Why Cartoon Network Was the Best… and Has Forgotten What Made Them Great

[divider type=”space_thin”]Cartoon Network is canceling some of its most progressive television, including Adventure Time, Steven Universe, and Regular Show. This is probably for many different reasons — maybe toys aren’t selling, advertisers are not excited about the numbers (as Cartoon Network refuses to market them properly) — but, unfortunately, one thing I do know is that as they usher out these fantastic cartoons, they are relying on basic jokes and storylines paired with palpable action scenes in their new lineup. And while Cartoon Network is the most recent culprit, Nickelodeon has done this in the past as well, trading out the rich narratives and wittiness in Spongebob to a new world of screaming and slapstick nonsense comedy. My generation is accustomed to adult children cartoons — cartoons that tell adult stories in a youth costume á la Cow and Chicken, Dexter’s Laboratory, CatDog, Rocko’s Modern Life, Ren & Stimpy. These cartoons have become iconic programs for nostalgia that young kids love to co-opt when they watch Nickelodeon’s 90s throwback TV (basically the new Nick at Nite), and it’s nice to see young kids able to laugh and enjoy old episodes of Hey Arnold with me or All That. Still, it’s almost like networks don’t trust the modern youth brain. It’s almost as if they expect kids today will not be able to watch or absorb the types of “out there” cartoons we grew up on. The result? They focus their time on shows that will offer quick or instant gratific…