I'm running out of retro cartoons to watch.

Check this list and tell me what I'm missing.

I'm particularly interested in shows I have quite vague memories of, some I might not have watched at all.

Did any of you watch any of these? What are your memories of them? Why were they good and are they worth watching now?

SteelAttack said:

The choice should be between Bravestarr or Voltron. Everything else ranges from disappointing to laughably bad.

Was Bravestar done by the He Man guys? After 10 discs of He Man I am burnt out. They re-use animations so much.

IGN has a top 100 animated series feature here.

Guess I will turn to wikipedia.

MASK

A total of 75 syndicated episodes of M.A.S.K. were broadcast from 1985 to 1986. One of many cartoons produced during the 1980s as a vehicle for toy merchandising, M.A.S.K. (which is an acronym for the Mobile Armored Strike Kommand), was a hybrid of popular era cartoons G.I. Joe and The Transformers. It featured a special task force featuring an array of characters, led by Matt Trakker, with transforming vehicles engaged in an ongoing battle against the criminal organization V.E.N.O.M. (an acronym for the Vicious Evil Network of Mayhem), with an emphasis on super-powered helmets called masks worn by the characters on the show.

SILVERHAWKS

SilverHawks was an animated television series developed by Rankin/Bass and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986. The animation was provided by Pacific Animation Corporation, the working name for a collective of Japanese studios including Topcraft, a group who would later go on to form Studio Ghibli. In total, 65 episodes were made. It was created as a space-bound equivalent of their previous series, ThunderCats.

Rankin/Bass followed up their successful Thundercats series with this series about a team of human heroes in the 29th century who were given metal bodies and hawk wings to stop organized crime in the Galaxy of Limbo. SilverHawks featured many of the same voice actors who had worked on Thundercats, including Larry Kenney, Peter Newman, Earl Hammond, Doug Preis and Bob McFadden.[1]

BRAVESTARR

BraveStarr is an American space Western animated television series.[1] The original episodes aired from September 1987 to February 1988 in syndication. It was created simultaneously with a collection of action figures. BraveStarr was the last animated series produced by Filmation and Group W Productions that was broadcast. "Bravo!", a spin-off series (originally called "Quest of the Prairie People") was in production along with "Bugzburg" when the studio closed down.

The idea for BraveStarr began with Tex Hex, his chief adversary. Tex Hex was created by Filmation's staff artists in 1984, during the development of Filmation's Ghostbusters. Lou Scheimer found the character fascinating and pulled Tex Hex from the Ghostbusters cast. He asked Arthur Nadel, Filmation's Vice President for Creative Affairs, and art director John Grusd to develop a sci-fi western around the character. As the concepts took shape, staff writer Bob Forward fleshed out the writer's guide and eventually co-wrote the feature film script for BraveStarr the Legend with writer Steve Hayes.

VOLTRON

Voltron is a American animated television series adaptation of two different Japanese anime series (Beast King Go-Lion and Armored Fleet Dairugger XV), produced as a joint venture between World Events Productions and Toei Animation. The series, which aired in syndication from September 10, 1984 to November 18, 1985, was originally titled Voltron: Defender of the Universe.

There have been two remakes of the original series. Voltron: The Third Dimension, was made in the 1990s using computer generated imagery (CGI) techniques. The series was dubbed into English and edited by the North American television production and distribution company World Events Productions. Distribution rights to all shows are now under ownership of Sony Pictures Television.

Meh, I've watched enough of Japanese Transformers to steer well clear of 80s Japanese robot anime.

GI JOE

The first G.I. Joe cartoon series was produced by Marvel Productions and Sunbow Productions to follow the success of the toyline by Hasbro. G.I. Joe premiered as a five-part mini-series on September 12, 1983, and with the success of that animated introduction, a second mini-series was aired, G.I. Joe: The Revenge of Cobra, on September 10, 1984.

Hmmm, Marvel and Sunbow did some other cool series like Defenders of the Earth. Might be worth checking out?

C.O.P.S

ign REVIEWED IT HERE: http://uk.dvd.ign.com/articles/691/691738p1.html

I have fond memories of this show, but I can't bring myself to buy it.

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.

Iga mentioned this.

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.

9 disc complete boxset for £35

I know Greg Wiseman from Gargoyles, which is awesome BTW. But this is new to me. I just watched the first 10 minutes of episode one. Music, character designs, all aren't appealing to me. I will stick to 1995 spiderman.

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.

robio said:

gamingeek said:

As a comic book geek I will admit some fondess for this show in the mid-90's.  It was on par with the X-men cartoon that was going on at the same time.  It was very hit or miss though, and the quality of the show (much like the comic book) heavily depended on which villian he was fighting that week.  And the later seasons may have had different writers as there was a noticable dip in quality. The first season of this show is a safe bet.

gamingeek said:

This was very good. I'd argue it was actually better than the comic book (and god knows it was miles better than the movie).  It's definitely for adults only.  Good stories and the voicework was really spot on too.

I love the Spiderman mid-90s series. I have season 1-3 and there are two more to buy. You US guys can import it from the UK via amazon. I will check out this spawn series.

Anyone watch this? Any good?

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.

The comments section is interesting to read, holy crap all from individual posters.

"As someone who hosts a weekly podcast dedicated entirely to cartoons, this list is TERRIBLE. I mean come on guys did shows earn bonus points if they aired after 1990 and were geared towards more of an adult audience or aired on adult swim?? Any list of not ten, but one hundred best cartoons that fails to give a SINGLE spot to Yogi Bear, Garfield and Friends etc etc but gives over a dozen spots to crappy 1995-2005 adult cartoons is just an EPIC FAIL!"

Anyone remember the Pirates of Dark Water? Or Peter Pan and the Pirates?

"you know what really grinds my gears? This stupid list. whoever made this is a retard. First off, where the hell is doug? the magic school bus? WHO THE HELL CAN FORGET ABOUT THE PEANUTS???? You put a ton of stupid anime shows on there im sure nobodys ever even heard of but you dont put the PEANUTS ON THERE??? this is america damnit! Daria as well. And for two, Rugrats was probably one of the best kid shows ever created, I think they deserve a spot higher then a pitiful 97. you blow dogs for quarters....SEACREST OUT"

"This whole list sucks really bad!!!!!! I can't believe someone actually got paid money to post this crap!!!!!!! They should be fired!!! (I dare someone to report this as abuse)"

"Now that I've gotten that out of the way, let me proceed into the meat of my rant. First off, how the FUCK can they decide that The Simpsons the best animated TV series of all time? Sure, it had some funny parts...but seriously? The best animated series of all time, you have to be joking me. Moreover, how the fuck can they rank Cowboy Bebop, one of the most complex, emotional, and well developed animated series EVER, below some of the shittiest animated series ever conceived, case in point: Beavis and Butthead? To blatantly insult these masterpieces by saying, "you're good, but...this piece of crap is better than you" sickens me. This article is just proof how America has become the epitome of stupid countries in the world, comparable to a humongous anus shitting out article after article of complete worthless garbage. To compare the raunchy, and outright juvenile humor of Beavis with the subtle and sophisticated plot lines of series like Evangelion is frankly, laughable. After this, I have no idea how you guys have any credibility whatsoever. Now I may not be the best critic for this article, given that I'm biased with my obsession with anime, but really, this has to be one of the most flawed top 100 lists of all time. Goodnight."