A wide-ranging inquiry into an important area of contemporary scholarly interest; and also an engaging; well written and intelligently conceived collection. -Eric Smoodin; author of Animating Culture: Hollywood Cartoons From the Sound EraDespite the success of Bugs Bunny; Daffy Duck; and their Looney cohorts; Warner Bros. animation worked in the shadow of Disney for many years. The past ten years have seen a resurgence in Warner Bros. animation as they produce new Bugs Bunny cartoons and theatrical features like Space Jam as well as television shows like Tiny Toon Adventures and Animaniacs. While Disneys animation plays it safe and mirrors traditional cinema stories; Warner Bros. is known for a more original and even anarchistic style of narration; a willingness to take risks in story construction; a fearlessness in crossing gender lines with its characters; and a freedom in breaking boundaries. This collection of essays looks at the history of Warner Bros. animation; compares and contrasts the two studios; charts the rise and fall of creativity and daring at Warners; and analyzes the ways in which the studio was for a time transgressive in its treatment of class; race; and gender. It reveals how safety and commercialization have; in the end; triumphed at Warner Bros. just as they much earlier conquered Disney.The book also discusses fan parodies of Warner Bros. animation on the Internet today; the Bugs Bunny cross-dressing cartoons; cartoons that were censored by the studio; and the merchandising and licensing strategies of the Warner Bros. studio stores. Contributors are Donald Crafton; Ben Fraser; Michael Frierson; Norman M. Klein; Terry Lindvall; Bill Mikulak; Barry Putterman; Kevin S. Sandler; Hank Sartin; Linda Simensky; Kirsten Moana Thompson; Gene Walz; and Timothy R. White.
#1527748 in eBooks 1998-06-01 1998-06-01File Name: B000SW1ATU
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Amazing! A Must Buy For Mass Effect Fans!By OrangeCrushI openly admit; I am a Mass Effect junkie. Its my single favorite video game and I am absolutely enthralled with the characters and universe as a whole. When it comes to the overall quality and depth of a story; Bioware certainly doesnt disappoint. The sheer amount of lore and history they infuse with their games is truly amazing. Dragon Age: Inquisition is just the latest example. For those willing to take the time to really dig in; their game universes take on a level of depth and realism that most games cant come close to matching. Personally; I believe games like this have such amazing artwork because the overall quality of the story and universe inspires the artists. I see this sort of thing in the comic market all the time as certain titles and characters really bring out the best in the artists depicting them. Well; that is certainly the case with Mass Effect as the artwork that has been created for this series is nothing short of amazing.I have collected just about every Mass Effect collectible that has come to market including the limited edition lithographs from Bioware. I actually have a few of the lithographs framed and up on my walls; including "The Team" lithograph which is actually the cover for this book. Its one of my favorite lithographs in the series and was definitely the perfect choice for the cover. All in all; this book is 184 pages and is chock full of amazing artwork from all 3 Mass Effect games. Concept art; character studies; weapons; vehicles; landscapes; ect. You find a little bit of everything in here; including highly insightful commentary. This is ultimately a perfect example of how to create a proper video game art book. Its just hugely satisfying and ultimately made me want to jump right back into the game.Bottom line - Mass Effect moved me in a way that very few games have been able to match. It has one of the best rosters of characters in the entire history of gaming; has an absolutely brilliant story; and it has some of the best artwork ever to come out of a video game title. For fans of the series; this book should be considered absolutely mandatory. I am a big collector of art books and this is without question one of the best video game related art books I have ever seen come out of the gaming market. No matter what Mass Effect collectibles you may already own; your collection is simply incomplete without this book. Its just amazing in every sense of the word and really should be on every Mass Effect fans bookshelf.5 Stars and then some!!24 of 25 people found the following review helpful. FantasticBy J. W. MullinsI am a huge fan of the Mass Effect games the world created around it. So with Mass Effect 3 on the horizon I jumped when this book came up for pre-order. And it was well worth the wait. It is full of the unique feel and art of the Mass Effect world. But it isnt endless amazing art; a lot of it shows the various sketches and design changes that different characters went through. It is broken into three section for each of the Mass Effect games. This shows how some character have changed over the course of this universe spanning adventure. Since the game is not out there are a few spoilers you will run across in the book in the Mass Effect 3 section. It doesnt give away any story that I could see; but it does show the art for some characters you will meet and recruit that havent been mentioned yet in the previews. If you read between the lines it also strongly hints at some story elements. That said I saw no harm in it and was actually a little excited to know a little more before the game releases. It just increases my desire for the game. All in all I was very happy with this book. The hardcore Mass Effect fans will see it as a must have. But for any fan of the Space Opera genre will find a lot of wonderful art and design elements in this book.19 of 20 people found the following review helpful. Credit Where Its Due?By C. FiskThe contents of this hardcover book are amazing! The books of a decent size (9.25" x 12" @ 182 high-gloss pages) with rich shades of colour that include paintings and 3D mockups spanning the entire Mass Effect trilogy.I particularly enjoy the evolution of character; weapon and location designs! The horrors of the Reaper-victim enemies are reminiscent of H.R. Gieger and among my favourites in the book! Sadly; the book is missing some character designs from the upcoming Mass Effect 3 but the major characters look impressive enough. I would have also appreciated the novel covers (which are missing in this book).My biggest complaint - the anonymity of the grunts that churned out this artwork. Why do I care about what Casey Hudson and Derek Watts have to say when neither really had anything to do with the creation of this books contents?Seriously; the video games industry needs fewer figureheads and more credit where its due.