Animated series

[LadyShea]

Okay I need some geek help. We are almost finished with Avatar: The Last Airbender, and it has been awesome. The whole family, including me, enjoyed the hell out of it.

What can we watch now that has the same...quality I guess? We prefer Netflix instant over TV for lack of commercials. I see a lot of stuff I am unfamiliar with, and that makes me scared it is demented or stupid, but I was wary and suspicious of Avatar as well. Like Invader Zim? Good? Bad?

We think Phineas and Ferb is quality animation, and that Spongebob is demented and/or stupid if that helps you understand.

[wei yau]

I highly recommend any and all of the Bruce Timm version of the DC Universe:

Batman: The Animated Series
Superman: The Animated Series
Batman: The New Adventures
Batman Beyond
Project Zeta
Justice League
Justice League Unlimited

[Ari]

Avatar was quite excellent.

These still seem to hold up,
Gargoyles - A mid 90s cartoon about stone gargoyles that come alive at night. While it still contains some cartoon tropes it's not dumbed down for kids and features interesting characters and Shakespearean themes and references.

Batman the animated series - A film noir batman with good action and complex characters. Frankly what I compare all other batman incarnations too.

[LadyShea]

Although I agree that Batman is quite sophisticated (I was pleasantly surprised), the themes are too sophisticated for the Kiddo right now. He was scared that everyone would become like Two Face for like a week, and was worried anytime he could only see someone's profile.

Anyway I need to add that there needs to be something for a bright 5 year old to enjoy and identify/connect with.

[Sock Puppet]

The Duck Tales series from the 80s/90s was pretty good. They were based in large part on the Uncle Scrooge comics I remember reading in the early-mid 70s. Not terribly sophisticated, but they tended to have well thought out plots and a few educational points rather than mere attempts to kill 12 minutes and get to the next cereal commercial. Probably perfect for a bright 5-year-old. The spinoff series were a mixed bag; go for the original series.

I was tempted to recommend The Tick, but frankly, I don't know how much appeal it would have to a 5-year-old. Made me laugh my ass off, though.

Invader Zim is more of an adult-appeal angle as well. The artwork is pretty twisted and could be disturbing for a youngun.

[LadyShea]

Anyone ever watched Origin: Spirits of the Past? Sounds interesting.

Damn there is a lot to choose from today.

[erimir]

If Two-Face disturbed the kid, then I'm guessing that the organ-stealing episode of Invader Zim would also probably not be the best idea... Although that was probably the most age-inappropriate episode of the series. But still, Zim goes around stealing people's organs and putting them inside himself until he's a bloated mass of organs.

[Kyuss Apollo]

I actually enjoyed Inuyasha.

Saw it myself years ago, long before watching Avatar -- I think the latter series may be more consistently well-written, but given that Inuyasha had 167 episodes and Avatar 61, the law of averages would tend to toss more duds into the pot of 167. Of course, it was also on at 11 PM or midnight -- maybe sometimes I fell asleep in the middle because it was late?

My family really enjoyed Avatar too (don't even get Mrs. KA started on the shitepile Avatar movie lol she really took that personally). We recently started on Inuyasha while waiting for the new season of Doctor Who to start up again. (Of course, there's that too, though the new DW can at times be pretty scary for the youngins -- one of ours has decided she can't watch Doctor Who at night.)

Quizzing one of them informally about it just now, he said he would recommend Inuyasha as much as The Last Airbender, because the humor is funny and the way the characters act is similar. So there you have it, a review and a recommendation by a nine-year old video-game geek.

[Qingdai]

My son enjoys "Ben 10." I'd say loves it.

It's about a boy who finds an alien watch and gets the power to change in to various aliens.

[Ensign Steve]

I highly recommend Invader Zim. It languished in obscurity on Nickelodeon for three short seasons, but after DVD it got way popular with young adults. I don't know if it's too adult for kiddo or not. There's a lot of anti-establishment stuff in there which you would love, and some gross-out humor but nothing horrible. It's just really dark and twisted.

And it has the cutest psycho robot dog in the history of television.

YouTube - GIR (Invader Zim)

[LadyShea]

I am not sure whyTwo Face bothered him so much and other villains didn't. I think it's not because of the scary imagery, but because of his dual nature. Last night a similar discussion came up while watching something about the Boston Tea Party, he wanted to know who was good and who was evil...uh they were just people who disagreed. No mom, one side has to be evil. Maybe it's the age, or maybe it's just him, but he likes his good and evil clearly delineated.

Even in Avatar, Zuko is either still bad or is now good depending on the episode...never both.

[Ensign Steve]

Oh, I don't know how he'll take Zim, then. The protagonist is a invading alien who wants to take over the earth. His foils are either puny earthlings or other aliens of varying degrees of evilness. Pretty much everybody on the show is a cuddly asshole.

[Ymir's blood]

I hope he outgrows the dualist mentality. It is a terrible handicap in life.

[LadyShea]

Me too Ymir's. I am unsure if it is common in this age group or not, but it seems like it might be.

[Kashmir]

Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers

Rocko's Modern Life, though it's not really age appropriate for a five year old. Wait a couple of years, at least. I recently rewatched the series, and there's quite a lot of humor I wasn't old enough to get during its initial run.

Dexter's Laboratory, also maybe wait a few years.

[BrotherMan]

I don't know what would be available via netflix but in addition to what's been mentioned:

Samurai Jack - The story of a noble warrior hurtled into the distant future and he spends his time battling the minions of his greatest nemesis.

Other Nicktoons - Danny Phantom, My Life as a Teenage Robot, Fairly Odd Parents (I think most are played throughout the week and on weekends, I don't know if there are any new ones)

Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes - It's new and currently on hiatus. It's produced by Marvel/Disney and is being broadcast on Disney's XD (cable) channel but might be available on their website. Simply, it's following pretty much the established story lines of the Marvel's Avenger comic line(s). There are definite good guys and definite bad guys, and because it's Marvel also some they try to keep in between.

Just starting on Cartoon Network: Young Justice. It's by the same studio that brought us Batman, Superman and the Justice League series. I'd caution that it might be a bit advanced for a young child. But it looks solid for him in a couple of years. (It's not quite as adult as the direct to DVD shows that Team Timm has been producing lately, but it's in that universe.)

I'm not sure what channel it's on, but a recent or on going series: Batman The Brave and the Bold seems to be geared for a younger crowd (and some older folks are enjoying it). Team Timm classists are prone to dismiss it, but the animation and stories are about right for a kid. In this version, Batman more resembles Adam West's though he's still portrayed as a tough crime fighter while others around him can be a bit foolish. (I personally hate their incarnation of Aquaman.)

[chunksmediocrites]

I got our offspring Huntik: Seekers and Secrets. It is about a teenage boy who discovers his lost father's hidden journal, which leads to his entrance into a secret sub-culture feud between the Seekers and the malign Foundation. Both groups use arcane spells. They are searching for more of the amulets that they bond with, each containing Titans, which are summoned allies with various strengths and capabilities.

YouTube - Huntik Show Open

The main characters are detailed and have flaws; the female characters are strong, the art style is good, and they travel all over Europe in their adventures. I like that some characters also have mixed motives for who they work for, and that as the series progresses you can respect the choices of some of the individuals that in simpler shows would just be "bad guys" in black and white. Pretty nuanced for a kid's cartoon.

It involves a lot of battling, mostly martial arts and combat spells between the humans, and Titans which are normally converted to energy and returned to their amulets when overcome. But there is also a decent emphasis on unlocking puzzles and achieving results with wits over brute force. Though the small boy does spend a lot of time jumping around saying "Ray pulse!" and making spell-shooting noises.

Our son liked it a lot, and I'll probably get him season 2 when it comes out. I got him just the first chapter of season one to see if he would like it, so you don't have to buy a whole season to find out whether it works for you and kiddo. There are also a lot of these episodes on youtube so you could watch the first few there, or all of them there if you wanted.

[LadyShea]

I really wish I understood the voodoo or whatever Netflix uses to determine what they offer on instant watch.

[Ensign Steve]

I think it's whatever they can negotiate the rights to. There are still rules and contracts and stuff, like Blockbuster still gets to have some videos from some studios 28 days before anybody else and other little stupid things like that.

[Sock Puppet]

I'd disagree on recommending Fairly Oddparents for a small child. The times I've seen it, it's been frenetic as a coked-up Robin Williams. Just a personal parenting preference, I suppose. I don't think it would break a kid or anything, nor do I forbid mine to watch it outright -- I just don't think it's a great choice.

[Kashmir]

ReBoot

If they ever release it someday, the Beetlejuice cartoon.

I'm frankly surprised they haven't yet, it'd be a mega hit with the Tim Burton fans and goth crowd.

[Kyuss Apollo]

me Lydia Deetz / Alison Court

[Ensign Steve]

Oooh, yeah, I used to love that show!

[Gonzo]

I'm also a fan of the Airbender style. Good mix of serious Japanese anime and the silliness of US cartoons.

Wolverine and the Xmen on NickToons. It's only about one or two seasons in, but the quality is superb. I never thought they would make something at the level the original X-Men animated series was on. The violence isn't bad and it teaches good lessons.

Speaking of Disney XD plays all the Marvel cartoons of the 90s. All of them are good. Xmen, Spider-man, Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Spiderman Unlimited, and some others.

Invader Zim is good fun, but Kiddo might get corrupt and go goth on you.

Cowboy Bebop you might like, but too slow paced for a child imo.

Home Movies plays on Adult Swim and has been released in it's entirety on DVD. It's aimed for adults but could easilly appeal to children. I don't think a child would pick up on any of the subversive stuff and it's fairly clean and wacky with a hint of intellectuality. One of my favorites. Also, Dr Katz.

You also might enjoy the films Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away. I'd suggest Watership Down, but even I was disturbed by the bloody dead rabbit imagery, having watched it a week after finding my bunny dead. I'm prolly a little more sissy than the kid, though. The animated film Batman: Under the Red Hood doesn't have ths bipolar Two-Face and might be worth checking out. Gotham Knight is a series of short films all done in different anime styles. All the Batman animated films were great.

Too bad so many modern cartoons and inane crap. You shouldn't have to pick through it to find some quality.

[slimshady2357]

Dragonball Z - where you can always become slightly more powerful, even if you're already impossibly powerful.