5 Great Animated Series You Can Watch On Netflix

     Netflix really is a great service (no they’re not paying me).  One of the things it’s best at is compiling every episode of great TV shows for your convenience.  Below is a list of five terrific animated shows Netflix has for your viewing entertainment:

     #5: Shaun the Sheep:

     In 2007 Aardman animation, the studio responsible for claymated classics Chicken Run and Wallace and Gromit, created a series of seven minute mini episodes about a sheep name Shaun.  Shaun, who had previously appeared in the Wallace and Gromit short film, “A Close Shave” is a lovable little sheep who constantly gets into trouble with a local farmer.  It features no dialogue but is consistently hilarious and a must for fans of any of Aardman’s previous offerings.

Great Episodes to Start With:

Pretty much any of them.

     #4: Hey Arnold!:

     No channel was more lively in the 90s than Nickelodeon.  Not only did it boast the likes of Rugrats and Ren and Stimpy, it also featured a little show about the adventures of everyone's favorite football-headed kid.  Hey Arnold proved that kid shows could be smart while still having good morals and stories.  It touched on some deeper issues for a children's program but did so in a tasteful way and it's one of those animated shows that still holds up after all these years:

Great Episodes to Start With:
Stoop Kid
What's Opera Arnold
Das Subway

     #3: Arthur:

     Oh Arthur, what can I say?  You’ve given me years of quality entertainment with your lovable characters and surprising parodies.  While guised as a typical kids show, Marc Brown’s Arthur provides a lot of references and jokes for adults as well from references to films like 2001: A Space Odyssey and episodes parodying the animation style of the likes of South Park and Dexter’s Laboratory.  The first 6-7 seasons are an enjoyable blast of nostalgia.   Newer seasons lose their luster and are a little too politically correct.  Still, for old fans and new fans alike Arthur is a great show with a lot to offer:

Great Episodes to start with:

The Contest

Binky Rules

Arthur Rides the Bandwagon

That’s a Baby Show!

#2: Phineas and Ferb:

     Back in the 90s Disney was one of the hubs of animation, not just in the movies but also on TV.  Sadly, the last ten years haven’t been too good on Disney Channel’s animated shows.  Luckily, Phineas and Ferb has been turning that all around since it began in 2007.  The show centers on half brothers Phineas Flynn and Ferb Fletcher as they find the best ways to spend their summer vacation (which usually involves inventing some crazy contraptions) and their older sister Candace who is constantly trying to “bust" them.  Also included is their pet platypus Perry who is actually a secret agent who battles a local super-villain-in-training named Heinz Doofensmirtz over control of the Tri-State Area.  It’s wacky, fresh, and smart.  Some complain this show is too formulaic but I think they constantly find fresh ways to reinvent themselves which is why Phineas and Ferb rests at #2 on my list.

Great episodes to start with:

Rollercoaster

It’s About Time

She’s the Mayor

#1: Avatar: The Last Airbender:

     If there’s one show that has reinvented animated kids shows in the past fifteen years, it’s “The Last Airbender”.  Not only does it perfectly blend comedy and action that can be enjoyed by all ages, it tells a great story or a young boy’s journey to free the land from oppression.  It starts a little slow at first but those who stick with it will find themselves treated to one of the best animated series in years.

Great episodes to start with:

Start at the beginning.  It’s a sequential show and is best watched in order.