More Movie News!!! Well...kinda...not really

[Shark Akhrrana]

I think that if they have to make a movie they should just do AC or HC.
 they can be easily condensed and you don't have to worry about having to make squeals  ( but teh option is open if they want to)

[JFalcon]

I think that if they have to make a movie they should just do AC or HC.
 they can be easily condensed and you don't have to worry about having to make squeals  ( but teh option is open if they want to)

Yes, TAC would be an awesome movie, it has space battles, Arbron, romance, Arbron, tail fighting action, Arbron, the rise of Visser Three and of course . . . Elfangor  (What, you were expecting me to say someone else's name?)

It's a little light on the actual Animorphs of course, and I think Ax is only mentioned, and sort of glimpsed during the Ellimist flashback, though they could throw that scene from book 8 into the ending of the movie, and the movie itself while being self contained (it begins with Elfangor dying and ends with his death after all) still ends in such a way that it encourages people to read the books or else allows for a TV series (me hopes with a good budget) to be made.

HBC would indeed be another good film since it would show both sides and all but it lacks human characters so those who go to movies just to see cute guys or girls wouldn't actually care, it might do as a sequel to TAC so people would know who Andalites and Hork-Bajir are and people who refuse to read (I know some such people) could still enjoy the epic tale, but really as an introductory movie meant to get peope reading the books or encourage a series with a budget I think TAC, or else the classic The Invasion are the way to go.

But both TAC and HBC have a serious drawback; lack of humans and aliens that resembe humans, unlike Star Trek where they rarely need to bust out CGI for an alien the Hork-Bajir and Andalites would have to be CGI or they just wouldn't work (the TV show's Visser Three and Ax battle comes to mind with the solid thought that a fight in Fraggle Rock would have been more heart stopping) they'd be expensive movies to make in live action due to the need for CGI or else puppets (Hopefully good ones if they go that road) and if animated the movie would be seen as a kids' movie which TAC couldn't be since it involves one major character being trapped forever, one becoming a slave for roughly the next nineteen (I think) years, and these are two plot points that they just can't leave out, even if they wanted to childproof the movie Arbron and Alloran's fates just can't be left out.

Or else they could I guess . . . they could pretend that Alloran was so evil and insane that he became a voluntary host, and Arbron could be raving about how cool the Taxxon body is so kids don't think anything bad has happened . . . but to me that'd be more depressing than the truth.

[Chad32]

TAC nwould be self contained, but I'm not sure if it would make much sense by itsself. People would be wondering about the part where he gives the box to kids, and how the war got started. Of course, I guess that would be feul for sequels and prequels. I would think HBC, but it does have a severe lack of Humans/Human-like characters. TAC could work, but it would need to include Arbron being trapped and Alloran being captured. I wouldn't have much problem with him being protrayed as an evil, crazy person. Until recently, that's how I viewed him. Someone who completely deserved his fate.

Well, I'm not sure if Arbron is such an important thing. He's never really important, except in book 53 to help speak for the Taxxons. But then I don't give a lick about Taxxons anyway. Just having him die on the Taxxon world to explain his absense in later parts would be fine.

[filmstu2005]

So if Animorphs were to be resurrected in the form of a cartoon style (non-animated) television series, which elements would you want to stand true? And what mood or themes would you like to see presented?

We all know the books reached some pretty dark points, but that doesn't mean it necessarily has to be dark. Some light comedy could shed some light on all that gloom.
 
However, I think anime is a terrible idea as a design for Animorphs. Anime is way too distinctive, the drawings are very similar and would cast Animorphs simply as another anime story, taking away from what it really was. Anime's cool, but its also a turn off, esp when I see the similarities b.w Naruto, Bleach, ect...

[rocklobster]

I think I'd want to have the people behind the DC comics cartoons, like Batman: TAS do the Animorphs cartoon.  They seem to know how to stay true to the source material.

[Chad32]

I wouldn't mind Animorphs Ressurected (that's not a bad title, I think) being a bit dark, with some Aesops about war and stuff. Though not so dark as it was in the final arc, and not have the lessons be so hammered in. Some people just want entertainment. Not so much edutainment.

There are a lot of changes that I would make, but also some basics I would keep. Like trying to keep the personalities similar, if not the same. Except tone down Cassie's ridid morality. Or maybe have her be rigidly moral at first, but then develop into something not so extreme that she would screw over the planet, her friends, and sentence someone to a fate worse than death just so she can sleep better at night. Also make Rachel not go so far into the dark side, to where people actually think she's more evil than David or Visser Three. Anti hero, sure, but not blood knight.

[JFalcon]

I think I'd want to have the people behind the DC comics cartoons, like Batman: TAS do the Animorphs cartoon.  They seem to know how to stay true to the source material.

Agreed-ish, Batman was very good, I personally dislike comic book super heroes (Aside from the X-Men . . . eXcalibur roocks btw) but Batman: TAS was practically an addiction for me as a kid and it resulted in Batman being the only super hero I can say I like without any reservation (Apart from some X-Men). It was easy for me to enjoy because unlike Super Man who wins by being so OP he makes Death Knights look like kittens Batman wins with a large (kind of OP but not Super Man OP) arsenal of neat gadgets and with strategy and I distinctly recal developing a crush on Harley Quinn as a kid which only added to the show's quality--but I digress it was also a very good show visually, not at all like Transformers Animated (yeah I still hate it, try and stop me  ) and Animorphs drawn in that style with that level of smooth movement and character loyalty would be totally cool.

Now for the "ish" part . . . see I just don't think that kind of animation is around anymore, which is sad . . . nay, depressing . . . maybe if I close my eyes and wish really, really hard . . . just seems like most cartoons today aim themselves at kids or adults and the adult shows are just kids shows with profanity, the kids shows are usually mind draining (I know I'm not supposed to think SpongeBob is genius, but when I see it and shows like it actually making my little brothers dumber . . . ) or pointless slapstick, the days when we had shows like Batman or others which both kids and adults could enjoy are gone, I'm waiting for more than one show to be on the air that proves me wrong, but hey, maybe someday Animorphs will get its chance to be such a show.

However, I think anime is a terrible idea as a design for Animorphs. Anime is way too distinctive, the drawings are very similar and would cast Animorphs simply as another anime story, taking away from what it really was. Anime's cool, but its also a turn off, esp when I see the similarities b.w Naruto, Bleach, ect...

Well not everyone likes anime, not everyone likes cartoons or live action shows either, there's just no medium that would make every fan happy because we're all individuals with our own opinions because Visser One listened to Tom and not me so the Andalites won . . . look, I've said too much.

Anyway I'm not trying to start an argument because I agree with some of what you say, but everyone has their own taste, Bleach in general and the Naruto anime aren't to mine personally, but that aside I'd like to defend the other animes out there by pointing out that Naruto and Bleach are similar because they're made by the same people much like TFA and Teen Titans, they shouldn't be used to judge the medium in general, I also suspect that their respective writers are fairly lazy, I mean Naruto's creator has admitted to "borrowing" from other animes and mangas. There are animes out there that don't strictly follow the Big Eyes Small Mouths rule of animation, though I agree a few too many do that's just their style.

But I share the worry that a lot of what Animorphs is would be "lost in translation" so to speak, but from a visual standpoint north american animation isn't impressing me thus I continue to back the anime idea. Nick clings to Spongebob like a a floatation device (which he isn't, he lives at the bottom of the sea, not the top) Cartoon Network has variety but is lazier still in their animation quality, Disney seems to have kind of stopped existing in any real way at some point (but they're Disney so they'll be back someday . . . maybe tomorrow?) I think WB did too . . . maybe the time is right for a new studio or network to come on the air and light a fire under Nick and CW with goold old fasioned competition.

Not going to happen of course. I'm sad now  :'(

[EscafilDevice]

You need to remember, filmmakers don't care about having the best movie, just the one that's most profitable.  Sadly, Animorphs simply isn't that marketable. We might get lucky with a throwback in a while, but beyond that, I don't expect much at all.

Animorphs is totally marketable.

Transformers is just as much of a niche series, the masses will watch any movie if there are attractive actors and cool special effects. The content is good enough that if it's done well, it could win awards.

[rocklobster]

If animorphs weren't marketable, do you think Nickelodeon would've even made a series, even a mediocre one?

[Chad32]

The Ani series was still in the book 20's when they made the TV series. It could still be marketable, though. Bringing old things to new light has been done before.

[rocklobster]

Furthermore, if it weren't marketable, it never would've been published.  Tv shows, Movies, and merchandise are merely icing on the cake.

[JFalcon]

I don't think anyone's saying it wasn't marketable at one point, I mean it was very marketable in its hay day, but when thinking of making a movie the people who can make it happen probably look at that terrible TV series for research since it's faster than reading a book, then they see it and say "Well this is terrible and even the fans aren't terribly fond of it, we won't make money with this"

I think if the books went out again, and if say . . . an EU existed beyond just chronicles (hint hint K.A. . . . yeah I know she won't see this and Scholastic probably has to be the one to really make the decision anyway) that could appeal to more audiences (if there were, say, a graphic novel run, that'd be amazing, I mean Gargoyles is kind of doing it, they're actually really good) it might help the powers to be more willing to undertake a movie, right now all they have to go on is a book series that isn't really selling anymore (I never questioned that it was still in print since I can still find them but I guess they're out of print?) a TV series that most fans won't even watch (it has its moments, I think but their effects were horrible) and a toy line that, honestly, was a mockery of both Animorphs and transformers, I actually (still) own the Tobias figure and I swear bird or boy form you kind of want to have him put out of his misery, he looks like he's in pain just existing . . . moreso than the regular Tobias from the books that is 

[KOFSoldier]

I don't think anyone's saying it wasn't marketable at one point, I mean it was very marketable in its hay day, but when thinking of making a movie the people who can make it happen probably look at that terrible TV series for research since it's faster than reading a book, then they see it and say "Well this is terrible and even the fans aren't terribly fond of it, we won't make money with this"

I think if the books went out again, and if say . . . an EU existed beyond just chronicles (hint hint K.A. . . . yeah I know she won't see this and Scholastic probably has to be the one to really make the decision anyway) that could appeal to more audiences (if there were, say, a graphic novel run, that'd be amazing, I mean Gargoyles is kind of doing it, they're actually really good) it might help the powers to be more willing to undertake a movie, right now all they have to go on is a book series that isn't really selling anymore (I never questioned that it was still in print since I can still find them but I guess they're out of print?) a TV series that most fans won't even watch (it has its moments, I think but their effects were horrible) and a toy line that, honestly, was a mockery of both Animorphs and transformers, I actually (still) own the Tobias figure and I swear bird or boy form you kind of want to have him put out of his misery, he looks like he's in pain just existing . . . moreso than the regular Tobias from the books that is 

Wow, that's some good points JF! Especially the point about the Graphic Novels.

There has to be a way that we (the fans, and the public) can let them know that there is still some general interest in Animorphs. I know several people who'd go see it just because of the nostalgia factor. Maybe they can "Star Trek" it. I'd never really had any interest in Star Trek when I was growing up, but I went to see the movie and actually enjoyed it. Revivals are the new "it" thing in Hollywood right now, there has to be a way we can get one for Animorphs. I feel that now would be a good time.

[JFalcon]

Well we just find some spoiled rich girl whose mother or father just happens to be a major producer, get her interested in Animorphs then watch her demand the movie for her "sweet" sixteen since we all know nothing a rich girl wants for her sixteenth fails to happen . . .

Seriously though I think if it were available in a new format, something most of us don't already own like a graphic novel or a new chronicle, or even a coloring book the sales alone would indicate that there is an interest, after all Invader Zim got action figures and DVDs in the same year because the fanbase made it known that they would buy them . . . then they didn't buy them and I never got a Tak action figure . . . but nevertheless a vocal fanbase is great, but money helps too.