Review of Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation (1992) by Tanner L — 23 Aug 2012

It's here. At long last, another piece of animation and television history has been re-issued thanks to Warner Home Video. Tiny Toon Adventures How I Spent My Vacation is a wonderful addition to the library of anyone that grew up with the classic cartoon, Tiny Toon Adventures. A lot of people thought that the show was little more than a "kid-ification" of the Looney Tunes franchise. But in reality, it was a way to indoctrinate young audiences into the world of Looney Tunes. And this hilarious almost hour and a half long movie was a wonderful extension of the show.

How I Spent My Vacation sees the Tiny Toons gang head out on Summer vacation at long last, each with different results. Buster and Babs get swept away don a river thanks to Buster starting a squirt gun war with Babs. Plucky goes on a road trip with his best pal Hampton that he ends up regretting ever taking. And even Fifi and Shirley have their own problems to deal with.

Kids might not get it. And those audiences who were kids when this movie was originally released probably didn't get it back then. But the writers behind the story threw in some great pop culture references for parents throughout this feature. Among the most noticeable was the reference to the 1972 classic Deliverance, when Buster and Babs are floating down the river with Byron. And while it wasn't a direct reference to the original National Lampoons movies, Plucky's trip with Hampton and his parents could be equated to said movies. At the same time, what viewer wouldn't watch the group's trip and say to themselves they've heard very realistic horror stories of family vacations that were either as bad as or worse than that one. The trip even includes (perhaps) an indirect tongue-in-cheek reference to all the slasher flicks that Hollywood has ever churned out with the family trip storyline.

The hilarious and family friendly storyline is a major part of what made Tiny Toon Adventures and this spinoff movie so great. But it was also the hand drawn animation that played a role in how great this movie was. So many movies and television shows today are made with the ease of CG. And as so many critics and people inside the entertainment business have noted time and again, the use of CG has really caused so much work to lose its heart and soul. The hand drawn animation of the Tiny Toons franchise gave it its very own heart, soul, and identity. It stood out even from the classic Looney Tunes from which it was spawned. And it stood out among the other great animated classics of the 90's. All said, now that it's been re-issued on DVD, fans that saw it as kids can enjoy this classic from long ago once again with their own kids. So kudos to Warner Home Video for that. And here's to hoping someone up there will see the success of this release and start releasing the original show's remaining seasons soon.