Nickelodeon
First Listed: Summer 1999
Nickelodeon, in my opinion, represents the best and worst of the American animation industry. It's funny, but it's true. Out of all the major studios in this country, Nick is making a lot of right moves, and in the same breath, making a lot of boneheaded mistakes. The actions they've made both irritated me as well as intrigued me, in short allowing me to give them a little respect.
One of the most annoying things I still have a problem with was the way they treat a lot of their creators, not giving them a fair cut of monies earned from their hard work and their creations. Numerous horror stories and confessions have been told in outlets like Animation Nation, AWN, and Toon Zone, and 2003 has heard stories about the massive cancellations throughout the studio. Even Nick stalwart Klasky-Csupo has had problems with the network. Nick even sold video/DVD rights of Invader ZIM to Media Blasters instead of releasing it themselves.
But not all is bad news. Apparently, Nickelodeon has found solace with Frederator Productions, the studio that had a lot of former Hanna-Barbera/Cartoon Network animators and creators brought over by Fred Seibert, the mastermind behind the What A Cartoon experiment which launched five cartoons (Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken, Johnny Bravo, The Powerpuff Girls, and Courage the Cowardly Dog). The same spirit found in those original shorts that came out almost a decade ago are now found in shows like The Fairy Oddparents (a show that is slowly becoming a marquee series for the network), ChalkZone (which is finding some success on the Friday Night Nicktoons lineup and the Nick On CBS block), and My Life As A Teenage Robot, an action series that is slowly gaining momentum and popularity. With the upcoming premieres of Danny Phantom and Crash Nebula (not to mention a lot of shows yet to be announced, such as Avatar, Nick's first original action-animation series, which premiered in the spring of 2005 and becoming a fan-favorite of all ages), Nickelodeon has positioned itself to continue to outdo their competitors both creatively and professionally. And now they have a new outlet to showcase their cartoons in.
Nicktoons, a digital network, airs classic and modern originals from Nickelodeon with no commercials. In the slots where the commercials would be, the network airs shorts (some from KaBlam and Nick UK and others brand new) and interview segments with the creators of their shows. Did I mention that the network's presentation is way better than the competition?
For a site that used to be dedicated to Cartoon Network, I'm giving a LOT of praise to their biggest competitor, and these accolades are deserved, which is more than I can currently say for CN. It's no longer a Loser by any terms, but I'll continue to watch this network with a weary eye. Afterall, they've crashed and burned on many occasions in this guy's eyes. Let's just hope for the best.
Up next . . . Saban and DiC.
