Cartoon all stars to the rescue.

[MustangRockstar]

I dunno, I think it was a combination of things.

1. Cable took a HUGE part of their audience away. Cable networks also didn't have the limitations that networks had (censors, money, etc.)

2. A lot of the FCC regulations designed to "protect" kids from programs built around toys and merchandise actually hurt the market. The profit margins for kids cartoons are slim enough, when you cut down on potential ad dollars you've taken away the networks only lifeline for those shows.

3. Kids changed. They'd wake up and play video games or their schedules would be so jammed packed that there just wasn't room for the cartoons anymore.

4. Society changed. The 80's were in many ways a return to a more positive outlook in the U.S. But once it came to an end, the 90's were a pretty "depressing" time. We were the most depressed "rich" nation in history. That trickled down to children. Cartoons were lame, their messages stupid. Kids just weren't allowed to be little kids anymore. 8 year olds now act like they are teenagers.

People didn't want their kids watching cartoons after school, that'd cut into their Oprah and Rikki Lake time. Sad but true.

5. Networks got greedy. They additional money they make is marginal with the more adult programming. Somewhere some overpaid CEO who got his job by kissing enough butt not to get eaten alive further down the food chain became the head TV guru. He was going to "reinvent" the wheel and it didn't work. 90% of the world's population think they are special and creative and will change the world. About 1% are really capable of that and they usually get eaten alive by the 90% who think they are the 1%.

 

[crazed gonzo fa]

8 year olds now act like they are teenagers.

I know what you mean by that. It get so annoyed when I hear kids younger than me say "I'm a mature guy, I got a girlfriend, blah,blah,blah...".

 

[Kimp the Shrimp]

real nice show

 

[Ilikemuppets]

I dunno, I think it was a combination of things.

1. Cable took a HUGE part of their audience away. Cable networks also didn't have the limitations that networks had (censors, money, etc.)

2. A lot of the FCC regulations designed to "protect" kids from programs built around toys and merchandise actually hurt the market. The profit margins for kids cartoons are slim enough, when you cut down on potential ad dollars you've taken away the networks only lifeline for those shows.

3. Kids changed. They'd wake up and play video games or their schedules would be so jammed packed that there just wasn't room for the cartoons anymore.

4. Society changed. The 80's were in many ways a return to a more positive outlook in the U.S. But once it came to an end, the 90's were a
pretty "depressing" time. We were the most depressed "rich" nation in history. That trickled down to children. Cartoons were lame, their messages stupid. Kids just weren't allowed to be little kids anymore. 8 year olds now act like they are teenagers.

People didn't want their kids watching cartoons after school, that'd cut into their Oprah and Rikki Lake time. Sad but true.

5. Networks got greedy. They additional money they make is marginal with the more adult programming. Somewhere some overpaid CEO who got his job by kissing enough butt not to get eaten alive further down the food chain became the head TV guru. He was going to "reinvent" the wheel and it didn't work. 90% of the world's population think they are special and creative and will change the world. About 1% are really capable of that and they usually get eaten alive by the 90% who think they are the 1%.

I totally agree with you about the cable thing. I also think that one of the reasons was a lack of quality cartoon programming on the broadcast networks. They sort of underestimated their audience and the kids who were watching could tell the difference, and if cable was giving better choices at the time, the audience simply moved on.

 

[Brinatello]

I recently watched "Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue" at YouTube. Oh, whoa, it was an instant flashback to my childhood! It's cheesy in a lot of ways, but it worked for its time. I loved seeing all of my favorite characters rolled into one show. Er, however, the pressuring from them about "Drugs are bad!" was a little uncomfortable. If you do drugs, your favorite cartoons stars will chase you down and show you a bunch of scary stuff!

 

[JJandJanice]

That's right so don't do drugs, lol.

I can totally understand what you guys are talking about with the Saturday 80's shows. Once the 90's came in, kids were more into acting older than their age, I have a sister who is still in many ways like that. Once Saved by the Bell become a hit tv show, that was just about the end of cartoons. Than Nick had their games show like Double Dare and Nick Arcade, even Ninja Turtles tried to stay on the map by making that god-awful, Next Mutatian (spelling) crap. Anyone remember how horrible the girl ninja turtle looked, oh man, whoes bright idea was it to make her look like a girl have having a braded mask? Plus as mention already, once the 90's did start, although most of the shows were live, the new Saturday cartoons show just were horrible. I remember some show on Fox, that looked like it was drawn by a 3 year old. These cartoons had no messages for kids and were just insluting for kids in many ways.

Plus as also mention the 80s were more of a happy time, where as the 90's were more depressing. This was seen anywhere on just on TV, but you can also look at music. Look what was really big in the 80's, mostly hair glam metal bands, like Poison and Winger and so on and so fourth. All of these bands had a lot in common, but the number one thing was just having a good time. They would sing about girls and partys and umm girls. Than in the 90's came in Niranva and the "grudge" bands. They never sang about girls and partys, they would mostly sing about depressing and sad stuff, and people brought it. Things change.

 

[crazed gonzo fa]

Plus as also mention the 80s were more of a happy time, where as the 90's were more depressing.

Well,IMHO the 80's seemed to have a more darker tone with movies. Also, two awesome shows from the 90's: "Bump in the Night" and "Gargoyles"!

 

[Brinatello]

The 90's had some good weekly afternoon shows. What about "Tiny Toon Adventures," "Batman: The Animated Series," "Animaniacs," or even the Disney Afternoon time slot? It seems as though all the good stuff moved from Saturday morning to the afternoon during the week. I was fortunate to get off from school at 2:45 so that I could watch them all when I got home!

As for "Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation," I'd have to admit it was that show that brought me back into being a devoted TMNT fan. When I started to lose interest in the cartoon during 1995-96, I wasn't sure if I would ever be a fan again! The most I kept active with the fandom was the Archie comics. I LOVE Chris Allan's artwork and the storylines kept me wanting more. By the time TNM rolled around in the fall of 1997, I was excited to see the Turtles back on television. I watched and taped every episode until Fox started screwing up the airdates. I missed a lot due to that, but I didn't feel the show was too bad. But, I know, many people absolutely HATED the show, and for reasons I can understand.

From the show, I met two stars at different conventions. At the 1999 Botcon in MN, I met Scott McNeil who played the villain, Bonesteel. Under all that make-up and costume, he is one HOT guy! Then, in 2000 at the Motor City Comic Con in MI, I met Mitch Lee Yuen who was the actor inside the Raphael costume.

Friends of mine have been meeting the VA's of the TNM turtles since a lot of them have been on Anime shows. They go to Anime conventions, mostly on the east coast.

 

[ILuVERNIE]

I really don't remember any of the cartoons except for Bugs and Daffy! But, anyway it was a nice specialle! lol

 

[Dominicboo1]

The characters I grew up with were Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Pooh and Tigger so I bet you can imagine how upset I was when I saw Smoke (the drugs) throw Pooh into the cupboard. (really upsetting)