Judge: "Since, my friend, you have revealed your deepest fear, I sentence you to be exposed before your peers!!"
Translation: I'm actually using the front page post option?

Despite the fact that I'm knee deep in cartoon projects, work, and the impending move to San Francisco to start my 1st year at the California College of Arts (MFA Fine Arts program), I managed to release two short animations to Newgrounds in the past weeks (unheard-of from me!).

The 1st is a small development animation which centers on a body of work that is very personal to me. It's based off a comic I've been drawing for years and years. The submission is just a series of tests really, but I wanted to share them with people and see what reactions it might have. And the menu beyond it gives a glimpse of the characters and such...if anyone is interested in reading it.http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/vi ew/443880

The 2nd one is a small short I contributed to the Sonic Shorts Collab (vol 3). Despite the bashings Sonic receives by some contemporary artists here, I still find him to be an endearing character that I enjoy drawing. And I figure "Hey, if I enjoy doing them and it makes some kids laugh I see no problem with that".

This leads me to my next topic of observation. Why do people fret about the views or the audience so much around here? The first person you should be pleasing is yourself, not an audience. Think about it, your time and life is being invested into what you make, so you better love what you're creating. The hardest thing for some people here is that they see content they personally don't like get attention and adoration. And they read it as if that work is somehow "winning" over their own. It's not. It just appealed to a larger audience. And if that's your definition of a successful cartoon, I feel a lot of people here are in for a long rough struggle. I don't see success that way, but I do think that everyone here has the right to their own opinions and tastes. And obviously an established audience is more excepting of work they are familiar with. What you, as an artist, should really be saying to yourselves is, "How do I make something that I, (myself), would love to watch over and over again?" Chances are there will be an audience for it anyways, but it may be smaller. And that's okay, because in all honesty, they are probably the most genuine fans you will ever have.

But that doesn't mean you should ignore criticism in terms of technique or development. And there is always room for improvement. But it also takes a strong will and gut to except that some people are not going to like what you do and may even violently proclaim it, no matter how you draw it. And it should be what drives you to do it even more (especially if it's something you love to do). Until the day when your livelihood relies on reaching that widest audience possible, I don't see any reason to mope and curse the work around you that did, no matter what kind of cartoon it might be.
The truly artistic cartoons are the ones that change or enhance the viewer's sense of thinking. They play on emotions and make the viewer have a sense of reflection afterwards. There are only a handful of these kinds of cartoons on Newgrounds. Maybe one or two at a time ever get on that top 50 list (sometimes not at all). And on a more personal note, (a quality that can't be read from the viewer's perspective), are the cartoons finished for the sake of appeasing the artist's mind. It's a rabid passion that makes you think about working on the cartoon day and night, and when worked on, can consume you with a dedication and commitment that you lose track of time...sometimes hours on end. But again, we never know what cartoons those might be, and this is all just my own opinion and I might just be insane.

Lastly, I thought I'd leave a few links to some cartoons here that I absolutely love, and have watched so many times it's embarrassing.

(In no particular order):

The Greyhound: Used time and monotony to express the coming of old age and hopelessness and then renewal. http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/
370664

Alfred's Playhouse Part 3: Exhibits the best visual interpretation of a philosophical master/slave theory ever. (Don't know what I'm talking about? Read some Hegal or Friedrich Nietzsche.) http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/
416434

Perkele: Stretches color and form to create a sense of infinite madness and the struggles of self (both mind and body). http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/
389950

So yup. That's it. And here's a drawing of some people whom I think have some of the most engaging journals here, and I really enjoy reading them from time to time. I may not always agree with what they think or say, but I admire their commitment and passionate opinions on animation. Not to mention they have excellent writing skills.