For five years in the 90s, “The Animaniacs” ruled the airwaves, providing the wacky and hilarious animated sketch comedy viewers had no idea they needed. Musical numbers and physical and intellectual humor abound in this animated series starring Yakko, Wakko and Dot, the Warner brothers and sister. After five seasons, the series ended in 1998, but it’s made a comeback; “The Animaniacs” has been rebooted on Hulu and it’s just as good. As a lover of animated television, watching the Warner siblings take on 2020 made me nostalgic for other animated series that would do well streaming into our living rooms today. 

The poster for Hulu’s 2020 reboot of “The Animaniacs.”

‘Adventures of the Gummi Bears’

Most people aren’t going to remember this show, or even know what I’m referring to, but if you do remember this one, imagine a reboot. From 1985-1991, “Adventures of the Gummi Bears” brought joy and smiles to those who watched, and from the moment my mom bought me the entire series on DVD as a child, I was hooked. I personally would love to see Gummi Bears protecting their gummi berry juice in 2020. When you watch this show, you can’t help but smile and feel nostalgic. 

‘Dexter’s Laboratory’

Featuring a boy genius and his annoying ballerina sister, “Dexter’s Laboratory” was the show that just kept on giving. Crazy inventions and sibling spats were sure to entertain in every episode. I know Dexter was smarter than me when I was in elementary school, and as a college student I would still bet that he could run circles around me if this show were to get a reboot. Just imagine Dexter solving current world problems, no thanks to the help of his meddling older sister Dee Dee, while he manages to outsmart his arch nemesis and classmate Mandark. 

‘Courage the Cowardly Dog’

In all honesty, a reboot of this show would be terrifying, because the original was kind of scary. If you don’t remember, the show centers around Courage and his elderly owners who live in the absolute middle of nowhere. They encounter strange, nefarious visitors, and it’s always up to Courage to save his owners from certain doom, except he’s afraid of everything. If I were Courage, I’d be afraid too because some of the scenarios he finds himself in are fear-inducing even for the most iron-willed among us. Nonetheless, it deserves another chance to shine. 

‘The Jetsons’

This space family odyssey ran for three seasons, but it should have had so many more. The futuristic space counterpart to “The Flintstones,” “The Jetsons” actually has been promised a reboot, but that was back in 2017. Three years later, I have yet to go back to Orbit City and see the future’s favorite family and the gadgets they rely on everyday. A movie was made in 2017, and while that’s fine and dandy, what I really want is a reboot.

‘The Addams Family’

It can be said that “The Addams Family” has made a resurgence in popular culture with the release of the 2019 animated film and its sequel scheduled for release next year. Wednesday Addams is a popular Halloween costume and there’s a Tony-nominated musical based on the show. However, those facts can’t take away the fact that the animated series was the last thing I used to watch at night on Boomerang, the channel known for airing older cartoons. I commiserated with Wednesday and wanted to be just like Morticia—cool, spooky and beautiful. Asking for a reboot of this one might be a little greedy, but if we don’t ask for what we want, how are we going to get it?