Æon Flux

Back in my highschool days, in the summer between my 11th and 12th grade years, MTV actually did something cool. At the time they were getting away from doing what they were supposed to do -- play music -- and putting some really stupid crap on the airwaves. Actually, not much has changed. But for a brief moment, they actually aired a really cool, groundbreaking animated series called Liquid Television.
The first time I saw this, I was blown away; it was artsy, clever, sometimes twisted, often funny, and totally hooked me. I taped every episode, and some of the short animated clips that they featured stood out as favorites. One was a series of neat shorts called Æon Flux.

Then, a couple of years later, I hear MTV has decided to make a 30-minute series based on those original shorts. I was intrigued. But when I tuned in, I was taken aback -- the characters spoke! You see, in those shorts, there was no dialogue (except for one whispered word, "plop"). Having no dialogue added a certain level of mystery to the shorts -- it made you pay attention more because these were not straight-forward pieces. You really had to watch. The artistry, not just in the animation itself but also in the direction, was addictive. But hearing them speak just took the wind and spark out of the series. I still found it to be neat; there was nothing else around like it. It was original, unique. But it had lost the appeal of those wordless shorts.

At any rate, I was impressed, to say the least. Then I stumbled across a DVD set that has the original shorts, plus the series episodes, in a 3 disc set. *gulp* Finally! I had to have it.

It was great seeing these things again. They are still engrossing to behold. And the series still lacks the magic of the dialog-less shorts. But no matter. As a whole, it is really a cool set to own. And I am not someone who gets into animated sets. But I sure dig this one.

And now, they are coming out with a live-action movie. Charlize Theron is playing our heroine. Hm. She isn't who comes to mind when I think Æon Flux, but who knows, she might be good. I would have thought Angelina Jolie. But who knows, maybe she was offered the role and turned it down, as she has already done the action/adventure thing in Tomb Raider.

I have seen the trailer, and I must say I am disappointed they couldn't get her hair to look like the animated Æon Flux. Just one of those little touches you can miss. I still plan to go see it.

Now if they will just release the whole Liquid Television series on DVD (they have only ever released parts of it). Who knows? One day. And it's too bad MTV has only had that one moment of coolness since the early years. They need to bring Liquid Television back and get rid of all the tripe that pollutes that channel now.