When I was a child, Cartoon Network was my go-to channel. Now, it is just a hollow disappointment of bright flashing colors with no nutritional value. Maybe I am just a bittersweet millennial who wants everything to go back to what we think are the "good ol' days."
Back to when you were reaching for the Cinnamon Toast Crunch on the top of the fridge, pouring the biggest bowl possible, and plopping down in front of the TV on a Saturday morning as you terribly sing-a-long to the opening of "Ed, Edd, & Eddy.” Or maybe that was just me, but I know there are some others that relate to me, or will soon relate as I explain what I mean.
Cartoon Network really helped define me growing up. There were so many characters I related to such as Beast Boy from “Teen Titans” and even multiple characters from "Codename: Kids Next Door" and "Code Lyoko" growing up. I have been watching the channel for as long as I could remember. I lived through "Cow and Chicken," "Camp Lazlo," "Ben 10," "Adventure Time," and now "Steven Universe". I would still say I am a fan of Cartoon Network, but I am becoming more and more disappointed as a longtime viewer.
What once was a channel of such diverse shows that tackled different issues a child and teenager may feel, has now become a complete gimmick of fart jokes and plots that seem to go nowhere.
This is not to say all current and recent Cartoon Network show's episodes are terrible. "Steven Universe", "Over the Garden Wall", "Gumball", and "OK K.O.! Let’s Be Heroes" are some wonderful series that still tackle complex issues that children and teenagers battle today. Even "We Bare Bears" and "Teen Titans Go!,” (as much as I hate to admit this one) has some good moments. And yes, there were shows in the early 2000s that were purely comedy gimmicks, I can acknowledge that.
What I am getting at is Cartoon Network seems to only offer up a few shows compared to what they once did in the early 2000s. There was almost always a different show airing each hour, which allowed children and older viewers to come and go as they pleased to watch the shows they are interested in. Some shows would repeat later in the day, or some may hold a longer time slot, but on a given day, a viewer could see at least 10 different series. A Saturday morning was once filled with excitement, adventure, tears, and laughter.
Now, in a single day, you may be lucky to see more than four different series. As much as some kids may want to watch “Teen Titans Go! for 10 hours in the day, with a few insertions of “Unikitty!” to break it up, many do not. Some shows, including the popular "Adventure Time," "Steven Universe," and "Regular Show," have not appeared for weeks and even months on the schedule. "Steven Universe" has even gotten famous for its month-long hiatuses it will sometimes have, leaving fans feeling unforgotten. This is by no means the fault of the creator, Rebecca Sugar, but more so the fault of the person who is in charge of scheduling.
Granted, Cartoon Network seems like they are trying.
The new Teen Titans movie aired for a couple of weeks and they have been playing the original series at 6 a.m. It’s a start, right? Maybe that is just my over-optimistic personality kicking in. Back in November 2016, Cartoon Network released a pilot for "Infinity Train." The pilot was very reminiscent of old Cartoon Network. Sadly, they aired its pilot at 6 a.m., which restricted the traction it needed to just around 700 thousand broadcasting views. However, they have since put this pilot on Youtube and it has gained over 3 million views and over 200 thousand likes, proving that there is some interest in the series.
Though a tweet on Cartoon Network's page seems to indicate that close to two years later, it has officially been green-lighted for 2019. Hopefully, this show will get a proper runtime, unlike some current fan favorites (*cough*Steven Universe*cough*). I feel that if my generation could enjoy shows that were not completely comedy gimmicks, such as "Courage the Cowardly Dog" and "Samurai Jack," that kids of the current generation can learn to love shows like "Infinity Train". Cartoon Network just has to give it a chance and break the barriers they faced in the past, and I just hope one day they do.
