The Top 100 Animated Series . . .

[Antonio E. Gonzalez]

IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
quite a few from other places . . .

Anyway, on with the show . . .:

<http://tv.ign.com/top-100-animated-tv-series/100.html>

100. Josie and the Pussycats
Original Air Date: 1970-1972
Network: CBS

The success of the animated Archie Show was big, as it extended into
music with The Archies hit song "Sugar, Sugar." This led to another
Archie Comic coming to television with Josie and the Pussycats, which
took pre-existing Archie Comics universe character Josie and put her
into a new scenario as she formed a band -- the comic book character
also reflected the change, in a bit of synergy. Hanna-Barbera produced
Josie and it's an amusing show for how it so specifically combined
elements from the success of The Archie Show and Hanna-Barbera's own
Scooby-Doo, as Josie and her friends not only played music together,
but inadvertently stumbled into mysteries they would ultimately help
solve.

Despite only running for 16 episodes (not counting the amusing
spin-off/continuation Josie and the Pussycats in Outer Space),
frequent repeats, the spunky characters and a great theme song kept
Josie in the public consciousness for years to come, ultimately
leading to an underrated film version in 2001.

99. MASK
Original Air Date: 1985-1986
Network: Syndicated

One of the more popular cartoon/toy marketing machines of the Eighties
was M.A.S.K., the Mobile Armored Strike Kommand (yes, command with a
'K', that's what happens when you have to make an acronym fit into
your story concept). The show was a weird kind of G.I.
Joe-Transformers hybrid, but it managed to combine the best elements
of those franchises while adopting few of their flaws. But what really
set it apart was the namesake of the show -- the super-powered masks
the characters wore. The masks provided the
ethnically-diverse-yet-stereotypical cast with abilities like
anti-gravity, flight, and energy beams.

Matt Trakker was the ruggedly handsome, rich, charismatic lead of the
show. His pimp ride was a red Chevrolet Camaro G3 that transformed
into a gull-winged fighter plane. His son Scott and his friend/pet
robot T-Bob provided some comic relief. And since Scott was always
upgrading his expensive buddy, he provided plenty of validation for
the little boys who would grow up to be today's tech geeks and robot
nerds. But one of the more notable aspects of the show was the fact
that it showed a single dad taking care of his only son while fighting
the forces of evil.

98. Clerks
Original Air Date: 2000
Network: ABC

In some ways this is the Firefly of animated series -- aired out of
order and then quickly discarded by a network that didn't feel it fit
with their programming. Only six episodes were produced, and only two
of them aired, but there was a lot of very funny material in Kevin
Smith's adaptation of his own film. A rather brilliant second episode
parodied that old television staple, with the characters trapped
together, reminiscing on past events -- only here, with only one
episode having been produced, all of their memories are of that
previous week's events... before things get really hysterical and
surreal. Starring the entire main cast of the Clerks films, not to
mention Alec Baldwin as the Lex Luthorish Leonardo Leonardo, Clerks
was able to do a lot more broad comedy and parodies than the films,
with episodes evoking everything from Fast Times at Ridgemont High to
the unfortunate results of a Transformer transforming with a person
inside him.

97. The Smurfs
Original Air Date: 1981-1990
Network: NBC

Like many of the shows represented on our Top 100, The Smurfs is a
cartoon we here at IGN grew up with, and as such it holds a special
place in our memories. Based on a Belgian comic strip, the tiny
blue-skinned Smurfs became an unstoppable media empire with this
popular 1980s Hanna-Barbera animated series. The animation itself
wasn't much to speak of, but the stories told over the course of its
256 episodes were kiddie cocaine to those of us who grew up in the
'80s. The peaceful Smurfs, led by Papa Smurf and predominantly male
(with the sole exception of Smurfette), were often chased by the evil
wizard Gargamel and his cat Azrael.

Watching the series as an adult, one can't help but sympathize a
little bit with the Smurf-hating Gargamel -- the constantly upbeat and
overly saccharine attitudes of most of the Smurfs, mixed with
whininess and an extreme overuse of the word "smurf" by everyone,
makes you start to root for the poor, bumbling wizard who just wants
to make some nice Smurf stew.

96. Star Trek: The Animated Series
Original Air Date: 1973-1974
Network: NBC

Lots of live-action TV series have gotten cartoons over the years --
Gilligan's Island, Happy Days, even The Dukes of Hazzard! -- but
rarely have such hand-drawn variations been so successful in conveying
the spirit of their forbearers. Running for two seasons (from 1973 to
1974) on NBC, these Star Trek half-hour adventures are seen by many
fans as the lost fourth year of Captain Kirk and crew's legendary
five-year mission. Featuring animation by Filmation, the show didn't
typically excel visually -- cartoons proved to most definitely not be
the final frontier for the Enterprise. But the world of animation did
offer the Star Trek writers the chance to portray things they could
never do on a live-action budget at the time -- from three-armed crew
members to new and exciting alien worlds. Most importantly, many of
the writers of the original show returned here, from D. C. Fontana to
Samuel A. Peeples to Gene Roddenberry himself. That fidelity to the
1960s show, plus the inclusion of William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and
most of the other actors (or their voices anyway), led to Star Trek:
The Animated Series becoming one of the most interesting, if
under-viewed, shows in all of the Trek franchise.

95. Fullmetal Alchemist
Original Air Date: 2004-2006
Network: Cartoon Network

Although it's mostly an upbeat story with amazing action scenes,
Fullmetal Alchemist scores big points for touching on many aspects of
the human condition. The main characters are the Elric brothers, Ed
and Al. Ed is the famous Fullmetal Alchemist who almost lost his
little brother Al in an accident that occurred when the boys tried to
resurrect their dead mother using alchemy. Edward managed to contain
his brother's soul in a suit of armor. While he did manage to save his
brother's life, he had to pay a great price himself. To get back what
they lost, the brothers embark on a journey to find the legendary
Philosopher's Stone.

This story doesn't pull any punches. Right from the first few episodes
we're presented with the topics of death, lost hope, and betrayal. The
real emotional engine of the series is the relationship between Ed and
Al, as the two boys go through turmoil that no one of any age should
have to deal with. By the end of this series you just want to give
them both a hug and tell them everything will be okay. FMA is one of
those special anime that became more than a mere animated show; it was
a powerful weekly drama.

94. The Boondocks
Original Air Date: 2005-Present
Network: Cartoon Network

Based on the comic strip of the same name by African American
cartoonist Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks takes a sharp satirical look
at American society, with an emphasis on black culture and race
relations, from hip-hop and movies to icons like Martin Luther King,
Jr. and Oprah Winfrey. Controversial from the start, The Boondocks has
drawn criticism for its use of the N-word and for its portrayal of
such historical figures as King.

The series follows the Freeman family -- 10-year-old Huey, his
eight-year-old brother Riley and their grandad Robert -- and their
experiences after the boys moved from the South Side of Chicago to
live with Grandad in the suburbs. The two seasons produced so far have
been released on DVD, uncensored and complete with two previously
unaired episodes from season two, which were highly critical of BET
(which makes for some amusing episode commentaries by McGruder and the
cast).

93. Darkwing Duck
Original Air Date: 1991-1992
Network: Syndicated

Disney Afternoon's response to Batman, but with a duck looking more
The Shadow than The Dark Knight, is one of the many reasons why
after-school cartoons rule. This DuckTales spin-off ran from 1991 to
1995, and during that time the goofy yet thrilling adventures of Drake
Mallard never ceased to satisfy. And how could they not: awesome
sidekick who was more Han Solo than Dick Grayson? Check, his name's
Launchpad and he's about 10 different types of cool. Duck-themed
aerial transport? Check. A few homages to Frank Miller's The Dark
Knight Returns? Some nods to James Bond and Marvel for good measure?
Double-check. And that theme song makes for a geeky-cool ringtone,
which is nice. From DW's misadventures with Gizmoduck to some
throw-downs with villain Flintheart Glomgold, our time in the city of
St. Canard was more than worthwhile. It was pure fun.

92. Rugrats
Original Air Date: 1991-1994 & 1996-2004
Network: Nickelodeon

Want to know what kids are thinking? Well yer gonna. Rugrats might
have had a sort of hideous animation style that transformed a bunch of
toddlers into grotesque monstrosities, but it sure was popular. Sure,
there were grownups around to let us know exactly what was going on,
but the focus of the show was "how kids look at things." How they
could see monsters and magic in everyday occurrences simply because
they don't understand the world yet. With all the toddlers able to
effectively communicate with each other through baby speak, Rugrats
took its cues from earlier shows like Muppet Babies and had the kids
use their imaginations to create adventures for themselves. The
misadventures of Tommy, Chuckie, Phil and Lil, and even Tommy's
devilish cousin Angelica ran for 13 years! And not only that, the
characters have a new show called All Grown Up, where you can find
them...all grown up and in middle school.

91. Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
Original Air Date: 2000-2007
Network: Cartoon Network

On the heels of the success of Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Cartoon
Network's Adult Swim launched several series using previously created
animated characters in offbeat and bizarre new situations. Harvey
Birdman was an especially clever example of this type of show,
reimagining the 1960s superhero as a lawyer. A wonderful conceit of
the series had Harvey's cases involving other classic cartoon
characters, but with many adult scenarios thrown in -- including
Scooby and Shaggy arrested for possession, Fred Flintstone turned
mafia don, Boo Boo accused of terrorism, and Super Friends's Apache
Chief suing after spilled coffee on his lap prevents him from, ahem,
"growing larger." Able to make use of these actual characters, and
sometimes clips from the shows we know them from, Harvey Birdman
worked as both a parody and homage to these animated characters we
know and love, with plenty of funny, surreal jokes along the way.

90. Afro Samurai
Original Air Date: 2007-Present
Network: Spike TV

As one of the few currently running cartoons on the list, Afro Samurai
has made a quick and indelible impression on us here at IGN. Based on
a manga created by Takashi Okazaki, this anime series mixes plenty of
top-tier voice talent (including Samuel L. Jackson, Kelly Hu, and Ron
Perlman, just to name a few) with an excellent soundtrack (provided by
the Wu-Tang Clan's RZA) and a budget large enough to ensure the very
best quality from every aspect of the show.

The story is a simple one: As a child Afro watches his father die at
the hands of an evil gunman, only to spend the rest of his life
training in the samurai way to take down his father's killer and
become "Number One." Filled with the over-the-top violence and gore
that you would expect from a mature action anime series, Afro Samurai
added a quirky story with equally as quirky characters to make a
series that we couldn't help but enjoy.

89. Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Original Air Date: 2008-Present
Network: Cartoon Network

As we write this list, Star Wars: The Clone Wars is still a very new
show, only halfway through its first season, thus it's hard to fully
gauge it as yet. What we've seen though shows plenty of promise, and
even though there are definitely some issues with the series -- those
ever-annoying Battle Droids perhaps chief among them -- the show
consistently delivers solid action and fun. More importantly, a couple
of the early episodes, especially "Rookies" and "Cloak of Darkness"
have been true standouts, telling dark and moody stories in the Star
Wars universe that are among the best the Expanded Universe has
offered. Guided by talented uber-Star Wars fan Dave Filoni, and using
notable writers like Batman: The Animated Series's Paul Dini, The
Clone Wars has had to overcome cynicism from older fans and those who
feel the 2003 Cone Wars series can't be outdone -- and slowly but
surely, it's battling past those obstacles and proving to be a quite
entertaining series in its own right.

88. The Woody Woodpecker Show
Original Air Date: Syndicated theatrical shorts

Like several of the classic cartoons on this list, that irascible,
nervous-breakdown-prone Woody Woodpecker started life in a series of
theatrical shorts that date back as early as 1940. Years later, he
would find renewed vigor when the shorts were packaged for television
viewing...delighting generations of after-school kiddies. And maybe,
just maybe, driving a few of them to nervous breakdowns all their own.

As was the case with many of his peers, Woody wasn't always a very
likable guy. No, the Walter Lantz produced toon (created by Ben "Bugs"
Hardaway) was originally a certifiably insane fellow whose design, and
personality, evolved over the years into a somewhat more acceptable
member of society. Voiced by the inimitable Mel Blanc (and later Ben
Hardaway and Lantz's wife Grace Stafford), the bird is perhaps best
remembered for his unmistakable laugh, which was even incorporated
into his theme song eventually. He, he, he, he, ha! Hehehehehehe!!

87. Frisky Dingo
Original Air Date: 2006-2008
Network: Cartoon Network

One of the best animated shows of all time? Nay. More like one of the
most astonishingly awesome creations ever conceived by our miserable
race! Frisky Dingo, from the minds that brought you such greats as
Sealab 2021, combines everything anyone could ever want into one grand
television extravaganza. It's got billionaire tycoons playing with
plastic dinosaurs, Scion partnerships with big-ass cross promotions,
rabbit fights, ant farm keyboards, and the line "shut up hooker!"
thrown in there for good measure. If watching Awesome X blast the
ever-loving hell out of his own "robotic" Xticle fighting force,
seeing the greatest supervillain of all time (we just said that)
Killface shove his fist up a man's half-corpse and then use him like a
puppet, or see the blue collar Decepticles -- "More than you bargained
for!" -- gun for the coveted squad leader position in the elite
ant-baby-machete-squad doesn't sound like a completely badass time,
you're reading the wrong site, or looking at the wrong interwebs. If
you don't like it, then there's the big ass door. Maybe go try "Homes
and Gardens dot com" or something. This show kicks so much ass, you'll
probably go blind.

86. Astro Boy
Original Air Date: 1963-1966
Network: Syndicated

Though its popularity in Western cultures has waned over the past
couple decades, Astro Boy is a cultural icon in Japan. Based on a
story by Osamu Tezuka (a.k.a the god of manga), the animated series --
arguably the first "popular" anime TV series -- told the story of
Astro, a powerful robot boy created by the head of the Ministry of
Science to replace the son he lost in a tragic car accident. Each
episode involved Astro using his robot powers to save the day.

The original show aired in black and white, and when American network
execs brought it stateside, it became the first anime to be broadcast
outside Japan. A 2003 remake of the TV series didn't make waves in the
U.S., but the original 1963 series is still considered to be one of
the most important forces in comics, animation, and even videogames.
The uber-popular Mega Man/Rockman franchise was heavily influenced by
Astro Boy's story and character designs.

In 2009, Imagi studios will release a new, "Americanized," CGI
incarnation of Astro Boy in a feature film. Fans everywhere are
praying that it will do justice to the original, and introduce the
beloved franchise to a new generation.

85. Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends
Original Air Date: 2004-Present
Network: Cartoon Network

Hey, you know who's annoying? Just about everyone on Foster's Home for
Imaginary Friends. Taking the Spongebob-ish formula, which is really
the Pink Panther-ish formula, of having your main character
systematically strip others of their sanity, Foster's creates a whole
new genre of kids show. It's almost a twist on Artaud's old "Theater
of Cruelty," in which children's programming can no longer exist
without an element of torturous lunacy. Revolving around a halfway
house for "retired" imaginary friends, Foster's unleashes insanity at
every turn. Because most every character is based on the erratic whims
of their child creator, they're all freakin' bonkers, and serve to
pester and drive each other mad at every turn. Our hero Mac doesn't
want to let go of his best buddy Bloo, so he's allowed to hang around
Foster's whenever he wants. Bloo himself is a study in selfish
delinquency and one might wonder why anyone would want to create him
in the first place much less keep him around. The great joy of
Foster's however, aside from the animation style and the kickin' theme
music, is that it never truly grates on you. Nothing is malicious.
Sure, all the characters spiral out of control in their own way, but
it's also all very funny and very endearing. And of course, all the
characters are equal when compared to the most fantastically annoying
character every created, Cheese.

84. Spider-Man (1994)
Original Air Date: 1994-1998
Network: FOX

This show has a very fond place in the hearts of those who grew up
with it in the '90s, so some might complain about it being rather low
on this list. Sorry guys, we have a soft spot for it too, but when you
look at The Spectacular Spider-Man, it's clear that this show, while
significant for Spider-Man, was a stepping stone along the way as far
as creating a truly great show based on the character. Still, the
1990s Spider-Man series deserves a lot of credit for being the first
Spidey show to truly use the comics for inspiration when it came to
adaptation, as many familiar stories were given a twist here,
including the Venom saga and even Spider-Man's odd time spent with six
arms.

The series was able to use many guest stars from the Marvel Universe
too, allowing Spider-Man to team with characters like Iron Man, Blade,
Punisher, Captain America, and Doctor Strange. Unlike any of the
previous Spider-Man series, long term story arcs were utilized, and
certain storylines were given a suitable amount of time to build,
continuing for several episodes or even an entire season. The series
also benefited from a fun vocal performance from Christopher Daniel
Barnes as Peter Parker/Spider-Man.

82. Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
Original Air Date: 1972-1985
Network: CBS

"Hey, hey hey... it's Faaat Albert!" Created, produced, hosted and
primarily voiced by comedian Bill Cosby, Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
was a show that, as Cosby said at the start of each episode, "if
you're not careful you may learn something before it's done." Based on
Cosby's stand-up routines about his childhood, Fat Albert was filled
with humor (complete with a laugh track, which was common for animated
series during that era) but tackled serious issues like stealing,
racism, child abuse, smoking and vandalism.

The series was revisited in a 2004 live-action movie (co-written by
Cosby himself) which debuted to middling box office and harsh critical
reviews, but the animated series continues to be fondly remembered by
many. Fat Albert and his friends -- Bill, Mushmouth, Bucky, Rudy,
Russell, and Dumb Donald to name a few -- taught quite a few lessons
to kids over its 13-year run.

81. TaleSpin
Original Air Date: 1990-1994
Network: Syndicated

There is no way for us to hide it, we here at IGN loved the Disney
Afternoon line-up, and TaleSpin was one of our favorites. On the
surface the series looked like an easy way to cash in on an older
Disney film property (The Jungle Book), but after watching the
television movie -- which later went on to become the first four
episodes -- "Plunder and Lightning," we knew that Disney had found
something special. From the creative plotlines to the infinitely
catchy theme song, we were hooked.

Following the loveable Baloo and the rest of the Higher for Hire crew
of Rebecca and Molly Cunningham, Wildcat and Kit Cloudkicker, TaleSpin
had a cast of characters who all served their role in making this one
of the more creative and fun cartoons in Disney's arsenal. Plus, how
can you not like a show that features Shere Khan as an evil
businessman out to take over the city of Cape Suzette?

80. Alvin and the Chipmunks
Original Air Date: 1983-1990
Network: NBC

There's nothing funnier than an adult losing his mind. It's the core
of most children's programming. Kids are allowed to run rampant and
inflict pain and misery and grownups just have to take it and love the
kids anyway. There's no discipline. There's no law and order. And
thus, a show like Alvin and the Chipmunks was born. Incorporating the
singing Chipmunk hit-makers from the 1960s, Alvin and the Chipmunks
brought the scamps into the '80s and gave them a bunch of cover songs
to maul with their little tiny voices. "Beat It," "Born in the USA,"
and "Uptown Girl" all got the treatment as poor Dave Seville became
the adopted father for jerky, smarty and fatty -- otherwise known as
Alvin, Simon and Theodore. The three of those little rodents never
missed an opportunity to make Dave's life a living hell. But all was
forgiven since they managed to sell a buttload of records and wound up
becoming insanely popular. And just when we thought we might be done
with them, they had a huge hit movie in 2007 that's got a sequel in
production as we speak.

79. Sealab 2021
Original Air Date: 2000-2005
Network: Cartoon Network

Using stock footage from the abysmal 1970s environmental cartoon
Sealab 2020, the lazy mavericks over at Adult Swim were able to create
magic. Sheer inane magic. Sure, it still dealt with the crew of a deep
sea substation, but it stripped them of all humanity and left us with
a band of lunatics that usually wound up self-destructing every other
show. Sealab 2021 was one of those terrific shows from early on in the
evolution of late night cartoons that made you actually feel like you
might be losing your mind. Take for example the entire episode that
rested solely on the establishing shot of Sealab, "Fusebox." For 15
minutes you only hear the characters' voices from inside the station
as they deal with a blackout. Or how about the time Captain Murphy
spent years trapped under the Beebop Soda machine, or his treks
through the corridors of Sealab in his cart while simultaneously
searching for, and cursing the existence of, Pod 6? The supporting
voice cast was great, but it was Harry Goz as Murphy who brought a
touch of fatherly good humor and made us all fall in love with a
madman. Grizzlebee's!

78. Dragon Ball Z
Original Air Date: 1989-1996
Network: Cartoon Network

Out of all the shows on this list, Dragon Ball Z may have the largest
fan following. Based on the Dragon Ball manga written and illustrated
by Akira Toriyama, DBZ was the second incarnation of the popular
series, and to this day continues to be the best example of the
series' hard-hitting style. Containing some of the most elaborately
choreographed fight scenes in cartoon history, this program is like a
love letter to those who enjoy a good brawl between good and evil...
so much so that you are willing to watch nearly 300 episodes of
build-up and payoffs.

The world of Dragon Ball is filled with an endless list of interesting
and memorable characters, and while we don't have the space to mention
everyone, we feel like we need to give a shout out to the series' main
star Son Goku. When looking at the shows on this top 100 list, we are
pretty sure that there may not be a hero who is as selfless as he --
Goku is downright suicidal in his quest to vanquish the world of evil.
Kudos you goofy Saiyan.

77. Jonny Quest
Original Air Date: 1964-1965 & 1986-1987
Network: ABC

Originally airing for just one 26-episode season in 1964-65, this
iconic kids' adventure show thrived in syndicated reruns on Saturday
mornings for decades, before coming back for one new season in 1986.
The animation was rather advanced for its time, especially for a
weekly series, depicting events and sequences one would normally have
seen in a live-action show. Present-day cartoon viewers take such
things as realistic movements and big action sequences for granted,
but for a traditional hand-drawn series the L.A.-based animators did
an extraordinary job fitting in a high amount of action and story into
each episode.

Watching an episode today, it seems almost laughable -- the short,
abbreviated dialogue, the use of cycling animations and showing
reaction shots by the characters instead of always what's going on --
but one can still be impressed that so much story was able to be told
each week, providing a rich adventure story for kids of all ages.

76. Voltron: Defender of the Universe
Original Air Date: 1984-1985
Network: Syndicated

Giant lion-shaped robots that combine to form an even bigger humanoid
robot that fights huge monsters with a sword and rocket fists.

That pretty much sums up the show. Simple, but highly effective.

Though there were two original Voltron seasons cobbled together from
two separate Japanese anime, most of us fell in love with the Lion
Force Voltron (though Vehicle Voltron had his moments). The show
scored big with the male audience because you just can't go wrong with
big robots that fight. The whole lion thing was just icing on the
cake.

Ask most fans what the show was actually about and they'll probably
draw a blank, mainly because there wasn't much plot. Most episodes of
season one featured Prince Lotor or his witch gal-pal Haggar conjuring
some butt ugly monster. Then the forces of good would assemble to form
the baddest metal man in the galaxy, and much pwnage would ensue.
Voltron was mainly about Voltron opening cans of whoop-ass.

The first run of Voltron had a big hand in ushering in the age of
giant robots in American culture, and it inspired a number of
imitators (we're lookin' in your direction, Power Rangers).

75. Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist
Original Air Date: 1995-1999
Network: Comedy Central

Using a therapist's couch as a forum for stand-up shtick was a great
idea. Comedians are usually just complaining most of the time anyway,
so you might as well just work it into a show. And instead of just
giving a comedian their own sitcom, why not just have a show that
gives a bunch of comedians a chance to run with their best material.
And let's animate it in Squigglevision. Of course, a lot of the
comedians actually went on to get their own shows anyway; Ray Romano,
Sarah Silverman, Denis Leary, Joy Behar, and Jon Stewart to name a
few. But the show really wouldn't have worked without Jonathan Katz as
Dr. Katz and H. Jon Benjamin as his lethargic son, Ben. Listening to
the two of them together was like having two Bob Newharts collide in
an endearing stammer-fest of love. The animation was crude, but the
heart and humor were there.

74. Underdog
Original Air Date: 1964-1973
Network: NBC

Though he recently received a big-screen adaptation from Spyglass
Entertainment and Disney that did little to evoke the feel of the
original cartoon, the super-powered Underdog remains near and dear to
the hearts of many a kid who caught his adventures in the treacherous
minutes before having to leave for school in the morning way back in
the day. Debuting all the way back in 1964, and running for some 124
episodes, the series detailed the adventures of a mild-mannered
shoeshine dog, appropriately enough named Shoeshine Boy, who when
needed would jump into a phone booth and transform into the
Superman-esque character of the title. Typically he was called upon to
battle criminals with names like Simon Bar Sinister and Riff Raff,
rescuing his canine ladylove Polly Purebred along the way. Oddly
enough, Underdog's powers were not derived from our yellow sun like
Superman's, but rather from an Underdog Super Energy Pill, which he
stowed in his ring. There's no need to fear, Underdog the pill-popper
is here!

73. Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
Original Air Date: 1995-1996
Network: Cartoon Network

We feel that before we give this specific Gundam story its due that we
need to point out the popularity and importance of the overall
franchise. It is no secret that Japan loves large robots fighting, and
Mobile Suit Gundam brought that to the forefront of manga and anime in
the late 1970s. Since the series' inception it has become one of the
most profitable animated programs ever -- from model sets to DVDs. So
when we state that Mobile Suit Gundam Wing is our favorite of the
series within the metaseries, we understand the weight behind that
decision.

Following the actions of five fighters and their Gundam suits (large
robots made for destruction), Gundam Wing is a heavily political,
dramatic action anime that is centered around a war between Earth and
its surrounding colonies in space. Spanning 49 episodes, a film and
additional backstory to the main characters, Gundam Wing was so good
that even those opposed to anime have to give the show its due credit.

72. Dexter's Laboratory
Original Air Date: 1996-2003
Network: Cartoon Network

Originally appearing as shorts on Cartoon Network's World Premiere
Toons (later known as What a Cartoon! Show, now known as The Cartoon
Cartoon Show), Dexter's Laboratory introduced the world to its
creator, Genndy Tartakovsky, who would later become known for his
creations Samurai Jack and Star Wars: Clone Wars. The star of the show
was Dexter, a young boy in a normal American family who happens to
have a thick European accent, a secret laboratory, and the intellect
of a mad genius. Dexter's elaborate experiments were often interrupted
by his flighty older sister, Dee Dee, who had a knack for getting into
his lab despite his best efforts to keep her out.

While aimed at and immediately accessible to children, Dexter's
Laboratory was part of a new generation of animated series that played
on two levels, simultaneously fun for both kids and adults. The humor
often revolved around Dexter and Dee Dee's fights, but also delved
into absurd situations, regularly leaving things completely bizarre at
the end of an episode (e.g., clones of Dee Dee and Dexter running
around, a giant tentacled monster attacking the house, Dexter's lab
being destroyed) -- but everything would be back to normal at the
start of the next episode.

71. Johnny Bravo
Original Air Date: 1997-2004
Network: Cartoon Network

Another by-product of Cartoon Network's World Premiere Toons block
(a.k.a. the What a Cartoon! Show, which also spawned such series as
Dexter's Laboratory, Powerpuff Girls, and Cow and Chicken), Johnny
Bravo started out as a collection of seven-minute shorts, like the old
Hanna-Barbera cartoons. The series' titular star, Johnny Bravo, was a
not-so-bright manchild who talked like Elvis and thought he was God's
gift to the ladies (even if he struck out every time). He'd often
strike body-building poses to show off his physique, was completely
full of himself, and was generally over-the-top ridiculous.

Johnny Bravo the show, like Johnny Bravo the character, was mindless
fun -- a show that never tried to be anything more than it was but was
still enjoyable for both kids and adults. The popularity of Johnny
Bravo and other "Cartoon Cartoon" characters from the mid-'90s --
Dexter, the Powerpuff Girls, Ed, Edd & Eddy -- helped elevate Cartoon
Network beyond a repository of random, vintage cartoons into a home
for unique, original animated programming.

70. Pokémon
Original Air Date: 1997-Present
Network: Cartoon Network

Don't be afraid to admit that you've watched this show at least once.
Despite the many negative associations with the kiddie fanbase, the
show had clever writing and a golden marketing formula designed to
spread Nintendo's Pokémon videogames into new, lucrative territory.
The merchandise spread to every corner of the known mediaverse: from
movies, to TV, to comics, even Happy Meal toys.

The Pokémon anime, which was only loosely related to the games it was
based on, revolved around strange, yet lovable, creatures with limited
vocabularies and nearly endless commercialization potential. The
premiere character was the now iconic and often hilarious Pikachu, but
the episodes often revolved around introducing yet another Pokémon
that the main characters just HAD to have. Gotta catch 'em all! Did
you hear that boys and girls?! You gotta catch ALL of them! You go
buy, NOW!

69. Mighty Mouse
Original Air Date: Syndicated theatrical shorts

"Here I come to save the day!" And here's another case where the
content of this show, at least in its original incarnation as The
Mighty Mouse Playhouse, was mostly made up of pre-existing theatrical
shorts. However, it was on TV that Mighty Mouse truly became a star,
as kids became quite fond of the cute little mouse who packed quite a
punch, as he clobbered villains with Superman-type strength and
abilities. There were several revivals of the character through the
years, including a 1980s series by Ralph Bakshi that has quite the
cult following and a place in TV controversy history, due to an
accusation that a scene in which Mighty Mouse sniffed a flower
actually alluded to cocaine use (yep, you read that right).

Of course, Mighty Mouse also needs to be singled out for one other
reason -- the wonderful theme song, which remains as catchy today as
ever, and of course was the inspiration for a famous Andy Kaufman bit.

68. Popeye
Original Air Date: Syndicated theatrical shorts

Today, Popeye might be merely seen as the greatest endorsement of one
of the most lackluster vegetables of all time. But "back in the day"
this malformed, one-eyed, corncob pipe-smokin' sailor was the complete
franchise. In 1929, Popeye appeared as a supporting character in the
comic strip Thimble Theater, which was originally a venue for Olive
Oyl and her kin. He quickly stole the hearts and minds of America.
Soon the comic strip was focused on him, and Olive even dumped her
longtime boyfriend Ham Gravy to become Popeye's main squeeze. Sounds a
bit like an "ole timey" Urkel if you ask us. In 1932, Popeye got his
own animated series, which usually found him getting pounded to a pulp
by nogoodniks until he finally ingested canned spinach and fought back
with superhuman strength. Popeye was an icon that spawned movies,
lunchboxes, pinball machines and even his own line of frozen food. And
yes, the Popeye cartoon did give a much needed shot in the arm to the
U.S. spinach industry, which is not only fascinating, but might also
constitute a high crime.

67. The Pink Panther Show
Original Air Date: 1969-1976
Network: NBC

After a few Pink Panther films had hit the big screen in the '60s,
America was treated to a cartoon showcase based on some of the themes
and characters from the Blake Edwards/Peter Sellers franchise. The
Pink Panther Show featured the bumbling adventures of a cartoon
Inspector Clouseau and his "peanut butter and garlic sandwich"-loving
Spanish sidekick Deux Deux; a Jackie Mason inspired aardvark trying to
catch a sly red ant; an actual Pink Panther who lives only to
infuriate his mustachioed next door neighbor; and a slew of other
stories. All of the little cartoon-ettes were accompanied by the
sizzling Henri Mancini jazz score from the famed movies. It was a cool
collection of animation that ranged from slapstick to surreal, and
gave us some wonderful characters to cherish. And let's not forget the
most important part: Even though all of these animated nuggets were
only loosely tied to the films, they were still exponentially better
than the Steve Martin remake.

66. Tom and Jerry
Original Air Date: Syndicated theatrical shorts

This long-lived cat and mouse team (or anti-team, as the case might
be) began life courtesy of William Hanna and Joseph Barbera for MGM in
a series of theatrical shorts back in 1940. Telling the age-old tale
of the feline and rodent who quite simply can't get along, Tom and
Jerry eventually made its way to TV as did many of its movie-house
peers. And there, on the small screen, the duo has thrived for
generations, continuing to churn out new material to this day.

Winners of the Oscar for Best Short Subject seven times (!), Tom and
Jerry have nonetheless had their ups and downs over the past 69 years.
The dark years of detente between the two in the mid 1970s in
particular brings a tear to this writer's eye, but the franchise as a
whole has persevered nonetheless and even inspired plenty of imitators
and successors, not the least of which is The Simpsons' Itchy and
Scratchy.

65. Todd McFarlane's Spawn
Original Air Date: 1997-1999
Network: HBO

Airing on HBO in the late '90s, this short series was a
for-adults-only adaptation of McFarlane's comic book. Unlike the
rather cheesy, toned down live-action Spawn of 1997, this animated
series held nothing back in the violence department, making full use
of its home on pay cable. Todd McFarlane himself introduced each
episode in a live-action segment, in the style of Alfred Hitchcock or
Rod Serling.

Much like the comic, the animated series followed a man who, upon
dying, sold his soul to the devil in order to remain on Earth and see
his wife. He was turned into a creature others call "Spawn," who we
learn is expected to lead an invasion into heaven. Meanwhile, Spawn is
forced to watch his former wife, Wanda, marry his best friend and have
a child with him. The series is an interesting take on free will and
the old adage, "Be careful what you wish for because you might just
get it."

64. Dungeons & Dragons
Original Air Date: 1983-1985
Network: CBS

This was one of the best cartoons ever made. Yes, it still stings
one's psyche to know that none of the poor kids ever wound up making
it home, but it was sure a lot of fun while it lasted. The final
episode of this show was written, but never produced. It's out there.
The show where they all make it back to their loving families. But
we'll never see it. Taking its cues from the Dungeons and Dragons
role-playing game franchise and borrowing a little of the plot from
Land of the Lost, Dungeons revolved around six friends who hop on the
Dungeons and Dragons ride at their local carnival and get transported
to, and stuck in, the realm of D&D. Each of them is given a "class"
and from there on in it was like watching The Breakfast Club fend for
their lives in what the National Coalition on Television Violence
claimed was the most violent show on network television. In one
episode we saw Hank the Ranger's face melt off. We saw people get
whipped. We saw people die. The show had jealousy and betrayal. The
decisions that the kids made held certain consequences. The villains
were malicious and cruel. It dealt with the notion of being stranded
in a different space-time continuum; 20-plus years before Lost, mind
you. It was truly a mature soap opera with swords and monsters.

63. The Huckleberry Hound Show
Original Air Date: 1958-1962
Network: NBC

The Huckleberry Hound Show is notable for several reasons. First is
the fact that it introduced more than one animated character who would
stand the test of time -- not only the distinctively voiced title
character, but also the even more popular Yogi Bear and Boo Boo, who
starred in their own animated segments of this series before getting a
spin-off of their own. O.K., the other segments of Huckleberry Hound
(starring mice Pixie and Dixie and Hokey Wolf) didn't have quite as
big an afterlife, but this was still quite an impressive stable of
characters to launch with, and audiences quickly responded to
Huckleberry Hound himself, a blue dog who had quite the fondness for
singing "Oh My Darling, Clementine." Huckleberry Hound was also the
second series from Hanna-Barbera, and the one that made them a true
success, paving the way for many other series that would follow,
including The Flintstones and Scooby-Doo. The Huckleberry Hound Show
would go on to make television history as the first animated series to
win an Emmy.

62. Danger Mouse
Original Air Date: 1981-1992
Network: Nickelodeon

Not to be confused with Mighty Mouse, or the music producer of the
(save for a single space) same name, DangerMouse was a
British-produced series that featured the title character, a rodent
who served as a secret agent. A play on the James Bond scenario, the
show was one of the first cartoons from the U.K. to crossover to
American audience acceptance via syndication. In fact, DangerMouse
continues to have a fan following in the U.S. and has maintained a
presence on cable television here (via A&E and Nick at Nite) years
after its original run.

Sporting an eye patch and a "DM" logo on his chest, our hero is a
great man...er, mouse. Fluent in dozens of languages, physically
perfect, mentally superior, DangerMouse is accompanied by his
Watson-esque hamster sidekick Ernest Penfold (voiced by Terry Scott)
in his never-ending battle against archenemy Baron Silas Greenback and
other foes. The show was popular enough, in fact, to lead to a
spin-off which is perhaps better know here in the U.S.: Count Duckula.

61. Count Duckula
Original Air Date: 1988-1993
Network: Nickelodeon

A spin-off of the British cartoon DangerMouse, Count Duckula's title
character began life as a villain on that comedic spy series. The
program has got the kind of premise you simply must love in a kids'
show: Essentially based on the legend of the vampiric Count Dracula,
Count Duckula is a fowl who was once an actual bloodsucker. But after
an ancient resurrection ritual went awry (involving ketchup rather
than blood), the good Count arose once again as a vegetarian vampire.
So no tearing out of throats for this vamp, but rather a pursuit of
fame and fortune was the purview of Count Duckula....much to the
chagrin of his faithful assistant Igor, who does his best to get his
master back to his old vamping ways. Other familiar archetypes show up
throughout, such as Duckula's nemesis Doctor Von Goosewing, a Vincent
Price-like narrator, and a variety of supernatural creatures, leading
to much humor for fans of classic horror...and regular old cartoon
fans too.

60. Chip 'N Dale Rescue Rangers
Original Air Date: 1989-1990
Network: Disney Channel

We're not saying that a catchy theme song guarantees admission on the
list, but it sure helps. Rescue Rangers' opening music is catchy in
that stuck-in-your-head-for-days, foot-tapping sorta way, so much so
that 15 years since it went off the air, we still hear it. Its
inclusion on our Best Ever list is in some small part our way to
address the special guilty pleasure we have for this show. Part of the
Disney Afternoon line-up, Chip and Dale did their best impression of
Indiana Jones and Magnum P.I., respectively, solving crimes too small
for the full-sized police to handle. That's right, chipmunks playing
CSI before there was CSI; and in some cases they made Indy look like
Regarding Henry. Pals Gadget, Monterey Jack and Zipper were on hand
for back-up, and then there's that damn song again. "Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Chip
'N Dale, Rescue Rangers..." Somebody stop us. Actually, don't. We're
too busy having fun watching C and D take care of Fat Cat.

59. Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends
Original Air Date: 1981-1983
Network: NBC

Let's put aside the 1980s cartoon hotness that was Firestar for a
moment (and no, we're not referring to her powers with that remark),
for there was something else about this show that has kept it alive in
our memories for all these years. Perhaps it was the "team-up" aspect
-- the old Marvel idea of giving Spidey some superpowered pals to play
with (the X-Men's Iceman rounded out this team of "Spider-Friends,"
serving as counterpoint to Firestar's hotness abilities [we are
referring to her powers this time]). Other familiar Marvel faces would
show up too (Captain America, Sunfire, S.H.I.E.L.D., et al), which
helped to distract our young minds from the strange fact that the
group -- even Firestar -- all lived with Aunt May and her
anthropomorphized dog, Ms. Lion. The animation was predictably budget
for the time, particularly when viewed in this post-Spectacular
Spider-Man world of ours, but it was fun nonetheless.

58. He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983)
Original Air Date: 1983-1985
Network: Syndicated

"By the power of Greyskull, I have the power!" This redundantly
ridiculous catch phrase was repeated by every kid who grew up in the
'80s watching this animated series, which was a mix between a
commercial for the action figures and a show that would shove a
preachy lesson in at the end (a la G.I. Joe). The animation in He-Man
and the Masters of the Universe was limited at best, but the show
lives on in our childhood memories as something we had to watch every
day. Just two seasons were produced, during 1983 to 1985, but
consisted of a whopping 130 episodes (suggesting the production's
emphasis was on quantity, not quality).

Perhaps the most notable aspect of the show was that it became the
launching point for several budding TV screenwriters, including J.
Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5), Paul Dini (Batman: The Animated
Series), and David Wise (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles).

57. Invader ZIM
Original Air Date: 2001-2002 & 2006
Network: Nickelodeon

The Emmy Award winning Invader Zim came from Nickelodeon with its tale
of a very short alien named (one guess...) Zim, from the planet Irk,
who escapes from his exile on Foodcourtia and lands here, doing his
best to wipe out, conquer, and otherwise rid the universe of planet
Earth. Thing is, Zim isn't exactly the best and brightest (and
certainly not the tallest) of his kind, so his plans are usually
undone either by Dib, an expert in the otherworldly who is one of the
only people who recognizes Zim for what he is, or by Zim's own
ineptitude.

The show, which has developed a cult following since its debut in
2001, never fared well in the ratings and was cancelled after its
first season. A partial second season was finally aired five years
later. Some 10 more second-season episodes were never completed,
however, including a two-part finale, though some bits and pieces of
these segments have been leaked to fans over the years.

56. The Venture Bros.
Original Air Date: 2003-Present
Network: Cartoon Network

Yet another instant classic from the people at Adult Swim, The Venture
Bros. takes the well-worn tropes of Jonny Quest and its ilk and adapts
them for the snarkier audiences of today. The brothers of the title
are the dimwitted Hank and Dean Venture, who thanks to their sketchy
hyper-intelligent scientist dad find themselves in all manner of
adventures. Along to protect the boys from Dr. Venture's enemies, and
from themselves sometimes, is the muscled secret-agent/bodyguard Brock
Samson. Full of pop-culture references and off-color humor, the show
operates as a sort of postmodern take on the Jonny Quests of
yesteryear: The Venture Bros.' revered creators, Jackson Publick and
Doc Hammer, have said that the show is all about failure -- which may
or may not be yet another joke from the pair. But looking at the
misadventures of Hank and Dean and the rest, this take on things sort
of fits, doesn't it?

55. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987)
Original Air Date: 1987-1996
Network: Syndicated

They, are the world's most fearsome fighting team. They, are heroes in
a half-shell and they're green. And you know what? When the evil
Shredder attacks, these turtle boys don't cut him no slack. Welcome to
the world of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Following the adventures of four mutated turtles that were taught by a
martial-arts trained rat (the radical Splinter), Leonardo, Donatello,
Raphael, and Michelangelo keep the streets of New York safe from
Shredder's Foot Clan. As amazingly preposterous as the idea is, Kevin
Eastman and Peter Laird's comic book was adapted into this fun series
that hypnotized a generation into buying toys and taking kung fu
lessons. While it may not be as faithful to the source material as
other TMNT cartoons, and the animation may not be to the same quality
as some of the more recent adaptations, hell if any of the other
series made as large of a dent on pop culture (and many of the lives
of us editors here at IGN) as the 1987 animated program. Plus, how
could we not give the nod to the series that created Krang, the
talking brain housed in a giant man suit?

54. Inspector Gadget
Original Air Date: 1983-1986
Network: Syndicated

Forgive us if we reference yet another theme song, but it seems that
the title music for so many of these shows has done much to make them
permanent residents of our collective psyches. In the case of this DIC
Entertainment produced cartoon (huh, huh, huh, we said DIC!), the
absentminded adventures of the cyborg (or was he a full-on robot?)
Inspector Gadget were certainly made all the more exciting by the
unforgettable "Go, Gadget, go!" music. Throw in the far superior
intellectual abilities of Gadget's "niece" Penny, the master of
disguise canine Brain, and the villainous (and barely glimpsed) Dr.
Claw and his M.A.D. Cat, and untold hours of afternoon TV addiction
were to be had. That Maxwell Smart himself, Don Adams, lent his voice
to the title character -- a fact we as kids were probably not even
aware of on a conscious level -- well, that was just icing on the
bumbling cyborg detective cake, wasn't it?

53. Freakazoid
Original Air Date: 1995-1997
Network: WB

Co-created by Bruce Timm, Paul Dini (both of Batman: The Animated
Series fame) and Steven Spielberg (of movie blockbuster fame),
Freakazoid! was a very fun spoof of the superhero genre. The show's
title character is a manic, out of control superhero who's the secret
alter ego of geeky teenager Dexter Douglas.

Freakazoid -- who would appear when Dexter would say "Freak out!" and
go away when he said "Freak in!" -- had a wide range of powers,
including strength, speed, endurance and the ability to assume the
form of electricity. He was, however, very easily distracted, and
often not interested in being a superhero. Each episode Freakazoid
would meet up with a ridiculous villain, such as a giant-brain-headed
man called The Lobe, a blue caveman named Cave Guy with a voice like
Gilligan's Island's Thurston Howell III, a former model stuck in a
jaunty pose named Arms Akimbo, and an eye-patched villain named
Armando Guitierrez, voiced by the inimitable Ricardo Montalban.

52. Galaxy High
Original Air Date: 1986
Network: CBS

This show definitely falls under the cult heading -- it actually
didn't run very long, and many don't remember it all, but those who do
have fond memories. The story of two human teenagers brought to an
intergalactic high school, Galaxy High was developed by Chris
Columbus, the Goonies and Gremlins writer who would go on to direct
films like Home Alone and the first two Harry Potters. While certainly
a show of its time in terms of its low-animation quality, there was a
lot of appealing aspects to this series -- it's got an engaging wish
fulfillment concept (going to school in outer space, with flying cars
and crazy aliens everywhere!) and impressive character design, not to
mention the sheer number of creatures the series portrayed. There were
also some amusingly dark moments snuck in, such as a scene in which
lead character Doyle smashes a fly between his hands, only to be told
that the fly was a fellow student.

51. Death Note
Original Air Date: 2006-2007
Network: Cartoon Network

While there are plenty of anime programs on our list, Death Note is
the most recent. Just finishing up its animated run in the U.S., this
series was based on the manga created by writer Tsugumi Ohba and
illustrator Takeshi Obata. Gaining momentum immediately, this show was
an instant hit with the anime audience, due to a smart story,
interesting characters, and a premise that is just odd enough to
separate itself from other shows in its genre.

Propelled by its two main characters, Death Note moves from episode to
episode keeping us at the edge of our seat wondering whether the
ultimate detective L can in fact take down the murderous Kira (the
series' main character Light Yagami). With plenty of surprises,
including one massive bombshell halfway through the series, we are
left wondering what it will take to stop the brilliant and evil Light
Yagami. A note to those who haven't seen or read the series... avoid
spoilers and Death Note will blow you away.

50. SuperFriends
Original Air Date: 1973-1986
Network: ABC

The amazing Hanna-Barbera cheese-fest that made up most of the Super
Friends run was nevertheless a wonderful thing back in the mid- to
late-'70s. Here we had not just Batman (and Robin, of course), but
also Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and, uh, Wendy, Marvin, and
Wonderdog. So, yeah, like we said -- there was cheese. But this was
not just one of the earliest filmed incarnations of the Justice
League, serving to entice us with the possibility of what these
characters could be like together on the screen, but as the series
progressed through its many permutations over the next 13 years, more
and more characters from the DC universe were introduced, not the
least of which was the villainous Legion of Doom, making their first
appearance here but featuring a baker's dozen of familiar comic-book
baddies. Eventually the series took on various secondary titles, as in
its last two seasons with the monikers The Legendary Super Powers Show
and finally The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians, where the
cosmic evil dude called Darkseid showed up and things actually got
kind of, well, dark story-wise (even Batman's origin story was told
here, which is certainly lightyears away from the content of the old
Wendy and Marvin stories).

But perhaps the best part of the Super Friends cartoon was that it
introduced the world to the Wonder Twins, which in turn has given us
the never-ending joke about "form of a bucket of water" and "shape of
a gopher"! Adult Swim had a lot of fun with the pair too with a series
of shorts in 2002.

49. ThunderCats
Original Air Date: 1985-1990
Network: Syndicated

"Eye of Thundera... give me sight beyond sight." We all know the
spiel. Lion-O was about to use his magic sword to spy on the
action-packed goings on that were happening... elsewhere. There was no
time to lose. He and the remaining feline survivors of the dead planet
Thundera, Panthro, Cheetara, Tygra, Wilykit, Wilykat, and Snarf, had
battles to fight against Mumm-Ra and The Mutants. Never had so much
different source material been mashed into one show. There were
aliens, mummies, beastmen, android teddy bears, demon priests, reptile
phantoms, and cyborg pirates. There were pyramids and castles mixed
with spaceships and laser beams. It tackled issues of destiny,
extinction, furry fetishes, and elongating phallic power swords. Plus,
Lion-O gave us some of the best distressed inner monologues ever. He
thought all of his pain. "Water... filling lungs... can't breathe."
"Must... escape... quicksand... sinking... to my doom." Thundercats
was a rousing adventure series that had us all glued to the set as
kids. Plus, Snarf was part of a race called... The Snarfs. And his
name was Snarf. And all the Snarfs said "snarf" over and over again.
That's amazing. Plus, you know who was hot? Cheetara.

48. Duckman
Original Air Date: 1994-1997
Network: USA Network

Based on the Dark Horse comic by Everett Peck, Duckman is a hilarious
and completely bizarre show about a foul-mouthed duck who's a terrible
private detective and an even worse person to be around. The only
reason Duckman gets any detective work is due to his genius partner,
Cornfed Pig, who talks like Joe Friday and has a plethora of hidden
skills.

Unabashedly an adult-oriented cartoon, Duckman aired during USA
Network's "Up All Night" Saturday night programming block for four
seasons. Voiced by Seinfeld's George Costanza, Jason Alexander,
Duckman was a lazy, self-serving sex addict -- and we wouldn't have it
any other way. Belting out catch phrases like "Hommina hommina how
wah," "D'wah!" and "What the hell are you staring at?" Duckman, along
with his dimwit son Ajax (voiced by Dweezil Zappa) and genius twin
sons Charles and Mambo (who share a body), was a constant source of
late night entertainment.

47. Pinky and the Brain
Original Air Date: 1995-1998
Network: WB

A spin-off of the Pinky and the Brain sketches on the successful Kids
WB! series Animaniacs, the series told the story of a super-genius
mouse with plans to take over the world, and his dimwitted assistant,
Pinky. The Brain's elaborate schemes would never work out, but it
didn't stop him from trying again and again. The best comedic moments
in the series belonged to Pinky, the master of the non sequitur. His
unique responses to the Brain's weekly question, "Are you pondering
what I'm pondering?" are comedy gold. Usually starting with "I think
so, Brain..." Pinky would follow up with the most off-the-wall
comments imaginable, including: "But how are we going to find chaps
our size?"; "But, the Rockettes? I mean, it's mostly girls, isn't
it?"; and "But this time you put the trousers on the chimp."

There was little continuity on the show, instead focusing on gags and
parodies of movies and novels. Like the other Warner Brothers-produced
series of the '90s -- Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs and Freakazoid!
-- Pinky and the Brain was aimed at and accessible for children, but
every episode contained enough humor to entertain adults as well.

46. The Jetsons
Original Air Date: 1962-1963
Network: ABC

Have you met George Jetson? His boy, Elroy? Daughter Judy? Jane, his
wife?! Of course you have, thanks to good old Hanna-Barbera, who first
gave us the adventures of this futuristic nuclear family all the way
back in 1962 -- on primetime no less. Animation during evening viewing
times just didn't happen back in the day, until fellow HB series The
Flintstones arrived in 1960 and started a mini revolution. Several
other cartoons followed, but The Jetsons, along with its Stone Age
brother, proved to be the most enduring of these primetime shows... at
least until The Simpsons completely changed the playing field in the
late 1980s.

The future-world depicted in the show was all gee-whiz airships and
robots and, uh, treadmills, and the overall feel of The Jetsons'
setting proved to be incredibly persuasive considering that the show
originally ran for just one season of 24 episodes. Another 50 or so
episodes would follow in the far-off future of the mid 1980s, as did
TV movies and theatrical films. A live-action film is rumored to be in
the works.

45. Gargoyles
Original Air Date: 1994-1997
Network: Syndicated

Disney had one hit animated series after another in the late '80s and
1990s with the likes of DuckTales, TailSpin and Chip n' Dale Rescue
Rangers. However, the iconic studio went outside their usual style in
a big way with Gargoyles. Far darker, stylized and serialized than the
other Disney series, not to mention almost any other animated series
of the era, Gargoyles featured mature characters, and references to
Scottish history and Shakespeare, while telling an engaging story
about the title characters -- centuries old Gargoyles secretly living
amongst humans in modern day Manhattan, who turn to stone during the
day. The creator of the series, Greg Weisman (now the man behind The
Spectacular Spider-Man), told a layered and intriguing story, refusing
to write down to his audience. A decent success at the time, Gargoyles
has maintained a strong cult following since it ended more than a
decade ago, and the story has continued in comic book form.

44. Battle of the Planets
Original Air Date: 1978-1985
Network: Syndicated

Known as Gatchaman amongst anime aficionados, Battle of the Planets
holds a special nostalgic place in the hearts and minds of the
30-and-older club. The original Japanese show had tons of violence and
somewhat-mature themes, but the version that appeared on U.S. airwaves
was toned down in a fashion that would surely have made our Puritan
ancestors proud. Despite that, the show still had real plot,
interesting characters, and grand space battles.

Five young people collectively known as G-Force comprised the main
cast of the show. Their job: protect our galaxy from the evil planet
Spectra. To do this, they used their special technologically enhanced
(and absolutely fabulous) outfits and a host of impressive vehicles.
Their main ship was the Phoenix, which as its name implies, could
transform into a fiery bird that would proceed to totally demolish
anything its path, thus inspiring many childhood pyrotechnic
accidents.

Thirty years later, this anime still has a huge following and a flood
of merchandisers seeking to cash in on the nostalgia. This year, Imagi
Animation Studios will release a new CG animation feature length movie
based on the original Gatchaman series.

43. Samurai Jack
Original Air Date: 2001-2004
Network: Cartoon Network

Created by Genndy Tartakovsky (Dexter's Laboratory), Samurai Jack is a
fun, action-heavy animated series that appeals to kids and adults
alike. The show's simple and colorful art style lends itself well to
the cinematic scope and frenetic action sequences that fill each
episode. Influenced by spaghetti westerns, Star Wars, Conan, and Seven
Samurai, Samurai Jack tells the story of a boy who was sent to train
with the best fighters in the world in an attempt to defeat the evil
Aku. When Jack finally faces Aku, he's thrown far into a bizarre
future, and must fight his way back to take on Aku, battling others
and having adventures along the way.

The show's unique style and humor make the most out of the animation
format, producing elaborate action sequences and bizarre situations
that would be impossible to do in a live action film. Over its
four-season run, Samurai Jack won four Emmys and was nominated for two
more.

42. The Powerpuff Girls
Original Air Date: 1998-2005
Network: Cartoon Network

How many of the shows on this list can boast an Emmy nomination, let
alone five nominations? The Powerpuff Girls is an Emmy winning
animated program about three little kindergarten girls with
superpowers who were created by Professor Utonium using sugar, spice
and everything nice. Like all great children's shows, Powerpuff Girls
was geared towards a younger audience, but it excelled at its
animation, humor and storytelling style so well that despite the
target audience, adults were able to get in on the fun as well.

While the Powerpuff Girls themselves were the main characters, it was
the supporting characters which made this show classic. Parodying
properties like Batman, Spider-Man, Power Rangers and many more, the
rogues gallery for the girls was always worth a laugh as they poked
fun at the superhero genre. Our personal favorite baddy is the
brilliant and maniacal monkey Mojo Jojo, whose creation is enough
reason alone for this fun series to show up on this list.

41. Tiny Toon Adventures
Original Air Date: 1990-1994
Network: FOX

The Looney Tunes characters hadn't been used for much original content
in quite some time, but this series not only brought them back, it
also kicked off a slew of successful new Warner Bros. cartoons through
the 1990s, produced in conjunction with Steven Spielberg and Amblin
Entertainment, including Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain and
Freakazoid. Tiny Toon Adventures took a clever, post-modern approach
to the Looney Tunes characters, re-introducing Bugs, Daffy, Porky and
the gang as instructors at Acme Looniversity, where they teach the
next generation of Looney Tunes things like how to take an anvil to
the head like a pro. A genuinely likeable and fun group of young new
characters were the focus, including Buster Bunny, Babs Bunny, Plucky
Duck and Hamton J. Pig -- though perhaps the most inspired creations
were the antagonists, Montana Max and the blissfully dense and
dangerous Elmyra Duff, who was known to squeeze pets to death...
literally. While nothing could recapture the perfection of the
original Looney Tunes shorts, Tiny Toon Adventures was a worthy homage
to those shorts, made up of funny and creative episodes that included
moments of subtle and smart humor for older viewers.

40. Batman Beyond
Original Air Date: 1999-2001
Network: WB

As much as audiences loved Batman: The Animated Series, there was
still some trepidation towards this spin-off/sequel series. After all,
the idea of re-imagining Batman as a teenager living in a
techno-filled future sounded like some kind of test-marketed
nightmare, and not a proper continuation of the legacy of the Dark
Knight. As it turned out though, Batman Beyond -- which included many
alumni of Batman: The Animated Series among its producers -- was a
worthy follow-up, and another cool piece of the evolution of the DC
animated universe. Lead character Terry McGinnis was no Bruce Wayne,
but he wasn't meant to be, and he still made for a brave and heroic
Batman. And an integral part of the show was the inclusion of an
elderly Bruce Wayne (still voiced by The Animated Series' Kevin
Conroy), who gave Terry guidance while trying to move beyond what were
clearly some bitter tragedies -- tragedies that would eventually be
illuminated in the great direct-to-DVD movie Batman Beyond: Return of
the Joker.

39. Aqua Teen Hunger Force
Original Air Date: 2000-Present
Network: Cartoon Network

We could watch Aqua Teen Hunger Force forever. It wasn't as much of a
completely out-and-out crazy woo-woo show as Sealab 2021 since Aqua
Teen made attempts to have plots every so often and had more
discernable characters, but what it lacked in randomness it made up
for in joyful gore and engrossing cruelty. Master Shake, with his
lovably shrill voice provided by Dana Snyder, has to be one of the
funniest, dimwitted a-holes ever created. Just watching him float
about in a frenzy of selfish madness almost made life worth living.
And let's not forget the neighbor Carl, gruffly voiced by co-director
Matt Willis. The poor Foreigner-loving slob lived next door to three
giant pieces of fast food and routinely found himself getting
mutilated. There was an attempt, right at the beginning of the series,
to have Meatwad, Frylock and Master Shake act as crime-solving private
detectives, but that got scrapped pretty quickly. In fact, you can
almost physically feel the moment when the last strand of sanity
snapped and they decided to just let the whole show fly into beautiful
oblivion.

38. Naruto
Original Air Date: 2002-2007
Network: Cartoon Network

It's the Japanese version of Harry Potter, based on an old favorite:
ninjas. You can't go wrong with ninjas. Make a good story with ninjas,
and you can practically reserve your plot in mansion land. Manga
creator Masashi Kishimoto cashed in big with Naruto, which has become
a full-fledged, worldwide phenomenon. The vast numbers of hardcore
fans of the show know its ever-increasing mythology and terminology
better than they know some of their school subjects, and any anime
convention these days is sure to be dominated by Naruto cosplayers.

37. Space Ghost Coast to Coast
Original Air Date: 1994-2004
Network: Cartoon Network

The only talk show on our list, Space Ghost: Coast to Coast is the
Adult Swim's first and finest foray into relaunching an old
character/series into something completely new. Hosted by everybody's
favorite undead superhero Space Ghost, Coast to Coast was a spoof talk
show that borrowed characters and animation directly from
Hanna-Barbera's campy '60s cartoon Space Ghost and Dino Boy.

With help from his friends/nemeses Zorak, Moltar and Brak, Space Ghost
puts on the funniest and least relevant talk show in animated history.
Boasting appearances by notable names such as The Ramones, Metallica,
Hulk Hogan, Rob Zombie and Bobcat Goldthwait, Space Ghost: Coast to
Coast found comedy in confusing and infuriating those being
interviewed... as well as those watching the program. But that was the
real comedy of the series: creating situations that were so absurd
that when you finally understood the joke you couldn't stop laughing.

36. Superman: The Animated Series
Original Air Date: 1996-2000
Network: WB

Continuing the amazing run of Warner Bros.'s DC animated universe
(a.k.a. the Timmverse) series that began with Batman: The Animated
Series in 1992, this cartoon version of the Man of Steel is certainly
one of the finest and definitely the most complete version of the
character ever put onto film. (Sorry, Smallville fans, but there's no
competition here!)

Featuring the voice of Tim Daly as the title character, the show mixed
elements of both the post-Crisis version of Superman with older, more
classic aspects. As with all of the series that spun-off from Batman:
TAS, the focus was on presenting a more "realistic" version of the DC
universe. As such, this led to some rather serious storylines for the
Kryptonian at times, as with the fantastic series finale Legacy which
saw Supes getting brainwashed by galactic boogeyman Darkseid into
attacking Earth! This is a storyline that would eventually play into
the follow-up series, Justice League, which we'll be getting to a bit
later on this list...

35. Avatar: The Last Airbender
Original Air Date: 2005-2008
Network: Nickelodeon

Though short-lived, Avatar: The Last Airbender garnered a lot of
attention with its crisp animation and carefully crafted fantasy world
based on Eastern culture. It was different in many ways (who would've
guessed a 12-year-old bald kid could be popular?), and the
storytelling was top notch -- which is rare in Nickelodeon's usual
fare.

Fans of true Japanese anime think Avatar is a cheap American knockoff,
and there's no denying that the show borrowed heavily from anime. In
an industry often dominated by Asian imports, Avatar found a way to
emulate the best features of Japanese animation while keeping some
unique elements of western cartoons, and that formula made it the top
rated animated show in its demographic. It's so popular with the kids
that the King's Island theme parks cashed in on the fun with an
Avatar-themed thrill ride. The Avatar phenomenon is sure to grow even
more with the upcoming release of three live-action movies directed
and written by M. Night Shyamalan.

34. Robotech
Original Air Date: 1985
Network: Syndicated

Talk about a vast and expansive sci-fi franchise. Three different, and
unrelated, anime series were combined to create the world of Robotech.
The technology aboard an alien ship that crashed to Earth is used to
help the human race develop robots that are used to fight off alien
invaders. That was the basic premise. But due to the fact that the
three cartoons were separated in their characters and themes, three
different generational "wars" were created to explain the new heroes
and adversaries. There is way too much to get into here regarding the
entire saga of Robotech and the movies and such, but just know that it
was one of the first pieces of anime to come over to America with a
ton of its violence and sex left intact. It was pretty mature stuff
when compared to the hijinx of The Smurfs to say the least. Most of
the earlier anime that we got, like Astro Boy and Speed Racer, were
softened for American audiences and had a lot of the more mature
themes and scenes removed, but Robotech had a bunch of that stuff left
in. Anime purists might like to trash Robotech as a patchwork
Franken-show that crapped all over the original separate stories to
create one big unintended masterwork, but for us it changed the way we
looked at cartoons and raised the bar for storylines and violence.
Plus, we probably wouldn't have been able to follow the original shows
anyway.

33. Schoolhouse Rock
Original Air Date: 1972-2001
Network: ABC

Not a TV show as much as an ongoing series of shorts that made the
Saturday morning circuit for almost 30 years, Schoolhouse Rock! is a
touchstone cartoon for most of us who grew up anywhere during that
three-decade stretch. While new episodes weren't particularly the norm
throughout that long period, the series' lessons about history and
English and science and all that other good stuff were more than
worthy of the many repeat airings they were given, especially as they
were couched in the fun and instantly appealing (for kids and adults)
world of music. The catchy ditty "Conjunction Junction," the
conservationist-minded "The Energy Blues," and of course the
how-it-works classic "I'm Just a Bill" are just a few of the classics
from this series, though a quick search on YouTube reveals a ton of
more Schoolhouse rock-outs that have been laying dormant in our minds
for decades now, just waiting to burst out in song and teach us an
enjoyable lesson once again.

32. Liquid Television
Original Air Date: 1991-1994
Network: MTV

We certainly agree that MTV is a pale imitation of its former self,
and that its glut of television series doesn't reflect the "music"
part of their name at all. But there was a time when the shows MTV
offered were actually pretty clever and interesting, and Liquid
Television was among the best of the bunch. A combination of material
created expressly for the show and older material now getting the
chance to be seen by a broad audience, Liquid Television offered
offbeat and creative animated shorts that ran the gamut from silly and
amusing to truly surreal and trippy. The show served as the launching
pad for some very notable franchises too -- it was here that Mike
Judge's short, "Frog Baseball," about two giggling morons playing a
rather violent sport, gained the popularity to spin-off the soon to be
huge Beavis and Butt-head. Then there was the ultra-cool Aeon Flux
segments, about the silent but deadly (though always doomed to die
herself) assassin, which were actually stronger than the full-length
Aeon Flux series that followed it.

31. Muppet Babies
Original Air Date: 1984-1990
Network: CBS

First introduced via an imaginary sequence in The Muppets Take
Manhattan, the cute and fuzzy Muppet Babies proved so popular that an
animated spin-off was quickly launched. Focusing on baby versions of
Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and their friends, episodes revolved
around the vivid imaginations of the characters, which allowed them to
have globetrotting, otherworldly adventures without ever leaving their
nursery. Obviously aimed at a very young audience, this was a
legitimately charming series that involved some clever ideas, such as
having every visual be from the perspective of the children, meaning
objects above them loomed in the distance -- and of course the face of
their beloved nanny was never seen.

For kids growing up in the 1980s, the show was also exciting because
it included clips from many popular films of the era, such as Star
Wars and Indiana Jones, which would be crudely but effectively
incorporated into the Muppet Babies' fantasies, allowing them to take
part in an X-Wing flight or run from a giant boulder. It's rumored
that some rights issues with these numerous clips may be a factor in
releasing Muppet Babies on DVD -- hopefully, if that is the case, the
situation can be eventually resolved.

30. The Spectacular Spider-Man
Original Air Date: 2008-Present
Network: The CW

You'll find other Spider-Man series on this list, as the iconic comic
book character has been brought to life via animation several times
since he was created in the 1960s. But it's the most recent series
that we're giving the highest slot to, as it has quickly established
itself as the definitive animated version of Spider-Man. Gargoyles
creator Greg Weisman clearly has great affection for Peter Parker, and
culls from not only the original comic books but also the recent
Ultimate Spider-Man title and the popular Sam Raimi film series for
inspiration. But rather than coming off as a rehash, there is energy,
humor and pathos in this series that make these stories feel as fresh
as ever. Beginning with Peter Parker still in high school, the first
season did a wonderful job establishing Spider-Man's world, and his
relationships with characters like Gwen Stacy, Norman and Harry Osborn
and Mary Jane Watson, while offering pitch perfect incarnations of
allies and foes like Black Cat and Doctor Octopus. Considering how
strong Season 1 was, we're very excited to see where this show goes
next.

29. Speed Racer (1967)
Original Air Date: 1967-1968
Network: Syndicated

This classic show about exotic supercar races was the first taste of
anime for many American viewers. It featured the best car in all of
anime, the Mach 5. Like the Batmobile and KITT from Knight Rider, the
Mach 5 is more than just a car -- it's an icon.

Speed Racer's mass-market success helped set the stage for the influx
of anime we see in today's media, mainly because the American
adaptation of the show was surprisingly good for the time. The new
English theme song was a bit reminiscent of old radio jingles, and
millions of Americans can recognize the tune in just a few notes. The
title change from "Mach GoGoGo" to "Speed Racer" was probably one of
the best marketing moves in animation history, and the often-parodied,
fast-paced, sometimes-awkward English dub added a strange kind of
charm to the show.

In retrospect, the show comes off as campy and low-budget, but back in
the '60s and '70s it was the new hotness, and its legend grew even
more with syndication. Attempts to remake and modernize the series
have pretty much ended in disaster, but the original still remains a
nostalgic favorite with fans across the world.

28. Home Movies
Original Air Date: 1999-2004
Network: Cartoon Network

Co-created by Loren Bouchard (Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist) and
Brendon Small (who would go on to create Metalocalypse), Home Movies
tells the story of a precocious eight-year-old boy named Brendon
(voiced by Small) who likes to create home films with his friends. The
writing is hilarious, driven forward by the comedic deliveries of the
cast. Brendon's conversations with the other characters feel real,
from his mother Paula (voiced by comedian Paula Poundstone in the
first season, then by Janine Ditullio for the remainder of the
series), to soccer coach John McGuirk (voiced by H. Jon Benjamin), and
his friends Jason (also voiced by Benjamin) and Melissa (Melissa
Bardin Galsky).

The first season, which lasted just five episodes on UPN before being
picked up by Cartoon Network, was produced in production company
Soup2Nut's Squigglevision, the signature style of Dr. Katz. The
subsequent four seasons were produced in a more straightforward
animation style.

27. King of the Hill
Original Air Date: 1997-Present
Network: FOX

King of the Hill has never gotten the hype of the shows that it shares
FOX's Sunday night schedule with, and the Hill family might not have
the "buzz" factor of the Simpsons and the Griffins, but we're guessing
Hank Hill would be fine with that. Created by Beavis and Butt-head's
Mike Judge and future Office showrunner Greg Daniels, King of the Hill
has delivered solid stories and laughs for 13 seasons. The style of
comedy is much more subtle and character based than most animation,
and in fact King of the Hill is so dialogue oriented, it could
probably work just as well in live-action as animation. Hank, Peg,
Bobby and Luanne are wonderfully awkward -- coming off as very
believable as they try so hard to be the... well, you've seen the
title. This often under-appreciated series exists in a fully formed
world, as characters like Dale, Bill, Boomhauer and Lucky bring the
town of Arlen, Texas to life.

26. The Critic
Original Air Date: 1994-1995
Network: FOX

Of all the projects completed by ex-Saturday Night Live players, The
Critic is the most fully realized, hilarious and heartwarming. It took
its cues from Woody Allen movies like Annie Hall and Manhattan, and
offered up a style of random abstract humor that wouldn't really be
seen again until Family Guy. Jon Lovitz simply was Jay Sherman. We
know it's really Lovitz, since he doesn't alter his voice in any way
to inhabit the cartoon character, but Jay Sherman was such an
endearing sad sack of a film critic that he completely stands alone as
his own entity outside of Lovitz. And that's a good thing. All fat Jay
Sherman wanted to do was wear sweaters, love his fat son, find someone
to grow old with, argue with his tummy and see a good movie. For the
love of God, just give him a good movie. Instead he's forced to watch
such tripe as Schwarzenegger's Rabbi P.I. and Eastwood's Beverly Hills
Robo Canine Cop and a Half 2. This show was just grand. And hey, Jay
Sherman even got a guest spot on The Simpsons. Who else can say that?

25. Robot Chicken
Original Air Date: 2005-Present
Network: Cartoon Network

Seth Green and Matt Senreich never stopped loving toys, and guess
what? Neither did we. Tapping into the collective geek memory its
creators and audience share, Green and Senreich's Adult Swim series
delivers fast-paced comedy via segments lasting anywhere from a few
seconds to several minutes. Using stop-motion animation and toys (and
a bevy of notable voice actors), the targets here run a wide
pop-culture gamut, from the Olsen Twins to He-Man. When it comes to
the toys, movies and cartoons Robot Chicken has parodied, there is
obviously a lot of knowledge and love at work -- you have to remember
Turbo Teen well to make such a twisted, hysterical send-up as the one
seen on Robot Chicken. From Mario driving his Kart into Vice City, to
the Saved by the Bell gang meeting Saw's Jigsaw, to Emperor Palpatine
dealing with a phone call from a whining Darth Vader, Robot Chicken
constantly keeps us laughing.

24. Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!
Original Air Date: 1969-1970
Network: CBS

Welcome to the cartoon's first "procedural." There have been a ton of
Scooby Doo cartoons over the years, but this was it. Scooby Doo Where
Are You! was the one that had the gang solving crimes in the Mystery
Machine. Chasing ghosts and revealing them to be old crusty codgers in
masks. This was before all of the Scooby Doo movies that featured
guest stars like Don Knotts and Batman (?). This was the show where
they changed the world by tackling the tough cases that no one else
could crack. Their van would break down, and then they'd all learn
that wherever it was that they managed to get stranded had a ghost
problem. Then Fred would have the brilliant idea of splitting up the
gang to look for clues, in which he always sent the two pothead
cowards, Shaggy and Scooby, off together. Then they'd set a trap for
the fake monster. Then they'd pull off the mask to reveal it was
really old man Withers/Snyder/Malloney... and that they were just
trying to scare people away from the land so they could buy it cheap.
And of course... "I would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been
for you meddling/snooping/pesky... kids." Was there a formula to it?
Damn straight. Just like there is for CSI and NCIS. And we wouldn't
have it any other way.

23. Transformers
Original Air Date: 1984-1987
Network: Syndicated

"More than meets the eye... Transformers! Robots in disguise!" The
mighty Autobots -- robots who transform into cars and trucks -- take
on the evil Decepticons. Has there ever been a show that's more
tailor-made for young boys? There have been numerous iterations of the
animated series over the years, but here at IGN our favorite will
always be the original 1980s cartoon.

Viewed 23 years after its debut, The Transformers is hardly what we
could call great television. The stories are fairly simplistic and
repetitive, consisting of variations on the same storylines, with many
of the same beats occurring time and again. But as kids we certainly
weren't troubled by how many times Megatron would yell "Decepticons,
retreat!" or Spike and Bumblebee would get into trouble, or that the
fight scenes are, well, kind of lame actually. We just enjoyed seeing
giant robots change into other things and then fight each other.

22. The Real Ghostbusters
Original Air Date: 1986-1991
Network: ABC

There's a part of us that actually appreciates The Real Ghostbusters
more than the actual Ghostbusters movies. Well, certainly the second
movie anyway. Don't get us wrong, the first movie was classically
hilarious, but The Real Ghostbusters just told some really mean and
nasty supernatural stories. Their take on The Boogeyman -- and we all
know that everyone has their own take on that creature -- was the best
we've ever seen. This show had a notably darker tone than other
cartoons on at the time, and did well in its research of creature
myths and folklore. Most of the time, like on the CW show
Supernatural, Venkman, Stantz, Spengler and Winston could often be
found thwarting famously diabolical creatures. Samhain, Grundel,
Tiamat, Marduk, Russian Domovois and even the freakin' Lovecraft beast
Cthulhu! They all fell to the power of the real Ghostbusters!
Interesting note: The original voice of Venkman was old Rhoda voice
actor Lorenzo Music, who was also the voice of Garfield for 12 years.
And who did they get to do the voice for Garfield in the movies in
order to echo the old Lorenzo Music dry tone? Bill Murray.

21. Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003)
Original Air Date: 2003-2005
Network: Cartoon Network

Not to be confused with the new CGI series which has a "The" in front
of the title, Clone Wars debuted in 2003 on Cartoon Network as a
series of three-minute shorts (eventually extended to 12-15 minute
segments). The goal of this unique format was to delve into the
specifics of those famous titular battles, first mentioned in the
original Star Wars, long dreamed about and imagined by fans worldwide,
and finally seen on film at the end of Attack of the Clones in 2002.
Or at least, the very beginning of the Clone Wars was depicted in that
film. It would be up to animator Genndy Tartakovsky (Samurai Jack) and
his team to really show us what was going on during the most famous
conflict in Star Wars history.

Generally regarded as actually being better than the live-action
prequel films, Tartakovsky's all-too-brief series fleshed out the
characters, amped up the action and the visual style, and played
homage to the best aspects of George Lucas' creation. For all the
perceived faults of the modern Star Wars films, Tartakovsky's Clone
Wars proved that the franchise can soar when in the hands of a
creative team that truly gets it -- and loves it.

20. Justice League Unlimited
Original Air Date: 2001-2006
Network: Cartoon Network

After years of jokes about the old Super Friends cartoon, and more
than one aborted attempt at filming a live-action version of DC
Comics' famed Justice League, the greatest heroes of that universe
were finally banded together by the mighty power of animation guru
Bruce Timm (Batman: The Animated Series, et al). It was almost too
much for a fanboy to hope for, not just incorporating the Bats and
Superman seen in their previous Timm-produced series, but also
bringing in the core group of Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, the
Flash, Green Lantern, and Hawkgirl -- several of whom were new to the
modern world of animation.

The show, basically, rocked, and for its first two years it was known
simply as Justice League. But for its final three seasons it morphed
into Justice League Unlimited and expanded its basic roster of seven
to cycle in a multitude of DC heroes, with the main players still
getting their fair share of screen time too. (Fifty characters appear
in the first episode alone, setting the tone of the revamped series.)
Standalone episodes and arc storylines were mixed together, including
epic battles against a government organization called Project Cadmus
and, in the final season, against the Secret Society (a.k.a. the
Legion of Doom). Great, great stuff for even non-comic book fans.

19. G.I. Joe
Original Air Date: 1985-1986 & 1989-1991
Network: Syndicated

"Yo Joe!" "Cobra!" "Now I know... and knowing is half the battle!" If
nothing else, this series gave all children of the '80s plenty of
iconic battle cries and proclamations. One of several toy-inspired
animated series of the era, G.I. Joe was the most entertaining of the
bunch, thanks to the many fun characters the toy line provided. Even
the things that are silly about it -- wow, those Cobras sure could
parachute out of any plane they were in that was shot down, huh? --
are somewhat endearing. And while this isn't a show known for its
gritty realism, there were some blissfully strange and interesting
occurrences, as we followed the Joes and Cobras through weather
domination, the creation of the clone emperor Serpentor, a trippy
journey to an alternate reality (Baroness and Steeler in love!), and
of course, the musical bliss of Cold Slither.

18. DuckTales
Original Air Date: 1987-1990
Network: Syndicated

We all know that Scottish people are cheap, right? Well so are
Scottish ducks. And due to their spendthrift ways, they’re able to
amass great fortunes and swim around in their vaults filled with gold
coins. And even though they have miserly names like Scrooge, their
hearts are still big enough to take in their great-nephews when the
nephews’ other uncle, Donald, heads off to join the Navy. This was
Disney’s first syndicated animated TV series and it paved the way for
other hugely successful shows like TaleSpin and Chip n’ Dale Rescue
Rangers. It even created two spin-offs, Darkwing Duck and Quack Pack.
Disney made the smart movie of taking classic characters like Scrooge
McDuck and Baloo from The Jungle Book and giving them a late ’80s
reboot. All this only leaves us with one question: Where were Huey,
Dewey and Louie’s parents and why did they keep getting bounced around
from uncle to uncle?

17. Animaniacs
Original Air Date: 1993-1998
Network: WB

Filled with off-the-wall comedy and numerous parodies per episode,
Animaniacs appealed to kids and adults alike. Purportedly telling the
story of the original Warner Brothers -- Yakko and Wakko -- and the
Warner sister, Dot, Animaniacs episodes were made up of three
mini-episodes, each featuring different characters. The second cartoon
produced by Steven Spielberg and Warner Bros. Animation (the first
being Tiny Toon Adventures), Animaniacs was in many ways a throwback
to the slapstick and cartoon violence of classic toons like Looney
Tunes.

Much like other animated Warner Bros. series during the '90s,
Animaniacs was accessible to children but contained a level of
sophisticated humor and older references that only adults would enjoy.
The series had the feel of a vintage variety show, with running gags
and catchphrases galore, from Yakko's Groucho Marx-esque "Goodnight,
everybody!" to Wakko's "Faboo!" Two characters became so popular they
got their own spin-off series, Pinky and the Brain.

16. The Maxx
Original Air Date: 1995
Network: MTV

Like a little psycho-drama with your superhero escapades? Or perhaps
you like a little hero-action in your poetic melodramas? Based on the
comic book by Sam Kieth, The Maxx often kept the frame by frame
references intact, and in most cases moved the characters very little,
if even at all. There's a lot of emotional turmoil and damage caused
by physical assault, and we haven't seen any show give that damage as
much of a voice as The Maxx. The Maxx, in all of its glory, allowed
for grief, rage, guilt and despair as we followed the supernatural
after-effects of the attack and rape of Julie Winters. Julie's own
personal desire to feel whole again causes her to create an inner
psychological landscape called The Outback, where she rules as The
Jungle Queen. The Maxx might be the hero and protector of Julie's
Outback subconscious, but in the real world he's a confused, homeless
drifter. Both of them live in a state of denial that might become
their own undoing -- that is if they're not done in first by the
sadistic Mr. "You might say that I've got a problem with women" Gone.
The Maxx was part of MTV's Oddities program, back when MTV was
interested more in art than commerce.

15. SpongeBob SquarePants
Original Air Date: 1999-Present
Network: Nickelodeon

No matter what your age group is, you like SpongeBob. You just do.
It's true that a lot of the newer cartoons have thrown in a ton of
"jokes for daddy," in order to make their ad nauseum viewing by
children slightly more tolerable, but SpongeBob found the absolute
perfect balance. Whether you're four or 40, you can find joy in this
show. Oftentimes, SpongeBob will actually win out in the battle over
"there's nothing good to watch on TV right now." Essentially it's
about an idiot savant and an idiot, a.k.a. SpongeBob and Patrick, and
their knuckleheaded escapades down in the sea town of Bikini Bottom.
This show is not meant to be held under a microscope, as there is not
a single thing that actually makes any connection with logic or actual
aquatic science, but it sure is fun to behold. All SpongeBob wants to
do is catch jellyfish in his jellyfishing net and work as a burger
chef at The Krusty Krab and make Krabby Patties. He divides his time
equally between inadvertently infuriating his next door neighbor, and
co-worker, Squidward and suffering giant panic attacks about everyday
life occurrences. He's a tremendous case study in both the easily
"annoying" and the easily "annoyed."

14. Cowboy Bebop
Original Air Date: 1998-1999
Network: Cartoon Network

This unique series combines various genres and musical styles,
producing a very original -- and arguably one of the best -- anime.
Set in the late 21st century, Cowboy Bebop follows a group of bounty
hunters as they travel in their spaceship, the Bebop. The series'
wonderfully animated action sequences -- from space battles to martial
arts fighting scenes -- are set to mostly American music, including
rock, jazz, and heavy metal.

Most episodes follow the Bebop's crew as they hunt down criminals
wanted by authorities, but the series smartly inter-mixes flashbacks
and details of the crew's pasts, providing a strong, overarching
storyline for the series. The main character, Spike Spiegel, is a
bounty hunter with a dark past, as he formerly worked for a violent
crime syndicate. Each episode pulls equally from such disparate genres
as spaghetti Westerns, film noir and 1970s cop shows, complete with
cowboy slang, femmes fatales, and chase scenes that are perfectly
mixed together in a way to make a completely fresh and unique series.

13. X-Men
Original Air Date: 1992-1997
Network: FOX

While other animated series based on comic books had adapted specific
stories before, the 1992 X-Men series gets a lot of credit for making
a much bigger overreaching attempt to translate some of the most
iconic and popular comic stories of all time and letting them play out
over multiple episodes. From the Dark Phoenix Saga to Days of Future
Past, some of the most beloved stories in X-Men history were touched
upon here, in a show that used long term serialization in a manner
most Saturday morning cartoons typically avoided.

Meanwhile beyond the core cast of characters (based around the lineup
seen in the early '90s comics), an amazing selection of X-Men from
throughout the comics' history made appearances on the series,
including of-the-moment characters such as Cable and the then modern
version of X-Factor. For the first time, Marvel Comics fans truly felt
like they were seeing the stories they loved played out on television,
and those who grew up with this series have fond memories to this
day... and eternal hopes for proper season set DVD releases!

12. The Ren and Stimpy Show
Original Air Date: 1991-1996
Network: Nickelodeon

Who would’ve thought that a series featuring an asthmatic Chihuahua
and a mental midget of a manx cat could provide so many gut-ripping
laughs? Well, anyone, actually, who is familiar with animation’s long
relationship with antrophomorphic animals. Created by John Kricfalusi
for his Spumco International cartoon studio, the show began life on
MTV before being sold to Nickelodeon, where Kricfalusi and the network
soon came to loggerheads over the series’ violence as well as
(reportedly) the animator’s many missed deadlines. But the show’s
subversive humor appealed to audiences, and even after Kricfalusi was
fired from his own show, Ren and Stimpy continued for three more
seasons. Eventually the creator of the pair returned for Spike TV’s
Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon in 2003, which featured a more
overtly adult edge, but the series was cancelled a month after it
debuted, with Kricfalusi’s deadline problems again coming into play. A
shame, really, because we always loved to see some serious Ren
violence...

11. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
Original Air Date: 1959-1964
Network: NBC

The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show deserves an honored spot in the annals
of American animation history for being the first animated series to
purposely appeal to both adults and children. Kids love the wacky
characters and crazy situations, while adults picked up on the
additional layer of comedy just for them, in puns and topical
references.

Actually two separate series (it premiered in 1959 on ABC as Rocky and
His Friends and changed titles to The Bullwinkle Show when it moved to
NBC in 1961), The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show consisted of rather
limited, choppy animation, but more than made up for that with
memorable characters and clever humor. Aside from Rocket J. Squirrel
and Bullwinkle J. Moose, other classic characters introduced on the
series include Boris Badenov, Natasha Fatale, Dudley Do-Right, Mr.
Peabody and Sherman. Rocky and Bullwinkle also introduced many
children to humorous takes on famous fairy tales, fables, nursery
rhymes and poems in the segments "Fractured Fairy Tales," "Aesop &
Son," and "Bullwinkle's Corner."

10. Neon Genesis Evangelion
Original Air Date: 1995-1996
Network: Cartoon Network

If you were to ask the anime fanatics here at IGN what our favorite
anime series of all time would be, we would answer Neon Genesis
Evangelion. Why, you ask? Because no other anime series has been able
to capture our attention with an intelligent adult sci-fi story that
borrows heavily from religion, psychology and philosophy, while
somehow meshing it with the angst-ridden teenage characters which have
become a staple of the genre.

The main premise of Evangelion follows young Shinji Ikari as he is
forced to deal with the awkwardness of maturity, his daddy issues and
alienation, all while being placed in charge of a giant robotic combat
machine that is necessary to fight off the evil invading Angels.
Staying introspective, the series prefers to analyze the pain of
Shinji and the other children like him, rather than creating a
spectacle out of the grandiose sci-fi plot. While the show is
certainly complicated, and the ending is less than stellar, the bulk
of the series has set a benchmark in anime programming which has yet
to be surpassed.

9. The Flintstones
Original Air Date: 1960-1966
Network: ABC

In 1960, Hanna-Barbera Productions broke the animation mold and
launched the cartoon into primetime glory -- the toon previously
occupied only the realm of kiddie programming hours. With the arrival
of The Flintstones, however, the path was paved for such eventual
success stories as The Simpsons and Family Guy.

You know the drill: Working-class hero Fred Flintstone spends his days
making a buck as a "bronto crane operator" at Slate Rock and Gravel
Company. Dearly in love with his barefoot (and eventually pregnant)
wife Wilma, Fred lives next door to his best friend, the dimwitted
Barney Rubble, and his wife Betty. Come to think of it, they were all
barefoot... Oh, didn't we mention that The Flintstones is set around
the year 10,000 B.C.? No, not the 1950s -- you're thinking of The
Honeymooners, which is a completely understandable mistake.

Regardless, the tale of Fred and his extended family (Pebbles and
Bamm-Bamm would join the crew eventually, and let's not forget Dino
and Hoppy) held the attention of America for six years of original
content, before entering the immortal annals of syndication. A
plethora of spin-offs, movies, and specials would also follow.

8. Futurama
Original Air Date: 1999-2003 & 2008-Present
Network: Comedy Central

The redheaded stepchild of Simpsons creator Matt Groening, Futurama
nonetheless remains near and dear to the hearts of several of IGN's
editors. A futuristic sitcom that was a cross between The Jetsons and
The Simpsons, the adventures of the dimwitted Fry, mono-eyed Leela,
drunk and disorderly robot Bender, and all the rest of the Planet
Express crew aren't just often hilarious -- they're also loaded with
references that will make the average sci-fi and genre fan feel smart.
And isn't that what life is all about in the end? Feeling smart?

From the darker strains of the early episodes (suicide booths?!) to
familiar staples (the recurring robotic and evil Santa of the future,
the "Anthology of Interest" segments which are Futurama's version of
"Treehouse of Horror," various and sundry disembodied heads) and right
on up to the post-cancellation resurrected adventures that have been
making the DTV and Comedy Central rounds lately, Futurama is, to
paraphrase Fry, "like a party in my mouth and everyone's throwing up."
Well, actually it's better than that.

7. Family Guy
Original Air Date: 1999-2002 & 2005-Present
Network: FOX

This reminds me of the time IGN was making a Top 100 Animated Series
list and didn't give Family Guy #1. Yeah, that happened, but you can't
complain with making the Top 10. Surpassing animated comedies such as
Futurama, The Flintstones and Scooby-Doo Where Are You! is a hell of a
feat and Family Guy guru Seth MacFarlane deserves all the credit in
the world for making it happen.

Kicking off strong after the 1999 Super Bowl, MacFarlane's wildly
popular series about a dysfunctional family and their wacky
misadventures would eventually prove its power by being cancelled and
coming back even stronger than before. Now a major comedy presence,
Family Guy has gone from tangentially making reference to other
programs (in their "manatee gags") to now being lampooned and
referenced itself. And the show deserves it, as we can't think of
another TV comedy that creates as many laughs in a half hour as Peter
Griffin and the rest of Quahog.

6. The Tick (1994)
Original Air Date: 1994-1996
Network: FOX

"SPOOOOOOOON!" Nuff said? Probably. But for those of you who've never
seen The Tick, or read the Ben Edlund comic book series that it's
based on, you sure missed out on some rich chocolate, because it was
the first great lampooning of the superhero genre. Sure, we've read
Spider-Ham and Groo the Wanderer, but they didn't hit the nail on the
head like The Tick. Combining the comedy stylings of Mel Brooks, Monty
Python and... we dunno, maybe Emo Phillips... the Tick was ready to
protect "The City" at all costs. Which city? Why, the one with all the
ridiculously costumed heroes and villains of course. Like a guy who
dressed up like a giant blue tick, and yet exhibits no powers or
abilities that have to do with ticks. Or the dude who's got a chair
for a face and is named Chairface. But the best part of this show was
the Tick's own personal harebrained hero rhetoric. Some of our
favorites include "Mucal invader! Is there no end to your oozing?" and
"Evil is out there making hand-crafted mischief for the swap meet of
villainy! And you can't strike a good deal with evil. No matter how
much you haggle!" And of course... "You wouldn't lie to me, would you,
Little Wooden Boy?"

5. Beavis and Butt-head
Original Air Date: 1993-1997
Network: MTV

The genius of Beavis and Butt-head was that they both shared the
simple goals of the common teenage boy -- to be able to score without
actually having to leave the couch or stop eating nachos. It was an
admirable dream, and one that we could all relate to. There was
something cathartic about watching these two miserable nitwits fail at
just about everything they tried to do but still walk away with the
feeling that they were both utter "badasses." And even though the
show's fans weren't actually delinquents from the fictional town of
Highland, Texas, they all still took their cues from what both Beavis
and Butt-head thought was "cool" and what they thought "sucked." If
Beavis and Butt-head liked a band, all of a sudden we found ourselves
discovering a new "appreciation" for their music. And if Beavis and
Butt-head thought a band sucked, all of a sudden we started
second-guessing our own fandom. Mike Judge took real life Gen X
slacker idiocy and put it out there for all of us to love and admire.
And as frequent identifiers of every single double entendre, it could
be said that Beavis and Butt-head started the whole "that's what she
said" craze. The animation was often crude, but we were still
transfixed on this parade of stupidity.

4. South Park
Original Air Date: 1997-Present
Network: Comedy Central

Very few shows -- animated or not -- have been on for 12 seasons and
still retain the relevance and entertainment value of South Park.
Episodes alternate between sharp satirical looks at society to pop
culture parodies to scatological humor, sometimes all within the same
half-hour. Seemingly unafraid to take on any subject, Matt Stone and
Trey Parker have created a forum for their opinions that's unfiltered
and raw, making some of the freshest comedy currently on the air.

The show's incredibly fast production schedule allows Parker and Stone
to write and produce episodes almost up to the day they air, something
unheard of in the animation genre, where it normally takes months to
produce a half-hour episode. The show's style, while looking like
stop-motion construction paper cut-outs, is animated completely on
computers. Sometimes the style even changes to fit the episode's
content, such as the anime sequences in season eight's "Good Times
with Weapons" and the World of Warcraft-style sequences in season 10's
"Make Love, Not Warcraft."

No matter your sense of humor, political stance, or lifestyle, there's
bound to be a South Park episode that makes you laugh, infuriates you,
or just plain offends. And we wouldn't have it any other way.

3. Looney Tunes
Original Air Date: Syndicated theatrical shorts

We debated this one a bit because, yes, it's kind of a cheat. After
all, the content of this show was originally produced as shorts for
movie theaters. However, several generations have since been
introduced to these truly wonderful animated segments as part of a
television program. Whether it was simply called Looney Tunes or The
Bugs Bunny Show (or the many variations, such as The Bugs Bunny/Road
Runner Hour) didn't matter, because what was offered was cartoon bliss
for children and adults alike -- hysterical and highly imaginative
adventures starring iconic characters like Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck,
created by amazingly talented men like Friz Freleng and Chuck Jones.
From Bugs and Daffy arguing over whether it was duck season or rabbit
season, to Elmer Fudd declaring "Kill the wabbit!", to Michigan J.
Frog singing "Hello! Ma Baby" to a surprised construction worker,
there is one memorable moment after another delivered here that have
truly stood the test of time and continue to entertain decades after
they were first created.

2. Batman: The Animated Series
Original Air Date: 1992-1995
Network: FOX

The Gotham night sky burns black and red. The bat signal shines bright
and puts a few shady crooks on notice. And then the jet engine of the
Bat's sleek tank ignites, the theme music kicks in and an animated
icon is born. The opening titles of television's best take on a
superhero to date signaled an era-defining change whose impact echoes
to this day. From Justice League to Chris Nolan's recent adaptation of
the Caped Crusader, TAS' Batman raised the bar and redefined what
quality storytelling is. It tested how far one could go in the
kid-friendly arena of cartoons and deliver something all ages could
respect and appreciate. The stark and deliberate animation style,
Kevin Conroy's gravel-lined voice and Mark Hamill's chilling Joker
made the majority of TAS' episodes an event. The show even managed to
give Batman things to do outside the trouble caused by his rogue's
gallery: See the HARDAC episode "Heart of Steel" and "The Forgotten"'s
depiction of Bruce Wayne as a homeless amnesiac for proof.
"Near-perfect" is a phrase we don't use lightly around here, but one
must give credit where credit is due when a show tells a mini-movie in
its opening credits that's better than what most feature films can do.
Why are you still reading this? See the episodes now for the first
time or crack-out the boxset and settle in for a retrospective. Thank
us later.

1. The Simpsons
Original Air Date: 1989-Present
Network: FOX

Currently airing its landmark 20th season, The Simpsons is a veritable
pop culture icon. The Simpsons is not only the longest running
American animated program, it's also the longest running American
sitcom, and is currently tied with Gunsmoke for the longest running
American primetime series. Those records alone don't earn it the top
place on our list, however. The Simpsons is also an incredibly funny
show that's produced more amusing characters and situations than the
vast majority of all other American sitcoms.

From its start as rough shorts airing during The Tracey Ullman Show,
the dysfunctional Simpson family has been a sharp parody of the middle
class American lifestyle. Many fans view the first eight seasons as
the series' best, containing such classics as "The Crepes of Wrath,"
"One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish," and "Marge vs. the
Monorail," but it can be argued that even with a dip in quality from
the early seasons, The Simpsons remains an entertaining and relevant
series, and after two decades stays accessible to both the original
fans and a whole new generation of viewers.

--

- ReFlex76

[Arnold Kim]

Antonio E. Gonzalez wrote:
> IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
> do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
> It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
> 10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
> apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
> quite a few from other places . . .

I find it rather bizarre that Cowboy Bebop is sandwiched in between the
X-men animated series and Spongebob Squarepants.

Arnold Kim

[Blade]

"Antonio E. Gonzalez" <AntE...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:88shp4t9kc74ceaqb...@4ax.com...

> IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
> do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
> It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
> 10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
> apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
> quite a few from other places . . .

They can't seem to decide whether their criteria is quality, commercial
success, or nostalgia, since many choices can only be explained by one of
those but not the others.

Still, I think any list that puts the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon dozens of
spots above Full Metal Alchemist is worth, at best, a hearty laugh.

-
Blade

[Patrick McNamara]

"Arnold Kim" <arno...@optonline.net> wrote in message
news:4999644a$0$3227$607e...@cv.net...

This list tends to reflect those making it and isn't really in any proper
order. There's tons of good animated shows from the 70s that aren't on the
list, mainly because they have never been repeated since. Although "The
Littles" have been, so one would think that would make the list. And where
is the original 60s Spiderman? It might not seem as impressive now, but it
held it's own for decades. I also wouldn't favor so many of the CN "adult"
shows so highly. The animation in those just isn't that good and the humor
tends to be cheap.

--
Patrick McNamara
E-mail: patjmc...@gmail.com
Webpage: http://www.geocities.com/writerpatrick
Podcast Ping podcast: http://podcastping.blogspot.com
Torrentcast: http://www.mininova.org/rss.xml?user=PodcastPing

[Don Del Grande]

Antonio E. Gonzalez wrote:

> IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
>do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
>It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
>10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
>apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
>quite a few from other places . . .
>
> Anyway, on with the show . . .:
>
> <http://tv.ign.com/top-100-animated-tv-series/100.html>

>96. Star Trek: The Animated Series

>Original Air Date: 1973-1974
>Network: NBC
>
>Lots of live-action TV series have gotten cartoons over the years --
>Gilligan's Island, Happy Days, even The Dukes of Hazzard! -- but
>rarely have such hand-drawn variations been so successful in conveying
>the spirit of their forbearers. Running for two seasons (from 1973 to
>1974) on NBC, these Star Trek half-hour adventures are seen by many
>fans as the lost fourth year of Captain Kirk and crew's legendary
>five-year mission.

Gene Roddenberry not among them - according to him, the only episode
to be considered part of the canon is the one where Spock goes back in
time to his own childhood. (Too bad, too - I figured the "giant
Spock" from "The Infinite Vulcan" could have been the solution to
bringing Spock back in Star Trek III.)

>92. Rugrats
>Original Air Date: 1991-1994 & 1996-2004

That's not quite right; it's more like 1991-1993, one episode (the
Passover special, made in 1993, and the perfect example of the
Nickelodeon treatment of religion: there are two of them - Judaism and
Other - and the word "God" is pretty much never used, even if it means
that Moses has to do all of the miracles in the Passover episode
himself) in 1995, one episode (the one where they show (sort of) what
happened to Chuckie's mother) in 1997, and the series restarted in
1998 - and in the last few years, they only aired a handful of
episodes per year (in the Nickelodeon tradition of holding a handful
of episodes back so they can make a big deal about airing a new one
every few months).

>And not only that, the
>characters have a new show called All Grown Up, where you can find
>them...all grown up and in middle school.

"Have" implies that the show wasn't cancelled years ago. As David
Spade might say, I liked AGU better the first time I saw it...when it
was set in fourth grade and called "Hey Arnold!". (There was very
little set in AGU that was middle-school specific; see "As Told By
Ginger" for a better example of that.)

>87. Frisky Dingo
>Original Air Date: 2006-2008
>Network: Cartoon Network
>
>One of the best animated shows of all time? Nay. More like one of the
>most astonishingly awesome creations ever conceived by our miserable
>race!

Unfortunately, 70/30 went out of business, effectively cancelling the
show (and "The Xticles" as well). "That's our last bowl!"

>84. Spider-Man (1994)
>Original Air Date: 1994-1998
>Network: FOX
>

>59. Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends
>Original Air Date: 1981-1983
>Network: NBC
>

>30. The Spectacular Spider-Man
>Original Air Date: 2008-Present
>Network: The CW

Where's the 1966-68 ABC series (the one with the theme everybody
remembers)? Okay, maybe the Krantz Animation/Bakshi episodes weren't
nearly as good as the Grantray Lawrence ones...

>82. Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
>Original Air Date: 1972-1985
>Network: CBS
>
>"Hey, hey hey... it's Faaat Albert!" Created, produced, hosted and
>primarily voiced by comedian Bill Cosby, Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
>was a show that, as Cosby said at the start of each episode, "if
>you're not careful you may learn something before it's done." Based on
>Cosby's stand-up routines about his childhood, Fat Albert was filled
>with humor (complete with a laugh track, which was common for animated
>series during that era) but tackled serious issues like stealing,
>racism, child abuse, smoking and vandalism.

Didn't Cosby use the show as part of his doctoral thesis? (He is
credited as an Ed.D. in "The Cosby Show")

Also, why did they pretty much take all of the songs out of the first
season episodes (and replaced them with "Brown Hornet" segments) when
they repeated them in the second season?

>75. Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist
>Original Air Date: 1995-1999
>Network: Comedy Central

The only problem I had with this one: the scenes with Ben and Dr.
Katz's secretary - they just never meshed very well.

>74. Underdog
>Original Air Date: 1964-1973
>Network: NBC
>

>Underdog's powers were not derived from our yellow sun like
>Superman's, but rather from an Underdog Super Energy Pill, which he
>stowed in his ring.

Except for about 20 years where all scenes of Underdog swallowing the
pill were edited (I think the edits started in NBC's last Saturday
morning run of the show in the early/mid-70s), probably because
somebody thought the pills looked like some actual medicine. (Even in
"Riffraffville", where the entire plot mentions how Underdog needs the
pill he keeps inside his ring, when the time comes for him to take the
pill, the scene is cut.)

>72. Dexter's Laboratory
>Original Air Date: 1996-2003
>Network: Cartoon Network

Here's a show I'm surprised isn't on DVD.

>67. The Pink Panther Show
>Original Air Date: 1969-1976
>Network: NBC

What about the ABC episodes that followed soon after?

>57. Invader ZIM
>Original Air Date: 2001-2002 & 2006
>Network: Nickelodeon
>
>The Emmy Award winning Invader Zim came from Nickelodeon with its tale
>of a very short alien named (one guess...) Zim, from the planet Irk,
>who escapes from his exile on Foodcourtia and lands here, doing his
>best to wipe out, conquer, and otherwise rid the universe of planet
>Earth. Thing is, Zim isn't exactly the best and brightest (and
>certainly not the tallest) of his kind, so his plans are usually
>undone either by Dib, an expert in the otherworldly who is one of the
>only people who recognizes Zim for what he is, or by Zim's own
>ineptitude.
>
>The show, which has developed a cult following since its debut in
>2001, never fared well in the ratings and was cancelled after its
>first season. A partial second season was finally aired five years
>later.
>Some 10 more second-season episodes were never completed,
>however, including a two-part finale, though some bits and pieces of
>these segments have been leaked to fans over the years.

Excuse me? First of all, it had respectable ratings for Nickelodeon,
but they didn't justify the show's costs, and Nickelodeon considered
it much too violent (it's almost certainly the only one where people
get killed onscreen on a somewhat regular basis). Reportedly, while
the animators were working on the second season of 20 episodes, some
executive came into their office, told them that the second season
would be reduced to six (later seven, so they could have a Christmas
episode) episodes, and anybody not working on those six episodes had
until the following Monday to clean out their desks.

Second, the gap between the first and second seasons was more like two
(maybe three) years, and most of this was caused by the break of
almost a year caused by the 9/11 attack making it much harder to fly
animation to and from Asia for work. ("The Fairly Oddparents" had the
same problem; both shows aired their first six episodes on Friday
nights in March, 2001, and were planning to resume in September - I
know the Zim episode "Door to Door / FBI Warning of Doom" was
scheduled for 9/14 - but after 9/11, the only new episodes of either
show were three TFOP episodes made from taking the show's "Oh Yeah!
Cartoon" shorts and adding the "Crimson Chin" Flash animation shorts
from the Nickelodeon website.

Third, a number of the incomplete episodes "appear" in audio form on
the show's fourth DVD - and there was no planned "finale", if for no
other reason that Nickelodeon did not want any of its shows to have
"final episodes" as kids would think the show was going off the air.
(Even now, the finales they do have - e.g. Danny Phantom - aren't
really "finales" as the show can pick up where it left off if
necessary.)

>48. Duckman
>Original Air Date: 1994-1997
>Network: USA Network
>
>Based on the Dark Horse comic by Everett Peck, Duckman is a hilarious
>and completely bizarre show about a foul-mouthed duck who's a terrible
>private detective and an even worse person to be around. The only
>reason Duckman gets any detective work is due to his genius partner,
>Cornfed Pig, who talks like Joe Friday and has a plethora of hidden
>skills.
>
>Unabashedly an adult-oriented cartoon, Duckman aired during USA
>Network's "Up All Night" Saturday night programming block for four
>seasons.

It actually moved around a bit - at one point, it aired right after
WWF (now WWE) RAW, Monday nights at 10. I for one believe that the
only reason the show never won any Emmys - either for the show itself
or for Alexander - was that somebody was punishing Jason for the way
the "George/Susan" storyline on "Seinfeld" ended. (One year during
the show's run, the voiceover committee refused to give out an award.)

>33. Schoolhouse Rock
>Original Air Date: 1972-2001
>Network: ABC
>
>Not a TV show as much as an ongoing series of shorts that made the
>Saturday morning circuit for almost 30 years, Schoolhouse Rock! is a
>touchstone cartoon for most of us who grew up anywhere during that
>three-decade stretch. While new episodes weren't particularly the norm
>throughout that long period, the series' lessons about history and
>English and science and all that other good stuff were more than
>worthy of the many repeat airings they were given, especially as they
>were couched in the fun and instantly appealing (for kids and adults)
>world of music. The catchy ditty "Conjunction Junction," the
>conservationist-minded "The Energy Blues," and of course the
>how-it-works classic "I'm Just a Bill" are just a few of the classics
>from this series, though a quick search on YouTube reveals a ton of
>more Schoolhouse rock-outs that have been laying dormant in our minds
>for decades now, just waiting to burst out in song and teach us an
>enjoyable lesson once again.

Remember that it started out as just "Multiplication Rock"; the next
season, the math episodes were moved to Sundays (if I remember
correctly) while "Grammar Rock" was on Saturdays (and only five -
Noun, Verb, Adverb, Conjunction, and Interjection - were in the first
season).
I have heard stories about kids who were asked on tests to write the
Preamble to the Constitution and could be heard singing/humming the
song. I wonder how many of them complained when they were marked
wrong as the song left out four words (it's "We, the People of the
United States," not just "We, the People")?

>26. The Critic
>Original Air Date: 1994-1995
>Network: FOX

OOPS - the first season (the episodes without Alice) was on ABC.
This may be from the rumor department, but reportedly, Margaret Cho
was supposed to voice Jay's sister Margo, and her part may have been
kept in the first episode (where Cho is credited), but for some
reason, at some point somebody decided she didn't "sound right" and
her parts redone by Nancy Cartwright.

>17. Animaniacs
>Original Air Date: 1993-1998
>Network: WB

Hey, WB - where is the DVD set with the final 24 episodes?

>11. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
>Original Air Date: 1959-1964
>Network: NBC

Here's another one with DVD problems - the first three seasons of the
show came out like clockwork, but then, nothing. It's not as if the
company went out of business, as they have released "George of the
Jungle" on DVD since then.
Note that, for some strange reason, the show is called "Rocky &
Bullwinkle & Friends" on the DVDs - which is also what the pinball
machine based on the show is called.

-- Don

[Invid Fan]

In article <gnbopf$cav$1...@news.albasani.net>, Blade
<kumo...@hotmail.com> wrote:

And no Daria or Exo Squad.

--
Chris Mack *quote under construction*
'Invid Fan'

[Default User]

Antonio E. Gonzalez wrote:

> IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
> do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
> It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
> 10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
> apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
> quite a few from other places . . .

I got a lot of problem with the top ten, namely because FLCL isn't in
it. It's not even on the list at all, which makes the the whole thing
fairly ridiculous.

That's the best I can do without being grouchy.

Brian

--
Day 13 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project

[B Sellers]

My series would be "Maison Ikkoku", "KOR TV", and "Yawara, a fashionable
judo girl", but my sentiments are similar.

By the way in the day the Bunny ruled but that day is past and the people
who kept it in front of the public so long are "swinging like a rusty
gate", if
you catch my meaning, if you get my drift. On the other hand the Bunny
is anarchical and surrealistic and maybe should be required study in some
class or another.

later
bliss

[Derek Janssen]

Blade wrote:

And among the Cavalcade O' Cliche's (Simpsons #1?--Ooo!), they at least
manage to put "Flintstones" in the top ten, even if they can't bother to
say anything about it but "It looks sorta like the Honeymooners!"

(When we actually get Underdog and Mighty Mouse as contenders, seems
like the criteria is "Pop iconography we've heard of.")

Derek Janssen
eja...@verizon.net

[Derek Janssen]

Default User wrote:
>
> I got a lot of problem with the top ten, namely because FLCL isn't in
> it. It's not even on the list at all, which makes the the whole thing
> fairly ridiculous.

Wow, the only "We've heard of anime because it was on CN!" series that
WASN'T on the list?
Gee, guess it just wasn't any "Full Metal Alchemist"...

Derek Janssen
eja...@verizon.net

[Invid Fan]

In article <6vtvk4F...@mid.individual.net>, B Sellers
<bl...@sfo.com> wrote:

> Default User wrote:
> > Antonio E. Gonzalez wrote:
> >
> >> IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
> >> do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
> >> It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
> >> 10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
> >> apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
> >> quite a few from other places . . .
> >
> >
> > I got a lot of problem with the top ten, namely because FLCL isn't in
> > it. It's not even on the list at all, which makes the the whole thing
> > fairly ridiculous.
> >
> > That's the best I can do without being grouchy.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Brian
> >
> My series would be "Maison Ikkoku", "KOR TV", and "Yawara, a fashionable
> judo girl", but my sentiments are similar.
>

Didn't know those aired nationally in the US.

[B Sellers]

Ah yes but they should have. Would have raised the tone
of the whole discussion.

later
bliss

[Derek Janssen]

B Sellers wrote:
>>>>
>>> My series would be "Maison Ikkoku", "KOR TV", and "Yawara, a
>>> fashionable
>>> judo girl", but my sentiments are similar.
>>>
>> Didn't know those aired nationally in the US.
>>
> Ah yes but they should have. Would have raised the tone
> of the whole discussion.

Meanwhile, on C-Span's list of "Greatest US Presidents" released this
week, I'll include Captain Kirk, because he SHOULD have been elected
president... ;)

Derek Janssen (it would have raised the whole tone of the discussion!)
eja...@verizon.net

[Patrick McNamara]

"Default User" <defaul...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:6vttt1F...@mid.individual.net...

>
> I got a lot of problem with the top ten, namely because FLCL isn't in
> it. It's not even on the list at all, which makes the the whole thing
> fairly ridiculous.

Then again, FLCL ran only something like 6 episodes and didn't get quite the
same exposure as many other shows. Even many of the Nickelodeon and CN shows
got airtime elsewhere, often appearing on other stations in other countries.
Of course there's a lot of anime they could have listed and didn't.

[Patrick McNamara]

"Derek Janssen" <eja...@nospam.verizon.net> wrote in message
news:jPjml.659$Bl....@nwrddc01.gnilink.net...

> And among the Cavalcade O' Cliche's (Simpsons #1?--Ooo!), they at least
> manage to put "Flintstones" in the top ten, even if they can't bother to
> say anything about it but "It looks sorta like the Honeymooners!"

Flintstones was deliberately based upon the Honeymooners. And if it wasn't
for the Flintstones it's unlikely the Simpsons would have aired as it's own
show.

[Patrick McNamara]

"Derek Janssen" <eja...@nospam.verizon.net> wrote in message

news:MXkml.895$hm....@nwrddc02.gnilink.net...

> Meanwhile, on C-Span's list of "Greatest US Presidents" released this
> week, I'll include Captain Kirk, because he SHOULD have been elected
> president... ;)

If you're talking about Kirk, then he wouldn't fit because he hasn't been
born yet, and if you're talking about Shatner then he's not eligible because
he's Canadian.

[Rob Kelk]

On Mon, 16 Feb 2009 14:23:58 -0500, Invid Fan <in...@loclanet.com>
wrote:

Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
version of Spider-Man ... but at least Clerks made the list.

And what do I see in entry #10? "[T]he bulk of [Evangelion] has set a

benchmark in anime programming which has yet to be surpassed."

<shakes head in disbelief>
Perhaps somebody should refer them to the Anime Primer for dozens of
examples of anime programming that have surprassed NGE...

--
Rob Kelk <http://robkelk.ottawa-anime.org/> e-mail: s/deadspam/gmail/
"I'm *not* a kid! Nyyyeaaah!" - Skuld (in "Oh My Goddess!" OAV #3)
"When I became a man, I put away childish things, including the fear
of childishness and the desire to be very grown-up." - C.S. Lewis

[D B Malmquist]

While people here seem to have grown quite tired of Evangelion, it
was very successful in the US for a long time, and it remains
massively popular in Japan, where the remake movie sold incredibly
well in 2008 -- 297,927 copes on DVD. This was nearly as many as
the best-selling DVD overall in Japan, the DVD of the (US) Transformers
movie at 364,876. [1]

Putting aside the enduring commercial success, just how many shows
since "Evangelion" have been influenced by it? "RahXephon"? "Eureka 7"?
"Big O"? "Xam'd"? "Brain Power'd"? Would any of these series have
been greenlighted "Evangelion"'s success? Sure, I know Evangelion
has its own antecedents -- "Ideon" in particular -- but it's my impression
that it made introspective and surreal SF anime look much more financially
viable in the mid-90s and onward.

-dbm

[1] http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2008-12-20/2008-top-selling-dvds-in-japan-overall

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

I was tired of it after the first run-through. Long before it came over
here.

>
> Putting aside the enduring commercial success, just how many shows
> since "Evangelion" have been influenced by it? "RahXephon"?

Which appeared to be trying to do Eva *well*.

> "Eureka 7"?
> "Big O"?

Hm. I saw more GR influence crossed with Batman, but I only saw pieces
of it.

> "Xam'd"? "Brain Power'd"? Would any of these series have
> been greenlighted "Evangelion"'s success? Sure, I know Evangelion
> has its own antecedents -- "Ideon" in particular

Mobile Suit Gundam in most particular; much of it is practically MSG as
written by Emo Boy, an Emo Boy with way too many cheap symbolism
references and no editor on hand.

--
Sea Wasp
/^\
;;;
Live Journal: http://seawasp.livejournal.com

[hcobb]

The one missing item that really sticks out is Kodocha.

A comedy series that wasn't afraid to deal carefully with issues like
teenage pregnancy and abortion.

-HJC

[D B Malmquist]

My take: "RahXephon" is a counter-argument to "Evangelion" --
all sorts of tricky, obscure, and surreal actions by human
and inhuman actors basically get blown to pieces by a love story,
which undermines the nonsense with reality.

> > "Eureka 7"?
> > "Big O"?
>
> Hm. I saw more GR influence crossed with Batman, but I only saw pieces
> of it.

As far as art style, I agree completely. But, it's possible that
Evangelion's success made it possible for "Big O"'s basic
dramatic tension to be about _the nature of reality_.

-dbm

[Derek Janssen]

hcobb wrote:

And if only it *had* been broadcast on US TV (instead of Funi's
let's-pretend On Demand cable), we might still have the DVD's today. :(

Derek Janssen
eja...@verizon.net

[Your Name]

As long as garbage like Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z, Card Captors, etc. are NOT
on the list we should be happy. :-)

[Freezer]

If I don't reply to this Your Name post, the terrorists win!

> As long as garbage like Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z, Card Captors, etc.
> are NOT on the list we should be happy. :-)

CCR was the only one you mentioned that *wasn't* on the list.

--
My name is:
____ _
/ ___| | |
| |__ _ __ ___ ___ ____ ___ _ __ | |
| __|| '__/ _ \/ _ \/_ // _ \| '__|| |
| | | | __/ __/ / /| __/| | |_|
|_| |_| \___|\___||___|\___||_| (_)
And my anti-drug is porn.
http://www.geocities.com/mysterysciencefreezer
http://freezer818.livejournal.com/

[Freezer]

If I don't reply to this Derek Janssen post, the terrorists win!

> Default User wrote:
>>
>> I got a lot of problem with the top ten, namely because FLCL
>> isn't in it. It's not even on the list at all, which makes the
>> the whole thing fairly ridiculous.
>
> Wow, the only "We've heard of anime because it was on CN!" series
> that WASN'T on the list?

That, Ruroni Kenshi, and Sailor Moon (Seriously... DBZ and Pokemon make
the cut, but Sailor Moon doesn't?)

[Freezer]

If I don't reply to this Rob Kelk post, the terrorists win!

>>> Still, I think any list that puts the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon
>>> dozens of spots above Full Metal Alchemist is worth, at best, a
>>> hearty laugh.
>>>
>>And no Daria or Exo Squad.
>
> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
> version of Spider-Man ...

Or Pirates of Dark Water. Or Kim Possible. Or Mighty Orbots. Or Rocko's
Modern World. Or The PJs.

And both Clone Wars series get spots but Beast Wars gets lumped in with
G1 Transformers? Sailor Moon doesn't make the cut, but DBZ and Pokemon
do? Spawn:TAS - REALLY?

[Giovanni Wassen]

hcobb <henry...@gmail.com> wrote:

> The one missing item that really sticks out is Kodocha.

You misspelled Duck Dodgers.

And wtf is Afro Samurai doing on that list?

--
Gio

http://www.watkijkikoptv.info
http://myanimelist.net/profile/extatix
http://watkijkikoptv.info/animeblog

[Chris Mattern]

On 2009-02-17, Your Name <your...@isp.com> wrote:
> As long as garbage like Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z, Card Captors, etc. are NOT
> on the list we should be happy. :-)
>

Pokemon and Dragon Ball Z were both on the list. Cardcatpors, at least,
was not.

--
Christopher Mattern

NOTICE
Thank you for noticing this new notice
Your noticing it has been noted
And will be reported to the authorities

[Don Del Grande]

Freezer wrote:

>If I don't reply to this Rob Kelk post, the terrorists win!
>
>>>> Still, I think any list that puts the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon
>>>> dozens of spots above Full Metal Alchemist is worth, at best, a
>>>> hearty laugh.
>>>>
>>>And no Daria or Exo Squad.
>>
>> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
>> version of Spider-Man ...
>
>Or Pirates of Dark Water. Or Kim Possible. Or Mighty Orbots. Or Rocko's
>Modern World.

They probably couldn't find it because it's actually called "Rocko's
Modern Life". Besides, Nickelodeon dropped two episodes for different
reasons (one, where Mrs. Bighead tries to seduce Rocko, was considered
too mature; the other, where Rocko and Heffer fly to a comic book
convention, was pulled because it involves a plane crash and
Nickelodeon is the "we need to pretend 9/11/2001 was just another day"
network).

-- Don

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

Your Name wrote:
> As long as garbage like Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z, Card Captors, etc. are NOT
> on the list we should be happy. :-)

You will receive a visit from Piccolo Daimao shortly. Please have
everyone else leave your home solar system.

[Doug Jacobs]

M.A.S.K?

Seriously? This toy-etic (Freakazoid fans, represent!) piece of trash was
horrible. There were much better toy commercial series than this one -
like JEM, which was one of the very few cartoons from the 80s that catered
to girls who weren't into G.I. Joe.

I'm not quite sure how you can lump "Liquid TV" as an entry. At that
point, you might as well put "Adult Swim" on the list.

Most of their entries I can agree with, though the ordering makes me
wonder a bit. Not sure about putting Simpsons as #1, but we could
quibble about ordering for years.

Props for remembering the genius that was Real Ghostbusters (where's my
DVD set?!?)

What other shows would you put on the list? For me, they missed a big one
with Galaxy Rangers. Maybe it wasn't as well known, but definitely was
something different.

Inspector Gadget?

And what happened to Bugs Bunny? They did the other greats, but skipped
Bugs? I would probably put Bugs Bunny as #1, simply for things like "What's
Opera Doc" and "Bunny Of Seville". It's rare you get such a great
combination of high culture and zany comedy in one package. Simpsons has
done it ocassionally - like their spoof of The Raven (quoth the
raven...Eat My Shorts!" LOL.)

What about Droids, which was paired up with The Ewok Adventures? Droids
chronicled part of the history of R2 and C3PO before they ended up on that
rebel transport along with Princess Leia (in fact, I think the show ended
with them being sold to someone in the rebel alliance...) Until we got
Clone Wars a few years ago, it was the only animated Star Wars story that
DIDN'T suck.

Was Transformers on the list? It had better have been.

--
It's not broken. It's...advanced.

[Your Name]

"Chris Mattern" <sys...@sumire.gwu.edu> wrote in message
news:slrngplefj...@sumire.gwu.edu...

> On 2009-02-17, Your Name <your...@isp.com> wrote:
> > As long as garbage like Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z, Card Captors, etc. are
NOT
> > on the list we should be happy. :-)
> >
> Pokemon and Dragon Ball Z were both on the list. Cardcatpors, at least,
> was not.

Rats! I didn't have time to read the list properly and must have missed
seeing those piles of doggy poo on there. :-(

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Patrick McNamara <writer...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> This list tends to reflect those making it and isn't really in any proper
> order. There's tons of good animated shows from the 70s that aren't on the
> list, mainly because they have never been repeated since. Although "The
> Littles" have been, so one would think that would make the list. And where
> is the original 60s Spiderman? It might not seem as impressive now, but it
> held it's own for decades. I also wouldn't favor so many of the CN "adult"
> shows so highly. The animation in those just isn't that good and the humor
> tends to be cheap.

The Littles was an 80s show. I don't know if I would put it on my top
100.

Also, would you make separate entries for a show - like listing each and
every Spider Man series separately - or lump them into one entry? I could
go either way on that.

As for the Adult Swim shows, I agree they put too many of them in. Space
Ghost Coast To Coast was (still is) something special. And while I
enjoyed Sea Lab 2012 and Harvey Birdman, I don't know if I'd put them both
on my list, if they'd make it at all. Others, like Aqua Teen, or Frisky
Dingo I didn't really care for but personal taste is personal taste. I
find it odd they put Venture Bros. on without listing Jonny Quest though.
How can one fully enjoy the comedy of Venture Bros. without having a
proper grounding in the whole
adventures-of-a-boy-with-genius-super-science-father genre? I didn't
really like Johnny Quest much myself but it certainly pushed boundaries
harder than, say, G.I. Joe where you couldn't even punch someone. (as for
story content, I preferred Tom Swift but they never made an animated
series of him. :(

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Invid Fan <in...@loclanet.com> wrote:
> And no Daria or Exo Squad.

Daria is definitely a notable abscense.

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc D B Malmquist <d.b.ma...@com.swap-com-and-rcn.rcn> wrote:
> While people here seem to have grown quite tired of Evangelion, it
> was very successful in the US for a long time, and it remains
> massively popular in Japan, where the remake movie sold incredibly
> well in 2008 -- 297,927 copes on DVD. This was nearly as many as
> the best-selling DVD overall in Japan, the DVD of the (US) Transformers
> movie at 364,876. [1]

But again, is the point of the list the top 100 commercial successes, or
just top 100 influential series, or just top 100 shows our editors like?

I have some real issues with the impact that Eva has had on anime in
general, especially given how crummy some of the shows that purport to be
"Eva-like".

Also, I would assume the list was only constrained to shows that have
aired on US TV, so looking at Eva's impact in Japan is out of scope here.

> Putting aside the enduring commercial success, just how many shows
> since "Evangelion" have been influenced by it? "RahXephon"? "Eureka 7"?
> "Big O"? "Xam'd"? "Brain Power'd"? Would any of these series have
> been greenlighted "Evangelion"'s success? Sure, I know Evangelion
> has its own antecedents -- "Ideon" in particular -- but it's my impression
> that it made introspective and surreal SF anime look much more financially
> viable in the mid-90s and onward.

RahXephon, Xam'd, and Brain Powerd haven't been shown on TV (I don't
believe anyways) so they wouldn't count. Big O can point to any number of
other influences besides Eva, and I think it would have still gotten made
even if Eva didn't exist. Eva's main influences were in the "wtf is going
on here?!?" method of story telling, where you force your audience to figure
out what's really going on since you won't tell them, as well as the more
enjoyable theme of taking a well known and loved genre and turning it on
its head while smacking you in the face with the hard brutal reality about
why the genre's archetype is nothing but a silly fairy tale.

[Ansgar -59cobalt- Wiechers]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com> wrote:
> In rec.arts.anime.misc Invid Fan <in...@loclanet.com> wrote:
>> And no Daria or Exo Squad.
>
> Daria is definitely a notable abscense.

The list has Beavis and Butt-head, so it's not a total lack of Daria.

cu
59cobalt
--
"My surname is Li and my personal name is Kao, and there is a slight
flaw in my character."
--Li Kao (Barry Hughart: Bridge of Birds)

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Your Name <your...@isp.com> wrote:
> As long as garbage like Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z, Card Captors, etc. are NOT
> on the list we should be happy. :-)

DBZ and Pokemon did make the list. Personal taste aside, I would argue
for their inclusion simply because of the impact they've had on later
shows.

The only list Card Captors would belong on would be a list of most
horribly butchered shows, along with Star Blazers, Battle Of The Planets,
Macron One, Voltron, Speed Racer, Sailor Moon, Pilot Candidate....

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Freezer <free...@hotspamthismail.com> wrote:
>> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
>> version of Spider-Man ...
>
> Or Pirates of Dark Water. Or Kim Possible. Or Mighty Orbots. Or Rocko's
> Modern World. Or The PJs.

The PJs? Seriously? If anything that set the whole adult animated series
movement BACK about 5 years. Not sure about Kim Possible either. It just
seems like your generic action hero or super spy show.

Dark Water, Rocko and Orbots should be on the list.

> And both Clone Wars series get spots but Beast Wars gets lumped in with
> G1 Transformers? Sailor Moon doesn't make the cut, but DBZ and Pokemon
> do? Spawn:TAS - REALLY?

I don't know if I'd put Sailor Moon on the list. It didn't really spark a
lot of interest in the general public, and it was horribly editted (donuts
anyone?) DBZ and Pokemon were both hits with the mainstream, though why
you'd list Aeon Fluxx or The Maxx, on the same list seems a bit unfocused
at best.

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Don Del Grande <del_gra...@earthlink.net> wrote:
>>82. Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
>>Original Air Date: 1972-1985
>>Network: CBS
>>
>>"Hey, hey hey... it's Faaat Albert!" Created, produced, hosted and
>>primarily voiced by comedian Bill Cosby, Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
>>was a show that, as Cosby said at the start of each episode, "if
>>you're not careful you may learn something before it's done." Based on
>>Cosby's stand-up routines about his childhood, Fat Albert was filled
>>with humor (complete with a laugh track, which was common for animated
>>series during that era) but tackled serious issues like stealing,
>>racism, child abuse, smoking and vandalism.
>
> Didn't Cosby use the show as part of his doctoral thesis? (He is
> credited as an Ed.D. in "The Cosby Show")
>
> Also, why did they pretty much take all of the songs out of the first
> season episodes (and replaced them with "Brown Hornet" segments) when
> they repeated them in the second season?

Fat Albert was Cosby's thesis on how to put morals into children's TV. If
you remember, Cosby would have a segment at the end of each episode where
he'd point out what the gang learned at the end of the day. This was
later perverted into the now infamous G.I. Joe segments, "Knowing is half
the battle." Ugh.

>>72. Dexter's Laboratory
>>Original Air Date: 1996-2003
>>Network: Cartoon Network
>
> Here's a show I'm surprised isn't on DVD.

Yeah, I don't get it. They just released PPG on DVD, so maybe there's
still hope...?

>>57. Invader ZIM
>>Original Air Date: 2001-2002 & 2006
>>Network: Nickelodeon
>>
>>The Emmy Award winning Invader Zim came from Nickelodeon with its tale
>>of a very short alien named (one guess...) Zim, from the planet Irk,
>>who escapes from his exile on Foodcourtia and lands here, doing his
>>best to wipe out, conquer, and otherwise rid the universe of planet
>>Earth. Thing is, Zim isn't exactly the best and brightest (and
>>certainly not the tallest) of his kind, so his plans are usually
>>undone either by Dib, an expert in the otherworldly who is one of the
>>only people who recognizes Zim for what he is, or by Zim's own
>>ineptitude.
>>
>>The show, which has developed a cult following since its debut in
>>2001, never fared well in the ratings and was cancelled after its
>>first season. A partial second season was finally aired five years
>>later.
>>Some 10 more second-season episodes were never completed,
>>however, including a two-part finale, though some bits and pieces of
>>these segments have been leaked to fans over the years.
>
> Excuse me? First of all, it had respectable ratings for Nickelodeon,
> but they didn't justify the show's costs, and Nickelodeon considered
> it much too violent (it's almost certainly the only one where people
> get killed onscreen on a somewhat regular basis). Reportedly, while
> the animators were working on the second season of 20 episodes, some
> executive came into their office, told them that the second season
> would be reduced to six (later seven, so they could have a Christmas
> episode) episodes, and anybody not working on those six episodes had
> until the following Monday to clean out their desks.

My understanding was that Nickelodeon HATED the show. And you can't
really blame them. It definitely was NOT a Nickelodeon style show.
Still, it got ratings...from a demographic that would normally not tune
into Nickelodeon. And the merchandising sold very well, again to the same
very UN-Nickelodeon demographic.

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Patrick McNamara <writer...@yahoo.com> wrote:

> Then again, FLCL ran only something like 6 episodes and didn't get quite the
> same exposure as many other shows. Even many of the Nickelodeon and CN shows
> got airtime elsewhere, often appearing on other stations in other countries.
> Of course there's a lot of anime they could have listed and didn't.

FLCL was a video series in Japan. I don't think it ever aired on TV over
there. Same with Paranoia Agent (which I would probably put on the list)

Then again, there's other shows that only aired for a short while before
getting canceled - never to be aired again. Things like Clone High and
Downtown which were only on MTV very very briefly deserve to be on the
list if you're going to let Clerks or Frisky Dingo on the list.

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Giovanni Wassen <ext...@gmail.com> wrote:
> hcobb <henry...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> The one missing item that really sticks out is Kodocha.
>
> You misspelled Duck Dodgers.

Duck Dodgers gets pregnant? I don't think I want to know the details of
that.

> And wtf is Afro Samurai doing on that list?

Why not Samurai Champloo then?

[Derek Janssen]

Doug Jacobs wrote:
>>>
>>>The Emmy Award winning Invader Zim came from Nickelodeon with its tale
>>>of a very short alien named (one guess...) Zim, from the planet Irk,
>>>who escapes from his exile on Foodcourtia and lands here, doing his
>>>best to wipe out, conquer, and otherwise rid the universe of planet
>>>Earth. Thing is, Zim isn't exactly the best and brightest (and
>>>certainly not the tallest) of his kind, so his plans are usually
>>>undone either by Dib, an expert in the otherworldly who is one of the
>>>only people who recognizes Zim for what he is, or by Zim's own
>>>ineptitude.
>>

> My understanding was that Nickelodeon HATED the show. And you can't
> really blame them. It definitely was NOT a Nickelodeon style show.
> Still, it got ratings...from a demographic that would normally not tune
> into Nickelodeon. And the merchandising sold very well, again to the same
> very UN-Nickelodeon demographic.

And this was the same Nickelodeon that was ALMOST considering to foot
the broadcast deal for ADV's "Sgt. Frog" dub if not for Japanese
investor troubles:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQgYS6as6KE

Derek Janssen (seeing as Keronian evil-invasion technology is lightyears
ahead of Irkian)
eja...@verizon.net

[Default User]

D B Malmquist wrote:

> Putting aside the enduring commercial success, just how many shows
> since "Evangelion" have been influenced by it? "RahXephon"? "Eureka
> 7"? "Big O"? "Xam'd"? "Brain Power'd"? Would any of these series
> have been greenlighted "Evangelion"'s success? Sure, I know
> Evangelion has its own antecedents -- "Ideon" in particular -- but
> it's my impression that it made introspective and surreal SF anime
> look much more financially viable in the mid-90s and onward.

I've never been a big fan of gundam-type anime. I thought "Big O" would
have been lots better without Big O. I liked the noir-ish background
with the memory loss, and Roger doing his negotiator thing, and R
Dorothy and all that. I just didn't like the, "Oh, time for da big
robot fight!" that came every episode.

Then again, I liked "Pilot Candidate" AKA "Candidate for Goddess", and
almost everybody else hated that. So what do I know?

Brian

--
Day 14 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:22pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:

> In rec.arts.anime.misc Freezer <free...@hotspamthismail.com> wrote:
> >> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
> >> version of Spider-Man ...
> >
> > Or Pirates of Dark Water. Or Kim Possible. Or Mighty Orbots. Or Rocko's
> > Modern World. Or The PJs.
>
> The PJs? Seriously? If anything that set the whole adult animated series
> movement BACK about 5 years. Not sure about Kim Possible either. It just
> seems like your generic action hero or super spy show.
>

No, KP is one of the few that actually has
character and relationship development and progress.
Previous eps matter in later eps, charas age and graduate,
villains aren't always villains or good
nor simply want to rule the world for the heck of it, etc.

That reminds me, if Ken Arromdee has seen KP
like he said he'd give it a try.... ^_^

>
> > And both Clone Wars series get spots but Beast Wars gets lumped in with
> > G1 Transformers? Sailor Moon doesn't make the cut, but DBZ and Pokemon
> > do? Spawn:TAS - REALLY?
>
> I don't know if I'd put Sailor Moon on the list. It didn't really spark a
> lot of interest in the general public, and it was horribly editted (donuts
> anyone?)
>

Donuts isn't one of the horrible edits; it's a mild one, like "talent." ;)

It's better to use other truly horrible edits to get your point across
(like Zoicite, the deaths of the Sailor Scouts, the kissing cousins, etc);
otherwise, you're undermining your point by appearing to use petty issues.
Just saying.

Laters. =)

Stan
--
_______ ________ _______ ____ ___ ___ ______ ______
| __|__ __| _ | \ | | | | _____| _____|

|__ | | | | _ | |\ | |___| ____|| ____|

|_______| |__| |__| |__|___| \ ___|_______|______|______|
__| | ( )
/ _ | |/ LostRune+sig [at] UofR [dot] net
| ( _| | http://www.uofr.net/~lostrune/
\ ______| _______ ____ ___
/ \ / \ | _ | \ | |
/ \/ \| _ | |\ |
/___/\/\___|__| |__|___| \ ___|

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 1:55pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:

> M.A.S.K?
>
> Seriously? This toy-etic (Freakazoid fans, represent!) piece of trash was
> horrible. There were much better toy commercial series than this one -
>

Hey, at least it was fun, like Spiral Zone and Inhumanoids! ;-)

>
> like JEM, which was one of the very few cartoons from the 80s that catered
> to girls who weren't into G.I. Joe.
>

She-Ra!

>
> Props for remembering the genius that was Real Ghostbusters (where's my
> DVD set?!?)
>

Used to watch that on primetime!

>
> And what happened to Bugs Bunny? They did the other greats, but skipped
> Bugs? I would probably put Bugs Bunny as #1, simply for things like "What's
> Opera Doc" and "Bunny Of Seville". It's rare you get such a great
> combination of high culture and zany comedy in one package.
>

Bug's my favorite, actually. ;-)

>
> What about Droids, which was paired up with The Ewok Adventures? Droids
> chronicled part of the history of R2 and C3PO before they ended up on that
> rebel transport along with Princess Leia (in fact, I think the show ended
> with them being sold to someone in the rebel alliance...) Until we got
> Clone Wars a few years ago, it was the only animated Star Wars story that
> DIDN'T suck.
>
> Was Transformers on the list? It had better have been.
>

Such a successful franchise, it is.

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:02pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:

> In rec.arts.anime.misc Patrick McNamara <writer...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > This list tends to reflect those making it and isn't really in any proper
> > order. There's tons of good animated shows from the 70s that aren't on the
> > list, mainly because they have never been repeated since. Although "The
> > Littles" have been, so one would think that would make the list. And where
> > is the original 60s Spiderman? It might not seem as impressive now, but it
> > held it's own for decades. I also wouldn't favor so many of the CN "adult"
> > shows so highly. The animation in those just isn't that good and the humor
> > tends to be cheap.
>
> The Littles was an 80s show. I don't know if I would put it on my top
> 100.
>

That reminds me of The Little Bits. ^_^

>
> As for the Adult Swim shows, I agree they put too many of them in. Space
> Ghost Coast To Coast was (still is) something special. And while I
> enjoyed Sea Lab 2012 and Harvey Birdman, I don't know if I'd put them both
> on my list, if they'd make it at all. Others, like Aqua Teen, or Frisky
> Dingo I didn't really care for but personal taste is personal taste. I
> find it odd they put Venture Bros. on without listing Jonny Quest though.
> How can one fully enjoy the comedy of Venture Bros. without having a
> proper grounding in the whole
> adventures-of-a-boy-with-genius-super-science-father genre? I didn't
> really like Johnny Quest much myself but it certainly pushed boundaries
>

Maybe as a corollary.
A parody kinda needs the original to standout
for the parody to work effectively.
But that can open a whole new can of worms.

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:18pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:

Pilot Candidate wasn't butchered; it just sucks. ^_^

Some butchered shows can be good, like Samurai Pizza Cats.

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:36pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:

> In rec.arts.anime.misc Patrick McNamara <writer...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > Then again, FLCL ran only something like 6 episodes and didn't get quite the
> > same exposure as many other shows. Even many of the Nickelodeon and CN shows
> > got airtime elsewhere, often appearing on other stations in other countries.
> > Of course there's a lot of anime they could have listed and didn't.
>
> FLCL was a video series in Japan. I don't think it ever aired on TV over
> there. Same with Paranoia Agent (which I would probably put on the list)
>
> Then again, there's other shows that only aired for a short while before
> getting canceled - never to be aired again. Things like Clone High and
> Downtown which were only on MTV very very briefly deserve to be on the
>

Heck, I saw the last ep of Downtown on Polish TV! ^_^

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:32pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:

Heh, I'm reminded of this post on this very same forum
all those years ago:

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.animation/msg/f7dee3a1c51217ae

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc S.t.A.n.L.e.E <LostRu...@uofr.slamspam.net> wrote:
>> M.A.S.K?
>>
>> Seriously? This toy-etic (Freakazoid fans, represent!) piece of trash was
>> horrible. There were much better toy commercial series than this one -
>>
>
> Hey, at least it was fun, like Spiral Zone and Inhumanoids! ;-)

Sprial Zone sort of freaked me out, actually. First off, the show started
after the bad guy's plan for....well, whatever his plan was...had
succeeded by covering the majority of the world in spiral zone. They
never really explained what the spiral zone was, other than it caused
unprotected people to gain red lines under their eyes, and sort of stand
around like zombies. I came across some webpage in which the author
postulated that Spiral Zone was actually some supposed to be soem sort of
bizzare anti-AIDS protest or something.

>> like JEM, which was one of the very few cartoons from the 80s that catered
>> to girls who weren't into G.I. Joe.
>>
>
> She-Ra!

I can't say She-Ra was much of a girl's show either. Unless girls LIKE
their heroines to be scantily clad, and to nothing but "money shot" type
high kicks towards the camera.

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 4:12pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:

> In rec.arts.anime.misc S.t.A.n.L.e.E <LostRu...@uofr.slamspam.net> wrote:
> >> M.A.S.K?
> >>
> >> Seriously? This toy-etic (Freakazoid fans, represent!) piece of trash was
> >> horrible. There were much better toy commercial series than this one -
> >>
> >
> > Hey, at least it was fun, like Spiral Zone and Inhumanoids! ;-)
>
> Sprial Zone sort of freaked me out, actually. First off, the show started
> after the bad guy's plan for....well, whatever his plan was...had
> succeeded by covering the majority of the world in spiral zone. They
> never really explained what the spiral zone was, other than it caused
> unprotected people to gain red lines under their eyes, and sort of stand
> around like zombies. I came across some webpage in which the author
> postulated that Spiral Zone was actually some supposed to be soem sort of
> bizzare anti-AIDS protest or something.
>

Yeah, that weirded me out too.
I never figured out how it could end (and there was no ending).

>
> >> like JEM, which was one of the very few cartoons from the 80s that catered
> >> to girls who weren't into G.I. Joe.
> >>
> >
> > She-Ra!
>
> I can't say She-Ra was much of a girl's show either. Unless girls LIKE
> their heroines to be scantily clad, and to nothing but "money shot" type
> high kicks towards the camera.
>

Y'mean, like Sailor Moon, ha! Ah, the camera angles.... ;-)

[Derek Janssen]

S.t.A.n.L.e.E wrote:
>
>>>>like JEM, which was one of the very few cartoons from the 80s that catered
>>>>to girls who weren't into G.I. Joe.
>>>>
>>>
>>>She-Ra!
>>
>>I can't say She-Ra was much of a girl's show either. Unless girls LIKE
>>their heroines to be scantily clad, and to nothing but "money shot" type
>>high kicks towards the camera.
>
> Y'mean, like Sailor Moon, ha! Ah, the camera angles.... ;-)

Moon at least had a Japanese understanding of "What little girls wanted
to see"--

She-Ra felt like it'd hired a girl's-demographic "educational
consultant" to take normal assembly-line He-Man scripts and water the
action and theme down so nobody got hurt (in the My Little Ponied spirit
of 80's girls'-marketing):
"Don't Put Mustard on the Cat" became "Don't Put Mustard on Your *Best
Friend's* Cat"...

Derek Janssen
eja...@verizon.net

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

S.t.A.n.L.e.E wrote:
> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 1:55pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:
>
>> M.A.S.K?
>>
>> Seriously? This toy-etic (Freakazoid fans, represent!) piece of trash was
>> horrible. There were much better toy commercial series than this one -
>>
>
> Hey, at least it was fun, like Spiral Zone and Inhumanoids! ;-)

The greatest toy-etic series of all, and the most ignored (to the point
that it wasn't even fully available on VHS) was MIGHTY MAX!

[Default User]

Doug Jacobs wrote:

> In rec.arts.anime.misc Patrick McNamara <writer...@yahoo.com>
> wrote:
> > Then again, FLCL ran only something like 6 episodes and didn't get
> > quite the same exposure as many other shows. Even many of the
> > Nickelodeon and CN shows got airtime elsewhere, often appearing on
> > other stations in other countries. Of course there's a lot of
> > anime they could have listed and didn't.
>
> FLCL was a video series in Japan. I don't think it ever aired on TV
> over there. Same with Paranoia Agent (which I would probably put on
> the list)

While FLCL only had six episodes, it ran many times on Adult Swim. I
wouldn't necessarily say it was underexposed.

[Antonio E. Gonzalez]

On Mon, 16 Feb 2009 23:35:40 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
<sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:

>D B Malmquist wrote:
>> Rob Kelk wrote:
>>> On Mon, 16 Feb 2009 14:23:58 -0500, Invid Fan <in...@loclanet.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> In article <gnbopf$cav$1...@news.albasani.net>, Blade
>>>> <kumo...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> "Antonio E. Gonzalez" <AntE...@aol.com> wrote in message
>>>>> news:88shp4t9kc74ceaqb...@4ax.com...
>>>>>> IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
>>>>>> do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
>>>>>> It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
>>>>>> 10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
>>>>>> apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
>>>>>> quite a few from other places . . .
>>>>> They can't seem to decide whether their criteria is quality, commercial
>>>>> success, or nostalgia, since many choices can only be explained by one of
>>>>> those but not the others.
>>>>>
>>>>> Still, I think any list that puts the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon dozens of
>>>>> spots above Full Metal Alchemist is worth, at best, a hearty laugh.

>>>>>
>>>> And no Daria or Exo Squad.

>>> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970

>>> version of Spider-Man ... but at least Clerks made the list.
>>>
>>> And what do I see in entry #10? "[T]he bulk of [Evangelion] has set a
>>> benchmark in anime programming which has yet to be surpassed."
>>> <shakes head in disbelief>
>>> Perhaps somebody should refer them to the Anime Primer for dozens of
>>> examples of anime programming that have surprassed NGE...

>>
>> While people here seem to have grown quite tired of Evangelion,
>

> I was tired of it after the first run-through. Long before it came over
>here.

>
>
>>
>> Putting aside the enduring commercial success, just how many shows
>> since "Evangelion" have been influenced by it? "RahXephon"?
>

> Which appeared to be trying to do Eva *well*.
>

The first part is almost universally agreed on, though the second
can be argued. It certainly showed Studio Bones had the mettle to be
the next Gainax . . .

>> "Eureka 7"?
>> "Big O"?
>

> Hm. I saw more GR influence crossed with Batman, but I only saw pieces
>of it.
>

"GR"? The Batman influence is almost too blatant, down to the
snarky butler; also a dash of 007 . . .

>> "Xam'd"? "Brain Power'd"? Would any of these series have
>> been greenlighted "Evangelion"'s success? Sure, I know Evangelion
>> has its own antecedents -- "Ideon" in particular
>

> Mobile Suit Gundam in most particular; much of it is practically MSG as
>written by Emo Boy, an Emo Boy with way too many cheap symbolism
>references and no editor on hand.

Nope, it's Ideon, sometimes scene-for-scene, line-for-line; I can
say that, epecially after seeing all of Ideon, down to the movies . .
.

"Emo Boy" certianly had his reasons, particularly the death of his
father; a huge explanation to why some of the lines in the last two
episodes seemed to be right out of a group therapy session . . .

--

- ReFlex76

[Anim8rFSK]

In article <vgbjp4dd4lse13f9h...@4ax.com>,

Don Del Grande <del_gra...@earthlink.net> wrote:

> Antonio E. Gonzalez wrote:
>
> > IGN normally does video games, but this one time they decided to
> >do animated series, as noted in one of the Adult Swim B&W bumpers.
> >It's actually not that bad, I certainly have no problem with the top
> >10, maybe a few reservations about the top 25. Though this is
> >apparently only shows that have aired on US Television, there are
> >quite a few from other places . . .
> >

> > Anyway, on with the show . . .:
> >
> > <http://tv.ign.com/top-100-animated-tv-series/100.html>
>
> >96. Star Trek: The Animated Series
> >Original Air Date: 1973-1974
> >Network: NBC
> >
> >Lots of live-action TV series have gotten cartoons over the years --
> >Gilligan's Island, Happy Days, even The Dukes of Hazzard! -- but
> >rarely have such hand-drawn variations been so successful in conveying
> >the spirit of their forbearers. Running for two seasons (from 1973 to
> >1974) on NBC, these Star Trek half-hour adventures are seen by many
> >fans as the lost fourth year of Captain Kirk and crew's legendary
> >five-year mission.
>
> Gene Roddenberry not among them - according to him, the only episode
> to be considered part of the canon is the one where Spock goes back in
> time to his own childhood. (Too bad, too - I figured the "giant
> Spock" from "The Infinite Vulcan" could have been the solution to
> bringing Spock back in Star Trek III.)

Yesteryear, and even then, only certain unspecified elements.

--
Bad Reboot's 'Crap Trek' 2009: "No Shat, No Show"
Rated "least anticipated film of 2009" by ETOnline

[Anim8rFSK]

In article <vgbjp4dd4lse13f9h...@4ax.com>,
Don Del Grande <del_gra...@earthlink.net> wrote:

> >11. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
> >Original Air Date: 1959-1964
> >Network: NBC
>
> Here's another one with DVD problems - the first three seasons of the
> show came out like clockwork, but then, nothing. It's not as if the
> company went out of business, as they have released "George of the
> Jungle" on DVD since then.
> Note that, for some strange reason, the show is called "Rocky &
> Bullwinkle & Friends" on the DVDs - which is also what the pinball
> machine based on the show is called.

I'm the one that did the new titles (at least for one incarnation of
DVDs) and even I can't tell you why. I'm pretty sure it wasn't pinball
related though.

[Anim8rFSK]

In article <Pine.LNX.4.64.09...@uofr.net>,
"S.t.A.n.L.e.E" <LostRu...@UofR.SlamSpam.net> wrote:

> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:22pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:
>
> > In rec.arts.anime.misc Freezer <free...@hotspamthismail.com> wrote:
> > >> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
> > >> version of Spider-Man ...
> > >
> > > Or Pirates of Dark Water. Or Kim Possible. Or Mighty Orbots. Or Rocko's
> > > Modern World. Or The PJs.
> >
> > The PJs? Seriously? If anything that set the whole adult animated series
> > movement BACK about 5 years. Not sure about Kim Possible either. It just
> > seems like your generic action hero or super spy show.
> >
>
> No, KP is one of the few that actually has
> character and relationship development and progress.
> Previous eps matter in later eps, charas age and graduate,
> villains aren't always villains or good
> nor simply want to rule the world for the heck of it, etc.

Friends fall in love. :)

>
> That reminds me, if Ken Arromdee has seen KP
> like he said he'd give it a try.... ^_^
>
> >
> > > And both Clone Wars series get spots but Beast Wars gets lumped in with
> > > G1 Transformers? Sailor Moon doesn't make the cut, but DBZ and Pokemon
> > > do? Spawn:TAS - REALLY?
> >
> > I don't know if I'd put Sailor Moon on the list. It didn't really spark a
> > lot of interest in the general public, and it was horribly editted (donuts
> > anyone?)
> >
>
> Donuts isn't one of the horrible edits; it's a mild one, like "talent." ;)
>
> It's better to use other truly horrible edits to get your point across
> (like Zoicite, the deaths of the Sailor Scouts, the kissing cousins, etc);
> otherwise, you're undermining your point by appearing to use petty issues.
> Just saying.
>
> Laters. =)
>
> Stan

--

[Default User]

Doug Jacobs wrote:

> I find it odd they put Venture Bros. on
> without listing Jonny Quest though.

77. Jonny Quest

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

Antonio E. Gonzalez wrote:
> On Mon, 16 Feb 2009 23:35:40 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
> <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:

(RE: "Big O"?

>> Hm. I saw more GR influence crossed with Batman, but I only saw pieces
>> of it.
>>
>
> "GR"? The Batman influence is almost too blatant, down to the
> snarky butler; also a dash of 007 . . .

GR = Giant Robo, greatest OVA series ever.

>
>
>
>>> "Xam'd"? "Brain Power'd"? Would any of these series have
>>> been greenlighted "Evangelion"'s success? Sure, I know Evangelion
>>> has its own antecedents -- "Ideon" in particular
>> Mobile Suit Gundam in most particular; much of it is practically MSG as
>> written by Emo Boy, an Emo Boy with way too many cheap symbolism
>> references and no editor on hand.
>
> Nope, it's Ideon, sometimes scene-for-scene, line-for-line; I can
> say that, epecially after seeing all of Ideon, down to the movies . .
> .

There are some scenes that are almost identical to MSG; I'm not the
only one to have spotted this.

>
> "Emo Boy" certianly had his reasons, particularly the death of his
> father; a huge explanation to why some of the lines in the last two
> episodes seemed to be right out of a group therapy session . . .

Which is a wonderful example of WHY Eva sucked like a gargantuan
black-hole-powered Hoover. Therapy sessions are to be kept private for
many reasons; not the least of which being that I don't want, nor do I
need, to know your personal issues, and I especially don't need them
messing up what could have been a perfectly good bit of entertainment.
There were some nice ideas buried in Evangelion; shame about the execution.

[Default User]

Antonio E. Gonzalez wrote:

I (well a program I wrote) made a list with just the titles, that might
help people find specific shows. Also, your copy missed #83 (Teen
Titans).

100. Josie and the Pussycats
99. MASK
98. Clerks
97. The Smurfs

96. Star Trek: The Animated Series

95. Fullmetal Alchemist
94. The Boondocks
93. Darkwing Duck
92. Rugrats
91. Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
90. Afro Samurai
89. Star Wars: The Clone Wars
88. The Woody Woodpecker Show
87. Frisky Dingo
86. Astro Boy
85. Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends
84. Spider-Man (1994)
83. Teen Titans

82. Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids

81. TaleSpin
80. Alvin and the Chipmunks
79. Sealab 2021
78. Dragon Ball Z
77. Jonny Quest
76. Voltron: Defender of the Universe
75. Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist
74. Underdog
73. Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
72. Dexter's Laboratory
71. Johnny Bravo
70. PokTmon
69. Mighty Mouse
68. Popeye
67. The Pink Panther Show
66. Tom and Jerry
65. Todd McFarlane's Spawn
64. Dungeons & Dragons
63. The Huckleberry Hound Show
62. Danger Mouse
61. Count Duckula
60. Chip 'N Dale Rescue Rangers
59. Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends
58. He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983)
57. Invader ZIM
56. The Venture Bros.
55. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987)
54. Inspector Gadget
53. Freakazoid
52. Galaxy High
51. Death Note
50. SuperFriends
49. ThunderCats
48. Duckman
47. Pinky and the Brain
46. The Jetsons
45. Gargoyles
44. Battle of the Planets
43. Samurai Jack
42. The Powerpuff Girls
41. Tiny Toon Adventures
40. Batman Beyond
39. Aqua Teen Hunger Force
38. Naruto
37. Space Ghost Coast to Coast
36. Superman: The Animated Series
35. Avatar: The Last Airbender
34. Robotech
33. Schoolhouse Rock
32. Liquid Television
31. Muppet Babies
30. The Spectacular Spider-Man
29. Speed Racer (1967)
28. Home Movies
27. King of the Hill
26. The Critic
25. Robot Chicken
24. Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!
23. Transformers
22. The Real Ghostbusters
21. Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003)
20. Justice League Unlimited
19. G.I. Joe
18. DuckTales
17. Animaniacs
16. The Maxx
15. SpongeBob SquarePants
14. Cowboy Bebop
13. X-Men
12. The Ren and Stimpy Show

11. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show

10. Neon Genesis Evangelion
9. The Flintstones
8. Futurama
7. Family Guy
6. The Tick (1994)
5. Beavis and Butt-head
4. South Park
3. Looney Tunes
2. Batman: The Animated Series
1. The Simpsons

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

Unless this is just supposed to be a listing of the most
popular/lucrative shows, I have no idea what drugs the rating people
were on. There's utter crap mixed in with gems and most of it just
Totally Lame.

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 7:07pm-0500, Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor) <sea...@sgeinc.inval...:

> S.t.A.n.L.e.E wrote:
> > Tue, 17 Feb 2009 1:55pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:
> >
> > > M.A.S.K?
> > >
> > > Seriously? This toy-etic (Freakazoid fans, represent!) piece of trash was
> > > horrible. There were much better toy commercial series than this one -
> >
> > Hey, at least it was fun, like Spiral Zone and Inhumanoids! ;-)
>
> The greatest toy-etic series of all, and the most ignored (to the
> point that it wasn't even fully available on VHS) was MIGHTY MAX!
>

Because we never liked Virgil,
and Max's mom and Norman should've gotten it on!
And lo, the ending! ^_^

[Captain Nerd]

In article <LZ6dnQsPtNzWiwbU...@posted.rawbandwidth>,
Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com> wrote:

> (Freakazoid fans, represent!)

Whoooooooooooooooooooosh!

Any show that can let Ricardo Montalban say the immortal line "I am
not a wienie! YOU are the wienie!" is way up on my list, for sure.
Almost as good was letting Ed Asner say "poo gas" as many times as
the S&P folks would let him.

> And what happened to Bugs Bunny? They did the other greats, but skipped
> Bugs? I would probably put Bugs Bunny as #1, simply for things like "What's
> Opera Doc" and "Bunny Of Seville". It's rare you get such a great

> combination of high culture and zany comedy in one package. Simpsons has
> done it ocassionally - like their spoof of The Raven (quoth the
> raven...Eat My Shorts!" LOL.)

And of course if Bugs is #1, Daffy Duck would have to be #2, just to
maintain the cosmic balance...

Cap.

--
Since 1989, recycling old jokes, cliches, and bad puns, one Usenet
post at a time!
Operation: Nerdwatch http://www.nerdwatch.com
Only email with "TO_CAP" somewhere in the subject has a chance of being read

[Don Del Grande]

Doug Jacobs wrote:

>And what happened to Bugs Bunny?

He's included, under "Looney Tunes".

-- Don

[Don Del Grande]

Anim8rFSK wrote:

> Don Del Grande wrote:
>
>> >11. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
>> >Original Air Date: 1959-1964
>> >Network: NBC
>>
>> Here's another one with DVD problems - the first three seasons of the
>> show came out like clockwork, but then, nothing. It's not as if the
>> company went out of business, as they have released "George of the
>> Jungle" on DVD since then.
>> Note that, for some strange reason, the show is called "Rocky &
>> Bullwinkle & Friends" on the DVDs - which is also what the pinball
>> machine based on the show is called.
>
>I'm the one that did the new titles (at least for one incarnation of
>DVDs)

You mean the titles that begin with the three trumpeters?

(And have you heard anything whatsoever as to Season 4 on DVD, even if
it's only an excuse they've given for not doing it?)

>and even I can't tell you why. I'm pretty sure it wasn't pinball
>related though.

I'm pretty sure of that as well - my point was, whatever presumably
legal reason they used to call the whole thing "Rocky & Bullwinkle &
Friends" has been around for a while.

-- Don

[Anim8rFSK]

In article <5crmp453e654s7v8t...@4ax.com>,

Don Del Grande <del_gra...@earthlink.net> wrote:

> Anim8rFSK wrote:
>
> > Don Del Grande wrote:
> >
> >> >11. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
> >> >Original Air Date: 1959-1964
> >> >Network: NBC
> >>
> >> Here's another one with DVD problems - the first three seasons of the
> >> show came out like clockwork, but then, nothing. It's not as if the
> >> company went out of business, as they have released "George of the
> >> Jungle" on DVD since then.
> >> Note that, for some strange reason, the show is called "Rocky &
> >> Bullwinkle & Friends" on the DVDs - which is also what the pinball
> >> machine based on the show is called.
> >
> >I'm the one that did the new titles (at least for one incarnation of
> >DVDs)
>
> You mean the titles that begin with the three trumpeters?

No, the ones we did have a billboard with Bullwinkle putting up the
title and Rocky flying past. There were other permutations, but that's
the one I was hands on with.

>
> (And have you heard anything whatsoever as to Season 4 on DVD, even if
> it's only an excuse they've given for not doing it?)

Nope, but I'll ask.

>
> >and even I can't tell you why. I'm pretty sure it wasn't pinball
> >related though.
>
> I'm pretty sure of that as well - my point was, whatever presumably
> legal reason they used to call the whole thing "Rocky & Bullwinkle &
> Friends" has been around for a while.

Since before the live action movie, certainly.

[Arnold Kim]

S.t.A.n.L.e.E wrote:
> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:22pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:
>
>> In rec.arts.anime.misc Freezer <free...@hotspamthismail.com> wrote:
>>>> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
>>>> version of Spider-Man ...
>>>
>>> Or Pirates of Dark Water. Or Kim Possible. Or Mighty Orbots. Or
>>> Rocko's Modern World. Or The PJs.
>>
>> The PJs? Seriously? If anything that set the whole adult animated
>> series movement BACK about 5 years. Not sure about Kim Possible
>> either. It just seems like your generic action hero or super spy
>> show.
>>
>
> No, KP is one of the few that actually has
> character and relationship development and progress.
> Previous eps matter in later eps, charas age and graduate,
> villains aren't always villains or good
> nor simply want to rule the world for the heck of it, etc.

And not just that, it's an extremely clever parody of the spy genre. Hell,
the show is worth it for the character of Shego alone.

Dr. Drakken: So, Kim Possible, you think to thwart my plan...
Shego: *Don't* stop to tell her the plan!
Dr. Drakken: I'll handle this, Shego!
Shego: Yeah, all I know is, every time you stop to blab about your big plan,
she wins!
Dr. Drakken: Oh, right.

Dr. Drakken: Is it Fish or Fishes? I can never tell.
Shego: [Shego says all of her lines without stopping her nail-filing] Fish
or Fishes.
Dr. Drakken: Well, which one is it?
Shego: Both are correct plural forms of the singular word Fish.
Dr. Drakken: You're very smug right now, aren't you?
Shego: A little bit.

Arnold Kim

[Your Name]

"Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)" <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in message
news:gnfoec$oj7$3...@news.motzarella.org...

>
> Unless this is just supposed to be a listing of the most
> popular/lucrative shows, I have no idea what drugs the rating people
> were on. There's utter crap mixed in with gems and most of it just
> Totally Lame.

Many of these "top 10" or "Top 100" lists are purely based on opinion, and
opinion's vary - one's man's garbage is another man's treasure. "Beavis &
Butthead" wouldn't even be worthy of consideration on my personal list of
animated shows, even if it was a "Top Billion" list.

[Freezer]

If I don't reply to this Doug Jacobs post, the terrorists win!

> RahXephon, Xam'd, and Brain Powerd haven't been shown on TV (I don't
> believe anyways) so they wouldn't count.

IIRC, RahXephon and Brain Powerd were both on TechTV's Anime Unleashed
(pre-merger)

--
My name is Freezer and my anti-drug is porn.
http://www.geocities.com/mysterysciencefreezer
http://freezer818.livejournal.com/

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:30pm-0000, Derek Janssen <eja...@nospam.verizon.net>:

> S.t.A.n.L.e.E wrote:
> >
> > > > > like JEM, which was one of the very few cartoons from the 80s that
> > > > > catered to girls who weren't into G.I. Joe.
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > > She-Ra!
> > >
> > > I can't say She-Ra was much of a girl's show either. Unless girls LIKE
> > > their heroines to be scantily clad, and to nothing but "money shot" type
> > > high kicks towards the camera.
> >
> > Y'mean, like Sailor Moon, ha! Ah, the camera angles.... ;-)
>
> Moon at least had a Japanese understanding of "What little girls wanted to
> see"--
>

Little girls wanted to see money shots?!

>
> She-Ra felt like it'd hired a girl's-demographic "educational consultant" to
> take normal assembly-line He-Man scripts and water the action and theme down
> so nobody got hurt (in the My Little Ponied spirit of 80's girls'-marketing):
> "Don't Put Mustard on the Cat" became "Don't Put Mustard on Your *Best
> Friend's* Cat"...
>

Because that's less dangerous. ;-)

[S.t.A.n.L.e.E]

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 6:20pm-0700, Anim8rFSK <ANIM...@cox.net>:

> In article <Pine.LNX.4.64.09...@uofr.net>,
> "S.t.A.n.L.e.E" <LostRu...@UofR.SlamSpam.net> wrote:
>
> > Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:22pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:
> >
> > > In rec.arts.anime.misc Freezer <free...@hotspamthismail.com> wrote:
> > > >> Or Reboot, or Dastardly and Muttley, or the truly *good* 1967-1970
> > > >> version of Spider-Man ...
> > > >
> > > > Or Pirates of Dark Water. Or Kim Possible. Or Mighty Orbots. Or Rocko's
> > > > Modern World. Or The PJs.
> > >
> > > The PJs? Seriously? If anything that set the whole adult animated series
> > > movement BACK about 5 years. Not sure about Kim Possible either. It just
> > > seems like your generic action hero or super spy show.
> > >
> >
> > No, KP is one of the few that actually has
> > character and relationship development and progress.
> > Previous eps matter in later eps, charas age and graduate,
> > villains aren't always villains or good
> > nor simply want to rule the world for the heck of it, etc.
>
> Friends fall in love. :)
>

KP and Shego aren't friends!

[Default User]

Captain Nerd wrote:

> In article <LZ6dnQsPtNzWiwbU...@posted.rawbandwidth>,
> Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com> wrote:

> > And what happened to Bugs Bunny? They did the other greats, but
> > skipped Bugs?

> And of course if Bugs is #1, Daffy Duck would have to be #2, just
> to maintain the cosmic balance...

That was part of the problem with the list, they lumped all of Looney
Tunes together at #3. Another questionable decision. I think certainly
Roadrunner/Wile E. Coyote and Bugs deserved separate consideration and
spots on the list.

Brian

--
Day 15 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project

[Invid Fan]

In article <Pine.LNX.4.64.09...@uofr.net>, S.t.A.n.L.e.E
<LostRu...@UofR.SlamSpam.net> wrote:

> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 2:02pm-0600, Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com>:
>
> > As for the Adult Swim shows, I agree they put too many of them in. Space
> > Ghost Coast To Coast was (still is) something special. And while I
> > enjoyed Sea Lab 2012 and Harvey Birdman, I don't know if I'd put them both
> > on my list, if they'd make it at all. Others, like Aqua Teen, or Frisky
> > Dingo I didn't really care for but personal taste is personal taste. I

> > find it odd they put Venture Bros. on without listing Jonny Quest though.

> > How can one fully enjoy the comedy of Venture Bros. without having a
> > proper grounding in the whole
> > adventures-of-a-boy-with-genius-super-science-father genre? I didn't
> > really like Johnny Quest much myself but it certainly pushed boundaries
> >
>
> Maybe as a corollary.
> A parody kinda needs the original to standout
> for the parody to work effectively.
> But that can open a whole new can of worms.
>
One reason Oscar Wilde went on a speaking tour of the US, so audiences
here could know who was being parodied in the new Gilbert and Sullivan
play :)

--
Chris Mack *quote under construction*
'Invid Fan'

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Default User <defaul...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> I find it odd they put Venture Bros. on
>> without listing Jonny Quest though.
>
> 77. Jonny Quest

Whoops, missed that.

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Antonio E. Gonzalez <AntE...@aol.com> wrote:
>>> "Eureka 7"?
>>> "Big O"?
>>
>> Hm. I saw more GR influence crossed with Batman, but I only saw pieces
>>of it.
>>
>
> "GR"? The Batman influence is almost too blatant, down to the
> snarky butler; also a dash of 007 . . .

Well, Giant Robo (the ORIGINAL, live action one that is) did have the
weekly bad guy plot to take over the world/city which culminated in the
launching of Giant Robo who might as well be a spiritual ancestor of Big
O's character design.

Anyways, wasn't Big O done by the same studio that did the Batman Animated
Series? I heard they were told to create an anime with the premise of
what would happen if Bruce Wayne had a giant robot...? The show didn't go
over well with the Japanese, though I can't imagine why

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Freezer <free...@hotspamthismail.com> wrote:

> If I don't reply to this Doug Jacobs post, the terrorists win!
>
>> RahXephon, Xam'd, and Brain Powerd haven't been shown on TV (I don't
>> believe anyways) so they wouldn't count.

Ah.

But...didn't they have to cut out the opening of Brain Powerd, which
inexplicably featured the main female character flying around naked, and
was jokingly referred to as the best part of the show?

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Ansgar -59cobalt- Wiechers <usene...@planetcobalt.net> wrote:
> In rec.arts.anime.misc Doug Jacobs <dja...@rawbw.com> wrote:

>> In rec.arts.anime.misc Invid Fan <in...@loclanet.com> wrote:
>>> And no Daria or Exo Squad.
>>

>> Daria is definitely a notable abscense.
>
> The list has Beavis and Butt-head, so it's not a total lack of Daria.

Daria isn't nearly as snarky in Beavis & Butthead as she is in her own
series. She usually just pauses, then walks offscreen. And really, what
could she possibly say that would impact them, their actions, or the show
in general?

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc S.t.A.n.L.e.E <LostRu...@uofr.slamspam.net> wrote:

> Heh, I'm reminded of this post on this very same forum
> all those years ago:
>
> http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.animation/msg/f7dee3a1c51217ae

Hehe. "run from the room screaming"

I was listening to the commentary track during 'Bestest Friend' on the
DVD. They were in the cafeteria at Nickelodeon studios, and that episode
was playing on the TVs there. When the kid opened Zim's gift, which rips
out his eyes and replaces them with the devious robotic ones Zim built,
the entire cafeteria went silent.

Bestest Friend was also the first episode I saw on TV, and my roommate and
I couldn't believe they were able to do that on Nickelodeon of all
places. At that point, I knew this was no kid's show, much less a normal
show...

The second clue was the ice cream truck outside the "skool" blaring in a
vaguely Ahhhnold-style voice "Ice Cream. You Want Ice Cream. You Love
It!" Oh man, that show was packed full of sound bite goodness, including
the quote I use for my .sig:

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Derek Janssen <eja...@nospam.verizon.net> wrote:
> She-Ra felt like it'd hired a girl's-demographic "educational
> consultant" to take normal assembly-line He-Man scripts and water the
> action and theme down so nobody got hurt (in the My Little Ponied spirit
> of 80's girls'-marketing):
> "Don't Put Mustard on the Cat" became "Don't Put Mustard on Your *Best
> Friend's* Cat"...

Sad but true.

But this made me think of the Kids In The Hall skit about don't put salt
in your eye. Don't put salt in your eye. Don't. Put. Salt. In. Your.
Eye. Your eye. Don't. Put Salt In Your Eye. Put Salt In Your Eye. Put
salt in your eye. Ahhh! It burns!

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Your Name <your...@isp.com> wrote:
> Many of these "top 10" or "Top 100" lists are purely based on opinion, and
> opinion's vary - one's man's garbage is another man's treasure. "Beavis &
> Butthead" wouldn't even be worthy of consideration on my personal list of
> animated shows, even if it was a "Top Billion" list.

I wasn't clear on IGN's criteria for selecting the shows.

If we're talking about cultural impact, Beavis & Butthead probably deserve
to be on the list if for no other reason than it was a cartoon that
wasn't for kids and definitely wasn't trying to be family friendly nor
PC. I would say it helped open the door for later shows, like South Park
although arguably South Park could be considered the better show because
of its writing. These shows all helped to dispell the idea that animated
shows are only for kids.

[Default User]

Doug Jacobs wrote:

> In rec.arts.anime.misc Default User <defaul...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> >> I find it odd they put Venture Bros. on
> >> without listing Jonny Quest though.
> >
> > 77. Jonny Quest
>
> Whoops, missed that.

Yeah, it was kind of tough with the full list. I put together one with
just titles elsethread that's somewhat easier to scan.

Brian

--
Day 15 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project

[Arnold Kim]

S.t.A.n.L.e.E wrote:
> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:30pm-0000, Derek Janssen
> <eja...@nospam.verizon.net>:
>
>> S.t.A.n.L.e.E wrote:
>>>
>>>>>> like JEM, which was one of the very few cartoons from the 80s
>>>>>> that catered to girls who weren't into G.I. Joe.
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> She-Ra!
>>>>
>>>> I can't say She-Ra was much of a girl's show either. Unless girls
>>>> LIKE their heroines to be scantily clad, and to nothing but "money
>>>> shot" type high kicks towards the camera.
>>>
>>> Y'mean, like Sailor Moon, ha! Ah, the camera angles.... ;-)
>>
>> Moon at least had a Japanese understanding of "What little girls
>> wanted to see"--
>>
>
> Little girls wanted to see money shots?!

"Money shots?" I don't think they'd get -that- version of Sailor Moon
without paying $29.95 a month...

Arnold Kim

[Gerardo Campos]

"Default User" <defaul...@yahoo.com> wrote on Tue 17 Feb 2009
07:25:20p:

Thanks, the problem with lists is that reflects the tastes and opinions of
the person that creates them, so here is what I think:

Add to the list:

Daria, (With all the songs in this show, it made sense that this show was
in MTV)
Swat Kats, (There were no idiotic sidekicks, and Feral was some what
competent outside of catching the Swat Kats and until requesting "Choper
support"
Hey Arnold! (Rugrats and Sponge Bob made it to the list, and actually
wanted to have something to develop between Phoebe and Gerald)

And lastly, where are all the Disney cartoons that started as theatrical
shows? where are the Goofy, Mickey, Donald, Pluto cartoons?, I mean,
Popeye, Tom & Jerry, Looney Tunes, Woody Woodpecker started as therical
shorts, so I do not understand why are those missing from the list.

Remove from the list:

MASK, Dungeon and Dragons, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, The Critic,
I enjoyed Underdog, but I don't think it is so popular to make the top 100

--
Saludos
Gerardo Campos

[Your Name]

"Doug Jacobs" <dja...@rawbw.com> wrote in message
news:TLCdnauBxL0I7QHU...@posted.rawbandwidth...

Animated shows (like comic books / strips) weren't for kids in the first
place, but somewhere along the line that did change.

The sheer juvenile nature of Beavis & Butthead actually means kids would
hopefully be the only ones who would want to watch it, or immature people
who haven't actually grown up ... unfortunately that last bit covers about
90% of the human race in western countries.

[Ansgar -59cobalt- Wiechers]

Even though some people seem to confuse "being grown up" with "having
your head stuck up your ass" the two are not the same.

cu
59cobalt
--
"My surname is Li and my personal name is Kao, and there is a slight
flaw in my character."
--Li Kao (Barry Hughart: Bridge of Birds)

[hcobb]

On Feb 18, 8:00 pm, Gerardo Campos <macr...@mx1.ibm.com> wrote:
> I enjoyed Underdog, but I don't think it is so popular to make the top 100

But it was a cultural phenomena. Any show that generated a catch
phrase that a third of the country knows deserves in.

-HJC

[Invid Fan]

In article <Xns9BB6DFE3...@130.133.1.18>, Gerardo Campos
<mac...@mx1.ibm.com> wrote:

> And lastly, where are all the Disney cartoons that started as theatrical
> shows? where are the Goofy, Mickey, Donald, Pluto cartoons?, I mean,
> Popeye, Tom & Jerry, Looney Tunes, Woody Woodpecker started as therical
> shorts, so I do not understand why are those missing from the list.
>

The only argument you could make against the Disney shorts is they've
never been seen on TV outside The Disney Channel. No repackaging and
airing on a network as WB did with their shorts. Thus, generations of
kids never really saw much of them.

[B Sellers]

Disney used to have a show hosted by Uncle Walt on ABC. They ran
some classic cartoons from the old days past once in a while but of course
none of the war time stuff with heavy propaganda content. Mickey introduced
the cartoons once in a while and the Duck et al waa a regular. All the
classic
characters were shown off before they were rethought and revised for more
thrills and merchandise tie-ins.

later
bliss

[Invid Fan]

In article <706ak6F...@mid.individual.net>, B Sellers
<bl...@sfo.com> wrote:

But I wouldn't count Mickey Mouse as a tv series based on that (any
more then I would count it because of airings on the Mickey Mouse
Club).

[Doug Jacobs]

In rec.arts.anime.misc Gerardo Campos <mac...@mx1.ibm.com> wrote:

> Daria, (With all the songs in this show, it made sense that this show was
> in MTV)
> Swat Kats, (There were no idiotic sidekicks, and Feral was some what
> competent outside of catching the Swat Kats and until requesting "Choper
> support"
> Hey Arnold! (Rugrats and Sponge Bob made it to the list, and actually
> wanted to have something to develop between Phoebe and Gerald)
>
> And lastly, where are all the Disney cartoons that started as theatrical
> shows? where are the Goofy, Mickey, Donald, Pluto cartoons?, I mean,
> Popeye, Tom & Jerry, Looney Tunes, Woody Woodpecker started as therical
> shorts, so I do not understand why are those missing from the list.

The list was for cartoon series. While Bugs Bunny, Woody Woodpecker, and
others were originally theatrical shorts, they were reassemelbed into a
syndicated 30 minute shows. Although, what constitutes as being televised
as a series? I'm pretty sure the old Mickey Mouse Club, and Walt Disney
Presents both aired theatrical shorts. So...?

> Remove from the list:
>
> MASK, Dungeon and Dragons, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, The Critic,
> I enjoyed Underdog, but I don't think it is so popular to make the top 100

Any list is largely going to be based on personal taste. Although I
really can't understand why MASK was on the list at all. Even if you're
looking at toy-etic series, there were MUCH better shows on at the time.

Space Ghost Coast To Coast I'd leave on not just because of its zany
premise, but because it also helped launch Adult Swim which in turn
exposed folks to dozens of shows that were NOT heavily censored or editted
as we'd seen with previous shows. For instance, can you imagine Cartoon
Network ever running Cowboy Bebop outside of Adult Swim? Even if they
tried, they'd end up having to hack it to shreds to remove the blood and
death from it. I'm not even sure if the "magic mushroom" episode would
have been left intact.

[Your Name]

"Marty Fremen" <Ma...@fremen.invalid> wrote in message
news:Xns9BB9F0F...@212.23.3.119...
> rob...@deadspam.com (Rob Kelk) wrote:
>
<snip>
>
> Powerpuff Girls ... it was a very astute satire on the superhero
> genre and has a wonderful 1960s/Adam West Batman era atmosphere.

Errr ... No, I don't think so, Tim. ;-)

Besides, like too many animated shows these days, it looks like it was drawn
by a five year old with a budget of about 50c and only three different
coloured crayons.

[sanjian]

Poorly-drawn makes it hip, don't you know?

[Your Name]

"sanjian" <mun...@vt.edu> wrote in message
news:2dKdnSFghppHBz3U...@posted.internetamerica...

Well, you know what comes out just below your hips ... most people flush it
away, not put it on TV for kids to watch. ;-)

[Frank J. Lhota]

I'm with Tim here: I thought the series was a hilarious send-up of the
superhero genre. As to the Adam West Batman atmosphere, that was
intentional. Craig McCracken has said in interviews that the 60's Batman
was one of the influences for the series.

--
"All things extant in this world,
Gods of Heaven, gods of Earth,
Let everything be as it should be;
Thus shall it be!"
- Magical chant from "Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi"

"Drizzle, Drazzle, Drozzle, Drome,
Time for this one to come home!"
- Mr. Wizard from "Tooter Turtle"

[Derek Janssen]

Frank J. Lhota wrote:
>>
>>> Powerpuff Girls ... it was a very astute satire on the superhero
>>> genre and has a wonderful 1960s/Adam West Batman era atmosphere
>>

>> Errr ... No, I don't think so, Tim. ;-)
>>
>> Besides, like too many animated shows these days, it looks like it was
>> drawn
>> by a five year old with a budget of about 50c and only three different
>> coloured crayons
>

> I'm with Tim here: I thought the series was a hilarious send-up of the
> superhero genre. As to the Adam West Batman atmosphere, that was
> intentional. Craig McCracken has said in interviews that the 60's Batman
> was one of the influences for the series.

Ie., "Remember when you thought Batman was superhero-cool, and then you
saw it years later and found out it was supposed to be all campy-like?"
Uh, yeah, remember wanting to either punch the producer or sneer at
backwards pre-Christopher Reeve 60's audiences, and continue to take the
high road in defending Caesar Romero and Burgess Meredith's
contributions to comic-culture in spite of all...

What McCracken found out with the '02 Massacre of Little Big Movie, is
exactly the dark side of what he was "homaging"--Little kids DON'T WANT
to watch pop-kitsch "camp". Only dopey high-school-retentive college
kids do.
For every seven-year gap generation, there is that one first thunderbolt
pre-school/Saturday-morning exposure to the idea that there are these
strange people called "superheroes" who happen to have really cool jobs
(George Reeves, Adam West, Superfriends, the Incredibles, Spiderman),
which is a new revelation from on high that most of that age have
literally never been exposed to in their life before...At least,
assuming that 4-yo. is too young to have ever read Chris Claremont's
Dark Phoenix Saga.
(At our house, we've got one generation who grew up in their formative
years believing Dash Parr to have been the coolest hero ever, and has
now moved on to Word Girl....WORD FREAKIN' GIRL, fer cryin' out loud.
And given how shamlessly WG plagiarizes the Puffs script for script,
we've kept said generation away from any cable or DVD exposure, for
their own safety. Don't want *that* mistake to happen again.)

Little girls were watching the Puffs because they wanted to BE the Puffs
(in addition to "Because they didn't know any better")...Not because
they wanted to pay camped-out pop-kitsch tribute to Mojo Jojo being a
"homage" to Speed Racer, or how much the animation was supposed to look
like old Ralph Bakshi series. When the show lost that focus, they lost
the last audience that still cared about them.
When the Puffs' appeal became the Incredibles' became the Titans' became
X-Men:Evolution's became Iron Man's, well, Craig, that's show
biz...What, you were expecting something else?

Derek Janssen
eja...@verizon.net

[Frank J. Lhota]

Derek Janssen wrote:
> Ie., "Remember when you thought Batman was superhero-cool, and then you
> saw it years later and found out it was supposed to be all campy-like?"
> Uh, yeah, remember wanting to either punch the producer or sneer at
> backwards pre-Christopher Reeve 60's audiences, and continue to take the
> high road in defending Caesar Romero and Burgess Meredith's
> contributions to comic-culture in spite of all...

I was a kid when the Adam West Batman premiered, and as collector of the
comic books, I had hoped for a straighter screen adaptation. But I
quickly found myself enjoying the TV Batman for what it was, a hip and
funny send-up of the genre. Granted, I knew kids my age who were angry
at seeing our hero portrayed in such a campy fashion, but for the most
part, those kids grew up, chilled out, and learned to have a few laughs
with the series. As a result, Batman was syndicated to the major markets
literally for decades.

I will grant you that the show did run out of steam in its last season,
but I attribute that to the fact that Craig McCracken had basically
moved on to "Foster's", and hence limited his involvement in the
Powerpuffs to being executive producer. But in its first years, the
Powerpuff Girls was the CN's highest rated show on several continents,
and is undoubtedly the biggest hit they've ever had. Why do you think
they chose the girls for their first feature film outing?

[Patrick McNamara]

"Frank J. Lhota" <FrankLh...@rcn.com> wrote in message
news:gnu5pv$snn$1...@news.albasani.net...

> Derek Janssen wrote:
>> Ie., "Remember when you thought Batman was superhero-cool, and then you
>> saw it years later and found out it was supposed to be all campy-like?"
>> Uh, yeah, remember wanting to either punch the producer or sneer at
>> backwards pre-Christopher Reeve 60's audiences, and continue to take the
>> high road in defending Caesar Romero and Burgess Meredith's contributions
>> to comic-culture in spite of all...
>
> I was a kid when the Adam West Batman premiered, and as collector of the
> comic books, I had hoped for a straighter screen adaptation. But I
> quickly found myself enjoying the TV Batman for what it was, a hip and
> funny send-up of the genre. Granted, I knew kids my age who were angry
> at seeing our hero portrayed in such a campy fashion, but for the most
> part, those kids grew up, chilled out, and learned to have a few laughs
> with the series. As a result, Batman was syndicated to the major markets
> literally for decades.
>

The comic books themselves at the time weren't much better, which is
probably what contributed to the series' character. And it was never about
Batman but the villains whom one always rooted for. It was really the great
villains who kept it on the air. Besides, it's not like there was anything
else on TV at the time to compare it with, aside from maybe old George
Reeves Superman. And there was no Nickelodeon or even cable channels at the
time so it was often a case of watching it or something boring, especially
when it syndicated after school.

--
Patrick McNamara
E-mail: patjmc...@gmail.com
Webpage: http://www.geocities.com/writerpatrick
Podcast Ping podcast: http://podcastping.blogspot.com
Torrentcast: http://www.mininova.org/rss.xml?user=PodcastPing

[Derek Janssen]

Frank J. Lhota wrote:

> Derek Janssen wrote

>
>> What McCracken found out with the '02 Massacre of Little Big Movie, is
>> exactly the dark side of what he was "homaging"--Little kids DON'T
>> WANT to watch pop-kitsch "camp". Only dopey high-school-retentive
>> college kids do.

> I will grant you that the show did run out of steam in its last season,

> but I attribute that to the fact that Craig McCracken had basically
> moved on to "Foster's", and hence limited his involvement in the
> Powerpuffs to being executive producer. But in its first years, the
> Powerpuff Girls was the CN's highest rated show on several continents,
> and is undoubtedly the biggest hit they've ever had. Why do you think
> they chose the girls for their first feature film outing?

Um, because Warner's own "King & I" and "Cats Don't Dance" (and, sadly,
"Iron Giant") had essentially killed off the
3rd-Party-Disney-Knockbuster industry in the 90's for good singlehandedly?
So every studio with a cable-network arm was going to switch gears and
follow the one engine that WAS still driving third-party animateds in
'98-'00, namely Paramount/Nickelodeon's Rugrats movies?

And a jealous Warner/CN/Turner essentially hypnotizing themselves with
their own inside crosspromotions, until they genuinely believed that the
Puffs really *was* the most watched show on cable, and that they had the
next corporately demographic-marketed High School Musical on their
hands, real audience be darned?
Still, airing ads LITERALLY every other commercial on CN's own insider
niche wouldn't hurt, just in case. (Or would it? 9_9 )

Derek Janssen (think that was the reason they made it, anyway, no one's
really sure)
eja...@verizon.net