Cartoons that made a big pop culture splash but are now disproportionately forgotten

[5YearsOnEastCoast]

Inspired by the one post for live action TV shows, were there any cartoons that were so popular at one point, but now are surprisingly forgotten in comparison?

One example I can think of is Captain Planet and Planeteers. That cartoon came out in 1990 and lasted for six seasons and has over 100 episodes. It also had a bunch of merchandise and there were even plans for the movie. But nowadays you don't see that many people talking about it. It wasn't even among most prominent examples of "what cartoons do you think of when you think of the 90s?" When you see people talk about 90s cartoons. When thinking of 90s cartoons, people will likely first remember cartoons like Rugrats, Animaniacs, Batman the Animated Series, Ren & Stimpy, Simpsons, Dexter's Laboratory , Rocko's Modern Life, Beavis and Butt-Head, Johnny Bravo, Hey Arnold, Gargoyles, Recess etc, than they will remember Captain Planet. Time didn't treat Captain Planet all that well

 

[veu]

In this list of cartoons that made a big pop culture splash but are now forgotten there are also Rainbow Brite and Lady Lovely Locks and the Pixietails.

 

[Dr.Pepper]

The first that came to mind was Bobby’s World. That show had a whopping seven seasons (an insane amount for a cartoon), I feel like it’s kind of forgotten. I very rarely hear people mention it when reminiscing about ‘90’s cartoons.

 

[Erased Paper]

The first that came to mind was Bobby’s World. That show had a whopping seven seasons

Actually, it was eight.

 

[AdrenalineRush1996]

Actually, it was eight.

Yep and it was the longest-running Fox Kids TV series before that record was broken in 2001 when Power Rangers aired its ninth season Time Force on the block.

 

[Petran Markou]

The French series Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea was one of the defining series of the 80s at a time when French animation had plenty of room to squeeze between American, Asian and East European/Soviet Animation, something very difficult today, including the latter too

 

[Zanneck]

I don't mind Captain Planet being forgotten, honestly enough. That noise had a noble goal, but it was never good. Not like Swat KATS actually was (damn shame that got the boot for a bunch of preachy forced moral nonsense like Captain Planet, at the end of the day...).

 

[Pooky]

Hong Kong Phooey; I would estimate this to be the most popular post-60s pre-Turner Hanna-Barbera cartoon bar Scooby stuff, riding the wave of Martial Arts' first wave of popularity in America, and nostalgia kept it with a good profile in reruns and merchandising through at least the 2000s, but it seems to have dropped off the radar since. I don't think the character has even appeared in Jellystone! yet.

One example I can think of is Captain Planet and Planeteers. That cartoon came out in 1990 and lasted for six seasons and has over 100 episodes. It also had a bunch of merchandise and there were even plans for the movie. But nowadays you don't see that many people talking about it. It wasn't even among most prominent examples of "what cartoons do you think of when you think of the 90s?" When you see people talk about 90s cartoons. When thinking of 90s cartoons, people will likely first remember cartoons like Rugrats, Animaniacs, Batman the Animated Series, Ren & Stimpy, Simpsons, Dexter's Laboratory , Rocko's Modern Life, Beavis and Butt-Head, Johnny Bravo, Hey Arnold, Gargoyles, Recess etc, than they will remember Captain Planet. Time didn't treat Captain Planet all that well

I both kind of agree and disagree. I wouldn't say people have forgotten Captain Planet exactly; among my age group (later Gen X-early Millennial) I suspect it would come up before several of the shows you mention. But I agree that people don't really talk about it, I think for two reasons:
1) The age group that watched it had their time in the nostalgia spotlight 10-20 years ago. A lot of the shows you mention started and ended much later than Captain Planet, or at least were kept alive in reruns much later. I think the primary "nostalgic" age group among animation fans are those who spent at least part of their childhood in the 2000s. I don't see as much enthusiasm for Ren & Stimpy as I used to either; people recognise it as important, but I think the core fandom has aged out of much of the discussion. (Granted this is probably partly due to the John K allegations and the bad taste of Adult Party Cartoon but I think the age of the primary audience is also a factor)
2) While it was successful, it wasn't necessarily something people really liked. Let's be honest, however admirable it was, however much we may agree with its messages, it's probably the primary example of a mainstream cartoon that put social values way above entertainment. It had many of the faults of that era of animation, with much less of the fun. I would call it the broccoli of animation, if I didn't like broccoli a lot more than Captain Planet. The prime period of nostalgic affection for Captain Planet was also when the internet was at its least sincere and snarkiest (c.2007-12).

That said, there was the OK KO crossover, so I guess at least Ian Jones-Quartey is still a fan.

 

[ShadowBeast]

I don't mind Captain Planet being forgotten, honestly enough. That noise had a noble goal, but it was never good. Not like Swat KATS actually was (damn shame that got the boot for a bunch of preachy forced moral nonsense like Captain Planet, at the end of the day...).

How exactly did Swat Kats get the boot for Captain Planet? The Captain Planet series came first and ended a little over a year after Swat Kats got sadly canned. I'm not a fan of Captain Planet either, but I don't think it caused Swat Kats to get cancelled.

 

[Goldstar!]

Hong Kong Phooey; I would estimate this to be the most popular post-60s pre-Turner Hanna-Barbera cartoon bar Scooby stuff, riding the wave of Martial Arts' first wave of popularity in America, and nostalgia kept it with a good profile in reruns and merchandising through at least the 2000s, but it seems to have dropped off the radar since. I don't think the character has even appeared in Jellystone! yet.

He hasn't, at least not yet. It's interesting how long Hong Kong Phooey has remained in the pop culture zeitgeist considering that the show only ran for a single season and still has yet to be revived in any way beyond the character appearing on H-B's Laff-A-Lympics as a last-minute replacement for Jeannie (from the H-B cartoon Loosely based on I Dream of Jeannie - the character couldn't be used due to H-B not being able to get clearance from Columbia Pictures, who owned the rights to I Dream of Jeannie at the time). He only participated in an event and had a dialogue in a single episode. Years ago, there was some talk about a live action movie based on Hong Kong Phooey, but the project never manifested.

How exactly did Swat Kats get the boot for Captain Planet? The Captain Planet series came first and ended a little over a year after Swat Kats got sadly canned. I'm not a fan of Captain Planet either, but I don't think it caused Swat Kats to get cancelled.

IIRC, Ted Turner pulled the plug on Swat Kats because he felt that the show was too violent.

 

[Checkerboard]

I'd say many adaptations. The Mask, Addams Family, Ace Ventura, Men In Black cartoons for example. Captain Planet was big, but it couldn't go on forever. Swat Kats was popular, but got axed in favor of other shows. Real Adventures of Jonny Quest were a thing for a few years that was happily forgotten.

 

[ShadowBeast]

IIRC, Ted Turner pulled the plug on Swat Kats because he felt that the show was too violent.

I couldn't find anything that says that Ted Turner pulled the plug. Only something about an interview against violent cartoons, but supposedly he was referring to Beavis and Butthead.
If the Ted Turner has the power to unplug the show, how did the show get picked up in the first place? Swat Kats was violent even from the first episode.

 

[Goldstar!]

I'd say many adaptations. The Mask, Addams Family, Ace Ventura, Men In Black cartoons for example. Captain Planet was big, but it couldn't go on forever. Swat Kats was popular, but got axed in favor of other shows. Real Adventures of Jonny Quest were a thing for a few years that was happily forgotten.

I agree with these, except for The Addams Family. That's hardly a forgotten franchise. We get a new Addams Family something every few years. There have been (at last count) 2 live action movies, 2 animated movies and an upcoming streaming series.

I couldn't find anything that says that Ted Turner pulled the plug. Only something about an interview against violent cartoons, but supposedly he was referring to Beavis and Butthead.
If the Ted Turner has the power to unplug the show, how did the show get picked up in the first place? Swat Kats was violent even from the first episode.

I do recall someone on this very forum made the claim years ago.

 

[ShadowBlinky]

He only participated in an event and had a dialogue in a single episode.

That was likely the first season. In the second season he participated in three events and definitely had good dialogue.
I wonder what ever did happen with the movie, though.

 

[stephane dumas]

I'd say many adaptations. The Mask, Addams Family, Ace Ventura, Men In Black cartoons for example. Captain Planet was big, but it couldn't go on forever. Swat Kats was popular, but got axed in favor of other shows. Real Adventures of Jonny Quest were a thing for a few years that was happily forgotten.

I wonder if Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures might fit that category as well?

 

[Pooky]

I'd say many adaptations. The Mask, Addams Family, Ace Ventura, Men In Black cartoons for example.

Did any of these really "make a big pop culture splash" in their own right? Certainly, people watched them, I liked some of them myself (and I think the MIB cartoon holds up pretty well), but they generally strike me as b-tier at best, always seeming like a bit of an appendices to their source material(s) even at the time. The only movie cartoon I can think of that really became a pop culture phenomenon in its own right was The Real Ghostbusters.

 

[Goldstar!]

Did any of these really "make a big pop culture splash" in their own right? Certainly, people watched them, I liked some of them myself (and I think the MIB cartoon holds up pretty well), but they generally strike me as b-tier at best, always seeming like a bit of an appendices to their source material(s) even at the time. The only movie cartoon I can think of that really became a pop culture phenomenon in its own right was The Real Ghostbusters.

You don't consider The Addams Family to be pop-culture icons? That franchise has been revived, revised and revisited in the forms of movies, TV shows and video games for decades now.

 

[Checkerboard]

I agree with these, except for The Addams Family. That's hardly a forgotten franchise. We get a new Addams Family something every few years. There have been (at last count) 2 live action movies, 2 animated movies and an upcoming streaming series.



I do recall someone on this very forum made the claim years ago.

While yes, the franchise is not dead, the 1992 series pretty much is. No VHS/DVD/Bluray home media release, no streaming release, no tv release - that I know of. Which is a bummer, because it was good and memorable. But WB/MGM is acting as if the 70s cartoon and 60s series were the only thing. I doubt there are rights issues.

Did any of these really "make a big pop culture splash" in their own right? Certainly, people watched them, I liked some of them myself (and I think the MIB cartoon holds up pretty well), but they generally strike me as b-tier at best, always seeming like a bit of an appendices to their source material(s) even at the time. The only movie cartoon I can think of that really became a pop culture phenomenon in its own right was The Real Ghostbusters.

At the time I feel like it, but it was brief. It depends with some shows where. US market and rest of world is different. Some shows stick there or here. The Mask was very popular in Europe and Asia, Men In Black is probably one of the best adaptations known globally, Ace Ventura was popular at the time and Addams Family if we're talking about the 90s series was known thanks to CN/Boom reruns - which could be said probably about many other shows they aired too like G-Force, Jonny Quest, Swat Kats, Captain Planet, etc. Of course you could argue what's big and which shows would fit better. You could say even that Moxy made a big splash because it was the first original and one of the first 3D shows. There's room for debate.

 

[Pooky]

You don't consider The Addams Family to be pop-culture icons? That franchise has been revived, revised and revisited in the forms of movies, TV shows and video games for decades now.

As a whole? Yes
The animated series from the 90s? No. Not unpopular, but B or C-list stuff.
The animated series from the 70s? Hard to say as I wasn't alive, but my feeling is no.

From the context of both the post and the thread I assumed we were talking about the 90s Animated Series rather than the Addams as a whole.

 

[Zorak Masaki]

Beetlejuice. It was a visually appealing cartoon with lots of cartoony humor, appealing characters, more wit than the movie, and some interesting animation during the "commercial" segments. Yet, it's never brought up when discussing 80s/early 90s cartoons. It did get a complete series boxset a few years ago, but it's not even streaming anywhere. Even Rescue Rangers is more fondly remembered (and I mean BEFORE the movie). Of course, the movie itself isnt that well-remembered either, maybe it's time we do a remake that's more in vein with the cartoon.