After 22 years of disappearance, the Warner Brothers Yakko and Wakko, and the Warner Sister, Dot have returned. Yes, you heard that correctly! Animaniacs has returned for another season on Hulu for the first time since 1998.

If you have never heard of the ‘90s cartoon, Animaniacs, which started in 1993, came out with 99 episodes until it sadly ended in 1998. The series was created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Steven Spielberg’s who is mainly known for directing movies like E.T. and Jaws. 

The older series follows main characters Yakko, Wakko, and Dot, and side characters like Pinky and the Brain, Slappy and Skippy the Squirrel, The Goodfeathers and plenty more. The show is known for creating jokes out of pop culture and political references.

The new season of course has Yakko, Wakko, and Dot but only continues with side segments of only Pinky and the Brain. The new episodes pick up from when the original series ended, which gave the writers 22 years of popular references to work with. The only thing was that this all entirely written back in 2018 which has caused a lot of the viewers to think the season is outdated. 

The show continues with different writers and a different showrunner but continues to use the same voice actors Rob Paulsen, Tress MacNeille, Jess Harnell and Maurice LaMarche. 

The first episode opens with a hilarious parody of Jurassic Park revealing that the Warner Siblings are back and the whole episode talks about everything they have missed in the past 22 years. It wouldn’t be an Animaniacs episode without songs. There are two songs in this episode, one explaining everything they have missed mentioning things like Donald Trump’s presidency and the internet, and the second song making fun of reboots since this is a new reboot of the show.

While the first episode left people excited to see what the rest of the reboot would be like, some were disappointed that it didn’t seem that it broke boundaries like the original.

From reviewer Joshua Rivera on the website The Verge, he said “The new Animaniacs, rebooted and streaming on Hulu, replicates the manic energy of the original but not really in the service of anything that feels as transgressive or groundbreaking.”

Some might also complain that it is too nostalgic. In a review from Beth Elderkin on io9.com, she said, “The series fails in part because it didn’t update its nostalgia to make sense for fans who were kids then but are adults now. Instead, it’s stuck in the ‘90s.”

While this new season has left some fans disappointed, some have had a generally good response to the new season. From Consequence of Sound, Ryan Larson said, “While it stumbles at times and doesn’t quite capture the magic of the original, there is enough wit to remind fans of the heyday of Saturday morning cartoons.” The season gets away with 77 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, certifying it as Fresh.

Lastly, coming from someone who had watched the cartoon as a child, I recommend you give this new reboot a try as well as the older seasons if you have never seen them. And if you enjoy or hate the new reboot, remember that the creators will be coming out with a second season in the near future.