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5 Disney Animated TV Gems You Completely Forgot About

5 Disney Animated TV Gems You Completely Forgot About
Image credit: Disney

You watched these animations ten years ago. Time to refresh your memory.

Disney 's animated TV shows are in the category of the last to be remembered. The studio's feature-length animated films make waves around the world, while its TV series tend to be overshadowed.

And that's unfair, because there are some really fascinating projects among them that we'd like to remind you about.

1. Dave the Barbarian, 2004-2005

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Long before Adventure Time, the Disney Channel had its own TV project in a fantasy medieval-like setting. This show is about a family that ruled the kingdom of Udrogoth. The parents went off to fight evil and left the crown to their daughter, Candy.

At the same time, her barbarian brother Dave, sister Fang, wizard uncle Oswidge, a magic sword and a pet dragon, have to complete quests to protect the kingdom from all kinds of misfortune.

Dave the Barbarian constantly pokes fun at fantasy tropes and breaks the fourth wall. In one episode, an anthropomorphic wizard pig kidnaps the show's narrator and rewrites the show's intro, and in the next episode, a stranger from the distant 80s takes over Udrogoth using portable video games and comedy programs.

2. Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, 2010-2012

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The fad for extreme sports and over-the-top coolness died a painful death in the late 2000s. Perhaps that is why the 2010 animated series Kick Buttowski never became a hit.

The animated show follows the adventures of a young daredevil, Kick, who is obsessed with all kinds of extreme sports and never takes off his stunt motorcycle helmet and suit. In each episode, the boy tries to break another sports record. Kick also has a friend named Gunther who deserves his own spin-off.

3. Motorcity, 2012-2013

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Most animated shows (and almost all projects in general) at Disney have been comedies or sitcoms. But Motorcity went where no Disney show had gone before – a dark dystopia.

In a post-apocalyptic future, evil billionaire Kane builds a futuristic version of the city over Detroit, where he becomes a dictator with an army of robots. Of course, a team is formed to fight the rich man's regime. Despite the original idea (or because of it), the animation was canceled after the first season.

4. Bonkers, 1993-1994

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This show is inspired by the Robert Zemeckis film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, but tells its own story about an alternate California inhabited by cartoons and real, but also drawn, people.

The plot focuses on the adventures of Bonkers, a bobcat and former cartoon star. At the beginning of the show, the cat is fired, but by a stroke of luck, he manages to save Donald Duck himself and gets a job with the police. Bonkers teams up with Detective Piquel and begins investigating cases related to animation.

5. The Replacements, 2006-2009

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Orphans Riley and Todd discover an ad for Fleemco — a company that can replace any incompetent person. With the help of a mysterious company, the orphans first replace their absent parents with a cool stuntman dad and an agent mom, and then begin to upgrade everyone else – from teachers to hairdressers.

This show could be considered the underdog brother of Phineas and Ferb – both shows took the similar approach with the same premise every episode, but The Replacements only lasted three years, while Phineas and Ferb is still going. And that's unfair, because Riley and Todd's story also deserves your attention.