14. Rocko's Modern Life
Series Run: 1993-1996 (52 episodes)
Network: Nickelodeon
Theme Song Rating: The catchy tune by the B-52s (the third and best version of the theme song) was the perfect intro. 5/5, makes you dance like a wallaby. Rocko's Modern Life is an absurd take on consumerist America that was a jumping off point for talents like Tom Kelly (Spongebob Squarepants himself), Dan Povenmire and Jeff Marsh (Phineas and Ferb), and Steven Hillenburg (who went on to create Spongebob). But Rocko's wasn't a talent-packed dry run for bigger and better things, it was a satirically funny show about an Australian immigrant making his way in bulk-sold goods America. The fact that each of the characters were animals was secondary to their personality; the type of animal they were informed the character but it did not dictate their actions. Often including not-too-subtle innuendo to appeal to an older audience, Rocko's Modern Life has aged well for a cartoon. It's a testament to the writers and animators that a show that is essentially about suburban angst can be so fun. The show doesn't take the weighty subject matter too seriously and lets the story flow. In fact, Rocko's doesn't typically adhere to the traditional TV storytelling model of a three act structure with an A and B storyline that converge happily in the conclusion - there's more of a stream of consciousness feel that separates it from most of its contemporaries. This approach wouldn't work if there weren't characters the audience wanted to spend time with, and Rocko's has some of the most fully-realized characters in cartoons. There's the fish out of water protagonist Rocko who self-consciously prattles about in life, his fun-loving best friend Heffer the steer, and the Woody Allen-esque Filburt whose very existence gives him nausea. Throwing around big ideas doesn't change the fact that this show is a hoot.