Blog Talkback: Toons of the 2000s: Top 25 Animated Television Series Countdown #5-1

25: King of the Hill - COMEDY
24: El Tigre- COMEDY/NICKTOON
23: Home Movies - Looks like a COMEDY
22: Chowder- COMEDY
21: Teen Titans- ACTION/SUPERHERO/CN
20: South Park- COMEDY/ADULT SWIM
19: WordGirl- Looks like an ACTION
18: Danny Phantom- COMEDY/ACTION/SUPERHERO/NICKTOON
17: Justice League (Unlimited)- ACTION/SUPERHERO/CN
16: Paranoia Agent- Looks like an ACTION/ANIME
15: Gundam 000- Looks like an ACTION/ANIME
14: Samurai Champloo- ACTION/ANIME
13: Phineas and Ferb- COMEDY/DISNEY
12: Invader Zim- COMEDY/SCI-FI/NICKTOON
11: Full Metal Alchemist- ACTION/ANIME/FANTASY
10: Robot Chicken- COMEDY/ADULT SWIM
9: The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack- COMEDY
8: Futurama- COMEDY/SCI-FI/ADULT SWIM
7: Spongebob Squarepants- COMEDY/NICKTOON
6: Family Guy- COMEDY/ADULT SWIM
5: Venture Bros.- COMEDY/ADULT SWIM
4: Kim Possible- ACTION/COMEDY/DISNEY
3: Samurai Jack- ACTION/COMEDY
2: Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends- COMEDY/CN
1: Avatar The Last Airbender- ACTION/FANTASY/NICKTOON

So, let's see, that's:
COMEDY- 17
ACTION- 11

NICKTOON- 5
ADULT SWIM- 5
ANIME- 4
CN- 3
DISNEY- 2

SUPERHERO- 3
SCI-FI- 2
FANTASY- 2

If you ask me, that's a serious misrepresentation of "genres". Now of course, I'm incertain on a lot of these series (particularly as to which of the big companies made them), and won't mind if anyone wants to edit the list accordingly, but the fact that comedies were represented so much greater than actions says a lot - in fact, the top ten was almost purely comedies - Avatar is the only straight-up action show in there (and even that can be argued to an extent). Are we to assume that comedies are of naturally higher quality than actions? In fact, usually the opposite is assumed (though I disagree with that statement as well). Both comedies and actions can be of good quality.
Not only that, but animes were given a huge shove aside. Really, shouldn't an entire additional culture create many of the same types of shows as us? So shouldn't they be represented at least almost equally? Now, I'll openly admit that the only one I'd have to add would be Death Note - and in fact, this lack of western culture being familar with Japanese culture makes sense as a reason to have many more American shows, but c'mon, a 21:4 ratio?
And why such a misrepresentation of the superhero cartoons? It makes sense for fantasy and sci-fi - haven't been as many - but there are plenty of superhero shows which well-deserved this list. Spectacular Spider-Man, X-Men Evo, and Batman Beyond, to name a few. (And no, Venture Bros. really isn't a superhero show or even an action show - it's a stragiht-up comedy.)
My gripe isn't even as much with the disappointment of the bizarre rankings and shows which shouldn't have even made the list getting high spots, as much as it is the obvious biases this list displays.
 
Robot Chicken: I love this show. It's comedy has gotten a bit repetitive recently, but it's still fun to watch. Plus, a lot of work goes into making these stop motion sequences and it's one of the few shows out there that does it.

The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack: I've watched it a time or two. It's not bad, but seemed way too much like Spongebob Squarepants. It's pretty awesome that it uses multiple art styles.

Futurama: I can't wait for the new episodes. This is, without a doubt, my favorite animated comedy. It's a well written hilarious version of Star Trek.

Spongebob Squarepants: I remember watching the first episode of this show as it aired. I remember laughing. I remember my brother dressing as the Sponge for Halloween later in the year and everyone thought he was cheese. I remember seeing the film in theaters. I remember when this was a hillarious show.

Family Guy: So much to say, so much I don't want to say. I said I wasn't going to comment on the order these are listed, I mean I watch this show but...seriously?
 
Interesting list. My biggest surprise: "The Simpsons" didn't make the list at all. Guess "the show that's better than 99% of everything else on TV even on an off-episode and is still just as good on its 20th season as its first" isn't anymore... :-p

Not surprised at how high Family Guy ranked, even if I'm apparently one of the few (or *feels* like few :-p ) online who thinks the show sucks (Brian and Stewie were funny, but everything else about it grates hard... surprised it got to make a comeback after getting axed initially, given the reviews online at the time were mixed-at-best). Thought it'd be in the top five, though.

As for Avatar #1, guess I'd disagree with that one----I'd put SpongeBob in the top slot (a show that's easily this decade's most popular cartoon, and a show that even my parents have heard of [definitely not Avatar]). Though granted, if influence is a factor, guess could see why Avatar would get the top ranking, as it seems more typical of a 2000s cartoon (anime / anime-influenced, action-based) than SpongeBob is (being a throwback to slapstick cartoons like Looney Tunes, Yogi Bear, etc. with little or nothing in common with the majority of 2000s cartoons, and oddly, few attempting to rip off its style, awfulness of "Coconut Fred" aside; guess TV producers were too tied to the idea of live-action or "human kid goes to school" genre to even occur to them to take tips from the Sponged One...).

-B.
 
Nice to see Danny Phantom make the list! Didn't expect that - it's usually underrated. Though the comedy element can sometimes weaken the stories, they usually balance it out pretty well, and it became what is actually a very in-depth show. Plus, not one, but three brilliant villains - Vlad, Valerie, and (of course) Evil Danny.

South Park and JL(U) - Yeah, they should've been higher.
 
Like I said, Family Guy doesn't deserve to be so high, all it is is a Liberal show taking advantage of a Liberal Media. If it was released during Reagan's time, it would get boos from the media and beyond.
 
Agreed. I never got to see all of it, but the episodes I did see I really liked. But, these kinds of lists are always going to leave some people disappointed.


It was a PBS kids series about the founding of the United States and set around events of the Revolutionary War. Many big-name stars made guest appearances as famous historical characters as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty's_Kids
 
Looking at the list, the only one I really disagree with is Danny Phantom (I don't think it should be on the list at all).

I don't like Family Guy but I grudgingly accept its popularity and recognize its right to be on this list.
 
That's awesome. Being in color causes the image to stand out more and feel more vibrant to me. Great job Dudley.



I wouldn't have mind seeing W.I.T.C.H on this list since from what I saw, it was a pretty cool show. Though, I wouldn't go as far as to say not being on the list is a sign of disrespect. These are just various opinions from those who made the countdown. I don't think that these are suppose to be taken as facts. While Liberty's Kids was one of the more enjoyable educational shows I've seen, I don't think that it was that great compared to other cartoons from this decade.
 
Because, while they were good, they weren't THAT good.

I do agree, the amount of American comedies is disturbing, if only because they are mostly child-targeted. Quite honestly, anime should have had much more of a presence, just because the Japanese anime selections are so much larger than those of America, and quite honestly, many are superior to American cartoons. Furthermore, quite honestly, we're all adults here, why is there a lack of animated shows with mature themes?

And El Tigre, WordGirl, and Phineas & Ferb? Seriously? That's what muscled out Death Note, Gurren Lagann, and Moral Orel?
 
I just feel if it was to be on the list, it should have been in the 20s. There are much better shows out there from this decade.

And the fact that a lot of its rating fuel is from the bashing of Conservative ideas and figures in Liberal Media seems to be a factor in why it is at a higher spot than say, Futurama, or Libertarian/Conservatism centered South Park.
 
South Park: Love it. I actually didn't start watching until about 6 years back, but I immediately fell in love. This show will go down as an all time great when all is said and done.

WordGirl: I've never heard of it for the obvious reasons. I might have to watch an episode if I see it on though.

Danny Phantom: This was an excellent series on the basis of plot and character development alone. Not many other Nicktoons pulled this off. To bad the show had a rushed and uneven final season.

Justice League: I'm going to be honest, I've only seen Justice League Unlimited and never the original. At the time this was airing I thought all superhero shows were kid stuff as I had moved onto "mature" anime (The new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles suffered a similar fate but that was partly because of 4kids). I eventually caught Justice League Unlimited on Boomerang and realized what a fool I was.

Paranoia Agent: This is one of those few anime series I've seen that is simple amazing. I wish we could see stuff like this on TV more often. I need to see more of Satoshi Kon's work. What else is there besides Paranoia Agent, Tokyo Godfathers, and Paprika?
 
see, they tried to go all liberal gung ho and conservative bash the last two years, and the fans hated it. This year there has hardly been any, and the quality of the show has soared. It's my #7 cartoon of all time, so i obviously feel it deserves to be here.
I must say that this list as a whole doesn't make much sense to me. there are a lot of Nicktoons and Disney type cartoons that have never appealed to me that have mad the list, while the superhero cartoons I love have either placed way too low(17 for JL) or not made the list at all(Batman Beyond for sure, and probably X-Men: Evolution as well). The only of the little kids shows that i feel really were very good(with the exception of spongebob, which i personally don't care for but i recognize why people like it) was Recess. That was a funny show, and i watched a lot of that show when i was in junior high. would love to see it listed(but i probably won't).
 
South Park: It does deserve a spot on this list for it's humor and writing, even if the last few seasons are hit or miss for me.

Word Girl: Never saw it, but I might give it a shot one of these days

Danny Phantom: I actually like this show, but I think it's a bit too high for my taste.

Justice League: It truly was a great Superhero show, I even liked how Unlimited focused on other heroes from time to time instead of the original 7 from JL.

Paranoia Agent: I think I only saw one episode, but from what I've saw, I thought it was good. I need to hunt down the DVDs for this series.
 
South Park: Expected... but I still don't much care for it. I do however find it amusing on occasion.

Word Girl: Surprised an educational show made the list in this day and age but hey props for that.

Danny Phantom: All and all a pretty good show that I didn't really follow but enjoyed from time to time.

Justice League: Great show, definently list worthy and my favorite of the Timm series but being only 17 gives me doubts that the likes of TMNT 2003 and Spectacular Spider-Man will be on this list but then again I like both those series more than JL so maybe they still have a shot.

Paranoia Agent: I never thought it was bad. I found it pretty interesting even. But... I don't feel it's one of the top 25 animated television series of the decade. To each their own. Maybe I should watch it again and reassess it with new eyes.
 
So one character preaching said values automatically makes the show propaganda?

I think if you watch a good number of episodes, you'll realize how silly this assumption is. FG actually focuses most of its jokes on pop-culture referencs, not political agenda's.
 
I'll try to comment on everything so far:

King of the Hill: This is probably the best FOX show quality wise. It's stayed high quality longer than almost any other animated comedy I can think of.

El Tigre: Never saw this.

Home Movies: AS's best show and one of the decade's best. It's almost like an animated Seinfeld.

Chowder: Good first season and strange dip in quality in the second.

Teen Titans: Good stuff, it's placed well, too.

South Park: Of course, no shock here.

WordGirl: Never saw it.

Danny Phantom: Never been big on this one. It always seemed like it could never decide when to be a comedy or action.

Justice League: Yes, the best superhero cartoon of the decade (barring maybe SSM) definitely deserves mention.

Paranoia Agent: Still the best thing Satoshi Kon has ever done. (Probably will ever do)
 
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