Remembering ’90s cartoons

You see a lot of ’90s kids on the Internet complaining the shows on television nowadays are downright awful.

But I have to disagree. A handful of present-day cartoons, such as Steven Universe, Gravity Falls and Adventure Time are pretty darn good.

The humor is weird and refreshing, and the stories and characters themselves are unique and unlike what we’ve seen in the past.

Although, I wouldn’t complain if a few ’90s cartoons, such as “Hey Arnold!,” “Doug,”
“Rugrats,” “CatDog” or “Dexter’s Laboratory” were to make an appearance on TV again, and I’m sure more than a handful of young college students who also grew up with these shows would agree.

But there may be a few who doubt that the re-appearance of their beloved shows on TV would be a good thing, myself included.

Take, for example, “Teen Titans,” an Americanized animation series based on the DC characters of the same name.

While not exclusively a ’90s show — it didn’t appear on Cartoon Network until 2003 — “Teen Titans” was well-received and loved by its fans for it’s serious themes, character development and the way the writers portrayed the teenaged superheroes in a way that would make them relatable to its young, non-super viewers.

However, the series came to an end in 2006, leaving many loose ends and most fans dissatisfied and foaming at the mouth for more.

Seven years later, the Teen Titans were reintroduced to Cartoon Network in the form of a spin-off titled, “Teen Titans Go!”

The show had been reimagined in a way that would attract a younger audience. The art was simplified, characters were shrunk down and the show took on a decidedly comic tone.

The majority of the fans who had been begging for the show’s reappearance were upset, and disappointed with the reimagined Titans — myself included.

Though not all remakes would be as disastrous as “Teen-Titans Go!,” it’s hard to imagine they will be as satisfying as their original counterparts.

Another example occurred just this year, when the 1998 Powerpuff Girls made a return to Cartoon Network with new episodes.

The art, voices and character designs are a bit different and Buttercup doesn’t seem as grumpy or violent as her 1998 counterpart.

While those changes are understandable, it’s the fact the writers had to change the show to make it relatable to today’s viewers — including texting, twerking, popular meme references from the internet, etc. — is what disappointed ’90s fans the most.

For me, ‘Courage the Cowardly Dog’ was one of the best cartoons of the era. The show followed the adventures of a magenta dog named Courage, who is ironically terrified of nearly everything around him.

In every episode, Courage and his elderly owners, Eustace and Muriel, would get dragged into something supernatural or creepy — be it a giant space squid, a man-eating vegetables or a demonic mattress.

If it were to be remade, it would probably be a bit more sanitized to make it less frightening for the targeted audience, even though the best part about the show was its creepy vibes and morbid themes.

I would love to see my favorite ’90s shows to make another appearance, but I don’t think I could handle the crushing disappointment that will come with a bad remake. I think it will be best for everyone if we stuck to reruns for the time being.