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8 Upfront - Animated Icons

More than just children's entertainment, animation has become an essential element of pop culture. Even after years of exile from TV screens, you can still find characters printed on t-shirts and caps, if not in Tumblr and blog posts on the web, says Syafiq bin Roslan.

So what makes a cartoon iconic? Why is it that people are more likely to remember the likes of Bugs Bunny and Wild E Coyote? Why can't the newer shows created by the likes of Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon reach the same level of prestige that the classics have?

Remember the shows that we used to watch as a kid back in the 90's: Pinky and The Brain, Animaniacs, Batman: The Animated Series, Dexter's Laboratory and Johnny Bravo? These programmes invokes a sense of nostalgia every time we think about them.

Technology

To me, part of the mystique which surrounded older cartoons was the fact that they did almost everything by hand. The animation process was a lot more grueling, but the results were astonishing. People responded well to it because they appreciated all the effort that went in.

Besides, most of us can now watch shows on our laptops or smart phones. It just doesn't create the same kind of excitement as when we were watching cartoons on Saturday mornings on TV.

Characters

Of course a cartoon show is only as iconic as its characters. There's no specific rule to determine what is memorable or not. It boils down to a number of things: some are defined by their relationships with each other (Tom and Jerry; Wild E Coyote and Roadrunner), some by their personalities (Daffy Duck is just plain insane), while others through their catchphrases ("Eh, what's up doc?").

Above all, it's a usually a simple, timeless character design that would remain in people's heads for years to come. Think Spongebob. The best designed characters are the ones that even a 3-year-old can doodle, and people will know who it is.

Plotline

All cartoons have a running gag. This is the one golden rule that applies to all forms of animation (apart from Anime, but more on that later). Don't believe me? Take a look at any Looney Tunes cartoon: Elmer Fudd hunts for "wabbits", only to bump into Bugs Bunny, and the show ends with Bugs outsmarting him. The same concept applies in Tom and Jerry.

Now recall any Family Guy or The Simpsons episodes; it always starts with Peter or Homer coming up with a brand new stupid idea, the consequences of said idea follow suit, and we watch how the rest of the family pull together to resolve matters. Running gags serve as a template for cartoon shows, and new plotlines don't usually stray far from it. And this somehow makes a show memorable as well.

Themes, mood and overall design

Older cartoon characters have a fluid quality to their designs. The backdrop for the scenes were usually subtle and non-intrusive. Newer cartoons tend to have "trippier" designs. They really give the impression that the artists and animators were high when they were designing them. Sometimes the trippy effect may also bleed in into the dialogue and story lines. Hence you occasionally get really nonsensical plots and episodes.

Merchandising

Let's face it: we remember Mickey Mouse because we used to own a Mickey Mouse watch, or school bag, or t-shirt. "Selling out" is part and parcel of developing a timeless cartoon series. As mentioned earlier, cartoons are, after all, a part of pop culture. It's iconic because it sells. That's showbiz, baby.

So will there ever be animation icons in our time? I am optimistic about it. We all know "who lives in a pineapple under the sea", after all. Or the green Scottish ogre who yells, "Donkey!" And then there's the kid with the alien watch who can transform into various alien life forms to save the day. Oh yes, there's hope for cartoons and who knows, the next generations may one day just look upon our cartoons as retro, quaint and unattainable!