The 1990s Changed Animation

MTV relaunched Beavis and Butthead, one of the iconic cartoons of the 1990s.  Looking back at that decade, it revolutionized animation, especially on television.

Here's a list of the pivotal cartoon shows from 1990 through 1999.  The Simpsons technically started in 1989, but it's definitely a trendsetter of the 90s.  The greatest of them all was Batman: The Animated Series, a show for all ages.  Some of these were really little gems, like Eddie Murphy's The PJs and the hilarious The Critic.

Aeon Flux
Animaniacs
Batman: The Animated Series
Beavis and Butt-head
Bobby's World
The Critic
Daria
Darkwing Duck
Doug
Family Guy
Futurama
King of the Hill
Pinky and the Brain
The PJs
The Ren and Stimpy Show
Rugrats
The Simpsons
Space Ghost Coast to Coast
South Park
Spawn
Spongebob Squarepants
Superman: The Animated Series
The Tick
Tiny Toon Adventures

Even in big screen movies, the selection was pretty decent:

Aladdin
Antz
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
Beauty and the Beast
Beavis and Butthead Do America
A Bug's Life
Ghost in the Shell
The Iron Giant
James and the Giant Peach
The Lion King
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Prince of Egypt
Princess Mononoke
South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut
Space Jam
Toy Story
Toy Story 2

Thank you, 1990s.  Before you came along, animation fans had to go back multiple decades to the classic Warner Bros. shorts or Tom and Jerry skits for decent toons to make up for the crappy Smurfs.