I’ve been interested in animation as far back as I can remember. I have been fascinated with the concept ever since I was young. The idea that my drawings might come to life and move around was magical. I even had dreams of working at Walt Disney (thank the Almighty I didn’t go anywhere with that).
Anyhow, several great animated TV shows have since become lost in the mists of time, forgotten by all except for a few Gen-x and Millennials and like myself in dark corners of the internet. Well, it’s time to dust those off and reintroduce them to the public yearning for something decent to watch.
1. The Tick
The Tick is perhaps one of the greatest works of satire from the 1990s. He’s the intrepid superhero who guards The City with his sidekick Arthur. His powers include superhuman strength, indestructibility and “drama power” meaning he can make any situation more dramatic by his mere presence. Unfortunately, he is continually plagued by memory problems due to repeated head injuries and low intellect. If he had a secret identity, he has no memory of it. He has to rely heavily on Arthur to help him make proper decisions, but he acts from a good heart and pure motives.
The Tick saw a brief revival with Amazon series, but having watched both, the ‘90s series is better by far.
2. Bonkers
Disney doesn’t want you to know that this show was real and hilarious. Bonkers was Disney’s attempt at a buddy cop comedy back in the 90’s when they were still interested in producing original content.
Bonkers takes place in a world where cartoons are real and live side-by-side with regular humans. It follows the story of the titular character, Bonkers D. Bobcat, a cartoon cat, who, having washed out of show business, decides to pursue a career in law enforcement. He somehow manages to join the LAPD and is assigned to Officer Lucky Piquel, an ill-tempered human cop who has a marked prejudice against cartoons. Together, they solve crimes in the Hollywood region.
Despite Lucky’s distaste for Bonkers, he eventually develops a warm friendship for him.
This is a classic slapstick cartoon, as was popular on Disney Channel at that time, but due to to the fact that it didn’t include many familiar characters (Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, etc. ) and the fact that I don’t think anyone had ever done a cartoon buddy cop show, it had a short - but hilarious - run.
3. Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys
I think my sister and I were two of maybe four people who watched Captain Simian. The show was Hallmark’s (yes, that Hallmark) first and last experiment with science fiction.
During the Space Race in the 1960’s, NASA launched a rocket containing a chimp named Charles into space. Unfortunately, the craft became lost in space. After many years adrift, Charles was found by a race of aliens (whose name is impossible to pronounce) who give him human-level intellect, weapons, a new ship - the Primate Avenger - a new name - Captain Simian - and a mission; stop the evil Nebula from destroying the universe and remaking it in his own, twisted image.
Captain Simian recruits a team of earth primates - the Space Monkeys - to help him in his endeavors. They have a variety of exciting and hilarious adventures, fighting evil throughout the universe. I would consider the show something of a loving parody of Star Trek, Battlestar Gallactica, and to a lesser extent, Star Wars. It’s fun to watch, even as an adult. I probably enjoy it more now than I did when I was a kid.
4. Tailspin
Tailspin was another of 90’s Disney Channel experimental shows that didn’t really go anywhere due to being a bit off the bubble, but it was fun and hilarious nonetheless.
It’s loosely based on Disney’s Jungle Book characters in a 1930’s-style world, inhabited by anthropomorphic animals. The show stars Baloo, the bear from the Jungle Book, who is an ace pilot, captain of the Sea Duck, a cargo plane. With his sidekick, Kit Cloudkicker, Baloo flies goods all around the world, and has many exciting and dangerous adventures. However, his failing business is suddenly bought out from under him by Rebecca Cunningham, a headstrong and somewhat overbearing bear. She and Baloo frequently butt heads as to how to run the business.
It’s rollicking good time and a hilarious series and definitely worth your time to watch.
5. Rupert
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If you have never heard of this series, it wouldn’t surprise me. If I didn’t grow up so near Canada, I wouldn’t have heard of it either.
Rupert was a Canadian TV series, based on a British comic strip of the same name, about another anthropomorphic bear, the titular character, who travels the world having fantastic adventures, often involving magic, mythological creatures or technology out of science fiction. This show did not give a darn about the lines between genres.
I would say it’s somewhat slower-paced adventure show, and suitable for young children. Very tame in comparison to many American series of the same era.
What are your favorite forgotten animated series? Did you watch any of these?
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Thanks for reading and have a great week!