Before we begin in earnest, a note: the first half of this review is more for those not yet initiated into Team Venture. Monarch Henchmen can scroll half-way down for the sneak peak stuff. Also, this is not an objective review. I’ve been a fan of the show since it first premiered.
Alright, let the arching begin…
On The Simpsons, there was a Treehouse of Horror short called The Genesis Tub, which was inspired by a Twilight Zone episode. Lisa creates a tiny, complex mini-universe of people inside a petri dish, starting with just a loose tooth, some soda and a surge of electricity. 
She runs downstairs to get waffles and comes back an hour later very surprised. The people in her petri dish quickly evolved from cave dwellers to Renaissance folks. Eventually, they become a highly advanced, futuristic society… until Bart starts messing with them, of course.
That “tub” is an apt analogy for The Venture Bros., which launches its “Season 4.5″ on Sunday, Sept. 12th at 11:30 pm EST. The Venture Bros. began as a straightforward parody of Jonny Quest, following two naive, dim-witted boy adventurers — Hank and Dean Venture — as they unravel creepy, surprisingly adult mysteries. 
From there, the show has grown over the years into a wonderfully complex organism, featuring a sprawling, delightful ensemble cast, as well as a vast, interweaving mythology spanning decades in time and a fondness for obscure, unmined pop culture allusions.
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There are so many reasons to see this documentary by director Don Hahn (producer of several Disney features including Beauty and the Beast), who brings us a candid look inside the Magic Kingdom from the early 80s to the mid 90s. As Roger Rabbit would say, “let me count the ways…” One is that you’ll see handheld documentary footage of storyboard readings, staff meetings and voice recording sessions at Disney Animation. Two is that it challenges our pre-conceived notions of how executives and creatives work together. Three is that you’ll gain a level of understanding about Disney’s Second Renaissance you never had before.
That’s why Wes Anderson’s first animated feature, 
Since 2002, 
You also can’t help but admire the backgrounds and visual touches, like the glossy bowling alley and the humorously stylized poster for the alien horror movie poster, “Humaniacs 2.”
With every great piece of character animation comes striking, innovative, stylish, or original character design. In recent years, some animation artists have published their own books on the subject; David Coleman’s 
It was created by 
His advice to me was to get a couple of the Art of books, and spend a little time each day copying and breaking down some of the designs to their basic forms. By doing so, I would begin to see how and why the characters worked so well, and by figuring out the basic construction, I would start to apply similar concepts to my own designs. He was right, and even to this date, it is the best character design advice I have ever received. To all the character designers out there, I highly recommend this process, whether you’re looking to improve your skills or even just get started.
Pixar still holds the top spot in my book, and even some of their “weaker” films rank higher than most of the other recent CG films. But despite my opinions about the film, I will not deny that the design and overall look of UP is truly beautiful. And I can’t help but admire and applaud all who were involved with the film, not only for the skill and effort put into every single detail, regardless of its success or failure to make it into the film, but also for also taking risks and challenging themselves. As an animator, I strive to learn and grow as an artist, and it’s always comforting to know that even at the top, studios like Pixar continue to push themselves to new levels, and refuse to settle for what already comes easy for them.
