Addressing the Ben 10 Reboot
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@admin Hey there. I realized that I forgot to ask this last week. Since that the Ben 10 Club is willing to send my article to Man of Action and CN Studios, if they do respond back, would it be alright if you guys let me know? I would like to know what MoA and CN Studios' thoughts and opinions are on it.
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@Tactical-Ochoa said:
@admin Hey there. I realized that I forgot to ask this last week. Since that the Ben 10 Club is willing to send my article to Man of Action and CN Studios, if they do respond back, would it be alright if you guys let me know? I would like to know what MoA and CN Studios' thoughts and opinions are on it.
I sent you a chat message.
When lives are on the line, it's hero time!
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@admin I'm sending this message on my topic page because I don't want to go off-topic about the "Many New Villains" page. This is a response to your message. This is also going to be quite long so feel free to take your time. One thing that is for sure, there is very much a lot that we can actually do about this. Here is a link to a YouTube video, that I found, that explains how and why. This is about video gaming and the games industry but it applies here too. Don't take things for granted. This is very much possible. We can do a lot about this reboot. Fans just got to get their voices out there. Also, this is why Cartoon Network needs to stop their crap and listen up very closely. The point of this video is that Cartoon Network doesn't have the real say in things. We do. We (the fans, the viewers, the audience) have the real say in how things over at Cartoon Network are really going to go. This video explains how we are the ones that are really and actually in charge here. Not Cartoon Network. After all, there is that saying, "the customer is always right."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9M0Xa0L3c4
(There is strong language in this video so just a heads up)Kevin has a lot of potential and honestly, they should keep him in the show. The problem wasn't that Kevin had a lot of problems but instead, it was Cartoon Network that created a lot of problems. They kicked Man of Action out of the series and replaced them with new writers that were not suitable for the Ben 10 series. Dwayne McDuffie and Glen Murikami are great tv show writers but they just weren't the right choice for Ben 10. Kevin has a lot of potential. In fact, there is still a lot more potential and great opportunities over making a sequels to the Original Series than making a reboot of the Original Series.
Here is another point about the Original Series and the reboot. In my opinion, the stakes are way too high here. This is a reboot of the Original Series, the best show in the Ben 10 series and that is very much a fact. The true purpose of a reboot and remake is to improve over the original source. To make a version of the Original Series that is even better than the Original Series itself. All of that means that CN Studios and Man of Action are really setting the bar here and that bar is very high. If they don't even touch that bar, there's going to be a lot of problems and a whole lot of very unhappy people. In my opinion, Cartoon Network has reached the point in the series where they can't screw this up. They absolutely can't screw this up. We got three crappy ass sequels for Ben 10. If this reboot also turns out to be crap and/or a disappointment, it is going to hurt the series and the channel a lot. Unlike Alien Force though, Man of Action will be involved and this will negatively affect them as well. Maybe even cause so much damage that it will likely bring the end to Ben 10 so they absolutely can't screw this up. I don't think it'll even matter if the reboot turns out good or even great, if it doesn't prove to be better than the Original Series, then this reboot is likely going to backfire and possibly backfire very badly and leave a whole lot of viewers disappointed and very unhappy. If they are going to make a reboot to the Ben 10 Original Series, they better make extra sure that everything they do will absolutely guarantee to make the reboot better than the Original Series.
This goes back to my argument. What is the point of rebooting the Original Series? To introduce a new audience to the series? No. The Original Series itself can very much easily do that. Cartoon Network's true reason is that they see only money out of this series. They already announced the toy line for the reboot. Shouldn't that get anyone, even the team itself thinking, curious, and concerned? It's blatantly obvious why Cartoon Network really wants to make a reboot and that only builds up to more skepticisms, concerns, fears, and negative views towards the Ben 10 reboot and the channel itself. Anyways, putting that aside, what is the point of rebooting the Original Series? Pretty much nothing. Again, the Ben 10 Original Series is still the best show in the series. This isn't because of nostalgia or because it's a classic. It's because it is still a fun, entertaining, and great show that was made very well. It did everything right where the sequels did so much that was wrong. There is really likely nothing that they can really improve on the Original Series in the reboot. Yes, they are going to add new aliens for Ben and bring in new villains plus some other features but in the end, it is absolutely, if not completely, unnecessary to reboot the Original Series. The Original Series doesn't need a reboot. The Ben 10 sequels are what really needs a reboot.
Here's another thing to think about. This reboot is going to explain how Ben got the Omnitrix. The reboot is starting the story all over again. Why? Why explain everything that the Original Series already explained? Why retell Max's secret Plumber past again? Why explain Gwen learning magic again? Why explain the mystery of the Omnitrix again? Why explain Vilgax again? Why explain how Ben got the Omnitrix again? Why explain everything all over again when they already have a great show that does a great job of doing that? Again, it's unnecessary to reboot the Original Series because the Original Series doesn't need a reboot.
How is that image of the Reboot Ben an update and improvement to the series? It's not. That's not an update. The art design for the reboot is a downgrade. I will agree that it does look good but it's not good enough. Yes, this is an update in design to the series but no, this is absolutely not an improvement over the Original Series. The art design for the reboot is a downgrade. It makes the reboot look worse than the Original Series, which is not a good thing and is certainly not a good start. Just because it's an update doesn't mean it's better. I've stated this before. Improvement over change. If this is not an improvement, then it would be wise to not put it in the show. Heck, look at the Reboot Ben. He looks like he's five years old and not ten. If the reboot art design did that, then then how is this better. Yes, it's only one image but there is that saying, "a picture's worth a thousand words" so that image actually tells us a lot about this reboot and not for the better. If this reboot is not guaranteed to be better than the Original Series, then they need to stop what they're doing and go back to the drawing board. It doesn't even matter how far they got into production, it's not worth making a show if that show is more likely to fail and that is, in my opinion, the case with the Ben 10 Reboot. Yes, the Ben 10 series is changing but it shouldn't be changing. It should be improving. Again, change is more likely going to lead to a negative consequence and we've all seen this with the Ben 10 sequels. The series shouldn't be changing; it should be improving. The Ben 10 Reboot art design is not an improvement over the Original Series art design. It's a downgrade and it's going to contribute to making this reboot a worse version of the Original Series and that is not awesome. What's the point of remastering it if you're just going to more likely make a version that is worse than the original source.
Here's an idea for the series. Now first off, how are you even sure that viewers, that are new to the Ben 10 series, are going to be bored from watching the Original Series. The Original Series does indeed have comedy and really good comedy too and the comedic elements are very much balanced out very well with the action. Also, 10 years is not really that old. In fact, compared to other series that have been around for even longer than Ben 10. The Original Series is still relatively new for being 10 years old. Trust me, 10 years is nothing. Just look at Star Wars and the James Bond series and Spongebob Squarepants and Resident Evil and etc. 10 years is nothing and still relatively considered new and young compared to these other older series. Also, it's a cartoon show. Of course it has comedy. Cartoon shows, even the most serious and/or action-oriented, had always or likely had some elements of comedy so today's cartoon shows are not all that different from cartoon shows from the past. Anyways, back to my idea. Well, the 10th Anniversary of Ben 10 is coming up. The Original Series first premiered on December 27, 2005. How about this? To celebrate 10 years of Ben 10, why not do a marathon of the Original Series. Show the new audience the very show that started it all. The very show that they're going to watch a reboot of in early 2017. It can be a great way to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Ben 10 while also being a great way to subtly test and see how the "new generation of kids" will react to the Original Series. To see if they will like a show that incorporates the style that it has. Some questions can't really be truly answered unless you try it out. If it turns out that the new audience doesn't like the Original Series, then go ahead and reboot it. Otherwise, if the new audience does like the Original Series, then what's the point of rebooting the Original Series if the Original Series itself did what they're trying to do with the reboot. It'll likely make rebooting the Original Series even more unnecessary.
As a final note, we really should expect more. Again, CN Studios and Man of Action are making a reboot of the Ben 10 Original Series. The series that started it all and is still considered the best in the franchise and that is a fact. We should expect them to take extra steps forward on the reboot. If they make a reboot that takes steps back, the outcome is not going to be pretty. That's what I'm trying to address. They can't screw this up. One screw up on the reboot and chances are, the Ben 10 series is over and will be gone for good. I definitely do not want to let that happen and I'm doing this because I want to prevent that from happening.
I can be wrong about all of this. After all, this is just speculation. This is just my opinion. The Ben 10 Reboot could possibly end up being better than the Original Series. However, based on the history of the Ben 10 series, the approach that is being taken on the reboot, and Cartoon Network themselves, I find it more likely that this reboot will not deliver and succeed and will just end up doing more harm to the series than good. That is what I'm trying to prevent here.
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There is another thought that I have that I realized that I forgot to address in my post. A while back, I spoke with a Ben 10 fan fiction writer about the Ben 10 reboot and fan responses to it and the writer mentioned that he/she heard a rumor that apparently even some of the people from CN Studios and maybe even Man of Action are not favoring and liking where the reboot is going. Again, this is a rumor and not a fact. However, this got me thinking about Man of Action themselves and this question popped in my mind. Does Man of Action even want to make a reboot to the Ben 10 Original Series? Is this really something that Man of Action really wanted to do with the Ben 10 series? Now, this is speculation. This is just my thoughts and opinions. Chances are that I could be wrong about this. Still, I just have this feeling that something isn't right here and that deep down, this reboot is not really the show that Man of Action really wanted to make and I want to share this out.
One factor that contributes to that is this video that the Ben 10 Club posted on their YouTube channel. I'm not entirely sure about this but it sounds like that what Duncan Rouleau and Joe Kelly were discussing more of a sequel to either Omniverse or the Original Series than a reboot to the Original Series. That's what it sounds like to me considering the way they described their plans for Ben 10. Again, I'm not entirely sure myself about this but it just further itches the back of my head.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8nJM0N3aNo
To possibly help further prove my point, let's trace the series of events that had transpired with Ben 10. So, Man of Action's creates the Ben 10 Original Series and it becomes a worldwide, award-winning success. It is one of the best cartoon shows on Cartoon Network. Man of Action then wants to make a sequel to the Original Series called Ben 10 Hero Generation, which would follow Ben and Gwen training the Plumber's Kids on how they can use their powers and become heroes. Cartoon Network doesn't agree with the direction that Man of Action wants to take and, for some reason, kicks Man of Action off of the Ben 10 series and replaces them with Dwayne McDuffie and Glen Murikami. Cartoon Network wants to go their direction for the series. What do we get instead? Three crappy ass sequels. Also, Alien Force seems very much quite similar to the Ben 10 Hero Generation show that Man of Action pitched. If I was in Man of Action's shoes, I would not be happy about this. Especially considering that they would be seeing Cartoon Network just destroying the very series that Man of Action created. So, Omniverse ends up being rushed into completion with it's final season because Cartoon Network realized that well Omniverse was facing a lot of problems with its popularity. So, after Omniverse comes to an end, Man of Action gets called back in to work on the Ben 10 series. Great, back to the video. Again, it sounds like Man of Action have all sorts of plans for the Ben 10 series and, to me, it sounded like they wanted to make a sequel (likely for the Original Series) that will bring the series justice. If that's the case, great. However, Cartoon Network wants Man of Action and CN Studios to make a reboot of the Original Series and here we are right now.
Now, if there is any information in the previous paragraph and, even this paragraph, that anyone feels that I got wrong, feel free to let me know. Anyways, what do I think is what's going through Man of Action's mind about the reboot. If it really is the case that Man of Action wanted to make their sequel to the Original Series, then hearing Cartoon Network say that they want a reboot to the Original Series surely wouldn't sound right for them. If I was in Man of Action's shoes, yeah I would be excited to be able to work on Ben 10 again but I would definitely be disappointed and even mad that I wouldn't be able to make the sequel to the Original Series that I would want to make, but that's just me. Still, considering that Cartoon Network screwed up on three sequels and they want Man of Action to basically make the Original Series all over again, I wouldn't be surprised if Man of Action would have the same reaction as me. This is especially considering that the Ben 10 Original Series is basically all that Man of Action even worked on for Ben 10 and now Cartoon Network wants the creators of the series to basically create the same show that they already created before. To basically do everything that Man of Action already did with Ben 10. If you were the creator of Ben 10 and you made the Original Series, would you want to make the Original Series all over again?
This is another factor as to why I think, and pretty much at this point even say, that this Ben 10 Reboot is more likely not to succeed and/or deliver and why I think it is more likely that this reboot will only do more damage to the series than good. If everything that I stated here really is the case and that this reboot is not the Ben 10 show that Man of Action wanted to create, then there's another major problem of the reboot and this can negatively affect the reboot and the series even further. That's another reason why I made this post and am encouraging anyone that reads this to contact Cartoon Network and convince them to listen up and make the Ben 10 show that fans truly want and the series really needs. Another thing that needs to happen is that Cartoon Network needs to back off and just let Man of Action do what they need to do for Ben 10. To just back off and let Man of Action make the show that they wanted to make and that fans wanted to be made. Another thing that needs to be done for the Ben 10 reboot is that Cartoon Network needs to back off and stop screwing up Ben 10.
If you have any thoughts and opinions about my comment, feel free to post them on the topic page. I would like to hear what other have to say here about the reboot. Thoughts, opinions, suggestions, Ideas, etc. Feel free to type away here. Also, again, I encourage anyone that agrees with me and wants to support me to spread this topic page around all over the internet and social media to help gather up more supporters and I also encourage you to message Cartoon Network and Man of Action in any way that you can and state your opinions and suggestions about the Ben 10 reboot to them and to send them your support for this topic page. Cartoon Network's feedback page and Man of Action's email address are located on the first post of this topic page if you want to use that. Again, you are also free to make your own comments on this topic page as well.
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A little while ago, I came to the realization and discovery about the style of the Ben 10 Original Series and why it made the show so unique and amazing. It's not just because the Original Series has a great balance of action and comedy. There's actually a lot more to this than what many don't realize and what few actually know. A major factor to why the Original Series was and still is great is that it incorporates the same or similar style that Man of Action uses in there comics. It's Man of Action style that greatly contributes to the Ben 10 Original Series being such a great show. Deep down, Ben 10 is actually a really weird and messed up show and that what helped make it great.
If anyone has read at least some of Man of Action's comics, then you should know what I mean by this. I don't really have a history of reading those comics myself but a Ben 10 fan writer had told me a while back about Man of Action's comics and there's some really weird and deep stuff in it. Heck, that concept of Ben and Gwen being a romantic cousin couple that I discuss in my article, you think that's weird, read Man of Action's comics. There's even weirder stuff than that in those comics. For crying out loud, Joe Casey made a comic book series called "Sex," which delves into the sexual identity and interactions of a retired superhero.. Well, that style that's used in Man of Action comics like "Sex" is the same exact, or similar, style used for Ben 10. That's why the Original Series was so successful and popular where the sequels failed the most at. It had the special Man of Action touch to it.
There are many various examples that proves my argument. Ben 10 is a kid-friendly show yet it actually has examples of abuse, mental instability, gore, body horror, etc. In the episode "Ghostfreaked Out," Gwen performing actions against her own will and control because Ghostfreak possessed and took control of her. The show states quite a good chunk of death of innocent people. The Plumbers feud with the Sludgepuppies aka Lenopans. Zombozo is a creepy clown that feeds off of the energy of others. Just look what happened to Gwen. Come to think of it, Gwen goes through a lot of really messed up moments and near death experiences in the show quite often. We see in the first season how Vilgax is just badly wounded in quite a detailed manner and in the episode "Ben 10,000," we see Vilgax's dead body inside a capsule just torn to pieces in a gory and detailed way. Vilgax himself is terrifyingly sadistic, willing to kill a 10-year-old boy for the Omnitrix. Charmcaster and Kevin 11"s past involve some form of abuse, with Charmcaster being fearful of her uncle, Hex. Kevin 11 is just disturbingly mentally unstable while also having murderous intentions towards Ben. Kai Green has some creepy and weird attraction towards Ben's aliens. Ben's alien transformations are deep down disturbing and are all examples of Body Horror. Earth itself is even constantly at risk of being destroyed over and over again. The TvTropes website points all or most of this out as well. When you delve deep into the world of the Ben 10 Original Series, it is very much dark and dreadful, and that benefits the show greatly.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/WesternAnimation/Ben10
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/NightmareFuel/Ben10TvTropes Examples:
Abusive Parents: Kevin's, who apparently threw him onto the street. Later Kevin himself, using his son Devlin to get his revenge on Ben.
It's hinted that it's not the case with Kevin: he either ran away on his own and was thus lying, or his parents threw him out for being freaking nuts and not because of his powers, but in Kevin's mind, his "freakish" powers were the reason.
Also, Hex serves as an abusive parental figure to Charmcaster, which comes back to bite him in the ass.Ax-Crazy: Kevin 11 is shown to have sadistic and violent tendencies.
Body Horror: For a kids show there sure are a lot of them...
Many of Ben's transformation involves this.
Kevin after he is forced to be a conglomerate of Ben's original 10 forms.
The Stock Footage transition montage could become this as well.
The mutations inflicted by Corrodium in the episode "Under Wraps" were particularly unnerving; monstrous, twisted, black shadows with glowing purple lines gouged across them. Later on, in "Be Afraid of the Dark", when we actually see the mutations taking place as the entire populace of Earth is subjected to them, it's even more disturbing.Creepy Child: Meet Kevin, eleven years old and willing to kill a subway load of people without a second thought.
Never Say "Die": All the deaths are either offscreen, not outright stated, or obscured by explosions, with a good dash of What Measure Is a Non-Human? to 'lighten' it further.
It's a touch jarring when Ben says "Gwen's dead" in the movie Secret of the Omnitrix. She's not.Psycho for Hire: Kevin 11. As noted in "Grudge Match", while his main desire is revenge on Ben, he likes to seek any excuse to fight, brutalize, or even kill various opponents.
Let's take a quick look at Kai Green. Many fans hate her for her poor treatment of Ben in the Original Series and for her pretty much creepy attraction towards Ben's aliens in Omniverse. Many find Kai to be just weird and strange but the thing is that she fits the style of the Original Series and Man of Action. Kai works very well for Ben 10. She is actually a fitting character for the series which can make her a great character. She works well with Man of Action's style and show. She doesn't work for Omniverse because she doesn't fit into Omniverse's style. You still hate her? Well, maybe she was supposed to be hated. Maybe Man of Action intended for Kai to be a dislikable character, possibly to build up a moment where she would be able to redeem herself. That's just speculation, though.
Alright, let's get to Kevin 11 next. It's stated in the series that if Kevin absorbs too much power, he goes crazy. Well, actually, that's not really the case. It's not Kevin's powers that really makes him insane, it's Kevin himself. It's Kevin as a character. Kevin goes insane because that is how he is as a character. In the Original Series, Kevin is a psychopathic, sociopathic, inhumane maniac that is hell-bent on only caring about himself and hunting down and tormenting and killing Ben. He displays very little to no remorse over his actions. Considering how his life turned out and the abuse that he experienced, he became very mentally unstable. Again, this is not just because of his powers. It's how Man of Action set Kevin up as a character. His mental instability would require months, maybe even years of therapy sessions just to recover from all of that. Kevin isn't some bad boy punk with a grudge against Ben. He's a mentally unstable maniac. In the Ben 10 sequels, Kevin becomes a good guy. that's the problem with Kevin in the sequels. For the type of character that he was in the Original Series, it makes absolutely no sense for Kevin to be a good guy because it doesn't work for him. I believe that Man of Action intended for Kevin to stay as a villain. Not to become a hero. Again, because of the way Kevin is in the Original Series, it doesn't work and doesn't make sense for Kevin to be a good guy.
I mentioned earlier that Ben's alien transformations in the Original Series is an example of Body Horror. Here is what Body Horror is and this quote is from Wikipedia. "Body horror, biological horror, organic horror or venereal horror is horror fiction in which the horror is principally derived from the graphic destruction or degeneration of the body. Such works may deal with disease, decay, parasitism, mutilation, or mutation." How does this meaning apply to Ben's aliens? Well, how does it not apply? Look at all of Ben's alien transformations in the Original Series. In fact I'll leave a video after this paragraph. Anyways, every time we see Ben use the Omnitrix, the transformations may look cool but really, they're being displayed in quite a detailed and disturbing manner. Ben is lit on fire when he transforms into Heatblast. His arms morph in a grotesque manner when he transforms into Four Arms. When Ben transforms into Ripjaws, his mouth and chin bulge out as razor-sharp teeth protrude out of his mouth almost like they ripped and teared their way out. For a good chunk of his aliens, like Ripjaws and Stinkfly, large growths would rip their way out of Ben's body. I swear, I think I even heard Ben's bones cracking when he was transforming into Upgrade. Ghostfreak is the most disturbing, in my opinion, where Ben's skin would just go pale and by the looks of it, maybe even rapidly decay or something; even fade away, revealing Ben's skeleton for a brief moment. His eyes would disappear, leaving two black, empty eye sockets. After all of that is when he becomes Ghostfreak. Sends chills down my spine and that smile that Ben has when he goes through that transformation only adds up to the creepiness factor. Detailed, disturbing, and even look painful. Ben is literally mutating into his alien forms and let's not forget to mention what all those transformations and sudden changes to Ben's body would do to his anatomy. However, despite this whole Body Horror ordeal behind Ben's alien transformations, it worked in favor of the show because it made those transformations look all the more unique and cool for the show, even though it's also pretty disturbing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4caH7fNRr-o
How does all of this factor into the style of the Original Series and the world of Ben 10. Now anyone could likely think that all this stuff is inappropriate and unsuitable for a kid-friendly cartoon show, right? Well, actually, this is suitable and appropriate for Ben 10 because all these elements are subtle and/or lightened for the show. They're done in a way so that all these elements are scaled down and are also accompanied by a purpose. These elements are being lightened up so that Man of Action can display and implement those elements without crossing the line. It's taking a risk and playing it safe at the same time. Finally, these elements are structured and implemented in a way that they are very much effective for the show. These gritty elements helps add to the realism and bizarre nature of the world and style of the Ben 10 Original Series, something that Man of Action is specialized in implementing with a lot of their comics. What Man of Action does best at is building realistic and/or surreal worlds and incorporates a style to make it effective. Realism and bizarre elements is what Man of Action works best at and it fits into the world of Ben 10. It's Man of Action's style for their works. It's how the Ben 10 Original Series is seen as being so unique and original even today. Very few cartoon shows had done what the Original Series pulled off. The Original Series did something that is not common in cartoon and animation and did this so effectively well. I discussed in my GoogleDoc article where any idea and concept can work if it is done the right way. Man of Action incorporating their style into Ben 10 is a prime example of this.
In my article, I state a theory where I believed that Man of Action intended to make Ben and Gwen a romantic cousin couple in the show and why I came to that theory. This further backs my theory up because the concept of Ben and Gwen being a romantic cousin couple fits the style that Man of Action is known for. It's a concept that fits the Ben 10 series due to how weird and bizarre yet very unique and original it is.
What does this mean for the reboot? Should the reboot incorporate these elements and the style of realism and surrealism into the show? It's not completely necessary. Surely the Ben 10 reboot can be great without having to use these elements but then again, look at the Original Series and the sequels. The Original Series has that special Man of Action touch and style to it. As for the sequels, that is where the sequels failed at the most and were seen as disappointing and generic by many fans. The sequels lacked Man of Action's style to them and that is why most fans of the series are against them. We need the insane and villainous Kevin 11; we need the abusive past of Charmcaster, we need the sadistic and terrifying Vilgax; we need the body horror element of Ben's alien transformations; we need the reboot to incorporate Man of Action's style of writing and structuring. If the reboot doesn't have Man of Action's style incorporated into it, then it will just end up like the sequels and thus will very likely fail and/or not deliver. The art design of the Original Series is what helps deliver the realism and bizarre elements of the show so effectively. The reboot's art design doesn't work for Ben 10 because it's too cartoony and doesn't have the level of detail that it needs to work with Man of Action's style and won't allow that style to work as well. If the reboot doesn't have an art design that is suitable for Man of Action's style of Ben 10, then this reboot will likely fail and/or not deliver. In my opinion, this is a key component that the Ben 10 reboot needs and everything else about the reboot, especially the art design, needs to be able to work with this style effectively in order for the reboot, and any future installments of the Ben 10 series, to be able to deliver and be successful.
Thoughts, opinions, agreements, disagreements, criticisms, etc. Feel free to comment and reply.
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I just want to send this just in case. For my previous post, the point that I'm not trying to get here is that the Ben 10 reboot needs to be dark. Yes, the Original Series does have some dark elements but it also has light elements too the balance between dark and light is great, just like everything else about the Original Series. The point of my argument in my previous post is that the reboot needs to incorporate Man of Action's style that they are best known for. The same style that was used in the Original Series. To incorporate the elements and style that gives the sense of realism and surrealism. To make the world realistic and strange. That is a major key factor as to why the Original Series is such a great show and why lacking that style is what made the sequels disappointing and bad. It makes the world of Ben 10 feel more alive and unique. Man of Action incorporated a style to the Ben 10 series that not many cartoon shows have done before. I know that Man of Action are the Executive Producers of the Ben 10 Reboot but they need to be the ones that are writing, structuring, and designing the reboot and to do what Man of Action does their best at. The point of my argument is that Man of Action's style of making their comics and the Ben 10 Original Series is one of the most major components that made the Original Series great. If the reboot doesn't have that style and an art design that can work with that style, then this reboot is not going to succeed and/or deliver. Just feel that I wanted to add this to my argument.
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Nothing more to be said. Agreed on everything.
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I've decided to add the Twitter pages for Cartoon Network and Man of Action as additional means of contacting them for anyone to use as well. Here are the links.
https://twitter.com/cartoonnetwork
https://twitter.com/ManOfActionEnt -
After having a conversation with a Ben 10 fan fiction writer, I've decided to add two more posts about the Ben 10 series and how it relates to the Ben 10 Reboot. The first post will cover more about the character, Kevin Ethan Levin. The second post will cover the problems of the Ben 10 sequels and how that affects the reboot. Here's more information about Kevin.
So, I've already pointed out the psychopathic, sociopathic, and mental instability of Kevin that was a result of the constant abuse that he experienced in his life. Here's more about Kevin that further proves why he is unsuitable to be a hero character and why he has to stay as a villain. Credit for the Ben 10 fan fiction writer, that I discussed with, for pointing this out.
Kevin has a problem and that is that he doesn't really know what he wants. What he does know is that he wants more. No matter what he gets, he wants more. More wealth, more respect, more of pretty much anything. Even when he becomes friends with Ben, has Gwen as a girlfriend, and even becomes an official Plumbers officer, it's still not enough for Kevin. Therefore, he continues to commit criminal acts throughout the entire Ben 10 series. Most commonly stealing alien technology and weapons and illegally trafficking and selling said alien technology and weapons. Even as a Plumber officer and close ally and friend of Ben and Gwen, Kevin commits these illegal acts quite often in the sequels. All Kevin wants is more.
This further explains more as to why Kevin doesn't work as a hero character and why it would be better for him to stay as a villain. What Kevin does is not what a true hero would do. What makes matter worse is that barely anyone does anything about it. Not even Ben and Gwen, who often witnesses Kevin commit crimes. They don't do anything to straighten him out and that's a major factor to why Ben and Gwen's connections with Kevin doesn't work in the sequels. They just let Kevin do whatever he wants to do instead of teaching him what it really takes to be a hero. Even in the sequels, Kevin proves from time to time that he is still a villain. A villain that constantly wants more and that is another reason why he doesn't work as a hero character and why it would be better for him to stay as a villain.
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As I stated before, my second post will cover the flaws of the Ben 10 sequels and how Cartoon Network’s influence can affect the Ben 10 Reboot in a very negative way. I’m also giving credit for the Ben 10 fan fiction writer that I spoke with for some of the points that are going to be made in this post. If you are a fan of the Ben 10 sequels and do like the sequels, that’s your opinions, views, and interests and I’m fine with that. If you like the Ben 10 sequels, you like the Ben 10 sequels and I'll respect your views on it. For me, I just want to focus more on what went wrong ever since Cartoon Network replaced Man of Action with a new set of writers and Man of Action were no longer involved with the Ben 10 series all the way up to the point where they were called back in to help work on the Ben 10 Reboot. I will also explain how Cartoon Network’s treatment with the sequels can show just how much of a negative effect that Cartoon Network has on the reboot.
Here is the most basic and simplest way that I can explain everything that’s wrong with Ben 10 Alien Force, Ultimate Alien, and Omniverse. It is filled with many mistakes and flaws. There is so much about the sequels that don’t make sense whatsoever and are never explained. There is so much about the sequels that is just done wrong. There are terribly implemented elements within the story, setting, characters, etc. There are just a lot of problems with the sequels and all of it is a result of poor and lazy writing, structuring, designing. I can cover every single flaw that the Ben 10 sequels contain but that would only end up making this post way too long and all the information that I would put in would likely be overwhelming for anyone to read and I know that this is going to end up being long anyways due to how much material I plan to cover. Therefore, I will state a few examples of the many various flaws of the Ben 10 sequels and provide an analysis that will be enough for me to prove my point.
Let’s start with an example from Ben 10 Alien Force. Here is one major flaw that I caught and thought about and that is with the DNAliens. So, as we and the characters discovered in the show, the DNAliens were, in actuality, innocent human individuals that were under the control of an alien species called Xenocytes. However, despite this discovery, Ben, Gwen, Kevin, and other hero characters have actually gone and killed quite a lot of DNAliens. The DNAliens were blown up in explosions, absorbed by Michael Morningstar, attacked and pretty much obliterated by our characters and their powers and abilities, etc. If the DNAliens were actually humans under the control of the Xenocytes, then that means that our main characters had, in actuality, gone and killed a lot of innocent people and are responsible for the deaths of even more innocent people due to their actions. Now a counterargument could be that Ben, Gwen, Kevin, and their allies had no other choice. However, Ben does discover that the Omnitrix somehow has the ability to restore a DNAlien back into human form and Cooper, a very intelligent kid with the ability to merge with and control technology, is capable of easily building DNA guns that can also restore DNAliens back into humans. That means that there are other means of combating the DNAliens without actually having to resort to lethal force and action, yet that is what our hero characters continue to use against the DNAliens. Here is another problem that I found about this. Now, if the main characters didn’t realize that the DNAliens were actually humans that are being controlled, I can see that and accept that. However, when Ben, Gwen, and Kevin do discover this and they show basically barely to no reactions to discovering this. Knowing that Ben and Gwen wants to protect people, stop the villains, and become a true hero, you’d think that Ben and Gwen would be at least shocked and show remorse by such a discovery but instead, they just go on their merry way and continue to fight the DNAliens as if they suddenly forgot what they discovered. They could have done more to save these people but instead, our hero characters just end up fighting and even killing these DNAliens without trying to utilize the options that they have to save the people that are being controlled by the Xenocytes. Yeah, great work, Cartoon Network. Great job writing and structuring our heroes like this.
Here’s another point about Alien Force. How does the Omnitrix have the ability to restore DNAliens back into humans and even repair damaged DNA? The Omnitrix is basically a DNA storage unit. Not a DNA repair kit. Azmuth designed the Omnitrix to hold the DNA samples over one million different alien species. Azmuth designed the Omnitrix to basically act as a storage unit. Here’s another question. How and why does the Omnitrix even somehow magically change its appearance after recalibration? What purpose does that bring? How does magically changing the look of the Omnitrix provide any sort of improvements to it? Why does it even change appearances in the first place? These are not the actual functions of the Omnitrix. It doesn’t make sense why the Omnitrix has these functions and it is never explained why. Again, the Omnitrix is basically a storage unit for DNA samples. In actuality, it is not designed to repair damaged DNA and is not even designed to just magically, nonsensically, and suddenly change its physical appearance after the recalibration process. It doesn’t even make sense why the Omnitrix would suddenly replace Ben’s old aliens with a new set of aliens. Again, it’s just a recalibration process designed for the purpose of improving the Omnitrix’s performance and removing its technical issues and that’s just it.
Here is another major example that comes from Ultimate Alien. One of the most glaring problems of Ultimate Alien is that it drags on and on and on and on. This is mostly after the first season. The conflict with Diagon and the Forever Knights just went on and on for pretty much the rest of Ultimate Alien and the later seasons are just filled with filler episodes. Ultimate Alien was just a show more of a purpose of being like the Original Series and just failing to succeed on that. That’s just really the best way to sum up Ultimate Alien. It drags on with one conflict for the last couple of seasons with a very disappointing conclusion with filler episodes that really have no purpose being in. Okay, here’s some minor examples and questions to mention. How does Vilgax turn into some giant alien squid and why? Does every Chimera Sui Generis just have the sudden ability to turn into giant squids? By the looks of it, it only ends up making Vilgax weaker and more vulnerable anyways and it doesn’t even make sense how he could morph himself into some alien squid form. What about when Jetray can warp speed through space? How does that work if Jetray is a winged alien? Here’s one more minor flaw. Humungousaur’s ultimate form grants him the ability to fire missiles out of his arms. How does that work? What, Humungousaur’s species can suddenly evolve to have missile launchers for arms? There’s just so much that doesn’t make sense and are just never explained. That’s just it.
Next up, Omniverse. Do I even have to explain Omniverse? Well, here’s one of the most major flaws of Omniverse and that’s the show being too cartoony, comedic, and silly; even reaching levels of stupid. Once again, there’s a lot that doesn’t make sense and is never explained. The characters make stupid choices and actions. There’s even more filler episodes in Omniverse than Ultimate Alien. Ben started dating Ester before he even realized that he accidentally broke up with Julie so I bet that he still thought that he was still in a relationship with Julie. For some reason, some episodes are released out of order which ended up causing confusion on what was going on with the story. Oh, here’s something that really did some damage to the show. In the episode, “And Then There Were None,” Vilgax uses a Chronosapien Time Bomb to wipe out every version of Ben in the multiverse except for No Watch Ben. Okay so why did Gwen 10 and Albedo get erased by the time bomb? Vilgax specifically targeted Ben and his alternate versions and last time I checked, Gwen 10 is not Ben and Albedo is just a Galvan stuck in the form of Ben. Does the time bomb destroy timelines? If so, then why is Vilgax still around if he just destroyed the Main Timeline, which is where he is from? If Ben Prime and his timeline got erased, then why is his Omnitrix still around with No Watch Ben? Shouldn’t the Omnitrix be erased as well since that it came from the Main Timeline, which the time bomb just wiped out? There’s another major problem with Omniverse. It ends up raising more questions than answers. Yeah, great work, Cartoon Network. You turn what could have been one of the most epic moments in Omniverse into one of the worst episodes of Omniverse just because of the way that time bomb was implemented and used. Trust me. You can’t truly explain all of that. It just doesn’t make any sense at all whatsoever, which really killed that episode and the episode that came after.
Okay, let’s focus on a flaw with the sequels that goes across all the shows. The characters. Now, I already covered why Kevin doesn’t work as both a hero character and as Gwen’s boyfriend in the past on both my article addressing the Ben 10 reboot and my topic page on the Ben 10 Club website. That is one major flaw of the sequels that I already covered and don’t need to cover again. Instead, I’m focusing more on Ben and Gwen. Many fans believe that in Alien Force, Ben and Gwen act more serious because they grew up. Well really, they never actually grew up. They instead completely changed. You want to see Ben and Gwen growing up, take a look at the Original Series. In Alien Force, Ben and Gwen acting more mature and serious wasn’t actually the result of them being older but instead the writers implementing them in a way that doesn’t even match who Ben and Gwen truly are. In fact, when it came to Gwen, all she does is complain about almost everything that Ben and Kevin do yet she just let’s them walk all over her, barely doing anything about it. As for Ben, he was changed to being more serious in Alien Force and then he just became obnoxious and annoying in Ultimate Alien and Omniverse. He constantly want to gather attention to himself while bragging over and over again that he saved the universe a billion times. Really, a billion times? In Omniverse, Ben even sometimes acts so immature for his age. It’s almost as if Ben forgot everything that he learned from the Original Series. Overall, the Ben and Gwen that we got in the sequels are not Ben and Gwen. Cartoon Network completely changed these characters and made them into the type of people that Ben and Gwen would never even want to become. Ben isn’t supposed to be serious and then turn obnoxious in the sequels. Ben isn’t that type of person. What made Ben great in the Original Series is that he was impulsive, egocentric, and fun-loving but more importantly, he was able to truly learn to grow up and mature, develop, and improve himself as a hero and a character as the Original Series went on with its run. As for Gwen, even though she was intelligent and hard working, Gwen is known to be quite a snobbish individual mostly towards Ben but what really stood out for her was that Gwen was the voice of reason in the Original Series. She helps guide Ben into being a better hero and character while also trying to diffuse unnecessary situations and conflicts yet still willing to fight when necessary. Gwen also learns to grow up and to mature, develop, and improve herself as a hero and character, just like Ben. That is what makes Ben and Gwen such great characters in the series. This is what fans truly want out of these two characters. To allow Ben and Gwen to remain their old selves yet still give them a chance to prove that they can become better heroes and individuals. That is what fans truly want out of them. They want Ben and Gwen to improve as characters and not to completely change.
Here’s another point to make about Ben and Gwen and that is how they react to tragic moments. In the Original Series episode, “The Alliance,” Ben’s first encounter with the biker gang leader, Rojo, led to Max being badly injured and having to be hospitalized. This, along with Ben’s further encounters with a cybernetically enhanced Rojo, took a toll on Ben because it made him realize that having the Omnitrix and being a hero meant that those that are close and important to him, such as Max and Gwen, are now in danger and at the risk of being targeted and getting hurt or killed because he has the Omnitrix. Ben is even willing to run away just to protect his family. In “Secret of the Omnitrix,” on the planet Xenon, Ben witnesses Gwen being dragged away by wild Florauna (aka Wildvines) and tries to save her by using the Omnitrix, further accelerating the countdown on the watch’s self destruct mode. He fails, blaming himself for his failure to save Gwen and believing that she died. When Gwen is revealed to be alive, Ben is willing to run across an entire battlefield just to reunite with her. Why am I mentioning all of this? Because Ben cares about his family and cares about protecting and saving innocent people from danger. In the Alien Force episode, “Max Out,” Ben and Gwen witness their grandfather, Max, supposedly die from overloading and detonating his Null Void Projector. Here is the thing, Max was such a strong and positive influence over Ben and Gwen’s lives. In the Original Series, he was the mentor and father figure for Ben and Gwen. Max is one of the most important people to Ben and Gwen yet when he supposedly died, they didn’t show any emotion at all. They didn’t become emotionally affected by the supposed loss of their grandfather. What happened instead is that Ben and Gwen just went on with their lives without even shedding a single tear drop. In fact, all Ben did was just scream a cliched “no.” In the Original Series, you cared for what happened in Ben and Gwen’s lives because there was a strong impact that was left on them. In the sequels, because Ben and Gwen had changed so much, the way that Cartoon Network implemented them as characters and the way that they Cartoon Network had them react to certain situations and events, such as in Alien Force, is what further damages Ben and Gwen’s credibility as strong characters and being true heroes.
How does this all affect the Ben 10 Reboot? Because Man of Action didn’t make the sequels. Cartoon Network were the ones that actually made the sequels. Cartoon Network are the ones that created all these flaws within the sequels. Cartoon Network are the ones that made and released three Ben 10 shows that were poorly and lazily written, structured, and implemented and thus were just terrible shows overall. The moment Cartoon Network kicked Man of Action out of the series and replaced them with new writers is the moment where everything went wrong with the Ben 10 series. Now you’re probably thinking that because Man of Action are now back and working on the Ben 10 Reboot, it means that we’re going to get a great Ben 10 show, right? No. Cartoon Network still has a strong influence and control on the reboot and considering how they treated the Ben 10 sequels and the series overall, that’s not a very good thing at all to have for the reboot. In fact, the moment that it was announced that the Ben 10 Reboot will have and toy line is the moment that Cartoon Network’s true intentions with the reboot were revealed. Cartoon Network just wants to get another show out and gain a profit off the toy line and the Ben 10 name itself. In my opinion, Cartoon Network only sees dollar signs out of this reboot and the series itself instead of seeing it as a piece of art that has the potential and opportunity to be something great and to be a fun and unique show to watch. Now, I don’t mind if Cartoon Network wants to get another Ben 10 toy line out. What I would rather have is for Cartoon Network to just back off and just let Man of Action work on the reboot. To just stay out of the way and let Man of Action write, structure, design, and overall make this reboot. To just give Man of Action the chance to make the Ben 10 show that they wanted to make and that will be right for the series. That is what needs to be done. If Cartoon Network continues to get involved with the Ben 10 series and have the reboot made their way, then, as I stated before, the Ben 10 Reboot will very likely, maybe even guaranteed, to fail and cause even further damage to the series.
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There is one more thing that I forgot to mention in my previous post. I'm not referring to Cartoon Network Studios, the team that's making the Ben 10 Reboot. I'm referring to Cartoon Network, the channel and company, itself. Not the team making the show but the business people and executives in suits that runs the channel and company. When it comes to making a show, Cartoon Network relies on statistics, charts, and their demographic to determine how they're going to make their shows and run the channel. However, making a show is not a type of math and business. It's an art that most definitely and obviously requires creativity. Man of Action and Cartoon Network Studios are entertainers and artists. The Cartoon Network company itself are, again, business people and executives. Man of Action and Cartoon Network Studios know what their fans, viewers, and audience really and truly want and are specialized in making the shows for their audience. Cartoon Network are not specialized in making shows as we've seen examples of that with the Ben 10 sequels. What Cartoon Network is really specialized in is how they can get these show advertised, released, and distributed to their audience. Man of Action and Cartoon Network Studios design and produce the shows. Cartoon Network publishes them. That is another reason why Cartoon Network should not be involved in making the Ben 10 Reboot. Why Cartoon Network should just back off and let Man of Action make the Ben 10 show that they really and truly want to make. Why Cartoon Network should give Man of Action a chance to write, structure, design, and overall make the next Ben 10 show. Because Man of Action and Cartoon Network Studios are the ones that are really and truly specialized in making the shows. Not Cartoon Network.
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I have information about the new alien artworks and one new alien. I am not kidding!
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@chronosapien234 Ok. Do you know if this is confirmed? Just want to be sure. Where can I find them?
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I only got the info from a family friend because he auditioned for one of the voices of the aliens. The information was only given to people who auditioned.
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This is an update on my activities on this website. A while back, I made two new topic pages. One page announces some information about the artwork for the Ben 10 Reboot while the other page acts as a discussion page, that anyone can participate in, about anything on the Ben 10 Series in general.
I will update the page about the artwork information once something related to it is released. I also stated that I will give my thoughts and response out on the Ben 10 Reboot artwork but I've decided to wait on that until somebody eventually releases the artwork out to the public and I see it for myself. Here is the link to it.
http://ben10club.org/topic/14/alien-artwork-and-a-new-alien
As for my discussion page, again, anyone can participate in the discussion if they wanted to. I made an earlier post stating the overall problems of the Ben 10 sequels and some major examples of the flaws of the sequels. The discussion page will also act as a way for me to further list more flaws and problems with the sequels. Again, anyone can participate if they want to. You also need to have an account in order to be able to participate as well. Here is the link to the discussion page.
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Here's another update for my topic page. A YouTuber has opened up a voting poll to determine people's responses to the Ben 10 Reboot. If anyone is interested in participating, here is the link to the poll. It's just one simple question that will only take a few seconds to answer. Very quick. You can even take a look at the results of the poll as well. Once enough votes are sent, the YouTuber plans to make a video discussing the results. The YouTuber's name is Archaic King.
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It's been a while since I've been on this page so here's another update. There is more information about the Ben 10 Reboot in regards to the artwork on my artwork topic page. It's about more information on the brand new alien that my source claims is going to be in the reboot and I gave my thoughts on it as well. My source also states that he will be posting an image from the topic page some time soon so I'll wait and see what happens there. Here is the link to that topic page if anyone wants to read up on the new alien.
http://ben10club.org/topic/14/alien-artwork-and-a-new-alien
I also have some ideas for Ben 10 that I was willing to make and share on this website. If anyone is interested in reading up my ideas, here are the links to them.
http://ben10club.org/topic/16/z-skayr-possesses-ben-idea
http://ben10club.org/topic/17/my-ben-10-video-game-ideaAs for this topic page, so far I have already discussed everything that I wanted to focus on with the Ben 10 Reboot and the Ben 10 Series. I am currently waiting for more information about the Ben 10 Reboot to be released before I make any more posts on this topic page.
I still encourage anyone that has read this topic page and agree with my argument to go and contact Cartoon Network and Man of Action and attempt to convince them to take a different and more acceptable and appropriate approach and not reboot the Original Series, such as rebooting the sequels instead, and continuously repeat this page's message and argument to them. I also still encourage anyone to share this topic page around on the internet and social media to help gather up more supporters. I still have the link to Cartoon Network's website feedback page and the email address for Man of Action in the very first post of this page. I also recommend contacting Man of Action and Cartoon Network through their Twitter pages as well.
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Here is another video, that I found, that acts as another example as to why I encourage people to contact Cartoon Network and Man of Action and convince them to not make the reboot of the Ben 10 Original Series and instead take the approach that I've been arguing for to reboot the Ben 10 sequels. This video is by Jim Sterling, a very well-known video games critic and reviewer and discusses speaking up about issues with the gaming industry. Everything he discusses in this video that applies to video games also applies to Cartoon Network as well Here is the video.
(Warning: Strong Language and Mature Content)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6lvDL4cNdMThis video shows why it's important to speak up about issues that we are facing. In this case, this includes Cartoon Network too. This video also shows why it is important to keep persisting with the efforts and issues that people want to address as well. Silence is what Cartoon Network wants, which is why people should continue to discuss and address the issues that Cartoon Network has created with their channel. It doesn't have to just be the Ben 10 Reboot either. Any and all issues that Cartoon Network has created must be addressed and discussed as if it's front page news and continually persisting with these efforts from the viewers will more likely lead to Cartoon Network to eventually cave in to their audience's demands and do what their audience wants.
Again, I encourage anyone who reads this topic page and does agree with my arguments and efforts to share my topic page around all over the internet to help gather up more supporters and to further address the issues of the Ben 10 Reboot and Cartoon Network's involvement in it as if it's front page news. I also encourage anyone to, again, contact Cartoon Network and Man of Action to convince them to not make this current reboot of the Ben 10 Original Series and instead make a reboot of the Ben 10 sequels. To convince Cartoon Network to let Man of Action make the Ben 10 show that they truly want to make. Don't be silent with your views, opinions, and criticisms people. If anyone wants to, speak up and address your views, opinions, and criticisms to Cartoon Network and keep persisting on your efforts. Eventually, Cartoon Network will cave in, listen to their audience, and do what their audience really truly wants from them.
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I think that the new ben 10 series has got to be about ken 10 and his story with ben 10k aswell
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@devlin-11 No. It's a reboot of the Original Series. Cartoon Network even announced that it's a reboot of the Original Series. It's not going to be about Ken 10 and Ben 10,000. It's going to be a retelling of Ben finding the Omnitrix.
