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. The attempts to mingle 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 ideas so unique, 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 January 29, 2024, by Guillermo Kurten: Kid-oriented TV shows have evolved greatly over the decades, with the '90s being an equal parts interesting and bizarre milestone in the medium. From R. L. Stine's brand of "kid-friendly horror" and beyond, there are some surprising examples of TV show concepts that managed to get greenlit for the masses. This list is being updated to provide further context of what made these shows unique and the timeframes of their original TV runs.

25 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 one one of 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.

24 Tales from the Crypt Was an Unexpected Success

People might remember HBO had a popular series in the '90s entitled Tales from the Crypt. 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, a horror series for kids that was based on a series for adults existing at a time when people were worried about children being exposed to violence through television is a shock. 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. It can be tonally jarring to water down an overtly horror-oriented franchise into including children's material. But while CBS' plan seemed basic on the surface, it was a clever way to diversify the brand and fill a niche.

23 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 was constantly reinventing 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 compared to its better-known sister series in terms of viewership. 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.

22 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+. What's more, 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.

21 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. So it wasn't a surprise to see series like Street Sharks or Biker Mice from Mars. However, not many 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 the universe 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.

20 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. The offbeat nature is something viewers just don’t see anymore, 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 the way this series formatted itself to combine a conventional game show with a kids' storytelling premise was creative and made it easy to sustain itself for nearly 300 episodes.

19 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.

18 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.

17 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 time 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.

16 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.

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

From Robin Hood to Edmund Dantes to D'Artangan, Wishbone the dog plays the central role in numerous literary masterpieces. Thus, viewers have the sight of 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. More than a few '90s kids admitted being hooked on some major novels thanks to this show. 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 worked into 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.

14 Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog Was 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 there was a charm matching 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 actually works to provide one of the more unique Fox shows of that decade.

This was one of the more ambitious TV shows coming 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 as inspiration for its world.

13 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. During a battle, six of these duck-like aliens crash their ship in Anaheim. They end up posing 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.

12 Skeleton Warriors Was a Dark Science Fantasy Series

Part of a push by CBS in 1994 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 that have 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.

11 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 that 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 who want 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.

10 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 to it with how the cows will 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 series creator Ryan Brown's series succeeds in how it embraces that absurdity. Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa managed to bring the "Weird West" subgenre into Saturday morning kids' programming.

9 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. It was laughable seeing the fights on huge miniature sets that would be reused with bad martial arts moves. 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 sheer awfulness makes it strangely compelling to view.

While other TV shows of the era, like Big Bag Beetleborgs, were able to 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.

8 Yo Yogi! Was an Out-of-Touch Hip-Hop-Themed Cartoon

A weird bit throughout the 1990s was how studios would take classic cartoons and try to give them a "modern youth makeover." No character suffered from that more than Yogi Bear. This 1991 cartoon had Yogi and Boo-Boo with some other Hanna-Barbera characters dressed in loud outfits, going around on skateboards, and solving mysteries while doing bad rap songs.

The series has not aged well with its "hip hop attitude," and the mysteries were a far cry from Scooby and his gang. Trying to make these characters "hip" for the '90s made for a laughable cartoon and a shame these characters had to be thrown in what amounted to a bad extended music video.

Unlike Adventures in Wonderland, Yo Yogi!'s attempts at incorporating contemporary music with children's programming came across as insincere and out of touch. Once NBC's Saved by the Bell took off, the show was one of several victims of getting canceled in favor of making way for it and other teenage-themed sitcoms.

7 Space Cases Pushed the Boundaries of Teen TV

Acclaimed sci-fi/comic book writer Peter David co-created the Nick series Space Cases. A group of young cadets are put together, as they're essentially a band of underdogs. They're checking out a spaceship when its robot guide sends it halfway across the galaxy. The group (with two reluctant teachers) has to make their way back home while running into various threats.

This '90s kids' show could be fun, packed with the usual David humor and sharp plotting. There were slews of sci-fi stars as guests such as George Takei as a space pirate and Mark Hamill as a wacky alien aide. The show got a bit darker in its second season, with hints the robot was less a bumbling fool than a manipulator who had set this whole journey up. Still, it's notable for letting David cut loose with an original space sci-fi series for kids.

Space Cases was one of many new shows premiering during the growing popularity of live-action teenage-focused TV. While this series didn't have a massive celebrated run, it can be looked back on fondly for how it experimented with fun ideas to push the boundaries of where teenage-themed TV can go. This was also a welcome change of pace from the more conventional live-action sitcom format.

6 Ghostwriter Was an Odd Mix of Entertainment and Education

One can't blame PBS for wanting to put some education into entertainment, but Ghostwriter is a pretty weird way of doing it. A group of young kids in New York are brought together as they make friends with a strange ghost. Known only as "Ghostwriter," the spirit communicates by rearranging signs and books into letters only the kids can see. He aids them in investigating various mysteries.

The show was smart to use comprehension skills, yet still revolved around a bunch of kids talking to a ghost who only spoke through lettering. The series was much stranger than most '90s kids' shows, and that's without plots that involve time-traveling. Some stories could be dark, with kidnappings and a prankster threatening fires as well as a scary thief in a mask.

However, this weird premise and mix of education and entertainment paid off for Ghostwriter, as it became one of the highest-rated children's shows of the era. Despite the undoubtedly larger-than-life premises of the episodes, the show was well-received for depicting a realistic and ethnically inclusive environment while teaching reading and writing skills. It even structured its 74 episodes into concise 4- and 5-episode story arcs.