What is the first cartoon or tv series you can remember when you were young

TV series in general I think reruns of The Wombles Of Wimbledon are one of the earliest things I can recollect (mid 90s), then perhaps for animation, the Beatrix Potter stuff (Peter Rabbit etc., the ones that had Niamh Cusack in the opening).



Other things that are all kinda jumbled up in my memory for that time are Come Outside ("let's fly away Pippin'"), Pinky And The Brain, Cheers & Home Improvement etc.
 
Probably this one Nick Jr. show that even as a tike I thought was boring. It was about gnomes in a forest and it wasn't the Smurfs.

Found it. The World of David the Gnome. Just look at this bullshit:



I almost posted this but you beat me.

The first cartoon that pops to mind is TMNT. But when I try to think further back into the abyss it's a mosh that starts with David the Gnome as the oldest entry.

I only remember one episode probably because its story struck me. As part of some favor or bargain, David agreed to grant the wish of a poor human character by giving him a bar of gold; despite thinking this wish cynical, he bummed the bar off his gnome friend as a favor to humor the guy and grant the wish ("you know how these things go" he said).

When poor human guy goes to the merchant/jeweler to appraise the gold and have it sold, they call the police. He looks too mangy, so he must have stolen it. So he ends up in jail.

David helps the guy out of jail, but he has to trade back his old favor in the form of the gold to get that favor or somesuch, which David puts back in his friends stockpile. The two act like it's Tuesday and humans are a joke, getting a chuckle out of it.

There's a heavy wall of unpleasant yet true wisdom in the whole thing. Last time I saw a rerun of this I was 7 but I still think of it sometimes. It actually gets better/worse the older you get.
 
I almost posted this but you beat me.

The first cartoon that pops to mind is TMNT. But when I try to think further back into the abyss it's a mosh that starts with David the Gnome as the oldest entry.

I only remember one episode probably because its story struck me. As part of some favor or bargain, David agreed to grant the wish of a poor human character by giving him a bar of gold; despite thinking this wish cynical, he bummed the bar off his gnome friend as a favor to humor the guy and grant the wish ("you know how these things go" he said).

When poor human guy goes to the merchant/jeweler to appraise the gold and have it sold, they call the police. He looks too mangy, so he must have stolen it. So he ends up in jail.

David helps the guy out of jail, but he has to trade back his old favor in the form of the gold to get that favor or somesuch, which David puts back in his friends stockpile. The two act like it's Tuesday and humans are a joke, getting a chuckle out of it.

There's a heavy wall of unpleasant yet true wisdom in the whole thing. Last time I saw a rerun of this I was 7 but I still think of it sometimes. It actually gets better/worse the older you get.
Four-year-old me said, "Miss me with that mature worldview bo'shitt." I wanted to watch Legends of the Hidden Temple, Guts, Double Dare, Doug, Rugrats, Hey Dude, Salute Your Shorts, and Are You Afraid of the Dark? before getting spooked and turning it off.
 
Probably the Outer Limits. I used to sneak out of bed when I was like 3 yrs old in the middle of the night to watch TV.

I remember it because it constantly scared the crap out of 3 year old me.

 
Dragon Ball, obviously.

dragon ball chichi goku GIF
 




Those are the first I remember watching as a kid. DBZ before going to school and Seinfeld on the night of some day of the week where they also aired Friends and Freiser, but Seinfeld was my favorite by large.

That said I think I was very little when they were airing DBZ, I remember watching stuff like Ren & Stimpy or Cow and Chicken more vividly.
 
I remember the first shows I'd watch, I was probably about 3 or 4 and my mum was that classic use the TV as a baby sitter. She'd just drop me in front of the TV in the mornings and leave me there. I didn't even know how to change the channel, not that it mattered because back in 70s Britain there were only 3 channels anyway.

I do remember the shows though. First cartoon, Star Trek animated series. The other shows, and it's a pretty solid list of US imports. Batman, Happy Days, Mork and Mindy.
 
The major ones have already been mentioned (He-man, Transformers) so here's one that's a bit more obscure. I think.



And while it came a bit later, I'll mention this one because it's not often the chance arises.


 
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IG was prob the first


I almost forgot this!


or old eps of woody woodpecker


Fall 1987 was the first season I was alive for so I remember these pretty early as well

new adventures of mighty mouse


TMNT
 
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I remember being on holiday at a Centre Parcs when I was no more than 5 or 6.

They had NTL cable TV (would later become Virgin), which we didn't have at home.

My brother came in to our shared bedroom, probably at 6am, and woke me up saying something along the lines of 'you have to come see this bro'.

Our mum and dad weren't awake yet, we watched Cow and Chicken for the first time in our lives, trying and failing to suppress our laughter.
 
The early ones (the first one that comes to mind was He-man for sure)
come along hang out GIF

dungeons and dragons 80s GIF


A little later would be the GOAT (the music is playing in your head. I know.)
x-men the animated series 90s GIF
 
battle_of_the_planets_anime.jpg

Also this one. There were so many cartoons that I remember from all around the same era, I'll never know which was the first.
 
I have a very vague memory of watching Bobby's World
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I wasn't allowed to watch TV frequently when I was very little, but whenever I did it was usually this show. I specifically remember watching it with my mom whenever I was sick and couldn't go to preschool.
 


This show had a segment called "The Bloodhound Gang." They solved mysteries with science. In one episode this kid is getting stalked in a dark synagogue and blows a shofar to summon help. One of the creepiest things i ever saw on tv.


"Speaking of timing, just when I thought the episode was over and I knew all there was to know about Light and Dark, a different theme song came on. Whenever there's trouble. They're there on the double. The long-forgotten but much beloved Bloodhound Gang is here. A lot darker than I remember. In this short segment, all three members of the gang are shoved into the back of a box truck and driven out of the city for an execution. I really wish I was exaggerating, but other than those words not being used – because, kids show – that is exactly what happens. Luckily for us, and lucky for me that the next episode was also available, the Gang uses some cool science to make it out safe."
 
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Bugs Bunny/Loony Toons.

WE didn't have a TV when I was young, then we got one when we got a Nintendo but we could watch nothing just play Nintendo. It was actually a Hospital Monitor that had no antenna just displayed a picture.

I would go to my friends house and Watch, GI Joe or Transformers, He-Man, and others on Saturday morning until various moms would kick us out to play.
 
He-Man is the first cartoon I can remember watching. Then the Mario Super Show and Adventures of Super Mario Bros 3, which I would watch after school in 1989-90.
 
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