Rate the Foster's writers!

[Ditchy McAbandonpants]

Here's a subject that doesn't get discussed as much as it should; an appreciation/evaluation thread for the writing team that's made Foster's what it is today! Actors and directors get loads of recognition both in the animation and film business, but if you think about it, the vast majority of what you see and hear on screen, in terms of plotlines, dialogue, scenarios and jokes, is really decided by the relatively unsung writers; indeed, when you watch a show like Foster's for a while, their differing styles and merits start becoming more and more apparent, to the extent that knowing who wrote an episode can give you a decent idea of how it's going to play out.

Who, then, are your favourite Foster's writers? What pros and cons do you feel they have, and what do you think of their styles? Which names do you look forward to seeing at the start of an episode?

To make things easier, I'll list all of the writers here, along with which episodes they wrote: italicised titles indicate that they co-wrote the episode with another writer.

Craig McCracken: House of Bloo's, The Buck Swaps Here, The Bloo Superdude and the Magic Potato of Power
Lauren Faust: Store Wars, World Wide Wabbit, Who Let The Dogs In?, Everyone Knows It's Bendy, Sight For Sore Eyes, Frankie My Dear, Mac Daddy, Go Goo Go, Crime After Crime, Land of the Flea, Cuckoo For Coco Cards, A Lost Claus, Challenge of the Super Friends, Bus The Two Of Us, The Big Cheese, Good Wilt Hunting, Cheese A Go-Go, Something Old, Something Bloo, The Bride to Beat, Affair Weather Friends, The Little Peas
Craig Lewis: The Trouble With Scribbles, Berry Scary, Adoptcalypse Now, Bloooo, Partying Is Such Sweet Soiree, Where There's A Wilt, There's A Way, Squeakerboxxx, Beat With A Schtick, Bloo Done It, Eddie Monster, Hiccy Burp, Imposter's Home For Um...Make' Em Up Pals
Amy Keating Rogers: Busted, Dinner Is Swerved, The Big Lablooski, Duchess of Wails
Meghan McCarthy: Berry Scary, Bus The Two Of Us
Chuck Klein: Seeing Red
Chris Savino: Phone Home, The Bride to Beat
Adam Pava: Bloo's Brothers, Cookie Dough, The Sweet Stench of Success, Bloo Done It, My So-Called Wife, Duchess of Wails, Land of the Flea, One False Movie, Setting a President
Tim McKeon: Bye Bye Nerdy, Camp Keep A Good Mac Down, Foster's Goes To Europe, Room With A Feud, The Big Picture, Squeeze The Day, Neighbor Pains, Infernal Slumber, I Only Have Surprise For You
Cindy Morrow: Cuckoo For Coco Cards, Affair Weather Friends
Darrick Bachman: Bloo's The Boss, Emancipation Complication, Cheese A Go-Go, Say It Isn't Sew, Schlock Star, Ticket to Rod, Nightmare on Wilson Way, Better Off Ed, The Little Peas
Kirk Thatcher: Make Believe It or Not, Something Old, Something Bloo
Charlie Bean: The Buck Swaps Here

In my view, Lauren is the clear winner here; I guess it's natural, seeing as she's the head writer and all, but she's the one whose episodes encapsulate the wit, warmth and wonder of Foster's better than any others. Six out of my Top Ten episodes were Lauren episodes (seven, if you count "Bus The Two Of Us"), and for me there isn't a single one of her solo episodes that is anything less than excellent; maybe my feeling of slight dissatisfaction with Season Five is partly to do with the lack thus far of a full Lauren Faust script. What are you waiting for, woman?

Of the other regulars, Tim McKeon and Adam Pava are broadly interchangeable in terms of quality, though McKeon seems a little more extreme and erratic; I think McKeon's best ("Neighbor Pains", "Room With A Feud") edge out Pava's best ("Setting A President", "Cookie Dough"), but that Pava's missteps ("My So-Called Wife", "One False Movie") don't quite hit the lows of McKeon's worst ("Camp Keep A Good Mac Down", "Foster's Goes To Europe"). Looking again there, Tim McKeon really had quite a rough start to his career, but really improved during the five-episode run he had at the start of Season Four. Craig Lewis, meanwhile, is an odd one; I'm not stirring up the "Imposter's..." nest again, but I will say that while his episodes tend to be among the most original and off-kilter in terms of their approach to comedy, I always felt that his episodes lacked a bit of heart, as though he were a shade too cynical to totally nail the tone of the show. I hear he's off doing an Adult Swim show now, which seems a much more comforatble fit for him.

As for the rest, they've not really written enough to give me more than a first impression; I really like the work done by Meghan McCarthy and Powerpuff's Amy Keating Rogers, and the end of Season Four/early Season Five gives me the impression that we'll be seeing more of Darrick Bachman (who hasn't quite retained his high Season Four standards yet) and Kirk Thatcher (who's made a great start). I'd like to see more of Craig's writing, too; the man's a genius, but I still haven't quite gotten a handle on his writing yet...

Anyway, over to you all.

[Ub3rD4n]

Firstly, thanks for PROVIDING a list of credits of writers to episodes. It certainly helps a lot, rather than making us dig around for them ourselves.(Yes, they are in the screenshots area, but still).

So, Craig. Craig, Craig, Craig, Craig. Craig. Genius, simply for coming up with Fosters's setup. In my opinion, the best setup for any show ever. It allows a bunch of unique characters that are completely not of this world, in a setting that's totally normal, and it WORKS. So kudos. (can't say I am a huuuge fan of his scripts, but they're certainly not BAD.)

Lauren, of course, besides the bulk of the episodes being written by her, gets big ups from me also. I look at her episode portfolio and see some of my all-time favourites up there.

Craig Lewis gets mention for seemingly being better at creating conflict and "torture" episodes more proficiently than giving happy endings, but the great thing about Fosters is that it's not always guarenteed to wrap up into a neat little package.

Chuck Klein gets mention for his only peice, Seeing Red. This means that he pretty much CREATED Red. And I adore Red, so I'm gonna like Chuck too.

Adam Pava seems to have a mediocre record, but is solely responsible for such greats as One False Movie and Setting A President, so awesomes there too.

Tim McKeon gets honarable mention for such classics as Room With A Feud and I Only Have A Surprise For You, and my very favourite, Infernal Slumber.

The rest have either not particularly impressed me, or have not done enough episodes for a real review. I'd also like to ask if these are the people who SOLELY wrote the episodes, or wrote most of them, or simply provided the first draft. How the writing gets done at Fosters is of real interest to me.

[jekylljuice]

Interesting topic, Ditchy, and many kudus to you (they’re a very elegant and beautiful kind of antelope) for taking the trouble to research and conveniently catalogue which contributions we owe to each writer. I’ll admit that I rarely pay attention to the writing credits of an episode, for any TV show I watch. It’s very shameful, given that writing is the career field I'm hoping to break my way into some day, I should really show a bit more solidarity. You're quite correct that the writers are the largely unsung team members of Foster's. As well as all those overseas animators who work long, underpaid hours...or is that only the case with cel animation?

After reviewing your list and seeing (in most cases, for the first time) which writer is responsible for which, I think it goes without saying that Lauren has accumulated the most impressive resume thus far (that it includes Good Wilt Hunting does her no disservice. ). She certainly has a good eye for humour and heart, and can strike a good balance between the flow of gags and the story arcs and characterisation. So, yay her!

Adam Pava also appears to have a place within my good books - he’s turned out at least two episodes I absolutely love (Cookie Dough and the Sweet Stench of Success), five that I readily enjoy, and two I feel somewhat iffy about (My So-Called Wife and One False Movie), but none that I especially dislike. Even those two aforementioned weaker episodes have their definite merits, they suffer from being uneven as opposed to outright bad. I’m going to have to disagree that his writing talents are basically interchangeable with Mr. McKeon’s. With the exception of MSCW, which went fizzling like Love Hearts in Lucozade, all of Adam’s episodes have strong storylines with clearly-defined beginnings, middles and endings (with OFM naturally excluding itself on that last one). You can usually count on getting narrative coherency and satisfaction whenever he's involved.

Tim McKeon is a tad more problematic - unlike Mr. Pava, he clearly favours more chaotic storylines with somewhat thinner plots and a more rapid-fire intensity of gags to make up for it (though admittedly they all feel pretty tranquillised when compared with Cheese A Go-Go...a slight blotch on Lauren's record there, along with the Big Cheese, but it's small fry). Sometimes, depending on the strength of the gags and the basic situation that stimulates them, this works a treat (Room with a Feud, the Big Picture), other times it falls flat (Foster’s Goes to Europe), but on most occasions you do get a light-hearted and very enjoyable experience. However, also unlike Adam, Tim gets a couple of minus points for turning out two rare episodes which I do especially dislike, and interestingly they involve the rather off-putting treatment of the very same character - Bye Bye Nerdie is the lesser of those two evils, but as for I Only Have Surprise For You…yeesh, what an atrocious episode to have as part of your resume. Ah well, the good by far outweighs the bad in your case, Tim.

Craig Lewis is no doubt going to be considered the bad apple here by many. Credit where credit’s due, he has written one of my favourites (Partying is Such a Sweet Soiree), and has claim to shared credits for Berry Scary, one of Season One’s strongest. Bloooo is an enjoyable, if rather generic episode, but otherwise I’d say that most of his single-handed efforts range from the give-or-take to leave-on-the-shelf (Beat with a Schtick, Imposters).

As for the less regular writers, Amy Keating Rogers scores instant points for the Big LaBlooski, as does Megham McCarthy for her co-writing record. I haven’t seen enough of Darrick Bachman to really judge him, but his Season 4 contributions show definite promise. And I have to agree with Ub over Chuck Klein - he deserves limelight for his single contribution, which gave us the wonderful Red and also afforded Terrence one of his strongest roles.

And that's all I have to say about that. For now.

[ptps]

I'd have to say Tim McKeon then XD Since he wrote most of the episodes that I really, really enjoyed, namely: Room With A Feud, Squeeze The Day, Neighbor Pains, Infernal Slumber and I Only Have Surprise For You; the episodes in bold being my top favorites because they're sheer insanity. I mean, using all the main characters in a way that isn't cheap-skate combined with a hilarious story that ends off nicely? Hands-Down win. XD

But I love all the writers of Foster's, I really do. Even those for the supposedly "bad" episodes; they all contributed to what Foster's is today, after all. (I personally don't see anything wrong with the Suffering Character Episodes as long as the ending is satisfying. XD "When There's a Wilt There's a Way" remains my favorite Wilt Torture episode because of the sheer amount of fail that Wilt goes through. XDDD "NNNNNNNNN!!")

And the pilot for Foster's still remains my favorite in shot-direction and plot. The choice and style of shots was one of the things that struck me immediately when I first watched it.

All the writers are insanely awesome either way. Writing is hella hard. That they can write for Five freaking seasons is quite something, isn't it?

Yay for Foster's writers!

[emperor26]

This is such an awesome idea you got there, Ditchy McAbandonpants. I can't believe no one actually thought about this. Way to go!

Now, for the writers I think are worthy to mention:

Craig McCracken-Yes, I'm entirely aware that he only wrote for just one episode, but since it is his creation, there's no reason to deny that he is good with writing. I like the style he put in the pilot, the mood of the characters and the sequence gets you all hook up. Hopefully, he would put the same style again if he has the chance.

Lauren Faust-Another writer that I fully respect when it comes to the script. Since season one, most of the episodes usually have the characters in what appears to be a simple plot, which winds up becoming exciting and original. With the exception of Cuckoo For Coco Cards, I admire every episodes she writes.

Adam Pava-Besides Lauren Faust, Adam Pava does a great job with his own writing for the show. Some of the episodes I like are a must-see (except for Setting A President), especially the Coco-centric episode "My So-Called Wife" and "Duchess of Wails", and there nothing but great amusement once you see them.

[Dragonrider1227]

The writers are all excellent. The fact that Fosters is pretty much the only thing I watch on CN now gives you an idea on how good THEY are and how lame everything else on the network is

[cartman414]

Originally Posted by Ditchy McAbandonpants

Here's a subject that doesn't get discussed as much as it should; an appreciation/evaluation thread for the writing team that's made Foster's what it is today! Actors and directors get loads of recognition both in the animation and film business, but if you think about it, the vast majority of what you see and hear on screen, in terms of plotlines, dialogue, scenarios and jokes, is really decided by the relatively unsung writers; indeed, when you watch a show like Foster's for a while, their differing styles and merits start becoming more and more apparent, to the extent that knowing who wrote an episode can give you a decent idea of how it's going to play out.

Who, then, are your favourite Foster's writers? What pros and cons do you feel they have, and what do you think of their styles? Which names do you look forward to seeing at the start of an episode?

To make things easier, I'll list all of the writers here, along with which episodes they wrote: italicised titles indicate that they co-wrote the episode with another writer.

Craig McCracken: House of Bloo's, The Buck Swaps Here
Lauren Faust: Store Wars, World Wide Wabbit, Who Let The Dogs In?, Everyone Knows It's Bendy, Sight For Sore Eyes, Frankie My Dear, Mac Daddy, Go Goo Go, Crime After Crime, Land of the Flea, Cuckoo For Coco Cards, A Lost Claus, Challenge of the Super Friends, Bus The Two Of Us, The Big Cheese, Good Wilt Hunting, Cheese A Go-Go, Something Old, Something Bloo
Craig Lewis: The Trouble With Scribbles, Berry Scary, Adoptcalypse Now, Bloooo, Partying Is Such Sweet Soiree, Where There's A Wilt, There's A Way, Squeakerboxxx, Beat With A Schtick, Bloo Done It, Eddie Monster, Hiccy Burp, Imposter's Home For Um...Make' Em Up Pals
Amy Keating Rogers: Busted, Dinner Is Swerved, The Big Lablooski, Duchess of Wails
Meghan McCarthy: Berry Scary, Bus The Two Of Us
Chuck Klein: Seeing Red
Chris Savino: Phone Home
Adam Pava: Bloo's Brothers, Cookie Dough, The Sweet Stench of Success, Bloo Done It, My So-Called Wife, Duchess of Wails, Land of the Flea, One False Movie, Setting a President
Tim McKeon: Bye Bye Nerdy, Camp Keep A Good Mac Down, Foster's Goes To Europe, Room With A Feud, The Big Picture, Squeeze The Day, Neighbor Pains, Infernal Slumber, I Only Have Surprise For You
Cindy Morrow: Cuckoo For Coco Cards
Darrick Bachman: Bloo's The Boss, Emancipation Complication, Cheese A Go-Go, Say It Isn't Sew
Kirk Thatcher: Make Believe It or Not, Something Old, Something Bloo
Charlie Bean: The Buck Swaps Here

In my view, Lauren is the clear winner here; I guess it's natural, seeing as she's the head writer and all, but she's the one whose episodes encapsulate the wit, warmth and wonder of Foster's better than any others. Six out of my Top Ten episodes were Lauren episodes (seven, if you count "Bus The Two Of Us"), and for me there isn't a single one of her solo episodes that is anything less than excellent; maybe my feeling of slight dissatisfaction with Season Five is partly to do with the lack thus far of a full Lauren Faust script. What are you waiting for, woman?

I take it that it's because she's been busy with Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls.

Of the other regulars, Tim McKeon and Adam Pava are broadly interchangeable in terms of quality, though McKeon seems a little more extreme and erratic; I think McKeon's best ("Neighbor Pains", "Room With A Feud") edge out Pava's best ("Setting A President", "Cookie Dough"), but that Pava's missteps ("My So-Called Wife", "One False Movie") don't quite hit the lows of McKeon's worst ("Camp Keep A Good Mac Down", "Foster's Goes To Europe").

I liked One False Movie.

My favorites would be Craig McCracken, Lauren Faust, Adam Pava, Tim McKeon and Amy Keating-Rogers.

[emperor26]

Here are some of my least favorite writers:

Craig Lewis-While he did a fine job with Berry Scary, I kinda felt that the episode he written for the third season (Imposter's Home For Um...Make'em Up Pals) was the worst I have ever watched.

Darrick Bachman-I am very concern for the future of Foster's, ever since I watch the episode "Ticket to Rod", along with "Better Off Ed" and "The Little Peas", since the episodes have most of the characters not being themselves, the plot not really standing out and there are little or no humors at all.

[Frankie_4_Prez]

I'm reviving this thread just to express my admiration of Rob Renzetti for bringing us Let your hare down and the epic Bloo Tube.

[Frankie_4_Prez]

OK, let's see.. I decided to rank them by "Varsity" and "Junior Varsity" divisions based on the total number of episodes credited to each writer. It feels more fair this way.

Varsity

1. Lauren Faust. Easily the winner, a comedic genius and flowing with creativity.

2. Meghan McCarthy. Despite having written only 2 episodes, they're so densely packed with chuckles!

3. Craig McCracken. My impression is that he was more responsible for overall character design and "feel" of the series, so it's hard to rate his writing contributions.

4. Adam Pava. "Sweet Stench" and "Setting a President" were both awesome, feel-good episodes. Cookie dough was more on the wacky side of things, but still a nice episode.

5. Craig Lewis. Despite him being credited for "Imposter's home", I really liked most of his other episodes. His sense of humor is on the extreme end for Foster's, though.

6. Amy Keating Rogers. I think she's somewhat under-credited, since I remember seeing her name show up very often during the end credits. Duchess of Wails was the best of her works, in my opinion.

7. Darrick Bachman. Other than Bloo's the Boss and Say it isn't sew, I found his episodes somewhat bland and lacking humor.

8. Tim McKeon. His saving grace is Squeeze the day. Some of his episodes (Europe and Only have Surprise) were downright mean to characters (Eurotrish and Mac) and really contrary to the "feel" of Foster's. The rest were alright; I think I enjoyed Big Picture the most.

Junior Varsity

1. Rob Renzetti. Fairly new to Foster's writing, but he's a veteran cartoonist and writer, and Let your Hare down and Bloo Tube definitely didn't disappoint! I wished Mondo Coco had a thicker plot, but it was an amusing collection of gags nonetheless.

2. Cindy Morrow. Cuckoo for Coco cards is one of my favorite episodes.

3. Chuck Klein: Seeing Red. Funny 1/2 length episode; it's a shame that Red never reappeared in another episode. Red inside Mac's apartment would've been really amusing, considering Mom's reaction to Bloo.

4. Kirk Thatcher: Make Believe It or Not was quite funny and creative. The tickle machine was a riot!

5. Charlie Bean: The Buck Swaps Here was overall not a memorable episode, plus he collaborated with CMcC on that one.

6. Chris Savino: Phone Home and The Bride to Beat... kind of cliched humor, in my opinion.