LOC 74- Top 50 Cartoons of the 80's

[Quantum Vagina]

#39 –The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin

(30 Points) 2 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #2 - goflyblind

Good ol’ fashioned nightmare fuel!

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/qW5_PqSdI1I" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/qW5_PqSdI1I</a>

Release Date:  1987

Just the plagarism
The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin is an American animated television series based on Teddy Ruxpin, an animatronic teddy bear created by Ken Forsse and distributed by toy manufacturer Worlds of Wonder. It was produced for television syndication by DiC with Atkinson Film-Arts using many of the same voice actors used in the book-and-tape series that was made for the eponymous animatronic toy. While some of the stories used in the TV series were adapted from the books, many were original and greatly expanded upon the world established there. The series differed from traditional children's animation in that most of its 65 episodes were serialized rather than in traditional episodic form.

In the United States, the series was originally syndicated by LBS Communications. Today, all international distribution rights to the series are held by Don Taffner's DLT Entertainment.

In mid-1986, Atkinson Film Arts of Ontario, Canada was commissioned to co-produce (with Worlds of Wonder, AlchemyII, and DiC) a 65 episode animated television series based on the World of Teddy Ruxpin characters. The series followed a prior attempt to produce a live-action series which had proved too difficult and expensive. Atkinson was in charge of the principal animation and casting. Of the previous voice actors associated with the Teddy Ruxpin property, only Phil Baron (Teddy) and Will Ryan (Grubby) traveled to Canada to remain part of the cast, most other characters were re-cast with local Canadian voice talent. The series was originally intended to continue for more episodes, but because of economic problems at Worlds of Wonder (the series' primary financial partner) a 2nd set of episodes was not produced while Worlds of Wonder still had rights to the property. Interest remains among the owners of the Teddy Ruxpin property and the fanbase to continue the story originated in the animated series, which ended its 65 episode run in somewhat of a cliffhanger.

The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin (Мечето Ръкспин), was one of the very first western cartoon shows to be seen by the population of Bulgaria in the late 1980s. The influence of this show can be seen in the text of the then modern post-punk band REVIEW (РЕВЮ)and their song "Teddy Ruxpin"  ; also the very first underground music shop to open in the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia, was and is to this date called MAVO (ОЧЗ), in reference to the antagonistic organization in the cartoon show.

Quantum Vagina’s take - Most HORRIFYING toy in the history of the world.

[Johnny Unusual]

I dare not tell anyone at my age, but I loved Teddy Ruxpin.  It certainly wasn't a "girly" show, but it was a pretty wussy looking one, and one an 8 year old might be embarrassed to be caught watching.  But aside from the occasional awful musical number (one per episode, I think), there was a really exciting story about the title character's quest to find his father.  It had a well developed universe and was really engaging.  I'm afraid to revisit it now, but I'm pretty sure this is the show that introduced me to serialized story-telling.  I don't know if they ever finished the story though.  It's been a long time.

[Quantum Vagina]

#38 –Captain N: The Game Master

(30 Points) 3 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #8 - Pak-Man

Yet another reason to have been born in the 80’s

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/RyoUecpe_wU" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/RyoUecpe_wU</a>

Release Date:  1989

Just the plagarism
Captain N: The Game Master is a joint-venture between American-Canadian animated television series that aired on television from 1989 to 1991 as part of the Saturday morning cartoon lineup on NBC. The show is produced by DIC Entertainment and incorporated elements from many of the most popular video games from the Japanese company, Nintendo of the time. There was also a comic book version by Valiant Comics, albeit only featuring characters from games produced by Nintendo. The show is also part of an hour-long block in Season 2 with The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and with Super Mario World in Season 3 in a half-hour block.

At the outset of the first episode the hero of the series, Kevin Keene, a teenager from the Northridge, Los Angeles, California, and his dog Duke are taken to another universe known as Videoland when they are sucked into a vortex called the Ultimate Warp Zone that formed in his television. In order to fulfill an ancient prophecy, Kevin is destined to become the hero "Captain N: The Game Master" and save Videoland from evil forces led by Mother Brain from the floating world/fortress called Metroid. By the time Kevin arrives on the scene, Mother Brain has almost succeeded in capturing the Palace of Power and conquering all Videoland. Kevin (who in Videoland is armed with a Zapper and a belt buckle shaped like an NES controller) and Duke appear suddenly on the other side of the Ultimate Warp Zone before the N Team, which consists of Princess Lana (the acting ruler of Videoland as a later episode explains the absence of her father the King), Simon Belmont, Mega Man, and Kid Icarus (known as Pit in the video games), none of whom show any confidence in Kevin's ability in the beginning. After Lana is kidnapped by the enemy shortly after Kevin's arrival, the reluctant group puts their differences aside to go on a rescue mission where Kevin eventually gains the others' confidence.

In most episodes, the N Team's enemy is a group of video game villains, usually led by the boisterous and loud Mother Brain who is accompanied by her minions, the Eggplant Wizard, the thuggish King Hippo, and the scheming Dr. Wily. A "villain of the week" is featured in some episodes when a particular video game becomes the setting (such as Malkil of Wizards & Warriors). Donkey Kong also makes an appearance as a territorial, belligerent, Godzilla-sized gorilla in some episodes, but usually serves as a dangerous neutral character posing a hazard to friend and foe alike.

Further recurring characters make an appearance as either friend or foe. The Count (Castlevania) makes multiple appearances, along with Dr. Light (Dr. Wright), Link and Princess Zelda. From season two on Game Boy (a human-sized supercomputer shaped like the console) joins the N Team.

The focus of the show is mostly action-adventure sourced from the video games they parody, with comedic relief forming in the character's interactions with one another and the environment. Sometimes humor also stems from the comparatively loose interpretations of the laws of reality that apply in Videoland.

Quantum Vagina’s take - Oh god, yes. This is totally my style. Just on the edge of the 80’s/90’s border, this show is awesome. AWESOME I SAY.

[Quantum Vagina]

#37 –Care Bears

(31 Points) 3 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #6 - goflyblind

Nobody ever likes it when I walk around naked showing off my belly tattoo...

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/BPo9I1d2LwM" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/BPo9I1d2LwM</a>

Release Date:  1985

Just the plagarism
The Care Bears is an animated television series based on the Care Bears franchise, which aired between 1985 and 1988 in syndication; on the ABC network in the United States; and on Global in Canada. The 1985 episodes were produced by DIC Entertainment; the ABC/Global episodes were made by Toronto's Nelvana studio as The Care Bears Family. This is the only Care Bears series produced by Nelvana; in 2007, Sabella Dern Entertainment produced a revival, Care Bears: Adventures in Care-a-Lot.

The Care Bears live in a faraway place up in the clouds called Care-a-Lot, which constitutes a part of the Kingdom of Caring. With the help of the Cousins and their Buddies, they go all around the world on Missions in Caring whilst Evil villains such as Professor Coldheart (DIC episodes), and Lord No Heart (Nelvana episodes), try to thwart their plans.

In Remote Control: Power, Cultures and the World of Appearances, Barbara Kruger referred to the series as "a veritable position paper, a saccharinely preachy manifesto on 'caring.'"

Quantum Vagina’s take - Honestly, I think all the cartoons with a message in the 80’s were pretty damned heavy handed with it, although maybe not as heavy handed as the diversity and clean earth messages of the 90’s. I definitely think “saccharine” is a mostly 80’s sentiment, though.

[Quantum Vagina]

#36 –The New Scooby Doo Mysteries

(33 Points) 2 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #8 - Mrs. Dick Courier

Zoinks and Jinkies, and whatnot

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/FfCSXWDf_s4" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/FfCSXWDf_s4</a>

Release Date:  1983

Just the plagarism
The New Scooby and Scrappy Doo Show is the sixth incarnation of the Hanna-Barbera Saturday morning cartoon Scooby-Doo. It premiered on September 10, 1983, and ran for one season on ABC as a half-hour program made up of two eleven-minute short cartoons. In 1984, the name of the show was changed to The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries, with the actual show format remaining the same. The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries ran for another season on ABC. The series airs reruns on Cartoon Network's classics channel Boomerang.

Thirteen half-hour episodes, composed of twenty-four separate segments were produced under the New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo title in 1983, and thirteen more episodes, composed of twenty separate segments were produced under the name The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries in 1984.

For this incarnation of the show, Hanna-Barbera attempted to combine the most successful elements of both the original Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! format and the newer Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo format. Daphne Blake, a character from the original Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! format, was added back to the cast after a four-year absence. The plots of each episode feature her, Shaggy Rogers, Scooby-Doo, and Scrappy-Doo solved supernatural mysteries under the cover of being reporters for a teen magazine. Each half-hour program was made up of two 11-minute episodes, which would upon occasion be two parts of one half-hour long episode.

The second season of this format, broadcast as The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries in 1984, continued the same format, and included six two-part episodes featuring original Scooby-Doo characters Fred Jones and Velma Dinkley, both absent from the series for five years. Fred's last name is given as "Rogers" in his return appearance to the series in the episode "Happy Birthday, Scooby-Doo"; although Rogers had been established as Shaggy's surname the previous season. The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries theme song is performed in the style of Thriller-era Michael Jackson. The accompanying opening credits feature shots of a row of monsters dancing like the zombies in Jackson's "Thriller" music video.

Quantum Vagina’s take - At least they brought back Velma for the second season. I like Scooby Doo, but I’m not a huge fan of this series. I don’t know exScrappy why, though.

[RoninFox]

Wait, there were Scooby Doo episodes without Velma?  How the hell did they get anything done?  She was the only character with a friggin' brain.

[The Lurker]

#37 –Care Bears

(31 Points) 3 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #6 - goflyblind

Nobody ever likes it when I walk around naked showing off my belly tattoo...

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/BPo9I1d2LwM" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/BPo9I1d2LwM</a>

Release Date:  1985

Just the plagarism
The Care Bears is an animated television series based on the Care Bears franchise, which aired between 1985 and 1988 in syndication; on the ABC network in the United States; and on Global in Canada. The 1985 episodes were produced by DIC Entertainment; the ABC/Global episodes were made by Toronto's Nelvana studio as The Care Bears Family. This is the only Care Bears series produced by Nelvana; in 2007, Sabella Dern Entertainment produced a revival, Care Bears: Adventures in Care-a-Lot.

The Care Bears live in a faraway place up in the clouds called Care-a-Lot, which constitutes a part of the Kingdom of Caring. With the help of the Cousins and their Buddies, they go all around the world on Missions in Caring whilst Evil villains such as Professor Coldheart (DIC episodes), and Lord No Heart (Nelvana episodes), try to thwart their plans.

In Remote Control: Power, Cultures and the World of Appearances, Barbara Kruger referred to the series as "a veritable position paper, a saccharinely preachy manifesto on 'caring.'"

Quantum Vagina’s take - Honestly, I think all the cartoons with a message in the 80’s were pretty damned heavy handed with it, although maybe not as heavy handed as the diversity and clean earth messages of the 90’s. I definitely think “saccharine” is a mostly 80’s sentiment, though.

Coldheart looks like he wandered in from a Rankin-Bass holiday special.

[Quantum Vagina]

#35 –Droids

(34 Points) 3 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #12 - gojikranz

More stuff for Mr. Abrams to ignore in his sure to be forgettable Star Wars movie!

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/S7XCe2XorcY" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/S7XCe2XorcY</a>

Release Date:  1985

Just the plagarism
Star Wars: Droids, also known as Droids: The Adventures of R2-D2 and C-3PO, and 2004 re-released on DVD as Star Wars Animated Adventures: Droids, is an animated television series that features the exploits of R2-D2 and C-3PO, the droids who have appeared in all six Star Wars films. The series takes place between the events depicted in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.

Over the course of the series, the droids team up with four different sets of masters. The series is divided up into three cycles: at the beginning of each, the droids usually run into their new masters in an accidental way, and at the end of each cycle, they usually are forced to leave their masters for one reason or another. The Great Heep, a television special following the series, served as a prequel to the third Mungo Baobab cycle.

The series featured Anthony Daniels as the voice of C-3PO, who also portrayed the character in the films, along with the voice talents of Graeme Campbell, Rob Cowan, Don Francks, Peter MacNeill, John Stocker and Winston Rekert. Several episodes feature guest stars like Dan Hennessey, Chris Wiggins, George Buza, Andrew Sabiston, Eric Peterson, Rob Cowan, Jamie Dick, Cree Summer, Donny Burns, Don McManus, Long John Baldry and Gordon Masten. Several episodes of the series were written by Ben Burtt. The series was produced by Nelvana on behalf of Lucasfilm and broadcast on ABC. The cartoon series lasted one season and was made up of thirteen regular episodes in 1985. There was also a two-part television special entitled The Great Heep in 1986. Following the original run of the complete series, the entire show was rebroadcast as part of The Ewoks and Droids Adventure Hour the same year, along with its series counterpart, Star Wars: Ewoks. The shows, Droids and Ewoks, were also played on the Sci Fi Channel in 1993 as a part of their early morning Sci-Fi cartoon run, although somewhat edited for time.

In the UK, BBC Television bought rights to screen the series in its entirety between 1986 and 1991 as part of Children's BBC. The entire series was shown twice within this time (in 1986 and 1988 to coincide with the full release of the Star Wars trilogy as well as Droids on VHS). The Great Heep only made one showing in 1989 on BBC's Going Live!, which was a Saturday morning kids show and split into two parts over two weeks. Different episodes from different cycles were also screened across the five-year licence, with the Trigon cycle being shown in full in early 1991 on the Saturday morning children's show called The 8:15 from Manchester.

Quantum Vagina’s take - I stand by the fact that C-3PO is one of the best characters in the Star Wars universe, and his relationship with R2-D2 is one of the best models of friendship ever. If you’ve ever been interested on their goings on in between the various films of the franchise, then I’d watch this series. Provided you can get past the hideous animation, you’re good.

[Quantum Vagina]

#34 –Spiderman and His Amazing Friends

(34 Points) 4 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #13 - ColeStratton

The Groan Saga

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/cgN0g4vqYMg" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/cgN0g4vqYMg</a>

Release Date:  1981

Just the plagarism
Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends is an American animated television series produced by Marvel Productions starring established Marvel Comics characters Spider-Man and Iceman and an original character, Firestar. As a trio called the Spider-Friends, they fought against various villains.

Originally broadcast on NBC as a Saturday morning cartoon, the series ran first-run original episodes for three seasons, from 1981 to 1983, then aired repeats for an additional two years (from 1984 to 1986). Alongside the 1981 Spider-Man animated series, Amazing Friends was later re-aired in the late 1980s as part of the 90 minute Marvel Action Universe (not to be confused with 1977's The Marvel Action Universe), a syndicated series that was used as a platform for old and new Marvel-produced animated fare (the newer programming featured RoboCop: The Animated Series, Dino-Riders and on occasion “X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men”, which was intended to serve as a pilot for a potential X-Men animated series).

In the second season, the show was aired along with a newly produced Hulk animated series as The Incredible Hulk and the Amazing Spider-Man. The two shows shared one intro which showcased the new title. Stan Lee began narrating the episodes in the second season. Narrations by Stan Lee were added to the first season episodes at this time so that the series seemed cohesive. These narrations (for the first and second season) are not on the current masters. They have not aired since the NBC airings. (As seen on the Stan Lee narration list at Spider-Friends.com)

For the third season, there was another title change. This time the characters' names would be reversed and the show was called, The Amazing Spider-Man and the Incredible Hulk. It remained that way for most of the remaining years. NBC did air the show individually in mid-season (post 1986) after it was not initially announced for their fall schedule. Only some of the Stan Lee narrations for the third season are on the current masters. The missing narrations have not aired since the NBC airings.

Quantum Vagina’s take - Firestar’s pretty damn cute. And, I suppose that the male characters also deserve some respect as well, but my inner child is always interested in babes that can burn him alive.

He has some issues.

[Tripe]

Quantum Vagina’s take - Most HORRIFYING toy in the history of the world.

But awesome to slap a Megadeath or Sabbath cassette into.

[Johnny Unusual]

Man, those monsters look like they're having fun on that Scooby Doo opening.  Also, I think the estate of Michael Jackson should sue.

Man, that giant monster made entirely of fire is probably responsible for thousands of deaths by the time Spider-Man is on the scene.

I barely remember the Droids show, but I really like the premise of them going from owner to owner and getting caught in other people's intrique.  It reminds us that the Star Wars universe is pretty big and as I'm sure Imrahil is quick to remind us, does not begin and end with jedi crap.

[Quantum Vagina]

#33 –Dungeons and Dragons

(34 Points) 4 of 13 Lists - Highest Ranking - #4 - CJones

I failed my saving throw to avoid making this joke.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/3JjhQ1Oi_3k" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/3JjhQ1Oi_3k</a>

Release Date:  1983

Just the plagarism
Dungeons & Dragons is an American fantasy animated television series based on TSR's Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. A co-production of Marvel Productions and TSR, the show originally ran from 1983 through 1985 for three seasons on CBS for a total of twenty-seven episodes. The animation for this series was done in Japan by Toei Animation.

The show focused on a group of six friends who are transported into the titular realm and followed their adventures as they tried to find a way home with the help of their guide 'Dungeon Master'. A final un-produced episode would have served as a conclusion as well as a re-imagining had the series been picked up for a fourth season. However, the show was cancelled before the episode was made. The script can be found from various sources online and was performed as an audio drama as a special feature for a DVD edition of the series.

The show focuses on a group of friends aged between 8-15 who are sucked into the "Realm of Dungeons & Dragons" by taking a magical dark ride on an amusement park roller coaster. Upon arriving in the realm they meet Dungeon Master (named for the referee in the role-playing game) who gives each child a weapon to defend themselves with.
The children's main goal is to find a way home, but they often take detours to help people, or find that their fates are intertwined with that of others. The group come across many different enemies, but their primary antagonist is Venger. Venger is a powerful wizard who wishes to rule the realm and believes the power from the children's weapons will help him to do so. Another recurring villain is Tiamat, who is a five-headed dragon and the only creature Venger fears.
Throughout the show, a connection is suggested between Dungeon Master and Venger. The final un-produced episode would have revealed that Venger is the Dungeon Master's corrupted son, and would have explained that the children were brought into this realm to help redeem Venger and to restore balance to their world.

The level of violence was controversial for American children's television at the time, and the script of one episode, "The Dragon's Graveyard", was almost shelved because the characters contemplated killing their nemesis, Venger. In 1985, the National Coalition on Television Violence demanded that the FTC run a warning during each broadcast stating that Dungeons & Dragons had been linked to real-life violent deaths. The series spawned more than 100 different licenses, and the show led its time slot for two years.

Quantum Vagina’s take - I enjoy fantasy things. I REALLY love D&D. But I’m not too interested in this show. It doesn’t seem like it’s based on the funny things that can happen with the D&D ruleset, like a 1 foot tall pixie sorceress picking up an axe that the 8 foot tall minotaur in the party can’t because of a natural 20. Man, was that guy pissed when I made him give me most of his money for the axe I couldn’t use. But yeah, the story looks pretty cool. I might check it out, and I might not.

[Quantum Vagina]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/Tb3-UNcJSLI" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/Tb3-UNcJSLI</a>

And that's going to be it for today. I'm unseasonably tired tonight. Worry not, list goers! I plan on finishing it up in the next 3 days or so.

[Darth Geek]

Cinester Theater did a really good riff of one of the episodes of Dungeons & Dragons:

(part1 of 3)
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/8LXhu8V9lMs?" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/8LXhu8V9lMs?</a>

[Darth Geek]

Wait, there were Scooby Doo episodes without Velma?  How the hell did they get anything done?  She was the only character with a friggin' brain.

Agreed! And I do like that they jettisoned Fred, and it didn't matter at all.