*On January 24, 2005 stores will be carrying copies of Spider-Man - The New Animated Series. This was the ‘cartoon’ that MTV created. It was really just a CGI show. But I thought it was actually a pretty good show, and I looked forward to seeing it. Unfortunately they took it off the air much too soon. It’s probably not worth the $14.95 price for the hour-long DVD though.

*Apparently Wesley Snipes is interested in doing a Black Panther movie. I’m not sure that there is a groundswell for Black Panther, but I’d give Snipes a shot at the roll. I’ve really enjoyed the first two Blade movies.

*Speaking of Blade movies, the third and final installment is to be in theaters on December 8th. With any luck I’ll be in the theaters that weekend, enjoying some good old-fashioned vampire slaying.

*On my way to run some errands last weekend I noticed two signs. The first was for a conference center, welcoming the current conference. It read, “Victory of Light: Psychic Conference”. Right….

The second sign was for a Roadhouse Grill. It simply read, “No”.

*There was a time in cartoons where physical violence was very common. Just flip to a channel like Boomerang and you’ll see more cartoon violence than on any other currently airing show. Why is this? Simple, it’s because they show re-runs of cartoons like Tom and Jerry.

Old cartoons, including favorites like Bugs Bunny, include tremendous amounts of violence. After all, where does the inspiration for Itchy & Scratchy (of Simpsons fame) come from? You guessed it, Tom and Jerry. Sure the violence wasn’t grotesque or bloody, but it was certainly violent. Last time I checked dropping an anvil on someone would kill them.

Naturally there was a response to this violence, and for a time cartoon violence diminished. And unless you are watching something like “Adult Swim” on Cartoon Network or buying uncut DVD’s, cartoon violence is at a very low point. In fact, if you watch a show like Shaman King they don’t even show any of the physical contact. The attacks are ‘assumed’ to hit.

So what’s the point of all this? Well, I think it’s important to show how shows have changed. Because I think there is a new trend about to emerge in cartoons. Non-violence violence.

If you look at shows like The Batman and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles you will notice they have something in common, and it’s not their snappy dressing. Both of these shows have actually managed to animated martial arts fights. This is to be commended on not only a creative level, but also an artistic one. Watching their fights you see technique, not just punching and kicking. A punch is blocked with a counter move, and followed up with a new attack. It’s a lot of fun to watch.

I think this is the beginning of a trend to show ‘violence’ without showing any blood and guts, and without any one taking any kind of serious punishment (such as falling 1,000 feet off a cliff). This violence is no more violent than that shown in movies like The Karate Kid. And in some cases it’s substantially less. It’s not mindless violence, and it’s not grotesque violence. It’s some kind of in-between violence.

*Well that’s it for this week. Hope you liked the new format.