UPDATED POLL: Best Animated Television Series

There have been many animated television series based on our favorite comic book characters. Here's your chance to pick your favorite!

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By ecksmanfan - 11/7/2010
I remember when I was younger, rushing home from school to watch Batman: The Animated Series, and how it made my day so much better, and now that I have the series on DVD, I can bask in their awesomeness. Along with that, I can watch the X-Men series and many other awesome series. It got me thinking: Which series is the best:

Here's your opportunity to have a say in the matter! Below, I have two polls: one for MARVEL television series and one for DC television series. I have included all the major series from the last 25 years or so (as well as a couple oldies), but if you fell I've missed a series, let me know and I'll be sure to include it!

UPDATE: I apologize for leaving so many off! It was quite late when I put this together! But I have now included several of the Marvel series from the 90's as well as the Teen Titans for DC.

First up, is Marvel:

Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes


Silver Surfer


Spider-Man Unlimited


Spider-Man: The New Animated Series


The Spectacular Spider-Man


X-Men


X-Men: Evolution


Wolverine and the X-Men


Iron Man: Armored Adventures


The Super Hero Squad


The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes


Avengers: United They Stand


Spider-Man (1990's)


Iron Man (1990's)


Fantastic 4 (1990's)


Incredible Hulk




Now, For DC:

Batman: The Animated Series


The Batman


Batman Beyond


Batman: The Brave and the Bold


The New Batman Adventures


The New Superman & Batman Adventures


Superman: The Animated Series


Justice League/Justice League Unlimited


Super Friends


Teen Titans


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Ethic - 11/7/2010, 12:55 AM
Fantastic Four Sucked, Silver Surfer was meh,
All X-men RULED,
All Ironman sucked,
Superhero Squad made me die a little with every glimpse.

Batman animated series, Superman Animated, Justice League Unlimted and the later incarnations of the same shows OWNED.
Beyond was ookay,
Brave n the bold bleh no thanks,
The Batman is meh.

By the way you actually left out the main Spiderman Animated Series of the 90's! Excellent show!
scurvydog - 11/7/2010, 1:13 AM
No Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends? No Hanna-Barbera Fantastic Four? No Filmation Batman? No Bakshi Spider-Man? This list is a little slim...
tazmaniak - 11/7/2010, 1:19 AM
I voted Spectacular Spider-Man and Justice League.

You put put in the crappy Spider-Man Unlimited, but not the crappy Avengers:United They Stand.Not to mention 90s Iron Man, Fantastic Four and The Incredible Hulk.

For DC, you didn't use Legion of Super-Heroes.I really liked that one.Also, there's Static and Teen Titans.
majinlogan - 11/7/2010, 1:31 AM
obviously the original x-men and bruce timm's BTAS.
skidz - 11/7/2010, 1:40 AM
DC's definitely got the better quality track record with cartoons.
conformist21 - 11/7/2010, 1:49 AM
Spectacular Spider-Man,
everything else just get out,
ha but seriously that is THE cartoon, it has the story, the feel, the great fight scenes, it has it all,
i do not see it being topped.
Batman was good so was x-men, it's just that spider-man has it all to the best point.
ChromaCut - 11/7/2010, 1:53 AM
Spider-Man: The Animated Series of 1994 is awesome, you missed it, and also Legion of Superheroes show, I love that too
RorMachine - 11/7/2010, 2:02 AM
For Marvel, Wolverine and the x-men, with 90s Spider-Man close second. DC, deffo JLU.
KillerOfSaints - 11/7/2010, 2:12 AM
the nineties 'toons were the greatest. Xmen and Batman reigned supreme along with Spider-Man (the venom episode!!!) Yes i have all the volumes of Batman:TAS on DVD! There is an episode of Superman where he dresses up as Batman..that was cool
LP4 - 11/7/2010, 2:33 AM
For Marvel I voted "Spectacular Spider-Man" (Spidey is one of the few Marvel heroes I'm a real fan of) and for DC it was tough but i voted for BTAS- Batman the Animated Series was just such a badass series for me when I was a kid growing up. And it is one of the few that really left a lasting impression on me.
Insomnia101 - 11/7/2010, 3:00 AM
Super Friends rocked especially the first season. Nothing like hearing the voice of Mr Saturday morning himself Ted Knight.
Fusion - 11/7/2010, 3:24 AM
For Marvel i voted Ironman:Armoured Adventures for two reasons. Spiderman 90's wasn't a selectable option and Ironman AA has been my favorite show in recent years. For DC i chose Batman beyond. That has forever been my favorite incarnation of Batman, the show ruled my life in the late 90's, early 00's.
marvel72 - 11/7/2010, 3:25 AM
1.x-men
2.wolverine & the x-men
3.x-men evolution

1.justice league/justice league unlimited
2.batman the animated series
3.the new batman adventures
JoshWilding - 11/7/2010, 3:41 AM
Great poll, but the lack of the 90's Spider-Man series means that I'm unable to vote. I grew up with that show and it's where my love of the character, and comic books, began! I suppose I'd choose the MTV version from the choices above though as that was also pretty great.
LEEE777 - 11/7/2010, 3:51 AM
NO CONTEST =



Though Batman The Animated Adventures is a close second!


GR8 stuff @ ECKS!

I did something like this a year or near two years ago, but got pulled coz of all the intro videoes I did,,,, ah was young lol! ; P

Hopefully JLU will WIN! : D
AlexDeLarge87 - 11/7/2010, 3:55 AM
Batman The Animated Series, The New Batman Adeventures, Superman The Animated Series, Spider-Man (94) and X-Men wins!!
The Spectacular Spider-Man, Batman Beyond and The Batman were just ok.

I havent watch X-Men Evolution and Wolverine and the X-Men!... Are they good? Should i watch them?
LEEE777 - 11/7/2010, 3:56 AM
BTW what about the '90's FANTASTIC FOUR, IRON MAN, AVENGERS etc????

As for MARVEL its gotta be either SPIDER-MAN (90's) or X-MEN coz of memories lol.
LEEE777 - 11/7/2010, 4:19 AM
Alex @ Wolverine and the X-Men is really good... X-Men Evolution, not so much! : P
marvel72 - 11/7/2010, 4:21 AM
@ alexdelarge

x-men evolution is good,i love their portrayal of magneto & apocalyspe in that show.

wolverine & the x-men is another good show with a good storyline that leads into a season 1 cliff hanger that would of made an awesome season 2,but show got cancelled.

maybe marvel might do a straight to dvd season 2.

both of these shows are better than what fox is currently doing with the x-men franchise.

i download the complete seasons of a site called "vuze" for free.
Angelus - 11/7/2010, 4:30 AM
Batman The Animated series is arguably the greatest comicbook animated series ever. So follows Superman The Animated Series but Batman reigns supreme!

BMP!
Zombie137 - 11/7/2010, 4:48 AM
You are really missing some great shows on this list. You must not have done any homework before posting this.

level1paladin - 11/7/2010, 4:52 AM
The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes is way better than the old X-Men series.

Zombie137 should provide some examples.
ThunderCougarFalconBird - 11/7/2010, 4:53 AM
Well I do own all series of Superman TAS and Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. Plus I just finished watching them all straight through last month so they are fresh in my mind. All simply awesome!

The 90s X-Men was great in it's day but it really doesn't hold up today. It hasn't aged well IMHO.

I've gone for JLU just for the sheer scope and size of what they did. Just like Superguy1951 said Bruce Timm really nailed the characters! The Superman from all his animated work is the best Superman outside the comics and is what Snyder and Nolan should be looking at!
cjkalel - 11/7/2010, 5:42 AM
Jlu hands down there's never been fighting like that in any show
ThreeBigTacos - 11/7/2010, 5:43 AM
As a kid I loved the 90's Spiderman, Ironman, Batman TAS, Batman Beyond, and Superman TAS. I liked Justice League; my family would watch it every friday night, but I just can't remember too much from that show. As we moved on into the 2000's I enjoyed 'The Batman' on WB, and how it had a cool and fresh look on some of batman's enemies. Looking back, I'd say on Marvel's side, Spiderman (90's) was the best along with DC's Batman TAS.

PS: I HATED the Spiderman New Animated Series, and Ironman Armored Adventures because I believe animation should stay drawn, rather than CGI (this applies for cartoons only.) I remember when Transformers had a few series that mixed both traditional drawing, and CGI. Everything was drawn in the show EXCEPT the transformers themselves, so the robots had pretty bad animations in my opinion. The only good looking mix of both cartoon and CGI is in the upcoming Ironman Anime in my opinion.
Technoman81 - 11/7/2010, 5:53 AM
You left off a few Marvel cartoons. Where is the Incredible Hulk, the 90s Spider-Man, the 90s Iron Man, the other Avengers cartoon, and Spider-Man and his Amazing friends?

From the DC Cartoons you left off Teen Titans, the Ruby-Spears Superman, and the Superman and Legion of Super-Heroes
Hawksblueyes - 11/7/2010, 5:59 AM
I have to say Earths Mightiest Heroes and JLA are in a class by themselves.

Anybody who has yet to see the new Avengers show is missing out. Check it out!
AlexDeLarge87 - 11/7/2010, 6:15 AM
LEEE777 & deadpool72@ Thanks for the info guys! Gotta watch them then!... Too bad Wolverine and the X-Men season 2 got cancelled!:(

Hope the first season doesnt have too exciting ending, like the anime Berserk had! The ending in that show was [frick]ing great and i was very excited to see it continue, but they never continued it!... God i was angry!:(
Ryden - 11/7/2010, 6:37 AM
Where is Spider-Man 90's? The incredible Hulk was also very good, but I chose X-Men.

And Batman TAS wins ANYDAY. Saying that though most of the DC shows are excellent, like Batman Beyond.
TheDarkHornerIsRising - 11/7/2010, 6:40 AM
BATMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES IS THE BEST ANIMATED SERIES EVER!!!! I THINK ITS AWESOME THAT MOST OF THE CAST FROM THE SERIES ARE NOW INVOLVED IN ARKHAM ASYLUM & ARKHAM CITY :)
LEEE777 - 11/7/2010, 6:44 AM
Alex @ Cool, yeah EVOLUTION's alright I suppose for a CW messed up universe kinda way! : P

Best cartoon comic book toon though by miles IS =



SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!


; D
LEEE777 - 11/7/2010, 6:45 AM
Oh and SPAWN animated! :)
LEEE777 - 11/7/2010, 6:49 AM




Scion - 11/7/2010, 7:16 AM
My write in nomination... SPAWN... hands down
LEEE777 - 11/7/2010, 7:19 AM
Yay! : p
UnfriendlySpidey - 11/7/2010, 7:26 AM
Nice poll, great shows....but where's the 90's Spidey toon as a pick??
Bigbywolf - 11/7/2010, 7:28 AM
I really loved Spider-man Unlimited and it was a real shame it got cancelled. I think for me though Justice League just tops it over the Batman series of the 90s. I have high hopes for the new Avengers series.
skullboy - 11/7/2010, 7:45 AM
I voted Justice League and the 90's X-Men. Also in the non Marvel/DC category, I loved Spawn and the Maxx.
Geeksiah - 11/7/2010, 7:50 AM
90's X-men was horrible.
Utter Trash.
X-Men Evolution was so much better.
Better animated and better stories.

Justice League Unlimited beats ouut MTAS by just a little.
deathoncredit - 11/7/2010, 8:21 AM
For Marvel, I voted Spiderman.

For DC, I voted the New Batman Adventures, because it had Nightwing, and I loved Nightwing as a kid (he's still one of my favorite superheroes). I always refused to watch Justice League, or Justice League Unlimited, due to their decision to put in Jon Stewart instead of Hal or Kyle.
Zombie137 - 11/7/2010, 8:22 AM
@Level1paladin

Everyone below me included all the ones the OP missed. The biggest one not on here is 90's Spiderman, That along with 90's Xmen Superman TAS and Batman TAS are the best ones.


So, it seems that the 90's cartoons from DC and Marvel are the best.

UltimateSpidey - 11/7/2010, 8:31 AM
Batman TAS was a masterpiece, such a good show. I liked the justice league a lot and batman beyond was pretty decent as well, But its gotta be Batman TAS hands down.
ClarkKentSuperman - 11/7/2010, 8:42 AM
By the time Avengers is done it will win! Hasnt had enough time yet
selinakyle - 11/7/2010, 9:04 AM
No animated series has been able to capture my attention and keep it like JLA. Might change if i catch up on the earth's mightiest but i doubt it. Im a JLA chick. X-men Evolution was a very good one too and the Old spiderman series.I loved that growing up. Superman Animated series is a close second.
Bandrews1 - 11/7/2010, 9:19 AM
Marvel I went with X-men and for DC I chose Batman the animated series. To bad Spawn wasn't a nomination.
Sortis - 11/7/2010, 9:28 AM
What really blows my mind is people are completely satisfied and okay with fox's 90s X-Men cartoon which was a far cry from being anywhere close to the comics, yet the same people who voted it up bitch about Fox's movies not being true to source material...same company guys and same [frick] ups. Practice what you preach.
One2ephu - 11/7/2010, 9:37 AM
Loved the 90's X-Men, they got the vote. Loved Batman: the animated series, and Superman: the animated series. But my vote went to JLU, that series was too epic not to get it.
To bad there wasn't an misc. category to include: Spawn, Wild C.A.T.S.
Joe6Pack74 - 11/7/2010, 9:38 AM
I loved Batman the Animated Series. That show set the style and the high standard for DC cartoons. Well that is until Batman Brave and the Bold came along. On the Marvel side X-men was really good. The only other good one Marvel had was the 90's Spider-man. I think that reflects Marvels reluctance to spend money on talent. Hopefully they do not do the same for the Avengers movie.
the1egend1ives - 11/7/2010, 9:49 AM
I honestly think that Marvel's animated shows in recent years have been VERY underrated. When someone comes on here saying "DC's animated stuff is eons better than Marvel's", that's just them blowing steam. Part of why Marvel's shows are extremely underrated has to do with the fact that they weren't broadcast on popular networks, and I'll get to that in a bit.

Spectacular Spider-Man was unbelievably good. The animation may have been a little cheap (I liked it), but the story was great! The action was great! The dialogue was great!! And the show was EXTREMELY faithful to the comics. It was one of the best superhero cartoons in my opinion. Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes was also VERY entertaining and stuck VERY close to the comics. And I kinda liked the animation. Wolverine and the X-Men received a lot of praise although I never really watched it closely. From what I did see, I thought it was very good. And obviously The Avengers: EMH is kicking some major ass. That last episode with Cap kicking butt was INSANE!!

The problem with these shows is that ALL of them got cancelled, not because of QUALITY, but because they were on channels that aren't on watched by a lot of people. Nicktoons was a HORRIBLE place to air these show. Most people just watch Nickelodeon and don't give a damn or have access to Nicktoons. And the Disney channel might have be a better place to air Spectacular Spider-Man than Disney XD, since the Disney channel is available to more audiences and is more widely watched. I'm thinking the same needs to be done to Avengers: EMH as well.
Rhys - 11/7/2010, 9:59 AM
So hard to pick!!!

I loved Silver Surfer, Spectacular Spider-Man, X-Men, WATXM.... I thought those were all excellent series. :D And the new Avengers show looks promising as well...

As for DC...I'm not a fan. But Batman: TAS and Teen Titans are to of my favorite shows ever!!!
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