Someone, ANYONE, please tell me I'm not the only person to realize this...

Cartoons today suck harder than a Tim Taylor MOOOORE POWEEEER modified vacuum.

How is it that when animation was done by hand we had some phenominal shit going on, but now that we can live-render strings of numbers and a single flat image into a fully 3-D near-human approximation, all our cartoons look like they were done by Newgrounds submitters?

Or I guess the more direct question is when the f*ck did it become acceptable to use FLASH to animate cable-access shows?

I miss the well-drawn cartoons I grew up with (for whatever amount of growing up I did). Biker Mice from Mars, the Pirates of Dark Water, Exosquad, Gummybears, Batman, Tailspin, Ducktales, Samurai Pizza Cats, hell even that Godzilla cartoon was better than what is out there now...

Am I just a lunatic, or do others notice that NickToons has murdered Hanna-Barbera and replaced her workers with down-syndrome flash animators.

Ya know what? I agree with you, most western animation just plain sucks. You can still find good anime if you look but for western animation of the somewhat present I would have to say I only enjoyed Samurai Jack and Star Wars Clone Wars but since both were done by Geddney Tartakovsky I guess they are one in the same.
It is too bad that there isn't much better animation out their especially when it is easier and cheaper to do.

yeah i realized i'm starting to get old when i found all my favorite cartoons on the boomerang network. that was a real kick in the teeth.

it's gotten to the point where i don't even bother watching the channels under 25 on my tv anymore, hell they now have looney toons with super powers on the wb these days,

and i'm more than content to bittorrent all my old favorite shows that don't air and have no dvds, i now have freakazoid, pirates of dark water, johnny bravo, the classic x-men cartoon, and batman beyond to name a few. i still can't find barnyard commandos, nor does anyone but me remember that show for some reason.

Every One knows that skeleton warriors was the best.

I remember barnyard commandos.

Part of the problem is that Disney doesn't make too many morning cartoons anymore. Now add that Cartoon Network realizing that flash shows are 99% profit even if they only last 6 episodes.

Venture Brothers is Awesome. I've heard good things about Avatar the Last Air Bender. And that's all I can think of for western shows. Although funny at times I won't count Robot Chicken. Family Guy is funny at times. The Simpsons is just a given. King of the Hill is ok. American Dad, this show has a lot of potential but Seth McFarlin is too busy taking shoots at Republicans to try to be funny. I wouldn't mind Japanese Anime being imported more if they didn't butcher the shows, and I'm not even talking about censoring them. See the Naruto english dub for starters.

If you think Cartoon Network & Fox have dropped the ball then you don't watch Nickaloden(sp?). Sponge Bob square pants? Ed Edd & Eddy? and several other shows so stupid I just can't name them. I'm sure these shows make children dumber. They have no redeeming value at all. Hell Thundercats had a story, art, action, and Cheetara is smoking hot. Bring back original G.I.JOE at this point. Something that won't dumb down the children. He-Man had morals in every episode it would work.

Bottom line they need to start doing random drug tests on the writers & animators of modern cartoons.

There's some pretty darn good western animation out there. The Venture Brothers, Batman (the original film noir version. That was sheer art), the original uncut Loony Tunes (it introduced little kids to classical music, history and opera, can Dora the Explorer say the same?), Invader Zim to name a few of my personal favorites.

Still, in the west we need to embrace animation as a viable storytelling medium.

And for the record I remember barnyard commandos, I think I even have some of the action figures at my folk's house.

Megas XLR was pretty good. Very tongue-in-cheek and none other than the mighty Bruce Campbell did a couple of episodes for them. Awesomes.

But generally, I agree. Cartoons these days can just lick my left one. Even franchises that have been going for years just end up getting raped (Transformers, I'm looking at you!) when they try to re-make them for today's audiences.

This is one of many reasons I just dont watch telly any more...

spongebob squarepants & Ed, Edd, & Eddy are good imo. I didnt realise Loony Toons were still made (I assumed theyd resigned themselves to the occasional movie). Fairly Oddparents, Pocoyo (though I guess it doesnt really count), Courage the Cowardly Dog (I know its been cancelled but still counts), the TV series of Lilo & Stitch was pretty awsome. There are still good cartoons out there, I just think being almost 20years older (going by the fact almost all the childrens cartoons listed are from the early nineties) youve come to the point where cartoons dont make sense anymore & you look back to the shows of your youth with a nostalgic longing for that lost childhood. Not that anyone whose replied is wrong :-)

That said, I will say one thing I hate about the direction Nicklodeon has taken in general, & that is its complete obscession with fart gags & "sliming" celebrities. Just go on the nickleodeon UK website & read the loading animation if you dont know what I mean. Other then that, I dont think theres anything paticularly bad about modern cartoons. Sure theyre less memorable (I can barely remember most), but as with most things these days all the great ideas have been done & the space between great shows needs to be filled by something (& not just repeats that make the new stuff look bad).

What do you guys think the problem is? Media watchdogs? Executive meddling?

Mr_Cynical:
Megas XLR was pretty good. Very tongue-in-cheek and none other than the mighty Bruce Campbell did a couple of episodes for them. Awesomes.

man i used to love Megas XLR, did they cancel that show in the UK?
also zenmonkey i see we have another Troper here at the escapist :)

sindrain:
Every One knows that skeleton warriors was the best.

HERE HERE!

THUNDER CATS!!!!!!

Yes, even the cartoons I loved as a kid have become perverted corruptions of their former awesomeness. I used to love rugrats, but I saw one episode of "All Grown Up" and just about shit myself in anger. The good cartoons are no longer being made, and in most cases aren't even on the air in syndication. Where the hell is Pinky and the Brain? That was the greatest cartoon ever.

Oooh, Tiny Toon Adventures was Super great.

If you ask me, cartoons had their peak in the 90s.
Darkwing Duck was awesome, largely because they were actually willing to make a show that tried something different (how many other superheroes can you name that have many of the same character flaws as your average villain- hubris, media gluttony, and a superiority complex).
Warner Bros. made some great stuff then, too. Animaniacs is my favorite cartoon ever, and I really love Freakazoid!. That show was awesome. Hell, even the show made so they could fill up the requisite educational block was pretty damn good.

Animaniacs? That show was kick ass

Thank GOD! I'm NOT the only person who enjoyed Biker Mice from Mars. That was the sweet shit.

The problem is, cartoons are cheaper and now easier to produce. Thus they can be requisitiopned, and removed alot easier than before. Thus netowrks start throwing out random crap and whatever gives them any kind of ratings, sticks. They're shooting for quantity over quanlity. And unfortunately the 12 year olds are the ones watching the crap and that's where they get their ratings.

I know what you mean but from this technological advancement some good cartoons have spawned.

Family Guy
Futurama
Aqua Teen Hunger Force
Ed Edd and Eddy (been round for ages but is no longer hand painted)
Pokoyo

P.S. Has anyone felt less inclined to spell check their posts recently?

Good cartoons on the air:

Family Guy (going downhill, but still entertaining)
South Park
American Dad (political humor FTW)
(from what I've heard) Avatar: The Last Airbender

I didn't list anime, as it is almost universally better subbed vs dubbed.

yeah most cartoons suck really hard now a days, it's also because we're old and therefore have different tastes and see the world in a different light, this also applies to more than just cartoons, i can think of a movie trilogy that this applies to as well

most western cartoons suck because they aim them at young children and that's it, where in japan you have cartoons aimed at different audiences including adults.

as for good cartoons in the past little while

spider-man - including the new kidswb one and the cell shaded one
batman - both the 90s film noir and the newer the batman are both good
superman - yeah good warner bros cartoon
justice league - kick ass series, unlimited was not as good
legion of superheros - same crew who did justice league
the tick - SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON
animaniacs - oh so funny and oh so wrong sometimes with a cartoon doug henning as merlin
the ripping friends - john k at his finest and most wrong, this was marketed for kids but NOT a kids show at all

i think the big issue is that the stories in the cartoons in western culture SUCK, they aren't as complex as other ones. i mean as a kid i grew up watching robotech and could follow the story pretty easily, same went with starblazers. most cartoon makers deem intricate stories as "too complex and kids wouldn't get it" but if you give them a good story kids will follow it

I miss Ren and Stimpy, Animaniacs, Freakazoid they were great. Oh and Earth Worm Jim and the Tick! Biker Mice From Mars?.....BIKER MICE FROM MARS! Now I remember, that show was great! Why have they taken away the good animations away? WHY?

I agree with the Necroswanson. They are shotgunning tons of shows and keep the ones that hit for a season or two, then change it all up. My daughter is 6 so I have an actual excuse to watch the different crap that is out now (not that I needed one). All the decent toons have died for no reason at all. Dexter's lab was funny, Samurai Jack was pretty great, and the Power Puff Girls was good too. All of them are dead now. What the hell? Scooby doo lives on in the occasional movie. So do Tom and Jerry but no new regular shows.
When Spongebob is the best toon still being made, it's a sad, sad day for toon lovers.

BTW, does anyone remember the Dragon's Lair cartoon, Voltron, (an attempt to mainstream anime) and the Duckula spinoff?

Crap_haT:

P.S. Has anyone felt less inclined to spell check their posts recently?

I do, but I has huge thumbs and sit in a bad for typing position. It's not exactly easy sometimes.

SPOOOOOOON!

I loved the Tick... And its also nice to see someone else likes American Dad. Yes it IS just as funny as family guy, you simply need a brain to interpret the humor, that's where people fall off. South Park to me is the number 1 show out there right now, only got to that spot because Futurama ended, and Futurama stole that spot from the Simpsons back when the show wasn't pointless and random.

Darth Mobius:
Yes, even the cartoons I loved as a kid have become perverted corruptions of their former awesomeness. I used to love rugrats, but I saw one episode of "All Grown Up" and just about shit myself in anger.

Seconded.

Southpark has gotten better over the 10 or so years ive been watching, unlike other cartoon trends.

Metalocalypse is a great cartoon. I don't have any american tv, so I dont know how the second season is going, but the first is unbelievable. I watch an episode almost every day.

Some Flash stuff is actually really good (Brackenwood is just amazing in everywhichway). But yeah, I've had a gander at some of the newer stuff about, and would rate it all a resounding 'meh'.

Good stuff from back when-

Batman: The old cartoon, not the new 'The Batman' crap they're trying to pass off. The original TAS was my reason for getting up on a Saturday morning. Best superhero tv show ever (and they've got Kevin Conroy for the Batman Gotham Knights dvd. That I can't wait for XD)

Spawn: The film was rubbish, but discovered the cartoon a little while ago, and it's all kinds of awesome.

Pinky And The Brain: I don't think I need to explain this one.

Spiderman: No way near as good as Batman, but still better than the tosh being pumped out today.

Two words, one name: Tex Avery.
And Chuck Jones was and forever will be the legend of Animation. He was animating before they invented keyframes, which if you know anything about animation means "Holy Shit, he must've worked hard on his stuff."

Re: Jeffers' comments...

The first Batman cartoon was groundbreaking animation. It just pisses me off the DVDs are so damned expensive for it.

Spawn was one of the best cartoons ever abandoned. Gods damn Tod McFarlane for not continuing past Spawn3, that series was epic. Keith David's phenominal voice talent as Simmons/Spawn made it all the better, and although there was also a censored more-kid-friendly version, having a truly made-for-adults cartoon that wasn't just a porno was a first and I LOVED it.

The second-gen spiderman cartoon from when I was a kid, combined with its matching X-Men cartoon were the highpoint of cartoon history. The new Third-Gen spiderman with emo-parker and all his pussified morals just doesn't click, nor does the crappy animation/cg style and terrible plot.

Amen brothers, I think we were lucky as kids to be able to watch all those awesome cartoons (Snarf!) but the younger generation these days are getting shafted. I think all the evils in the world today can be attributed to the lack of good cartoons on the TV.

The last cartoon that i gave a crap about was Invader Zim. now i'm just hunting down eps of daria (damn you musical people with the right to make money) and the like. There were two really good cartoons based on Terry Pratchett books, Soul Music and Wyrd Sisters. Check em oot

Batman TAS begat Superman, which in turn begat Justice League- the best animated series I for one have ever seen. It should still be on one of the cartoon channels. Transformers:Animated isn't bad (the first part of the season finale aired in the States on Saturday and it was very promising), I've heard a lot of good things about Avatar and Ben 10 and X-men Evolution was cracking once it eventually found its feet.

There's plenty of good stuff out there, and the difficulty with comparing modern cartoons to those of decades past is that we remember all the He-Mans and the Duck Tales and forget the rubbish (anybody remember Bots Master? Jesus wept) because we didn't watch it every week. 20 years from now hardly anybody will remember the random Flash rubbish because their nostalgia goggles will be filtering out everything except Megas XLR, Clone Wars and, of course, Powerpuff Girls.

What? PPG is brilliant. It has an English superhero in a Union Jack shirt and bowler hat called Big Ben and a Nordic god of Rock called ValHallen as incidental characters. Their main nemesis is an evil green monkey with a cape. What's not to love?

EDIT: isn't lose the opposite of win, while fail is the opposite of pass?

-Nick

I love the original Powerpuff Girls... And the movie too, pointless destruction and mayhem always rank high for me.

Transformers: Beast Wars (Beasties on some channels) was the best CG done show out there... The writer of the show knew absolutely NOTHING about transformers, which is why some people didn't like it much, but for me I enjoyed that fact because he didn't just reiterate the original cartoons. Beasties was an original story with nostalgic ties, and f**k I'm going to blow up HMV because my copy of Season 3 has been on order since boxing day! They said 3 weeks delivery.

Beast Machines was decent too, but I don't take well to changing art styles or voice talents/actors. Like how in Babylon 5, replacing Caitlin Brown as badass NaToth with the fruity bubbly pansy version played by Mary Kay Adams pissed me off almost enough to skip episodes she's in.

I loved Metalocalypse, have seen all of the first series, been watching them off the net, the last few shows I've enjoyed would of been Invader Zim and Avatar, now I mostly watch anime since that doesn't tend to create random episode that leave giant plotholes, for more money.

Frisky Dingo is pretty damn funny.