The landscape for superhero cartoons has changed significantly in the 2020s after a very bleak 2010s. Fans of titles such as Green Lantern: The Animated Series, Young Justice, Beware the Batman, Justice League Action, Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, and more know about the massive cancellations that occurred within that decade. Despite live action superhero being pushed by the truckload and live action superhero television shows being pushed out in massive quantities, superheroes floundered in animation while live action superhero films made billions of dollars. Okay, there was a pretty dark parasitic relationship between the films and the cartoons as the live action Green Lantern and Justice League films’ lack of success compared to the Marvel movies caused those cartoons to get the boot. A successful live action movie caused the tie-in cartoons to last longer, but the 2010s Marvel cartoons, despite not being as plagued with cancellations as DC’s, wallowed in pop culture obscurity as many saw them as cheaply-made commercials for the live action films. In short, the 2010s sucked for superhero cartoon fans and we have t ask ourselves, have things improved?
The answer seems to be an interesting one in that the cartoons are mimicking the comics. In the Bronze Age of Comics (1970s and 1980s), there was a major demographic shift towards older readers and this culminated in what some comic book historians and TVTropes refers to as “The Dark Age of Comics” (a period spanning roughly 1986-2000). As with comics of that period, violence, sexual content, and swearing are much more prevalent in a superhero cartoon now than in the past. Edgy fare such as Invincible and Harley Quinn have been major successes, and success seems so much easier to come by in the 2020s than the 2010s. Some could point to this being the starting point of a new Renaissance for superheroes, others would say that that these cartoons are more popular because of edgy shock value. The title of my editorial has a double meaning as “The Dark Age of Comic Books” was called that by detractors who felt the quality was lower than previous eras, while others used the phrase “The Dark Age” purely as a descriptor of that era’s content. The Dark Age of Superhero Cartoons seems like a possible descriptor for this era.
There is one major exception to this trend that turned out a
success, and that is My Adventures with Superman, a family-friendly superhero title that managed to get a season two and avoid cancellation. Even this show seemed to aim towards the adults despite the content being perfectly acceptable for kids because it aired at midnight on Adult Swim. Cartoon Network seems to think that kids don’t watch superhero shows that aren’t Teen Titans GO!, the one 2010s title Cartoon Network didn’t cancel probably because it’s a superhero cartoon with very little superheroics. If you have a child and want to introduce them to superhero cartoons, My Adventures with Superman, Teen Titans Go!, or oldies seem to the only choice that doesn’t involve lots of blood, guts, and f-bombs. Kids love superheroes, and I feel they deserve to have access to family-friendly superhero titles like My Adventures with Superman.
I think several factors led to superhero cartoons to be in the state they are in this current decade. The live action superhero television boom of the 2010s caused many fans to see the main problem with doing superheroes in live action on a television budget, the fact many superhero shows couldn’t afford to recreate the spectacle seen in the comics. Soap opera drama often substituted for action. I do believe this current wave of superhero cartoons is caused by disgruntled fans of the live action CW, Disney +, or whoever’s live action superhero output. It seems like the rise of adult superhero cartoons coincides with the drastic decline of live action superhero television, as CW’s line of superhero shows is officially breathing its last breaths.
The influence of anime on superhero media has probably been a factor in the increase in violence. Despite being acceptable for Japanese children, anime titles like Dragonball Z and Naruto had significantly more violence than what you’d see in a family friendly superhero cartoon. There has been a craving for edgier superhero content and superhero cartoons are edgier than they’ve ever been. Nostalgia is another factor, and superhero cartoons have grown with their audience. A ten year old who watched the 1990s X-Men cartoon when it was new would be over forty now. No wonder the modern revival of that series is more mature. Finally, this generation’s kids might not be as into television cartoons as past ones with Tiktok, Youtube, and video games. Adults might have attachment to the media, but kids seem to have more nostalgia for the live action superhero series than the 1990s and 2000s superhero cartoons my generation watched.
Superhero cartoons are definitely having more success in terms of season renewals compared to the 2010s, but how about quality? Despite being edgier, a lot of current titles have sophisticated writing and are genuinely great cartoons. Invincible, X-Men ’97, and Harley Quinn have all been highly acclaimed. Still, I have nostalgia for the 1990s-2000s era when superhero cartoons told sophisticated stories without characters bleeding or swearing. The 1990s-2000s is probably the greatest era for superhero cartoons, but this era is interesting in its own right and worth watching. At least these adult cartoons won’t get cancelled for not selling enough toys. This is the violent and twisted Dark Age of Superhero Cartoons, for better or worse.
