Hacker Cinema
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
2006 · TV series · 4 seasons
KidsAnimationComedyScience FictionFantasyActionAdventure
Mickey and his friends Minnie, Donald, Pluto, Daisy, Goofy, Pete, Clarabelle and more go on fun and educational adventures.
3 negative5 neutralfrom 8 commenters
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8 comments on Hacker News
> Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's lazy CG animation and unimaginative storytelling
Yes, this show is absolute dogshit, pure slop and yet it ended in 2016. The dialog is completely braindead, episodes barely make sense.
The ancient Mickey Mouse cartoons are so good! Just a few I loved which are still very funny and I bet a few people remember:
- 1940: Mr. Mouse Takes a Trip ("Tickets please!")
- 1959: Donald in Mathmagic Land
> And to say nothing of the shoddy quality of their TV shows. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's lazy CG animation and unimaginative storytelling is shocking given Mickey is supposed to be their signature character.
≤4-year-olds do not care: there's bright colours and motion, and some semblance of story. The point is not to give some kind of lesson, but to distract/entertain (and probably release dopamine). See also Paw Patrol, Spidey Amazing Friends, PJ Masks, etc. None of these seem to have made any attempt at having a 'layer' that appeals to adults.
In some ways I equate this animation style with the algorithmic social media system: meant for 'quick hits'.
Contrast with (e.g.) Bluey.
When I became a parent I was really surprised at how much crap Disney puts out. My previous exposure had just been their blockbuster movies which showed a close attention to detail. But you scratch under the surface and it's an endless pile of awful quality clothing, crappy lunchboxes, that kind of thing. To the point where you assume it's an unauthorized rip off until you discover they license to anyone.
And to say nothing of the shoddy quality of their TV shows. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's lazy CG animation and unimaginative storytelling is shocking given Mickey is supposed to be their signature character. They just don't care. And I think it does have an impact: my kids tired of Clubhouse very quickly and have little connection to Mickey and friends. Compare that to say, Dreamworks’ Gabby’s Dollhouse which they loved.
Disney is propped up by its tentpole features but their bench is incredibly weak. There are only so many Blueys you can buy to make up the difference.
If Disney could throw concepts at their properties like Mickey Mouse Clubhouse or Paw Patrol or any of their other CG shovel content (which my kid loves, of course) and have a new episode every day of the year, they would, and this lets them do that without employing the staff to make that happen. If all it took was a writer to put a pitch together and Sora to turn out an episode, that'd be a steal for $1B.
Disney Plus has endeared the character to a new generation in America with the TV shows Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse, and a reboot of DuckTales.
> I don't think they've done anything Mickey-related in a long while
Check out Disney Junior.
There's like 3 or 4 different unique TV shows on-air daily that all feature Mickey Mouse in one form or another. (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Micky and the Roadster Racers, Minnie's Bow-Toons, Tsum Tsum, Mouskersize, probably a few more.).
And that's just the shows -- there's brand new Mickey merch in toy stores all across America today. (There's even a Steamboat Willie plush toy in Target stores nationwide right now, if it hasn't already sold out - https://www.target.com/p/disney-mickey-mouse-90th-special-edition-steamboat-willie/-/A-53328454 )
We aren't in the target demographic for this stuff, so it's easy to forget about it. But Disney heavily promotes Mickey to the very young kids.
Then you have authors releasing a short story and claiming that's all that's necessary to keep up the copyright. Mickey appears as a cameo in a Disney film and he's back in the vault for another 10 years. (Actually, he's still active in Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so he's likely to never make it into the public domain.)
> TV is "broken," because it doesn't give you the choice to watch what you want to, doesn't let you pause, doesn't let you rewind, doesn't let you watch something you missed.
And that is why we have a DVR. It lets you pause, rewind, watch something you missed, and the networked one in my bedroom has every episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse ever broadcast for my son to choose which one he wants.
The only "live" TV that we ever watch are sports.
The problem isn't that TV is broken. There are still good shows being made that audiences want to see.
The problem is that some people still think of TV as something that has to be watched in the moment. With DVRs the subscription is less about delivering live TV and more like a fire-hose of media. The DVR captures what you want, and you can ignore the rest. Hell, I have satellite service, and because I can get east-coast feeds, I often am able to record and watch shows much earlier than people with cable.