As Super Leviathan mentioned, the Brothers Chaps seem to do pretty well operating "Homestar Runner" with just two or three people. Admittedly, they have a very low budget (they use limited animation, they do almost all the voices themselves, and their music is composed on a Casio), but they put out new stuff fairly regularly, and it's entertaining. Which proves that you don't need $35,000 and a network development deal to create a successful animated series. Ask any Internet user between the ages of 12 and 25 what Homestar Runner is, and I guarantee they'll know.