I have very fond memories of Saturday morning cartoons from my youth. I may have shared that little nugget of personal information with you in the past, but it is very true. So, imagine my delight and surprise the other evening when I saw one of my childhood favorites, Wacky Races, on the "Boom" television channel. Imagine my disappointment when I selected that channel, hoping to see one of my beloved childhood favorites, only to find an updated, modernized version of Wacky Races. Sure, Penelope Pitstop was there; as was Dick Dastardly, along with his side-kick, Muttley; and Peter Perfect. I did not watch long enough to see if the Ant Hill Mob or the Slag Brothers or any of my other favorites were there. The voices were slightly different, as if actors were trying to mimic the original cartoon characters from 1968. The animation was different as well. It looked as if it had been produced as some high-tech video game.
This is not the first time I have seen such modernization efforts being made to classic cartoons. I recall seeing similar efforts being made with Bugs Bunny cartoons as well. Don't get me started on the attempts at the "colorization" of classic black and white movies. Whose bad idea was that? The end result there were classic movies that looked as if someone had gone over the film armed with a box of crayons. My big question is, why? Why do we find the need to take something that was perfectly fine to begin with and attempt to "improve" it? The end result is something that lacks much of the charm of the original. Would anyone attempt to put a pair of shades on the Mona Lisa? I ask that in jest, but I'm afraid there may be some who would attempt just that.
Call me what you will, but I like my Wacky Races to look like I remember them. The same with Bugs Bunny. Kids today will learn to appreciate the classics if they are given the chance, I'm sure. Otherwise, we'll probably start hearing electric guitars in the middle of a Mozart symphony. I imagine there are those who feel that might not be a bad idea, either.