Sonic Appears in OK K.O.! (Crossover Episode on August 4th)

[prettyinplague]

16 hours ago, Blue Blood said:

Yeah, that preview is full of fan service, but the show looks like crap to me. Bear in mind that I'm basing this entirely on what I've seen of the crossover because before now I'd not even heard of this cartoon. I don't watch cartoons at all though, because they're just not my taste. Especially when they have this style of animation. Yuck.

But I can't fault the effort that seems to have gone into this. It's definitely something that will sit right with its intended audience.

Yikes it's like reading John K's blog circa 2009. 

"I hate these cartoons these days they're all so hideous."

[StaticMania]

Cartoonist?

No reason to call out though, it's just similar, but also not.

[Tara]

7 hours ago, Neo_Fire_Sonic said:

No fun is allowed.

Can we not throw the "No fun allowed" retort around just because someone doesn't agree with something?  Like, for real?

[Ryannumber1gamer]

Honestly, if they were going for references for references' sake, like I very much believe they'd go the route of referencing memes, or recent titles, as those are what would resonate most with kids who's watching this with Sonic. Maybe some classic stuff with Mania...

...but going to the extent that the animators/creators of this show are doing goes beyond that level. You don't just make references to Chaotix, AoStH, and a random issue of Archie Sonic (which only would've been widely available in one country no less), or hell - go to the effort of literally frame by frame recreating the intros of the original games, right down to the exact letter of animation that is present in that promo. 

I'm sorry, but it's extremely obvious that these references are being made by a group of people who actually know about the series, and enjoy it to a high degree, to go so far as to go beyond the games and extend the references to additional media like AoStH or Archie. 

What I'd consider a "pandering reference towards some kids" is placing Sanic into Forces via a t-shirt. I don't consider adding things that are actually smart references that require additional knowledge of the series to get as "pandering". If you didn't know about the Death Egg arc in Archie, it'll look like a generic Sonic comic cover. If you do, it shows how much research the creators placed into making this episode. 

Like using that same line of logic, you could basically use that as a black mark against Mania as well. "They're just pandering to Classic fans by putting Nack, Bean and Bark into the game via cameos". There's a pretty conclusion line of difference between pandering references for no reason, and placing in smart additional details that are designed as pure fan-service for fans of the series. 

The same way you can tell from the beginning that Mania is developed by a set of passionate fans who are in love with this series and want to do it justice, you can tell that the creators of KO are big Sonic fans and also want to do it justice as well.

[Blue Blood]

6 hours ago, prettyinplague said:

Yikes it's like reading John K's blog circa 2009. 

"I hate these cartoons these days they're all so hideous."

Kindly refrain from putting words in my mouth, please.

I don't watch cartoons because they're simply not my thing. That's got nothing to do with the art style. I happen not to like the art style used in many cartoons including this one, but what does that have to anything?

Come off it. I dislike what I'm seeing and have absolutely nothing against it or those who like it.

[Shaddy Zaphod]

The team behind this are definitely fans, besides the verbal confirmation you can spot little Sonic references (among other games) in Steven Universe, including a reference to Sanic, and one of Amethyst's moves outright being the spindash down to it's name. Rebecca Sugar and Ian Jones-Quartey, besides being romantic partners, share a lot of these old game references in their respective shows, and OK KO has had more than a few Sonic references, down to the character Crinkly-Wrinkly (what a terrible fucking name for a character though, right?) appearing as an aged Sonic-expy, even having shoes that resemble his.

As for my thoughts, I'm happy to see Sonic around on TV in some form, and I've always been a fan of the more sarcastic iterations of the character. OK KO...it's alright, I like it's high points well enough, but it has a lot of bad episodes in much the same way as Steven Universe. Unfortunately, due to having less dedication to it's story (being mostly a comedy the whole way through and outright parodying continuity itself in some ways) a bad episode can knock me off wanting to watch it a lot faster than it could with Steven. And honestly, while there are a lot of actually really well-choreographed and fluid animation scenes, the character and color design of the show is just off-putting at points. It's like all the good boarders and directors went into this show, and all the aesthetic and visual fidelity went into Steven Universe, leaving neither show looking quite as good as they probably should be.

So really, good high points and a lot of dumb bullshit I don't care about along with genuine proficiency being somewhat marred by lackluster presentation...it's really the perfect place for Sonic to cross over.

[Shadowlax]

23 hours ago, Osmium said:

I mean I know that's why but I always just roll my eyes with stuff like this. Throwing a million obscure references everywhere seems like the most superficial way to express your passion of something to me. Feel free to disagree as everyone will with this but meh. 

While sometimes I may agree. This show has a character named " shadamy " in it and it looks how you think it looks. I think the people who work on this show over the course of all of it has genuinely shown a love for sonic stuff. I don't know them as people, just seems  a lot more genuine than most referenced based stuff

[Meta77]

Cartoons these days rarely look *good* usually though its the story that carries them while shows when i was growing up had more of a better look but stories varied from meh to eh ok. Such as say Swat Kats. Ok Ko is definitely not a good looking show but has its story moments and hips, lots and lots of hips.

[Neo_Fire_Sonic]

16 hours ago, Tara said:

Can we not throw the "No fun allowed" retort around just because someone doesn't agree with something?  Like, for real?

He actually said to "feel free to disagree" so I don't see the problem in this context.

[SBR2]

1 hour ago, Meta77 said:

Cartoons these days rarely look *good* usually though its the story that carries them while shows when i was growing up had more of a better look but stories varied from meh to eh ok. Such as say Swat Kats. Ok Ko is definitely not a good looking show but has its story moments and hips, lots and lots of hips.

Can I just say that the "All cartoonsnow look like shit" mindset is something that happens every generation? People who grewup on Looney Tunes hated cartoons of the 80's people who grew up on those hated cartoons of the 90's and so on and on. 

It'll probably happen when the current generation of kids grows up too.

[Sonictrainer]

2 hours ago, Shadowlax said:

This show has a character named " shadamy " in it and it looks how you think it looks.

...I wasn't expecting this.

Also, I just realized Crinkley Wrinkley wears yellow Sonic Shoes.

[DabigRG]

9 minutes ago, Sonictrainer said:

...I wasn't expecting this.

Also, I just realized Crinkley Wrinkley wears yellow Sonic Shoes.

Wait, that's an actual character? 

[StaticMania]

Cool, now I know what someone on this staff subscribes to.

[Tracker_TD]

Incidentally storyboarder and creator of Mao Mao Parker Simmons showed concept art for a young Crinkley and...

...yeah.

[Meta77]

3 hours ago, SBR2 said:

Can I just say that the "All cartoonsnow look like shit" mindset is something that happens every generation? People who grewup on Looney Tunes hated cartoons of the 80's people who grew up on those hated cartoons of the 90's and so on and on. 

It'll probably happen when the current generation of kids grows up too.

It may but NOTING in Ok  Ko looks half way complex as say a show like Gargoyles and even if a example today should be used Young Justice. I am not saying Ok is a bad show. Its just noting that makes me say Damn this show looks amazing.

[SBR2]

1 hour ago, Meta77 said:

It may but NOTING in Ok  Ko looks half way complex as say a show like Gargoyles and even if a example today should be used Young Justice. I am not saying Ok is a bad show. Its just noting that makes me say Damn this show looks amazing.

Good thing it's not trying to be. Not every cartoon is trying to a big sweeping epic. Some are just trying to be fun and make people laugh. 

Not saying there isn't lore but not every cartoon has to be a long strand telling an intense emotional story. Sometimes they can be a silly show about superpowered kids working in a bodega.

[sonic 1-derful]

the prospect of seeing sonic in what I assume is hand-drawn, 2d animation, brings a warm feeling the fact that it looks colourful and light hearted is a bonus for me. not long to go now!

[prettyinplague]

On 7/28/2019 at 2:18 AM, Blue Blood said:

Kindly refrain from putting words in my mouth, please.

I don't watch cartoons because they're simply not my thing. That's got nothing to do with the art style. I happen not to like the art style used in many cartoons including this one, but what does that have to anything?

Come off it. I dislike what I'm seeing and have absolutely nothing against it or those who like it.

That's fine, I apologize for coming off harsh. 

 

23 hours ago, SBR2 said:

Good thing it's not trying to be. Not every cartoon is trying to a big sweeping epic. Some are just trying to be fun and make people laugh. 

Not saying there isn't lore but not every cartoon has to be a long strand telling an intense emotional story. Sometimes they can be a silly show about superpowered kids working in a bodega.

Agreed. It's just a cute cartoon-y styles. There's a time and a place for the Young Justice style and this isn't it. I feel like the backlash for modern day cartoonists nowadays being called "The Calarts" style is awfully catty and definitely a millennial sentiment of people who miss the zany 90's style of cartoons. Or the more serious look of Batman TAS.  But then again I am a millennial. I think because I spent time in art school seeing so many young artists with different styles looking to make it big (myself included), that I don't feel like being harsh on animators because I have the inability to detach it from seeing real people. It's a hard industry to get into, let alone work in. 

I think the style is simple and cute, and to tell its story, that's all it needs to be. 


 

[MainJP]

On 7/28/2019 at 3:35 PM, Tracker_TD said:

Incidentally storyboarder and creator of Mao Mao Parker Simmons showed concept art for a young Crinkley and...

...yeah.

This is basically a combination of Tails and Fang.

[DabigRG]

On 7/28/2019 at 4:35 PM, Tracker_TD said:

Incidentally storyboarder and creator of Mao Mao Parker Simmons showed concept art for a young Crinkley and...

...yeah.

Isn't there a character that legit has the young version's shoe colors?

[Scritch the Cat]

Regarding OK KO's art style, I'm alright with its character designs, but it's gratuitous use of deformation, ala the above-mentioned Jon K, is hit and miss with me.  In both this and Jon K''s work, it seems to miss the point; cartoons are supposed to exaggerate facial expressions to convey a mood; not put on random extreme expressions just to be funny.  Sometimes the weird faces characters dawn are funny to me, but when they're so constant and individual expressions are prolonged, the novelty wears off.  People here are probably acquainted with the many, many viral images spawned from goofy Sonic facial expressions.  I collect them, and might make a GIF cycling through them.  The thing is, these are funny because Sonic's appearance is usually so iconic, recognizable and clean.  The Syndrome Principle applies if that isn't the case; a character who always looks funny never looks funny.

Regarding the crossover's Sonic references: Another mixed bag, but biggest issue for me is that they aren't funny.  A smaller issue is how confusing references can be to those outside the target audience, and not all are created equal in that regard.  A character like Boxman can get away with being a pretty thorough reference to Eggman because it doesn't require outsiders to know about Eggman for the comedy of a manchild scientist with goofy looking robot minions to work in that new form.  KO striking iconic poses from Sonic won't work as a joke to people not familiar with said poses, but it won't cause the unfamiliar to think, "I don't get it"; especially since KO is still engaging in natural conversation while doing it.  Where it gets bad is the fanart bit; then KO is eating up time with references to things outsiders won't get, and the references are the only thing going on at that time.

Let me illustrate this further with a past joke from Sonic Boom , Tails calling a machine he invented the "Dream Caster" and describing it or another machine--I forget which--as having Blast Processing.  References pitched at Sega fans, but they're inserted directly into the dialogue that keeps flowing, so they aren't prohibitive to people who don't get them.  But here's a hypothetical example of those jokes done worse:

Sonic: Hey Tails!  I heard you developed a new machine that actually has more than 64 bits!  What's it called?

Tails: The Dream Caster!

[COMEDIC PAUSE]

Sonic: Cool!  So that means it's fast, right?

Tails: Well, let's put it this way: It has blast-processing!

[StaticMania]

37 minutes ago, Scritch the Cat said:

...it seems to miss the point; cartoons are supposed to exaggerate facial expressions to convey a mood...

I mean, that doesn't have to be the point.

[Sega DogTagz]

8 hours ago, Scritch the Cat said:

 Where it gets bad is the fanart bit; then KO is eating up time with references to things outsiders won't get, and the references are the only thing going on at that time.

I don't think thats necessarily true. While someone who is uninitiated with the plot of the games would have no idea what KO is going on about in each of those hand drawn pictures, it doesn't take any understanding of the franchise at all to see that segment as just basic hero worship. Look at these things you did that I obviously idolize you for. Sure, fans of the franchise will take away more from that sequence, but its not like previous knowledge of those events are necessary to understand what is going on. Fangirling in front of a world renowned hero in-of-itself is part of the joke.

8 hours ago, Scritch the Cat said:

Let me illustrate this further with a past joke from Sonic Boom , Tails calling a machine he invented the "Dream Caster"

I'd be docked a few points on my fan card if I didn't point out that Eggman build DreamCaster, not Tails.

*nitpick

[StaticMania]

I suppose what would've made the joke "better" is not referencing actual stuff, because that somehow takes away from it.

[Indigo Rush]

I'm just happy that a generation of youngsters are going to be exposed to Sonic in an earnest and genuine way. What I saw lacks the cynicism present in Sonic Boom, which I think is a nice departure, and I do love me some Sonic Boom, don't get me wrong. It's just nice to see Sonic framed as a popular dude without it being too mean (sorry, Tails).