Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? If you know the answer to that one, you probably mentally sang it too. You also probably belong to the generation that’s seen some of the best cartoons ever.
As a kid, my parents often warned me that if I watched too many cartoons, I might turn into one. But somehow that never really seemed like a bad idea. Who wouldn’t want to live in a world where no restrictions existed, a la Ed, Edd and Eddy, or travel with the coolest set of friends and catch the scariest of monsters like in Scooby Doo? From the rock ages (Flintstones) to the distant future (Jetsons), cartoons of our time made everyday life seem way too mundane.
Nostalgia struck one day when I took upon me the herculean task of feeding my kid nephew spinach. Halfway through the theme song, with my mouth full of spinach and a drawn- on anchor tattoo, I realised he had no idea who Popeye was. I might sound over dramatic when I say this, but my world really did come crashing down. To imagine a world where children haven’t heard of Samurai Jack or The Addams Family is disturbing. How will they understand all the ‘omelette du fromage’ references?
Looking back, I learnt a lot from the cartoons of the 90’s. Wile E Coyote and Team Rocket were the perfect mascots of the ‘try and try until you succeed’ adage, and Courage the Cowardly Dog taught me to always face my fears, and also that purple dogs are expert typists. Powerpuff Girls was all about girl power and CatDog taught me that despite all your differences, family comes first. Which were your favourite toons to watch while growing up?
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