Animaniacs
Series, 1993, The early '90s, Set in The Warner Bros. water tower
Animaniacs is #3 of 10 in release order and #3 of 10 in chronological order in the Warner Bros. Cartoon Classics.
The story
The two Warner Brothers Yakko and Wakko and their Warner sister Dot had been (supposedly) created in the 1930's, but their cartoons were too screwy for the general public to handle. The three Warners were locked up in the studio water tower until they escaped in the 90's. There, they run wild, causing chaos everywhere!
Animaniacs recap
Yakko, Wakko and Dot, the Warner siblings, are cartoon characters from the 1930s who were locked in the Warner Bros. water tower for being too zany. Now loose, they run around the studio lot, tormenting the studio psychiatrist Dr. Scratchansniff and the guard Ralph, and singing songs about the countries of the world, the presidents and the US states. The show is a variety series made up of short segments. Besides the Warners, there is Pinky and the Brain, two lab mice trying to take over the world; Slappy Squirrel, a retired cartoon star with a nephew, Skippy; the Goodfeathers, pigeons spoofing gangster films; Rita and Runt, a cat and a dog; Buttons and Mindy, a dog and a toddler who wanders into danger; and the Hip Hippos. The humour mixes slapstick with parodies of films and celebrities and jokes aimed at adults. Produced by Steven Spielberg with Tom Ruegger as showrunner, it aired on Fox Kids from 1993 to 1995 and then on Kids' WB until 1998, with 99 episodes, and won several Emmy Awards.
Animaniacs ending explained
The original Animaniacs has no story finale. Its last episode aired on November 14, 1998, a clip show set to music called "The Animaniacs Suite", and the Warners stayed in their water tower. A direct-to-video film, Wakko's Wish, followed in 1999. Pinky and the Brain had already spun off into their own show, and Hulu revived Animaniacs in 2020 with the original voice cast for three seasons.
Where to watch Animaniacs
Animaniacs is streaming on Tubi in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 7.8/10
Where it fits
- Release order: after Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation, before Pinky and the Brain.
- Chronological order: after Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation, before Pinky and the Brain.
Cast
- Rob Paulsen as Yakko / Pinky (voice)
- Jess Harnell as Wakko (voice)
- Tress MacNeille as Dot (voice)
- Maurice LaMarche as The Brain / Squit (voice)
- Sherri Stoner as Slappy Squirrel (voice)
- Chick Vennera as Pesto (voice)
- John Mariano as Bobby (voice)
- Nathan Ruegger as Skippy Squirrel (voice)
- Nancy Cartwright as Mindy (voice)
- Frank Welker as Runt / Buttons (voice)
- Bernadette Peters as Rita (voice)
- Jeff Bennett as Flaxseed (voice)