I would say that the period/years that I watched the channel the most was during the 90s until 2004.
Which Cartoon Network periods/years are your favorite?
- Thread starter Magister Xehanort
- Start date
I think for my generation 96-03 (04 if you count Foster's) is the undoubted golden age of CN.
But for a whole generation, that trophy is going to go to 2010-15. And to be fair, there's a lot of really strong stuff in that time period too.
But for a whole generation, that trophy is going to go to 2010-15. And to be fair, there's a lot of really strong stuff in that time period too.
1997-2004
Ed, Edd n Eddy, Powerpuff Girls, Billy & Mandy, Time Squad, Kids Next Door and Foster's Home was my shit
Ed, Edd n Eddy, Powerpuff Girls, Billy & Mandy, Time Squad, Kids Next Door and Foster's Home was my shit
mid/late nineties to 2001
not surprising that was cartoon network's peak since it was Human Civilization's peak as well.
nothing but a downhill slide since then
not surprising that was cartoon network's peak since it was Human Civilization's peak as well.
nothing but a downhill slide since then
The Golden Age was around 1996 to 2004. There were some good shows after that, but the era of having at least one new banger come out year after year is long gone.
98-99; 01-04; 07-08; 10. Those are the years that the my favorite CN shows premiered and plenty of them aired for a long while after. 09 I assume is the Live Action era and boy oh boy that has to be the absolute WORST era. Destroy, Build, Destroy probably the only show worth a damn.
I imagine for most of this community the answer is going to be 1996 to 2004 because that's what most of us grew up with. And I totally get it - Dexter and PPG absolutely helped shape my sense of humor as a kid. The "Omelette Du Fromage" episode of Dexter is one of the earliest examples I can remember of absurdist humor that had me in hysterics.
Having said that, I would argue 2007-2013 was just as good if not slightly better, considering how hugely influential Chowder and Flapjack have been on TV animation since their inception. Those two shows really created a domino effect of incredible kid-friendly animation for a while - Adventure Time, Regular Show, Gumball, Steven Universe, etc.
Having said that, I would argue 2007-2013 was just as good if not slightly better, considering how hugely influential Chowder and Flapjack have been on TV animation since their inception. Those two shows really created a domino effect of incredible kid-friendly animation for a while - Adventure Time, Regular Show, Gumball, Steven Universe, etc.
98-04
From first discovering CN to when I started to disconnect from it, Live Action era was like throwing a hatchet at that last rope. Not even 2010 brought me back, I was too busy watching shows from other channels at that point. Shame because I apparently missed out on some of the greatest stuff ever.
It's all on Max now tho.
From first discovering CN to when I started to disconnect from it, Live Action era was like throwing a hatchet at that last rope. Not even 2010 brought me back, I was too busy watching shows from other channels at that point. Shame because I apparently missed out on some of the greatest stuff ever.
It's all on Max now tho.
TIL I Am Weasel was spun off of Cow and Chicken, albeit briefly.
I wasn't aware the two ever split.
I wasn't aware the two ever split.
I never had the channel when I was a kid which was right at the beginning of it. But honestly the only shows there I really love are Adventure Time and Over the Garden Wall, even though I was technically an adult when they came out.
Ed Edd n Eddy and Courage are absolutely brilliant. Still like the stuff surrounding most of those two.
It came later but shout-out to
View: https://youtu.be/koesW3xMKtY?si=ND7jB-82R9a5Qssc
It came later but shout-out to
View: https://youtu.be/koesW3xMKtY?si=ND7jB-82R9a5Qssc
Peak CN was when Toonami started and it's entire run of Dragon Ball Z defined a generation that's felt to this day.
CN City Era
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbbYs-Ki1x8
Not every show that debuted in this time frame was a hit for me but I distinctly remember loving these bumpers, that the was the period that Toonami shifted to be Saturday evenings.
Billy and Mandy was my shit. lol
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbbYs-Ki1x8
Not every show that debuted in this time frame was a hit for me but I distinctly remember loving these bumpers, that the was the period that Toonami shifted to be Saturday evenings.
Billy and Mandy was my shit. lol
It was 90s to 2000s and then that period of time in the 2010s when adventure time and regular show and Clarence and uncle grandpa were on
Might be some heavy nostalgia bias, but for me it's the CN City era. Most if not all of the 90s Cartoon Cartoons plus some retro stuff were still in rotation to some degree and the newer shows were mostly good. Also really love the branding and of course the crossover promos.
Yup. Those were my formative years for cartoon viewing. Still followed them into the 2000's and beyond, but they never had a full line up that I was interested in. Just a show here and there. 2010 came the closest to matching those earlier years for me.
Right, Dexter's Lab, Cow and Chicken, Ed, Edd n Eddy. Stuff like that was wonderful.
2010 - 2019
The Adventure Time, Regular Show, Steven Universe combo was so nice.
OK KO deserved a much longer run.
The Adventure Time, Regular Show, Steven Universe combo was so nice.
OK KO deserved a much longer run.
A lot of their later output is fantastic: later seasons of Adventure Time, Steven Universe, Over the Garden Wall, Infinity Train.
I can't deny a lot of nostalgia for the earlier stuff, but comparing them is a bit apples and oranges; they weren't really trying to do the same thing at all.
I can't deny a lot of nostalgia for the earlier stuff, but comparing them is a bit apples and oranges; they weren't really trying to do the same thing at all.
1996-1999. 2001 and 2003 were solid too, but after that it was just 1 show a year if that until 2011. Other than like 2 episodes of Ben 10 Omnitrix, I haven't seen anything from 2012 onwards.
Booo on the image maker for using nuDexter. #notmydexter
Looking at it, I'd say the 95-98 shows feel most nostalgic, though probably delay that a year or three since so much of watching CN was about reruns. 2005 is the last continuous one that had any shows I recognized (I graduated HS the next year), but I was surprised how many of the later ones I knew through osmosis.
Looking at it, I'd say the 95-98 shows feel most nostalgic, though probably delay that a year or three since so much of watching CN was about reruns. 2005 is the last continuous one that had any shows I recognized (I graduated HS the next year), but I was surprised how many of the later ones I knew through osmosis.
If you're up for it, there's some good shit in their recent output.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hx0EhEtgQAM
...By "recent" I mean "within the past decade" because I guess Over the Garden Wall is 10 years old now...
96'-'04
Honorable mention to '05-'08
The late nineties/early 2000's era is really cemented in my brain as one of the best ages of cartoon television, not just on CN but across the landscape of shows and channels, mixed in there with my nostalgia with Toonami and the budding anime phenomenon. Not to mention a TON of cross-pollination with the PS2/Gamecube/Xbox era, so you'd hear many of these cartoon voices in other TV shows and your favorite video games. Throw in the growing Internet popularity and you've got a potent mix of so many multi-layered nuances, enough to elevate any show to God-tier status whether it was a break-out hit or a slow burn.
Honorable mention to '05-'08
The late nineties/early 2000's era is really cemented in my brain as one of the best ages of cartoon television, not just on CN but across the landscape of shows and channels, mixed in there with my nostalgia with Toonami and the budding anime phenomenon. Not to mention a TON of cross-pollination with the PS2/Gamecube/Xbox era, so you'd hear many of these cartoon voices in other TV shows and your favorite video games. Throw in the growing Internet popularity and you've got a potent mix of so many multi-layered nuances, enough to elevate any show to God-tier status whether it was a break-out hit or a slow burn.
Adventure Time ---> Fionna and Cake
with Craig in the Creek and We Bare Bears in the middle
AAAA content
I am definitely an adult in age lol
but AT speaks to me like very few others
with Craig in the Creek and We Bare Bears in the middle
AAAA content
I am definitely an adult in age lol
but AT speaks to me like very few others
a smile comes to my face every day im reminded megas xlr existed
2000 - 2008. Those were my peak years with the channel, before I went through my brief cartoons are for kids phase. Followed by 2012 - 2017. My friend introduced me to Regular Show in 2012. That show made me a CN watcher all over again.
I'd probably say 96-99. At that point where they started ramping up their originals and dipped their toes into anime, but still have a bunch of classic cartoons.
