KnockBack, Episode 25: The Lion King and the Animation Revival (Patreon)

Few animated films are more important than The Lion King, released in 1994 towards the height of the Disney Renaissance. An unlikely hit, the movie was animated by what was at the time considered a b-team, with the so-called "Top Talent" toiling away on 1995's Pocahontas. Turns out both movies are awesome, but The Lion King is considered the better product. Go figure. Today's episode of KnockBack is framed around The Lion King, but really, the podcast doubles as a comprehensive look back at the dark times that preceded the Disney boom of the late '80s and into the '90s, with lots of animation history and anecdotes from a man who happens to know a thing or two about the field.