The Beatles Cartoon is one of my all-time favourite TV shows, but we can't deny they are sometimes a little silly! So I watched every episode in order and wrote my thoughts on how the Cartoon Beatles evolved from your more generic cartoon character into a more accurate portrayal of the real band. I want to say before I begin that this review comes from a place of love, and should not come across at any time as criticism of the show. Also I hope my formatting is easy to follow; I deliberately didn't mention the episodes by name so that I could concentrate only on the character development, and not get distracted by specific events. Okay, enough introductions. Let's begin:
Episode 1: The Beatles act more or less like generic cartoon characters. There is very little to differentiate between the four apart from their voices, which hint at their personalities to come. John sounds like somebody’s upper-class butler, and Paul sounds how the real Paul might have sounded if he had been raised in upper-class London instead of working-class Liverpool. George has been described as sounding Mexican, Indian, or Italian, among other things; to my ear, he sounds like the (Hungarian) actor Peter Lorre. Apart from the silly yet charming laugh, Ringo’s voice actor is the only one who does a passable imitation of the real Beatle.
Episode 2-5: The Fab Four’s different personalities are beginning to shine through, but in a very exaggerated, inaccurate kind of way. George is shown as having a superstitious nature, John really comes across as the bandleader (though in an upper-class, hoity-toity way that would give the real John Lennon chills) and Ringo, especially in the sing-alongs, becomes the dumb, silly one and, unfortunately, often a great annoyance to the other three. But no matter what mean things they say or do to him, he always just smiles and laughs it off – a far cry from the Ringo of A Hard Day’s Night who left the band because he felt unappreciated. The cartoon makers seem to favour the old, stereotypical, “John-goes-with-Paul, George-goes-with-Ringo” division of the band at all times, which when overused does very little to show their closeness as a foursome. These episodes are peppered with many instances of “What were they thinking? The Beatles wouldn’t do that!”
Episode 6: The first instance of Ringo actually getting annoyed at the others’ treatment of him – though as he thought he was Captain Bligh at the time, I’m not sure how much it counts....
Episode 7-8: Starts to lay off Ringo a little bit (except in the sing-alongs), and the band can actually be nice sometimes, although Beatle personalities are still less than accurate. Unless you think peace-loving John with his ten pet cats actually would go lion-hunting and try to shoot one to make a living room rug... or, for that matter, apologize for his bandmates’ behaviour and say “They’re just a bunch of fun-loving musicians”, as if he’s their manager and not one of them. (Personally, I think John would actually be the most difficult of the lot! <3) Paul also begins to show himself as the excitable, “I’ve got an idea!” Beatle.
Episode 9-11: This is, in my opinion, a red-letter period for the cartoons. Notice in Episode 9, when Ringo finds his solid-gold guitar gone, how John quips, “You should have kept up the payments.” That sounds like something the real John would actually say! Of course, very next scene he was telling Paul he had a “capital idea”... but still.... Episode 10 is just priceless. The looks on the Beatles’ faces as Ringo tells the old butler they’d never touch that forbidden armour, and you just know as soon as the coast is clear... That scene is pure Beatle. And you can’t miss Episode 11, in which we find a scene where George and Ringo are complaining about fans pointing and screaming everywhere they go, and Paul reminds them, “It’d be a whole lot worse if the pointing and screaming stopped.” There is a quote online regarding Paul’s opinion of fans, in which he says more or less the exact same thing*. Not to mention we find Paul, John, and George helping and supporting Ringo rather than abusing him, John refusing to believe that anything could make him and Ringo stop being friends, and George says “We usually stick together” – things which were not at all evident back in Episode 2! Finally our Beatles are acting like Beatles!
Episode 12-13: Ringo begins to respond with mild indignance when he feels he has been slighted, rather than the total complacence of earlier episodes. He needs all the backbone he can get, too, because his mates are not yet done ganging up on him (and still show very little concern for his well-being, I might add). But in these episodes it at least seems milder and perhaps more justified – I mean, Ringo was talking about leaving the Beatles to make it big in Hollywood. (Since the real Beatles had already made one movie and were in the process of filming another, I’m not sure why Ringo would feel the need to leave his band in order to become a movie star....)
Episode 14: This could arguably be called one of the most important episodes in the entire show (though I may be prejudiced as it also happens to be my favourite.) But listen. Far from making him out to be the dumb one, in this episode Ringo is the only Beatle who understands what is going on, while his mates are ignoring everything and saying “Don’t bother me” when he tries to warn them. The spies in this episode are foiled by a combination of incompetence, a healthy smattering of luck – and Ringo’s cleverness. Our Ringo has come a long way from simply being the one who messes things up all the time! Perhaps this is partly because the cartoon makers now have two Beatles movies to reference instead of one – because unless I miss my guess, I detect distinct flavours of Help! in this one. I also did not have a single “the Beatles wouldn’t do that!” moment the entire time – although I must admit, one can’t help but wonder why John, George, and Ringo couldn’t think of any foolproof way to tell Paul from an imposter. I mean, don’t they know him better than anyone?
Episode 15: Perhaps still remembering his heroics last episode, the Beatles seem to have laid off of Ringo for the time being (except in the singalongs). While he’s still making big mistakes, no one blames him for them. There is some mild teasing among the Fabs, the harmless sort you would expect from male friends. We also have our first instance of George linked with food.
Episode 16: If Episode 14 made impressive progress towards portraying the Beatles in a realistic light, Episode 16 seems almost to digress. The Beatles’ actions towards each other are a lot less connected, and in some cases downright mean. In the second half at least, I can only hope the boys are just acting this way because they’re hungry, because at times they’re simply horrible to each other – especially John at the end of it all. John is the worst offender for meanness in the entire episode, although perhaps this was meant to be an early attempt at his mischievous side, so at least he’s not acting like an uptight, proper, rule-follower. And we do see shades of real life creep in: “I can’t get married!” Well, no, you can’t, John. Not until you get your divorce, anyway.
Episode 17: In this episode, John comes clean and admits his “upper-class twit of the year” persona (a Monty Python reference there, for those of you who were wondering) was all an act. This is a most satisfying explanation for those of us who found John portrayed so unbelievably in the first half of the series. Meanwhile we start to see the Beatles expressing genuine concern for each others’ well-beings, and have our first instance of a Beatle stating how important the band’s closeness is – perhaps they’re through with being mean to each other for good. Perhaps, too, John’s hoity-toity air was false in all those earlier episodes, and the reason he was so mean in the previous episode was because he was beginning to snap from the strain of keeping his true self hidden? Yes, I know that’s reading a lot into a cartoon show....
Episode 18-19: So John continues to be the bandleader, and is now able to make decisions about what the band will do next without (usually) sounding pretentious. Ringo has become just a good-natured sweetheart, who still sometimes does silly things, but can now get things right either by pure chance or by his determination and cheek, loves his drums very much – and gets quite furious when strangers misuse them! George is linked once again with food “Where’s the kitchen?”, and is shown to be both highly unathletic and insecure about his body type, but also clever, creative, and quite sneaky when he wants to be. We also have our first instance (of three) of Cartoon George and his strange, unplaceable accent telling us he’s from Leeeverpool.
Episode 20-23: Paul is developed further as the one who brims with enthusiasm and ideas, always there with a clever plan to help out one friend or play a prank on another. The Beatles continue to pull pranks on one another and tease each other mercilessly, and this time it’s not all directed at Ringo – George seems to have become an equally popular target. (The cartoons have yet to deviate from that old “John-with-Paul, George-with-Ringo” division.) The Beatles are not nearly as good with children as they should be. Real-life situations are referenced – Paul teases John about his big feet (which real-life Ringo has done in an interview**), Ringo says his mother dropped him when he was little (she didn’t, but apparently she did hold him upside-down once***) and Paul speaks the amount of German one might expect from someone who lived there for several months a few years back. John’s pretentious side still hasn’t gone away completely even after Episode 17, but has been toned down some. The Beatles have progressed nicely toward their real selves, but are still very recognizable as the Cartoon Beatles.
Episode 24: “Hollywood is a phony!” I’m not sure whether this is an accurate representation of Paul or not, to be honest, but it does come back in later seasons, so it’s worth a mention now. And the can-do attitude Paul demonstrates in this episode, not to mention his willingness to be the knight in shining armour who saves all the girls, fits the real Paul beautifully. George’s patriotism seems a little mixed-up – I don’t think a British citizen would automatically think about foreign spies come to blow up American monuments the way an American would during the Cold War – but as it is an American-made cartoon, this can be excused. Oh, and George’s strange accent doesn’t back up his statement at all when he tells us he’s Eeenglish.
Episode 25: So our Ringo has some hidden talents besides drum-playing! Bullfighting and pulling out a picnic blanket without upsetting the things on top – who knew? The Beatles are becoming nicely well-rounded as the first season of the cartoons draws to its close. John is shown to feel pride in his status as Famous Beatle, indignance at being slighted, mischief, regret, and sympathy for another living being (a rival, no less!), all in the course of one episode. The Beatles have by this point shown concern for one another several times, but this is the first time one of them has so obviously shown sympathy. It’s not an emotion you automatically associate with a cartoon character, and the addition of it impresses me greatly.
Episode 26: The very last episode of Season 1 treats us to the most realistic-looking Beatles performance I have seen yet in these cartoons. Ringo gives us his adorable shake of the moptop, George does a little dance á la A Hard Day’s Night, John’s singing profile is spot-on, Paul drips cuteness just like his real self, and they finish it all off with those deep, low bows. The lads’ mischief is charmingly Beatlesque, and to top it all off, the foursome successfully defend rock-and-roll while promoting it to an entirely new audience. Paul’s twice-repeated line, “We’ll just have to do the best we can” ought to become a catchphrase of his. All in all, the season finale leaves us on a satisfying high note.
Season Two
Episode 27: The second season of the Beatle Cartoons brings us a new, psychedelic feel, along with a new opening that shows us exactly how the real Beatles’ faces become their cartoon ones. (In this new opening, every Beatle’s face is shown in his favourite colour, and that can’t be a coincidence. The cartoon makers have done their research!) These cartoon Beatles breathe with a new life and personality, emphasizing the fact that these cartoon characters are really real people. Of course, we still see some quirks of the old Cartoon Beatles which may never completely go away: Ringo is still the butt of jokes, often scolded, and is now forced to do the menial work; Paul hastily corrects himself when he speaks with imperfect grammar; and John may never learn that his real self doesn’t care about following the rules.
Episodes 28-29: The Beatles operate more as a unit again, showing touching concern for each other whenever something heavy falls on one of their heads or similar. Ringo is rounded out a bit more, too, openly expressing his own opinions. This time we see how good the Beatles really are with children, courtesy of George. George’s superstitious side also makes a reappearance, and, to top off all the Georgie greatness, he sums up the essence of the Beatles in what I consider the greatest quote of the cartoons: “As long as we stick together, we’ll always have good luck.” It was a little rocky for a while, but I think the cartoon makers finally understand this now, too.
Episode 30: An iconic episode in a lot of ways, Ringo’s cleverness is back, and the old, tired, “John-always-with-Paul, George-always-with-Ringo” is finally gone. John says he doesn’t understand Americans, proving once and for all that the cartoon makers do realize that the Beatles aren’t American and thus wouldn’t think like them (one does have to wonder!) We also have even more insight into Ringo here, as he is unhappy with his own face and wants to change it (why, Ringo, why? You’re beautiful!) But what really stands out here is when John joins his mates in touching the makeup man’s belongings – belongings he had been specifically warned not to touch. Just when I was beginning to think there was no hope of seeing this side of John again!
Episode 31: Not much character development happens here, just a timeless tale of a boy and his frog. Ringo being good with animals was shown once back in Episode 2, but never really came back till now, where it helps round out his character as the total sweetheart Ringo is. Also the Beatles go back to Egypt, and this time Ringo isn’t made to carry all the equipment.
Episode 32: Another iconic one, and so soon! This is the Cartoon Beatles’ first trip to India, and I dare say George was enjoying himself the most there, and Ringo the least. We also see Ringo’s real-life photography hobby enter the cartoons for the first time. I must say, too, that I love the way the Beatles’ first reaction in a potentially life-threatening situation is to strike up a song. And while the Cartoon Beatles have always shared their real-life counterparts’ love of girls, I will just say that I sincerely hope after this episode, our cartoon lads have learned a lesson about judging a girl only by her looks. I notice they never do it again.
Episode 33: The last episode of Season 2 keeps the Beatle characters steady, which makes sense as they have already blossomed into something truly impressive, and to be honest, I’m not sure how much more development they need. The only things I can think of to note here are that Ringo is now consistently standing up for himself when insulted, John has abandoned his compulsion to follow rules and obey signs for good, and the whole band displays that irreverence which is just one of the many things that makes us love them all so in real life.
Season Three
Episode 34-35: John is nothing less than an absolute sweetheart. To stop to help some orphans by giving them a better place to live – I have never seen a more heartwarming action in a cartoon. We are also introduced to a new character – the Beatles’ chauffeur, James, who is shown to be a very good judge of character. In other news, after episodes and episodes of running away whenever a mere three fans show up, the Cartoon Beatles finally decide to let their fans in – and the girls ignore them for another guy. I suppose there’s something to be learned in that, but our cartoon lads didn’t learn it – next episode they’re at it again, running away from a whopping four fans who spot them. Our boys do seem a little protective of their popularity these days, though. Perhaps it’s because they, too, are on their final days of touring, since after this there is no more travelling outside of England.
Episode 36: Gone, long gone are the days of Ringo being criticized, complained about, and treated like dead weight in the band. The others’ attitudes have made a complete 180 from the first episodes, now trying to cheer him up and insisting he’s not a jinx, no matter how many unfortunate things happen around him. Each Beatle is also given a hobby that relates very nicely to his real-life personality: Paul’s painting (all the Beatles were very good visual artists), George’s electricity (I do believe that was what his parents initially wanted him to go into****), John’s writing (In His Own Write, need I say more?), and Ringo’s girl-collecting, which would not be appropriate outside of a cartoon but does relate to the Fab Four’s shared love of girls. On that note, John still says Ringo can’t cage a girl because “It’s against the law”, but in this case we at least understand his protests, even if we would never hear this reasoning from the real John.
Episode 37-39: The Beatles’ personalities are as fully developed as they’re going to get by this time, as the third and final season sadly draws to its close. In its final days, the cartoons’ focus is often less on the Beatles themselves and more on the lads meeting another colourful character, and becoming almost sideline observers in that person’s story. There are three more significant things to find, though, in one particular scene: John using the word “ain’t” and Paul not bothering to correcting him (though he uses proper grammar himself), Paul believes in witches even though he doesn’t believe in Hollywood or Robin Hood, and Paul and John arguing, when they have never exchanged a single angry word with each other in the cartoons before. On the other hand, in the very last episode, we are happy to hear John insist that he is a group and refuse to play music without his mates.
And there we have it. The Beatles Cartoons. Starring:
The upper-class bandleader John, who sometimes remembers his love of disobeying rules (he never did develop that special witty sense of humour, though),
The excitable, bursting-with-ideas Paul, never at a loss, though he never does get to the point where we could picture him pronouncing “buffet” like it’s spelled,
The mystics-loving, not-very-athletic George, who is Eeenglish but never does speak with a British or any other recognizable accent,
And loveable goofy sweetheart Ringo, who may get it wrong sometimes, but all that only makes him more endearing. You know you love him. You can’t help it.
I give you the Cartoon Beatles, for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy.
*Unfortunately, I could not re-find this quote to link it here. I had come across it previously on a Google Image search.
**On "Ready Steady Go", interviewed by Dusty Springfield
***This fact was from a Beatles picture book telling their story, whose name I also do not remember.
****According to The Beatles Anthology
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