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movies/tv Most Cutting Edge kids cartoon?


TheMisterManGuy

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From the 90's onward, kids cartoons have been showing that kids don't need cheap, lousy budget, toy commercials, and can handle higher level production values just as much as any other audience. What was the most "cutting edge" cartoon you watched as a kid? Looking back, I'd say Courage the Cowardly Dog was pretty ahead of it's time. The way it combined various animation styles for jump scares, added an almost arthouse feel to it. At times, I have a hard time considering it a children's cartoon.

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I would say Johnny Bravo. I didn't think it was a cartoon for kids. I thought it was for adults since my dad watched it a lot and it looked really mature.

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Am I the only one who still remembers and likes Samurai Jack?

 

Nope, you're not. I have it on DVD and still occasionally watch the series for fun.


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The 1960s version of Astro Boy was the first anime-style animation to go mainstream and become successful in the West.

 

didn't watch that as a child, but I did watch the 1980 remake (which is notably darker).

 

Megas XLR, it's the only kid's cartoon I can think of that's ever gotten away with tentacles

 

Pretty sure The Little Mermaid did.

Edited by VitalTwilightSparkle
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The 1960s version of Astro Boy was the first anime-style animation to go mainstream and become successful in the West.

 

Thank you! I was beginning to think I was the last person on Earth who saw and remembered that show. *Brohoof!* It was definitely very cutting edge for its time. It actually had little flash scenes in some of the episodes you wouldn't expect to see in a kid's show, especially for that time period. Tezuka did some amazing stuff.


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"Theological debates are great for intellectual children since they require absolutely no facts!"

- Mary Hawking, older sister of Stepehen Hawking.

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I'd have to say Dexter's Laboratory for me felt cutting edge as the humor, for me at that age, felt fresh compared to what I was used to.

 

And then the show got stupid in the final season or two... >_>


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rien and stimpy  

animaniacs

swat kats

gargoyles

I could go on but naa

 

 

Edit

should add in salor moon and home movies from adult swim

Edited by MuniMoose
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Just to be clear here, is this limited strictly to main stream TV (like Nick, Disney Channel or Cartoon Network) or can we venture into more obscure things? (Like, Japanese DVD and vid imports like Bleach?) I'll assume that this also includes the more obscure stuff so, with that said, I'm surprised nobody mentioned Trigun.

 

I'd have to say that was pretty cutting edge. To me that whole series seemed like it was directed at an older audience, not so much kids but people in their late teens and 20s.

 

In a nod to what is, to me probably the worst of cutting edge animated shows (and don't hate me for this): The Netflix original series: Archer. 'Nuff said. 


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"Theological debates are great for intellectual children since they require absolutely no facts!"

- Mary Hawking, older sister of Stepehen Hawking.

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I agree with the OP, Courage and the Cowardly Dog was meant to be cartoons for kids but there's a lot of scary elements on the show. I watched it when I was kid and I thought it was really good show. I was born liking the horror stuff I guess ^_^ Too bad it was stopped and not in the development for any new episodes anymore :blush:


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I agree with the OP, Courage and the Cowardly Dog was meant to be cartoons for kids but there's a lot of scary elements on the show. I watched it when I was kid and I thought it was really good show. I was born liking the horror stuff I guess ^_^ Too bad it was stopped and not in the development for any new episodes anymore :blush:

As I said, I have a hard time considering Courage a children's cartoon because it's so different than what you'd normally expect from a kids show. I'd say it's more of a show that was designed to be watched by kids with their parents, as I'm pretty sure that where Cartoon Network was going with the show.

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Cutting edge as in content :

 

- Legend of Korra

- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003)

- Batman: The Animated Series

- The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy

 

Cutting edge as in ahead of it's time:

 

- Samurai Jack

- Arthur


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The Adventures of Tintin. For a kids cartoon, it dealt with some pretty heavy subjects. Drugs, murder, space travel, international conflicts etc, etc.

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