Recently a 2010s cartoon called Clarence ended weeks ago, Adventure time is ending soon this year and maybe Gumball also. So cartoons that aired this year in 2018, are they 2020s cartoons if they do make it into 2020?

That depends. The cartoons can last into 2020, but if they end that year or in 2021, then they could be considered more of a 2010s cartoon rather than a 2020s one.

That depends. The cartoons can last into 2020, but if they end that year or in 2021, then they could be considered more of a 2010s cartoon rather than a 2020s one.

Yeah that's true, I wonder if we will get a cartoon that would last up to the end of the next decade.

Recently a 2010s cartoon called Clarence ended weeks ago, Adventure time is ending soon this year and maybe Gumball also. So cartoons that aired this year in 2018, are they 2020s cartoons if they do make it into 2020?

OH HELL NO CARTOON NETWORK  >:( >:( >:( >:(

Absolutely not, or we just don't know yet. The 90's culturally was the only decade where you could argue the cartoons kick started before the actual decade began, due to the likes of DuckTales, The Little Mermaid, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Simpsons (including the pilots), and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. You could possibly say this happened with Scooby-Doo Where Are You in 1969 but that was really towards the very end so.... Throughout most of animation history the cartoons that were big for the specific decade culturally didn't kick start and establish itself until the early part of the decade. You had millennium cartoons from Cartoon Netowrk A.K.A. Cartoon Cartoons, Kids WB, Nickelodeon, or One Saturday Morning on ABC that started in the late 90's and lasted through the early 2000's but those weren't really distinct 2000's cartoons for its peak time. Same goes for Phineas & Ferb, Chowder, Flapjack, The Mighty Bee, Fanboy & Chum Chum, or Total Drama Island. Those were really late 2000's or very early 2010's cartoons but those didn't really define the 2010's decade style for cartoons culturally.

Depends. Most cartoons that aired from the late 90s continued into the early-mid 2000s and were called both 90s and 2000s cartoons. Shows like Rocket Power, Wild Thornberrys, Ed Edd n Eddy, Powerpuff Girls, and Courage are good examples. If the showed aired until, say, 2001 though, it will mostly like be more 90s than 2000s.

Not back to the question, it depends how long that show will air. If a cartoon came out in 2018 and aired until around the early-mid 2020s, then it would be considered a 2020s and a 2010s cartoon, but if the cartoon stopped airing around 2020-2021, then it would be just a 2010s cartoon.

A lot more factors could play into it too like mq96 said, the cultural identity usually plays a big part, but honestly, that just creates a mess and is not even worth exploring deep into.

If we based decade shows off of cultural identity, then it would spark even more debates. That's why I like the "If a cartoon spans at least past the '1 year" argument better.  It's simple and causes less headaches.

Yeah that's true, I wonder if we will get a cartoon that would last up to the end of the next decade.


I think cartoons in the 2020's will be a thing of the past.

OH HELL NO CARTOON NETWORK  >:( >:( >:( >:(

I know right?, i recently found out lol. Clarence was like the Ed Edd n Eddy of the 2010s.

I know right?, i recently found out lol. Clarence was like the Ed Edd n Eddy of the 2010s.


Nah, that's a big stretch. Ed, Edd n Eddy was the longest running Cartoon Cartoon and the longest running Cartoon Network original show of all time. Ed, Edd n Eddy was literally in 2 different generations of Cartoon Network. The same can't be said for any other CN show, not even Adventure Time and Regular Show and those 2 shows lean a lot more towards Ed, Edd n Eddy in popularity, ratings and following than Clarence.

The new Gorillaz animated TV series will be a 2020s cartoon if it comes to fruition. You could probably argue the same for the weak Thundercats reboot.

I don’t think 2020’s cartoons have started yet. It’s honestly too early to tell. 2020’s cartoons won’t show up until the 2020’s actually start. For now, the current cartoons are still culturally 2010’s. I say we wait until 2021 to start judging the change in style of cartoons. I feel like the 90’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2001 and 2000’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2011. I feel like the second year of the beginning of a decade is when things start to become culturally developed for a new era.

The new Gorillaz animated TV series will be a 2020s cartoon if it comes to fruition. You could probably argue the same for the weak Thundercats reboot.

I heard about the Gorillaz cartoon. I'm excited for it.

Nah, that's a big stretch. Ed, Edd n Eddy was the longest running Cartoon Cartoon and the longest running Cartoon Network original show of all time. Ed, Edd n Eddy was literally in 2 different generations of Cartoon Network. The same can't be said for any other CN show, not even Adventure Time and Regular Show and those 2 shows lean a lot more towards Ed, Edd n Eddy in popularity, ratings and following than Clarence.

I said Ed Edd n Eddy of the 2010s because Clarence is similar to Ed Edd n Eddy. It doesn't gave to run that long just to be the Ed Edd n Eddy of this decade.

I don’t think 2020’s cartoons have started yet. It’s honestly too early to tell. 2020’s cartoons won’t show up until the 2020’s actually start. For now, the current cartoons are still culturally 2010’s. I say we wait until 2021 to start judging the change in style of cartoons. I feel like the 90’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2001 and 2000’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2011. I feel like the second year of the beginning of a decade is when things start to become culturally developed for a new era.

Ehhh, honestly i don't use the cultural defintion to determine if a cartoon isn't 90s or 2000s. If a cartoon airs either in a decade for ex. 2000 than it's a cartoon of that decade. But if it airs in the latest part of the decade for ex. Spongebob Squarepants and runs through the entirety or half entiretly of the next decade, then it's a cartoon of that decade that ran rat it's entirety through. Same with Cartoons airing right now if they make it pass 2020 then it's a 2020s cartoon. But yeah you are right new cartoons airing right now are still 2010s cartoons.

I don’t think 2020’s cartoons have started yet. It’s honestly too early to tell. 2020’s cartoons won’t show up until the 2020’s actually start. For now, the current cartoons are still culturally 2010’s. I say we wait until 2021 to start judging the change in style of cartoons. I feel like the 90’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2001 and 2000’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2011. I feel like the second year of the beginning of a decade is when things start to become culturally developed for a new era.


That's how it's always been with most decades. But the 90's are an exception. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles started in 1987 and lasted until 1996, and that series had more run time and more episodes in the 90's overall. Who Framed Roger Rabbit kick started the golden age of cel animated movies in the theater again which lasted through the 90's. The Simpsons had pilots in the late 80's and started in 1989, and that's obviously belongs to the 90's. The Little Mermaid came out in 1989 and that movie kick started the 90's Renaissance Disney movies. Ducktales came out in 1987 and that was the start of the Disney Afternoon run of cartoons throughout the 90's (even though the block didn't start until 1990). That's my whole point here. Culturally the 90's decade for animation started in the late 80's and it's about the facts I just brought up and doing your research about the history of animation. When you think of 80's cartoons, you think of a lot of animated shows based off a lot of toys, action figures and baby type stuff such as Smurfs, My Little Pony, He-Man, Care Bears, Inspector Gadget, etc. That faded out by the late 80's.

Other decades for animation such as the 2010's didn't actually start until 2010 with Adventure Time and Regular Show. The Disney Revival era kick started in 2010 with TANGLED which led to Wreck It Ralph, Frozen, Big Hero 6, Moana, and others, and you see a lot of the animated shows created since then like Gravity Falls, Steven Universe, Star vs the Forces of Evil, The 7D, Clarence, Tangled: The Series, etc. give you that similar vibe to Adventure Time or Regular Show which kick started the 2010's for cartoons.

Phineas & Ferb, Chowder, Flapjack, Total Drama Island, The Mighty Bee, Fanboy & Chum Chum, etc. were in that transitional phase throughout the late 2000's to early 2010's. Rocket Power, CatDog, Batman Beyond, The Powerpuff Girls, Static Shock, Pokemon, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Mike Lu & Og, Buzz Lightyear Star of Command, Pepper Ann, Disney's Doug, etc. were all millennium cartoons in that transitional phase from late 90's to early 2000's. IMO the 2000's cartoons didn't establish itself until 2001 and 2002 with Samurai Jack, Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (when it was Grim & Evil), Justice League, The Proud Family, The Weekenders, Kim Possible, Invader Zim, Totally Spies, Braceface, Codename: KND, ChalkZone, Jimmy Neutron Boy Genius, etc. You just got that 2000's cartoon vibe around that time period. The 90's on the other hand, for the action cartoons it was 1992 with Batman: TAS and X-Men: TAS, with everything else it was the late 80's like I already explained before.

I said Ed Edd n Eddy of the 2010s because Clarence is similar to Ed Edd n Eddy. It doesn't gave to run that long just to be the Ed Edd n Eddy of this decade.


Once again, people on forums have compared Regular Show to Ed, Edd n Eddy more so. I watched episodes of Clarence before and I don't see how that show is any more comparable to Ed, Edd n Eddy than Regular Show is. Therefore, I say there's no show in CN's history that can compare to Ed, Edd n Eddy. It isn't just the roster of characters, the different personalities, and the setting it was in, it was the impact the show had in CN's history with the generations and the specific eras it lasted in. Think of what Ed, Edd n Eddy did for its specific time on CN. You could really divide Ed, Edd n Eddy into 2 series to be honest, the times they were in the cul-de-sac most of the time and the times they were in school a lot. No other CN show compares. I'm sorry, but it's the truth. I was there to witness it first hand.

Once again, people on forums have compared Regular Show to Ed, Edd n Eddy more so. I watched episodes of Clarence before and I don't see how that show is any more comparable to Ed, Edd n Eddy than Regular Show is. Therefore, I say there's no show in CN's history that can compare to Ed, Edd n Eddy. It isn't just the roster of characters, the different personalities, and the setting it was in, it was the impact the show had in CN's history with the generations and the specific eras it lasted in. Think of what Ed, Edd n Eddy did for its specific time on CN. You could really divide Ed, Edd n Eddy into 2 series to be honest, the times they were in the cul-de-sac most of the time and the times they were in school a lot. No other CN show compares. I'm sorry, but it's the truth. I was there to witness it first hand.

Okay, you do have some good points but i still think clarence was the ed edd n eddy of now though.

I don’t think 2020’s cartoons have started yet. It’s honestly too early to tell. 2020’s cartoons won’t show up until the 2020’s actually start. For now, the current cartoons are still culturally 2010’s. I say we wait until 2021 to start judging the change in style of cartoons. I feel like the 90’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2001 and 2000’s cartoons didn’t fade out until 2011. I feel like the second year of the beginning of a decade is when things start to become culturally developed for a new era.


Honestly, as long as the cartoons air new episodes past the number 1 of each decade, then it can be considered a cartoon of that decade. For example, Courage, Rocket Power, Ed Edd n Eddy, Powerpuff Girls, and The Wild Thornberrys started in the late 90s, but were airing new episodes well into the early-mid 2000s. So they're both 90s and 2000s cartoons. That's just my opinion though. So any cartoon that starts right now or in 2019 and airs new episodes past 2021, then it would be considered both a 2010s and 2020s cartoons.