The 90s are the greatest era of all time. The movies, the music, the shows, and of course the cartoons. Being a 90’s kid, cartoons, music, and movies are probably the things that shaped me. Molded me and my interests to this exact day. Let’s take a trip down memory lane and jump right in.
10 – Captain Planet & The Planeteers
“Captain Planet, he’s our hero. Gonna take pollution down to zero.” Iconic. This show always felt like you were watching the same exact episode, but it somehow was 6 seasons and over 100 different episodes. It was predictable, repetitive but absolutely one you always watched whenever it was on. It was good bad. Like the movie The Room. Somehow they even talked Whoopi Goldberg into voicing Gaia.
9 – Animaniacs
This show has too many highlights to not make the cut. The best part is the comedy ranges to even make adults chuckle, and it holds up to this day. From the song Countries of the World, Pinky and the Brain, and my favorite – The Goodfeathers. My favorite movie of all time is Goodfellas, so I might be biased. This is coming from a kid who wrote a paper on Al Capone in 4th grade.
8 – Beavis And Butthead
This is the dumbest show ever aired yet it was a comedic masterpiece. I can hear my wife laughing at me calling it a masterpiece. You hated the music video scenes as a kid, but as you got older and re-watched it, you saw it was pure gold. Raise your hand if you pulled your shirt over your head and yelled “I am the great Cornholio.” You know you just did.
7 – Gargoyles
This was too advanced for its time. It mirrored a darker theme like Batman and it always told a very mature story. Felt like I was watching something serious just disguised as a cartoon. Your parents would walk in and say oh he’s just watching Gargoyles. When it really was just an animated NYPD Blue without having to see Dennis Franz bare-ass in a shower.
6 – Darkwing Duck
Drake Mallard was a legitimate badass. Disney finally took a swing at something new here and hit a home run. It was action-packed, made you laugh, and had a bonafide banger for the theme song. I mean who came up with “When there’s trouble you call D W?” I bet Prince wrote it. That’s how good it was.
5 – Pokémon
Gotta catch ‘em all is not just a slogan, it’s a way of life for some. This was also a video game or card game. I remember it clear as day, bringing the link cable and Gameboy color to school. The show as a kid felt like it never ended. Partly cuz it never really did. Felt like it was 500 episodes that led to nothing. It was still glorious and you rushed home from school to always tune in. Who can forget the Poke-Rap at the end? It’s nice to know that Ash became a master. Only took till I am close to getting an AARP card to see it.
4 – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
If you go back and watch this show it doesn’t hold up like the next 2. It is however some giant nostalgia. The cartoon catapulted many to love the movies, video games, and toys. The comedy was cheesy (pun intended). Bad pizza joke. I remember having to have the Burger King VHS tapes also, which were just 4 episodes from the show that even aired on TV. They felt like some super exclusive shit at the time though. Cowabunga! Added bonus was growing up to learn Shredder was voiced by Uncle Phil.
3 – Batman The Animated Series
Kevin Conroy is the greatest voice of Batman to grace our lives. Just as Mark Hamill is the greatest Joker of all time (sorry Heath). That’s how I will always remember those characters at least. This was a groundbreaking show in many aspects. It was different but in a very good way. Kind of dark, which felt like it was geared for older kids. Something that made me like it even more. It was as close to the Parental Advisory logo as I was getting at that point in time.
2 – X-Men The Animated Series
The storylines they used, the characters, and the overall mature tone. This was my introduction to Marvel. It is what drove me to read comics and collect comic cards. Which branched me out to explore and discover all of the Marvel Universe. This show also led to a deal with my parents. If I made the honor roll I could get a new X-Men action figure. I rarely made the honor roll.
1 – South Park
Let’s face it. We watch it today still, they create new episodes, we meme the best moments and genuinely laugh our asses off from it. Trey and Matt push the needle on current events and find ways to make things humorous at a time when it’s very hard to do. Randy Marsh went from some background character to the GOAT. Possibly the greatest character arc in the history of television. Makes you wonder. The show was about 4 kids in Denver but they never age. The one who grew was Randy. Maybe Randy is all of us. Minus the microwaved testicles.
