What is the current childhood fad for cartoons these days?
 

As everyone knows there's always that one "Big" show that comes out that becomes a childhood fad for kids of that generation.

In the mid 80's it was Ninja Turtles, then in the early 90's it was Power Rangers, then Pokemon in the late 90's/early 2000's, then Dragon Ball Z, etc. In 2005-2007 Avatar The Last Airbender was really popular, but I don't think it was ever on the same level as the shows I mentioned above. Sponebob also had a huge following when it first started in its early years.

But what is the huge childhood fad show today? Do shows ever get that big anymore? I can't think of any recent show that's huge and popular with kids nowadays unless I'm forgetting something.

Only ones I can think of are Adventure Time and maybe Regular Show; most shows don't last long enough to become fads these days.

In terms of themes, the big "fad" seems to be randomness.

Actually Pokemon is making a comeback as well as Ninja Turtles.

I would say TMNT since it's always been big and still is. Spongebob still has a following as well. But other than that, I can't think of any shows that would qualify as that show that's a "fad" for kids except for maybe those CN shows listed already. I've never watched them because they never appealed to me.

My guess is My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.

-ms

I don't know what the kids are watching, but I'm enjoying the hell out of Steven Universe and Over the Garden Wall.

Plus I just found out Daria is streaming on Amazon, so...that's going to happen.

There are some shows that have a fanbase, but I'm talking about HUGE fad shows. Shows that were EVERYWHERE when they began and all kids were talking about it and buying toys, watching the shows, etc.

I don't think we've seen something on the level of TMNT, Power Rangers or Pokemon, or Dragonball Z ever again.

How could something that literally never left be making a comeback?

Probably Adventure Time. I don't know. I hardly watch TV and the only thing my nephews like is Minecraft. If that had a show Minecraft would take over the whole world.

It did die down in popularity a bit in the early 2000's, but yeah, it never stopped being popular. The games always sold extremely well every gen, and the anime is still going.

It doesn't seem like there's an "IT" show, just a more diverse group of successful stuff.

I mean, if we're talking TV shows, how many kids still actually watch TV exclusively like we all had to? On demand streaming of stuff on Netflix and Hulu, YouTube and the like are what command kids attention more and more these days. It's no longer about what's hot NOW, because I know tons of kids who just watch the same old sh*t on Netflix of YouTube over and over. It's not about that coveted Saturday morning spot anymore, because it's more meaningless than ever.

I honestly think the latest "fad" things that compare to those shows are games. Minecraft in particular has been enormous and it's not only the game kids play, but it's what they watch. There are thousands of YouTube users who create nothing but Minecraft videos and raking in views in the hundreds of thousands and even millions.

lol Popular with kids.

Manchildren. :lol:

Just going off what my daughter and niece are into right now. It's been all about MLP for quite some time. As well as Frozen but the question was about cartoons, not movies. But I'd also agree about the Youtube stuff. They are both really into Youtube videos. Not so much Minecraft but these videos of people making shows with toys and doing voices for them.

-ms

Yeah, fads like in the past are more difficult to happen nowadays because kids are exposed to so much stuff, it's not like the old days were there was only a limited amount of things a kid could be interested in. But even then there have definitely been some fads, does no one remember how big Angry Birds got? It was everywhere and all the kids loved it. While not a cartoon that's probably the closest thing to a fad from the past that has happened. Before that Hannah Montana and High School Musical were definitely fads but that was more for girls. Minecraft is definitely a huge fad right now as well. Maybe Adventure Time as well but I'm not really sure how big of an impact that show has had to younger kids.

Cartoons? No, kids today like youtube and watching other people play games for them.






Goddamn I sound old.

Violetta counts? Ok, it's not a cartoon but still really popular.

Adventure times. Spongebob. Ivander Zim? Phineas and Ferb. Ben 10 was really popular when it came out. Penguins of Madagascar?

You're totally right about Minecraft. Pretty much everyone I know with kids say their kids love that game; from four-year-olds to teenagers, and the toys are everywhere.

I guess, taking Adventure Time, Regular Show and Steven Universe into account. There is a trend of doing simple but dynamic art style in cartoons.

it's not like haven't seen simplistic styles before like Invader Zim, Dexter, Samurai Jack, Powerpuff etc. But they are usually a lot more hard edges and angular styles. now it's simple, but also more dynamic and smoother animated.

I was specifically thinking of the trading cards

While not related, doing a quick eBay sold listings search among Action Figures shows that Star Wars is currently by far the hottest seller mostly due to Episode VII on the way, with TMNT still a solid #2 and Power Rangers #3. However, Pokemon despite its still popular presence ranks low on the list since that fad didn't market figures and IMO was the beginning of the shift away from Action Figures (though Halo, Lord of the Rings, and to a lesser degree World of Warcraft have their share of action figure collectors). This is due to being that today's kids don't enjoy action figures like Gen Xers and Millenials did due to a proliferation in technology and other entertainment. Not to mention the countless anime and apps that are around, there just isn't too distinctively popular like there used to be. So many lines/shows these days just don't get as much of a chance like they used to, which I find it sad.

Maybe this

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catego...evision_series

currently with one list and two subcategories

can help

Well Star Wars has always been popular, even in the 90's when nothing was really going on besides the expanded universe.

The prequels in the early 2000's brought in a new wave of fans, then the Clone Wars cartoon, and now Rebels and the upcoming movies.