Cartoon Physics

Anybody who has seen a cartoon knows that they tend to break the laws of physics quite a bit. They tend to follow the same pattern of what impossibilities they use, as such, a system has been devised according to these tendencies, which has been dubbed 'cartoon physics'. 

The overlying difference between normal physics and cartoon physics is that cartoon physics are subjective and preferential- they change depending on the circumstances or the person creating the cartoon, meanwhile, normal physics are objective and referential- they can't be changed from thing to thing. 

Cartoon physics are applied as an artistic license, and are most commonly used for comedic effect. There are some aspects that are extremely common and absolutely hilarious, and that is what I will be discussing. 

One of the most frequently-seen properties of cartoon physics is that a character can only be affected by gravity after they notice they should be subject to it. In other words, a character can only fall after they see that the ground isn't under their feet. This is seen a lot in chase scenes, especially with the "bad guy", and is always played for slapstick purposes. The champion of this law, as well as a few others, are Wille E. Coyote and Roadrunner, whose creator even has a set of these "laws" that the animation has to follow. This famous duo is well-known for their antics involving Coyote's consistent failed attempts to catch Roadrunner. These misdoings almost always involve Coyote running off a cliff after Roadrunner, being suspended in air, then falling after he realizes it. This cliche also applies in the sense that a character is able to move midair and grab a much higher ledge. This application was seen in Disney's Peter Pan, when Hook realizes he is midair then moves upward while midair to hook onto the ledge. 

Another common law of cartoons is that a street will be totally void of traffic until they step out onto it. This is similar to something that affects, or won't work, for only one character; every other character can use it or is unaffected. This will often be in the form of a running gag. These include the fat man from Lilo and Stich who just can't seem to eat his mint-chip ice cream and George from Monsters, Inc., the orange, fuzzy one-horned monster who always comes into contact with human artifacts.

There are also common tendencies in anime that are different from western animation. The most common, and one of the main defining features of the art form, include over-the-top facial expressions and a different, cuter form of character design all together, known as chibi, whenever it is trying to be funny. The characters will become grossly simplified and adorable, and their faces will include certain mood-specific qualities, such as a single tear of sweat for nervousness, sharp teeth for anger/insanity, and a nosebleed for guys who find a girl attractive or occasionally when they are shocked. (If you want an example of this, just watch Soul Eater, that anime goes particularly over-the-top and at some point or another captures all of the expressions anime is known for).

A common tendency that is seen in western and eastern animation, as well as in live-action, is the fact that the "bad guys" will have the absolute worse aim. This has been affectionately named "The Stormtrooper Effect", due to the Stormtroopers in the Star Wars franchise being completely incompetent and unable to accurately hit anything, meanwhile the "good guys", even if they have never fired a gun before, will be able to hit everything perfectly. 

The main reason these tendencies occur is that they are found to be funny and have sort of become a key feature of either western or eastern animation. It is part of the fun of watching a cartoon- since those things can't happen in real life.   

videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mB8pCopxGXo

pictures:
http://www.geek.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/roadrunner-590x330.jpg