Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Academy Award Animation Collection DVD Credits:

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Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Academy Award Animation Collection DVD Release Date: 12th February 2008

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Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Academy Award Animation Collection DVD Review:

To coincide with the popular award show Warner Brothers Home Entertainment has released a box set with all of the animation winners of the past, as well as the nominees, from the Warner Bros., MGM and Fleisher Studios. This is an impressive collection, although they might not strike contemporary viewers as award winners, especially with the latest advances in animation. At the time these cartoons were groundbreaking, and the fact that they now seem commonplace is an interesting comment on how widespread their popularity has been.

What I found most interesting about the set was a small-print disclaimer on the back of the package, claiming that the box set is “intended for the adult collector and may not be suitable for children”. At a certain point the overt sexuality of innocent cartoons as well as the violence from constantly battling cartoon rivals became objectionable to show children, despite the fact that I grew up on this stuff and nobody seemed to mind. In a time when everything is available to children on the internet and they seem hyper-aware of issues I never concerned myself with, I hardly think that a Bugs Bunny cartoon is likely to do damage. Even still, the collection will be appreciated by adult collectors, and it is obvious this is what the package is directed towards.

The 41-cartoon set is separated onto three discs, with only the first disc containing the winners. The second and third disc are filled with 26 nominated cartoons, many of which seem just as satisfying as the fifteen award-winners on the first disc. The collection shows a tendency for particular characters to receive numerous nominations and wins during specific time periods. There are a number of Tom and Jerry shorts on the winner’s disc as well as an assorted selection of Looney Tunes characters. Even a Superman cartoon finds its way onto the list of nominees.

The collection has more than just cartoons, with a featurette and numerous options for select cartoons. The featurette gives background on several of the Oscar animation included in the set. There is also a short included of Bugs Bunny at the Oscars as well as commentaries on select shorts and music-only tracks on others.

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Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Academy Award Animation Collection DVD review written by: Ryan Izay