Housepets! Television Series???

[Sketcherofstuff]

As good as the idea sounds, the comman man is a fool and therefore, the show would either be underapreciated, misunderstood, or just get a bunch of hatred filled complaints about UNGODLY PERVERSIONS! BACK TO HECK WITH YOU and the lot.

[Dissension]

This is what happens to every cartoon about talking animals, apparently.

[Liam]

That and receiving an abysmally bad live-action treatment.

[Sleet]

That could only happen if Rick lets it happen. Or if he died. But I bet if the comic ever got that famous, he could always write in his will that no one is allowed to make a live-action movie based on his comic or the television show based on it!

Actually, that wouldn't be a bad idea, even if it's not super popular. Just in case.

[Anthroguy101]

It would be a digital 2-D anime and it would be popular in Japan before the US.

[sliceofdog]

As much as I'd love to see Housepets become a cartoon, I just don't think it would work, particularly not with Rick's adamancy about the PG rating (For better or worse). There are only 2 cartoons I can think of that were successful without being either silly kids shows like Spongebob (Which Housepets! is nothing like) or purposely offensive adult shows like Family Guy or South Park (Which Housepets! is even less like), and those are The Simpsons and King of the Hill.

The Simpsons was only as successful because it was the first of its kind. Well, it was awesome too, but that's not the point.
King of the Hill was successful because it was so different; Cartoon humour based in reality. From the animation to the storylines, it was focussed on seeming real and plausible. Housepets! loses this with the talking animals, magical griffins and people turned into dogs.

It's not a question of content: I'm sure a Housepets! cartoon, in the right hands (Aka Rick's), would be awesome. It's about marketing and how things would be received. A show about talking animals is always seen as a kids show unless it is extremely adult. And Housepets! is too... smart to really keep kid's attentions. It's not silly enough, and the silly humour it does have isn't kid's humour. I don't think people would even give it a chance :/

[Sleet]

Well Housepets! is stylistically similar to a kid's show. Just because it was written for adults doesn't mean it has to be presented as an adult's show. However, there are a few arcs in the comic that I'm not sure would be very good for children (the most recent, por exemplo), so a cartoon series would probably have to use its own plot or take liberties from the current one to be marketable. I wouldn't consider that a big deal.

Then again, Invader Zim did pretty well among teenagers and adults despite being presented as typical Nickelodeon fare. And Adventure Time doesn't seem to be bombing on Cartoon Network despite its significant adult appeal at the cost of child appeal.

[Senator_Sunburst]

I'm a pretty average animation fan (I watch and have seen much more animation than an average person my age, but not as much as a hardcore animation nerd) and it doesn't matter what your show is marketed towards. If it's entertaining, you'll get teen and adult fans along with the child fans. Even Dora the Explorer has teen and adult fans.

Really, I'd never suggest marketed a cartoon show to adults. Animation aimed at adults is almost invariably terrible. Terrible animation, terrible humour. And even if a show was good but marketed towards adults, it'd get lumped in with that group anyway. I have a friend who I've been working with for a while to make a Series Bible for a cartoon show, and we both are adamant that it not get above a TV-PG rating for this reason. Our worst fear is ending up on Adult Swim with all those terrible not-funny shows that nobody watches.

Personally I think Housepets! would work great as a television series. The format's different though, so it'd have to be changed up a bit so it could fit into the new medium. Nothing wrong with that. Garfield and Friends was awesome despite being similar to the strip in only basic premise and characters.

As much as I'd love to see Housepets become a cartoon, I just don't think it would work, particularly not with Rick's adamancy about the PG rating (For better or worse). There are only 2 cartoons I can think of that were successful without being either silly kids shows like Spongebob (Which Housepets! is nothing like) or purposely offensive adult shows like Family Guy or South Park (Which Housepets! is even less like), and those are The Simpsons and King of the Hill.
/

What do you mean by silly kids shows?

[Sleet]

Well it's a kid's show, and it's silly. That sounds like Spongebob to me. That doesn't mean it can't be completely awesome.

[Tiggy]

Sure, it'd be an interesting watch, but I don't think that it'll have the same 'atmosphere' as the HP! comic, in my opinion.

[Mika]

Sure, it'd be an interesting watch, but I don't think that it'll have the same 'atmosphere' as the HP! comic, in my opinion.

Not unless it had a mile long comments section...

[sliceofdog]

Well it's a kid's show, and it's silly. That sounds like Spongebob to me. That doesn't mean it can't be completely awesome.

Exactly! I love Spongebob, but it is undeniably way sillier than Housepets! The same goes for Fairly Odd Parents, or Adventure Time. They're all overly colourful and silly, random plots and ott voices. It can certainly work and make a very enjoyable end product for either kids or adults, but it's not the direction Housepets! is going in, or that I would like to see it go if it were a cartoon.

And Sleet mentioned Invader Zim. But let's not forget the problem that IZ was cancelled. It's very popular now, possibly one of the most cult cartoon series there has ever been (At least on the interwebs), but that didn't stop it being cancelled. No more are being made, and they probably didn't make much money out of it. I don't believe Marketing isn't a problem, because cartoons are seen as expendable. Most only get one or 2 seasons before they're axed for a new show, even if they were popular. And then even popular shows, like Futurama and King of the Hill, can get randomly axed, despite amazing ratings.

Teens and adults might love a Housepets! cartoon, but I honestly believe they wouldn't see it in time to stop it being cancelled. Adventure Time got it's older audience because it's pilot was so weird and random and had internet success. When it began as a real cartoon, teenagers were interested and checked it out. Housepets! doesn't have the random factor, and I don't think any adverts would appeal to the right audience; The general rule is 'Talking animals = kids show unless they're making rude jokes', and when the show isn't dark or random (IZ and AT respectively) adults generally aren't willing to check out kids shows.

[Senator_Sunburst]

See, I don't consider Spongebob to be all that silly, at least early Spongebob. I stopped watching it regularly once it did get weird, but whenever I think of Spongebob I think of the early seasons where it wasn't all that strange. It was definitely not the level of Fairly OddParents, and Fairly OddParents is nowhere near the weirdness of Adventure Time!.

Popular opinion seems to be that IZ was cancelled not because it failed to be popular, but that it failed to be popular with the right demographic. Popular wisdom tells us that Nick hates cartoons that gain appeal outside their intended demographic. Even Avatar:TLA had problems because it was popular outside its demographic, and was only saved because it was also really popular with the kids.

Cancellation also depends on what network you're on, and how popular you are. Disney used to always cancel shows after a while, although very very popular shows would move past the 75 episode mark and go on to 100, such as DuckTales. Nick was, and still is, worse about it. If you're not SpongeBob, you'll probably get cancelled quickly no matter how popular you are. But Cartoon Network doesn't have that problem. Most cartoons on CN are stopped, not cancelled. They keep going until the creators get tired of it, or some other problem like that happens, and even then sometimes they continue (as was the case of Dexter's Lab, where Genndy Tartakovsky stopped working on it because he wanted to focus on other projects, but they eventually brought it back anyway).

Adults are on the whole unwilling to check out animated shows regardless of how dark or random it is. American culture, while not the worst in this respect, is very bad about animation being only for children. Take Batman: The Animated Series. It was amazing, even for adults. But adults wouldn't watch it because it was animated.

But it's okay, because that sizeable minority of animation fans is out there. They're the kind who'll be watching cartoons anyway. No ads for a Housepets! show will attract new teen and adult viewers, but it'll have all the teens and adults who like animation already, plus the children it can attract. I mean, I check out every new animated show that I hear about. So long as the show itself is good, I'll watch it, and so will others who are like me.

Also, let's look at Hey Arnold!. That show managed to live on Nick for a while, and it's the most boringly normal show I can think of. It's more normal than King of the Hill. The reason I bring it up is just to point out that it doesn't matter really how silly or not-silly a show is. If the show is good enough, it might get picked up by a network. And so long as a dozen variables are kept in check, it won't get cancelled. But I don't think sillyness is one of those variables.

[Firewolf]

I have one thing to say about turning stories into movies...Eragon.

[ctcmjh]

I have one thing to say about turning stories into movies...Eragon.

Harry Potter. Lord of the Rings.

[Dubiousity]

There's an abundance of Movie adaptations.

[Firewolf]

Point taken, but would it be worth the risk? It could turn into a...(girly scream ) Kiddy show!

[Buckdida]

Point taken, but would it be worth the risk? It could turn into a...(girly scream ) Kiddy show!

It's already PG, silly. They don't need to DO anything to make it kid safe.

[ctcmjh]

Point taken, but would it be worth the risk? It could turn into a...(girly scream ) Kiddy show!

It's already PG, silly. They don't need to DO anything to make it kid safe.

They could censor the part where Grape eats Faust. Or where Grape smacks Bino with the frying pan. Or where King screams an expletive at the Christmas party (but that was already censored). Or they could cut everything having to do with Universes and Unrealities because that would go over a kid's head. Or they could cut any and all in jokes and product placement. Or they could integrate song & dance routines about sharing, friendship, teamwork and having fun. Or they could introduce 6+ new characters that are nothing but walking morals for children. Or they could half the characters for stupid reasons. Or they could make the characters talk to the children in the audience just like in Blues Clues and Dora the Explorer.

I should work for Disney

[Harby]

Indeed you should

[Harby]

Point taken, but would it be worth the risk? It could turn into a...(girly scream ) Kiddy show!

It's already PG, silly. They don't need to DO anything to make it kid safe.

They could censor the part where Grape eats Faust. Or where Grape smacks Bino with the frying pan. Or where King screams an expletive at the Christmas party (but that was already censored). Or they could cut everything having to do with Universes and Unrealities because that would go over a kid's head. Or they could cut any and all in jokes and product placement. Or they could integrate song & dance routines about sharing, friendship, teamwork and having fun. Or they could introduce 6+ new characters that are nothing but walking morals for children. Or they could half the characters for stupid reasons. Or they could make the characters talk to the children in the audience just like in Blues Clues and Dora the Explorer.

I should work for Disney

If that happens... Then i will sue the people that made it childish, housepets is to awesome to be kiddy, but then again i can imagine some characters voices needing to be 1% childish.

[Harby]

That could only happen if Rick lets it happen. Or if he died. But I bet if the comic ever got that famous, he could always write in his will that no one is allowed to make a live-action movie based on his comic or the television show based on it!

Actually, that wouldn't be a bad idea, even if it's not super popular. Just in case.

What type of dog would peanut and joey be if it were live action? I cant think.

[rickgriffin]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

[Tiggy]

I do! When I get the chance!

I dun have any cartoon-ish channel on me TV though... and I'm lazy when it comes to watch stuff on the computer

Unless it's america's got talent. :3

[Harby]

I watch Ed,Edd n Eddy but only because we share the same first name

[Tiggy]

Great now I miss cartoon network :<

*doesn't have that channul anymore!*

[Harby]

Oh Noes Tobee, I'll buy you the cartoon network building so you can always watch it.

[sliceofdog]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

XD I beg to differ. I love cartoons, both of the kid and adult variety. Also, this was your first comment in this topic wasn't it Rick? Care to share your opinion on the idea of a HP cartoon? :p

[Koda]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

I do, albeit rarely.

[Firewolf]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

I don't know if this a good thing or not, but in all honesty, I've seen as much cartoons as, well, as much times as Bino does something selfish. Astro Boy, Tom & Jerry, and Speed Racer are a few off of my long list of favorites. Heck, most of you probably don't even know What "Merrie Melodies" are, or even "Silly Symphonies" =3 and of course, Bugs Bunny is best...unlesss, you know, Housepets became a cartoon.

[ChewyChewy]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

You're putting us on.

[Dubiousity]

I usually don't watch cartoons much anymore.

[Teh Brawler]

Well Housepets! is stylistically similar to a kid's show. Just because it was written for adults doesn't mean it has to be presented as an adult's show. However, there are a few arcs in the comic that I'm not sure would be very good for children (the most recent, por exemplo), so a cartoon series would probably have to use its own plot or take liberties from the current one to be marketable. I wouldn't consider that a big deal.

Then again, Invader Zim did pretty well among teenagers and adults despite being presented as typical Nickelodeon fare. And Adventure Time doesn't seem to be bombing on Cartoon Network despite its significant adult appeal at the cost of child appeal.

So we're aiming for a repeat of Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends here.

Best show ever, just saying

[FlintTheSquirrel]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

I do watch a couple cartoons. A lot of the new ones are bad but Pokemon and such are still good.

[Teh Brawler]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

I do watch a couple cartoons. A lot of the new ones are bad but Pokemon and such are still good.

Cartoons are about all that I do watch, sadly. That and USA and Discovery Channel.

[FlintTheSquirrel]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

I do watch a couple cartoons. A lot of the new ones are bad but Pokemon and such are still good.

Cartoons are about all that I do watch, sadly. That and USA and Discovery Channel.

I watch Cartoons, Anime, Discovery Channel, and Politics.

[rempar11]

Yes but what would happen to the comic he would be too busy making animations and only 1 comic every week thats what i think and plus i dont think it would be a good plot

[Sleet]

There are a lot of people who work on cartoons. It could be argued, however, that it's worse that way since Rick wouldn't be in control of everything.

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

I do watch a couple cartoons. A lot of the new ones are bad but Pokemon and such are still good.

Pokemon? Still good? Not for almost a decade.

I pretty much just watch Adventure Time and Pokemon at this point. I was also watching Avatar: The Last Airbender with some of my friends but they're going back to college now. I used to watch Spongebob occasionally with hope that it will be decent again, but it's just getting harder and harder.

[Senator_Sunburst]

I have a feeling that nobody here actually watches cartoons

I almost feel offended.

I don't know if this a good thing or not, but in all honesty, I've seen as much cartoons as, well, as much times as Bino does something selfish. Astro Boy, Tom & Jerry, and Speed Racer are a few off of my long list of favorites. Heck, most of you probably don't even know What "Merrie Melodies" are, or even "Silly Symphonies" =3 and of course, Bugs Bunny is best...unlesss, you know, Housepets became a cartoon.

I would be surprised if anybody here didn't know what Merrie Melodies and Silly Symphonies are.

Pokemon? Still good? Not for almost a decade.

Lies! Horrible lies!

[Sasothehyena]

Get back in focus guys remember Housepets TV show. Forget about spongebob for a bit