For decades, cartoons have been bringing awareness of real world issues to younger audiences, covering topics like drug abuse, racism and dealing with the loss of loved ones. Since the shows target children, the creators need to think of ways to portray these subjects in ways that kids will understand without losing the message entirely. In recent years, gun control and gun violence have been hot topics, so two notable episodes have tackled the issue. These episodes are "Let's Not Be Skeletons" from OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes and "Bun Control" from the 2020 Animaniacs series.
Both of these episodes attempt to provide funny, kid-friendly allegories for America's gun violence problem, but let's take a look at both episodes and see which is better and which has the stronger allegory.
Animaniacs - "Bun Control"
In "Bun Control," the Animaniacs get a new neighbor named Dwayne La Pistol, and he gives the Warners rabbits, which he calls "buns." He ends up giving buns to everyone on the WB lot, and the rabbits begin to multiply, causing an infestation. This leads to an anime fight scene in which the Warners attempt to defeat Dwayne and his buns, but there are too many of them. Wakko then makes a phone call to Australia, and a bunch of dingoes arrive on the scene to take Dwayne and the buns away.
The episode takes a clever approach to the topic, but it makes no attempt to hide the message. From Dwayne's last name, La Pistol, to many lines in the episode, such as Dwayne saying, "people have the right to bear buns," this episode throws its message right in the viewers' faces. At the end of the episode, Dot even explicitly says that it was a thinly-veiled allegory. It's a little too obvious and on the nose at times; however, it's an enjoyable, humorous way to deliver the message to a younger audience, and adult viewers can easily get a kick out of it as well.
OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes - "Let's Not Be Skeletons"
In "Let's Not Be Skeletons," a man named Gil Ferris, a musically-inclined entrepreneur, sells everyone at Lakewood Plaza a "Skeleton Remote," which turns whatever it shoots into a skeleton. This is meant to help protect everyone against criminals, but it also makes people paranoid, so they go crazy and start shooting at everything and everyone in sight.
K.O. is concerned, especially when he finds out that people, like his mother, can't change back once they're turned into skeletons, so he performs a song to try and get everyone to turn in their remotes. This leads to Mr. Gar threatening to shoot K.O,. and K.O. threatens him as well. Before viewers see the end of that battle, it's revealed that the whole thing was just a dream.
When K.O. tells his mom about it, she tells him to talk to a congress woman if he's concerned about public safety. He does just that, and, coincidentally enough, she's listening to Gil's pitch about the Skeleton Remotes at the moment, so she immediately denies his proposal.
This episode can feel preachy, especially during K.O.'s song, but it does come from a good place. Most of the characters act much differently than they would any other time, but this episode takes place in a dream. Normally, a reveal like this is disappointing, but in this case it helps avoid a potential crisis.
Which Is The Better Gun Control Episode?
Both episodes take an interesting approach to the topic of gun control. Animaniacs makes it obvious by the wording used in the episode, whereas OK K.O.! makes it obvious by showing a device that's similar to a gun. While both episodes can be obnoxious and preachy at times, they are taking a more light-hearted approach to a very serious subject matter. With that in mind, the OK K.O.! episode does get a bit more serious while keeping an overall light tone. Animaniacs, on the other hand, is self-aware and never feels like it gets too weighty.
Overall, both episodes are strong and well thought out. As far as the allegory goes, Animaniacs takes the more creative approach while also managing to make it clear what message is being portrayed. However, OK K.O.! has a stronger delivery on the message, making it the better episode overall. Despite its preachiness, it manages to keep the mood light and make for a pleasant viewing and learning experience.