Whether it was Disney of PBS or Fox, we all grew up watching some of the most whimsical and action packed cartoons ever to grace the screen. But which ones are my favorite, which ones do I have the most fond memories of watching in my youth? Well, I could go on talking about this stuff for hours because I love it dearly, but I am only going to talk about the ones that have a certain value to me and inspired me in the work that I do today. With that said, let's stroll down memory lane and have a look.
Superman: The Animated Series
Like I said before, I was never the biggest Superman junkie in the world, but I do remember watching episodes of Superman: The Animated Series as a kid. It was action-packed, dark, and carried a lot from the comic books it was based upon. It also focused a lot on Superman, and to this day, I consider it to be one of the most well done interpretations of the character, displaying him as a person who struggles inside, not only with his enemies but with himself. Speaking of enemies, Superman is put up against some of the world's greatest foes such as AMAZO, Mr. Mxyzptlk, Bizarro, Darkseid, Brainiac, and the bald bandit himself, Lex Luthor. And hey, he even dressed up as Batman and fought Bane in a special crossover movie entitled Superman and Batman: World's Finest. And although some people think the series is quite inferior to the masterpiece series I will talk about soon, I think it's absolutely wonderful. Not only does it carry that same great feeling from the iconic Fleischer Superman cartoons from the 1940s, it also has a reminiscence to the Richard Donner films. Even some of Superman's fighting skills were very close to Christopher Reeve's fighting skills in the live-action movies. But Superman: The Animated Series is a delight to any fan of the Man of Steel, displaying the red caped hero in a respected manner.
Tiny Tunes Adventures
Now this show aired on television a few years before I was born, but I do remember watching reruns of this show on Nickelodeon growing up in the late 90s early 2000s. And I can honestly say that this is the show that got me into Looney Tunes and other cartoons, for I had never seen such craziness and slapstick before on a cartoon show. Set in the cartoon town of Acme Acres, the show follows the cartoon characters of Buster Bunny, Babs Bunny, Plucky Duck, and my favorite growing up, Dizzy Devil. The show was known for making fun of elements of pop culture such as Star Wars, The Twilight Zone, Indiana Jones, Star Trek, there was even an episode where they did a parody of Don Bluth's An American Tail, only using fleas instead of mice. But the episode I'll always remember is where Elmyra Duff, the bratty little girl on the series, thinks Dizzy Devil is a dog and keeps him as a pet. I'm chuckling right now just thinking about it. But what I liked most about the series was it's humor and erratic behavior, inheriting it from the retro Looney Tunes cartoons made by the same company. But if you enjoyed the series as much as I did, I know you will be glad I mentioned it, because it was just as charming for older kids as it was for younger kids.
Rugrats
This is a show that everyone has heard of, and even if you didn't grow up watching the series, you probably still know what I am talking about. I was always a fan of this show and still am. I was a fun well written series of a group of toddlers, Tommy, Chucky, Phil and Lil, breaking away from their inattentive parent's supervision and exploring the world, though they are often tormented by Tommy's devilish older cousin, Angelica. It was a dazzling experience for a lot of us to see what mischief Tommy and his friends get into in each episode, whether it would be exploring the super market or the movie theather or finding out what the mysterious noise is in the garage. And I still watch it to this day. It's a series I will pass down to my children to enjoy, for there will never again be another series about walking talking babies who say poopetrator instead of perpetrator. It's a shame this show is no longer on the air (make way for I, Carly, blah!)
Spider-Man: The Animated Series
Spider-Man is my all time favorite super-hero, and he is at the rank because of Spider-Man: The Animated Series. I grew up watching this series on Fox and was always dazzled in amazement at the characters and settings seen within the series. Spider-Man was put up against most of his most iconic enemies like the Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, Venom, Carnage, even Hydro-Man. But hands down, the main reason why I like this series so much is because Spider-Man teamed up with other heroes to fight crime, classic heroes like the Iron Man and War Machine, Daredevil, Captain America, he even teamed up with the X-Men in a special crossover to their epic television series. There was even an episode where he met up with his creator, Stan Lee. Biggest fourth wall revelation ever! But no matter how you put it, Spider-Man: The Animated Series is surely what got me into the wall crawling arachnid. It was serious and probably the most action packed Spidey series yet, the most recent Spider-Man show to feature so much action and suspense was The Spectacular Spider-Man on CW. But I think the 90s series will always be the one that stands out, for it got me into the comic book world and other famous superhero series.
The Animaniacs
The Nostalgia Critic was right. There was probably no greater show from the 90s that was well written, well thought out and got youngsters attention more than The Animaniacs. This show is lovely, and I don't just say that because of the stories and humor displayed in the episodes, but because of the overall tone and feeling of the show. There are so many characters, creatures and settings in this show, I barely put a finger on it. And the slapstick and pop culture lampooning just adds another layer to the cake. This show is crazy, and crazy in a good way. It has catchy songs, like Yakko's universe song, poking fun at famous celebrities of the 90s, even some controversial material which has to be looked into in order to understand. But what I liked most about the series was it's ability to captivate the viewer, keeping people like me and many others entertained for hours. Like Tiny Tunes, I watched reruns of this show on Nickelodeon, but I still enjoy watching this show to this very day. It's funny, innovative, and will keep children entertained for hours.
Batman: The Animated Series
Talk about a show with some serious stuff, and I mean serious. This is certainly the show that got Batman to his prominent stance today. Tim Burton's films will and always will remain my pot of tea when it comes to Batman filmography, but it was Batman: The Animated Series that took the character to his most dark and gritty level yet. Inspired by the goth and linear atmosphere of Burton's films, as well as the shadowy essence of Fleischer's Superman cartoons, Batman: The Animated Series was perhaps the best show ever to be based off a superhero, and it's all thanks to the character development and psychological struggle which is show through the show's 3 year run, not only in Batman's character, but in the other characters as well, such as Dick Grayson/ Robin, Commissioner Gordan, and villains like the Joker and Harley Quinn. And in my humble opinion, this is perhaps the greatest interpretation of Batman. He has come such a long way from dancing in night clubs and chowing Batburgers on the cheesy Adam West show, and this series shows it, because it shows Batman as a person trying to find his place in the world, though at the ultimate price of many people he loves or wants to help.
The show also took everything that made Batman popular and rolled it into one. We got some of the corniness and hilarity of the 60s show and Schumacher films, the dark, bloody, violence and nature displayed in Frank Miller's iconic Batman novels, and it is quite obvious that some of the elements of Christopher Nolan's Batman films were inspired by the 90s TV show. And who could forget all those classic villains. Still to this day, the voice and laugh of Mark Hamill's Joker hands down remains one of the best interpretations of the classic comic book foe, even on par with Jack Nicholson and of course, Heath Ledger. Batman: The Animated Series would become the bread and butter of other shows like Superman: The Animated Series, The Justice League TV shows, and even the most recent interpretation of the caped crusader, The Batman. But undeniable, Batman: The Animated Series remains the best out of all of them. It was dark, serious, and focused mostly on the characters, making them seem more like real people and less like cartoons on a television screen.
X-Men: The Animated Series
I love this freakin show, and I know that I'm not alone. This is not only the best show to feature our favorite comic book mutants, but perhaps the greatest interpretation of X-Men in general. The choppiness and butchery featured in the live-action films (I don't know what to say about the upcoming X-Men: First Class film) doesn't hold a candle to the fast paced, colorfully animated excitement on the Saban cartoon. There is something about the animation of this show and other Marvel shows at the time (with the exception of Spider-Man: The Animated Series), for it was very much different than the animation in other shows like Batman and Superman. But X-Men: The Animated Series was the best show to feature this kind of stellar animated style, very reminiscent of the original comics and Konami arcade game out around the same time. I love the characters on this show as well. From classic icons like Wolverine, Cyclops, Beast, Nightcrawler, and Professor X, to other mutants like Callisto, Apocalypse, Juggernaut, Omega Red, and not to mention the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, lead by Magneto, Master of Magnetism (WELCOME TO DIE!). And I love Cathal J. Dodd as the voice of Wolverine, who would go on to reprise his role in many Marvel based video games like X-Men Mutant Academy and the Marvel vs. Capcom video games.
But I think I like the series the most because of the stories and struggles the X-Men go through throughout the series. Like Batman, X-Men: The Animated Series focused a lot on the characters and showed how they changed, some mutants starting out opposing of Xavier's philosophy of mutants and humans living together in peace to excepting the idea and helping the X-Men in the struggle to restore mankind. It's an amazing tale never before told in comics or a television show, and X-Men: The Animated Series is the best show to capture the mythology and embodiment of the comic grounds, although X-Men: Evolution comes dangerously close to achieving that spot. But X-Men: The Animated Series did a fantastic job telling the epic story of the constant struggle of X-Men and the forces that oppose them, such as the Morlocks and the government and their legion of bloodthirsty Sentinels. If you are a big fan of the X-Men, what are you doing, go watch some of this show, because it is one of the greatest animated series I have ever seen in my entire life. It was the series that not only defined X-Men, but Marvel Comics in general.
So if it's nostalgic cartoons you like or just plain cartoons of super heroes beating the crap out of criminals, I say check out these shows, because I really enjoyed them and I consider these shows to be the prominent reason why I am into what I am into today. Heck, they have just as much suspense and nail-biting excitement as a bland, wooden, cardboard soap opera one is used to watching everyday.They are funny, innovative and captivate my mind today as they did back then. These are the greatest shows I have ever seen, and if you are a big fan of cartoons and animation, you will not hesitate one bit to watch some of these shows, you will surely be entertained to death!
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