Suspension of Disbelief in Animation: How far can it go?

[Funkatron]

A question that has always bounced around in my head. Has there been any cartoon where you suspend your disbelief but only up to a point?

For example for me is TMNT. It has mutated turtles who are ninjas and fight criminals, aliens, other mutants, etc. But what I can't swallow is the Splinter learned martial arts BEFORE he got mutated. I'm guessing thats why they had splinter be human in the 80's cartoon.

Anyone have other examples?

[Wussycat]

Pet Alien

No one can tell that they're aliens, even though they don't wear disguises.

In one episode, there were two moments when a couple of the aliens kidnapped a human and then put them in an inescapable box, but when they opened the box later it contained an alien that was nowhere near them when the kidnapping took place. You clearly saw the aliens putting the human in there.

[lordsmurf]

Freakazoid was too out there for me.

And although it's not animated, I cannot watch Power Rangers either. The plot from season to season, and even episode to episode, is too far out there.

Both shows have always struck me as "LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME! BUY THESE TOYS!" types of half-hour shows. Although it should be noted Freakzoid had no toys (to my knowledge), so it was more or less just 30 minutes of obnoxiousness.

I can get into most other cartoons just fine, suspend belief long enough to enjoy one show, or even several seasons of a show.

[maczero]

A question that has always bounced around in my head. Has there been any cartoon where you suspend your disbelief but only up to a point?

For example for me is TMNT. It has mutated turtles who are ninjas and fight criminals, aliens, other mutants, etc. But what I can't swallow is the Splinter learned martial arts BEFORE he got mutated. I'm guessing thats why they had splinter be human in the 80's cartoon.

Anyone have other examples?I fanwank that Splinter had been exposed to a small dose of the ooze before he found the turtles.

[Chris Johnston]

Freakazoid was too out there for me.

And although it's not animated, I cannot watch Power Rangers either. The plot from season to season, and even episode to episode, is too far out there.

Both shows have always struck me as "LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME! BUY THESE TOYS!" types of half-hour shows. Although it should be noted Freakzoid had no toys (to my knowledge), so it was more or less just 30 minutes of obnoxiousness.

I can get into most other cartoons just fine, suspend belief long enough to enjoy one show, or even several seasons of a show.

To me, Freakazoid was merely a parody (a well done parody, IMHO) of its own genre.

The G.I. Joe movie though, we get this Cobra-La stuff, and it's revealed that they laid the seeds for the creation of Serpentor in season 2....where did that come from?

[Wussycat]

Any time Mr. Mime appeared after the PPG episode of the same name. How likely is it that Rainbow had a truckful of bleach fall on him more than once?

[tb4000]

Freakazoid was too out there for me.

And although it's not animated, I cannot watch Power Rangers either. The plot from season to season, and even episode to episode, is too far out there.

Both shows have always struck me as "LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME! BUY THESE TOYS!" types of half-hour shows. Although it should be noted Freakzoid had no toys (to my knowledge), so it was more or less just 30 minutes of obnoxiousness.

I can get into most other cartoons just fine, suspend belief long enough to enjoy one show, or even several seasons of a show.

Freakazoid was basically a somewhat less loony version of Spielberg's earlier Tiny Toons and Animaniacs. A satire of all the superhero stuff that Dini and Timm had worked on before.

[Bones Justice]

The only consistent problem I have with disbelief is stuff like G.I. Joe where there is lots of gunfire but no one ever gets killed. I mean, these guys are supposed to be an elite fighting force but they can never hit anyone even when the enemy is out in the open. Same goes for characters like The Punisher on Spider-man TAS.

I know it's all due to censorship but it always serves to remind me that I'm watching fiction. I can't get past my disbelief regarding that sort of thing.

[Caswin]

The only consistent problem I have with disbelief is stuff like G.I. Joe where there is lots of gunfire but no one ever gets killed. I mean, these guys are supposed to be an elite fighting force but they can never hit anyone even when the enemy is out in the open. Same goes for characters like The Punisher on Spider-man TAS.

I know it's all due to censorship but it always serves to remind me that I'm watching fiction. I can't get past my disbelief regarding that sort of thing.Well, in its defense, the same holds true to some degree for the guns in Batman: TAS.

[Bones Justice]

Well, in its defense, the same holds true to some degree for the guns in Batman: TAS.

Well, maybe to some degree, but Batman really isn't about using guns. He hits the mark with his weapons all the time. As for people shooting at Batman, he's highly skilled at avoiding them. He tends to used stealth, fear, and misdirection to avoid being hit. He doesn't tend to fight in broad daylight in open areas against enemies armed with guns. He has been injured plenty of times, too. Also, most of his enemies are not trained marksman. They also tend to use pistols instead of rifles, which are less accurate.

Other superheroes like Superman or Green Lantern tend to block bullets rather than avoiding them but at least the shooters generally hit the mark.

Any of the guys in G.I. Joe should be able to hit some of their Cobra enemies in battle. Likewise, The Punisher in Spider-man TAS is a terrible shot in ever appearance. Supposedly, they all had military training but it sure doesn't look like it.

So yeah, I can suspend my disbelief for Batman:TAS a heck of a lot easier than I can for G.I. Joe.

[Caswin]

As for people shooting at Batman, he's highly skilled at avoiding them. He tends to used stealth, fear, and misdirection to avoid being hit. He doesn't tend to fight in broad daylight in open areas against enemies armed with guns. He has been injured plenty of times, too.It's people shooting at him I was talking about. Huge amounts of lead get sprayed (the worst instance probably being World's Finest, maybe "Crime Doctor"), and as I recall, he was only ever winged once, by Joker - and I think that had something to do with "Holiday Knights" making a point of showing off everything that would by shiny and different about the new incarnation (not that anything ever really came of that particular bit).

[Terror of Death]

But what I can't swallow is the Splinter learned martial arts BEFORE he got mutated. I'm guessing thats why they had splinter be human in the 80's cartoon.

I know we saw him imatating Yoshi but I always thought that was just the equivalent of a pet doing tricks. I think the ooze ehanced his memory and caused him to remember all the times he watched Yoshi do martial arts. But maybe thats just me.

[90'sCartoonMan]

It's people shooting at him I was talking about. Huge amounts of lead get sprayed (the worst instance probably being World's Finest, maybe "Crime Doctor"), and as I recall, he was only ever winged once, by Joker - and I think that had something to do with "Holiday Knights" making a point of showing off everything that would by shiny and different about the new incarnation (not that anything ever really came of that particular bit).

He was also shot in the leg in the second part of "Robin's Reckoning".

[Wussycat]

Marge Simpson not knowing what Star Wars is in the episode Bart Has Two Mommies.

[Silverstar]

Marge Simpson not knowing what Star Wars is in the episode Bart Has Two Mommies.

Eh, that's not that unusual. I've talked to people who in this day and age have still never seen any of the Star Wars films.

[Bones Justice]

It's people shooting at him I was talking about. Huge amounts of lead get sprayed (the worst instance probably being World's Finest, maybe "Crime Doctor"), and as I recall, he was only ever winged once, by Joker - and I think that had something to do with "Holiday Knights" making a point of showing off everything that would by shiny and different about the new incarnation (not that anything ever really came of that particular bit).

Well, I seem to recall that he's been hurt more than once but I can't name specifically.

Still, I can suspend my disbelief because of the reasons I gave before. He doesn't tend to confront enemies armed with guns directly in the open. He's elusive. He sticks to the shadows. The bad guys also tend to be scared of him, making them hesitate or take aim in haste. It may be improbable but at least it's possible. I my suspension of disbelief can do possible.

Now take something like G.I. Joe. They don't hide. They don't fight at night usually. They don't use fear as a weapon against their enemies. They are supposed to be elite (trained) soldiers. Both sides shoot a lot of rounds (or laserblasts, what-ever) yet nobody ever seems to get hit. Unlike with Batman, I can't think of any possible reason why somebody isn't shot, other than censorship, which ruins my suspension of disbelief.


I know we saw him imatating Yoshi but I always thought that was just the equivalent of a pet doing tricks. I think the ooze ehanced his memory and caused him to remember all the times he watched Yoshi do martial arts. But maybe thats just me.

That's a good explanation. I don't watch a lot of Turtles stuff but I could except that. At least some pets learn behaviors of their owners, even when they are not taught. For example, dogs often learn that when their master picks up his keys, he's probably going out. Maybe Splinter's master always fed him right after he worked out, which caused the rat to pay close attention whenever he did so.

If the rat version of Splinter saw all that martial arts training repeatedly, it would be in his long-term memory, also. Once his brain was enhanced through mutation, perhaps he was able to recall everything that he previously saw and apply it..

[DarthGonzo]

Eh, that's not that unusual. I've talked to people who in this day and age have still never seen any of the Star Wars films.

Heh, Homer and Marge were shown going to see Empire Strikes Back in the episode I Married Marge. That should count for something.

[Wussycat]

Bart and Homer both having that "Bart's moon party in outer space" fantasy. Shouldn't Homer be imagining himself as the host of the party?

[RAINMAN]

DBGT:SS4, the earth giving off brute rays and gero making another copy of 17 in hell? I don`t know what crew toei had on this series but they did a great job of ignoreing and overwriteing all the rules A.T. made for the DBU.

[Silverstar]

DBGT:SS4, the earth giving off brute rays and gero making another copy of 17 in hell? I don`t know what crew toei had on this series but they did a great job of ignoreing and overwriteing all the rules A.T. made for the DBU.

NOTHING about DBGT made any sense. DBGT basically took a huge dump on the whole DB franchise. I prefer to think that DBGT just fell to Earth from some alternate dimension and simply forget that it ever existed.

[TKnHappyNess]

A question that has always bounced around in my head. Has there been any cartoon where you suspend your disbelief but only up to a point?

For example for me is TMNT. It has mutated turtles who are ninjas and fight criminals, aliens, other mutants, etc. But what I can't swallow is the Splinter learned martial arts BEFORE he got mutated. I'm guessing thats why they had splinter be human in the 80's cartoon.

Anyone have other examples?

It's explained in 2 ways (the 2003 version and the first movie). Splinter watches Hamato Yoshi do his training, and mimics his moves. That's how in the movie Shredder recognizes the Turtles' fighting style.

[Wussycat]

Da Boom Crew

They were somehow transported into space, where the planets just happen to be exactly like the planets in their games by pure coincidence.

Also, the main villain wants their game cartridges for absolutely no reason.

[RAINMAN]

NOTHING about DBGT made any sense. DBGT basically took a huge dump on the whole DB franchise. I prefer to think that DBGT just fell to Earth from some alternate dimension and simply forget that it ever existed.


Most DB fans feel the sameway too.

[Wussycat]

Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers: No humans notice that the Rescue Rangers wear clothes, even when they get a good close look.

ReBoot: Why would Mainframe be deleted just because they lost a game to the User?

[Dudley]

ReBoot: Why would Mainframe be deleted just because they lost a game to the User?

Ya know, I always wondered that myself. It never made any sense.

[Elven Moon]

In many anime I have noticed that a good number of teens live alone while their parents "work overseas." I can believe it when a parent is really busy and thus hardly ever home, but I mean, come on! There isn't any problem with this? How are bills paid? Shouldn't they be living with a guardian? Wouldn't the school or police notice and do something? I don't care if their neighbor checks on them, I just don't believe any decent parent would do this.

[RAINMAN]

In many anime I have noticed that a good number of teens live alone while their parents "work overseas." I can believe it when a parent is really busy and thus hardly ever home, but I mean, come on! There isn't any problem with this? How are bills paid? Shouldn't they be living with a guardian? Wouldn't the school or police notice and do something? I don't care if their neighbor checks on them, I just don't believe any decent parent would do this.


Most of them don`t even have parents. Their parent are either dead or they left the kid on their own to raise themselves.:sad:

[cyde]

Most of them don`t even have parents. Their parent are either dead or they left the kid on their own to raise themselves.:sad:How sad..........:crying:

[Wussycat]

The Legend of Tarzan: How could Jane and Porter learn gorilla and elephant languages?