The Top Ten BEST Fox Kids Shows
Fox Kids was one of the BEST, most celebrated kid’s programming blocks of the 90’s. It’s also honestly one of my all-time favorite programming blocks from when I was a kid, and I was really sad to see it end in 2002. After taking a trip down memory lane, I’ve compiled a list of the ten BEST shows to ever grace the block.
Remember: This list is 100% OPINION!
10- Bobby’s World
Maybe not the funniest cartoon ever, but definitely one that’ll have you entertained from beginning to end. This long runner of a show chugged on with limited publicity, relying almost entirely on the quality of its writing to help carry it. EIGHT. SEASONS!!! Most cartoons are lucky to last HALF that long! There’s only ONE show that has ever lasted THAT long on Fox Kids! Gotta give props to this show!
9- Goosebumps
Come on, it’s frickin’ GOOSEBUMPS! THE premier horror lit franchise for kids! And the TV show was no slouch, either! When I was younger, I was too chicken to watch this show, so I never caught it…except for the slapping theme song! Heck, I STILL sometimes go to YouTube just to give it a listen!
8- Spider-Man The Animated Series
Honestly the animation in this show is…not the best. In fact, it’s only marginally more animated than the average Hannah-Barbera cartoon from the seventies, mixed in with HORRIBLY AGED CGI. But the writing…the writing on this show has always been top notch!
If I have to pin point any episode(s) that show how great this series was, it’d definitely have to be the arc where Mary Jane Watson gets kidnapped by Geen Goblin, and Spidey has to save her. Yes, it’s an adaptation of The Night Gwen Stacy Died, with MJ in Gwen’s place. And yes, MJ is only thrown to another dimension. But man, the ANGUISH Peter has to go through from all that!
7- The Tick
Quite possibly one of the best superhero parodies of the 90’s, if not ever. The Tick is what you get when you give Hulk powers to a lovable buffoon whose passion ALMOST makes up for a lack of sense. This show was the perfect mix between comedy and action, featuring lovable characters that were ridiculously easy to root for!
6- Digimon
OK, let me start off with…I KNOW! SO LOW, HOW COULD I!? But please, PLEASE understand that Fox Kids just had THAT! MANY! GOOD SHOWS!!!
During the late 90’s and early 2000’s, America was under a MASSIVE Anime Boom; EVERY KID watched anime, and practically every programming block aimed at kids had anime! Fox Kids was no exception, even dedicating Friday afternoons to an “anime invasion” block that was ALL anime!
Of all the anime shown in the block, though, Digimon was the best. It just hit different, you know? Even if it was the Saban Dub, which added some changes to the story, the show was still one of the best during its time.
5- Cybersix
So life isn’t fair. Sometimes you’ve got a show that’s just so unique, so different, so OUTSTANDING…AND IT FLOPS! Gorgeous animation, fantastic characters, amazing action scenes, slapping music, it should have been a success, but it wasn’t. Why not? Because Fox Kids was trying to compete with POKEMON of all things, so they focused more on Digimon and Monster Rancher, their two Monster franchises.
But there’s a silver lining, the series is only 13 episodes long, and it’s 13 episodes well spent!
4- Power Rangers (Mighty Morphin-Wild Force)
Yeah, it’s number four.
Mighty Morphing Power Rangers was more than a show, it was a PHENOMENON. EVERY kid watched this show back in the day, and those who didn’t were being hipsters about it. Myself, I was OBSESSED! Hell, it’s been almost thirty years, and I’m STILL a fan of the franchise!
No one will ever take them down; the power lies on their SI-I-I-I-IDE! Go Go Power Rangers!
3- X-Men
As faithful to the comics as you can get in a Saturday Morning Cartoon, X-Men was, doubtlessly, one of the best cartoons to watch in the 90’s. Hell, even though the animation is choppy as heck (which REALLY hurts the action scenes) the storytelling remains top notch. In many ways, this is less a cartoon with crummy animation, and more like a comic book with voice acting and animated fight scenes. That’s a compliment, make no mistake.
And of course, not that it needs to be said or anything, that. Theme Song. SLAPS! In fact, it’s EASILY one of the top ten best cartoon intros EVER!!!
2- Animaniacs
There are. No words. For this…BRILLIANTLY COMIC cartoon!
No, let’s be honest here. In the history of animation, there are three cartoons that raised the bar on how to do a comedic animated program. The first was The Flintstones, which pioneered the animated sitcom. The Simpsons then raised the bar by mixing in social commentary in their episodes. Finally, Animaniacs did social commentary mixed in with rapid fire comedy.
It was this stunning combination of slapstick, parody, social commentary, and wit that made Animaniacs one of the best cartoons of the 90's.
Before we get to Number 1, we have some Honorable Mentions…
Life With Louie: Proving that you CAN make a good, entertaining show based on as low a concept as a kid growing up in the 60's.
Monster Rancher: Though it was the least popular of the three Mons series of the late 90’s, it still had its strong points.
Godzilla The Series: Doing Godzilla better than the 1998 train wreck of a movie this cartoon was based on!
Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot: A damned shame this series never got its proper finale, this send-up to Astro Boy just hits all the right notes!
1- Batman The Animated Series
This isn’t just the best cartoon to ever air on Fox Kids, nor is it just the best Batman show to ever be produced. No, I’m gonna go further and offer this hot take: this is, possibly one of the best pieces of superhero media ever created.
