vox--2020-12-29--25 cartoons to get obsessed with, now and forever

The connection between cartoons and youth often casts an unfair stigma : that cartoons are for kids , kids who can suspend disbelief to relate to talking to animals or who still believe that magic can exist .
That ’ s not only an unfair assessment , it ’ s inaccurate .
Animation is a medium through which all kinds of stories can be told , including stories as emotionally complicated and textured as those of any prestige drama .
Not all cartoons are cheeky or slapstick ; not all cartoons are meant to impart lessons to kids who are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aim to relate to and entertain grown-ups , too .
“ You ’ re dead if you aim only for kids , ” goes one apocryphal quote from Walt Disney , about working in animation .
“ Adults are only kids grown up , anyway.
” And it ’ s true : Cartoons are for everyone .
The goal of any good cartoon is the same as that of any good piece of entertainment .
They are meant to be enjoyable and inspiring , no matter who ( or how old ) you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ animated TV series in existence may seem daunting to some , there ’ s something out there for everyone .
So below , we ’ ve listed 20 great shows to help get you acquainted — or reacquainted — with cartoons .
Whether you usually watch TV with family or prefer to settle into these beautifully constructed worlds on your own , the list offers diverse entry points to suit all preferences .
For the whole family A lot of younger adults have never known , or can barely remember , life before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ years ( and counting ) on the air make it by far the longest-running American sitcom in history , animated or otherwise .
It ’ s so recognizable , quotable , and memorable as to be inextricable from modern culture , and not just in the US , but all over the world .
It is unfathomable to me that anyone could watch an episode of this groundbreaking sitcom and not at least smile .
Unsurprisingly for such a long run , the show ’ s quality has sagged over the past decade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on all cylinders , it ’ s the kind of comedy you ’ ll need to pause several times , because you ’ re laughing too hard or too loudly to hear what anyone ’ s saying anymore .
Every element of The Simpsons is meticulously considered for its joke potential , from blink-and-you ’ ll-miss- ’ em sight gags to subtle turns of phrase .
Maybe The Simpsons has lasted so long because of its extremely basic premise : Here ’ s a working-class American family , and here they are , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lends itself to being riffed upon in both small and extraordinary ways .
Or maybe the show ’ s success stems from how dense the town of Springfield is , with an expansive cast of characters that offer endless story possibilities and permutations .
Or maybe what ’ s most lovable is how , even when Homer is chosen to go to space or baby Maggie shoots Mr. Burns , The Simpsons always resets at the end of the day .
Everything is a constant in Springfield .
If you ’ re overwhelmed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s my hot tip : Don ’ t worry about missing most episodes beyond season eight .
Season nine is when the show began its decline from straight perfection to a more of a crapshoot .
And now that you know where to look , if you somehow have never seen any episode in full ( which , how ? )
... please go do that .
—Allegra Frank Bob ’ s Burgers is The Simpsons ’ heir apparent : Both comedies air on Fox , star quirky , working-class families , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of odd neighbors , friends , and frenemies .
The show also borrows from The Simpsons ’ sense of pure love for all of its characters : No one on Bob ’ s Burgers is judgmental or cruel or mean , not even the Belcher family ’ s slightly sadistic youngest daughter Louise .
The series is also as funny and marathon-able as any great sitcom should be .
It ’ s loaded with approachable pop culture gags , absurd stories and characters that never get too out-there , and tons of excellent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ best friend , a huge Bob ’ s Burgers fan , how many times she thinks she has watched the show now : 50 times and counting for her favorite episodes .
I asked what keeps her coming back .
“ Bob ’ s Burgers is a really refreshing family comedy , because it was the first show in a long time where the family actually likes each other , despite the chaos , ” she explained .
“ The Belcher weirdness/quirkiness/whatever you want to call it is always celebrated and made relatable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2010s saw a renaissance in 11-minute cartoons for both kids and adults , pushing a fledgling trend of the 2000s ever further .
The best of these 2010s shows , for my money , was Pendleton Ward ’ s 10-season series Adventure Time .
Loosely built around the adventures of a human boy named Finn and a stretchy dog named Jake , Adventure Time expanded and shifted from its initial standalone adventures to become one of TV ’ s most ambitious shows .
By its end , it was a sprawling epic about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a post-apocalyptic weirdo paradise , struck through with contemplative silence and frenetic joy in equal measure .
And even though the episodes are extremely short , with 283 to get through , you ’ ll have plenty to keep you busy for a while .
—Emily VanDerWerff Futurama comes from The Simpsons ’ creator Matt Groening , but the two series don ’ t share much in common beyond that .
Futurama is a sci-fi comedy that also dabbles in romance , slapstick , and fantasy as it builds out the story @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s cryogenically frozen on New Year ’ s Eve 1999 and wakes up in the year 3000 .
There ’ s a lot of time travel and aliens and talking heads in jars , but there ’ s also true romantic tension and strong friendships .
Futurama is , at its best , whip-smart , elegantly plotted , heart-wrenching , and joyously silly .
( Note that by “ at its best , ” I really mean the show ’ s original four-season run on Fox .
The network unceremoniously axed the series @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Adult Swim energized a new fanbase , it became a poster child for TV ’ s “ brilliant but canceled ” vault .
Comedy Central later brought it back for more , but its disappointing second run lacked the earlier seasons ’ wit and heart . )
—AF Home Movies is an odd bird — but what a beautiful odd bird it is !
Precocious elementary school kid Brendon is obsessed with making movies with his two best friends .
The kids ’ cheap-o films usually mirror the themes of the show ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s basement , where he deals with his brassy single mom , alcoholic soccer coach , self-loathing teacher , and whiny neighbor kids .
The show is animated in the unique but slightly off-putting Squigglevision style , which makes the characters look like they ’ re fizzling in a microwave at all times .
Its earlier seasons also follow very loose scripting , leaving much of the dialogue to improv — which some viewers may find to be too unpolished or meandering for their liking .
But every member of the cast gels @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they ’ ve been performing as their characters for their entire careers .
( The thing that maybe holds up the least is a recurring , sympathetic character voiced by Louis C.K . )
Though dearly departed broadcast network UPN axed the show ( from the folks behind Dr. Katz , Professional Therapist ) after five extremely low-rated episodes , Adult Swim saw the same potential I saw in Home Movies , and rescued it for another 47 installments .
The laidback comedy is unique but often uproariously funny , and the characters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way .
Co-creator Loren Bouchard went on to create Bob ’ s Burgers , and Home Movies has a lot of that same pleasant spirit .
—AF If you ’ re a fan of the adorable Sanrio mascot Hello Kitty ( who is definitely a cat and not a human girl thank you I will be taking no further questions ! )
, it may be time to trade in HK for her arguably much more relatable friend Aggretsuko .
Aggretsuko is a red panda working a dead-end job that she puts up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out her rage in drunken , aggressive , heavy-metal karaoke at night .
It ’ s fantastic and bizarre and hilarious .
It might sound pretty one-note from that summary , or even a bit more adult than you ’ d expect from a show from the Sanrio universe , but there ’ s just enough quirky cuteness to entertain preteen Hello Kitty lovers too ( see : some great spoofs on social media , and Aggretsuko ’ s best friends are sweet and loving ) .
But as it goes along , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to tackle heady themes like gender roles in the workplace , power dynamics in relationships , and what it means to be ... well , a true adult .
Who doesn ’ t ask themselves that question daily ?
Also , Aggretsuko and everyone else on the show is extremely cute , so prepare to wan na buy so much merch after you watch .
Capitalism !
—AF Rick and Morty is much deeper , darker , and more emotionally complex than its popularity and reputation for attracting toxic fans might suggest .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ be super fun and funny ( and horrifying in a David Cronenbergian body horror-type way ) , and the tangents the show veers wildly toward are great comedy writing .
There are small moments in some episodes that don ’ t have any big payoff until much later on , and then fundamentally change everything that has happened before and after in shocking ways .
A lot of this success is attributable to co-creator Dan Harmon , whose beloved sitcom Community became known for its witty storytelling and integration of pop culture goofs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of those .
But Harmon ’ s public struggles with his mental health also influence Rick and Morty more obviously than they did Community .
Depression , family strife , and unhealthy coping mechanisms abound .
These give the show its strong sense of hopelessness , uncertainty , and self-actualization that makes it more than just funny : It ’ s often very moving and profound .
—Allegra Frank When I tell people that BoJack Horseman is one of the best shows of the last decade , some of them look back at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that just the really depressing Netflix show about a horse with man hands ?
To which I say : Yes ?
But also , extremely no ?
BoJack Horseman isn ’ t all tears and death and drugs and booze and abuse , though it does involve those things .
It ’ s also really , really funny — funnier than almost any other show on this list , I ’ d argue , especially if you appreciate a good pun or parody .
BoJack ( Will Arnett ) is a literal horse-man @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his dimming fame bright .
Decades of addiction and unresolved trauma and self-sabotaging behavior have marked him as impossible to work with , production poison .
The only people in his life who can stand him are his roommate Todd ( Aaron Paul ) , his agent Princess Carolyn ( Amy Sedaris ) , former TV rival Mr. Peanutbutter ( Paul F. Tompkins ) , and Diane Nguyen ( Alison Brie ) , who ’ s been hired to ghostwrite BoJack ’ s autobiography .
Half of these characters are anthropomorphic animals , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ show ’ s silliness and best moments stem from its mixed-up world of humans and animals .
But it ’ s wrong to write off or dismiss the darker aspects of it , because those boost BoJack from just a brilliant riff on Hollywood culture to something challenging and honest .
My friend and former colleague Julia Alexander summed up the show ’ s emotional , lasting impact in a beautiful piece on Polygon : Tragically canceled after one season — I will never forgive Netflix for that — Tuca & Bertie was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and consistently scratched an itch I didn ’ t even realize I had .
Created by Lisa Hanawalt , a main designer and producer of BoJack Horseman , the show centers on two 30-year-old bird women who are best friends : Bertie ( voiced by Ali Wong ) , an anxious and self-doubting songbird , and Tuca ( Tiffany Haddish ) , her free-spirited Toucan friend .
They ’ re often joined by Speckle ( Steven Yeung ) , Bertie ’ s sweet , dependable robin boyfriend .
It ’ s a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , trying to figure out your career , understanding your emotions , navigating tough decisions , and figuring out that making mistakes doesn ’ t spell the end of the world .
And it ’ s completely delightful .
Thankfully , Adult Swim renewed the series for a forthcoming second season .
I ’ ll be waiting for it .
—Alissa Wilkinson Rotoscoping is a classic , controversial filmmaking method where animators trace over live-action footage to create a look that ’ s more realistic look than even the fanciest CGI .
When @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into the uncanny valley of discomfort .
But when artists lean into the surreal aspects of the technique — that the images it produces exist on the line between fact and fiction — it can be beautiful .
Undone leans into the benefits of rotoscoping by playing with reality from its onset .
Alma is rudderless in a dead-end job and relationship , but a near-fatal car accident awakens a hidden ability within her .
She ’ s able to time travel , a skill she learns how to use through an apparition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( He ’ s played by Bob Odenkirk , in the most unsettling role I ’ ve ever seen him take on . )
Alma ’ s unpredictable shifts through a dimension made of her memories would be impossible to illustrate in live-action .
Worlds build and collapse breathlessly and breathtakingly ; no other show on this list or on streaming looks quite as mesmerizing as this one .
Undone ’ s rotoscoped style could be off-putting to people who can ’ t handle watching an animated Bob Odenkirk closely resembling live-action Bob @ @ @ @ @ @ @ example of how to use rotoscoping well .
Visually and story-wise , Undone is philosophical , thrilling , provocative , and upsetting in equal measure .
Also , as you should come to expect from co-creator Raphael Bob-Waskberg ( who also created BoJack Horseman ) , it manages to be super funny and witty too amid all the bleakness .
—AF At its peak — roughly its second through fifth seasons — the FX/FXX series Archer was so dense with literary references , sexual innuendo , and other jokes that it wasn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pause and rewind to catch all of the gags they had just laughed over .
What made Archer so terrific during those seasons was the way it told lots of different kinds of jokes .
On the surface , it was an enjoyable parody of James Bond movies and other spy stories .
But underneath the surface , it was a dark and twisted family story about Sterling Archer ( voiced by the great H. Jon Benjamin , also featured in Bob ’ s Burgers and Home Movies ) and his inability to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) .
Couple that with one of the best ensemble casts in television — Aisha Tyler , Judy Greer , and Chris Parnell among others — and creator Adam Reed ’ s rat-a-tat scripts full of allusions and bawdy gags , and the result was one of TV ’ s funniest shows for a good long while .
Archer is longer in the tooth now , 10 seasons and 110 episodes in , but its creative team has found ways to keep shaking up its format , by transporting the characters and their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other genres entirely , including World War II-era adventure films and space opera .
—EV Late-night talk shows are all about the interviews .
Space Ghost Coast to Coast knows that , but it also knows there ’ s a bunch of silly rigidity and convention surrounding the often contrived conversations .
And that ’ s what makes the series , which reuses animation straight from the old ’ 60s superhero cartoon Space Ghost , so subversive and nonsensical and transfixing .
It was , as Sean T. Collins wrote for Grantland in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s first cringe comedies.
” “ From its bargain-basement launch in 1994 to its place at the center of the wildly popular Adult Swim lineup in the 2000s , it helped introduce cringe comedy to the American viewing public , deconstructed the idea of the talk show beyond repair for a generation of comedians , and changed the look and feel of the entire animation art form , ” Collins wrote .
Space Ghost ’ s amazing gimmick is that live-action , real-world celebrities are kinda sorta talking to a cartoon superhero that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ space station .
Space Ghost is onboard with his alien nemeses-turned-sidekicks Brak , Zorak , and Moltar , who resent him and are forced to work on the show .
But they dutifully help their captor with his pet project : a surreal 11 minutes where an animated superhero asks inane questions of hip guests like David Byrne and Thom Yorke ( who were actually interviewed by a show producer , and not provided information on the episode ’ s content or script ) .
How the hell did an animated talk show @ @ @ @ @ @ @ let alone for 10 years ?
Don ’ t ask ; just appreciate that it did .
—AF Detractors will tell you that Sailor Moon and its ilk in the magical girl anime genre waste too much time on big , showy transformation sequences .
“ She spends all her time posing , ” one benighted fool once said to me .
“ How ’ s she ever gon na kill a bad guy that way ?
” These people see as through a glass , darkly , and they should be pitied @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sailor Moon in the first place is the posing !
That ’ s why Sailor Moon ’ s signature way of killing bad guys is to pose with a piece of jewelry and say a gently nonsensical English phrase while lights flash in the background and uplifting music plays !
Sailor Moon is a battle between good and evil where good is pure aspirational hyperfemininity , and sometimes that ’ s all we need .
—Constance Grady Some of the most memorable episodes of this Nicktoon about idiosyncratic city kids involve a drug-like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whose interests include gum and reading nutrition facts ; family separation during the Vietnam War ; an agoraphobic kid encouraged to finally leave his stoop and venture into the world ; and an intense therapy session that unfurls years of childhood trauma in just a 30-minute runtime .
And yet , despite that wild and vast array of plot points and storytelling styles , Hey Arnold !
is absolutely a kid-friendly cartoon about elementary schoolers blowing up their child-sized problems into do-or-die situations .
It ’ s fun and funny and cute and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and dreamy shots of that good ol ’ city life .
It ’ s also unafraid to tackle heavy topics that real kids also sometimes have to deal with , without sacrificing entertainment value .
More cartoons today should be like Hey Arnold !
—AF One of my best friends in high school chose the Arthur theme song for his senior quote in the yearbook .
It was a silly joke , but a funny one , and also somewhat poignant .
“ Every day when you ’ re walking down the street @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an original point of view , ” the song goes , a maxim that is especially important for homogenous suburban high schoolers to keep in mind .
Arthur ’ s world is anything but homogenous , although the caveat is that everyone on the show is an animal .
The long-running PBS cartoon tells important life lessons through these fictional characters , with plenty of diverse perspectives , social connections , and family dynamics .
It ’ s the kind of show that celebrates every type of lifestyle , and does so with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his classmates ( as well as his iconic little sister , D.W. ) can also be pretty mean or melodramatic — that ’ s part of the lesson learning !
These kinds of higher-energy moments keep Arthur funny and relatable instead of cloying and preachy .
At either end of that emotional spectrum , spending some time watching Arthur always makes for a wonderful kind of day .
—AF Disney+ is rife with animated shows to watch , but few of them feature a family of globetrotting , adventure-seeking ducks .
Fortunately for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , both in its original ’ 80s glory and in a current reboot that captures much of what made the show fun while transporting it to the modern era .
A very loose adaptation of Carl Barks ’ s classic comics based on the family of Disney staple Donald Duck , DuckTales centers on the adventures of Donald ’ s nephews , Huey , Dewey , and Louie , who hitch a ride with their incredibly rich Uncle Scrooge on a quest to scoop up all the money in the world .
Celebrating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this , our season of Serious Doubts about Capitalism , might seem like a weird idea , but DuckTales turns Scrooge into the kind of crotchety billionaire America needs more of — angry at the right people and putting his heart in the right place ( so long as he remains the richest duck alive ) .
The 2010s reboot is built to appeal to modern audiences who expect more lore and backstory from their television .
If you ’ ve always wondered just who Huey , Dewey , and Louie ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nobody seems to talk about her , well , the reboot introduces her .
It ’ s also got a surprisingly stacked cast , including David Tennant as Scrooge himself .
But at its core , it ’ s still about hijinks and tales of derring-do , just , y ’ know , undertaken by ducks .
—EV Where to buy : Amazon ( 2017 only ) , Google Play ( 1987/2017 ) , iTunes ( 1987/2017 ) Animaniacs is very much in the spirit of old-school Looney Tunes .
Siblings Yacko , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ water tower on Hollywood ’ s Warner Bros. lot , causing all kinds of mischief that stretches the limits of suspended disbelief .
It doesn ’ t get much more complicated than that , although in true Looney Tunes fashion , their mischief reaches some high levels of absurdity .
With such a specific setting , Animaniacs also boasts movie parodies galore .
Even real-life figures like Steven Spielberg make some not-infrequent appearances ( he was an executive producer ) .
The adult jokes and references hit even harder with age , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ original music might hold up even better .
In fall 2020 , Hulu released a 13-episode reboot of the series , but it doesn ’ t hold a candle to the original .
If you ’ re desperate for more of the Warner brothers ( and sister ) , though , there ya go .
—AF Batman : The Animated Series is arguably the best Batman adaptation in the abundant history of the caped crusader .
Yes , that includes Christopher Nolan ’ s trilogy .
Creators Bruce Timm , Paul Dini , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ format for their 85-episode cartoon to delve into the emotions , psyche , and complexities of Batman ’ s life in a way that a two-hour movie just can ’ t .
Even though it aired alongside shows for kids , Batman : TAS didn ’ t shy away from its title character ’ s trauma of helplessly watching his parents die and how difficult it is to be a hero in Gotham , a city that can feel so hopeless .
The show extends that same kind of emotional empathy to its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shaped by their own personal tragedies : Mr .
Freeze wants to save his wife ; actor Matt Hagen becomes Clayface after an experiment to restore his looks goes wrong ; Poison Ivy just wants to save the world .
Batman : TAS is also known for its original and iconic portrayal of Harley Quinn who went on to become a beloved character ( with her own movie ) , and for casting Mark Hamill , a.k.a .
Luke Skywalker , to play the Joker .
—Alex Abad-Santos Where to stream : DC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2021 ) Steven Universe has a lot of love in its pastel heart , a spring in its step , and a tune at the ready for every occasion .
The magical comedy about a sweet preteen boy who lives with anthropomorphic alien “ gemstones ” that he aids in extraterrestrial battles recently aired its series finale , putting an end to one of the most beloved and progressive kids shows of the 2010s .
In 2015 , former Vox writer Caroline Framke explained why the show is so important to its many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I ’ m a twin , so I ’ ve always had a soft spot for twin-related media — especially the kind that recognizes , hey , we ’ re each our own person here .
Gravity Falls ’ two main characters , Dipper and Mabel Pines , are twins .
They ’ re also a brother/sister pair of diametric opposites , who truly care for each other in the face of the supernatural secrets they encounter in their great uncle ’ s attic during their annual summer vacation .
The show ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that family loyalty and all the lighthearted goofs that come with it .
Here ’ s what I said about Gravity Falls after the series finale aired in 2016 : Avatar : The Last Airbender ( 2005-2008 ; three seasons ) A game-changer that influenced many of the other shows on this list , and many more besides , Avatar : The Last Airbender did just about everything right .
It was just one of many young adult fantasy series of the early aughts — think Harry Potter , Percy Jackson , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which Airbender is heavily indebted ) .
But where most of them fumbled their themes or collapsed in the home stretch , Airbender never did .
Airbender invested in long , believable character arcs , as it slowly built its story about a team of kids trying to save the world into a profound protest against colonialism and military aggression .
Sporting gorgeous animation and rich cultural details , Airbender above all bursts with wit , humor , and imagination .
It won my heart faster than you could say “ penguin sledding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the most satisfying TV shows I ’ ve ever watched all the way through .
Many of its episodes and memes have become iconic , and its May 15 Netflix release is much anticipated — with extremely good reason .
—Aja Romano SpongeBob SquarePants is maybe my favorite show of all time , even if I stopped watching new episodes a long time ago .
But I ’ d put its early run — the first three seasons , and the first movie — on the same level of “ important animated comedy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is an enthusiastic , high-energy central character , and like The Simpsons ’ Springfield , the world of Bikini Bottom outside SpongeBob ’ s famous pineapple under the sea is full of unique characters and wacky small-town scenarios .
There ’ s a SpongeBob quote or image or reference or meme to suit almost every single situation ; the show is reliably funny and layered , with a different joke grabbing you every time you rewatch .
It ’ s a lot more childish than The Simpsons or and other greats , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cartoon on a kid-centric TV network .
But it doesn ’ t matter how old you are .
If you can get on its wavelength of talking sea creatures , random gags , and high-energy antics , SpongeBob is forever .
—AF Over the Garden Wall ( 2014 ; one season ) Over the Garden Wall is a 10-episode miniseries that packs a lot into each 11-minute episode , telling a somewhat dark but very moving story about two brothers who get lost in an enchanted forest on Halloween .
There ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the series , which manages to feel like a fun romp through a magical world while also moving forward at a steady clip toward the characters ’ end goal of getting out of those woods .
What makes Over the Garden Wall so appealing across age groups is its adherence to the fairy tale formula — young heroes embarking on dreamlike adventures .
But its style is more unique than traditional Hans Christian Andersen-style folklore .
“ The [ quirky Americana ] aesthetic makes Over the Garden Wall feel distinct among other fantasy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ my friend Simone de Rochefort at Polygon in 2016 .
“ We have a rich , weird folk history in this country , and watching Over the Garden Wall made me wonder why we don ’ t put it to more use.
” Over the Garden Wall is a great intro to the beauty of Weird Americana , with similarities to the animated classics The Secret of NIMH and Coraline — or maybe a better first dip into the slightly scarier side of bedtime stories .
—AF Mickey Mouse is so culturally pervasive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Americans as a dollar bill , even if he ’ s mostly a brand mascot these days .
But Disney has actually done Mickey some good in recent years , with this wonderful , novel series of shorts that star Mickey , Minnie , Goofy , Donald , and the rest of the core Disney crew getting into mischief of escalating intensity .
I say “ novel ” because the animation is more pop art-esque than we ’ re used to seeing from anything Disney , giving each character a design overhaul .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ than about eight minutes long , are also often pretty weird ; one of the first that Disney released has no dialogue except for some sporadic French .
That leaves the viewer to really focus on the unique animation , which provides the ageless humor and heart of these breezy episodes .
—AF

The connection between cartoons and youth often casts an unfair stigma: that cartoons are for kids, kids who can suspend disbelief to relate to talking to animals or who still believe that magic can exist.
That’s not only an unfair assessment, it’s inaccurate. Animation is a medium through which all kinds of stories can be told, including stories as emotionally complicated and textured as those of any prestige drama. Not all cartoons are cheeky or slapstick; not all cartoons are meant to impart lessons to kids who are still figuring out the world. Plenty aim to relate to and entertain grown-ups, too.
“You’re dead if you aim only for kids,” goes one apocryphal quote from Walt Disney, about working in animation. “Adults are only kids grown up, anyway.” And it’s true: Cartoons are for everyone. The goal of any good cartoon is the same as that of any good piece of entertainment. They are meant to be enjoyable and inspiring, no matter who (or how old) you are.
While the wide variety of animated TV series in existence may seem daunting to some, there’s something out there for everyone. So below, we’ve listed 20 great shows to help get you acquainted — or reacquainted — with cartoons. Whether you usually watch TV with family or prefer to settle into these beautifully constructed worlds on your own, the list offers diverse entry points to suit all preferences.
For the whole family
The Simpsons (1989-present; 31 seasons)
A lot of younger adults have never known, or can barely remember, life before The Simpsons. The show's 31 years (and counting) on the air make it by far the longest-running American sitcom in history, animated or otherwise. It’s so recognizable, quotable, and memorable as to be inextricable from modern culture, and not just in the US, but all over the world.
It is unfathomable to me that anyone could watch an episode of this groundbreaking sitcom and not at least smile. Unsurprisingly for such a long run, the show’s quality has sagged over the past decade. But when The Simpsons is firing on all cylinders, it’s the kind of comedy you’ll need to pause several times, because you’re laughing too hard or too loudly to hear what anyone’s saying anymore. Every element of The Simpsons is meticulously considered for its joke potential, from blink-and-you’ll-miss-’em sight gags to subtle turns of phrase.
Maybe The Simpsons has lasted so long because of its extremely basic premise: Here’s a working-class American family, and here they are, living their lives. This simple conceit lends itself to being riffed upon in both small and extraordinary ways. Or maybe the show’s success stems from how dense the town of Springfield is, with an expansive cast of characters that offer endless story possibilities and permutations. Or maybe what’s most lovable is how, even when Homer is chosen to go to space or baby Maggie shoots Mr. Burns, The Simpsons always resets at the end of the day. Everything is a constant in Springfield.
If you’re overwhelmed by the episode count, here’s my hot tip: Don’t worry about missing most episodes beyond season eight. Season nine is when the show began its decline from straight perfection to a more of a crapshoot. And now that you know where to look, if you somehow have never seen any episode in full (which, how?) ... please go do that. —Allegra Frank
Where to stream: Disney+, Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Bob’s Burgers (2011-present; 10 seasons)
Bob’s Burgers is The Simpsons’ heir apparent: Both comedies air on Fox, star quirky, working-class families, and take place in vague American cities full of odd neighbors, friends, and frenemies. The show also borrows from The Simpsons’ sense of pure love for all of its characters: No one on Bob’s Burgers is judgmental or cruel or mean, not even the Belcher family’s slightly sadistic youngest daughter Louise.
The series is also as funny and marathon-able as any great sitcom should be. It’s loaded with approachable pop culture gags, absurd stories and characters that never get too out-there, and tons of excellent original music. I recently asked my best friend, a huge Bob’s Burgers fan, how many times she thinks she has watched the show now: 50 times and counting for her favorite episodes.
I asked what keeps her coming back. “Bob’s Burgers is a really refreshing family comedy, because it was the first show in a long time where the family actually likes each other, despite the chaos,” she explained. “The Belcher weirdness/quirkiness/whatever you want to call it is always celebrated and made relatable, rather than derided.” —AF
Where to stream: Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Adventure Time (2010-2018; 10 seasons)
The 2010s saw a renaissance in 11-minute cartoons for both kids and adults, pushing a fledgling trend of the 2000s ever further. The best of these 2010s shows, for my money, was Pendleton Ward’s 10-season series Adventure Time.
Loosely built around the adventures of a human boy named Finn and a stretchy dog named Jake, Adventure Time expanded and shifted from its initial standalone adventures to become one of TV’s most ambitious shows. By its end, it was a sprawling epic about the last human boy coming of age in a post-apocalyptic weirdo paradise, struck through with contemplative silence and frenetic joy in equal measure. And even though the episodes are extremely short, with 283 to get through, you’ll have plenty to keep you busy for a while. —Emily VanDerWerff
Where to stream: Cartoon Network (cable login required), HBO Max, Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Futurama (1999-2003 and 2008-2013; seven seasons)
Futurama comes from The Simpsons’ creator Matt Groening, but the two series don’t share much in common beyond that. Futurama is a sci-fi comedy that also dabbles in romance, slapstick, and fantasy as it builds out the story of Philip J. Fry, who’s cryogenically frozen on New Year’s Eve 1999 and wakes up in the year 3000. There’s a lot of time travel and aliens and talking heads in jars, but there’s also true romantic tension and strong friendships. Futurama is, at its best, whip-smart, elegantly plotted, heart-wrenching, and joyously silly.
(Note that by “at its best,” I really mean the show’s original four-season run on Fox. The network unceremoniously axed the series in 2003, but after reruns on Adult Swim energized a new fanbase, it became a poster child for TV’s “brilliant but canceled” vault. Comedy Central later brought it back for more, but its disappointing second run lacked the earlier seasons’ wit and heart.) —AF
Where to stream: Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Home Movies (1999-2004; four seasons)
Home Movies is an odd bird — but what a beautiful odd bird it is! Precocious elementary school kid Brendon is obsessed with making movies with his two best friends. The kids’ cheap-o films usually mirror the themes of the show’s larger plot outside of Brendon’s basement, where he deals with his brassy single mom, alcoholic soccer coach, self-loathing teacher, and whiny neighbor kids.
The show is animated in the unique but slightly off-putting Squigglevision style, which makes the characters look like they’re fizzling in a microwave at all times. Its earlier seasons also follow very loose scripting, leaving much of the dialogue to improv — which some viewers may find to be too unpolished or meandering for their liking. But every member of the cast gels perfectly with the rest, as if they’ve been performing as their characters for their entire careers. (The thing that maybe holds up the least is a recurring, sympathetic character voiced by Louis C.K.)
Though dearly departed broadcast network UPN axed the show (from the folks behind Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist) after five extremely low-rated episodes, Adult Swim saw the same potential I saw in Home Movies, and rescued it for another 47 installments. The laidback comedy is unique but often uproariously funny, and the characters are each lovable in their own weird way. Co-creator Loren Bouchard went on to create Bob’s Burgers, and Home Movies has a lot of that same pleasant spirit. —AF
Where to stream: Adult Swim, HBO Max
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play
Aggretsuko (2018-present; two seasons)
If you’re a fan of the adorable Sanrio mascot Hello Kitty (who is definitely a cat and not a human girl thank you I will be taking no further questions!), it may be time to trade in HK for her arguably much more relatable friend Aggretsuko. Aggretsuko is a red panda working a dead-end job that she puts up with all day, only to let out her rage in drunken, aggressive, heavy-metal karaoke at night. It’s fantastic and bizarre and hilarious.
It might sound pretty one-note from that summary, or even a bit more adult than you’d expect from a show from the Sanrio universe, but there’s just enough quirky cuteness to entertain preteen Hello Kitty lovers too (see: some great spoofs on social media, and Aggretsuko’s best friends are sweet and loving). But as it goes along, episodes make use of the cute veneer to tackle heady themes like gender roles in the workplace, power dynamics in relationships, and what it means to be ... well, a true adult. Who doesn’t ask themselves that question daily?
Also, Aggretsuko and everyone else on the show is extremely cute, so prepare to wanna buy so much merch after you watch. Capitalism! —AF
Where to stream: Netflix
Viewer discretion advised
Rick and Morty (2013-present; four seasons)
Rick and Morty is much deeper, darker, and more emotionally complex than its popularity and reputation for attracting toxic fans might suggest. The show’s trans-dimensional hijinks can be super fun and funny (and horrifying in a David Cronenbergian body horror-type way), and the tangents the show veers wildly toward are great comedy writing. There are small moments in some episodes that don’t have any big payoff until much later on, and then fundamentally change everything that has happened before and after in shocking ways.
A lot of this success is attributable to co-creator Dan Harmon, whose beloved sitcom Community became known for its witty storytelling and integration of pop culture goofs. Rick and Morty delivers on both of those. But Harmon’s public struggles with his mental health also influence Rick and Morty more obviously than they did Community. Depression, family strife, and unhealthy coping mechanisms abound. These give the show its strong sense of hopelessness, uncertainty, and self-actualization that makes it more than just funny: It’s often very moving and profound. —Allegra Frank
Where to stream: Adult Swim (cable login required), HBO Max, Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
BoJack Horseman (2014-2020; six seasons)
When I tell people that BoJack Horseman is one of the best shows of the last decade, some of them look back at me, puzzled: Isn’t that just the really depressing Netflix show about a horse with man hands?
To which I say: Yes? But also, extremely no? BoJack Horseman isn’t all tears and death and drugs and booze and abuse, though it does involve those things. It’s also really, really funny — funnier than almost any other show on this list, I’d argue, especially if you appreciate a good pun or parody.
BoJack (Will Arnett) is a literal horse-man and former sitcom star looking to keep his dimming fame bright. Decades of addiction and unresolved trauma and self-sabotaging behavior have marked him as impossible to work with, production poison. The only people in his life who can stand him are his roommate Todd (Aaron Paul), his agent Princess Carolyn (Amy Sedaris), former TV rival Mr. Peanutbutter (Paul F. Tompkins), and Diane Nguyen (Alison Brie), who’s been hired to ghostwrite BoJack’s autobiography. Half of these characters are anthropomorphic animals, by the way — much of the show’s silliness and best moments stem from its mixed-up world of humans and animals.
But it’s wrong to write off or dismiss the darker aspects of it, because those boost BoJack from just a brilliant riff on Hollywood culture to something challenging and honest. My friend and former colleague Julia Alexander summed up the show’s emotional, lasting impact in a beautiful piece on Polygon:
For all of BoJack’s worst qualities, he was never dishonest about his true self. BoJack is the first person to admit his flaws and, what makes his tale even sadder, is that he wants to change but can’t figure out how to do so. That’s what makes us want to root for him to survive, and to win — there is a little piece of BoJack in all of us. He confronts the self-realizations that we might be too scared to do ourselves.
—AF
Where to stream: Netflix
Tuca & Bertie (2019; one season)
Tragically canceled after one season — I will never forgive Netflix for that — Tuca & Bertie was one of the best shows of 2019, and consistently scratched an itch I didn’t even realize I had. Created by Lisa Hanawalt, a main designer and producer of BoJack Horseman, the show centers on two 30-year-old bird women who are best friends: Bertie (voiced by Ali Wong), an anxious and self-doubting songbird, and Tuca (Tiffany Haddish), her free-spirited Toucan friend. They’re often joined by Speckle (Steven Yeung), Bertie’s sweet, dependable robin boyfriend. It’s a show about friendship, being a woman, trying to figure out your career, understanding your emotions, navigating tough decisions, and figuring out that making mistakes doesn’t spell the end of the world. And it’s completely delightful.
Thankfully, Adult Swim renewed the series for a forthcoming second season. I’ll be waiting for it. —Alissa Wilkinson
Where to stream: Netflix
Undone (2019; one season)
Rotoscoping is a classic, controversial filmmaking method where animators trace over live-action footage to create a look that’s more realistic look than even the fanciest CGI. When done poorly, it can drop viewers into the uncanny valley of discomfort. But when artists lean into the surreal aspects of the technique — that the images it produces exist on the line between fact and fiction — it can be beautiful.
Undone leans into the benefits of rotoscoping by playing with reality from its onset. Alma is rudderless in a dead-end job and relationship, but a near-fatal car accident awakens a hidden ability within her. She’s able to time travel, a skill she learns how to use through an apparition of her dead, physicist father. (He’s played by Bob Odenkirk, in the most unsettling role I’ve ever seen him take on.) Alma’s unpredictable shifts through a dimension made of her memories would be impossible to illustrate in live-action. Worlds build and collapse breathlessly and breathtakingly; no other show on this list or on streaming looks quite as mesmerizing as this one.
Undone’s rotoscoped style could be off-putting to people who can’t handle watching an animated Bob Odenkirk closely resembling live-action Bob Odenkirk, but it’s an example of how to use rotoscoping well. Visually and story-wise, Undone is philosophical, thrilling, provocative, and upsetting in equal measure. Also, as you should come to expect from co-creator Raphael Bob-Waskberg (who also created BoJack Horseman), it manages to be super funny and witty too amid all the bleakness. —AF
Where to stream: Amazon Prime
Archer (2009-present; 10 seasons)
At its peak — roughly its second through fifth seasons — the FX/FXX series Archer was so dense with literary references, sexual innuendo, and other jokes that it wasn’t uncommon for viewers to have to pause and rewind to catch all of the gags they had just laughed over.
What made Archer so terrific during those seasons was the way it told lots of different kinds of jokes. On the surface, it was an enjoyable parody of James Bond movies and other spy stories. But underneath the surface, it was a dark and twisted family story about Sterling Archer (voiced by the great H. Jon Benjamin, also featured in Bob’s Burgers and Home Movies) and his inability to escape his controlling mother (Jessica Walter). Couple that with one of the best ensemble casts in television — Aisha Tyler, Judy Greer, and Chris Parnell among others — and creator Adam Reed’s rat-a-tat scripts full of allusions and bawdy gags, and the result was one of TV’s funniest shows for a good long while.
Archer is longer in the tooth now, 10 seasons and 110 episodes in, but its creative team has found ways to keep shaking up its format, by transporting the characters and their relationships out of spy world and into other genres entirely, including World War II-era adventure films and space opera. —EV
Where to stream: Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Space Ghost Coast to Coast (1994-2004; nine seasons)
Late-night talk shows are all about the interviews. Space Ghost Coast to Coast knows that, but it also knows there’s a bunch of silly rigidity and convention surrounding the often contrived conversations. And that’s what makes the series, which reuses animation straight from the old ’60s superhero cartoon Space Ghost, so subversive and nonsensical and transfixing. It was, as Sean T. Collins wrote for Grantland in 2015, “one of America’s first cringe comedies.”
“From its bargain-basement launch in 1994 to its place at the center of the wildly popular Adult Swim lineup in the 2000s, it helped introduce cringe comedy to the American viewing public, deconstructed the idea of the talk show beyond repair for a generation of comedians, and changed the look and feel of the entire animation art form,” Collins wrote.
Space Ghost’s amazing gimmick is that live-action, real-world celebrities are kinda sorta talking to a cartoon superhero that inexplicably hosts a talk show from a space station. Space Ghost is onboard with his alien nemeses-turned-sidekicks Brak, Zorak, and Moltar, who resent him and are forced to work on the show. But they dutifully help their captor with his pet project: a surreal 11 minutes where an animated superhero asks inane questions of hip guests like David Byrne and Thom Yorke (who were actually interviewed by a show producer, and not provided information on the episode’s content or script).
How the hell did an animated talk show this hilariously bizarre get on TV, let alone for 10 years? Don’t ask; just appreciate that it did. —AF
Where to stream: Adult Swim, HBO Max
Where to buy: iTunes
Saturday morning nostalgia
Sailor Moon (1992-1997; five seasons)
Detractors will tell you that Sailor Moon and its ilk in the magical girl anime genre waste too much time on big, showy transformation sequences. “She spends all her time posing,” one benighted fool once said to me. “How’s she ever gonna kill a bad guy that way?”
These people see as through a glass, darkly, and they should be pitied. Obviously the entire reason to watch Sailor Moon in the first place is the posing! That’s why Sailor Moon’s signature way of killing bad guys is to pose with a piece of jewelry and say a gently nonsensical English phrase while lights flash in the background and uplifting music plays! Sailor Moon is a battle between good and evil where good is pure aspirational hyperfemininity, and sometimes that’s all we need. —Constance Grady
Where to stream: Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Hey Arnold! (1996-2004; five seasons)
Some of the most memorable episodes of this Nicktoon about idiosyncratic city kids involve a drug-like addiction to chocolate; a weirdo relative whose interests include gum and reading nutrition facts; family separation during the Vietnam War; an agoraphobic kid encouraged to finally leave his stoop and venture into the world; and an intense therapy session that unfurls years of childhood trauma in just a 30-minute runtime.
And yet, despite that wild and vast array of plot points and storytelling styles, Hey Arnold! is absolutely a kid-friendly cartoon about elementary schoolers blowing up their child-sized problems into do-or-die situations. It’s fun and funny and cute and quotable, with a great jazz-tinged soundtrack and dreamy shots of that good ol’ city life. It’s also unafraid to tackle heavy topics that real kids also sometimes have to deal with, without sacrificing entertainment value. More cartoons today should be like Hey Arnold! —AF
Where to stream: Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Arthur (1996-present; 23 seasons)
One of my best friends in high school chose the Arthur theme song for his senior quote in the yearbook. It was a silly joke, but a funny one, and also somewhat poignant. “Every day when you’re walking down the street / everybody that you meet / has an original point of view,” the song goes, a maxim that is especially important for homogenous suburban high schoolers to keep in mind.
Arthur’s world is anything but homogenous, although the caveat is that everyone on the show is an animal. The long-running PBS cartoon tells important life lessons through these fictional characters, with plenty of diverse perspectives, social connections, and family dynamics.
It’s the kind of show that celebrates every type of lifestyle, and does so with sincerity and humor. But Arthur and his classmates (as well as his iconic little sister, D.W.) can also be pretty mean or melodramatic — that’s part of the lesson learning! These kinds of higher-energy moments keep Arthur funny and relatable instead of cloying and preachy. At either end of that emotional spectrum, spending some time watching Arthur always makes for a wonderful kind of day. —AF
Where to stream: PBS Kids
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
DuckTales (1987-1990; four seasons) / DuckTales reboot (2017-present; three seasons)
Disney+ is rife with animated shows to watch, but few of them feature a family of globetrotting, adventure-seeking ducks. Fortunately for all of us, DuckTales is there, both in its original ’80s glory and in a current reboot that captures much of what made the show fun while transporting it to the modern era.
A very loose adaptation of Carl Barks’s classic comics based on the family of Disney staple Donald Duck, DuckTales centers on the adventures of Donald’s nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, who hitch a ride with their incredibly rich Uncle Scrooge on a quest to scoop up all the money in the world. Celebrating a show about a crotchety billionaire in this, our season of Serious Doubts about Capitalism, might seem like a weird idea, but DuckTales turns Scrooge into the kind of crotchety billionaire America needs more of — angry at the right people and putting his heart in the right place (so long as he remains the richest duck alive).
The 2010s reboot is built to appeal to modern audiences who expect more lore and backstory from their television. If you’ve always wondered just who Huey, Dewey, and Louie’s mother is supposed to be and why nobody seems to talk about her, well, the reboot introduces her. It’s also got a surprisingly stacked cast, including David Tennant as Scrooge himself. But at its core, it’s still about hijinks and tales of derring-do, just, y’know, undertaken by ducks. —EV
Where to stream: Disney+ (1987/2017)
Where to buy: Amazon (2017 only), Google Play (1987/2017), iTunes (1987/2017)
Animaniacs (1993-1998; five seasons)
Animaniacs is very much in the spirit of old-school Looney Tunes. Siblings Yacko, Wacko, and Dot live in the water tower on Hollywood’s Warner Bros. lot, causing all kinds of mischief that stretches the limits of suspended disbelief.
It doesn’t get much more complicated than that, although in true Looney Tunes fashion, their mischief reaches some high levels of absurdity. With such a specific setting, Animaniacs also boasts movie parodies galore. Even real-life figures like Steven Spielberg make some not-infrequent appearances (he was an executive producer). The adult jokes and references hit even harder with age, and the show’s perfect singalongs and original music might hold up even better.
In fall 2020, Hulu released a 13-episode reboot of the series, but it doesn’t hold a candle to the original. If you’re desperate for more of the Warner brothers (and sister), though, there ya go. —AF
Where to stream: Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Batman: The Animated Series (1992-1995; four seasons)
Batman: The Animated Series is arguably the best Batman adaptation in the abundant history of the caped crusader. Yes, that includes Christopher Nolan’s trilogy.
Creators Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, and Mitch Brian employed a loose serial format for their 85-episode cartoon to delve into the emotions, psyche, and complexities of Batman’s life in a way that a two-hour movie just can’t.
Even though it aired alongside shows for kids, Batman: TAS didn’t shy away from its title character’s trauma of helplessly watching his parents die and how difficult it is to be a hero in Gotham, a city that can feel so hopeless. The show extends that same kind of emotional empathy to its villains who, like Batman, are shaped by their own personal tragedies: Mr. Freeze wants to save his wife; actor Matt Hagen becomes Clayface after an experiment to restore his looks goes wrong; Poison Ivy just wants to save the world.
Batman: TAS is also known for its original and iconic portrayal of Harley Quinn who went on to become a beloved character (with her own movie), and for casting Mark Hamill, a.k.a. Luke Skywalker, to play the Joker. —Alex Abad-Santos
Where to stream: DC Universe, HBO Max (in January 2021)
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Kids’ shows for any age
Steven Universe / Steven Universe Future (2013-2020; six seasons)
Steven Universe has a lot of love in its pastel heart, a spring in its step, and a tune at the ready for every occasion. The magical comedy about a sweet preteen boy who lives with anthropomorphic alien “gemstones” that he aids in extraterrestrial battles recently aired its series finale, putting an end to one of the most beloved and progressive kids shows of the 2010s. In 2015, former Vox writer Caroline Framke explained why the show is so important to its many dedicated fans, young and older:
Cartoons ostensibly meant for kids have always threaded in adult themes, whether it’s a Nicktoon exploring what it means to be different or Pixar teaching kids about depression. But Steven Universe goes even further. It weaves a diverse representation of sexuality, gender, and even sex into the very fabric of the show without wringing its hands about it. As in life, all that stuff is just there. Steven Universe naturalizes the issues many shows would rather sensationalize in a way that’s clever but not condescending to its younger audience.
—AF
Where to stream: Cartoon Network (cable login required), HBO Max, Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Gravity Falls (2012-2016; two seasons)
I’m a twin, so I’ve always had a soft spot for twin-related media — especially the kind that recognizes, hey, we’re each our own person here. Gravity Falls’ two main characters, Dipper and Mabel Pines, are twins. They’re also a brother/sister pair of diametric opposites, who truly care for each other in the face of the supernatural secrets they encounter in their great uncle’s attic during their annual summer vacation. The show’s central unexplained mysteries are offset by that family loyalty and all the lighthearted goofs that come with it.
Here’s what I said about Gravity Falls after the series finale aired in 2016:
Both twins were defined by their love for adventure and affection for investigating the world around them; these are qualities most readily found in the under-13 set. What most excited the brother and sister pair about their summer stay in Gravity Falls, Oregon, was uncovering its secrets. [...] But that element of the show always worked best when it was supporting a greater story about the awkwardness of being 12. Time loops and unicorns are strange and hard to understand, as is adulthood. But they’re ideas kids can’t help but fantasize about, for better or worse.
—AF
Where to stream: Disney+, Google Play, Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, iTunes
Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005-2008; three seasons)
A game-changer that influenced many of the other shows on this list, and many more besides, Avatar: The Last Airbender did just about everything right.
It was just one of many young adult fantasy series of the early aughts — think Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and innumerable fantasy anime (a medium to which Airbender is heavily indebted). But where most of them fumbled their themes or collapsed in the home stretch, Airbender never did.
Airbender invested in long, believable character arcs, as it slowly built its story about a team of kids trying to save the world into a profound protest against colonialism and military aggression. Sporting gorgeous animation and rich cultural details, Airbender above all bursts with wit, humor, and imagination. It won my heart faster than you could say “penguin sledding,” and it remains one of the most satisfying TV shows I’ve ever watched all the way through. Many of its episodes and memes have become iconic, and its May 15 Netflix release is much anticipated — with extremely good reason. —Aja Romano
Where to stream: Netflix
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
SpongeBob SquarePants (1999-present; 12 seasons)
SpongeBob SquarePants is maybe my favorite show of all time, even if I stopped watching new episodes a long time ago. But I’d put its early run — the first three seasons, and the first movie — on the same level of “important animated comedy” as The Simpsons. SpongeBob himself is an enthusiastic, high-energy central character, and like The Simpsons’ Springfield, the world of Bikini Bottom outside SpongeBob’s famous pineapple under the sea is full of unique characters and wacky small-town scenarios.
There’s a SpongeBob quote or image or reference or meme to suit almost every single situation; the show is reliably funny and layered, with a different joke grabbing you every time you rewatch. It’s a lot more childish than The Simpsons or and other greats, which is probably because it’s a cartoon on a kid-centric TV network. But it doesn’t matter how old you are. If you can get on its wavelength of talking sea creatures, random gags, and high-energy antics, SpongeBob is forever. —AF
Where to stream: Amazon Prime
Where to buy: Google Play, iTunes
Over the Garden Wall (2014; one season)
Over the Garden Wall is a 10-episode miniseries that packs a lot into each 11-minute episode, telling a somewhat dark but very moving story about two brothers who get lost in an enchanted forest on Halloween. There’s no time wasted over the course of the series, which manages to feel like a fun romp through a magical world while also moving forward at a steady clip toward the characters’ end goal of getting out of those woods.
What makes Over the Garden Wall so appealing across age groups is its adherence to the fairy tale formula — young heroes embarking on dreamlike adventures. But its style is more unique than traditional Hans Christian Andersen-style folklore. “The [quirky Americana] aesthetic makes Over the Garden Wall feel distinct among other fantasy or fairy tale cartoons,” wrote my friend Simone de Rochefort at Polygon in 2016. “We have a rich, weird folk history in this country, and watching Over the Garden Wall made me wonder why we don’t put it to more use.”
Over the Garden Wall is a great intro to the beauty of Weird Americana, with similarities to the animated classics The Secret of NIMH and Coraline — or maybe a better first dip into the slightly scarier side of bedtime stories. —AF
Where to stream: HBO Max, Hulu
Where to buy: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes
Mickey Mouse (2013-ongoing; five seasons)
Mickey Mouse is so culturally pervasive that he’s as recognizable to Americans as a dollar bill, even if he’s mostly a brand mascot these days. But Disney has actually done Mickey some good in recent years, with this wonderful, novel series of shorts that star Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald, and the rest of the core Disney crew getting into mischief of escalating intensity.
I say “novel” because the animation is more pop art-esque than we’re used to seeing from anything Disney, giving each character a design overhaul. These shorts, which are never more than about eight minutes long, are also often pretty weird; one of the first that Disney released has no dialogue except for some sporadic French. That leaves the viewer to really focus on the unique animation, which provides the ageless humor and heart of these breezy episodes. —AF
Where to stream: Disney+, Hulu
Where to buy: iTunes


vox--2020-12-29--How Bernie Sanders plans to force a vote on $2,000 Covid-19 relief checks

In just over three weeks , Donald Trump will no longer be president , but he ’ s spent his last month in office sowing discord .
His latest chaos muppetry — a demand that Congress increase the latest round of stimulus checks from $ 600 to $ 2,000 — has now given Democrats a slim chance to deliver more aid to Americans .
And , barring that , a chance to make Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ’ s life more difficult .
After the House on Monday passed a bill increasing the “ economic impact payments ” — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sen. Bernie Sanders ( I-VT ) is continuing the fight .
Sanders , with support from the Senate Democratic caucus , plans to use a series of procedural moves to delay a vote on a bipartisan defense authorization bill .
These maneuvers can ’ t prevent the defense bill from becoming law , but that ’ s not really the point .
The bill is considered a must-pass , and Sanders ’ s objections can delay passage , annoy Senate Republicans , and potentially force Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-KY ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could damage his party ’ s ability to hold onto its Senate majority .
And Sanders also has a clear demand : He will lift his objections to an immediate vote on the defense bill if McConnell permits a vote on legislation providing $ 2,000 checks to Americans earning less than $ 75,000 a year .
The first round of this fight played out shortly after noon Tuesday on the Senate floor , during an exchange between McConnell , Sanders , and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer ( D-NY ) .
McConnell sought @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Sanders objected unless the Senate immediately holds an up or down vote on the $ 2,000 payments .
The politics of this fight favor Democrats .
A recent Data for Progress poll shows that 78 percent of likely voters support the $ 2,000 direct payment .
Trump himself backs it as well ; he continues to tweet his support for $ 2,000 checks .
On Monday , the House voted in favor of $ 2,000 checks , with 44 Republicans joining nearly every Democrat in favoring the legislation .
And all of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hold onto two Senate seats in Georgia , a state that recently voted for Democratic President-elect Joe Biden — two seats , it ’ s worth noting , that will decide who controls the Senate in 2021 .
If Sanders ’ s gambit fails , it wouldn ’ t be the first time that very popular legislation died in Mitch McConnell ’ s Senate .
And McConnell still has ways out ; he suggested Tuesday he could tie proposals unfavorable to Democrats to the increased stimulus checks , in order to make the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ strange mix of circumstances that brought us to the point gives Democrats a small chance to make the $ 2,000 checks a reality .
Congress entered the holiday season with three high priority items on its plate .
The National Defense Authorization Act is an annual affair that sets much of the nation ’ s defense policy for the next year , and that instructs the military on how to spend its budget .
Legislation funding much of the federal government was also set to expire last Monday , meaning that the unfunded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was appropriated to keep them open .
And then there ’ s the economic fallout from a pandemic that ’ s forced much of the country to remain at home , and shuttered countless businesses across the nation .
House Democrats passed a $ 3 trillion package to relieve these financial burdens in May , but the GOP-led Senate dithered on Covid-19 relief for the next several months .
Senate Republicans , however , appeared to take a new interest in aid once their Senate majority was endangered by the two Georgia Senate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a January 5 runoff election .
Racing against the end of the year — and the end of the current congressional session on January 3 — Congress managed to pass the NDAA on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis , and ( after a few delays ) a mega government funding and stimulus bill .
Georgia Democratic Senate candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff are both campaigning on their support for Covid-19 relief , and the Senate ’ s decision to pass $ 900 billion in relief funding allowed incumbent Republican Sens .
David Perdue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for that bill .
But just as everything appeared settled for the year , Trump decided to spend the last couple weeks upping the level of difficulty .
The outgoing president vetoed the defense authorization bill , citing his objection to a provision requiring the military to rename facilities named after Confederate traitors , as well as a demand that the bill repeal a quarter-century-old legal provision that makes it possible for websites such as Twitter to exist .
He also briefly threatened to veto the Covid-19 relief-government funding bill — though he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the omnibus legislation on Sunday evening .
Among other things , Trump claimed that the Covid-19 relief bill should have provided a $ 2,000 check to low- and middle-income Americans .
The bill he signed provides only a $ 600 check .
The punchline is that the Senate needs to return to Washington this week to override Trump ’ s veto on the defense bill ( the House already voted to override Trump ’ s veto on Monday ) .
And that gives Senate Democrats a brief window to push for the $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s victory , McConnell resisted many calls for additional Covid-19 relief spending , at times claiming that he was more concerned about the national debt .
During the Obama years , McConnell and his fellow congressional Republicans frequently cited deficit fears to push for austerity budgets , although they fell out of love with deficit hawkery almost as soon as a Republican took up residence in the White House .
With Biden set to take office next month , Republicans ordinarily could be expected to return to their position under Obama — resisting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ under a Democratic president .
But Biden isn ’ t president yet , and the most immediate electoral concern for Senate Republicans is holding onto the two Georgia seats .
Neither Perdue nor Loeffler wants to be on the unpopular side of a fight over the $ 2,000 checks , and both have come out in support of them — Perdue did so as recently as Tuesday morning .
Perdue and Loeffler ’ s rhetorical support for the $ 2,000 checks will mean little to Americans who would benefit from those checks if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And the two senators may not gain much political advantage from endorsing more direct relief if their own Senate leader maneuvers to block such a vote — which is where Bernie Sanders comes in .
The Senate rules are a maze of dilatory tactics , mandatory waiting periods , and other procedures that allow the minority to put off votes until later .
A determined majority leader can still bring bills to the floor , but not before wasting days overcoming these obstacles .
Typically , these delays are avoided through unanimous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the majority leader ’ s request to bypass the many delays permitted by the Senate rules , then the chamber ’ s business can proceed very quickly .
McConnell hoped to have unanimous consent to move to an immediate vote on the defense bill veto override on Tuesday , but Sanders moved to deny McConnell such consent .
Without unanimous consent , McConnell will need to use a multi-day process to bring the veto override vote to the floor over Sanders ’ s objection .
Democrats , meanwhile , can spend that time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2,000 checks — forcing McConnell to either acquiesce in that request or go on record opposing the vote .
McConnell could also try to attach a poison pill to legislation providing for $ 2,000 checks and call a vote on a modified bill that Democrats would find unacceptable , but Sanders and other members of the Democratic caucus could still delay a vote on the defense bill unless Republicans agree to remove the poison pill .
Again , acting alone , the Democratic minority can not force a vote on the $ 2,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not have to .
The easiest way to get to an immediate vote on the defense bill is to hold an up or down vote on the $ 2,000 checks , and allow every senator to go on record as for or against them .
If the GOP-controlled Senate passed the enhanced Covid-19 relief bill , Perdue and Loeffler may even be able to plausibly claim a share of the credit for its passage .
Senate Republicans , in other words , are likely to find themselves torn between a desire to pivot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s presidency , and a desire to shore up two vulnerable senators that Republicans need if they hope to maintain a Senate majority .
It ’ s far from certain that the latter desire will be enough to pass the $ 2,000 in direct payments , but proponents of more Covid-19 relief have a little more reason to be optimistic than they did just a week ago .

In just over three weeks, Donald Trump will no longer be president, but he’s spent his last month in office sowing discord. His latest chaos muppetry — a demand that Congress increase the latest round of stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000 — has now given Democrats a slim chance to deliver more aid to Americans. And, barring that, a chance to make Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s life more difficult.
After the House on Monday passed a bill increasing the “economic impact payments” — in other words, stimulus checks — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is continuing the fight.
Sanders, with support from the Senate Democratic caucus, plans to use a series of procedural moves to delay a vote on a bipartisan defense authorization bill. These maneuvers can’t prevent the defense bill from becoming law, but that’s not really the point. The bill is considered a must-pass, and Sanders’s objections can delay passage, annoy Senate Republicans, and potentially force Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to raise a series of objections that could damage his party’s ability to hold onto its Senate majority.
And Sanders also has a clear demand: He will lift his objections to an immediate vote on the defense bill if McConnell permits a vote on legislation providing $2,000 checks to Americans earning less than $75,000 a year.
This week on the Senate floor Mitch McConnell wants to vote to override Trump's veto of the $740 billion defense funding bill and then head home for the New Year.
I'm going to object until we get a vote on legislation to provide a $2,000 direct payment to the working class. — Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) December 28, 2020
The first round of this fight played out shortly after noon Tuesday on the Senate floor, during an exchange between McConnell, Sanders, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). McConnell sought a vote on the defense bill, and Sanders objected unless the Senate immediately holds an up or down vote on the $2,000 payments.
The politics of this fight favor Democrats. A recent Data for Progress poll shows that 78 percent of likely voters support the $2,000 direct payment. Trump himself backs it as well; he continues to tweet his support for $2,000 checks. On Monday, the House voted in favor of $2,000 checks, with 44 Republicans joining nearly every Democrat in favoring the legislation.
And all of this is happening as Republicans fight to hold onto two Senate seats in Georgia, a state that recently voted for Democratic President-elect Joe Biden — two seats, it’s worth noting, that will decide who controls the Senate in 2021.
If Sanders’s gambit fails, it wouldn’t be the first time that very popular legislation died in Mitch McConnell’s Senate. And McConnell still has ways out; he suggested Tuesday he could tie proposals unfavorable to Democrats to the increased stimulus checks, in order to make the entire proposition more unpalatable.
But the strange mix of circumstances that brought us to the point gives Democrats a small chance to make the $2,000 checks a reality.
The many end-of-2020 legislative fights, briefly explained
Congress entered the holiday season with three high priority items on its plate. The National Defense Authorization Act is an annual affair that sets much of the nation’s defense policy for the next year, and that instructs the military on how to spend its budget. Legislation funding much of the federal government was also set to expire last Monday, meaning that the unfunded agencies would shut down unless new money was appropriated to keep them open.
And then there’s the economic fallout from a pandemic that’s forced much of the country to remain at home, and shuttered countless businesses across the nation. House Democrats passed a $3 trillion package to relieve these financial burdens in May, but the GOP-led Senate dithered on Covid-19 relief for the next several months.
Senate Republicans, however, appeared to take a new interest in aid once their Senate majority was endangered by the two Georgia Senate races, which will be decided in a January 5 runoff election.
Racing against the end of the year — and the end of the current congressional session on January 3 — Congress managed to pass the NDAA on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis, and (after a few delays) a mega government funding and stimulus bill.
Georgia Democratic Senate candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff are both campaigning on their support for Covid-19 relief, and the Senate’s decision to pass $900 billion in relief funding allowed incumbent Republican Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler to take some credit for that bill.
But just as everything appeared settled for the year, Trump decided to spend the last couple weeks upping the level of difficulty.
The outgoing president vetoed the defense authorization bill, citing his objection to a provision requiring the military to rename facilities named after Confederate traitors, as well as a demand that the bill repeal a quarter-century-old legal provision that makes it possible for websites such as Twitter to exist.
He also briefly threatened to veto the Covid-19 relief-government funding bill — though he backed down on that threat and signed the omnibus legislation on Sunday evening. Among other things, Trump claimed that the Covid-19 relief bill should have provided a $2,000 check to low- and middle-income Americans. The bill he signed provides only a $600 check.
The punchline is that the Senate needs to return to Washington this week to override Trump’s veto on the defense bill (the House already voted to override Trump’s veto on Monday). And that gives Senate Democrats a brief window to push for the $2,000 checks.
Georgia’s Republican senators are in a bind
Even before Biden’s victory, McConnell resisted many calls for additional Covid-19 relief spending, at times claiming that he was more concerned about the national debt. During the Obama years, McConnell and his fellow congressional Republicans frequently cited deficit fears to push for austerity budgets, although they fell out of love with deficit hawkery almost as soon as a Republican took up residence in the White House.
With Biden set to take office next month, Republicans ordinarily could be expected to return to their position under Obama — resisting spending bills that could boost the economy under a Democratic president.
But Biden isn’t president yet, and the most immediate electoral concern for Senate Republicans is holding onto the two Georgia seats. Neither Perdue nor Loeffler wants to be on the unpopular side of a fight over the $2,000 checks, and both have come out in support of them — Perdue did so as recently as Tuesday morning.
President @realdonaldtrump is right — I support this push for $2,000 in direct relief for the American people. https://t.co/Al3USM7zPr — David Perdue (@Perduesenate) December 29, 2020
Perdue and Loeffler’s rhetorical support for the $2,000 checks will mean little to Americans who would benefit from those checks if the Senate never votes to approve them. And the two senators may not gain much political advantage from endorsing more direct relief if their own Senate leader maneuvers to block such a vote — which is where Bernie Sanders comes in.
The Senate rules are a maze of dilatory tactics, mandatory waiting periods, and other procedures that allow the minority to put off votes until later. A determined majority leader can still bring bills to the floor, but not before wasting days overcoming these obstacles.
Typically, these delays are avoided through unanimous consent. If no senator objects to the majority leader’s request to bypass the many delays permitted by the Senate rules, then the chamber’s business can proceed very quickly. McConnell hoped to have unanimous consent to move to an immediate vote on the defense bill veto override on Tuesday, but Sanders moved to deny McConnell such consent.
Without unanimous consent, McConnell will need to use a multi-day process to bring the veto override vote to the floor over Sanders’s objection. Democrats, meanwhile, can spend that time repeatedly seeking a vote on the $2,000 checks — forcing McConnell to either acquiesce in that request or go on record opposing the vote.
McConnell could also try to attach a poison pill to legislation providing for $2,000 checks and call a vote on a modified bill that Democrats would find unacceptable, but Sanders and other members of the Democratic caucus could still delay a vote on the defense bill unless Republicans agree to remove the poison pill.
Again, acting alone, the Democratic minority cannot force a vote on the $2,000 in direct relief. But they may not have to. The easiest way to get to an immediate vote on the defense bill is to hold an up or down vote on the $2,000 checks, and allow every senator to go on record as for or against them. If the GOP-controlled Senate passed the enhanced Covid-19 relief bill, Perdue and Loeffler may even be able to plausibly claim a share of the credit for its passage.
Senate Republicans, in other words, are likely to find themselves torn between a desire to pivot to deficit hawkery in anticipation of Biden’s presidency, and a desire to shore up two vulnerable senators that Republicans need if they hope to maintain a Senate majority.
It’s far from certain that the latter desire will be enough to pass the $2,000 in direct payments, but proponents of more Covid-19 relief have a little more reason to be optimistic than they did just a week ago.


vox--2020-12-29--The year shopping changed forever

The year shopping changed forever

On March 4 , I commuted into Vox Media ’ s New York City headquarters for what would end up being the final time during the godforsaken year of 2020 .
On the way in , I made a pit stop for some coffee , spending $ 3.89 on a bottle of Chameleon Cold-Brew , but left without handing over a card or cash on the way out .
That ’ s because I had made that final purchase at a cashierless convenience store owned by a certain e-commerce giant : Amazon .
Nine months later , that last stop @ @ @ @ @ @ @ major changes that would sweep across a big part of American life this year : how and where we shop .
Over the next few weeks , my family , and millions of others in the US , began relying on Amazon and other shopping websites and apps in record numbers as the Covid-19 pandemic swept across the US .
Masks , toilet paper , soap , and hand sanitizer were in high demand .
But so were groceries , restaurant meals , puzzles , printers , and even dumbbells .
At times @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the country meant that if you needed to purchase something deemed nonessential , the only places to get it were “ essential ” big-box stores — or online .
As a result , Amazon and other retail giants like Target and Walmart reaped the rewards , while retail chains and small boutiques that sold apparel or other “ nonessential ” merchandise were forced to close their doors and turn customers away .
Nearly 10,000 stores in the US have closed permanently this year alone .
When we look back at 2020 in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remember it as the year online shopping stopped being the future of retail and catapulted firmly into the present .
This was the year that local governments forced us to give up in-store shopping for weeks or months , and then when we had an opportunity to return when stores reopened , we mostly kept shopping online anyway .
There ’ s a reason people who previously shunned online shopping for stores are now sticking with it : It ’ s typically much more convenient than browsing through rows of aisles to track @ @ @ @ @ @ @ acceleration in online shopping this year — which otherwise would have taken several years to happen — will have profound consequences on the way millions of Americans work ; the way corporate power is concentrated ; and the way local communities are reconstructed to account for the decline of retail store chains like department stores and the malls they ’ ve long anchored .
At the end of last year , only around 13 percent of retail purchases — excluding auto and gas sales — were made online , according to Mastercard .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ figure stands at around 20 percent , or $ 1 out of every $ 5 .
During normal recent years , when e-commerce growth rates averaged between 12 percent and 16 percent , that kind of jump would have taken several years to happen .
But US e-commerce sales will have grown more than 30 percent in 2020 , and there ’ s no going back .
Amazon , unsurprisingly , has been a huge winner of this dramatic shift , growing its US retail business an estimated 39 percent this year and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of all online retail in the US , according to eMarketer .
The e-commerce giant has posted record sales and profits , even with early warehouse capacity issues and delivery delays , internal labor battles , and spending billions on Covid-19-related precautions .
And it showed off its unparalleled strengths right up until the end of the holiday season .
While many other retailers stopped promising deliveries in time for Christmas a week or two in advance , Amazon was guaranteeing same-day and next-day delivery of some online orders made as late as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its huge warehouse coverage across the US and the continued expansion of its own delivery network .
But Amazon isn ’ t alone .
Walmart and Target have had huge years too , posting modest market share gains in online retail .
Part of their success has come from selling groceries and other in-demand goods on the web during the early months of the pandemic , coupled with curbside and in-store pickup offerings that were already in existence for online orders .
Small businesses have also had to take their sales online .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the success of tech platforms catering to small and mid-sized merchants that don ’ t want to rely on Amazon .
Shopify , which sells e-commerce software tools to small and mid-sized merchants , has seen its revenue grow nearly 100 percent year over year in the first nine months of the year .
The Canada-based software giant has benefited from small brick-and-mortar merchants scrambling to set up online shops amid store closures and reduced foot traffic even when their doors are allowed to remain open during the pandemic .
As a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has nearly tripled this year to around $ 140 billion as of December 28 , or more than 50 percent more than that of Target , the 58-year-old discount retail chain .
Etsy , the online marketplace known for handmade goods sold by small merchants and artists , has also profited handsomely from the shift .
Many online shoppers flocked to Etsy in the first half of the year to purchase masks that small merchants were producing at a rapid rate , but have since gone on to purchase other non-mask items too @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , mask sales accounted for 11 percent of Etsy ’ s gross sales , down from 14 percent in the spring quarter .
In total , Etsy ’ s revenue increased more than 100 percent in the first nine months of 2020 .
For individual small merchants themselves , however , success online isn ’ t close to a guarantee , as the recent rise of Shopify and Etsy might suggest .
If you ’ re a small retailer and want to set up an online storefront with Shopify to avoid relying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still need to buy ads from one of the other tech giants — namely , Google or Facebook — to attract customers to your digital door .
Shopify knows this , and has started to tiptoe its way toward creating its own online marketplace to help online shoppers discover Shopify merchants by transforming a package-tracking app it already owned , previously called Arrive , into an app with more of a shopping focus .
It ’ s now called , naturally , Shop .
As for Etsy , it is now home to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ small sellers need to fight for sales , sometimes paying a hefty cut for advertisements in order to be discovered .
For many small brick-and-mortar retailers , the pandemic has vanquished the idea that ignoring e-commerce is a viable option .
Sure , when the pandemic is finally “ over , ” some of the changes in our behavior — whether consumption-related or otherwise — will certainly revert to something like 2019 .
Popular restaurants and bars will once again attract crowds .
Travel will rebound , as should live sporting events and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in how we buy things will stick .
When it comes to the purchase of essential consumables — think toothpaste , soap , and toilet paper — there ’ s little to no advantage gained from buying those items in person versus online , unless you are saving considerable money by making bulk purchases at a warehouse club like Costco .
The main obstacle to purchasing some of these low-priced goods online is the order minimums some online retailers require to make it economically feasible for them to ship them out .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or Walmart+ can eliminate shipping minimums , or you can do what my wife and I often do on Target.com and save items in our virtual shopping cart until we are in need of enough items to cross the threshold and place an order .
Many customers will never return to consistent in-store grocery shopping For people who tried out ordering groceries online for the first time during the pandemic , many will never return to consistent in-store grocery shopping or , at a minimum , will be more willing to place the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ point : For the first time , the giant grocery chain Kroger is expected to crack the top 10 list of largest online retailers in the US by the end of 2020 , according to eMarketer estimates .
The retailer being replaced by Kroger in the top 10 is Macy ’ s , the one-time department store giant that was already floundering before this year ’ s global health crisis ; the legacy retailer said in January that it was planning to close 125 of its 800-plus stores .
The pandemic was the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ department store chains and made the uphill battle much steeper for ones like Macy ’ s that were not in dire straits but were already struggling .
A long-deteriorating middle class , lack of merchandise differentiation , and indifferent customer service all played a role in ceding customer loyalty to discount chains as well as online retailers .
And things will get worse for the department store chain sector , which today employs more than a half-million Americans .
More than half of all mall-based department stores are expected to close by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Green Street Advisors , a commercial property research firm .
And with department stores accounting for one out of every three square feet in shopping malls , the mall industry is likely headed to a crisis too .
So where do we go from here ?
The shift in our shopping behavior that 2020 accelerated will certainly make our lives as consumers easier in many ways — and that counts for something .
But we don ’ t exist solely as consumers , nor do our friends , family , and neighbors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ count on physical retailers as major employers , businesses that will be forced to reinvent themselves after surviving a pandemic and a recession .
We , our friends , family members , and neighbors work retail jobs to make ends meet or maybe even as stable careers , a dwindling prospect in the industry .
More and more of the hirings in retail are happening inside e-commerce warehouses , where the roles might pay better but where the work is often more grueling .
Despite the hope that Shopify ’ s success this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ merchants carving out independent e-commerce futures outside of Amazon ’ s walls , this truth about 2020 remains : Amazon , the retail wrecking ball , has gotten more powerful this year , not less .
And as we push more of our purchases online , the tech giant ’ s power will only grow .

On March 4, I commuted into Vox Media’s New York City headquarters for what would end up being the final time during the godforsaken year of 2020. On the way in, I made a pit stop for some coffee, spending $3.89 on a bottle of Chameleon Cold-Brew, but left without handing over a card or cash on the way out. That’s because I had made that final purchase at a cashierless convenience store owned by a certain e-commerce giant: Amazon. Nine months later, that last stop looks like an appropriate harbinger of the major changes that would sweep across a big part of American life this year: how and where we shop.
Over the next few weeks, my family, and millions of others in the US, began relying on Amazon and other shopping websites and apps in record numbers as the Covid-19 pandemic swept across the US. Masks, toilet paper, soap, and hand sanitizer were in high demand. But so were groceries, restaurant meals, puzzles, printers, and even dumbbells.
At times, government-mandated store closures in some parts of the country meant that if you needed to purchase something deemed nonessential, the only places to get it were “essential” big-box stores — or online. As a result, Amazon and other retail giants like Target and Walmart reaped the rewards, while retail chains and small boutiques that sold apparel or other “nonessential” merchandise were forced to close their doors and turn customers away. Nearly 10,000 stores in the US have closed permanently this year alone.
When we look back at 2020 in the business world, we’ll remember it as the year online shopping stopped being the future of retail and catapulted firmly into the present. This was the year that local governments forced us to give up in-store shopping for weeks or months, and then when we had an opportunity to return when stores reopened, we mostly kept shopping online anyway.
There’s a reason people who previously shunned online shopping for stores are now sticking with it: It’s typically much more convenient than browsing through rows of aisles to track down what you need. But the acceleration in online shopping this year — which otherwise would have taken several years to happen — will have profound consequences on the way millions of Americans work; the way corporate power is concentrated; and the way local communities are reconstructed to account for the decline of retail store chains like department stores and the malls they’ve long anchored.
At the end of last year, only around 13 percent of retail purchases — excluding auto and gas sales — were made online, according to Mastercard. By the end of 2020, that figure stands at around 20 percent, or $1 out of every $5. During normal recent years, when e-commerce growth rates averaged between 12 percent and 16 percent, that kind of jump would have taken several years to happen. But US e-commerce sales will have grown more than 30 percent in 2020, and there’s no going back.
Amazon, unsurprisingly, has been a huge winner of this dramatic shift, growing its US retail business an estimated 39 percent this year and increasing its market share to 39 percent of all online retail in the US, according to eMarketer. The e-commerce giant has posted record sales and profits, even with early warehouse capacity issues and delivery delays, internal labor battles, and spending billions on Covid-19-related precautions.
And it showed off its unparalleled strengths right up until the end of the holiday season. While many other retailers stopped promising deliveries in time for Christmas a week or two in advance, Amazon was guaranteeing same-day and next-day delivery of some online orders made as late as December 23, thanks in part to its huge warehouse coverage across the US and the continued expansion of its own delivery network.
But Amazon isn’t alone. Walmart and Target have had huge years too, posting modest market share gains in online retail. Part of their success has come from selling groceries and other in-demand goods on the web during the early months of the pandemic, coupled with curbside and in-store pickup offerings that were already in existence for online orders.
Small businesses have also had to take their sales online. The scale of this shift is reflected in the success of tech platforms catering to small and mid-sized merchants that don’t want to rely on Amazon. Shopify, which sells e-commerce software tools to small and mid-sized merchants, has seen its revenue grow nearly 100 percent year over year in the first nine months of the year.
The Canada-based software giant has benefited from small brick-and-mortar merchants scrambling to set up online shops amid store closures and reduced foot traffic even when their doors are allowed to remain open during the pandemic. As a result, Shopify’s market cap has nearly tripled this year to around $140 billion as of December 28, or more than 50 percent more than that of Target, the 58-year-old discount retail chain.
Etsy, the online marketplace known for handmade goods sold by small merchants and artists, has also profited handsomely from the shift. Many online shoppers flocked to Etsy in the first half of the year to purchase masks that small merchants were producing at a rapid rate, but have since gone on to purchase other non-mask items too. By the third quarter of the year, mask sales accounted for 11 percent of Etsy’s gross sales, down from 14 percent in the spring quarter. In total, Etsy’s revenue increased more than 100 percent in the first nine months of 2020.
For individual small merchants themselves, however, success online isn’t close to a guarantee, as the recent rise of Shopify and Etsy might suggest. If you’re a small retailer and want to set up an online storefront with Shopify to avoid relying on Amazon or Walmart.com, you likely still need to buy ads from one of the other tech giants — namely, Google or Facebook — to attract customers to your digital door.
Shopify knows this, and has started to tiptoe its way toward creating its own online marketplace to help online shoppers discover Shopify merchants by transforming a package-tracking app it already owned, previously called Arrive, into an app with more of a shopping focus. It’s now called, naturally, Shop. As for Etsy, it is now home to more than 3.6 million merchants, meaning small sellers need to fight for sales, sometimes paying a hefty cut for advertisements in order to be discovered.
For many small brick-and-mortar retailers, the pandemic has vanquished the idea that ignoring e-commerce is a viable option. Sure, when the pandemic is finally “over,” some of the changes in our behavior — whether consumption-related or otherwise — will certainly revert to something like 2019. Popular restaurants and bars will once again attract crowds. Travel will rebound, as should live sporting events and concerts.
But many of the changes in how we buy things will stick. When it comes to the purchase of essential consumables — think toothpaste, soap, and toilet paper — there’s little to no advantage gained from buying those items in person versus online, unless you are saving considerable money by making bulk purchases at a warehouse club like Costco.
The main obstacle to purchasing some of these low-priced goods online is the order minimums some online retailers require to make it economically feasible for them to ship them out. But subscribing to shipping memberships like Amazon Prime or Walmart+ can eliminate shipping minimums, or you can do what my wife and I often do on Target.com and save items in our virtual shopping cart until we are in need of enough items to cross the threshold and place an order.
Many customers will never return to consistent in-store grocery shopping
For people who tried out ordering groceries online for the first time during the pandemic, many will never return to consistent in-store grocery shopping or, at a minimum, will be more willing to place the occasional grocery order online. Case in point: For the first time, the giant grocery chain Kroger is expected to crack the top 10 list of largest online retailers in the US by the end of 2020, according to eMarketer estimates.
The retailer being replaced by Kroger in the top 10 is Macy’s, the one-time department store giant that was already floundering before this year’s global health crisis; the legacy retailer said in January that it was planning to close 125 of its 800-plus stores. The pandemic was the final nail in the coffin of several department store chains and made the uphill battle much steeper for ones like Macy’s that were not in dire straits but were already struggling. A long-deteriorating middle class, lack of merchandise differentiation, and indifferent customer service all played a role in ceding customer loyalty to discount chains as well as online retailers.
And things will get worse for the department store chain sector, which today employs more than a half-million Americans. More than half of all mall-based department stores are expected to close by the end of 2021, according to estimates by Green Street Advisors, a commercial property research firm. And with department stores accounting for one out of every three square feet in shopping malls, the mall industry is likely headed to a crisis too.
So where do we go from here? The shift in our shopping behavior that 2020 accelerated will certainly make our lives as consumers easier in many ways — and that counts for something. But we don’t exist solely as consumers, nor do our friends, family, and neighbors. We are members of communities that count on physical retailers as major employers, businesses that will be forced to reinvent themselves after surviving a pandemic and a recession. We, our friends, family members, and neighbors work retail jobs to make ends meet or maybe even as stable careers, a dwindling prospect in the industry. More and more of the hirings in retail are happening inside e-commerce warehouses, where the roles might pay better but where the work is often more grueling.
Despite the hope that Shopify’s success this year may bring to small and mid-sized merchants carving out independent e-commerce futures outside of Amazon’s walls, this truth about 2020 remains: Amazon, the retail wrecking ball, has gotten more powerful this year, not less. And as we push more of our purchases online, the tech giant’s power will only grow.