9. Beavis and Butt-head
Production period: 1993-1997
Channel: MTV
Beavis and Butt-head, which first aired as an included short on Liquid Television, are a pair of young adults who spend their days in snide talk, bad ideas, and (brutally) music video criticism. Beavis and Butt-head lasted 7 seasons and released 1 movie. It is considered a timeless piece of youth culture from the 90s and Generation MTV.
8. Rugrats
Production period: 1991-2004
Channel: Nickelodeon
Following the lives of a group of youngsters, Tommy, Chuckie, Phil, Lil and Angelica, and later Dill, this is the longest running series on Nickelodeon at 14 years old, and it has earned a star on the prominence walk of Hollywood. In fact, it has spawned 2 different series, All Grown Up and Pre-School Daze by Angélica and Susie; and 3 movies, The Rugrats Movies, Rugrats in Paris and Rugrats Go Wild.
7. The animaniacs
Production period: 1993-1995
Channel: Kids WB
Starring the Warner brothers, Yakko, Wakko, and Dot, Animaniacs was a variety show design cartoon that typically contained 1 to 3 segments. Although the most notable are the Warner brothers, there was a wide variety of characters with each pair or ensemble acting on its own plot.
Due to a large audience of adults, who make up over 20% of audiences, The Animaniacs resulted in one of the first internet-based fandom cultures. The show ran for 99 episodes, launched the movie Wakko’s Great Wish, and spawned another effective cartoon, Pinky and the Brain.
6. Ren and Stimpy (good show)
Production period: 1991-1996, later in 2003
Channel: Nickelodeon, then Spike TELEVISION
This series follows the neurotic-symptom duo of asthma hunting dog, Chihuahua Ren, and the laid-back Manx cat, Stimpy, as they get caught up in mindless experiences. The violence and eschatological humor of the show, along with slow build times, led to initial developer John Kricfalusi being fired in 1992. Games Animation took over in 1993 with a “lighter, more comical type of show” instead of “really scary” episodes. In 2003, Kricfalusi relaunched the series as Rend and Stimpy “Adult Party Cartoon” on Spike-TV. This new model reviewed more adult themes, including a more clearly homosexual relationship between the two main characters, and produced only 3 of the 9 guaranteed episodes before being eliminated.
5. SWAT Kats
Production period: 1993-1995
Channel: Cartoon Network
Set in the city of Megakat, Chance “T-Bone” Furlong and Jake “Razor” Clawson are members of a paramilitary law enforcement agency called Enforcers, which due to objection orders have been required to guard a garden of rescue of the city. Concealing their identity and using homemade cars to avoid problems with the Enforcers, they become vigilantes and protect the city. There were 2 seasons, airing 25 episodes. It was finally revoked with 3 incomplete episodes, due to its violence.
4. Hi Arnold!
Production period: 1996-2004
Channel: Nickelodeon
Arnold is a fourth grader who lives with his grandmother and grandfather in a residence in the fictional town of Hillwood (which looks a lot like New York). Arnold is commonly caught in a difficult situation or helps a schoolmate with a personal complication. Initially a comic began in 1986, an episode of Claymation was picked up by Nickelodeon, where it was transformed into cel-animation and had 5 periods and 100 episodes. In 2003 they released a movie called “Hey Arnold !: The Movie.”
3. Doug
Production period: 1991-1994, later 1996-1999
Channel: Nickelodeon, then ABC
“Doug” follows the diary entries of Doug Funnie, who writes about his daily misadventures with his dog Porkchop, his best friend Skeeter, and the other characters in the town of Bluffington. After 4 seasons and 52 episodes on Nickelodeon, the show was hosted in 1996 by Disney and broadcast on ABC. Produced as “The Brand Spanking New! Doug,” and later as “Disney’s Doug,” the show had numerous recognizable modifications and was much less popular with older audiences. Disney produced 3 seasons and 64 episodes. Disney also spawned a movie, titled “The First Dougs Movie.”
2. Rocko’s Modern Life
Rocko
Production period: 1993-1996
Channel: Nickelodeon
Following Rocko’s wallaby and his surreal life in the city of O-Town, the cartoon was laced with double meaning, sexual innuendo, and created by a man who had little to no experience with cartoons or children. The success of the shows stemmed primarily from the reality that they were aimed at children and their parents, and each story was “funny” and “tough.” The animation was unique, with no parallel lines, hand-painted backgrounds, strange colors, and strangely designed anthropomorphic animal characters. Original author and creator Joe Murray was no longer able to keep up the steady work and handed the show over to someone else after third period, but he still evaluated every episode. Although Murray urged the show to continue, it stopped after fourth period, 52 episodes behind.
1. X-Men
Production period: 1992-1997
Channel: Fox Kids
Looking at the initial cast of comics from the early ’90s drawn to my Jim Lee, the comic strips follow the same storyline as the comics. In addition to loosely reproducing well-known stories and plots from the initial series, it also produced episodes that openly dealt with mature social concerns, albeit primarily in subtext. This is just one of the longest running Fox Kids shows with 5 seasons and 76 episodes, second only to Batman, and it is also one of the most watched and highest rated morning shows in American history.