“Why Is Western Animation Ugly?”, 2024-04-26 ():
Western TV animation is often shockingly ugly and crude compared to other animation like French or Japanese. Why, when it’s not even cheaper? Degenerate echoes of what were once cutting-edge art.
American TV often chooses ugliness as an aesthetic, not forced by budgets.
Shows like Ren & Stimpy are deliberate in their grotesqueness, creating a specific visceral response. However, other series like The Simpsons stagnate, using bigger budgets not to improve but to polish, losing originality.
This split—ugliness as artistic choice versus mediocrity from laziness—highlights broader creative trends in animation.