Ali discusses the stop-motion animated movie, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, sharing her thoughts on the plot, favorite songs and Jack and Sally’s love story.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Category: Animation
TV Writing with Alison Tafel
Ali interviews TV writer, Alison Tafel. She shares how she got her start in the industry, her first day in the BoJack Horseman writers’ room and insight into each of the episodes she wrote for the show: “Stupid Piece of Sh*t,” “INT. SUB,” “Feel-Good Story” and “The View From Halfway Down.” She also talks about her experience writing for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and she gives advice for writers trying to break into the industry as well as when you’re in the industry.
Be sure to follow Alison on Twitter and Instagram.
South Park Goth Kids
Ali discusses the cigarette-smoking, coffee-drinking, nonconforming Goth Kids from South Park, focusing on three of their most prominent episodes: “Raisins” (season 7), “The Ungroundable” (season 12) and “Goth Kids 3: Dawn of the Posers” (season 17).
Tiny Toon Adventures
Ali discusses Tiny Toon Adventures created by Tom Ruegger, sharing her appreciation for these Looney Tunes counterparts chock-full of slapstick gags, meta humor and fourth wall breaking commentary, plus her love of the catchy theme song and being confused as to what “no relation” meant when she watched the show in reruns on Nickelodeon as a little kid. She also talks about that one banned episode, as well as the fun direct-to-video movie, Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation.
Codename: Kids Next Door
Ali discusses the creative cartoon about a global coalition of adult-fighting kids, Codename: Kids Next Door, created by Mr. Warburton. She reminisces about watching the pilot back when it originally aired that won the Cartoon Network viewers’ poll to be made into a series. She talks about favorite episodes she loved as a kid, plus a bunch she’d never seen until now, all the while sharing her thoughts on the dynamics of the five main characters, Numbuhs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. She also discusses the series finale, “Operation: I.N.T.E.R.V.I.E.W.S,” and she touches on the attempted spin-off series, Galactic: Kids Next Door.
All Things Animation with Aaron Long
Ali interviews animator and director, Aaron Long. He shares how he became a director on BoJack Horseman, memorable episodes and scenes he’s worked on for the show, his favorite contributions to Tuca & Bertie thus far, the inspiration for his indie cartoon series, Sublo and Tangy Mustard, favorite episodes and funny character names, as well as the character he relates to the most from his show. He also shares his thoughts on cartoon reboots, some of his all-time favorite cartoon characters and advice for young animators and creators.
Be sure to check out Aaron’s site, aaronlongcartoons.com, as well as his YouTube channel. You can also follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
Bottle Episodes
Ali discusses some of her personal favorite bottle episodes from various TV shows and what makes them so interesting, whether it’s hilarious character interactions, building tension between two characters or raising the stakes as an episode plays out in real time.
Character Study: Beatrice Horseman
Ali discusses the defining moments of Beatrice Horseman (née Sugarman) as seen in flashbacks of BoJack’s terrible childhood, her own tragic childhood depicted in the season 4 episode, “The Old Sugarman Place,” further exploration of pivotal points in her life that led to her bitter adulthood all shown through her shaky memories in the fantastic penultimate episode of season 4, “Time’s Arrow,” BoJack delivering her eulogy in the standout episode of season 5, “Free Churro,” and finally her last appearance in the phenomenal penultimate episode of the series, “The View From Halfway Down.”
Be sure to also check out The Final Season of BoJack Horseman + “Nothing Unsaid” and BoJack Horseman + “Temporarily Forget.”
How to Write a Pilot
Ali discusses what goes into writing a TV comedy pilot for this special 100th episode of the podcast! She talks about the two main things any pilot should accomplish as well as the difference between a premise pilot and an episodic pilot, drawing examples from some of her favorites while also talking about how the television landscape has changed over the years.
Here’s the article Ali mentions at the beginning of the episode: Good Place Creator Michael Schur on What We Lose When TV Gets Shorter.
Inside Out + “An Emotional First Date”
Ali discusses the brilliant Pixar movie, Inside Out, directed by Pete Docter, praising the imaginative concept and emotional storytelling that make it one of the best Pixar films. Afterward, she shares an Inside Out story she wrote called “An Emotional First Date.”
Storytelling Saga 