The BEST cartoon of all time (IMHO).

lomaran-1

I was born in the very early 60s, so although I do not remember this show during its prime-time run, I did grow up with it in syndication. It was on EVERYDAY after school (those were the days!) as were so many of the other classic TV shows of the 50s and 60s. Hanna-Barbera too dominated Saturday morning television but nothing came close to this wonderful show; be it the characters, the use of animals and dinosaurs in everyday gadgets - I don't know, but something clicked. I never tire of watching any episode and in fact, own most. So unlike so many of the shows today, done too quickly and without much depth, it had heart. One episode in particular comes to mind that shows it in Fred.

Spoiler: Fred decides he has had enough of Dino's jumping on him when he gets home for the day, Dino's dominating the TV to watch his favorite 'SASSY' and of course, the everyday expense of having him around. The Sassy show has a contest, Fred figures it's his answer and lo and behold, Dino wins! This means a recurring role on the show for Dino, he gets an agent and Fred gets everything he had wished for yet... he actually regrets it right away and we see him tear up in front of the fireplace and Dino's picture. (This episode ALWAYS tears me up, too.)

It ends happy and clearly shows that Fred was more than a blow-hard. He had a BIG heart and many episodes from the original series show it. I even liked the later episodes; so many were classics! The Gruesomes, the Hatrocks. The episode when Pebbles is born and when Bamm-Bamm is left on the Rubbles' doorstep are both favorites. Even the much-later Gazoo episodes have their good points! Though true of the original series, it was not the case of 'The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show' or any other recently unearthed likeness. The more recent Fred is generally portrayed as a simple loud-mouthed bore. The movies too, are a total waste of time.

If you have never seen The Flintstones (and if you don't get Boomerang you may not), try it on Netflix. You won't be sorry.

score 10/10

lomaran-1 22 April 2011

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw2417697/