203 - Captain Planet and the Planeteers

203 - Captain Planet and the Planeteers

Ben and Zane didn’t have a clue why they were recruited to handle this oil spill, but they knew who to bring in: Ian. He came on board and told them that what they really needed was a guy by the name of Captain Planet. They brought in Gaia to give them a couple power rings, then got the last ones by some unsavory methods, but eventually they were able to summon Captain Planet. He took one look at the problem, told them that “The Power is Yours,” and disappeared. They took the L and hoped that Mother Nature could take one more for the team.

202 - Zoids: New Century

202 - Zoids: New Century

The following is a choice segment from an interview between Bit Cloud, pilot of the Liger Zero from Blitz Team, and the Cartoncasters.

“Look man, life’s not so easy in the post-apocalypse. Which post apocalypse? Not important. At least, not any more important than bustin’ up some fools with my mad sick liger zero moves. I’ve never met a mech I didn’t want to fight, and I never didn’t fight a mech I haven’t wanted to beat. So let’s get this show on the road, pardner! That growling either means my Liger wants to wrassle, or that I’m hungry - and I already ate! Ate what? From what food sources? Man, just from those questions I can tell you aint from around here.”

201 - Bootlegg'd - Inside Out

201 - Bootlegg'd - Inside Out

Inside Out is a touching, funny, beautiful movie. It has all the Pixar hallmarks, an all-star cast, and an engaging premise. But more than that, it puts the feelings of growing up into words, and gives its viewers the vocabulary to process the world as their emotions become increasingly nuanced and jumbled. An instant classic that we all wish we had when we were young. In all these ways and more, it’s kind of like Futurama.

200 - Freakazoid!

200 - Freakazoid!

Welcome to our 200th episode, eggberts! We could go on a whole spiel about why we chose this for such an auspicious anniversary, or do some sort of speech celebrating our run so far, but in the end we just wanted to gush about Freakazoid, so that’s what we did. For those who know this show, no additional context is necessary. For those who haven’t - you’re in for a real mint.

Thanks for Josh for helping out with the intro!

199 - Scrambl'd - Robot Chicken

Ben and Zane were recovering from some absolutely devastating head injuries. They were tired, a little loopy, and just a bit altered. Instead of enjoying some relaxing, wholesome TV, the Cartoncasters just watched their action figures on the floor, imaging them getting into all sorts of wacky situations. It was hit-or-miss, but it was hard to look away from, especially once things got going. But once they recovered, it was hard to explain the appeal to anyone else. Except for Flo, she’ll always understand.

198 - Taz-Mania

198 - Taz-Mania

The Cartoncasters are not immune to getting lost at the terminal, and wouldn’t you know it, on their way to Albuquerque they managed to reroute to Australia, where one Taz was waiting for them. Though they were initially nervous, Ben and Zane found him to be pleasant enough company, if a bit derivative. They also met 80-odd other characters, but as the saying goes, what happens in Tasmania… isn’t a whole lot.

,

One-Legg'd - Space Jam

,
One-Legg'd - Space Jam

Space Jam is one of those properties that you’ve seen, even if you haven’t seen it. And if you have seen it, see it again now that you’re older. Because it's legendary status is part truth, part myth, and part confusing. This oft-cited box office bombshell has its share of faults that your kid brain might have passed over - as well as a few ‘blink and you miss it’ gags that had us rolling.

Thanks for James for coming on the show and lending us some much needed basketball insights!

196 - Neo Yokio

196 - Neo Yokio

Welcome to Neo Yokio, the only place in the world where you can watch the All-City Gentleman’s Field Hockey game while sipping a Caprese Martini. The Cartoncasters were living the high life, blinged up in all the finery that Neo-Podcast Neo-Money can buy, when the game was interrupted by a literal devil breaking through the ground and eviscerating a player. Ichiban Kaz Kaan fought it off, but made an utter faux pas by being off-side when he banished it back to hell. It almost makes you think about the inability to feel content in the hyper-capitalist materialistic social strata. Almost.

194 - The Real Ghostbusters

194 - The Real Ghostbusters

Every so often you run into something that just can’t be explained. So when strange spooky noises showed up on their recordings, Ben and Zane decided to contact the experts. Resident horror expert Dan Caves agreed to take a look at the files. Long story short, the files weren’t haunted, but there was a clip detailing the evils of governmental overreach. None of them knew how it got there - it just sort of popped in there.

193 - Boomerang Bonanza

Ben and Zane grew tired of these new-fangled modern cartoons, and longed for an era of simplicity. But they also didn’t want to change the channel from Cartoon Network. Hark, like a throwing stick, Boomerang appeared, and brought with it five mesmerizing spectacles: A pervert rodent; a father-dog barely holding it together; A horse with a gun and a tuning problem; a double-racist janitor; and some Italians.

192 - The Legend of Zelda

Hyrule was at peace, and the Cartoncasters were bored out of their Skulltulas. Legends told of a hero who would come and rescue them from their boredom, with the power of Courage the fight back the darkness. What they got instead was Link, a petty shitlord who just wanted to hit on the princess and maraud around the town. Ben and Zane enlisted James as an old wise man who knew of Link’s weaknesses, but it turned out that the Hero of Time was a totally different guy.

191 - Totally Spies!

191 - Totally Spies!

Ben and Zane have had it up to here with Jerry. He’s constantly kidnapping them, using brainwashing or amnesia rays, and putting them in catsuits. And now he’s tried to introduce three young women to the Cartoncasters as if that makes up for it. He licked his lips and sweated as he assured them that the girls were all over 18. Regardless, they were too boring to even interact with, let alone try to objectify. Looks like we’ll have to put out a job opening for a new English butler.

,

190 - Bootlegg'd - Akira

,
190 - Bootlegg'd - Akira

It’s always satisfying to fill in a blind spot here at the Cartoncast, and this one was a mile wide. Akira establishes the cyberpunk genre, opened the doors for anime in the west - and the anime industry in Japan - and commented upon the timely (and timeless) themes of institutional power in a time of rapid evolution. No need to be psychic to judge how we felt about this work; it’s remarkable, and stands proudly as a pillar of the industry.

189 - Ask the StoryBots

189 - Ask the StoryBots

Things were not going well in the computer that houses The Cartoncast. Ben and Zane, you see, are dumbasses. Wikipedia was down. TvTropes was down. Their dictionary had long been destroyed because “it just had bad vibes man, y’know?” And so in desperation, they called upon the last bastions of knowledge. They asked the StoryBots: “Where buy snowcones?”

,

The Eighth Annual Cartony Awards

,
The Eighth Annual Cartony Awards

Well, it’s that time again to celebrate the holiest of holidays - Cartony season. Sure, this past year was a bit of a struggle at times, with many contenders for the spot of New Ben before the original came back to claim his title. But amongst the strife came clarity on the true nature of Santa Claus (the answer may surprise you!) as well as a higher than recommended dose of dithering about with various guests. Join us as we debate whether or not most of the things this year happened.

Our categories this year:

  • Most Interesting Nonhuman

  • Best Musical Number to Worst Episode Ratio

  • Best Santa

  • Best Boy

  • Best Intro

  • Best Adoption of an Earlier Art Style

  • Best Conspiracy Theory

  • Best Ensemble Cast

  • Best Sibling Dynamic

  • Who Would Win in a Fight?

  • Biggest Coincidence (You’re Tellin’ Me)

  • Biggest Payoff for Creative Liberties Taken

  • Best Movie

  • Best Bonus Episode

  • Best Show

188 - Trigun

188 - Trigun

Ben and Zane - and stay with me here guys - were doing a Jesus. I mean, sure, they weren’t coming back to life or healing the sick, but they did carry around that cross for that nice priest and his weird, hungry friend. They also got into some trouble with the law and were repenting for some sinning they did in the last town over. The Cartoncasters weren’t really focused on the big-picture stuff, though, or even on the shootouts that kept happening every other day. They were too busy submitting the proper forms and playing some slick air guitars for that.

187 - The Critic

187 - The Critic

Most of the titles that cross Ben and Zane’s desk never make it to review, but they felt bad about rejecting cartoons out of line. As luck would have it, the Critique himself, our friendly neighborhood Dane Caverns came by to take the worst stuff off their hands. Within an hour, the Critique had given the most scathing criticism he could muster to the worst offenders, saving Ben and Zane from doing it themselves. With his help, the Cartoncasters will never have to review a show and proclaim… It stinks!