Taken from the sex ed thread, but a couple people mentioned shows they watched when they were a kid. My favorite, above all else, was a local show called, "Hatchy Milatchy". I remember watching it before I went to Kindergarten. The graphics on this intro were sick. And let's not forget The Secret Garden as part of that show. They had THE CHUCKLE PATCH! That told hilarious jokes! OMG. I just watched that clip. Awful, horrible stuff. I'm not watching anymore and having my childhood ruined. And this. Loved, loved this. This has held up over time: Focus: Shows that were a staple of your childhood THAT WERE THE BEST EVER!
I loved the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as a kid, but I also adored the awful knockoffs. Biker Mice From Mars: Street Sharks: Also, ExoSquad was the real, hardcore shit: I would watch that shit, based on the premise alone today. At 10, that shit was mind-blowing.
Hey! It's the Magic School Buss with Mrs Frizzle! Watch out for her zany reptilian sidekick, Liz! They learn stuff about science! Hey! It's Wishbone! Watch out for his zany dreams about classic literature! Obviously we have some generational gaps here. Some of y'all probably grew up with Andy Griffith. It's okay.
Let's get the obvious Reading Rainbow, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, and The Red Green Show out of the way. My parents weren't big on TV so we watched a lot of public television growing up. However... this one show came out when I was in Kindergarten, and it took our world by storm. I had a Power Rangers kite when I was six and was the envy of the neighborhood (it was so much cooler than Cory's stupid Ken Griffey Jr. bat). *edit... Bewildered holy shit I forgot about Wishbone. A classic. Spoiler
I was a big fan of NickJr. when I was a little kid. Some of my favorites were: David the Gnome Spoiler Eureka's Castle (I had the plastic hand puppet from Pizza Hut) Spoiler The Elephant Show (I still know the words and hand motions) Spoiler
A couple favorites have already been mentioned, but I'm going to throw Hey, Arnold! out there. That show was not just nostalgia-great. It was actually great. I have been rewatching it now as a mostly-adult, and I have been enjoying it just as much as I did when it came out. Also: Doug. Another show that holds up, although not as much as Hey, Arnold! Show that does not hold up: Rocko's Modern Life. I watched a few episodes a few years ago and that is the weirdest fucking show ever, and I have no idea how we enjoyed it as kids so casually.
I'll add the Electric Company to that mix. I watched a lot of public television because there wasn't always competition from the other three networks (the young folk can let that sink in a bit). Syndicated reruns were also popular, so I saw plenty of scooby doo, flintstones, jetsons, gilligan's island, brady bunch, etc. The Muppet Show is one of the best. I will also give a shout out to Faerie Tale Theatre. Saturday morning cartoons, man that was the best. Just the whole concept of getting up on a Saturday morning, no school, and just mainlining cartoons until lunchtime (you knew they were over when Soul Train came on). Spoiler
This was "new" well before my time, but Curley, Larry, and Moe were a major part of my childhood entertainment. I keep a few air horns hidden in the house which I periodically use to scare the crap out of my wife. I blame that slapstick sense of humor on my childhood.
Can of worms time, fuckers: Who had the better theme song.... Duck Tales or Gummy Bears? I say Gummy Bears. That's right, come at me. Edit: GUMMI Bears sorry. Fucking autocorrect.
Weinerville? Isnt that what funball calls Saturday night? David and the Gnomes. Why didnt Swift the Fox eat his fucking ass? Not sexually, but literally. I mean that gnome is what, 4 inches tall or something?
I'm surprised no one from my generation said Ren and Stimpy yet. I didn't like the show but that thing was a monster of its time. I was more of an Ahhhh Real Monsters and early Rugrats fan. Doug was also good, really reminded me of my older brother, the paunchy nice kid and everything.
Ohh, I forgot about Rugrats and Doug. Such great shows. I hated that Chuckie fucker though. He was so annoying and whiny.
I'll second the Power Rangers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and all of the Nickelodeon shows that have been mentioned so far. I was also a fan of Captain Planet and James Bond Jr. Spoiler For non-animated Nickelodeon shows: Salute Your Shorts: It does not hold up well, but it is cool that Ronnie Pinsky went on to be the guitarist in my favorite band. My Brother and Me. I was a big fan of this one when I was a kid. I recently rewatched all the episodes, thanks to Youtube, and they weren't bad. I love how the Goo character is like a black version of Eddie Haskell. Also, the guy who played the one white kid on the show, Harry, was in my class when I was going to FSU. The Adventures of Pete and Pete: Possibly the greatest children's show of all time. I still love drinking beers and watching episodes of it. It also had some great cameos, including Iggy Pop, Michael Stipe, and Steve Buscemi.
It's amazing how poorly those Nickelodeon shows hold up. The one I got into was Angry Beavers. Re-watched it recently when they were on Netflix and yeah. I was a dumb kid. Am I the only one that spend his formative years obsessed with professional wrestling? WWF and WCW? Yeah, Monday nights were reserved for me for years with that shit.
Ducktales was the shit. So was Garfield and Friends. And I dare you to make it through the holidays without Charlie Brown.