Charles Solomon

Editor

Internationally known animation historian and critic, Charles Solomon has written over 15 books books including Enchanted Drawings: The History Of Animation, The Art of Disney’s Frozen, The Making of Peanuts Animation, and Tale as Old as Time: The Art and Making of Disney Beauty and the Beast .

Articles By Charles Solomon

Reviews

For decades, “animation” meant drawn animation in America. Except for George Pal’s Puppetoons, stop-motion was a minor variant, used for movie monsters, Alka-Seltzer commercials and the occasional holiday special. But in recent years stop-motion animation has enjoyed an unprecedented efflorescence. One of principle creators of that flowering is the Aardman Animations studio. The found dialogue […]

First Image
Anime

Although Pokémon is no longer the craze bordering on mania it was 20 years ago, the property remains extremely popular. The TV series, which runs to more than 800 episodes, enjoys a worldwide audience on TV, streaming services and discs; YouTube lists more than 100,000,000 Pokémon films. Pokémon merchandise is ubiquitous, and on a typical […]

First Image
Anime

When Cowboy Bebop concluded in 1998, viewers waited eagerly to see what Shinichiro Watanabe would do next. After directing two short films for the anthology feature The Animatrix in 2003, he released the broadcast series Samurai Champloo in 2004. It was worth the wait. Although it was a science fiction series about a “space cowboy”/bounty […]

First Image
Anime

In the first two minutes of Anime-Gataris (literally “Talking about Anime,” 2017), the filmmakers offer a hilarious send-up of Gundam, Sailor Moon and the component series of Robotech. If the rest of the show never quite meets that admittedly impressive bar, it’s still very silly, very meta and a great big inside joke for anime […]

First Image
Anime

The 13-episode broadcast series ReLife (2016) felt like it ended prematurely, with the main characters’ stories unfinished. The four-part Final Arc OAV (2018) brings the story to a satisfying conclusion. Arata Kaizaki (voice by Micah Solusod), had been a promising high school student. Warm and caring, he brought out the best in the people around […]

First Image

More From Animation Scoop

ANIME REVIEW: “The Ramparts of Ice”

"The Ramparts of Ice" offers a well-observed look at the social and psychological minefields students navigate daily. Here's our review.