Cartoons You Could Not Make Today
The 1980s were a golden era for kids television. This was the boom time, with networks having a ton of available airtime, and manufacturers figuring out that cartoons were a great way to market to kids. Get the kiddos excited about a toy or cereal and these early “influencers” would nag their parents to buy something.
It was a great time to be a cartoon fan, and this decade brought us some amazing shows from Eek! The Cat to Transformers.
This is also the era that produced some of the strangest cartoons we can recall. Either adult movies turned into cartoons (looking at you Rambo) or just plain weird shows that we’re kind shocked got made. <cough> Toxic Avenger. We could spend days talking about weird cartoons from the 80s and 90s but here is a small sampling of our favorites.
Rambo: The Force of Freedom
John Rambo. A PTSD war veteran not afraid of stabbing folks with his extremely large bowie knife. Perfect for a kids show! The set-up was simple. At the behest of Colonel Trautman, John Rambo takes charge of a specialized team known as “The Force of Freedom,” embarking on missions worldwide aimed at countering the paramilitary terrorist group S.A.V.A.G.E. (Specialist-Administrators of Vengeance, Anarchy, and Global Extortion), under the leadership of the villainous General Warhawk. Got it? It’s not easy turning an R-rated film into a kids cartoon - and production company Ruby/Spears knew how to make a cartoon - but ultimately this series didn’t land, and it’s probably the best for everyone. They did manage to squeak out a whole bunch of episodes, and sold a bunch of toys, but the regulation winds were shifting in the market and Rambo went back on the shelf.
Robocop
Here’s another example of making an ultra violent movie into a kid friendly cartoon. The animated series “Robocop,” which debuted in 1989, arrived a full year after the release of the movie. Notable changes in the series include the transformation of Old Detroit into a more futuristic city, adversaries equipped with specialized weaponry (such as boots that can induce minor earthquakes), and the substitution of traditional bullets with laser weaponry. An unusual twist in the series was the introduction of a romantic subplot between Lewis and Robocop, a decision that raised eyebrows considering the show’s target audience was children. One notable takeaway from this cartoon is that, unlike many other series from the same era which typically had 13 episodes, Robocop only received 12 episodes. This unique situation occurred because the show was produced by Marvel Animation, and they allocated the budget originally meant for the 13th episode to support the production of a pilot for a little cartoon pilotcalled X-Men. In a way, I guess you could say that without Robocop, we might not have gotten the classic 1990s X-Men cartoon.
Toxic Avengers
The Toxic Avenger Cartoon remains a fascinating relic of the early 1990s animation landscape. How this got greenlit, we have no idea. Somehow the team at Troma managed to jump from it’s cult teen film to an educationally appropriate cartoon focused on the Toxic Avengers and their fight against the evil corporations and their pollution. As hard as it is to believe, the Toxic Avengers became a mainstream brand While it only lasted for one season, Toxie’s adventures in Tromaville left a lasting impression on those who dared to embrace its irreverent charm. The original Troma Toxic Avenger movie is definately NOT for kids, but somehow, this property morphed into a mainstream brand with a decent toy line from Playmates. The 80s/90s were a crazy time in cartoonland.
