Top 10 Cartoon Moments that Left us Speechless

“The Magic School Bus” (1994-97)
During one of Ms. Frizzle’s field trips, the class decides to journey over to the chilly planet Pluto. While there, Arnold’s cousin Janet refuses to leave without her moon rocks. Frustrated, he decides to teach his family member what’ll happen if she stays on Pluto by removing his helmet. Arnold’s head is instantly encased in ice. Fortunately, the class is quick to get him back to Earth before it’s too late. Thankfully, all Arnold ends up with is a cold. And the kids are able to laugh this off pretty easily. However, the audience has a much harder time letting this moment go. The thought of the fan favorite Arnold dying in outer space was terrifying.

“The Simpsons” (1989-)
Many agree that season 9 of “The Simpsons” marked the point where the show began to decline in quality. The actual start of their fall is often blamed on “The Principal and the Pauper” episode. For context, Principal Skinner, who we’ve known since the show’s very beginning, announces that he’s actually an imposter named Armin Tamzarian. The school professional took the name of a soldier that was supposedly killed in Vietnam. However, the real Skinner returned and threw everything we know out the window. But the townsfolk decide to keep calling Armin ‘Skinner’ and forget this whole episode ever happened. It was effortless for them to forget. However, the audience will always remember how the show radically changed its continuity.

“Thomas & Friends” (1984-2021)
The season five episode “Stepney Gets Lost” starts off innocently enough. After Stepney the Bluebell Engine helps out at the Quarry for the day, he starts heading home at night. But on his way home, things take a grim turn. Stepney loses his way in the fog and winds up at the Scrapyard. Two diesel twins then abduct him and bring him to the Smelting Shed where he’s to meet his demise. Thankfully, Sir Topham Hatt arrives to save Stepney from certain doom. This doesn’t sound so bad on the surface. But since “Thomas & Friends” is usually a pretty lighthearted show, seeing it shift into this frightening tone all of a sudden definitely threw us off. Getting scrapped is pretty final for an engine.

“South Park” (1997-)
Cartman had been desperate to get revenge against an obnoxious ninth grader named Scott Tenorman. The foul mouthed kid planned his ultimate revenge at a chili cook-off. At first, it looks like Cartman’s big plan involved a pony attack. But when they sit down to eat some chili, the true scheme is revealed. Cartman actually had Scott’s parents killed turned into ingredients. And we’ll give you three guesses as to where those food materials ended up. We all knew Cartman was diabolical. But this was twisted even by HIS standards. By the end of the episode, we understand why even Cartman’s friends were wary of him.

“Amphibia” (2019-22)
In the Season 2 finale of Amphibia, Anne, Marcy, and the Plantars are trying to escape from King Andrias and return home. Everything seemed great when a portal was opened. But before Marcy can leave, she’s suddenly impaled by Andrias’ sword. We gasped as Anne watched her friend fall to the floor while apologizing for getting her into this mess in the first place. The audience was just as shaken up by how suddenly this cliffhanger occurred. It was made even worse by how much Marcy’s endured already. Miraculously, she survives being mortally wounded. While things still get rough for Marcy, this was the most heartstopping moment.

“Rick and Morty” (2013-)
In an infamous scene, Rick and Morty are innocently working in the garage after averting a major crisis. Suddenly, a new gizmo explodes and kills them instantly in a very not safe for YouTube way. We were still struggling to recover from our shock when another Rick and Morty arrived. It’s revealed that this lively duo was actually the pair we’ve been following since the beginning. As the final twist, Rick announces they’ll be taking the place of their deceased counterparts because he couldn’t solve a global crisis. If the experience was fast and traumatic for you, think about how Morty felt. He had to overcome these shocking events and pretend like everything was normal in front of alternate versions of his loved ones.

“Invader Zim” (2001-06)
“Invader Zim’s” bizarre humor definitely pushed the boundaries often. But the most disturbing story turn came during “Dark Harvest.” During this bleak story, the alien Zim needs to pass himself off as human. He decides the best way to do so is to get some terrestrial organs. But instead of signing up for a donor list, Zim decides to harvest organs from every kid in school. He replaces their missing parts with completely random objects. The most terrifying aspect of this body horror nightmare is that he gets away with it! While Zim’s deemed a “normal” human, the victimized Dib is seen as abnormal. We’re not sure how Nickelodeon got away with airing this messed up episode.

“The Powerpuff Girls” (1998-2005)
The Powerpuff Girls were excited to be getting a weekend away from the City of Townsville and decided to celebrate with a race home. But during their competition, the heroes end up going a little too fast. When they finally stop, we witness a truly jaw- dropping setting. It turns out the powerpuff Girls flew into a future where Townsville has become a hellish nightmare. As they explore the town, they meet twisted and broken versions of their friends and family. The city’s also ruled by the villain HIM because the trio wasn’t there. Although the girls are able to go back in time, the episode leaves us with a grim message. If the girls take time a break, their city might fall.

“Steven Universe Future” (2019-20)
Steven and the gem warrior Jasper had a very long history of clashing before they met in yet another ultimate battle of strength. Normally, the half human warrior would try to end a confrontation peacefully. But when Steven deals a heavy blow, we smash cut to black and then find him desperately running home… clutching what remained of Jaspere’s core. Seeing the gentle hero shatter a gem, something he swore to never do, shook us to our cores. While Steven is miraculously able to save Jasper, the damage was already done. We now knew that even this kind hero could lose control and do the unthinkable.

“The Legend of Korra” (2012-14)
We won’t mince words here. Hou-Ting the Earth Queen was a royal pain. That being said, how they chose to get rid of her in the third season took our breath away… too soon? You decide after you hear her final fate. After the villainous Red Lotus faction breaks into the Queen’s throne room, she tries to order them out. But leader Zaheer wasn’t having any of that. He used his airbending skills to remove all the oxygen from the royal’s body. The Queen is then forced to suffer an absolutely agonizing death. Throughout the “Avatar” franchise,there were more than a few shocking ends. But the Earth Queen’s demise was so brutal that we were left breathless.