It's weird that WB wanted to make a movie that explored and lampooned all of their properties with beloved animated characters. If only they had used characters that were more ripe for post-modern use. If only they had characters whose entire bag was lampooning WB as a concept. If only they had some animated maniacs who could run around the WB lot.

As a very wise horse once said, "It has no Space, it has no Jam. They don't go to space and the music sucks."

Zaslav’s line, “This is a fantastic collection of assets” just gives it all away. It’s not about history or story or the hard work of those at the lot. He sees Warner Brothers as just a collection of assets to be used or discarded as he sees fit.

Kobe Bryant did many amazing things in his life but one of my favorites is a clip of an interviewer asking him if he planned to be in Space Jam 2 and the ensuing “nah, man.😃”

Having literal generations of artists' creations, heaping mountains of our human shared experiences in the form of films, television, writing, animation, music, comics, and more be reduced to "a collection of assets"... It hurts my very soul.

“Almost certainly you principals begin to… mutate…” The disdain and derision in that line read was so palpable.

I saw this movie in theatres out of sheer curiousity and it felt more like a warning than a film.

Haven't seen this movie but hearing that they included one of the nuns from The Devils as a background character while WB still refuses to release the directors cut was my Joker moment.

Space Jam 2 being a commercial for the merger is not the realization I needed

Looney Tunes Back In Action is severely underrated. Steve Martin as the CEO of Acme is worth the price of admission alone, but then you've got Timothy Dalton as a great villain, and Brendan Fraser punching himself out at the end. It's a meta-comedy of the highest order.

I love that out of context you can say the plot of this movie is AI don Cheadle kidnaps LeBron son and this somehow escalates to bugs bunny self sacrifice truly feel like a movie that took 25 years to make.

The one after Race Jam sounds fun, NGL, but I feel like a looney tunes movie with current twitter existential crisis Tony Hawk is the real winning idea

I would watch the hell out of a jacki Chan and looney tunes movie. Imagine Jackie’s choreography (in the more comedic style he’s done in the past) next to the cartoon slapstick. Beautiful. I’m glad they didn’t make it though, wb would have messed it up

I think the thing that kind of makes me sad about Space Jam 2 is the fact that I love the Looney Tunes to the ends of the Earth; and in recent years it just feels like they get dragged through these quick buck releases with not even a fraction of the quality of the original cartoons - and the media that does achieve the level of quality and TLC that I've been waiting years to see (Looney Tunes Cartoons!) just isn't given the same spotlight as the movie made by committee to sell toys.

I still haven’t even seen space jam 2

It's a shame that Warners, the studio that made some of the classiest films of all the majors from the '30s through the 2010s has fallen to this.

Big ups for the breakdown on this one. Our society has become too overconglomerated and with this movie it definitely shows.

You know a movie is something bad when Mikey goes negative

Absolutely thrilled that you used this as the framework to discuss the larger problems in Hollywood rn cause frankly it was just a goddamn omen

I feel like what salvages Space Jam 1 is that it's so damn open and self-aware about being a ridiculous 90-minute commercial. I mean, it has an entire scene that exists solely for characters to declare that the movie's own plot is utter nonsense. Or that bit where Wayne Knight reels off all of Jordans' sponsors in a single speech, which almost feels like the writers doing a malicious compliance. Space Jam 1 truly *knew what it was* and embraced itself. Space Jam 2, meanwhile, seems to lack any true self-awareness.

Movies with Mikey always give me a reprieve from depression and I always learn something. Thanks, Movie Michael. Big preesh.

I rewatched The Lego Batman Movie recently, and as much as I love it, I'd completely forgotten how much they shoved other Warner Bros IPs into that one as well. It was really a precursor to Space Jam 2, and I don't want to think what Space Jam 2 will be a precursor to.

17:14 The basketball court is *monogrammed* - and despite the motif's fabulous design having me go all "Patrick Bateman in a cold sweat over a business card", I kinda hope it isn't really his basketball court. I guess I'd just rather it be a product of how the movie *thinks* his basketball court should look.

I will die on the hill that Set it Free is the best KZfaq intro and title screen ever.

Tony Hawk would have made for the perfect follow up. Man was ruling the sports world at the time and he has the perfect chill gravitas to be able to pull it off.

Space Jam 2 is literally the most awkward and painful movie that I have watched in quite a while. The Flash at least had some charming and emotional moments amidst the questionable CGI and the starring criminal, but Space Jam 2 has almost no redeeming qualities imo. I can't even enjoy the Rick and Morty cameo in hindsight; thanks a lot, Justin Roiland, ya creeper! Also, keep up the great work, Movie Mikey! You make excellent videos!

Man... Warner Brothers has been a train wreck for a really long time. I knew they were pissing away the entire DC catalogue, but man, this really high lights it.

It's always so exciting to see another video come out. I adore your work. Also, I hope to see more deep dives in the future, they're so much fun.

Honestly, Spy Jam would have had alot of potential, Jackie Chan was the absolute peak of physical comedy and perfomance, if there was any single mainstream actor to star alongside zaney cartoon characters, it was him.

Definitely feel a shift when you compare 'what was on' and 'what you want to watch' when you have a choice.

As someone who use to work at Disney then Warner, I just wanted to say, mmmm.... I really like your epilogue. Keep up the great work Mikey! Love the writing, editing and overall execution of your vids :)

I was amazed how SJ2 included two major thesis: 1) You have to put aside all pleasures in order to be great in life. 2) Putting Le Bron into a bunch of WB properties is a really shitty idea.

10:49 Have you ever seen a movie with an intermission? I have. In 1993, my cousin and I were bored one afternoon and wandered over to the theater. We blindly bought tickets to a movie we had never heard of and knew nothing about. That movie was called Gettysburg. Two and a half hours into it, I lean over and say, "When is this going to end? The plot is just getting started." My cousin shrugs. Moments later, the screen goes dark, the house lights come on, and we assume there is an issue with the projector or something. That assumption is quickly dispelled by a slide appearing on the screen with one simple word: Intermission. We both gasped and exchanged "what the fuuu" and then started laughing hysterically. That movie is four hours and thirty-one excruciating minutes long. Don't get me wrong. It's a fantastic film. I really enjoyed it. But it wasn't what we were going for on a lazy afternoon to kill a couple of hours. We finished it but just barely. We had somwhere to be that evening and if it hadn't ended when it did, we were ready to walk out. Neither of us thought to ask someone how much was left during the intermission. And it was 1993 so we couldn't just look it up. I recommend watching it, just not in a theater. Lol. This comment has very little to do with the video. I just thought it was a fun story. 16:16 Hey, why is a clip from Ready Player One in a video about Space Jam 2... Oh... Nevermind.

Some of Mikey's videos hold little interest for me based on their title. So when I clicked on this one anyways (because I love Movies with Mikey), I was pleasantly surprised to find movie studio history, amazing patent trivia, worrying Google policy insight, and laments on corporate decay. Mikey, you are a treasure to film fandom and a genius film essay writer. I hope you continue doing this forever ❤

Back in Action is one of those movies that makes you sad watching the actors actually tried hard acting with a shite script.

It's sad to see WB become this, especially when you look at all the art they've made across 100 years of film making, I remember the magic of seeing Batman Returns as a kid, and I understand it's a business, but I just want all the gross corporate shit to stop and go see movies that make feel better about myself when I leave the theater, I miss enjoying movies...

Hey Mikey, back in action came out in 2003 not 1999 👌🏼 great essay too btw ! Always good times ✌🏼

I watched Across the Spiderverse and Live action Little Mermaid in theaters on the same day and boy did that make me really see just how bad it is to make movies that none of the artists are interested in making

A great example on the video games side is Activision. It was created by the programmers to value them and their contributions. Now it's run by type A jerk that has expressed nothybut disdain for the developers that work for him.

GOD YOUR EDITING IS AMAZING. ITS SO GOOD!!

love these videos. so well done.

today we've learned that the true villain of Space Jam: A New Legacy is in fact David Zaslav

Mikey, I love your videos. Your voice and demeanor remind me of a friend I met on Discord that has sadly passed on. I love pulling up one of your videos while thinking he is still around. I never recorded anything of us playing together, so this is the closest I have.

Everything I hear that film joy intro song, no matter how my day is going, I start to smile and feel better

If the movie hadn't lost me at the first trailer, it would have at the part where Bugs is "dying". Lola's cradling him, everyone’s on the verge of tears, etc. But here's the kicker that derails the whole thing: since when do the Looney Tunes give a damn about each other? They've spent 90 years trying kill each other or throw each other under the bus. The movie tries to imply that the Looney Tunes are one big Disney-esque Kumbya happy family. If that’s the case, then where are Pepe, Penelope, Witch Hazel, Crusher, Beaky, Rocky and Mugsy, etc? Why is Marvin treated like crap? Isn't he a Looney Tune? The plot point where it's revealed that everyone bailed on Bugs the moment they discovered the Server Verse was the most in-character they get. That, and Lola's crying face is laughably awful.

Keep going Mikey! We love everything you put out!!

Mikey! Always glad to have ya back.

My favorite Space Jam 2 scene was when Pepe Le Pew said "It's jammin time!" before he made the great shot with which the Tune Squad won the final game. Truly a movie.

Ngl, a 2003 spy movie featuring Jacky Chan and the Looney Tunes cast would have been one of the best things ever as a kid.

Great vid. I wanna give a piece of feedback Mikey and i'm only saying because i love your love of movies and i love your channel. These deep dive kind of videos (not to be confused with your 'deep dive' show) informative and insightful as they really, really are, often have lots of rampling that's hard to follow. You often set up something, only to set up something else, a sentence follows a new, different sentence. I think it's the way you freely express yourself (and also your comedic style to be a little ...rumbly), and that's part of the charm. But for an invester viewer, it can get tiring sometimes. Hope i'm not being too harsh, just a thought i had after watching many videos of yours. Can't wait for the next one. :)

I love how we’re watching a Movies with Mikey about the sequel to a “Movie with Mikey”

I really can't express how much I absolutely adore this channel 🖤🖤🖤

As always, love your work.

the way i watched this on nebula like 2 weeks ago and forgor and clicked on the video and got the most intense deja vu ive ever had in my life

Time for a rewatch after already having seen this on Nebula. It’s a damn fine video. It deserves the second viewing.

The have Space Race RIGHT THERE! And they pitched Race Jam?

it's weird that this movie came out the same year as The Matrix Resurrections (a great film), they're both weirdly similar movies, they both have a character named Bugs walking into the opening scene of The Matrix, and they are exact ideological opposites. if somebody showed Matrix 4 to David Zaslav Lana Wachowski would be executed.

"No Kingdom Can Endure Two Kings" Sparta laughs at this statement.

Great video! Well done, Mikey and team.

Great Essay! As always

The really sad and ironic thing about Looney Tunes: Back in Action is that I've seen it that many times I could easily imagine a version of that film with anywhere from 1/2 to 1/3rd of the budget it got. And that would've been enough to turn it from a bomb into a mild success. But no, WB doesn't understand the concept of restraint!

Mikey - While it’s not posted here yet, I saw your video on Battlebots on Nebula, and I wanted to thank you for introducing me to it. Binged all of the 2018 season and just started 2019. My 8yo daughter and I are having a blast watching it!

1.25x speed really helps this video for some reason

As per usual, love the work. Also, engagement

A lot of times, we don't agree on the why of a situation, but I've always respected and appreciated your love of the film medium and the passion you bring to analyzing it and its makers. I completely agree that lately, the big studios seem to have lost the drive to create stories to entertain and love. Once more, the independent creator must strike out into the proverbial desert and make something new. That's okay, though. A new age of innovation and originality can be born from this.

literally me just thinking about you yesterday and if you're doing okay and when we'd get the next MWM, thank you for reading my mind!

I watched this on a whim with some friends on streaming and honestly the most enjoyable part was Don Cheadle on a blue screen chewing the CGI scenery.

One of the most genuinely batshit insane things in SJ2 is that the nuns on the sidelines...are from Ken Russell's The Devils. A film that has never been released uncut on home media, and whose presence on modern streaming platforms is basically non-existent.

uhhhhhhh Mikey I don't think 'strange fruit' means whatever you thought it meant when using it to describe 1996 kid's movie Space Jam starring Michael Jordan. I can assure you that is a very specific term that means something very very specific and different than 'weird corporate movie'.

Great episode!

I laughed. I cried. I learned a lot. I love Mikey!

I liked the 15 minute montage with the Looneytoons in the different IPs. That was the only good part of the film. My problem was the culmination 40 minute basketball video game with no rules to end the movie. The other team immediately scored thousands of points so there was no tension of them mattering throughout the whole match which proceeded to drag on. Like you said, why isn't Batman playing in the game too. Also the algorithm was really creepy toward Lebron's son which gave me predator vibes that don't belong in a kids movie.

Set Phasers To: Spice Mikey is an awesome statement. And the video is a really interesting examination of, as you put it, "the Warner Bros' Deep Lore".

How fitting to see this the same day I read about rumors that WBD is looking to sell half of their music catalog including music from Casablanca. Jack Warner would take a baseball bat to the entire C suite if he were here today.

back in action couldnt have come out in 1999 because i saw it in a theatre and have memories of doing so. math aint mathin

Great video!

Never forget that these weirdos included the Clockwork Orange gang in the background of their kids’ movie!!

So, I could have had a peak THPS Tony Hawk Looney Toons movie, and WB fumbled it? I am so angry right now.

You've reminded me I need to buy a copy of Undercover Brother

Watched this on Nebula but it's 10/10 will watch again.

Be well and thrive Mikey. Blessed be.

A great man once said: “A man has an idea. The idea attracts others; likeminded. The idea expands, the idea becomes an institution. What was the idea?”

Always excited for Spicy Mikey.

Oh god those dings really did a number on me. "Ring bell make number go big" is not film criticism, unnamed non-FilmJoy Channel(s).

"It's time to go back to 1996" Me, still stuck here in 2023: Well, this is some bullshit. Didn't go anywhere

You either die a hero, or you live long enough to become a collection of assets.

Any night is a good night with Movies with Mikey.

The entire video is worth it simply for the Jeff Gordon film title reveal.

“Race Jam” is not that surprising when you consider Fast & Furious has “Race Wars” in at least two movies…specifically because Vin Diesel demanded it be changed from the original “Street Wars.”

Super Eyepatch Wolf has a great video about THE REAL Space Jam 2. Like many works of media, he manages to make it way cooler and more vital than the real thing

This movie is why every single remake/reboot/soft reboot I see happening I just assume will be total garbage unless proven otherwise, because current movie industry The depressing bit is it's often correct :(

On an tangential note about corporations and their hold on art, I hate how Space Jam 2 is the closest and only thing we currently have to seeing The Devils (1971)

Great video

I'm a visitor from the timeline where they made Race Jam and it turns out it solved every social problem

Kaiserbeamz has a great video series about the rise and fall of Warner Bros Animation. And boy, learning how Jack Warner came into power and comparing it to David Zaslav's ascension is a great example of history repeating because we never learn anything.

watched initially on nebula, watching here again. never going to say no to more Mikey :>

Hey Mikey: Banger. Respect 🫡

Just as a heads up for the next time around: the term 'strange fruit' is a pretty loaded one when describing a movie with a black star, as its most common usage in culture is from a protest song about lynching.

This movie came out the exact same year E3 shut down due to the pandemic. So LeBron Jame's son would have been immediately sent home from E3 camp.

Shared this on Threads 😂