I miss the days when CG animation was respected for having its own style and was able to exist alongside traditional cel animation without replacing it. Growing up I had three CG animated series that I loved dearly, and I appreciated the way they were stylistically different from the traditional stuff that I also loved. I didn't believe that these series were better because they were computer animated. I just enjoyed the look and feel they offered.
Those series were Reboot, Beast Wars: Transformers, and Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles. These shows had such charm and a sort of clunkiness to them, but I found them endearing. I still watch them to this day, as they are both enjoyable and also a form of time travel for me as I indulge in nostalgia seeking whenever things feel rough in life.
There was just something special about early CG animation that has been lost as CG has been developed to be overly and obsessively used by Hollywood, mostly as a crutch or a cost-cutting option. Instead of standing on its own as another form of animation, it has been made to replace traditional work and effects. Its misuse, I feel, has really robbed movies of the craft and realism they used to possess.
We'll never see animation or an appreciation for animation like that displayed through these series again, and that makes me very sad. I'm glad that they're accessible, though, because I can at least revisit them whenever I'm looking for the joys of yesterday.
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