Top 5 Best & Top 5 Worst Disney Channel Cartoons

While Disney Channel produces a lot of cringe-worthy content, the network has very few objectively bad cartoons, mainly because animation allows us to suspend our disbelief more easily. With that said, some worse-for-wear cartoons did make their way into the vault. “The Buzz on Maggie” received a number of positive evaluations from viewers and critics alike, but there’s also some loud hate for the show, which follows a tween fly and the drama of her tween fly life. The animation and character designs are rather subpar, what are supposed to be deeper meanings stay relatively surface-level, and a good deal of the humor feels like it skews younger than the intended audience. Overall, many considered it little more than annoying.

There was a time when Disney greenlit several big linear shows. This shift from episodic to linear came following the massive success of “Gravity Falls”. Mysteries were all the rage in cartoons, and creator Matt Braly had an idea for a fish-out-of-water story with several of them sprinkled throughout. This doesn’t really come as a surprise seeing as Braly worked heavily on the aforementioned series. “Amphibia” follows Anne Boonchuy as she ends up lost in a world of amphibians. Everybody’s favorite found-family trope is a major theme in this show, as are ‘doing the right thing’ and ‘change brings growth’. Plus, the show’s humor really doesn’t get enough credit.

If your cartoon is about water-dwelling creatures, it’s going to be compared to “SpongeBob”, a show that’s practically impossible to live up to. Plus, instead of focusing on underwater adventures, “Fish Hooks” incorporates the woes of puberty. The characters stick close to stereotypes which doesn’t make them especially likable, the use of live-action elements is off-putting and overdone, and the stakes never really feel high enough to make us care about anything. Also, since they’re a trio of friends, you just know two of them are going to end up together – and that is a long, tiresome storyline of its own. Though the show does have some redeeming qualities – cleverly named characters, endearing friendship moments, and some nuanced interactions – it’s certainly not one of Disney’s most memorable feats.

Beyond the whole ‘ordinary girl saving the world thing’, people tend to forget just how well-written this show is. Each episode has a tightly-wound plot with nicely choreographed fight scenes, creative traps, and inspired motives. The dialogue is punchy – not to mention a real product of its time – and few animated shows have yet to match the simultaneous menace and comedy of the “Kim Possible” villains. The true high point of the show has to be the relationship between Kim and Ron, whose dynamic never fails to instill a warm fuzzy feeling. Also, it has to be mentioned: in a world full of same-outfit cartoon characters, Kim serves some major looks!

We’ve seen silly, we’ve even seen wacky, we’ve even seen zany – but this show is on a whole other level. It’s about a thirteen-year-old who is apparently the greatest genius known to man, as he’s managed to create a time machine. The time machine is a lunch box though so, yeah, his age is still showing. Accompanying him on all his time-travel shenanigans is a worm from the future, Future-Worm, who has a “Photo Receptor Visor, Titanium Reinforced Abs and a Bullet-Proof Beard”. It’s somewhat reminiscent of kid-friendly “Rick and Morty”, but the execution is nowhere as competent. With just one season under its belt, it’s clear many viewers felt the same.

In some parallel universe out there, “The Owl House” wasn’t cut short and Dana Terrace got to tell its story the way she wanted to. In this universe, we grieve. For the time the series was allotted, it did beautifully. It excels on all-fronts: characters, animation, voice-acting, overarching intrigue and, most importantly, vibes. It centers 14-year-old Luz Noceda as she accidentally crosses over into ‘Demon Realm’, a world full of witches and monsters. Full of magic – and not just the witchy kind – “The Owl House” gave us laughs, tears, and inclusivity for daaaays.

Ah, yes, Disney XD, the place where shows go to die. It was probably not a good sign then that “Pickle and Peanut” called this sister channel home. Chronicling a pickle and a peanut – good start – this show is chock-full of gross out humor. Heavy emphasis on the gross. Once more, we’re met with that disconcerting blend of live action and animation meshed together, not to mention storylines that take us everywhere and yet nowhere. While there’s certainly an audience for this sort of rebellious, rowdy cartoon, its place is likely not with Disney.

How the creators managed to make such a complex premise work so well, we have no idea… A pair of step-brothers who can build literally anything in their backyard before their mom gets home, and have a pet platypus who fights an evil pharmacist – we mean scientist. Oh yeah, we’re sure that pitch meeting was smooth sailing. Nevertheless, Dan Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy” Marsh had a vision and we’re so happy it came to fruition. Where “Phineas and Ferb” shines is mostly in how funny it is for all ages – though the animation is really stellar too. With quick wit abound, and some special slower moments too, this is a series that’s one hundred percent earned its spot in the cartoon hall of fame.

Despite featuring voice icons like Tom Kenny and Grey DeLisle in a few episodes, “Shorty McShorts’ Shorts” failed pretty miserably with audiences. It was very likely the anthology format – there are no recurring characters to care about except for the host, Shorty McShorts himself, who’s not actually in any of the stories. Worst still, much of the episodes were really just… not that great. One unreleased short would actually go on to become “Fish Hooks”, so that should tell you everything you need to know. Disney must have caught on, too, because only thirteen episodes were aired before the show was axed.

This show stays GOATed. Dipper and Mabel spend the summer with their great uncle in his run-down shack stationed in what has to be the sleepiest town known to the Pacific Northwest. It’s immediately clear the town is harboring all sorts of unnatural phenomena and the mysteries only deepen as the series progresses. “Gravity Falls” was the first Disney cartoon to include an overarching linear narrative to its otherwise episodic story and, in many ways, it paved the road for future cartoons to do the same. Beyond that, it didn’t talk down to its audience. Secret messages and hidden codes were constantly being deciphered by fans, turning us all into conspiracy theorists and lore-fanatics. In addition to that, its lovable characters, phenomenal humor, and high stakes, made it so that we’re all still gushing over it so many years later.

What are your picks for best and worst Disney show, cartoon or otherwise? Let us know in the comments!