Whilst superhero cartoons have been dominating the TV landscape for decades and become very well known, there are some that fell through the cracks and never got the recognition they deserved. With superhero cartoons being around far longer than the live-action iterations we know today, there are hundreds of superhero cartoons out there.
Whether it be the wonderful The Batman or the goofy Saturday morning Aquaman cartoon, you either forgot these existed or never experienced them in the first place, and it’s time the world remembered their names!
10 ‘Iron Man: Armored Adventures’ (2009-2012)
Reimagining the origin of Tony Stark and placing him in high school during his rise as Iron Man, Iron Man: Armored Adventures follows the teenage adventures of Tony Stark as he attempts to stop Obadiah Stane from destroying his father’s company and investigating a hunch that Stane was involved in his father’s death while facing his greatest adversaries.
Upon release, the hour-long premiere broke Nicktoons records for highest-rated original series with a premiere audience of over 125,000 viewers. The series overall received good reviews, many praising it for managing to make a teenage Iron Man story work so well given that the comic book character has almost always been in his 30s or 40s.
9 ‘Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes’ (2006)
Following Marvel’s first family, Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes retells the origin story of Mr. Fantastic, the Invisible Woman, Human Torch and the Thing. Unlike the cartoon produced in 1994 which consisted of mainly comic stories, this 2006 series told mainly original stories only featuring elements from the source material.
Many believe the series was not given the respect it deserved when it came to airing the series. Originally only running for eight of the series’ episodes before being pulled and the show returning and being pulled again over and over for the next 4 years until fans got to see the 26-episode series in full. Many fans believe had it gotten the chance, the show would have done much better.
8 ‘Silver Surfer’ (1998)
Telling the story of Norrin Radd, also known as the Silver Surfer, as he travels the universe fighting for good and facing off against Marvel’s cosmic array of villainy. The series also sees Silver Surfer teaming up with many Marvel cosmic titans such as Drax the Destroyer, Nova, Beta Ray Bill and Adam Warlock.
Despite being a children’s show, the series tackled a lot of deep topics like slavery, imperialism and much more. The series almost got a second season, having eight episodes fully written before getting canceled due to a copyright dispute between Marvel and Saban Entertainment.
7 ‘Legion of Superheroes’ (2006-2008)
A younger Superman takes on the 31st century with a whole new team of heroes in Legion of Superheroes. Running for 2 seasons, with the second being far more mature than the first, the show featured characters the public typically hadn’t seen before like Lightning Lad, Brainiac 5 and Timber Wolf.
Whilst the series was received well, many harken the moderate critical reception of the show to the assumption many had that it would be connected to Justice League: Unlimited and the greater DC universe due to a Legion of Superheroes-centered episode airing months before Legion of Superheroes.
6 ‘The Batman’ (2004-2008)
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The Batman saw a reconceptualization of the Batman mythos. With billionaire Bruce Wayne taking on Gotham’s worst of the worst early in his crime-fighting career. The series lasted for 5 seasons, going from a solo Batman all the way to a Batman with Batgirl and Robin meeting other heroes like Superman.
The show met great critical reception for its thoughtful storytelling and unique twists on DC’s classic characters, even going on to be nominated for numerous awards like 12 Daytime Emmy Awards. The story featured many season-long stories amidst some serialized episodes, such as a season-long Clayface origin in the first season.
5 ‘Spider-Woman’ (1979-1980)
Jessica Drew dons the mantle of Spider-Woman in this series, facing off against the world’s wackiest and wildest threats. She gets treated to a whole different array of powers and stories than her comic counterpart, such as lacking any super strength she had in the comics and gaining abilities like manifesting her superhero outfit by simply spinning around in a circle.
The series garnered positive critical response for setting good examples for children, with Jessica Drew being poised as a strong and independent female protagonist who doesn’t get the limelight stolen from her even when none other than Spider-Man guest stars in an episode.
4 ‘The Zeta Project’ (2001-2002)
The Zeta Project follows Zeta, an assassination robot for the National Security Agency, who learns he can no longer kill after discovering that one of his targets is innocent. When he meets a young girl named Ro, they set out to find Zeta’s original creator to prove to the NSA, who now believes he has been reprogrammed by the enemy, that he is, in fact, a peaceful robot.
Being a spinoff of the incredibly successful Batman Beyond, many fans checked out the show. The series lasted 2 seasons, almost being canceled amidst the September 11th attacks due to the show’s discussion of terrorism and criticism of the NSA. The show ended on a cliffhanger due to the creator leaving as a result of the network’s demands.
3 ‘The Plastic Man Comedy/Adventure Show’ (1979-1981)
As stated in the title, The Plastic Man Comedy/Adventure Show is a comedy show following the adventures DC Comics character Plastic Man. Plastic Man and his sidekick Hula-Hula travel the world stopping bad guys, following the orders of Penny the Chief, who would eventually become Plastic Man’s girlfriend.
The show ran for 2 seasons and while featuring some comic book villains of Plastic Man, most characters and stories were created specifically for the show. The show being more comedy-centric made it enjoyable for most and collected average reviews.
2 ‘Aquaman’ (1967-1970)
Before the character was given new life in the Justice League: Unlimited animated series and Jason Momoa’s portrayal, Aquaman had a series of his own on CBS. The show centered around Aquaman and his sidekick Aqualad as they took on the villains of the sea. The series is one of the few iterations of Aquaman to include his seahorse Storm.
The series also featured cameos from a plethora of the DC universe such as Flash and his sidekick Kid Flash, the Justice League, Teen Titans and many more. The series currently has a 6.6/10 rating on IMDb, with user reviews being generally positive as they recall nostalgia for the show and praise it for holding up to this day.
1 ‘The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam!’ (1981-1982)
The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam! was a double-feature show containing stories of a cast of new teen superheroes at the illustrious Hero High and stories featuring Shazam and the rest of the Marvel Family. While the Hero High teens faced evil in their world, the Marvel Family faced the likes of notable heroes like Black Adam and Doctor Sivana.
The Hero High segments were initially supposed to feature the cast of Archie Comics, but the idea was scrapped when Filmation ended their relationship with the publisher. Not much is known about the reception of the series outside online reviews of fans looking back on the series, going as far as to call it a cult classic.
