My Dream Saturday Morning Cartoon Block
There have been many great cartoon series over the years, but what would you include in your personal, all-time favorite list if you could create your definitive Dream Saturday Morning block? The only ground rule are that it has to be a show that aired on Saturday morning and your full block could only go from 7 AM to 1 PM CST. Here's mine:
A Pup Named Scooby-Doo - Yes, I liked this show better than the classic Mystery Inc. gang as adults. It's Red Herring! (And Scooby-Doo as a pup is coming back in Septembers The Batman and Scooby-Doo Mysteries comic!)
Little Rosey - This was a strange cartoon that had Roseanne Barr voicing the titular character that sort of mirrored young versions of the Roseanne live action series' Roseanne, Dan, and Jackie, but not really. In a recent re-watch, the humor still held up.
Challenge of the Superfriends - Who wouldn't include this one? Banded together from remote galaxies...Lex Luthor, Scarecrow, a time traveling Legion of Doom?! Wait, remote galaxies? Was there a multiverse thing going on that I missed?
Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians - I chose this one because it was the most mature of the 80's Superfriends shows and is worth it for the first animated insinuation of the murder of Bruce Wayne's parents. Plus, the death of Superman, too!
The Real Ghostbusters - This series holds up today and in many ways could've been a primetime show (a Halloween episode did air in primetime on ABC). Excellent writing, animation, music and voice acting make this one a no-brainer.
Drak Pack - This quirky early 80's series was formulaic, but gets a nod for it's unique potential. What could today be a CW drama featured teenage versions of Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, and the Wolf man.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - This CBS series was the definitive TMNT for a generation and put the Turtles on the map. Remember when Michelangelo gave up the nunchucks for a grappling hook?
Star Trek - One of the oldest series here, but this animated Trek was more in line with the live action series than the kid's cartoons of the day. Gene Roddenberry and most the original cast was involved and it won Filmation and an Emmy award.
Batman: The Animated Series - Yes, this one was a weekday afternoon and briefly a weekend primetime show, but later incarnations did appear on Saturday morning as The Adventure of Batman and Robin--hey, it's MY Saturday morning. Anyway, it's 30 years later and it's just as good on the 100th viewing as it was on the first. And Mask of the Phantasm is easily in the top 3 best Batman movies.
Beetlejuice - I really only included this one to have a Michael Keaton hour. Actually, I watched the afternoon versions of Beetlejuice and loved them, but I remember a certain anticipation for the Saturday versions, too. Maybe new episodes were appearing on ABC at the time? Like Ghostbusters, I watched the animated shows before the live action movies!
Now, with this last hour, I broke my original rule of no live action, but I had to include Pee-Wee's Playhouse. And I couldn't leave out Saved By the Bell either. Back in the high school years or today in Peacock's Bayside reboot, who doesn't want a little Zack Morris?
That's my list--what does your Dream Saturday Morning look like?
