Should have made that left turn at Albuquerque

Nothing good can come of this

I love old cartoons. Cartoons were way funnier back in the old days when violence ruled the day. Unfortunately (although correctly) society has dictated a restriction on the gratuitous cartoon violence in children's programming today.

I'm definitely more of a Looney Tunes guy, but Goofy is pretty awesome too...especially when he's teaching me how to play a sport from a 1940's perspective

Yes random youtube commenter, Swivel Hips Smith IS ridiculous

Cartoon conventions are what really get me though. The running gags that run consistently throughout the canon of the genre. Like seriously, who decided that a banana peel should be the universal object of slippery-ness? That person deserves a pat on the back. Genius. And we just accept the fact that if you step on a banana peel you will be sent on a gravity-defying, bone-splitting journey; likely through drainage pipes, into oncoming traffic, and eventually off a cliff. Of course the dive off the cliff will be accompanied by that "skreee!" sound effect until eventually you turn into a puff of smoke upon impact at the bottom of an apparent 10,000 foot drop.


Seriously, has anyone actually stepped on a banana before? Prepare to be underwhelmed.

Speaking of smoke, my all-time favourite cartoon convention is the physical transformation a character goes through upon the receipt of a gunshot or explosion.

It's surprisingly difficult to find a picture of an "exploded" Looney Tune

This calamity is represented in a few ways...none of them involving the death of the "inflicted" character of course. Case #1: the character receiving the business end of a gunshot or stick of dynamite will revert to a black and gray (smoked?) figure, dazed, stumbling like he or she is drunk. Usually the clothing has become ragged as if the character has spent too much time with the Swiss Family Robinson. Case #2: the victimized character's clothing or fur is virtually blown completely off by the gunfire or explosion, leaving a mostly naked but unharmed character stumbling around in a daze. This is used to humorous perfection by the characters of Wile E. Coyote and Sylvester the Cat. Case #3: this is unique to the character Daffy Duck but is so damn funny that it deserves its own category. The duck bill. Words really don't do this justice...

How despicable.

P.S. Other favourite cartoon conventions include perfectly shaped mouse holes, anvils, dynamite (has anyone even used TNT in the last 80 years?), Powerhouse