The 1990s were a weird time for TV viewers, and it's notable how some shows in this decade were just weird. They had strange set-ups, and the execution was even weirder. Attempts to mix CGI, which was in a very rough stage in the mid-1990s, could make things look even worse.

Some 90s kids' shows had good concepts but fell apart in execution, while others were so strange it's amazing they were even green-lit. Even some shows that ended up being good hits still had pretty weird premises and presentations. It showcases how this decade was filled with unique ideas, from anthology children's horror to strange virtual reality-themed experiments, that viewers have to wonder how some of these concepts were created in the first place.

Updated on June 26, 2024, by Mayra Garcia: Child's television has changed plenty over the years, but millennials can't forget how odd cartoons were in the 1990s. Many of the best cartoons of this decade strove for uniqueness, ending in a very bizarre aesthetic. This list has been updated with even more shows that have become very strange with time.

30 Biker Mice from Mars Was Random But Action-Packed

Created by Rick Ungar (and featuring Stan Lee as an executive producer), Biker Mice from Mars centers on three anthropomorphic mice: Throttle, Modo, and Vinnie, who have arrived on Earth from Mars following a war that has ravaged their plans. Together, they keep the planet safe from outer-space threats like aliens and robots.

Biker Mice from Mars is fun and action-packed. Although it shows no blood, it has many great fighting sequences and motorcycle chases. However, to enjoy it, viewers must look beyond the fact that Throttle, Modo, and Vinnie are musculous men-sized mice, which can be difficult sometimes.

Hundreds of cooler animals could've starred in this cartoon instead of rodents, but Ungar made a choice, and it absolutely paid off. However, this series is so beloved that it actually got a 2006 revival—and Ryan Reynolds announced in 2023 that it will get a reboot.

29 Swat Kats Keeper Was Particularly Grim

Swat Kats is one of the most fondly remembered '90s cartoons for people who grew up in a certain era. Set within the metropolitan area of Megakat City, Swat Kats followed T-Bone and Razor, former cops who were drummed out of the business for insubordination. Forced to work at a junkyard, the two ace pilots built brand-new tech and began saving the city in their own way.

Swat Kats was surprisingly dark for a series from the early '90s. The show's main villains tended to have grim roots, like the pair of mobsters who were gunned down and rebuilt as robots or literal zombies. Swat Kats was considered so violent that despite exceptional ratings, TBS CEO Ted Turner chose to have it canceled because he didn't like the amount of violence in it.

In a way, the animated series feels like a victim of its own success. While the show's level of action and violence was questionable, the cartoon was well-received among the most successful syndicated TV shows during its run in the mid-'90s. But it was perhaps that spotlight of attention that may have raised eyebrows to higher-ups and parents who found the violence unsettling. Series co-creators Christian Tremblay and Yvon Tremblay ran a Kickstarter campaign to fund a revival series, Swat Kats: Revolution. However, it's tough to imagine when the series gets picked up by a network -- if at all -- since not much has progressed since 2022.

28 Tales from the Crypt Was an Unexpected Success

People might remember HBO's popular series Tales from the Crypt in the '90s. Based on the EC Comics horror series of the same name, Tales from the Crypt was an anthology series that told a different horror story in each episode. Tales from the Cryptkeeper was CBS' bright idea to do the same thing, but only for children.

The series retained the main character, the Cryptkeeper, lightly shifting his personality to make him seem friendlier. Meanwhile, the rest of the series toned down the violence of the main show. Nonetheless, it is a shock that a horror series for kids that was based on a series for adults existed at a time when people were worried about children being exposed to violence through television. Even more shocking, the series lasted three full seasons and got a game show.

Tales from the Crypt is an oddly successful time capsule of how tie-in and spin-off media could be handled in the '90s and still manage to work. Watering down an overtly horror-oriented franchise into including children's material can be tonally jarring. But while CBS' plan seemed basic on the surface, it was a clever way to diversify the brand and fill a niche.

27 VR Troopers Was a Short-Lived Gimmick Series

Saban's VR Troopers was just more proof of how popular Power Rangers were in the '90s. Like Power Rangers, VR Troopers took a group of teenagers and asked them to fight against a powerful villain. This time, though, the enemies came from within the realm of virtual reality, which existed entirely separate from the real world.

While Power Rangers was based on a single Japanese television series in Super Sentai that constantly reinvented itself, few other shows had that benefit. VR Troopers was actually built from two different Metal Hero series: Choujinki Metalder and Jikuu Senshi Spielban. In practice, this meant some actors were never on-screen together while transformed because their footage came from two different shows. While the ratings were fine, ultimately, the series was canceled because they just ran out of footage they could use. This desperate kit-bashing of Japanese shows likely would be mocked today.

Still, for its time, VR Troopers managed to put up a respectable performance in terms of viewership compared to its better-known sister series. Even those two seasons were able to pave the way for 92 episodes. While the argument can certainly be made that the show's concept wouldn't have the staying power that Power Rangers proves to have even today, its cancelation seems to have been almost squarely for logistical reasons.

26 CatDog Belongs To The Weirdness Of The Late 90's

While Dog is impulsive, childish, and kind of dim-witted, Cat is his ambitious and snobbish brother. Unfortunately for them, they're conjoined twins. CatDog plays with the widely known differences between felines and canines to craft some of television's weirdest and funniest relationships. These two absurd characters live together in Nearburg, a town full of anthropomorphic animals, where they get into all kinds of problems due to their character flaws.

Contrary to earlier cartoons, CatDog isn't just absurd for absurdity's sake. This show is dynamic and hilarious enough that kids will like it, but it also has some seriously dark moments so an older audience can enjoy it too. The series belongs to a wave of surreal late 90s cartoons that had equal random moments and social satire like The Fairly Odd Parents and Ed, Edd n Eddy. Any millennial reader that goes back to the show will notice them immediately notice the jokes that flew over their head as a kid.

25 Goosebumps Was a Shockingly Bold Concept For Its Time

While Goosebumps had an incredible soundtrack, its existence on television as a '90s kids' show leaves questions about just how strict censors were on television. At a time when supposedly Spider-Man couldn't throw a punch in his own cartoon, they were still fine greenlighting an adaptation of this popular kids' novel.

Sure, Goosebumps was never explicit about showing violence or blood, but there was enough implied to leave kids having nightmares for weeks. One episode featured a monster being eaten alive by other monsters. Once again, this show aired on the biggest Saturday morning cartoon block possible on Fox Kids. Even so, author R. L. Stine's source material was quite novel as a concept.

This franchise proved to be incredibly lucrative and influential from the first book, as it creatively served as the gateway to the horror genre for many kids of the time, and it's now spawned a reboot TV series on Disney+. Moreover, the Legends Star Wars canon has a similar horror series, with John Whitman's Galaxy of Fear YA novels effectively mimicking Stine's formula but with a recurring protagonist duo across its books.

24 Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys Was an Anthropomorphic Space Opera

Kids have always loved talking animals, but after Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, they loved talking animals even more. So, it wasn't surprising to see series like Street Sharks or Biker Mice from Mars. However, few people would expect a series like Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys, a classic space opera science fiction series about monkeys.

Like the Turtles, the Space Monkeys have been transformed, not by ooze, but by a group of alien races whose names literally cannot be written or pronounced. It becomes the Space Monkey's job to protect the universe from Lord Nebula, who wants to remake it according to his own whims. This show taps into classic science fiction ideas in a way that, after the 2000s, just refused to do unless it was a parody.

Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys, like the Street Sharks, managed to capitalize on the trending gimmick of the time in kids' cartoons. Cartoons about anthropomorphic animals getting into action-oriented premises and strange sci-fi elements in the '90s would be easy to feel like a half-hearted knockoff of the Ninja Turtles. However, the Space Monkeys carved out a unique niche that made it worthwhile even in a crowd.

23 Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? Was an Ingenious Educational/Game Show Format

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? is a beloved franchise that inspired numerous entertaining and educational spin-offs. Fox had an animated show with Carmen always getting away. However, PBS had a unique version of an offbeat game show. The opening theme by an acapella singing group set the tone as the kid contestants were "gumshoes" recruited to find Carmen.

Each episode had the Chief (Lynne Thigpen) explaining the crime in a wonderfully overdramatic voice laced with alliteration and wordplay. The "senior agent" host, Greg Lee, would lead the "gumshoes" with geography and history questions to narrow down where the suspect was hiding. Viewers no longer see this kind of offbeat nature, and the '90s kids' show won a Peabody award.

Both conceptually and in execution, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? was arguably one of the most imaginative kids' shows to date. There has been plenty of quality educational children's programming, but this series's creative format of combining a conventional game show with a kids' storytelling premise made it easy to sustain itself for nearly 300 episodes.

22 Big Bad Beetleborgs is the Sitcom Equivalent of the Power Rangers

Like the popular Power Rangers, Big Bad Beetleborgs utilized old Japanese superhero TV footage with new American actors. A trio of kids investigating a haunted house accidentally frees the ghost Flabber. He gives them superpowers and the ability to become their comic book heroes, the Beetleborgs — but he also brings the comic's villains to life, who begin to attack the town.

The second season had brand-new villains and new "Metallix" armor. It also amped up the comedy antics of the mansion's band of nutty monsters getting into their own wacky adventures. The slapstick won fans over, and the show is remembered as one of the better Power Ranger copies of the time.

Like other shows of its time that try to ride the coattails of a trend, the key to Big Bad Beetleborgs was to find a satisfactory niche within the Power Rangers spotlight. It found modest success that's admirable in its own right, as being the "sitcom equivalent" of Power Rangers was a fun enough twist on the established formula.

21 Toxic Crusaders Was An Anti-Pollution Cartoon

Environmental cartoons were all the rage in the '90s, and Toxic Crusaders is one of the best examples. This show follows Toxie, aka the Toxic Avenger, and the Toxic Crusaders, a group of weird-looking superheroes with abilities intrinsically connected to pollution. Together, they fight against Dr. Killemoff, a Smogulan alien who wants to pollute Earth so his race can live on it.

Toxic Crusaders uses vivid imagery, grotesque characters, and bright neon colors to show the dangers of polluting Earth. While its mission is noble, 90's kids only remember it because it was weird. Toxie, the main character, is a disfigured man made of waste. This, combined with the slapstick humor of the cartoon, makes for a very bizarre mix. Adding to the formula, Toxic Crusaders is based on a more mature film, The Toxic Avenger, so the stark change from a B-cult movie to a lighthearted child cartoon is staggering.

20 WMAC Masters Was a Strange Martial Arts Competition and Episodic Fantasy Hybrid

WMAC Masters had real-life martial artists take on pro-wrestling-inspired characters in a competition hosted by Bruce Lee's daughter, Shannon. The winners faced off in a huge "electrified" dome with guys dressed as ninjas attacking. The goal was to get enough ki symbols to challenge the Dragon Star champion in a bout atop a rotating platform.

The second season of this '90s kids' show got even stranger by turning into a complex storyline of a sinister group trying to destroy the WMAC amid the fighting. There could be light humor, but the fact the whole thing was played straight made it even nuttier. It was canceled on a cliffhanger but has a cult audience who enjoy its strange attempt at a live-action video game.

WMAC Masters was one of the more bizarre concepts to get approved in that decade, and it's perhaps just as surprising that it lasted as long as it did. It was a bold idea, if nothing else, melding the theatrics of pro wrestling and real-world martial artists for a more sporting element, but at the same time, an episodic storytelling element meant to teach kids important life lessons.

19 A.J.'s Time Travelers Was a Mismatched Attempt at an Educational Sci-Fi Show

Trying to mix education with sci-fi made A.J.'s Time Travelers an incredibly strange effort. Teen AJ gets a disc that allows him to board a time machine whisking across space. The crew includes a super-hyper aide who speaks in sound effects, a half-dog, a fly with a human face, a living computer, and the female captain, who's the only reasonable person.

Villain Warp wants the ship for his own purposes but can only get it if the crew can't answer three historical questions. They used the ship to bring people in from that period to provide the answers. The educational touches were okay, and some stories could be surprisingly frank. The bizarre edutainment series became infamous for being part of a complex lawsuit.

While the series managed to produce 40 episodes, it lasted less than a year and never made it past one season. Combined with its weird creative choices, the 1995 lawsuit derailed any chance of A.J.'s Time Travelers having a lasting presence in the '90s. The lawsuit involved children's writer Diane Russomanno suing executive producer Gianni Russo for the show using elements of her character "Ricky Rocket," despite an earlier settlement agreeing not to, with the court eventually ruling in her favor.

18 Adventures in Wonderland Was a Heartfelt and Fresh Attempt in a Familiar World

The classic fairy tale got a wild makeover by the Disney Channel in the early 1990s with Adventures in Wonderland. The concept was Alice (Elisabeth Harnois, better known today for CSI) would use a magical mirror to enter a much more modern Wonderland. The Red Queen was imperious but not the "cut off your head" type. The White Rabbit got around on rollerblades, while Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum were hip-hop dancers. They would do comedy bits and break into songs to teach some life lessons that Alice would use.

It makes sense that Wonderland made little sense. The rapping could be wild, but the show had touches with teaching lessons on tolerance and even addiction. The unique '90s kids' show featured some big guest stars like Marlee Matalin as the March Hare's deaf cousin. Taking the classic characters into a hip-hop world could have been messy, but the show's heart made it an actual Emmy-winning success for the time.

This series was another strong example of tie-in media done well in this decade. Adventures in Wonderland's premise and takeaway themes were handled with surprising tact, with the contemporary musical elements of the era feeling like a sincere spin on a classic fairytale setting.

17 Wishbone Was an Inventive Crossover Between Children's TV and Books

From Robin Hood to Edmund Dantes to D'Artangan, Wishbone the Dog plays a central role in numerous literary masterpieces. Thus, viewers see a dog dressed in human clothing, with others treating him like a real person amid these adventures.

Wishbone was a major hit with critics. It won a few Emmys and even a Peabody Award. Thanks to this show, more than a few '90s kids admitted being hooked on some major novels. The sheer offbeat nature of a dog starring in scores of major novels and using them as life lessons made this show a weird sight, but it became a big success for lovers of books and dogs alike.

Part of what earned Wishbone so much critical praise was how it balanced the subject matter of its episodes and adapted the source material. The series stayed within the confines to be appropriate for kids, but it didn't water down or censor the more somber elements of the classic books. This commitment to remaining genuine is what drove it to become an Emmy-winning kids' series.

16 Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog Is a Live-Action Fantasy For Kids

In the ancient kingdom of Kells, Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog sees the evil Maeve using her dark magic to create monsters in her attempts to conquer the land. A young cleric, the royal princess, a thief, and the prince of a distant land band together to find special weapons to fight her off. Aiding them is a quirky fairy and the king of a leprechaun-like race.

Among the '90s kids' shows running, Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog had offbeat humor that could draw viewers in. The battle scenes were rough, yet a charm matched the land. Maeve herself was a compelling villainess, and the show had wild turns with her connection to hero Rohan and the addition of a new Knight. It's strange, but it works to provide one of that decade's more unique Fox shows.

This was one of the more ambitious TV shows from Saban Entertainment at the time, but unfortunately, its run was short-lived. Despite venturing outside of the usual Power Rangers-themed trappings and into the high fantasy of medieval-inspired settings, its planned second season was canceled in favor of pushing for more Rangers-themed content. Part of what made Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog particularly unique was its use of Irish mythology to inspire its world.

15 Mighty Ducks: The Animated Series is a Sci-Fi Spin on the Flagship Series

As part of the cross-promotion for the main live-action franchise, The Mighty Ducks, Disney created this rather strange Mighty Ducks: The Animated Series. On the planet Puckworld, hockey is a way of life. The planet is invaded by an alien race that can hide under cloaks. Six of these duck-like aliens crash their ship in Anaheim during a battle. They pose as a costumed hockey team while fighting the alien invaders.

The show commits to playing this inherently nutty premise straight. It uses the hockey motif totally from the team's suits to their weapons and the "Pond" arena, their headquarters. The voice cast included a then-unknown Brad Garrett and Dennis Franz as their police officer ally.

On its face, the premise of Mighty Ducks: The Animated Series sounds wildly off-the-rails, considering that it's a spinoff of a comparatively grounded live-action comedy. The series could almost be its own property altogether, given how starkly it separates itself from the original movie's premise and how overtly it leans into sci-fi.

14 Skeleton Warriors Was a Dark Science Fantasy Series

Part of a 1994 CBS push to get back into exciting Saturday morning cartoons, Skeleton Warriors focused on the world of Luminaire. A battle causes the Lightstar Crystal to be split in half. The evil Baron Dark gets the dark half, allowing him to transform himself and others into living skeletons. The other half belongs to Prince Lightstar, who forms the Legion of Light to fight off Dark's forces.

Unlike most '90s kids' shows, Skeleton Warriors could be as dark as the villain. The villains were outright evil skeletons who relished how they could be broken apart and put themselves back together again. Some of those antagonists could be especially creepy, with one being a cyborg skeleton, and the animation enhanced their disturbing qualities.

The show was particularly short compared to the usual Saturday-morning cartoon properties with dozens of episodes per season, but Skeleton Warriors' 13-episode run earned a cult following. It succeeded in being one of the darker and action-packed kids' cartoons of the decade, managing to get past executive oversight to blend aspects of sci-fi, horror, and high fantasy all at once. It also featured video game voice-acting icon Jennifer Hale in one of the leading roles.

13 Bucky O'Hare and the Toad Wars! Was an Underrated Sci-Fi Show

Originally a comic created by Larry Hama and Michael Golden, Bucky O'Hare attained a cult following by the 1990s, which led to an animated series dubbed Bucky O'Hare and the Toad Wars! In an alternate future, sapient mammals from different worlds defend their galaxy against the evil Toad Empire, which wants to dominate the universe.

Bucky O'Hare is the courageous leader of a band of heroes who take on the most dangerous missions. Aiding them is a young boy from Earth who got sucked into this weird galaxy. It only lasted 13 episodes, but the character has lived on by being linked to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and is still remembered as one of the more fun space shows of the time.

The show was part of an attempt to launch a toy line themed after the character, but Bucky O'Hare and the Toad Wars! was canceled after failing to promote it. It's a shame that its success depended on how lucrative the brand's merchandising efforts were—or weren't—as this colorful concept and imaginative setting made a unique sci-fi children's show.

12 Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa is an Absurd Sci-Fi/Western Mashup

The premise behind Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa revolves around a meteor crashing into an Old West territory, transforming all the animal inhabitants into bovine-like humanoids. They took on the trappings of the time with gunslingers and some steampunk elements. A trio of these "Cow-Boys" kept law and order in the town against a band of ruffians led by the town's corrupt mayor and sheriff.

There were odd elements, like the sight of cows riding horses, and some of the villains could be downright weird. Yet the show had a fun humor, with how the cows try to emulate humans while not entirely understanding their ways. Interestingly, this 90s kid show even inspired a successful arcade game.

Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa is undoubtedly one of the most absurd animated TV ideas to be greenlit in the '90s. Regardless, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles artist and creator Ryan Brown's series succeeds in embracing that absurdity. Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa brought the "Weird West" subgenre into Saturday morning kids' programming.

11 Tattooed Teenage Alien Fighters from Beverly Hills is a Half-Hearted Power Rangers

It's hard to say if Tattooed Teenage Alien Fighters from Beverly Hills was meant as a parody of the Power Rangers franchise or a serious take. An evil warlord sends his agents to attack Earth, and a wise creature recruits four Beverly Hills teens, giving them tattoos to transform into giant-sized warriors. On the one hand, there was some comedy potential of the rich kids saving the world, but the production was rough.

This show made the cheapest Power Rangers episode look like an MCU movie. Seeing the fights on huge miniature sets that would be reused with bad martial arts moves was laughable. The cheapness was all over the place. The actors did their best, but it was impossible to salvage this series. Even as a parody, it fell flat, yet its awfulness makes it strangely compelling.

While other TV shows of the era, like Big Bag Beetleborgs, could plant their flag on the Power Rangers formula with their own creative tweaks, Tattooed Teenage Alien Fighters from Beverly Hills was a cheap replica. Parody or otherwise, its low-budget execution squandered whatever potential it had to offer something fun.