Top 10 Cartoons Everyone Needs to See At Least Once

Watch out! You’ve gotta get back to watching “Samurai Jack.” Created by Genndy Tartakovsky, one of the minds behind some of Cartoon Network’s greatest hits, the series follows the titular samurai on various adventures. After being flung into the future by his foe, the evil Aku, Jack must discover a way to return to the past. He also tries to help those Aku has oppressed. “Samurai Jack” is a masterclass in minimalistic storytelling and frequently features episodes with little dialogue. Add in plenty of top-notch action, a cinematic vision, and some humor sprinkled in, and you’ve got a timelessly appealing cartoon!

“Adventure Time” primarily follows the adventures of Finn the human and Jake, his magical, shape-shifting, talking dog best friend. They encounter plenty of fun, adventure, and strangeness while living in and exploring the land of Ooo. “Adventure Time” can feel all over the place sometimes. But it justifies its randomness by doing so many things extremely well. “Adventure Time” has great comedy, tragic moments, romantic scenes, awe-inspiring settings and so much more. It’s had a tremendous impact on the recent cartoon industry and pop culture in general. While its offbeat tone and general weirdness can feel like a barrier to some, those who make the leap will find a show whose fun never ends.

Variety shows aren’t just for live-action! One of the best ones ever made happens to be animated. Featuring a large ensemble cast of talking animals in the vein of another cartoon we’ll be discussing later, “Animaniacs” has brought us memorable characters like the Warner siblings and Pinky and Brain. The show combines plenty of self-referential cartoon humor with pop culture references that make for comedy gold. In addition, it has some of the catchiest and funniest songs around! Irreverent and full of humor for people of “all ages,” “Animaniacs” is a show you’d have to be “totally insaney” to miss out on. Its significance is such that a revival of the series began airing in 2020.

Yes, we’re including“South Park.” This is a list of cartoons for all ages... although we’re sure plenty of us watched the show before we were old enough. “South Park” mainly follows a group of four boys interacting with the strange residents of the eponymous town and beyond. Despite the ordinary premise, the show frequently goes to strange and dark places. Frequently lampooning current events and providing biting social commentary, the animated sitcom has remained sharp and relevant for decades. Although it can often be provocative and occasionally downright gross, “South Park” is worth “comin’ on down” to. You’ll definitely “have yourself a time” when you tune into an episode.

This cartoon about a sponge who lives under the sea in a pineapple and his colorful cast of friends and neighbors has been a pop culture juggernaut for decades. Full of vibrant colors, memorable characters, and a ton of great humor, “SpongeBob SquarePants” has left its mark on generations of kids and kids at heart. Although it could be easy to dismiss by its ridiculous premise alone, there’s no denying its status as one of the biggest kids’ cartoons ever made. It’s still going strong 20 years after its debut! Plus, “SpongeBob” is basically required viewing in order to understand half the memes on the internet.

We honestly couldn’t decide on one show from this long-running cartoon franchise. There are so many great series that every generation has their favorite. But most of them boil down to a group of four teens, young adults, or kids, who solve mysteries with a frequently supernatural flair. And of course, they have a talking dog, too. The archetypal, yet memorable characters, along with the general sense of light-hearted fun have helped keep “Scooby-Doo” a staple of TV for over half a century. It’s no mystery why everyone loves these meddling kids so much. You’re unlikely to “get away with” never seeing at least one episode.

We’re in the all-timers now. If one series can be said to have codified the tropes of cartoons, it’s “Looney Tunes.” Wacky talking animals engaging in cartoon violence and wisecracking shenanigans have arguably never been done better, or longer. “Looney Tunes” has retained its popularity for almost a century, and it’s because its humor and characters have remained so iconic and timeless. It has seeped into our pop-cultural consciousness so much that even the nimrods who’ve never seen the short film series have probably referenced it at some point. Bottomline – everyone should watch “Looney Tunes.” And that’s all there is to it, folks!

Of course, everyone should see “The Simpsons!” Unless you don’t have a TV or know someone who has one, you’ve probably watched this seminal animated sitcom. And given how long it has been running, you needn’t worry it will end any time soon. We’re pretty sure it’ll last until the heat death of the universe. Or at least until the setting of fellow Matt Groening show “Futurama” is considered contemporary. While we considered discussing that series too, “The Simpsons” has just had so much more impact. It’s spawned memes, iconic scenes, and a few creepily accurate predictions of the future. The residents of Springfield feel like friends and family we’ve known our whole lives. They’ve definitely left a mark on society.

If there’s one superhero show you need to watch, it’s “Batman: The Animated Series.” Although there are other great parts of the DC animated universe, such as “Justice League Unlimited,” let’s focus on the dark knight. “Batman: The Animated Series” really lives up to the big “the” in its title by being the definitive animated Batman show! It features a moody art style, a timeless aesthetic and themes, excellent voice acting, and iconic versions of many of its characters. “Batman: The Animated Series” is a must-watch for superhero fans – which is pretty much everyone these days! If you could distill Batman down to his essence, this would be it.

Before we get to our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

“Rick and Morty” (2013-)
An Awkward Teen & His Grandpa Go on Darkly Humorous & Existential Adventures

“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (2008-14; 2020)
A Show That Puts the “Wars” in “Star Wars” & Redeemed the Prequel Era

“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (2012-17)
The 2012 Run Has Arguably the Best Combination of Great Action & Humor in the Franchise

“Gravity Falls” (2012-16)
It’s One of Disney’s Greatest Shows That Has a Little Bit of Everything

“BoJack Horseman” (2014-20) Few Cartoons Manage to Pull at Your Heartstrings & Tickle Your Funny Bone Quite So Well

One of the best cartoons ever made, “Avatar: The Last Airbender” follows the titular character, Aang, and his friends as they try to keep the peace among the nations in their world. It’s a simple hero’s story that’s told with such deft skill that it only gets better the more you examine it. The world is rich and full of detail. All the characters are incredibly well-realized and have excellent arcs across the entire show. It’s funny and tragic and action-packed. It even has an excellent sequel series in “The Legend of Korra.” It’s everything you could want from a story on television – animated or otherwise. Why are you still watching our video, when you could be watching “Avatar” right now?!