Animaniacs

:This article is about the television series. For the Tiny Toon Adventures episode of the same name, see Animaniacs! (Tiny Toons episode).

Series popularity

The comedy of Animaniacs was a broad mix of old-fashioned wit, slapstick, pop culture references, and cartoon wackiness. The show also featured a number of educational segments that covered subjects from history to math to geography. These educational segments, while simplistic in nature, were at a considerably more advanced level than in such children's shows as Sesame Street; in fact, most adults could probably learn something from the show's explanations of world geography, the voyage of Ferdinand Magellan, or the Panama canal.

Related Topics:
Slapstick - Pop culture - Education - History - Math - Geography - Sesame Street - Ferdinand Magellan - Panama canal

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While episodes of the show did have their share of flops ("Mr. Skullhead," "Hip Hippos"), a surprisingly high number of well-written, outrageously funny cartoons were aired during the series, as the new madcap Warner Bros. animators merrily poked fun at everything and everyone, including their own fans ("The Please Please Pleese Get A Life Foundation").

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While the show was very popular among younger viewers (the target demographic for Warner Bros.' TV cartoons), a great deal of the show's sly, subversive humor was definitely aimed at an adult audience. In fact, one character, Minerva Mink, was soon deemphasized as a feature character on account that her featured episodes were considered too sexually suggestive for the show's intended timeslot. Adults responded in droves, giving the show cult-hit status and leading to one of the first Internet-based fandom cultures. During the show's prime, the Internet newsgroup ' was an active, popular gathering place for fans of the show (most of whom were definitely adults) to discuss the latest antics of the Warner Brothers and the Warner Sister. The online popularity of the show did not go unnoticed by the show's producers, and several of the most active participants on the newsgroup were invited to the Warner Bros. Animation studios for informal get-togethers.

Related Topics:
Internet - Fandom - Warner Bros. Animation

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