Poll: Is it just me, or were cartoons better when I was a kid?

[Hollock]

I think it's like 40% nostalgia 60% the fact that it's getting worse and 20% apples with triangles in them.

 

[Silva]

No, cartoons were always pretty unsophisticated forms of entertainment.

Mind you, there are classics that will probably never be beat, even in the cartoon world. Most of them actually came before the ones you mention in the OP.

With that said, I did like Darkwing Duck when I was a kid. <url=http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ptitle09g6pwfjt7ot?from=Main.LetsGetDangerous>LETH GET DANGEROUTH~!

-image snipped-

Spot the reference and win a prize!

Well, I know that's a screenshot from a room in Half Life. But I know that the car on the monitor isn't usually there. I've got no clue what the actual reference is. Not Drawn Together or anything, is it? I'm probably way off.

 

[S-Unleashed]

In the 90's after the success of Roger Rabbit, for a short time, cartoons were respected and people became nostalgic of the 40 and 50's cartoons. Animation became something that can be for both children and adults, and doesn't have to look down on children like the last 30 years had been moving towards. However, that age quickly died with three things. Anime started to come over to America in large amounts, Pokemon, Digemon, what-ever-emon. They were getting as high, or higher ratings then locally made cartoons and were far cheaper to redub. Cartoons for adults also came about with the success of the Simspons, meaning that having sexual innuednos or other adult entertainment hidden in cartoons like Animaniacs was unneeded. Finally, the big boy of television animation, Warner Brothers, shut down most of the animation studio since their finical flop of the 90 animated films (4 out of the 5 animated Warner brothers films didn't even make money, and I think the filth was Space Jam). With all adult audiences going to other shows, and all the kids going to anime, Western animation did the only thing it could do to survive, cut-back budgets, copy anime, and lose all quality.

Dear God, it all makes sense now... We finally know why the downfall of good cartoons came... We must rise up and destroy anime! Every bit of the manga and poorly dubbed films that classifies as anime must be BURNED!

I'm sorry but now I have to kill you.

 

[Kawatoo]

Oh I love you for mentioning Johnny Bravo.

You're not mistaken. Cartoons are worse nowadays. Much much worse.

 

[RathWolf]

No, cartoons were always pretty unsophisticated forms of entertainment.

Eh. I don't think that applies in all cases. Especially around the late-ninties, they were taking more chances with animation. I realize I keep bringing it up, but the quintessential example of this would probably be Samurai Jack. It was serious, well written, and incredibly well directed.

 

[drisky]

In the 90's after the success of Roger Rabbit, for a short time, cartoons were respected and people became nostalgic of the 40 and 50's cartoons. Animation became something that can be for both children and adults, and doesn't have to look down on children like the last 30 years had been moving towards. However, that age quickly died with three things. Anime started to come over to America in large amounts, Pokemon, Digemon, what-ever-emon. They were getting as high, or higher ratings then locally made cartoons and were far cheaper to redub. Cartoons for adults also came about with the success of the Simspons, meaning that having sexual innuednos or other adult entertainment hidden in cartoons like Animaniacs was unneeded. Finally, the big boy of television animation, Warner Brothers, shut down most of the animation studio since their finical flop of the 90 animated films (4 out of the 5 animated Warner brothers films didn't even make money, and I think the filth was Space Jam). With all adult audiences going to other shows, and all the kids going to anime, Western animation did the only thing it could do to survive, cut-back budgets, copy anime, and lose all quality.

The problem with that is the only western anime that was really successful was avatar. The current trend is to be as manic and sugar induced as possible. Now this can be good (like flapjack in my opinion) or very very bad (like FanBoy and Chum Chum).

 

[Jaded Scribe]

I miss Animaniacs. And the "Disney Afternoon" shows. Definately better when we were kids. Though there's a few I watch with my kids that I get a kick out of:

Chowder
Spongebob
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Fairly Odd Parents
Danny Phantom

 

[Ldude893]

Yes, the cartoons were much better during the 90's. Back then, Cartoon Network actually made me laugh, they had cartoons like Ed, Edd n' Eddy, Dexter's Lab and Courage the Cowardly Dog. It's sad that they're all gone.

I never heard or knew of the Simpsons back then but at the time it was a golden cartoon and it was phenomenon. After 21 years, it's now aging and on life support.

 

[Silva]

Eh. I don't think that applies in all cases. Especially around the late-ninties, they were taking more chances with animation. I realize I keep bringing it up, but the quintessential example of this would probably be Samurai Jack. It was serious, well written, and incredibly well directed.

Samurai Jack? Really? I did see one or two episodes, but I guess they were the comical ones, and I don't recall the jokes being mature, because it came off as a kid's show to me. And kid's shows, while they can be sophisticated in the sense that they're made in a cynical way to appeal to young eyes and hearts, aren't really sophisticated in the sense that I meant.

 

[SlowShootinPete]

Older cartoons were better and much more creative
new cartoons are stupid snot jokes and bright colors

Spoiler

Spot the reference and win a prize!

Inspecter Gadget FTW

Victory.

Spoiler

Man, it's been ages since I watched that show. It was great.

 

[DangerFish]

Whoever posted that Courage the Cowardly Dog clip, ILY.

God, I used to stay up as late as possible JUST to watch that show.

Did this bastard give you the creeps?

"RETURN THE SLAAABBBB, OR SUFFER MY CUUURRRSEEEE!"​

Tell me I'm not the only one :l

King Ramses
the man god the man god

best song ever

 

[RathWolf]

Eh. I don't think that applies in all cases. Especially around the late-ninties, they were taking more chances with animation. I realize I keep bringing it up, but the quintessential example of this would probably be Samurai Jack. It was serious, well written, and incredibly well directed.

Samurai Jack? Really? I did see one or two episodes, but I guess they were the comical ones, and I don't recall the jokes being mature, because it came off as a kid's show to me. And kid's shows, while they can be sophisticated in the sense that they're made in a cynical way to appeal to young eyes and hearts, aren't really sophisticated in the sense that I meant.

Hmm. Perhaps it's just because we're remembering different episodes. The ones I remember were extremely stylized, had little to no jokes, and just looked amazing. But then again, those ones probably didn't get shown as much, as they weren't as appealing to younger children.

 

[triplea]

Anyone who doesn't like Spongebob is an elitist pig, the show is genius.

But yeah overall I agree, cartoons were far better in the 90s. Courage the Cowardly Dog, Johnny Bravo, basically all of the old Cartoon Cartoons were straight up awesome. These days they're more or less replaced by MTV Jr. or garbage like Johnny Test.

 

[GnomeThief]

Whoever posted that Courage the Cowardly Dog clip, ILY.

God, I used to stay up as late as possible JUST to watch that show.

Did this bastard give you the creeps?

"RETURN THE SLAAABBBB, OR SUFFER MY CUUURRRSEEEE!"​

Tell me I'm not the only one :l

God yes! He used to scare me so much!



I really miss Courage. I loved all the villains like Katz and Le Quack, and all the weird characters like Dr. Vindaloo. Why did it all have to end?

 

[erbkaiser]

Cartoons were better, now it's all Japanese Pokemon-crap or the equally horrid soulless Disney productions.

Warner Bros. was the last great cartoon studio.

Okay I'll admit there are some current ones that are worthwhile, but they're drowned in a flood of garbage.

 

[SD-Fiend]

I was just thinking of this whe I was a kid it was ( and still is ) my dream to be a cartoon and have adventures with Bonkers t. Bobcat the gummi bears darkwing duck and all the others but now cartoons don't have that same spark of enjoyment and are either gross (flapjack) or stupid (super hero squad show).

 

[Feste the Jester]

I think cartoons took far more risks when we were kids, as such, adults were able to relate with them as well.

I think that, now that we've grown, we're able to appreciate the subtle references to more adult-oriented themes that most shows (namely, the 90's) had used so wildly, to a much greater extent.
Case in point:
You could never show this today. The mixture of pedophilia/psychotic tendencies, as subtle as they may be, would make parents break out in a cold sweat.

the psychotic tendencies are as about as subtle as being hit upside the head.

EDIT: Although as a young kid it may have been harder to spot.

 

[DarkDain]

Wow i've actually been looking at old animaniacs clips on youtube and its way better than anything these days, and even educational too.

 

[RatRace123]

It used to go like this back in my day: Nick and Cartoon Network were host to some of the zaniest but still insanely well written shows, they not only appealed to kids but adults as well

If you're thinking what I'm thinking, those shows tended to be from Warner Bros. animation though. Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain...

Indeed, those shows did switch networks from Cartoon to Nick, I can't remember which first, but I distinctly remember watching those WB shows on both channels.

 

[Thirsk]

Yeah, I guess toons were better back then.

And the kids of today are likely to be saying the exact same thing about their favorite, contemporary shows in ten years, I think.