History BitingTheHandHumor / WesternAnimation

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePatrickStarShow'': Much of "[[Recap/ThePatrickStarShowS2E1ThePatrickShowCashesInStarGames The Patrick Show Cashes In]]" jokes about brand recognition and [[invoked]]MisaimedMarketing, showing that companies are willing to slap their brand on ''anything'' to get money out of kids. Nickelodeon is particularly infamous for pushing ''[=SpongeBob=]'' as their CashCowFranchise. The episode ends with the [[AnAesop moral]] that the franchise needs to ''stop'' being milked and should just be about [[invoked]]DoingItForTheArt.

*** Showing how this trope can backfire, the short ended up [[TheShelfOfMovieLanguishment getting shelved for six years]] because the higher-ups at Warner Bros. were offended by the line and Greg Ford refused to cut it out.

** Inverted with "Angela," where Angela praises Michael Eisner, founder of The Tornante Company that distributed ''[=BoJack=]'', as a "compassionate and progressive individual."

** "The Impossible Stream," the first episode of the revival on Creator/{{Hulu}}, is built around taking potshots at Hulu and television executives in general. To save Fry from a risky binge-watching session, Leela and Bender [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall pitch a revival]] of ''All My Circuits'' to the fourth-most-popular streaming service, Fulu, which [[SelfDeprecation picks up "any old crap."]] Despite its massive fanbase, the Execu-bots don't greenlight the show until they see a rise in advertiser sales, and then they later [[spoiler:cancel the show out of nowhere despite saying they love it]].

** ''WesternAnimation/PinkyElmyraAndTheBrain'': The opening song uses the lines "[[ExecutiveMeddling It's what the network wants, why bother to complain?]]". This is accommodated by Pinky and the Brain getting kicked out of the Warner Bros. corporate building while Elmyra shrugs. At the end of the song, Brain also says "I deeply resent this," and, given the very real hatred of the idea by the show's own writers, it seems likely enough that he's referring to more than just his in-story predicaments with Elmyra. This was itself preceded by the episode [[Recap/PinkyAndTheBrainS3E2 "Pinky and The Brain... and Larry"]], with an intentionally lame and useless extra character inserted just to show how the show didn't need a third wheel... but it was railroaded through anyway.

** In "Know Your Fusion", [[LargeHam Sardonyx]] puts on a mock-ShowWithinAShow in order to learn more about [[spoiler: Smoky Quartz, the fusion of Steven and Amethyst]], and provides some clips from previous episodes, taking the time to poke fun at Cartoon Network's habit of pulling the plug on shows that don't sell enough merchandise.

** A more subtle and less humorous example but the end song in the shows final episode [[Recap/StevenUniverseS5E28ChangeYourMind Change Your Mind]] was made by Rebecca Sugar [[CopeByCreating in frustration]] after the network [[GayPanic resisted against an episode where Ruby and Sapphire get married]].

** And as one final chomp to the hand, even though it wasn't ''technically'' feeding them anymore, how did they retaliate against Dot's infamous "uniboob" and all the ludicrous censorship as soon as they were free of BS&P's influence? A game cube called "Malicious Corpses", inspired by ''Film/EvilDead'' complete with blood, guns, zombies, gore, and Dot ''[[https://i.imgur.com/Fh2VNNg.jpg dressed like Elvira]].''

* Like its predecessor, ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs 2020}}'' pokes frequent fun at Warner Brothers and the industry in general.
** Its very first episode makes fun of the tendency of Hollywood to reboot old shows instead of making new projects (which also doubles as SelfDeprecation). The Warners also enthusiastically push aside several other Warner Brothers characters when returning to the lot.

** Creator/BobClampett managed one of these in WesternAnimation/TheBigSnooze, his last cartoon with Creator/WarnerBrothers through WesternAnimation/ElmerFudd, who is frustrated with being outwitted by Bugs one time too many, so he tears up his contract with Warner Brothers, and decides to quit hunting "wabbits" so he can spend time fishing. After pleading with Elmer fails, Bugs goes into Elmer's peaceful dream, and uses NightmareFuel in the form of loud, chaotic colors to scare Elmer back into working for Warner Brothers. After a crazy chase scene where Elmer falls off a cliff and wakes up, he re-assembles his contract back together and says in a singsong voice: "Oh, Mr. Warner, I'm ba-ack!" At the time, Clampett's cutting-edge style, which diverged from those of Creator/FrizFreleng and Creator/ChuckJones, and Clampett was ready to take on new animation challenges even though his colleagues were trying to dissuade him from leaving Warner Brothers.

--->'''Daffy:''' [[WhoWritesThisCrap Who writes this slop?!]] (''Groans'') Warner Brothers doesn't have a creative bone in their...

** The show also made fun of Warner Brothers in general, which is natural, seeing as a lot of it took place on the Warner movie lot. As early as the first episode, Mr. Plotz, enraged at the siblings' escape, ranted, "I haven't been this upset since we made ''Film/DontTellMomTheBabysittersDead''!"

-->'''Narrator''': A pack of hungry executives will feast on the carcass of of [[Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse once-popular comic book IP]] for four, possibly even five sequels. [...]The world of entertainment can be a cruel and often unforgiving place.

--->'''Buster:''' And one guy who does nothing except sign his name on it! *''Creator/StevenSpielberg falls onto the top of the pile''

Creator/{{FOX}} animated shows [[BitingTheHandHumor/FoxAnimatedSeries have their own page]].

* ''WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain'':
** ''WesternAnimation/PinkyElmyraAndTheBrain'': The opening song uses the lines "[[ExecutiveMeddling It's what the network wants, why bother to complain?]]". This is accommodated by Pinky and the Brain getting kicked out of the Warner Bros. corporate building while Elmyra shrugs. At the end of the song, Brain also says "I deeply resent this," and, given the very real hatred of the idea by the show's own writers, it seems likely enough that he's referring to more than just his in-story predicaments with Elmyra. This was itself preceded by the episode [[Recap/PinkyAndTheBrainS3E2 "Pinky and The Brain... and Larry"]], with an intentionally lame and useless extra character inserted just to show how the show didn't need a third wheel... but it was railroaded through anyway.
** "[[Recap/PinkyAndTheBrainS3E30 You'll Never Eat Food Pellets in This Town Again!]]" features the titular lab mice as the stars of a hit TV show [[ExecutiveMeddling being heavily meddled with by network executives, who think heavily altering the show's premise will increase ratings]].
** The song "A Meticulous Analysis of History" has one line making a jab at Creator/TheWB for scheduling the show's brief stint in primetime opposite CBS's ''Series/SixtyMinutes'', complete with the TV showing a stopwatch similar to the one used in the show it lost to appearing at the appropriate line.
--->''The TV viewers you'll delight''\\
''Unless the network puts your show on Sunday night''

* ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' The shows intro has a FreezeFrameBonus moment where if you look at the graves in the graveyard shows names of other Creator/CartoonNetwork shows that canceled after one season such as, ''WesternAnimation/EvilConCarne'', ''WesternAnimation/TimeSquad'', and ''WesternAnimation/WhateverHappenedToRobotJones''.
* ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'' took aim at network execs in general in its very first episode (which aired on Creator/{{CBS}}, ironically):[[note]]Other ''TTA'' instances are featured on the Fox animated series page[[/note]]
-->'''Babs''': It takes a group of highly-paid network executives YEARS to come up with a TV show!\\
'''Buster''': Which means it should take US... about as long as this next commercial break!
** In a segment featuring instructions on how to make your own cartoon, Buster comments after a long list of writers, animators and other personnel.
--->'''Buster:''' And one guy who does nothing except sign his name on it! *''Creator/StevenSpielberg falls onto the top of the pile''*
* ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'' had a minor character named "Nick" who was created as a symbol for Creator/{{Nickelodeon}}. Nick had various disturbing science experiments performed on him by the main character. Also considering that Nick had a giant probe installed in his head to make him perpetually happy, it was obviously a jab at how Nickelodeon disliked the dark stuff ''Zim'' was putting out.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark''
** In the "Cartoon Wars" episodes the creators had a very public disagreement with Comedy Central over their right to visually portray the Islamic prophet Mohammad in their show, after a French satirical magazine was fire-bombed by terrorists for doing just that. The episode is essentially an extended debate between freedom of speech (in regards to comedy and satire) and censorship in the name of political correctness. During the scene where Mohammad was supposed to appear, the show inserted a neutral title card stating (truthfully) that Comedy Central had ultimately refused to allow Mohammad to be shown. The irony was that the show had featured Mohammad as a character in the episode "Super Best Friends" and had him hidden in the title sequence of the show for the last two seasons. It is worth noting that "Super Best Friends" aired 2 months before 9/11. It was a very different climate then.
** The episode "Funnybot" completely lambasts The Comedy Awards, an event organized by Comedy Central.
* Whenever an evil corporation is mentioned in ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw'', a little neon sign turns on the background saying "An [=AOL/TimeWarner=] company."
-->'''Reducto:''' No! [pulls out a complicated schematic] There is no government, just a few multi-national corporations that run everything.\\
[The words "An AOL/Time Warner Co." appear on the bar's sign in the background.]
** Playing on the same joke, in ''Harvey Birdman, Attorney General" special when Harvey, Potamus and President Phil Ken Sebben are walking through White House, there are certain rooms akin to ones named after former US presidents, with names of Adult Swim's parent companies through the years - Turner Room, Time Warner Room, [=AOL/TimeWarner=] Room and finally the most recent one, [=WarnerMedia=] Room.

* On ''WesternAnimation/{{Undergrads}}'', one character remarks to Nitz that a concert might not be so bad since Good Charlotte is headlining. Nitz asks what Good Charlotte have done that he should care about. Good Charlotte provided the theme song to the show, which actually plays in the background of the scene to drive the point home.
* ''[[WesternAnimation/MightyMouse Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures]]'':
** The episode "Anatomy of a Milquetoast" had Mighty Mouse on trial for the disappearance of orphan Scrappy, using season 1 footage with the dialogue altered as evidence. A dialogue-changed scene from "It's Scrappy's Birthday" had Scrappy's boxcar companion Slappy Rimshot reuniting with some hobo friends, to which Slappy says "Hey, look. The network boards are here!"
** The ending of "Don't Touch That Dial". After chastising a toddler for vegetating to "electronic pablum," Mighty Mouse turns to the audience and says "But enough of all this lying and hypocrisy. Time for what television's ''really'' about." Cut to commercial.
* ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes''
** The beginning of "Tortoise Beats Hare" has WesternAnimation/BugsBunny reading the credits out loud. He blows his top after seeing the cartoon title:
--->'''Bugs:''' ''(angrily)'' Why dese guys don't know what they're talkin' about, the big buncha joiks! (''smugly'') I oughta know. I woik for 'em.
** Creator/BobClampett managed one of these in WesternAnimation/TheBigSnooze, his last cartoon with Creator/WarnerBrothers through WesternAnimation/ElmerFudd, who is frustrated with being outwitted by Bugs one time too many, so he tears up his contract with Warner Brothers, and decides to quit hunting "wabbits" so he can spend time fishing. After pleading with Elmer fails, Bugs goes into Elmer's peaceful dream, and uses NightmareFuel in the form of loud, chaotic colors to scare Elmer back into working for Warner Brothers. After a crazy chase scene where Elmer falls off a cliff and wakes up, he re-assembles his contract back together and says in a singsong voice: "Oh, Mr. Warner, I'm ba-ack!" At the time, Clampett's cutting-edge style, which diverged from those of Creator/FrizFreleng and Creator/ChuckJones, and Clampett was ready to take on new animation challenges even though his colleagues were trying to dissuade him from leaving Warner Brothers.
** "WesternAnimation/BlooperBunny" was created as a parody of the hooplah over [[MilestoneCelebration Bugs Bunny's 50th anniversary]] the previous year, and features WesternAnimation/DaffyDuck kvetching about his role in the Bugs Bunny 51st ½ anniversary special:
--->'''Daffy:''' [[WhoWritesThisCrap Who writes this slop?!]] (''Groans'') Warner Brothers doesn't have a creative bone in their...
*** Showing how this trope can backfire, the short ended up [[TheShelfOfMovieLanguishment getting shelved for six years]] because the higher-ups at Warner Bros. were offended by the line and Greg Ford refused to cut it out.
** "WesternAnimation/InvasionOfTheBunnySnatchers", which like "Blooper Bunny" was directed by Greg Ford and Terry Lennon, also pokes fun at Warner Bros. for cutting corners in the animation department and watering down their characters to be less edgy and more wholesome. The plot revolves around Bugs finding his fiercest enemies replaced by bland, friendly, badly-drawn and -animated "pale stereotypes".
* ''WesternAnimation/ReBoot'':
** Emma See, the Program Censor from the episode "Talent Night", was a parody of the ABC network's censors, and the one act she absolutely adores is the "[[Music/TheVillagePeople Small Town Binomes]]" song "B.S.N.P." with lyrics like "hey, it's fun to play in a non-violent way." Subtle. According to the DVD commentary she was a direct parody of a ''specific'' BS&P official named Mary, who was "not happy about it".
** Another episode had the writers be told by BS&P that Bob couldn't break a window with a rock to jump outside. Their response was to have him tell Glitch to use "BS&P", which [[TakeThat had the glass open up around him and reassemble unharmed behind him]].
** ''Another'' episode had Enzo get his hands on a massive bazooka, which only harmlessly fires a self-inflating rubber life raft. ''[[RefugeInAudacity Which is stamped with "BS&P Approved!"]]'' Rubbing it in their face even worse is it does nothing to repel the Viral Binomes, while Frisket getting his paws on an actual rocket launcher [[ViolenceReallyIsTheAnswer sending them running]].
** After the show was dropped by ABC, [[BigBad Megabyte's]] forces were retroactively dubbed "'''A'''rmored '''B'''inome '''C'''arriers. Which leads to the line:
--->'''Algernon:''' It's the [=ABCs=], they've turned on us!\\
'''Binky:''' Treacherous dogs.
** And as one final chomp to the hand, even though it wasn't ''technically'' feeding them anymore, how did they retaliate against Dot's infamous "uniboob" and all the ludicrous censorship as soon as they were free of BS&P's influence? A game cube called "Malicious Corpses", inspired by ''Film/EvilDead'' complete with blood, guns, zombies, gore, and Dot ''[[https://i.imgur.com/Fh2VNNg.jpg dressed like Elvira]].''
** Also, the words "Fuck you, Broadcast Standards!" are written in Mainframe's skybox in binary code.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' has a character named Dr. Lipschitz who the adult characters (mainly Didi) obsess over, The character was a dig at series co-creator Arlene Klasky who butted heads with the writers on how the babies should act especially Angelica who she thought was too mean.
** Also the episode "Reptar 2010" of ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' shows Reptar rampaging through a city and destroying a skyscraper with Viacom's name on it, Viacom being the owner of Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} (and its sister networks).

* ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'' The season 3 episode Stimpy's Cartoon Show is a perfect example of this trope, with Stimpy wanting to make a cartoon and Ren holding him up to a high standard throwing out finished work and being verbally abusive. This episode was written for season 2 by John K with Ren being a sympathetic director but when he was fired it was rewritten to make fun of him.
** The entire episode of [[Recap/RenAndStimpy5x09TerminalStimpyReverendJack Reverend Jack]] was a whole [[TakeThat pisstake]] at John K himself, Even the character Rev. Jack Cheese is a direct parody of John K satirizing his personality and the awful treatment he gave the cast and crew behind the scenes. The fact that he's portrayed as a Riddler ersatz (a character who is known for being arrogant, obsessive, and crazy) is a dig at him as well. The character even wear horn-rimmed glasses like John does.

* ''WesternAnimation/RockyAndBullwinkle'' has been known to poke fun at their producers on occasion. Example:
-->'''Rocky:''' Bullwinkle, I'm worried.\\
'''Bullwinkle:''' Ratings down in the show again?\\
'''Rocky:''' No.\\
'''Bullwinkle:''' That's odd.\\
'''Rocky:''' I'm worried because there have already been two attempts on your life.\\
'''Bullwinkle:''' Oh, don't worry. We will be renewed.\\
'''Rocky:''' I'm not talking about the Bullwinkle Show.\\
'''Bullwinkle:''' You had better; we could use the publicity.
** Another example, as Boris and Natasha look for an A-bomb to blow open a giant trunk:
--->'''Rocky:''' They said A-bomb! Do you know what A-bomb means?\\
'''Bullwinkle:''' Certainly! "A bomb" is what some people call our program!\\
'''Rocky:''' (''miffed'') I didn't think that's so funny.\\
'''Bullwinkle:''' (''[[AsideGlance looking to camera]]'') Neither do ''they,'' apparently.
* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/GarfieldAndFriends'', "The Discount of Monte Cristo", predicted the reason the show ended. The episode is all about Aloysius cutting the show's budget. In the episode, Orson hated Aloysius ruining the story by firing the show's staff in order to keep its budget low. The reason for ''Garfield and Friends''' cancellation is that CBS wanted to dice the show's budget, and the show's creators refused to let the show suffer the budget cuts.
** Speaking of Aloysius Pig, there's also this little gem from "Kiddie Korner":
---> "[[{{Sting}} Da Dum!]] The Network!"[[note]]The name of the network is revealed at the end of the episode and is called "SUUS The Network. Try saying that out loud, if you must.[[/note]]
*** In the same episode, Aloysius is planning "The Fall Schedule" with a dart board.
* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'':
** [[https://imgur.com/8gWVY9G A promotional poster]] created for San Diego Comic-Con 2013 features a gnome puking a rainbow on the Creator/DisneyChannel logo.
** "Boyz Crazy" has Wendy dismissing a boy band as "just a manufactured product of the bloated corporate music industry," an obvious jab at Disney's forays into pop music, particularly Music/TheJonasBrothers.
** In "Gideon Rises", the font used on the logo for [[EnfantTerrible Gideon Gleeful's]] planned theme park is blatantly based on the logo for Ride/{{Disneyland}}. Not exactly flattering to associate Disney's most famous theme park with the show's season 1 ArcVillain.
** In "Northwest Mansion Mystery", Dipper prepares himself for a 48-hour marathon of ''Ghost Harassers'' on the [[NetworkDecay Used-to-Be-About-History Channel]]. Disney actually owns part of the real-life History Channel (through A+E Television Networks).
** Mabel's first glimpse of high school in "Dipper and Mabel vs. the Future" comes across as a huge TakeThat to the channel's most iconic franchise, ''Film/HighSchoolMusical.''
---> '''Mabel:''' Why aren't they singing about following their dreams? TV taught me that high school was like some sort of ''musical.''\\
'''Wendy:''' TV lied, man.
** In "Summerween", the flyer for the party Wendy and Robbie are going to reads "Not S&P approved" -- it was originally supposed to say "Bottles will be spun", but it was changed to the jab at the Creator/DisneyChannel's Standards and Practices after Creator/AlexHirsch couldn't get that past them.
* ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb''
** In the special "Summer Belongs To You" When the boys come up with the idea of traveling around the world in 1 day a TV promo at the bottom of the screen that says "You're Watching Television!" is shown and Phineas notices and responds:
--->'''Phineas:''' Hey, do you mind? We've kinda got a visual gag going on here.\\
(the promo disappears)\\
'''Phineas:''' Thank you!
** In the episode "The Inator Method", in a brilliant way of doing something new with the usual UranusIsShowing joke, Buford races in the planet Uranus and uses its other name, "Ouranos".
--->'''Buford:''' Uranus (Ouranos) is ready to go.\\
'''Baljeet:''' That is not how it is pronounced, Buford.\\
'''Buford:''' [[ThinkOfTheCensors It is on this channel.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/FishHooks'' features the Hamster Channel, airing programs that parody Disney Channel live-action sitcoms.

* In the Mickey Mouse short ''WesternAnimation/RunawayBrain'', As Mickey is being sucked down through the trap door tube, in a don't-blink-or-you'll-miss-it moment, one of the pieces of debris in the tube is a pink slip with the initials "J.K." written on it, for "Jeffrey Katzenberg". After Frank Wells was killed in a helicopter crash in 1994, Katzenberg sought Wells' job, but he was at such professional and personal odds with Michael Eisner and Roy E. Disney that he was ultimately forced out of the studio at the time of the cartoon's production.
* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': In "Know Your Fusion", [[LargeHam Sardonyx]] puts on a mock-ShowWithinAShow in order to learn more about [[spoiler: Smoky Quartz, the fusion of Steven and Amethyst]], and provides some clips from previous episodes, taking the time to poke fun at Cartoon Network's habit of pulling the plug on shows that don't sell enough merchandise.
-->'''Sardonyx:''' Don't those cartoon characters make you wanna buy those products? I sure hope so, or else I'll be off air.
** A more subtle and less humorous example but the end song in the shows final episode [[Recap/StevenUniverseS5E28ChangeYourMind Change Your Mind]] was made by Rebecca Sugar [[CopeByCreating in frustration]] after the network [[GayPanic resisted against an episode where Ruby and Sapphire get married]].
* ''WesternAnimation/BoJackHorseman'':
** Season 3 contains a b-plot that seems to be mocking the Creator/{{Netflix}} original series ''Series/FullerHouse''. Bradley, the actor who played Ethan in ShowWithinAShow 90s horse-raises-three-human-orphans sitcom ''JustForFun/HorsinAround'', wants to do a reboot series called ''Ethan Around'' about his grownup character [[GenerationXerox raising three horses]].
** "The [=BoJack=] Horseman Show" has a gag where Mr Peanutbutter is doing a "Blockbuster Original Series" where you go to the video store and rent one DVD of a series at a time...
** Season 5 has [=BoJack=] join ''Philbert,'' a drama series aired on a streaming service. While this mostly targets Netflix competitors like Amazon who were not originally streaming services (the website on which ''Philbert'' is streamed was originally a site for telling time), a few jokes also function as jabs against Netflix shows. For example, the time card used during the premiere informs us that the pilot episode is "a tight hour and eighteen minutes."
** In "The Kidney Stays in the Picture," Princess Carolyn and Lenny brainstorn ways to end an assistants' strike without actually giving them what they want. She compares this to how networks satiate showrunners by giving them {{Vanity Plate}}s at the end of the episode, then sell the shows to streaming services that auto-skip the credits so nobody ever sees the vanity cards. You know, like Netflix does with its shows.
** Inverted with "Angela," where Angela praises Michael Eisner, founder of The Tornante Company that distributed ''[=BoJack=]'', as a "compassionate and progressive individual."

* In the ''WesternAnimation/CaptainSturdy'' pilot ''Captain Sturdy: Back in Action'', which originally aired on Creator/CartoonNetwork's ''WesternAnimation/WhatACartoonShow'', Moid's death ray can be seen obliterating a Cartoon Network satellite.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'' episode "Really Loud Music", Luna gets turned into a cutesy pop-star by the judges of ''America's Next Hitmaker'', as an InUniverse example of ExecutiveMeddling. This could be a TakeThat to the teen pop stars that Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} also loves promoting, especially [=JoJo=] Siwa.
* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Arthur}}'', Buster claims that a program that he's making is going to be "edutainment." The characters respond to this with an "ew." The chapter-book adaptation of that episode goes even further, with Brain stating that edutainment is supposed to be a blend of education and entertainment, but often ends up being the worst of both. Mind you, ''Arthur'' IS an EdutainmentShow.
** The show features a [[Series/BarneyAndFriends Barney]] {{Expy}} called Mary Moo-Cow, who D.W. loves and Arthur can't stand. It's a PBS show making fun of a PBS show.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'': In "The Code", Mr. Robinson's browser has an enormous number of "stupid toolbars" sucking up his bandwidth, and, as the Wattersons use his wi-fi instead of their own, they are unable to use the internet. One of those toolbars has a Cartoon Network logo.
* ''WesternAnimation/BigMouth'' has NoFourthWall and frequently makes fun of Netflix and its viewers. One example in Season 2 (which was even used in the on-site trailer) has Nick tell Gina to get a Netflix account, and offers to just share his password so she doesn't have to pay, resulting in the joke being "censored".
** Season 3 had a stealthy one. Andrew turns down Maury's request that Andrew kill himself by saying no teenager should kill themselves. Maury agrees, citing "Netflix legal" and then turns to the camera saying, "No teenager should kill themselves even though it makes for captivating programming." This is very likely a TakeThat against fellow Netflix series ''Series/ThirteenReasonsWhy,'' which had then-recently undergone edits and extra content warnings after a long backlash against its onscreen depiction of teenage suicide.
** Also in Season 3, "The [=ASSes=]" has Jay put a suspicious emphasis on Amazon Prime being the number one streaming service.
* ''WesternAnimation/HumanResources2022'': In the pilot, Connie tries to make Maury feel better by pointing out that he has two shows on Netflix. Maury waves it off by saying ''everyone's'' got a show on Netflix.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'' episode "Janine, You've Changed" was one against the changes to Janine in the third season. These changes were forced upon the show by executives who had hired a consulting firm called Q5 who, without doing ''any'' market research and operating purely on assumptions, believed making Janine more feminine, meeker, and giving her rounder glasses to "be less threatening to children" (no, really, they said that) would make her a more appealing character. The episode explains Janine's [[GirlinessUpgrade softer design]] and more demure personality as being due to a pact she made with a ghost to become more attractive. Some of the self-criticisms Janine has about her appearance are even lifted from notes that the network gave the writers. At the end of the episode, Janine learns to love herself the way she is (though [[StatusQuoIsGod she still doesn't revert back to her original portrayal]]).
* The side-story in the ''WesternAnimation/{{VeggieTales}}'' episode ''Sheerluck Holmes and the Golden Ruler'', "The Asparagus of La Mancha", has Don and Poncho floating around a SuckECheeses named "Cheese E. Rodent" as a replacement for their restaurant. The actual Creator/ChuckECheese has featured ''[=VeggieTales=]'' promos in-between the songs in their [=showtapes=] for years.
* ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'' had a minor one in the form of Dr. Hutchinson. [[ExecutiveMeddling The writers were told]], among some other provisos for the character, to add "a professional woman, someone with a good hook"[[note]]A personality trait that attracts viewers.[[/note]] so the show would have a positive female role model. The writers, particularly Joe Murray, were against the idea as they believed people didn't watch cartoons for role models or life lessons but had no choice, so they [[ExactWords did exactly that]] and created a professional woman with [[HookHand a good hook]].

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Chowder}}'': In the episode "Gazpacho Stands Up", Gazpacho stops Chowder from [[BreakingTheFourthWall scribbling on the screen]] and wipes off the markings when the camera cuts close enough for him to do so. Chowder asks, "What about that one?" while pointing to the Creator/CartoonNetwork logo bug. Gazpacho taps on it while saying, "Eh, that one doesn't come off. I've tried."
* ''WesternAnimation/SolarOpposites'':
** Yumyulack plans to get popular by simply sneaking to the popular kids' table and hoping everyone just trusts that he always belonged there, to which Jesse replies, "It worked for Hulu!"
** In one episode, part of Ms. Frankie's plan involved buying masks of the aliens, to which she makes a point of stating she bought them from the Hulu Store's going-out-of-business sale.
** The show makes frequent digs at Hulu making it out to be something akin to Google, right down to having an email.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'' examples:
** "New Wartwood" shows Marcy attempting to give the town a renovation in the style of Ride/DisneyThemeParks, which subsequently goes awry and ends up playing out similarly to the infamously-troubled opening day of Disneyland.
** In "Hop Till You Drop," one of the accessories in the [[BlandNameProduct Create a Carnivore]] shop resembles Mickey Mouse's ears and face; causing Polly to respond, "Hmm, no thanks."

* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheBoondocks'', as Robert beats Riley, he tells the grandson to stop watching ''Creator/AdultSwim'', which happens to be the late night block that airs the show.
* In the Creator/FamousStudios WesternAnimation/ScreenSongs "Toys Will Be Toys", we see a wind-up ComicStrip/{{Popeye}} toy among the toy parade. As he waters a patch of spinach, a boxing glove emerges and socks the sailor in the face. This was possibly an outlet from the Famous Studios staff who were dissatisfied with the quality of the Popeye cartoons being made at the time.
* ''WesternAnimation/StarTrekLowerDecks'': "[[Recap/StarTrekLowerDecksS2E07WherePleasantFountainsLie Where Pleasant Fountains Lie]]": At the very end, one of the evil computers locked up in the Angstrom Institute bears the CBS eye logo. CBS produces the show.
* ''WesternAnimation/InsideJob2021'': At the end of "Clone Gunman," Reagan puts on ''Series/{{Friends}}'' for Robotus. When he complains, she points out that Creator/{{Netflix}} paid a hundred million dollars for the streaming rights, snarking about how much money they have to spare. ''Inside Job'' is a Netflix original series.
* ''WesternAnimation/MoonGirlAndDevilDinosaur2023'', a Creator/DisneyChannel series, gets in a swipe at their parent company’s recent trend of [[Film/DisneyLiveActionRemakes live-action remakes of beloved animated films]] when Beyonder, an alien being questions why humans are obsessed with remakes when the animated versions are superior.
* ''WesternAnimation/CloneHigh'': The first episode of the second season, which came out two decades after the series was ScrewedByTheNetwork, has a gag where Scudworth accidentally burns himself with coffee when Candide Sampson enters his office. To cool himself off, he splashes more coffee on himself, only to recoil again. Butlertron then snarks with an AsideGlance, "Yes, why would anybody do anything a second time after they got burned so badly the ''first tiiiiiime''?"

* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/SolarOpposites'', part of Ms. Frankie's plan involved buying masks of the aliens, to which she makes a point of stating she bought them from the Hulu Store's going-out-of-business sale.
** The show makes frequent digs at Hulu making it out to be something akin to Google; right down to having an email.

* The years when ''WesternAnimation/{{Daria}}'' was on Creator/{{Noggin}}'s teen block, The N... which also aired some shows (like ''Degrassi'') that oozed the same stereotypical teen attitude that Daria mocked.

* Whenever an evil corporation is mentioned in ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw'', a little neon sign turns on the background saying "An [=AOL/TimeWarner=][sic] company."

* Whenever an evil corporation is mentioned in ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw'', a little neon sign turns on the background saying "An [=AOL/TimeWarner=] company."

* ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'' took aim at network execs in general in its very first episode (which aired on Creator/{{CBS}}, ironically):

* ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' The shows intro has a FreezeFrameBonus moment where if you look at the graves in the graveyard shows names of other cartoon network shows that canceled after one season such as, ''WesternAnimation/EvilConCarne'', ''WesternAnimation/TimeSquad'', and ''WesternAnimation/WhateverHappenedToRobotJones''.

** The song "A Meticulous Analysis of History" has one line making a jab at The WB for scheduling the show's brief stint in primetime opposite CBS's ''Series/SixtyMinutes'', complete with the TV showing a stopwatch similar to the one used in the show it lost to appearing at the appropriate line.

* ''WesternAnimation/MissionHill'' got some, although because [[Creator/TheWB WB]] booted it from the schedule after two episodes to summer backburner and then to Adult Swim, it wasn't quite effective.

** ''WesternAnimation/PinkyElmyraAndTheBrain'': The opening song uses the lines "[[ExecutiveMeddling It's what the network wants, why bother to complain?]]". This is accommodated by Pinky and the Brain getting kicked out of the Warner Bros. corporate building while Elmyra shrugs. At the end of the song, Brain also says "I deeply resent this," and, given the very real hatred of the idea by the show's own writers, it seems likely enough that he's referring to more than just his in-story predicaments with Elmyra. This was itself preceded by the episode ''Pinky and the Brain and Larry'', with an intentionally lame and useless extra character inserted just to show how the show didn't need a third wheel... but it was railroaded through anyway.

* In the Mickey Mouse short ''WesternAnimation/RunawayBrain'' As Mickey is being sucked down through the trap door tube, in a don't-blink-or-you'll-miss-it moment, one of the pieces of debris in the tube is a pink slip with the initials "J.K." written on it, for "Jeffrey Katzenberg". After Frank Wells was killed in a helicopter crash in 1994, Katzenberg sought Wells' job, but he was at such professional and personal odds with Michael Eisner and Roy E. Disney that he was ultimately forced out of the studio at the time of the cartoon's production.

* In the Mickey Mouse short ''WesternAnimation/RunawayBrain'' When Mickey Mouse goes to Dr. Frankenollie's house he gets sucked down a hole into the doctor's lab, There is a [[FreezeFrameBonus blink and you'll miss it]] moment where you see a Pink slip with the initials JK on it. This is a reference to the firing of Jeffrey Katzenberg from Disney in 1995.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' In the shows intro has a FreezeFrameBonus moment where if you look at the graves in the graveyard shows other cartoon network shows that canceled after one season such as, ''WesternAnimation/EvilConCarne'', ''WesternAnimation/TimeSquad'', and ''WesternAnimation/WhateverHappenedToRobotJones''.