interrupting The Emperor's New Groove to point things out to the audience and draw on the screen. That's breaking the fourth wall. Same with the Darkwing Duck episode "Inside Binky's Brain", where Launchpad and Darkwing directly address the audience and read viewer mail. Animaniacs and especially Tiny Toons broke the fourth wall all the time.

But Gizmoduck appearing on Darkwing Duck isn't breaking the fourth wall. That's just a crossover since both shows are set in the same universe,
 
They did this on Ed Edd n Eddy loads of times. One time I can think of is when they made the time capsule and Ed found a "Canadian squirt gun" and was like "I remember this from second season"
 
IMO, the occasional 4th wall joke is OK if done sparodically and in moderation, but it quickly gets old if overdone. It's hard for me to get into a show when I'm constantly being reminded by the characters that it's just a show.
 
My favorite fourth wall gags are the ones that are real quick. That is, someone offering some quick little commentary to us before resuming the action. It's especially funny if the character actually remarks on what we, the audience, are likely thinking at that point. One of the best examples I can think of for what I mean was in Tex Avery's "Northwest Hounded Police" when the Wolf lands on this tiny island and sees a rock sitting next to him...

Wolf: "Yeah, I know. He'll be right under that rock."

Droopy: *pops out from under another, very tiny rock* "Nope. Under this one."


Indeed, I think ol' Tex could be considered the pioneer of fourth wall gags. The purpose for that being that Tex WANTED to remind people that it was a cartoon. That was the developing philosophy during the formative years of the Warner Bros. cartoons: "We want to be the opposite of Disney, and Walt wouldn't have one of his characters just stop and speak to the audience. Soooo...."

So, just to echo what's been said: It works in a comedy cartoon (especially a "cartoony" cartoon where it's sort of expected); doesn't work in an action or dramatic cartoon so much. Indeed, with a "cartoony" cartoon, I think people would actually be disappointed if there wasn't a fourth wall gag. :anime:
 
And then there's Garfield & Friends, who broke the 4th wall in nearly every episode.

"Hey kids, today's story is about Binky, you want to hear it?"

*Camera moves left to right, as in saying "no"*

"Well, if you don't want to, there's very little to do on the show today."
 
There is also this cut scene in the season four finale (the series finale if it wasn't for renewal) of the show, which had Eddy trying to talk to the animation director (Danny Antonucci), and even calling him by name.
 
Ed Edd n Eddy did it pretty well, as well as very sparingly. I remember the episode where Double D is telling Eddy about the time when he tries to mold Jimmy, and he's like, "didn't we win an Emmy for that episode?" And Double D pauses and says, "hardly."
 
I'm completely cool with that, in fact I'm all for taking on the network, as well as the numerous digs that The Simpsons and Family Guy have done at each other over the years. The only gripe I have is that they had Matt Groening appear on the Simpsons as the creator of Futurama. This juxtaposes the whole Simpsons/Futurama universe. A season one commentary on Futurama stated that the Simpsons was supposed to exist as a TV show in the Futurama universe, therefore making Futurama located in the real i.e. our universe.

That's the only problem I have with the fourth wall. otherwise I think the occasional joke is great. The Fresh Prince did it a couple of times and Billy & Mandy do it on a regular basis. Which reminds me, Frankie wears a PowerPuff Girls T-shirt in the show, does that count?
 
Nope they are also homages/callbacks. When the fourth wall is broken, it means that the characters interact with the audience, and that the character(s) that are doing this understand that they are characters in a comic/manga/cartoon/anime/etc. :shrug:
 
I think "Camera panning away from character" is a funny form of fourth wall without actually having to tell you they're breaking the fourth wall. Example:

[INVADER ZIM]
Dib: When I grow up, I want to be a paranormal investigator, so that I can-- [Cameras cuts over to Melvin] Hey, I wasn't finished...

And I don't mind the small fourth wall jokes, such as Cartman going "Left, left! No, no, camera left!" in an early episode of South Park, but if you have to rely on it for a 4-minute joke, such as a lot of Billy and Mandy's later humor, then it wears off very quickly.

To me, one of the more clever ideas of the fourth wall joke was in Family Guy when the Griffins were on a reality TV show and Meg complained how she didn't want the cameras around anymore and Chris shouted "SHE'S BREAKING THE FOURTH WAAALLLL!".
 
I would say something like "Zoom in on my face, TOO CLOSE", but I think that falls more in the bounds of a meta-reference than anything else.

As for shows that do it on a regular Basis, "Emperor's New Grove/School" sure it more of a framing device show than anything else, but Kuzco talks to the audience.
 
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