Ten Cartoon Shows for The Adults:

Face it, cartoons were not made for children originally. They began as frames on cave walls and even with the birth of film; animation was an Avant Guard art forum. Animation would not get its first break out star until 1919 which that honor would be bestowed on Felix The Cat. Soon, others would come and Felix would be outshined by most of them. Mostly notability Mickey Mouse. Now in the golden age of quality animation (1920’s-1950’s); the cartoons that were made, were aimed at adults. It seems that children were discouraged from going to the local cinema back in the day and long before we had content ratings. These early shorts and a few full length animated films (mostly by Walt Disney) were tame compared to many of today’s television Adult Cartoon shows. This list is focused onanimated programs that are targeted and/or written towards the adult viewer even if they were given a time slot aimed at children, and three on this list were…but as reminder once again; they did intend to appeal towards the adult viewer.

1. The Simpsons: This one really popularized the adult cartoon program at least in our generation, although in its early years it had its appeal with children and teens, especially the disrespectful (by design) eldest child of the family Bart Simpson (who also got an international pop hit with “Do the Bartman”). But overall the success of this spinoff(which would become the first top 30 program for then newcomer FOX Broadcasting) from Tracy Ullman’s mostly forgotten sketch comedy show was not about the disrespectful child, but how The Simpsons overall mocks blue collar America, American culture and society, its media, celebrities (many of them appeared as guest stars playing other characters and even themselves) and the overall human condition. It’s now the longest running overall American Prime Time series and is scheduled to run at least until 2019, which by then it will be in the middle of its 30th Season.

2. Batman: The Animated Series: Thanks to Tim Burton’s box office adaptations of The Dark Knight, Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski developed an animated series based on Burton’s interpretation of Batman and making the comedic (and morally conscience) versions (especially the Adam West/Burt Ward era) of the Caped Crusaderjust a novelty of the past…or not (i.e. the 2016 animated movie “Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders” and the upcoming “Batman vs. Two-Face”).

The DC animated universe would enjoy a 13-year run beginning with this adaptation of Batman (along with Superman, Justice League and The Zeta Project) which is written like an adult prime time drama, and would have certain scenes without a music underscore and Bruce Wayne doing what he normally does when he is not under the cowl….and then some. However, the action scenes do incorporate the use of guns (only Commissioner Gordon was depicted being shot in the series) and realistic physical violence unlike the “POW,” “BAM!” “ZONK!” violence of the West/Ward era. It was also famous for bringing long time Batman villain Harvey Two Face to the little screen (and before the big screen) and the introduction of Harley Quinn who would become a permanent part of Batman’s rouge galley of his famous villains and villainess.

This animated Batman TV series would run for 85 episodes and would be followed up with a sequel that brings on a new Robin (Tim Drake) taking the place of the old one becoming Nightwing (Dick Grayson), and the futuristic “Batman Beyond/of The Future” as the teenage Terry McGinnis takes a job working for Bruce Wayne as his cover for becoming the new Batman. I will say that this Batman series and its successors would eventually allow the West/Ward Batman and Robin to finally take on Two-Face (voiced by Star Trek’s William Shatner) in their cheesy universe (even if just in animation form)…and it should be a great swan song for Adam West who reprised his role as Bruce Wayne/Batman one more time before he passed.

3. Futurama: Philip J. Fry was just a pizza delivery boy in the year 1999, until he accidentally falls into a cryogenic tank and is not thawed out until 2999. He almost becomes a pizza delivery boy in this brave new world but eventually finds work with an interplanetary delivery company, and navigates a far future world where the problems stay the same but just more magnified than they were many years ago. It ran from 1999-2003 on FOX and from 2008-2013 on Comedy Central. There was more to Matt Groening vision of the future other than the future itself or the fact that the characters were colored corrected unlike The Simpsons’ famous use of coloring the lighter (or clearer) characters yellow.

4. Rocky & Bullwinkle: “Hokey Smoke Bullwinkle,” or so says Rocket J. “Rocky” Squirrel who is the bright faithful companion to the dimwitted Bullwinkle Moose. The show overall comes across as a variety show with the leads of the program doing a series of serialized adventures with lots of cliffhangers (doubled titled instalments were the rule) along the way before the story line is finally resolved. The show was known for its well written quality and its cultural satire of its day.

The variety show style format allowed for other elements that are not directly connected to “Moose and Squirrel” to be featured; including “Peabody’s Improbable History” featuring a speaking dog and his pet boy (who finally got their own movie and TV series recently) and “Fractured Fairy Tales” which featured the old fairy tales (and even a few brand-new ones inspired by the genre) all done in comic fashion.

During its original run, the show was aired in afternoons to complement American Bandstand (which was a daily show back in the day) so while it aimed for a young audience, the shows content did contain the jokes only the adults could understand. While the show ended its first run in 1964 it would continue to be reran on various outlets. So, while it did mock certain things of the day…Rocky & Bullwinkle proved to be timeless. Oh and Rocky, we really like it when Bullwinkle tries to “pull a rabbit out of his hat” time and again…or that is what we are supposed to think.

5. South Park: Since 1997, classmates Trey Parker and Matt Stone have been taking their fans into the Rocky Mountains of Colorado to a small town called South Park which is not a real Colorado town but based on agrassland flat within the basin formed by theMosquito and Park Mountain Ranges and it was this region of Colorado that co-creator Parker grew up in. Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormick are the four boys and leads of the series.

Life in their small town is not dull at all, and full of adventures. Especially when South Park deals with over the top situations from the supernatural to the extraordinary. The show is a combination of slapstick and shock value, and the use of profane language, although Parker and Stone will self-censor when they feel the need or have to (like when the show aired on broadcast syndication).

The show’s animation style is that of paper cartoons, and while the first episode was indeed shot using construction paper and cutouts, computers quickly took over the role of making the animation and soon after it took less time to produce and the duo could come up with relative storylines reflecting the personalities and issues of the day ASAP (especially when they mirrored the raid forElián González only with Kenny McCormick in Elian’s place instead, and Kenny himself has been known to be killed off frequently but magically comes back somehow). Parker & Stone are still taking us to South Park and still mocking American Culture, Politics, and its celebrities with their brand of humor.

6. King of The Hill: King of The Hill which was co-created by Mike Judge (Beavis and Butt-Head) was among the few if not the only animated sitcom which stayed closer to the kitchen sink (sort of speak) and focused more on the everyday slice of life and not going into the surreal like many other animated shows were known for. The shows main family was the Hill’s, its King in the title is family patriarch Hank Hill who makes an honest living selling propane. Peggy is Hank’s wife who is a substitute Spanish teacher turned freelance writer, turned notary public etc. Their only son Bobby, is well liked but makes a lot of mistakes.

While Luanne Platter is the niece of Peggy, Hank does finally accept as part of the family core. The family dog Ladybird in spite of being a dog is treated like a fellow human being by Hank. In spite of being real while being animated, “King of Hill” could go and do more location shots and things that a live action sitcom could not do due to budgetary restrictions, like the episode in which Hank and Peggy Hill and caught up in a mystery party on a train as part of Peggy wanted to have a great Birthday for a change, only to deal with some comedic mayhem along the way. No need to construct a passenger car on a soundstage and then some, whenyou’re dealing with just two-dimensional drawings. One can hope that this series gets to make a comeback very soon.

7. Space Ghost: Coast to Coast: Originally Space Ghost was just another Saturday Morning cartoon show created by Alex Toth, William Hanna, and Joseph Barbera and was just another stereotypical space hero who was originally voiced by famed radio and voice over personality Gary Owens. In the early 1990’s Mike Lazzo would take Space Ghost to new heights as he replaced Owens baritone styled voice with George Lowe who made Space Ghost sound more like your typical late-night talker…only with a much more bloated ego. The show’s early years were made into a serious late-night talk show but as it evolved the show went more for the jugular and was made not to be taken seriously; but it did make “Space Ghost: Coast to Coast” much funnier.

The show used real guests throughout the show’s run and the Ghost always believed that they were superheroes of some kind.His support team consisted of his archenemies and they traded jabs with Space Ghost, especially bandleader Zorak, and one in a while Space Ghost was not afraid to use his arm laser weapon on them or even his guests should he get tired of them. Space Ghost: Coast to Coast would lay the ground work for not only for the Adult Swim program block on Cartoon Network, but the Williams Street production studio which is the parent of Cartoon Network and Turner Broadcasting and overall corporate owner Time Warner. Williams Street would oversee production of Adult Swim originals Metalocalypse, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and Robot Chicken. Williams Street also got into live action works including “The Eric Andre Show,” and shows that mix both live action and animation (“Dream Corp, LLC,”“Off The Air”)

8. Animaniacs: After creating “Tiny Toon Adventures” which was based on and used the original Looney Tunes characters as teachers of characters younger and similar to them, Tom Ruegger created another series based on the golden age of Warner Bros. animation. That would be Animaniacs. While this animated variety show was a hit on FOX’s afternoon kids’ lineup (before moving to The WB’s kids lineup), the show did use a lot of adult humor and had as part of its intent to appeal to the parents and other adults alike.

The shows main character’s (The Warner Bros. and The Warner Sister) were patterned after the likes of Jerry Lewis, the Marx Brothers and a dash of the Beatles as well. According to Animaniacs’s story bible, the Warner’s were created to be part of a series of animated shorts for their famed animation department. They were too hard to handle and their brand of humor was seen as over the top. They locked up their work a in vault someplace to be forgotten and the Warners got locked up in studio’s tower forever…until they decided to finally leave….but are content in making the tower their home still. Being a variety show of sorts there are other characters that have their own sketches and stories. Most notable are lab mice “Pinky & The Brain,” (who also got spun off from Animaniacs) the later of the duo who always has his eyes set on worldwide domination but always fails…but picks himself up time and again with his dimwitted partner only to make another go around with his goal to rule our planet.

A grumpy cartoon character by the name ofSlappy Squirrel, who if she is not busy with her happy go lucky nephew Skippy might want to touch base with our very own Grumpy Sloth….maybe bring him some cheer. Other regulars on Animaniacs include The Goodfeathers (Italian American pigeons), Chicken Boo (who tries to fit in with humans with one of them in every sketch seeing who Boo really is and eventually gets proven right), “Rita & Runt” (a singing cat pared with a dimwitted dog who thinks she is like him…a dog, but she let’s him believe just that) and “Buttons & Mindy” (A Collie trying to keep Mindy (who is a human toddler) out of trouble but is never rewarded for his troubles, but blamed for what Mindy did).

9. Family Guy: Family Guy was FOX’s post Superbowl program on Jaunary 31, 1999. It was theirbrand-new show with high hopes that would be another hit for the Network…it would be…but would flop…and bounce back. The first season was viewed by 12 million viewers in the first season, but the show took a nose dive to six million in the second season.A third season was already produced and did air, after which it waved goodbye with 4 million viewers ratings wise.

The fans of Family Guy however were very loyal and wrote to FOX demanding its return. Adult Swim aired all 50 episodes to date between 2003 and 2005 and when the DVD sets were released the fans came though and showed through the sales that they wanted more Family Guy. Come May 1, 2005; Family Guy returned to FOX on Sunday Night with seven million viewers in its fourth season. That was good enough for Family Guy to make a long term stay and not become an obscure failure. The Family Guy in this series is Peter Griffin who along with his family lives a fictional suburb of Providence, RI. His wife Lois was born into wealth, but preferred to marry below her class…that being Peter. She does teach piano lessons. Meg is the black sheep of the family who is forever bullied by the family and other people, Chris the overweight teenage sun and truly is the father’s son.

The breakout character is baby Stewie, who is a Blofeld wannabee, but eventually mellows out somewhat and eventually consistently butting heads with the family dog Brian but in a Laurel & Hardy kind of way. Family Guy’s pushing the envelope falls in between The Simpsons and South Park. It has pushed the envelope more than the Simpsons or “King of The Hill” and not too far or the censors would have a ball. One aspect that makes Family Guy successful is the cutaway gags that have nothing to do with the Griffins or the support cast (including a political darker version of the now late Adam West) but rather icons of TVdom like Scooby Doo or the Bob Barker era of The Price Is Right with voice cameos (but not always) of the actual people involved on those respected shows. Family Guy is now in its 16th season with over 289 episodes in the can.

10. Star Trek: The Animated Series: This one may get overlooked in many circles due to the long-term success of the Science Fiction franchise overall, but the animated adaption of the original Star Trek series was really written for the adults in mind and continued with Gene Roddenberry’s vision of his “Wagon Train to the Stars.” With the exception of Walter Koenig (who joined the cast in the second season but did contribute one story for this series) all the original cast members reprised their roles. William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk, Leonard Nimoy as First Officer Spock, DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy, along with supporting cast members James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei and Majel Barrett; in the roles of Scotty, Uhura, Sulu, and Nurse Chapel respectfully (as well new crew members and other guest characters).

In spite of Filmation’s cheap animation, the stories in this series were well written and dealt with adult issues. Mostly notable when Spock’s history changed slightly (in a sequel to the acclaimed live action episode “The City on The Edge of Forever”) and his younger self has to accept the death of his “sehlat” (which his mother in the live action series called a Vulcan Teddy Bear but Spock added that its alive and has long fangs) which leads him to follow the ways of logic; a space cloud that eats planets and kills but does not realize this until Kirk and his ship are able to speak with it; and a shift shaping alien (long before Odo or the Founders in Deep Space Nine) who takes the form of a human that is soon realized that he has passed on, and learns to love the woman (a female who is serving on the Enterprise in security detail ironically) that the respected human once loved. Just a handful of storylines that could have been made for the live action series if possible.

In spite of the adult issues addressed in this series, it would win an Emmy for Outstanding Entertainment Series for Children in 1975. The digital TV network H&I (Heroes and Icons) does carry air two episodes a week as part of their “All Star Trek” block on Sunday Nights.