Cartoon Network General

[Basic Blonde Boy]

When did Cartoon Network peaked for you guys?

I would say the early 2010s. The original Check It era was sort of the closer to the Network in my opinion as it felt like the last boom of both new content while paying respect to old. Obviously Adventure Time, Regular Show, and Gumball were great, but props should also go to Generator Rex for being a very good "mature" Ben 10. I also loved Total Drama World Tour as it was clearly the best season.

This era also had stuff like Cartoon Planet, where CN tried to give new audiences a taste of their history while bringing back Space Ghost characters for a new audience. I remember watching Courage, Dexter, PPG, and even new shows like Chowder on that block. The 20th anniversary was also really cool in how much it respected channel history.

We also had cool games back then. I love Cartoon Network Punch Time Explosion even for its many faults. FusionFall was another great game that I really want to write a thread on at some point, as its post-closure history is quite interesting.

I am a Zoomer as well, and I remember some golden ones like Teen Titans and Transformers Animated. I was also really into The Clone Wars back when it was on CN and Disney hadn't fucked the franchise. Also, does anyone remember a show called 6teen? I liked it too, but nobody really seems to remember it when I bring it up, and when they do they say they've never really seen much of it.

I remember watching 6Teen around 8 o'clock at night back in 2009. I would later watch it again on Retro Rerun. Funny show, and honestly pretty ahead of its time while being sort of outdated now given the state of malls. I really felt like it captured teenagers better than most child-sitcoms did.

I will also claim that Stoked, the short-lived spiritual successor is good. Hell, I think it actually surpasses 6Teen. It is a definite underrated gem for those who like this series. The only issue with it is that it retreads a lot of 6Teen's story lines. The art of the show is beautiful though, one of the best looking cartoons I have seen from an aesthetics standpoint, and the theme song is better than either of Fresh's other shows.

Also the soundtrack is incredible, really a great mix of 2000s rock and very ocean/beach feeling themes.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL71slh1UnWOv1N23MzaTh00YwOpP7Nfn3

90s Nick was already in many ways past it's prime

Nick was good till mid-2000s. The Fairly Odd Parents, Jimmy Neutron, Danny Phantom, Invader Zim, My Life as A Teenage Robot, SpongeBob, El Tigre, Avatar, Kappa Mikey, Making Fiends, and Catscratch were all pretty iconic Nicktoons

 

[PS1gamenwatch]

You should’ve seen Cartoon Network Asia especially the Philippines version it aired The Simpsons

It also aired anime with local English dubs:

 

[Apochrypha]

I would say the early 2010s. The original Check It era was sort of the closer to the Network in my opinion as it felt like the last boom of both new content while paying respect to old. Obviously Adventure Time, Regular Show, and Gumball were great, but props should also go to Generator Rex for being a very good "mature" Ben 10. I also loved Total Drama World Tour as it was clearly the best season.

This era also had stuff like Cartoon Planet, where CN tried to give new audiences a taste of their history while bringing back Space Ghost characters for a new audience. I remember watching Courage, Dexter, PPG, and even new shows like Chowder on that block. The 20th anniversary was also really cool in how much it respected channel history.

We also had cool games back then. I love Cartoon Network Punch Time Explosion even for its many faults. FusionFall was another great game that I really want to write a thread on at some point, as its post-closure history is quite interesting.


I remember watching 6Teen around 8 o'clock at night back in 2009. I would later watch it again on Retro Rerun. Funny show, and honestly pretty ahead of its time while being sort of outdated now given the state of malls. I really felt like it captured teenagers better than most child-sitcoms did.

I will also claim that Stoked, the short-lived spiritual successor is good. Hell, I think it actually surpasses 6Teen. It is a definite underrated gem for those who like this series. The only issue with it is that it retreads a lot of 6Teen's story lines. The art of the show is beautiful though, one of the best looking cartoons I have seen from an aesthetics standpoint, and the theme song is better than either of Fresh's other shows.
View attachment 2811006

Also the soundtrack is incredible, really a great mix of 2000s rock and very ocean/beach feeling themes.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL71slh1UnWOv1N23MzaTh00YwOpP7Nfn3


Nick was good till mid-2000s. The Fairly Odd Parents, Jimmy Neutron, Danny Phantom, Invader Zim, My Life as A Teenage Robot, SpongeBob, El Tigre, Avatar, Kappa Mikey, Making Fiends, and Catscratch were all pretty iconic Nicktoons

Oh shit, I totally forgot Stoked existed! I thought it was an elaborate fever dream Lmao. I had forgotten the name of it until now. Thank you.

 

[Dom Cruise]

RIP Cartoon Network Flash games. We didn't have cable, but the website entertained me for hours. Some of my favorites:

I remember playing those a lot on my grandma's computer and for the brief time my family had a Gateway computer with dial up.

And the oddball out, but it was surprisingly fun:

And this is the one I remember the best.

The "What A Cartoon!" show was one of the greatest things to come from Cartoon Network as it gave new artists/creators/etc... a chance to shine and become something great. Seth McFarlane was one of them, as his show was basically the "beta" for Family Guy

There was even one made by Eddie Fitzgerald of Ren & Stimpy fame... the style is even similar to R&S

There were a fuck-ton of cartoons that I wish had their own series... Yuckie Duck, Sledgehammer O'Possum, George & Junior, Pfish & Chip, The Fat Cats, and Swamp & Tad.

Yes, so many of those shorts were great and it's a shame they didn't get full series.

Was The Fat Cats the one about two cats living in a bachelor pad with a whole 60s lounge vibe? That one was one of my favorite and one of the ones I really wish had gotten a full series the most.

Not just flash games, but flash cartoons as well.. and i mean the old ones that released back when dial-up was still a thing.

Was "Pink Donkey" part of this? I remember watching those, no clue if there's any archive of it.

Nick was good till mid-2000s. The Fairly Odd Parents, Jimmy Neutron, Danny Phantom, Invader Zim, My Life as A Teenage Robot, SpongeBob, El Tigre, Avatar, Kappa Mikey, Making Fiends, and Catscratch were all pretty iconic Nicktoons

The trouble for me by the latter half of the 90s with Nick was Rocko was done, Doug was done, Ren & Stimpy was done, they brought Rugrats back but it sucked, for a while there the only show I really liked was Hey Arnold, the rest was mainly only "I'd watch it if that was all that was on" tolerable or stuff I liked ok, just not as much as the classic lineup.

There was Spongebob, but 1999 was a bit late in the game for me, so I only saw maybe the first couple of seasons, it was good sure, but a Nicktoon didn't totally blow me away until Invader Zim, that was the one that I loved the most since the initial classic line up, but it was so short lived, it's cancelation pissed me off enough that I boycotted the network afterward.

To be frank, I would have been too old to watch stuff like The Fairly Odd Parents, Jimmy Neutron or Danny Phantom anyway, I was a teenager by that point, more interested in Adult Swim, anime and video games which I think is appropriate, the one Nick show of the 2000s I do regret not watching was Avatar though.

I so heavily associate Nick and CN with 90s and very early 2000s stuff that it's very strange to me to have younger people wax nostalgic about shows I never watched on the networks, you say "Nickelodeon" to me and I think Rugrats, Doug and Ren and Stimpy, you say "Cartoon Network" to me and I think Dexter's Lab, Powerpuff Girls and Johnny Bravo, so all these 21st century shows really come off as something foreign to me, but hey, I believe anyone saying they were good shows and I'm glad younger generations had quality stuff too.

The one 21st century CN show that I did watch and I'm embarrassed to admit this now, but I pirated the first 3 seasons of Steven Universe, I liked it pretty good, mainly I liked the novelty of watching a CN show by someone that grew up watching CN shows, however I never watched anything past 2016 because I assumed nothing made by a millennial female Jew was going to be worth watching in the Donald Trump era, which sounds like maybe was the right call and I had pretty much had my fill of it anyway after around 100 episodes.

 

[Celebrate Nite]

Was The Fat Cats the one about two cats living in a bachelor pad with a whole 60s lounge vibe? That one was one of my favorite and one of the ones I really wish had gotten a full series the most.

No, Fat Cats were about two cats that run a drycleaners and have to fix the President's suit because Elmo (the tall one) fucked it up

You're thinking of "Buy One, Get One Free"

Was "Pink Donkey" part of this? I remember watching those, no clue if there's any archive of it.

Yep

 

[Dom Cruise]

No, Fat Cats were about two cats that run a drycleaners and have to fix the President's suit because Elmo (the tall one) fucked it up

Wowsers, this is one I totally forgot about although now I remember it.

You're thinking of "Buy One, Get One Free"

That's the one, cool.

I remember my dad really liked this one because he got "you want a leg or a wing?" was a reference to Goodfellas.

The 90s loved it's lounge revival trend, bowling shirts, other kitsch like that, surprised this didn't get a full series.

Yep

Awesome.

 

[Basic Blonde Boy]

The trouble for me by the latter half of the 90s with Nick was Rocko was done, Doug was done, Ren & Stimpy was done, they brought Rugrats back but it sucked, for a while there the only show I really liked was Hey Arnold, the rest was mainly only "I'd watch it if that was all that was on" tolerable or stuff I liked ok, just not as much as the classic lineup.

There was Spongebob, but 1999 was a bit late in the game for me, so I only saw maybe the first couple of seasons, it was good sure, but a Nicktoon didn't totally blow me away until Invader Zim, that was the one that I loved the most since the initial classic line up, but it was so short lived, it's cancelation pissed me off enough that I boycotted the network afterward.

To be frank, I would have been too old to watch stuff like The Fairly Odd Parents, Jimmy Neutron or Danny Phantom anyway, I was a teenager by that point, more interested in Adult Swim, anime and video games which I think is appropriate, the one Nick show of the 2000s I do regret not watching was Avatar though.

I so heavily associate Nick and CN with 90s and very early 2000s stuff that it's very strange to me to have younger people wax nostalgic about shows I never watched on the networks, you say "Nickelodeon" to me and I think Rugrats, Doug and Ren and Stimpy, you say "Cartoon Network" to me and I think Dexter's Lab, Powerpuff Girls and Johnny Bravo, so all these 21st century shows really come off as something foreign to me, but hey, I believe anyone saying they were good shows and I'm glad younger generations had quality stuff too.

The one 21st century CN show that I did watch and I'm embarrassed to admit this now, but I pirated the first 3 seasons of Steven Universe, I liked it pretty good, mainly I liked the novelty of watching a CN show by someone that grew up watching CN shows, however I never watched anything past 2016 because I assumed nothing made by a millennial female Jew was going to be worth watching in the Donald Trump era, which sounds like maybe was the right call and I had pretty much had my fill of it anyway after around 100 episodes.

You should really go back through many of these channel's catalogs. Jimmy Neutron is starting to be seen as one of Nick's best more as time goes on. It is kind of Nick's take on Dexter's Laboratory, but I find that it has a bit more charm. They are pretty different though, while having a similar premise. The Fairly Odd Parents was good in its early seasons, especially due to how based Cosmo was.

As for Cartoon Network, you have to try Adventure Time. If you liked Steven, then Adventure Time is that but did not completely go to shit. Just skip the second half of season 5 and season 6, as they were a series low point. Regular Show was also pretty good early on, I just stopped watching past the Highway episode as I lost interest. Gumball is another great from 2010, starting dumb but fun then getting overly 4th wall and self-aware. Prior to 2010, I must recommend Chowder. The series is so much fun and is SpongeBob if he never went bad. Flapjack is another great that used to scare the shit out of me, it felt like a demented SpongeBob in many ways, really fit well next to Chowder.

Seriously though, who at CN greenlit this shit thinking it would not scar some children.

 

[Jonah Hill poster]

Billy and Mandy and Ed, Edd N Eddy were just two of the saving graces that made CN what it really was in the ‘00s. Even in 2021, those two in particular are better than most cartoons out today.

Spoiler

Then again, there’s a reason why the Western Animation thread exists for that kind of thing.

 

[The Last Stand]

I would say the early 2010s. The original Check It era was sort of the closer to the Network in my opinion as it felt like the last boom of both new content while paying respect to old. Obviously Adventure Time, Regular Show, and Gumball were great, but props should also go to Generator Rex for being a very good "mature" Ben 10. I also loved Total Drama World Tour as it was clearly the best season.

I won't lie, Total Drama was addicting to watch. I didn't even know that each country would have alternative endings for the final two candidates. I'm glad they went into a more unrestricted route with Action & World Tour.

 

[Basic Blonde Boy]

Billy and Mandy and Ed, Edd N Eddy were just two of the saving graces that made CN what it really was in the ‘00s. Even in 2021, those two in particular are better than most cartoons out today.

Spoiler

Then again, there’s a reason why the Western Animation thread exists for that kind of thing.

I would disagree with this. Billy & Mandy is a fantastic show, and so was Ed, Edd n' Eddy, maybe even the best of the 2000s, but I feel like saying they were the saving graces does a disservice towards the other shows of that time. Codename: Kids Next Door and Samurai Jack are both classics of the era and are usually considered fantastic even by 90s babies. Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends was another classic of the 2000s as it feels right in line with the 90s era. Getting into more mid-late Ben 10 was the obvious cash cow that kept CN afloat and I would argue that Chowder and Flapjack are underrecognized classics of the channel.

Also the 2000s had Total Drama, Teen Titans, and Justice League if we expand outside CN produced media

I won't lie, Total Drama was addicting to watch. I didn't even know that each country would have alternative endings for the final two candidates. I'm glad they went into a more unrestricted route with Action & World Tour.

World Tour was the best as it had actual plot lines, a super competent villain, and good song numbers. Action was good, but kind of a misguided retread.

 

[Jonah Hill poster]

Codename: Kids Next Door and Samurai Jack are both classics of the era and are usually considered fantastic even by 90s babies. Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends was another classic of the 2000s as it feels right in line with the 90s era. Getting into more mid-late Ben 10 was the obvious cash cow that kept CN afloat and I would argue that Chowder and Flapjack are underrecognized classics of the channel.

Also the 2000s had Total Drama, Teen Titans, and Justice League if we expand outside CN produced media

Oh I don’t deny that at all, either. I just use those two in question because that was the only two I remember that were popular among the youth I hung out with.

I secretly watched those other shows since most of them never seemed to care for any of it. Flapjack, though for its time, was pretty underrated.

 

[Prophetic Spirit]

Meh, i grow up with the 2000's to 2010.
After Adventure Time, i knew it everything going to be shitty in the after years. And Steven's Universe was the biggest consequence.
Sadly neither Clarence or Uncle Grandpa survived in this modern hellhole of channel.
I liked KND, Johnny Bravo, PPG, Billy & Mandy, Ed, Edd & Eddy, and Foster's Mansion, probably is more but i don't remember right; Teen Titans was too anime-ish for my tastes (man, even i supported ATLA's animation in that time, meh; probably because i was so naive and i liked Katara in the first season, and later Azula in the 2nd & 3rd) & Ben 10 was... i don't know. Something was off even of this day about that cartoon.

 

[Turd Cow]

Biggest favorite from Cartoon Network is Ed Edd n Eddy. Used to watch it alot as a kid on vimeo when people uploaded shitty rips there. Nowadays I watch the higher quality rips. Also, I used to have an irrational hatred for Cartoon Network a decade back when I was a kid. Honestly don't know why but it was probably total drama existing and I think Adult Swim. Yeah, I was a pretty dumb kid.

 

[Basic Blonde Boy]

I want to share this absolute gem of a video with you all. Clarence was not the best CN show by any means, but I found this video hilarious and cute, really good short for such a mediocre show.

 

[murdered meat bag]

When did Cartoon Network peaked for you guys?

when they moved teh flintstones to boomerang and got rid of the pool theme for adult swim.

 

[Dom Cruise]

You should really go back through many of these channel's catalogs. Jimmy Neutron is starting to be seen as one of Nick's best more as time goes on. It is kind of Nick's take on Dexter's Laboratory, but I find that it has a bit more charm. They are pretty different though, while having a similar premise. The Fairly Odd Parents was good in its early seasons, especially due to how based Cosmo was.

As for Cartoon Network, you have to try Adventure Time. If you liked Steven, then Adventure Time is that but did not completely go to shit. Just skip the second half of season 5 and season 6, as they were a series low point. Regular Show was also pretty good early on, I just stopped watching past the Highway episode as I lost interest. Gumball is another great from 2010, starting dumb but fun then getting overly 4th wall and self-aware. Prior to 2010, I must recommend Chowder. The series is so much fun and is SpongeBob if he never went bad. Flapjack is another great that used to scare the shit out of me, it felt like a demented SpongeBob in many ways, really fit well next to Chowder.

Seriously though, who at CN greenlit this shit thinking it would not scar some children.

To be frank I'm just not sure I care about later Nick stuff, however later CN is definitely something I'm more interested in.

Billy and Mandy and Ed, Edd N Eddy were just two of the saving graces that made CN what it really was in the ‘00s. Even in 2021, those two in particular are better than most cartoons out today.

Isn't CN rebranding to become a preschool age network? Wonder what's going to happen to Adult Swim, imagine transitioning from content for literal babies to... Adult Swim.

After Adventure Time, i knew it everything going to be shitty in the after years. And Steven's Universe was the biggest consequence.

I'll defend Steven Universe as a pretty solid show up to the point that they defeat Peridot, after that one thing I noticed was the animation quality took a hit, it's not that it was BAD where I left off but I felt like it was starting to spread itself a little thin.

Make no mistake though, those fucking terrible Woke PSAs featuring the characters have pretty much ruined any goodwill I had for the show, it's hilarious too because as others have pointed out the Gems would have been present on Earth during the days of slavery and Jim Crow and they didn't care, in the actual show they viewed humanity as little more than an amusing species of monkey, so now they care about racism?

 

[Thiletonomics]

I won't lie, Total Drama was addicting to watch. I didn't even know that each country would have alternative endings for the final two candidates. I'm glad they went into a more unrestricted route with Action & World Tour.

Also the 2000s had Total Drama, Teen Titans, and Justice League if we expand outside CN produced media

World Tour was the best as it had actual plot lines, a super competent villain, and good song numbers. Action was good, but kind of a misguided retread.

Back when World Tour was the newest Total Drama season, I thought that it was the worst season, but I didn't expect the later seasons (namely All-Stars and DramaRama) to be even worse. TDWT did have the warning signs that the series would be approaching Jumping The Shark territory though. It's quite the feat to somehow make seasons that make Feral Ezekiel seem like a passable character arc.

 

[The Last Stand]

Back when World Tour was the newest Total Drama season, I thought that it was the worst season,

I didn't care much for the musical numbers. I thought it was distracting. There's one season where the original cast are babies.

Like, how does that canonically work?

 

[Thiletonomics]

I didn't care much for the musical numbers. I thought it was distracting. There's one season where the original cast are babies.

Like, how does that canonically work?

Tom McGillis and Jennifer Pertsch, the creators of Total Drama, said that DramaRama takes place in an alternate universe, which still seems like very weak reasoning.

And I still can't get over how the Fart Fairy episode of DramaRama was allowed to be made, as in why no one stopped to think that it would be a very bad idea.

 

[Basic Blonde Boy]

To be frank I'm just not sure I care about later Nick stuff, however later CN is definitely something I'm more interested in.

At least watch Jimmy Neutron. It deserves classic status when it comes to Nickelodeon.

Isn't CN rebranding to become a preschool age network? Wonder what's going to happen to Adult Swim, imagine transitioning from content for literal babies to... Adult Swim.

No, it is not. CN is finally embracing the idea of having a preschool block, much like Nick Jr. or Disney Junior. It is a half-day morning to afternoon programming block full of educational material. The block is called Cartoonito. In total it is 8 hours from 6-2 on weekdays, and 2 hours between 6-8 weekends. The issue is that Adult Swim is 10 hours now, meaning main CN is only 6, which is dumb.

The actual block though is not half bad for what it is going for. It has cute ads and the programming looks well made. I actually have the main theme stuck in my head, it is quite charming.

Honestly extremely shocked that Scooby Doo was not used in the initial line up. Seriously, a mystery show would have translated so well to the educational format.

I'll defend Steven Universe as a pretty solid show up to the point that they defeat Peridot, after that one thing I noticed was the animation quality took a hit, it's not that it was BAD where I left off but I felt like it was starting to spread itself a little thin.

Agree.