D.K. Upshaw
Bio
I call myself the baby boomer with the heart of a millennial. As an animator/cartoonist/ caricaturist, I'm inspired by the SatAM cartoons of the 60s, 70s and 80s--a wonderful time to watch TV!
Stories (24)
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My Top 8 "Lone Chick" Cartoon Characters
They're the only female members of their respective groups and teams, and they're just as strong, in their own ways, as their male comrades. Here are my choices for the Top 8 "Lone Chick" Members of Otherwise All-Male Groups.
By D.K. Upshaw8 months ago in Geeks
My Top 8 Other Cartoon Confirmed Cowards
The Lily-Livered Gang rides again! Here are eight more cartoon confirmed cowards for you to enjoy! Ash, KIDD VIDEO Do you remember KIDD VIDEO, where a live-action band traveled to a cartoon dimension called the Flip Side? Of course you do--I did an essay on them! Ash was the group's backup guitarist/backup vocalist/goofy guy, as well as getting scared out of his 80s style paper bag waisted pants. Played and voiced by Steve Alterman, his schticks was taking out his musical "Groove Machine" device and making up song lyrics that always "needed work," according to his bandmates; and his crush on Carla, the band's pretty drummer.
By D.K. Upshaw11 months ago in Geeks
The Two Eds of Ghostbusting
I've written about my two favorite GHOSTBUSTERS cartoon series--FILMATION'S GHOSTBUSTERS and EXTREME GHOSTBUSTERS--and the striking similarities between the two despite being from different decades and with different casts. The most striking similarity--for me, at least--is that they both have a cowardly, dimwitted brunette team member whose name is a form of the name Edward: FGB's Eddie Spenser, Jr., and XGB's Eduardo Rivera. And these two Eds have even more in common. For example...
By D.K. Upshaw2 years ago in Geeks
My Favorite 'Toons: C.O.P.S.
Not to be confused with the reality show COPS, this C.O.P.S. stands for Central Organization of Police Specialists, a team of talented police officers from all across the United States fighting the notorious Big Boss and his gang of crooks in Empire City in the year 2020--or rather, 2020 as it was envisioned in 1988, the year the cartoon premiered.
By D.K. Upshaw4 years ago in Geeks
My Favorite 'Toons: RoboCop: Alpha Commando
Since the 1980s, kidvid has always had the argument about whether or not to make a kids' cartoon based on a clearly R-rated movie. The ROBOCOP franchise won that argument, not just once but twice: the 80s version mostly based on the first movie (except when they brought Clarence the gang leader back to life) and this 90s version--which I think is better than the first, maybe better than the live-action movies, in my humble opinion.
By D.K. Upshaw4 years ago in Geeks
My Top 4 "Snootyboots" Cartoon Rich Kids
They have arrived--now the day can start! These little snobs think--no, they KNOW--the world revolves around them. Here are my Top 4 "Snootyboots" Cartoon Rich Kids. And they think it "sucks to be you" because you're not like them!
By D.K. Upshaw5 years ago in Geeks
My Top 5 Jonny Quest Wannabe Kid Sidekicks
I'm sure that in the Sixties, when THE ADVENTURES OF JONNY QUEST premiered in prime time (which automatically meant better quality), every boy watching wanted to be Jonny--facing menacing villains alongside his Indian pal Hadji and pet bulldog pup Bandit. More often than not, he won. But some of the kid sidekicks of Cartoonland are at best pale imitations, at worse just plain annoying. Here is my list of the Top Five:
By D.K. Upshaw5 years ago in Geeks
My Top 3 Animated Smart Black Girls
Happy Black History Month! Also Happy "Funky Turns 51" Year! Yes, fifty-one years ago, Saturday Morning kidvid started turning out African American cartoon characters that were the polar opposites of the old stereotypes of the theatrical cartoons of the past. And a lot of these new characters were female. Here are my Top Three favorite animated black females.
By D.K. Upshaw5 years ago in Geeks
My Top Three Animated Confirmed Cowards
Just about every action-adventure team--especially the funny ones--have at least one of them: the confirmed coward character. These turn-and-run guys, well, turn and run when danger strikes, but eventually come through for the team in the end. Here are my picks for the Top Three Animated Confirmed Cowards, in no particular order:
By D.K. Upshaw5 years ago in Geeks
