People who were born in the 1970s and 1980s, especially those who were born in the 1980s, are fully aware of how significant Saturday morning was. It was time to get up, get a bowl of your favorite cereal, and spend the next 5–6 hours engaged in the sexiest cartoons that had ever graced television—school was out for the summer. It was a magnificent moment, and it generated some of the most memorable franchises ever.
The most significant impression was made by these Saturday morning cartoons, not just at the time but also now. It’s the ideal justification for someone to create a time machine so that viewers may all return and relive those enduring animated series the way they were intended to be experienced.
Alvin & The Chipmunks was innocent, fun & full of good-hearted laughs
It was a cartoon that people either loved or hated, but young kids seemed to favor it a lot. The basic idea was that three talking chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore would become well-known pop musicians by averting numerous mishaps.
The program was extremely popular and ran from 1983 through 1990 before being cancelled. Because it was sweet, enjoyable, and full of hearty chuckles, it has remained such a beloved building to this day. Hollywood has produced a number of films, but none have been able to match the TV show’s flawless screenplay.
Jem was equal parts soap opera, action-adventure, & a romance series
Jem, that’s who she is. This animated series, which was one of the few other than Barbie and the Rockers to target girls, is notable for connecting Saturday morning cartoons with the popular electronic pop music that was dominating the charts in the 1980s at the time.
With the help of Synergy, a highly sophisticated computer capable of dressing the members of Jem and the Holograms in holographic costumes to wow spectators on stage, the group of ladies transformed into larger-than-life pop superstars. It was a soap opera, action-adventure, and romance series all rolled into one, and it featured The Misfits, a trio of adversaries that opposed Jem and her band head-on.
The Care Bears had no ill will to spread around; only friendship & compassion for others
One of the few super-cute Saturday morning cartoons that was liked by both boys and females was this one. This was a show that just has friendship and care for other people to spread.
Its main villains were crafted so well that they were just as endearing as the Bears themselves. Even grownups are reminded in this beautiful, calming cartoon of the need of occasionally sharing some love and joy. Additionally, anyone who disputes the ageless nature of that theme music is lying.
Voltron ran for 72 episodes & it was a huge hit in the U.S.
One of the few Saturday morning animated series based on a Japanese anime franchise is Voltron. The series, better known to Western viewers by its title, was really based on the more violent and mature Japanese anime Beast King GoLion. The show’s creators decided to interpret and construct their own tales as there was no way to adapt the episodes for an English-speaking audience.
The main series had 72 episodes and was a tremendous smash in the U.S., largely because of the stunning anime visuals, which were unfamiliar to American viewers. Starry-eyed youngsters found special appeal in the enormous robots that were modeled after wild creatures and armed with enormous weapons. Oh, right.
G.I. Joe was designed to sell a plethora of action figures & military toy vehicles
Making a G.I. Joe Saturday morning cartoon would be difficult to sell today. With its depiction of American super troops fighting a war against the fascist and autocratic Cobra, a terrorist group, it was blatantly patriotic. The stories were extremely over-the-top, which was on par with 1980s action cartoon series.
G.I. Joe became popular with kids looking for complete weekend escapism thanks to a slew of very memorable characters. For kids who were engrossed in the plot, G.I. Joe was designed to sell a ton of action figures and military toy vehicles, exactly like Transformers, another well-known Hasbro brand.
In Thundercats, Elements of science fiction, fantasy, comedy, horror, & the supernatural came together in one big package
The 1980s were a massive mashup of original creative choices, some of which paid off greatly. One of the decade’s biggest hits, Thundercats turned Saturday morning cartoons into a cultural phenomenon. It was a brilliant idea to base a television series on cosmic feline/human hybrids fighting ancient demonic mummies on another planet.
Thundercats featured plenty of humor, but it also had plenty of action. In a single package, elements of science fiction, fantasy, humor, horror, and the paranormal overtook canines as the coolest mammal in existence. The show’s dark and violent tone concerned many parent groups, yet youngsters devoured it in droves.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles eventually paved the way for a Hollywood feature film
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Eastman and Laird was altered from its comic book source material, but the decision to make it family-friendly was important. As a result, many of the gritty and bloody components of the comic book series were dropped in favor of cheerful color schemes, unnerving plots, and a repeating pizza motif.
It wasn’t a terrible choice. Since the cartoon series had plenty of that, TMNT was always better as a tongue-in-cheek property. Even though it wasn’t quite as violent as the title suggests, the action was creative and the stories were entertaining, funny, and original. In the end, it helped pave the way for a Hollywood blockbuster that combined the greatest aspects of the animation with the gritty tone of the comics.
Inspector Gadget is one of the most beloved family cartoon shows of all time
Inspector Gadget, an immediate favorite, featured Don Adams as a second clumsy lawman. The protagonist of the program was a police officer with a variety of cybernetic bodily enhancements, such as binocular vision, extended limbs, and palm phones. Gadget made use of these modern additions to avoid imminent death, frequently to amusing effect.
The main reason Inspector Gadget was successful was because it combined the bumbling protagonist from Get Smart with the physical humor of Peter Sellers’ Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther. It became one of the most adored family cartoon programs of all time because Adams nailed the character, offering one hilarious and clumsy one-liner after another.
Decades later, The Transformers is still going strong as a major sci-fi franchise that continues to pay dividends in Hollywood
Thanks to a masterful fusion of inventiveness, spectacle, and character designs, The Transformers completely revolutionized Saturday morning cartoons. The show was centered on two groups of Cybertronian robots, each with a distinct purpose and capable of changing into other shapes. The majority of the action takes place on Earth in the 1980s as a result of their battle.
Transformers was skilled at what it did. It was a program that was intended to sell kids’ goods like hotcakes, and that’s exactly what happened. Despite the obvious marketing ploy, the program was excellent and included memorable, legendary characters. After all these years, the popular sci-fi brand is still going strong and is still profitable for Hollywood. Most recently, a three-part miniseries based on the characters from the 1980s “Generation 1” was released on Netflix.
He-Man & The Masters Of The Universe was a campy & lighthearted take on the Conan the Barbarian-style fantasy genre
He-Man, the most powerful man in the universe, gave children who grew up in the 1980s a new hero to support. In the program, Skeletor and his evil minions were after the power of Castle Grayskull, a wellspring of magical knowledge, and He-Man and his pals were fighting against them.
Although some parent groups criticized the program for being too graphic and violent, it was actually a humorous and campy interpretation of the Conan the Barbarian-style fantasy genre that incorporated science fiction and technology. Through references to certain plot points at the conclusion of each episode, the program was recognized for imparting sound morals and values to young viewers. There’s no disputing the amazement and upbeat energy that the program still exhibits so many years later, despite the fact that it is a cult favorite that hasn’t aged the greatest.
