Best Cartoon Shows Ever

Spongebob Squarepants, At face value, a cartoon about an anthropomorphic kitchen sponge that lives underwater in a town called Bikini Bottom might sound ridiculous, but – No, you’re right it is ridiculous, but that’s what makes it so hilarious. However, if you go beyond its wacky and weird humor, there’s quite a bit of witty subtext and commentary; plus, many of the characters are well-written and designed. The show has seen wild success becoming Nickelodeon’s longest-running cartoon.

South Park cartoon, first animated with paper cutouts about four boys getting through school and life, is in no way meant for kids. It’s obscene, violent, and full of adult content that has routinely been denounced by a whole host of organizations. Rarely has it shied away from addressing hot button issues in an irreverent fashion, poking fun primarily at American culture. Still, despite all that, it has become an award-winning, highly rated comedy with a massive fanbase.

Looney Tunes: First created to compete with Disney’s Mickey Mouse cartoons, Warner Bros. Looney Tunes’ iconic and massive variety of cartoons arguably overtook Mickey Mouse in both popularity and the number of shorts they released. From Bugs Bunny to Elmer Fudd, pretty much every Looney Tunes character is iconic and recognizable. To top it all off, many of their shorts are hilarious and set the bar for many future cartoons to come.

The Simpsons: Groundbreaking, award-winning, iconic, and ultimately hilarious, this cartoon by Matt Groening went on to become the longest-running television show in history and set the stage for multiple adult cartoon comedies to come. But aside from all that, it’s the characters and the endless lampooning of American culture, society, and politics that we love so much.

Batman: The Animated Series forever altered how kids saw cartoons in the ’90s. It never felt like a kids' cartoon and consistently transcended the genre. With clever writing, a fantastic score, unique art, and animation, along with iconic voice acting from Kevin Connelly as Batman/Bruce Wayne and Mark Hamill as the Joker, there’s little this show did wrong. Dark, mysterious, and tonally nuanced, it gave us the best depiction of Batman and Bruce Wayne, setting a bar for all future Batman shows to follow. Oh, and did we mention it gave us Batman: Mask of the Phantasm?