{{Refimprove|date=February 2024}} {{short description|Set of animated works with a common series title}} {{for|the technology|History of animation}} An '''animated series''' (or a '''cartoon series'''{{sfn|Lenburg|2009|p=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofan0000lenb/page/n11/mode/2up XI]}} or an '''animated show''') is a set of animated films with a common title, usually related to one another. These episodes typically share the same main heroes, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can either have a finite number of episodes like,<ref name="toonsmag">{{Cite web|last=Rahman|first=Arifur|title=Animated Films vs. Animated Series: The Ultimate Battle for Viewer Loyalty|url=https://www.toonsmag.com/animated-films-vs-animated-series|website=Toons Mag|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260107055437/https://www.toonsmag.com/animated-films-vs-animated-series|archive-date=2026-01-07|access-date=2025-06-18}}</ref> for example, miniseries, a definite end, or be open-ended, without a predetermined number of episodes.{{sfn|Lenburg|2009|p=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofan0000lenb/page/438/mode/2up 438]}} They can be released on television<ref name="FOOTNOTELenburg2009[httpsarchiveorgdetailsencyclopediaofan0000lenbpagen11mode2up XI]" /> or the internet,<ref name="toonsmag" /> in movie theaters<ref name="FOOTNOTELenburg2009[httpsarchiveorgdetailsencyclopediaofan0000lenbpagen11mode2up XI]" /><ref name="bigenc">{{Cite web|last=Fedyushin|first=Vladislav Valeryevich|date=2023-10-06|title=Animatsionny serial|script-title=ru:Анимационный сериал|url=https://bigenc.ru/c/animatsionnyi-serial-25d17b|trans-title=Animated series|website=Nauchno-obrazovatel'ny portal Bol'shaya rossiyskaya entsiklopediya|script-website=ru:Научно-образовательный портал «Большая российская энциклопедия»|trans-website=Great Russian Encyclopedia Online|language=ru|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260115061856/https://bigenc.ru/c/animatsionnyi-serial-25d17b|archive-date=2026-01-15|access-date=2026-01-17}}</ref> or direct-to-video. Like other creative works, cartoon series can be of a wide variety of genres and have different target audiences: both males and females, both children and adults.<ref name="cbrshonen">{{Cite web|last=Kemner|first=Louis|date=2025-01-12|title=Shonen Anime: Everything You Need To Know About The Most Popular Anime Subgenre|url=https://www.cbr.com/what-is-a-shonen-anime-dragon-ball-one-piece-bleach-naruto|website=CBR|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251213061805/https://www.cbr.com/what-is-a-shonen-anime-dragon-ball-one-piece-bleach-naruto|archive-date=2025-12-13|access-date=2025-07-26}}</ref><ref name="bigenc" /><ref name="bigencanime">{{Cite web|last=Magera|first=Yuliya Alexandrovna|date=2023-04-14|title=Anime|script-title=ru:Аниме|url=https://bigenc.ru/c/anime-e62c64|trans-title=Anime|website=Nauchno-obrazovatel'ny portal Bol'shaya rossiyskaya entsiklopediya|script-website=ru:Научно-образовательный портал «Большая российская энциклопедия»|trans-website=Great Russian Encyclopedia Online|language=ru|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260116203652/https://bigenc.ru/c/anime-e62c64|archive-date=2026-01-16|access-date=2026-01-18}}</ref>
==Television== {{see also|Lists of animated television series}} Animated television series are aired daily or on certain days of the week during a prescribed time slot, including, for example, saturday-morning cartoons, prime time cartoons, late night anime, and weekday cartoons; series broadcast only on weekends.<ref name="bigenc" />
The duration of an episode also varies. Traditionally, they are produced as half-hour or nearly half-hour cartoons; however, many are animated shorts of 10 — 11 minutes, which can be combined for filling a set time period in "segments" including several such shorts. When advertising is taken into account, the cartoon itself may be only 15 — 20 minutes of the half hour, although Netflix and many other streaming services do not show commercials. There are also series with very short episodes lasting approximately five minutes; they have recently become more common in Japanese animation.
If a local station of a television network broadcasts an animated series as a part of its own programming, the time-slot will vary by region.
All early cartoon television series, the first being ''Crusader Rabbit'' (1950 — 1959), are comedy. However, later series include sports<ref name="bigenc" /> (''Speed Racer'', ''Captain Tsubasa'', ''Slam Dunk''), action (''Hajime no Ippo'',<ref name="bigenc" /> ''G.I. Joe''), science fiction (''Mobile Suit Gundam'',<ref name="bigencanime" /> ''Tenchi Muyo!''), drama (''Neon Genesis Evangelion''), adventure (''Dragon Ball''), martial arts (''Baki the Grappler''), and other genres.<ref name="bigenc" />
The first animated sitcom was ''The Flintstones''<ref name="bigenc" /> (1960 — 1966)<ref name="bigencsitcom">{{Cite web|last=Shpot|first=Vasilisa Vitalievna|date=2023-10-18|title=Sitkom|script-title=ru:Ситком|url=https://bigenc.ru/c/sitkom-4d1837|trans-title=Sitcom|website=Nauchno-obrazovatel'ny portal Bol'shaya rossiyskaya entsiklopediya|script-website=ru:Научно-образовательный портал «Большая российская энциклопедия»|trans-website=Great Russian Encyclopedia Online|language=ru|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260111170430/https://bigenc.ru/c/sitkom-4d1837|archive-date=2026-01-11|access-date=2026-01-14}}</ref> produced by Hanna-Barbera. It was followed by other sitcoms of this studio: ''Top Cat'' (1961 — 1962), ''Jonny Quest'' (1964 — 1965), ''The Jetsons''<ref name="bigenc" /> (1962 — 1963, 1985, 1987); and ''Wait Till Your Father Gets Home'' (1972 — 1974), an adult-oriented animated series<ref name="bigencsitcom" /> in the style of ''All in the Family''. ''The Alvin Show'' from Ross Bagdasarian and ''Beany and Cecil'' from Bob Clampett also are sitcoms.<ref name="bigenc" />
===Broadcast network=== The 1980s and 1990s were a renaissance of children's and adult cartoon television series. Various broadcast networks and media companies began creating television channels and formats designed specifically for airing cartoon series. Companies that already had these types of formats began to revamp their existing models during this time. Most of these animations were American cartoons<ref name="comicdisney">{{cite web|last=Knudde|first=Kjell|date=2025-04-24|title=Walt Disney|url=https://www.lambiek.net/artists/d/disney.htm|website=Comiclopedia|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250621222203/https://www.lambiek.net/artists/d/disney.htm|archive-date=2025-06-21|access-date=2025-06-25}}</ref> and Japanese anime.<ref name="bigencanime" /> Listed below are examples of television networks and channels that include animation at present. {{col-begin}} {{col-break|width=25%}} '''American''' * Fox * Discovery Family * Nickelodeon<ref name="bigenc" /> * Nick Jr. Channel * TeenNick * MTV * Comedy Central * Disney Channel<ref name="bigenc" /> * Disney XD * Disney Jr. * Universal Kids * PBS Kids {{col-break|width=25%}} '''British''' * CITV * CBeebies * CBBC * Pop * Tiny Pop {{col-break|width=25%}} '''Japanese''' * TV Tokyo * Kids Station * Tokyo MX {{col-break|width=25%}} '''Canadian''' * Treehouse TV '''Australian''' * ABC Kids {{col-end}}
Examples of animation-focused networks and channels of at present are listed below; but some of them occasionally broadcast live-action shows. {{col-begin}} {{col-break|width=25%}} '''American''' * Cartoon Network<ref name="bigenc" /> ** Cartoonito ** Adult Swim * Boomerang * Nicktoons {{col-break|width=25%}} '''South Korean''' * Tooniverse * Aniplus * {{ill|AniBox|ko|애니박스}} * {{ill|Anione|ko|애니원}} {{col-break|width=25%}} '''Canadian''' * Cartoon Network * YTV {{col-break|width=25%}} '''Japanese''' * AT-X {{col-end}}
During the 1990s, more mature content than those of traditional cartoon series began to appear more widely, extending beyond a primary audience of children. These cartoon series included ''The Simpsons'', ''South Park'', ''Family Guy'',<ref name="bigencsitcom" /> ''Futurama'',<ref name="bigenc" /> ''The Ren & Stimpy Show'', ''Rocko's Modern Life'', ''Beavis and Butt-Head'', ''King of the Hill'', and ''Duckman''. Canadian computer-animated series ''ReBoot'', which began as a child-friendly show, shifted its target group to ages 12 and up, resulting in a darker and more mature storyline.<ref name="animag">Hetherington, Janet L. "As Mainframe's technology reaches adolescence, there's a 'ReBoot' Renaissance". ''Animation Magazine'' #59. Vol. 11, Issue #8, September 1997.</ref>
==Film theatrical== {{see also|List of theatrical animated short film series}} Animated film theatrical series include all early animated series: ''The Newlyweds'' (1913 — 1914),{{sfn|Crafton|1990|pp=[https://archive.org/details/emilecohlcaricat0000craf/page/344/mode/2up 345], [https://archive.org/details/emilecohlcaricat0000craf/page/364/mode/2up 364] — [https://archive.org/details/emilecohlcaricat0000craf/page/368/mode/2up 369]}} ''Travelaughs'' (1913, 1915 — 1918, 1921 — 1923),{{sfn|Lenburg|2009|p=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofan0000lenb/page/48/mode/2up 48]}} ''Doc Yak'' (1913 — 1915),{{sfn|Lenburg|2009|p=23}} ''Colonel Heeza Liar'' (1913 — 1917, 1922 — 1924),{{sfn|Lenburg|2009|pp=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofan0000lenb/page/22/mode/2up 22] — 23}} ''{{ill|Grogg the Sailor Man|sv|Kapten Grogg}}'' (1916 — 1922),{{sfn|Bendazzi|2016|pp=67 — 68}} ''Les Aventures des Pieds Nickelés'' (1917 — 1918),{{sfn|Crafton|1990|pp=345, [https://archive.org/details/emilecohlcaricat0000craf/page/372/mode/2up 372] — [https://archive.org/details/emilecohlcaricat0000craf/page/374/mode/2up 374]}}<ref name="oejnickeles">{{cite journal|last=Loné|first=Éric|year=2007|title=Les Aventures des Pieds Nickelés|url=https://journals.openedition.org/1895/2593|journal=1895. Mille huit cent quatre-vingt-quinze|trans-journal=1895. Thousand eight hundred ninety-five|language=fr|volume=53|publisher=OpenEdition Journals|pages=324–325|doi=10.4000/1895.2593|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260116063018/https://journals.openedition.org/1895/2593|archive-date=2026-01-16|access-date=2025-09-29}}</ref> the ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoon short films released in movie theaters from 1940 to 1967, and many others.<ref name="bigenc" />
==Direct-to-video== {{see also|List of animated direct-to-video series}} Direct-to-video animated series include Japanese OVA series, the first of which was the science fiction drama ''Dallos''<ref name="bigencanime" /> (1983 — 1985). Almost all hentai (pornographic) anime series are released as OVAs.
==Web series== {{not to be confused with|Webtoon}} Animated web series are designed and produced for websites, streaming and online video platforms. Examples include ''Happy Tree Friends'' (2000–2016), ''Battle for Dream Island'' (2010–present), ''Homestar Runner'' (2000–present), ''Annoying Orange'' (2009–present), ''Eddsworld'' (2003–present), ''Too Cool! Cartoons'' (2013–2014), ''RWBY'' (2013–present), ''Jaiden Animations'' (2014–present), ''The King's Avatar'' (2017–present), and many others.{{cn|date=October 2025}}
{{portal|Animation|Cartoon}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==Sources== * {{cite book|last=Bendazzi|first=Giannalberto|year=2016|title=Animation: A World History|volume=1|publication-place=Boca Raton, FL|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-1-1388-5452-9}} * {{cite book|last=Crafton|first=Donald|year=1990|title=Emile Cohl, caricature, and film|url=https://archive.org/details/emilecohlcaricat0000craf/mode/2up|publication-place=Princeton, NJ|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0-691-05581-7|access-date=2025-11-24}} * {{cite book|last=Lenburg|first=Jeff|year=2009|title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofan0000lenb/mode/2up|edition=3rd|publication-place=New York, NY|publisher=Facts On File|isbn=978-0-8160-6599-8|access-date=2025-06-18}}
{{Animation}} {{Media series}} {{Authority control}}
Category:Animated series Category:Television genres