257: The Worst (and Best) Videogame Cartoons

[Sartan0]

For all the cartoons that got left out you had to mention Rubik the Amazing Cube. My eyes! (And ears) Ruuuuuubix. I might just have to watch some SMBSS clips now.

 

[Nerdfury]

God, I don't remember any of these except Mario and Sonic...did most of them not air outside the States? And I can't remember the Zelda cartoon from the Mario show...dang.

To be honest though, the most vivid Saturday morning show in my memory is Trapdoor...

'"Somewhere in the dark and nasty regions where nobody goes, stands an ancient castle. Deep within this dank and uninviting place lives Berk..."

"Ullo!"

"...overworked servant to the thing upstairs."

"BERK! FEED ME!"

"But that's nothing compared to the horrors that lurk beneath the trap door! For there is always something down there... in the dark... waiting to come out!"

Don't you open that trap door!
You're a fool if you dare!
Stay away from that trap door!
'Cause there's something down there!'

THIS! THIS! A THOUSAND TIMES THIS!

Kids today have their fucking Spongebobs and their weird 3D animated CGI crap, but my generation had Trapdoor, Alias the Jester, Danger Mouse, Count Duckula, Victor and Hugo (Bunglers in Crime), Tin Tin, Asterix and Obelix. Oh man, what great cartoons.

Even things like Catdog, Ahh! Real Monsters and all those were modern bollocks for me.

 

[Nohra]

...the only thing is, a BioShock cartoon would probably have to be centered on the degradation of Rapture, and that would just be horrible to watch. In a great way.

 

[DanDeFool]

Kind of makes you wonder, what if Jak and Daxter, Ratchet and Clank, Banjo Kazooie, or Conker's Bad Fur Day had been around during the heyday of Saturday morning cartoons?

Of course, the results may well have been totally pointless since most of those games have self-contained storylines that probably wouldn't have adapted very well to the small screen.

Frankly, I'm surprised we never saw a Final Fantasy cartoon around the same time as all the Mario Bros. Super Show and Captain N shenanigans.

 

[Rigs83]

In regards to the fairy in The Legend of Zelda cartooon

"I decided to make her a character, and make her cute, because, like many males working in the animation business at the time, my first sexual fantasy character had been Tinkerbell. That scene where she stands on the mirror worrying that her butt is too big? Still gives me wood."

Eww, eww, ewww!

Spoiler: Jessica Rabbit, and only Jessica Rabbit is wood worthy

 

[thenumberthirteen]

Sonic the hedgehog. Never have two shows been so different. Don't believe me watch <url=http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/thatguywiththeglasses/nostalgia-critic/4762-adventures-of-sonic-the-hedgehog>this review of them.

 

[Zerbye]

My favorite VG cartoon was "Wing Commander Academy". They took the key original voice actors from WC3 and WC4 and put together some nice stories. Catchy music too. I remember catching episodes of it while I was in college. If the Wing Commander movie would have been much more successful if they just followed the blueprints of the games and cartoon series.

 

[ManaAdvent]

I've never watched Captain N, but NC's review, http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/thatguywiththeglasses/nostalgia-critic/10213-captainn, tells me to stay away from it as possible.

Also, I'm surprised that there is no mention of the abomination of Sonic cartoons, Sonic Underground.

 

[YonderTunic]

T-Tinkerbell?...uhhh....wtf!? Really??

 

[JackShandy]

PSYCHONAUTS: THE SATURDAY MORNING CARTOON.

 

[Kryptonic]

What about Double Dragon, Battletoads, and The Power Team?

 

[MissAshley]

Captain N failed at a lot. Even though I jumped all over every episode as a kid, especially those with Mega Man-centered plots, I would still find myself disappointed by the end of each. My little child mind could not comprehend why the series could only go so far with each of the game properties. At the very least, it did give us a better Link and Zelda than the characters' own show did.

Concerning "the future," though, one video game based series manages to not only properly channel the tone of its game, but happens to be simultaneously cute, awesome, kick-ass, and entertaining.

Of course I'm referring to Kirby, and definitely not the 4Kids dub.

 

[Glutnix]

PSYCHONAUTS: THE SATURDAY MORNING CARTOON.

This needs to happen. Double Fine needs to get onto that.

 

[zombie711]

What about Kirby right back atcha, or sonic X, or viewtiful Joe?

 

[zombie711]

I do belive you skiped over kirby right back at ya. The 2nd greatest videogame cartoon ever made.

It's original un-dubbed version, anyway.

I find it good, yet wierd that video game TV shows have come out good more often than video game movies did.

What's up with that?

Edit Whoopes did not realize how old this article was. Forgot I ever commented.

 

[Diddy_Mao]

Oh dear oh me oh my.

The Darkstalkers cartoon. If ever there was a poster child for the dangers of mishandling a property that would be it.