10 Comic Books With Awesome Animated TV Shows You Forgot Existed

The brainchild of Boston cartoonist Ben Edlund, three different incarnations of The Tick have graced the small screen since its debut in 1986, including two live-action adaptations.

However, it’s the animated version that proved the most, running for three seasons and 36 wildly inventive episodes on Fox in the mid 1990s.

For the uninitiated, The Tick is an altogether different type of superhero story; a fun parody of all the familiar tropes associated with the genre of caped crusaders. An endearing, musclebound buffoon, The Tick spends his days protecting the inhabitants of The City where he lives alongside his sidekick and former accountant turned moth man Arthur.

While some of the darker, more adult-orientated themes of the original comic were omitted from the series, the cartoon still retained the offbeat, wacky charm of those original stories, aided by the addition of Christopher McCulloch as a writer on the show.

A previous collaborator with Edlund, McCulloch would go on to make a name for himself with the hit Adult Swim series The Venture Bros, which struck a similarly comedic vein.

Featuring inventive storylines, surprisingly bizarre narrative turns and the original comic’s fantastic array of supporting characters, including Die Fledermaus, American Maid and Sewer Urchin, there’s much to enjoy about The Tick.

Endlessly quotable and suitable for kids and adults alike, the mere mention of villains like Chairface Chippendale and Breadmaster is sure to bring a smile to the face of even the most hardened Batman fan.