20th Century Fox

Pop Culture | TV | 90s

90s Cartoon Theme Songs That Will Hit You Right In The Childhood

20th Century Fox

Those of us who grew up in the '90s were lucky to experience the golden age of cartoons. While a lot of the cartoons of the '80s were basically very long toy commercials, the '90s gave us some of the zaniest, coolest, and most fun cartoons we could have ever asked for.

There were so many amazing cartoons, that there's no way we could possibly include them all, but here are some of the opening credits we memorized while waiting for our favorite shows to start.

Animaniacs

So just sit back and relax, you'll laugh 'til you collapse, we're Animaniacs! Soon a whole new generation will get to experience this show, since Steven Spielberg announced it would be coming back to TV.

Redwall

Based on the massively popular book series by Brian Jacques, this show brought the characters we loved to life.

Sailor Moon

Don't even pretend like you don't remember every single word to this theme song.

SWAT Kats: Radical Squadron

Probably the darkest show Hanna-Barbera ever made, SWAT Kats was one of the coolest '90s shows that hardly anyone today remembers.

Biker Mice From Mars

A show about motorbike-riding alien mice sounds completely insane, but as kids we didn't even question it.

Aladdin The Series

The show that let us follow Aladdin's adventures after Return of Jafar might be one of the best TV shows Disney has ever made. No matter how old I am I will always get excited when I hear "Arabian Nights."

Freakazoid!

Freakazoid! is what you get when you combine the people who made Animaniacs with the people behind Batman: The Animated Series (hold that thought). Makes sense that a show with those two influences would have a almost equally iconic opening.

Bobby's World

We all wished our imaginations could come to life like Bobby's did.

The Tick

Spooooooooooon! Hard to believe a theme song where the only words are "Dot dweee dot dot dot dwee-dow" could be so catchy.

Tiny Toon Adventures

They're tiny, they're toony, they're all a little loony, but they were definitely one of the best cartoons ever made.

The Mighty Ducks

The show that tried to capitalize on the popularity of the movies (and new NHL team) of the same name, but was...not even remotely similar to the live-action movies. But we didn't care, because "Ducks rock!"

Powerpuff Girls

Mix sugar, spice, and everything nice with a mysterious "Chemical X" and you get one of the best and most popular cartoons of the '90s.

We're just getting started! There's still the show that made learning fun, the continuing adventures of Baloo, the terror that flaps in the night, and more.

Mighty Max

Tim Curry was the villain, so obviously this show won the '90s. It also had one of the coolest toy lines that no one remembers.

Reboot

Sure the CGI animation looks super cheesy now, but this was one of the coolest TV shows ever made. The third season also gets so dark, it's easy to forget it's a kid show.

TaleSpin

This show was just so much fun, even though when you think about it you realize it makes zero sense that Baloo from The Jungle Book would become a 1930s bush pilot.

Sonic the Hedgehog

The theme song always seemed almost weirdly upbeat when you consider that the show is set in a dystopian future where Sonic and his friends are freedom fighters battling the forces of Dr Robotnik. Then it gets even weirder when you remember that Sonic was voiced by Jaleel White AKA Urkel from Family Matters.

The Ren & Stimpy Show

This is one of those shows that when you look back on it, you can't help but wonder how it ever got made as a kids show.

Recess

Everything about this intro was just perfect. We all wished our school's playground looked like theirs.

Captain Planet & the Planeteers

The show that taught us the need to protect the environment. Soon we'll get to experience this show all over again when the movie adaptation produced by Leonardo DiCaprio finally gets released.

Tom and Jerry Kids

Our favorite slapstick comedy characters, but this time as kids!

After 1990, the theme song stayed the same but the opening credits changed.

Doug

Probably one of the most memorable theme songs of any of the shows we watched.

When Disney took over the show, they changed the intro and theme song, and while it wasn't quite as good as the original, it's still pretty great.

Darkwing Duck

He was the Terror that Flaps in the Night, and the show we could never, ever miss. While the theme song wasn't as iconic as DuckTales's theme, it still always made us say "Lets get dangerous."

Wild C.A.T.S.

As far as shows based on comic books go, this one was less than stellar, but it did have a pretty bad ass theme song.

The Magic School Bus

As soon as you heard Ms Frizzle say "Seatbelts, everyone" it was impossible not to be excited. We all totally wished that Ms Frizzle could be our teacher.

Full intro here.

And of course we've saved the best for last:

Hey Arnold!

While we're still waiting impatiently for the new Hey Arnold! movie to come out, at least we can still go back and rewatch the show that we fell in love with.

King of the Hill

It was the show that gave us a new appreciation for propane and propane accessories. The intro was pretty simple, but it definitely suited the show.

The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest

Hands down one of the coolest cartoon intros ever.

Arthur

You know a show has got to be good when you can get Ziggy Marley to do your theme song.

Samurai Pizza Cats

Who would have guessed that one of the best shows of the '90s would be a cartoon about cyborg samurai cats who work at a pizza place while also being superheroes. It was as insane as it sounds, but it was so very good.

Pinky & the Brain

An intro so iconic that to this day when someone asks what you're getting up to tonight, you still respond with "The same thing we do every night, Pinky, try to take over the world."

Pokemon

We all wanted to be the best, like no one ever was. As kids we all wanted so, so badly for Pokémon to be real. At least now we can pretend to catch them on our phones.

Street Sharks

The popularity of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles meant that there were plenty of knock-offs that started to pop up in the early '90s. While Street Sharks definitely wasn't good, it was at least fun, mostly because of how ridiculous it was. Jawsome!

Rugrats

A show about babies seems like it should be weird, but it was probably the best show that Nickelodeon ever gave us. It was Nickelodeon's longest running show until 2012, when Spongebob Squarepants took over that honor.

Gargoyles

In a time where they are rebooting everything we loved as kids, this is the one show that actually deserves to return to television. I get goosebumps just watching this intro again.

X-Men

While the X-Men movies have been hit and miss, this show will forever be the best version of the mutant superhero team. The opening credits are absolutely perfect, and the theme song is instantly recognizable.

Batman: The Animated Series

While the Tim Burton Batman of the '90s was criminally underrated, and the Joel Schumacher ones were questionable at best, Batman: The Animated Series was not only the best version of Batman, but easily one of the best superhero cartoons ever made. The intro sucks you right in, and if you didn't fall in love with it immediately, then you probably have no heart.