Battle love from pop culture icon Kevin Smith

[The Other Jason]

Hi all,

I found an interesting interview today on inverse.com. In it, actor, writer, producer and director Kevin Smith gives credit to TV series like Battle of the Planets and films like Akira for his love of Japanese animation.

"Most of the animation I was fed my whole life was from here, in the states,” he (Kevin Smith) says. “But [with] outliers like Battle of the Planets, you were getting another culture’s version of a ‘cartoon.’ You saw storytelling from another part of the world. Even as a kid, you could detect subtle nuances. Cartoons from across the sea were more, for lack of a better description, grown-up."

A second mention in the interview praises Battle's differences to US-created series.

"[Without] anime, this iteration doesn’t exist,” Smith says. “Anime trusts its audience to understand. To grow up and not go, ‘We can’t do that.’ Growing up in the states in the ‘70s and ‘80s, our cartoons were simple morality tales. Like He-Man, or Super Friends. But it was always animation that came from other cultures that impacted me the most. It’s always been part of my life. Battle of the Planets, man!"

Great to hear! Smith's latest project is a new animated He-Man sequel series titled Masters of the Universe: Revelation. It is premiering on Netflix on July 23. It's pretty interesting to read that shows like Battle are a direct link to this new Masters of the Universe series even existing.

The entire interview can be read on inverse.com

I don't remember ever seeing or hearing him mention Battle in interviews before, so it's great to hear about his love for the show just before the new Master of the Universe series. Maybe there will be some fun tributes to Battle, or Easter eggs to watch for!

[Hinotori]

That's pretty cool that he regards BotP as one of his influences - the series had such an impact on our generation.

I love that he's an anime fan and understands the genre. I was nodding my head in agreement as I read his assessment of overseas vs domestic-created programs. Especially "anime trusts its audience to understand." That's one of the things I enjoy most about anime (in addition to the stories, artistry, etc) - it doesn't explain every nuance; they expect you will understand what is being conveyed.

[The Other Jason]

Hi Hinotori,

That's pretty cool that he regards BotP as one of his influences - the series had such an impact on our generation.

I love that he's an anime fan and understands the genre. I was nodding my head in agreement as I read his assessment of overseas vs domestic-created programs. Especially "anime trusts its audience to understand." That's one of the things I enjoy most about anime (in addition to the stories, artistry, etc) - it doesn't explain every nuance; they expect you will understand what is being conveyed.

I thought it was interesting that he mentioned Battle. I haven't seen a lot of interviews with him, but if he'd brought it up before I'm sure someone in our fan base would have mentioned. I'm very curious to know what specific memories he has of the show and if any of it influenced anything in his earlier projects?

Yes, being a fan of anime might very well bring some interesting ideas to his Masters of the Universe series. I hope he can bring some of that "trust the audience" feeling to it. I mentioned it in something else I'm currently working on, but it felt like Japanese animation programming grew along with its fans as they aged, while American animation continued to target the same age group year after year. There was no real chance given to any American creators to grow, explore, see what they could do if given a chance.

[Stardust]

I am curious to see what they will do with Masters of the Universe myself. I was pretty happy with the re-boot of She-ra.

[MoonlightDezu]

Hi Hinotori,

That's pretty cool that he regards BotP as one of his influences - the series had such an impact on our generation.

I love that he's an anime fan and understands the genre. I was nodding my head in agreement as I read his assessment of overseas vs domestic-created programs. Especially "anime trusts its audience to understand." That's one of the things I enjoy most about anime (in addition to the stories, artistry, etc) - it doesn't explain every nuance; they expect you will understand what is being conveyed.

I thought it was interesting that he mentioned Battle. I haven't seen a lot of interviews with him, but if he'd brought it up before I'm sure someone in our fan base would have mentioned. I'm very curious to know what specific memories he has of the show and if any of it influenced anything in his earlier projects?

Yes, being a fan of anime might very well bring some interesting ideas to his Masters of the Universe series. I hope he can bring some of that "trust the audience" feeling to it. I mentioned it in something else I'm currently working on, but it felt like Japanese animation programming grew along with its fans as they aged, while American animation continued to target the same age group year after year. There was no real chance given to any American creators to grow, explore, see what they could do if given a chance.

I've seen the Netflix Trailer and It's Incredible. It's Toei level animation

[Hinotori]

I watched the trailer, too, and it was pretty amazing! Using Bonnie Tyler's "Holding Out for a Hero" as the background track was a nice touch, too! I'm looking forward to watching the series.

However, as I was checking some of the production info, I found that the voice cast was even more impressive. And there's one actor in there that I nearly dropped when I saw his name!!

So, there we are! Another BotP connection!


(how excited Kevin Smith must have been to work with Oppenheimer! To work on an animation series with someone involved in an animation series he was so heavily influenced by... Must have been an absolute thrill for Smith).

[The Other Jason]

Hi Hinotori,

However, as I was checking some of the production info, I found that the voice cast was even more impressive. And there's one actor in there that I nearly dropped when I saw his name!!

So, there we are! Another BotP connection!


(how excited Kevin Smith must have been to work with Oppenheimer! To work on an animation series with someone involved in an animation series he was so heavily influenced by... Must have been an absolute thrill for Smith).

That's great! Oppenheimer was the voice of Skeletor in the original Masters of the Universe so I'm sure that's mainly why he was there. But I'd be curious to know if Smith was also aware he was in Battle. It's awesome to see someone from the Battle era working on new projects.

[Cure DragonEagle 255]

Hi all,

I found an interesting interview today on inverse.com. In it, actor, writer, producer and director Kevin Smith gives credit to TV series like Battle of the Planets and films like Akira for his love of Japanese animation.

"Most of the animation I was fed my whole life was from here, in the states,” he (Kevin Smith) says. “But [with] outliers like Battle of the Planets, you were getting another culture’s version of a ‘cartoon.’ You saw storytelling from another part of the world. Even as a kid, you could detect subtle nuances. Cartoons from across the sea were more, for lack of a better description, grown-up."

A second mention in the interview praises Battle's differences to US-created series.

"[Without] anime, this iteration doesn’t exist,” Smith says. “Anime trusts its audience to understand. To grow up and not go, ‘We can’t do that.’ Growing up in the states in the ‘70s and ‘80s, our cartoons were simple morality tales. Like He-Man, or Super Friends. But it was always animation that came from other cultures that impacted me the most. It’s always been part of my life. Battle of the Planets, man!"

Great to hear! Smith's latest project is a new animated He-Man sequel series titled Masters of the Universe: Revelation. It is premiering on Netflix on July 23. It's pretty interesting to read that shows like Battle are a direct link to this new Masters of the Universe series even existing.

The entire interview can be read on inverse.com

I don't remember ever seeing or hearing him mention Battle in interviews before, so it's great to hear about his love for the show just before the new Master of the Universe series. Maybe there will be some fun tributes to Battle, or Easter eggs to watch for!

I love Kevin Smith again now.