Line #7 SubvertedKidsShow/WesternAnimation


1	* The UrExample of western animation comes from ''WesternAnimation/TexAveryMGMCartoons''. At the start of the [[WesternAnimation/ScrewballSquirrel1944 first Screwy Squirrel cartoon]], we see a lovely forest scene and a cute squirrel picking up acorns. Then Screwy Squirrel appears and asks him what kind of picture this is going to be? The squirrel says it will be about him and his "[[WoodlandCreatures cute, furry friends in the forest]]", whereupon Screwy groans "Oh, no, not that!" and takes him behind a tree where he beats him up.
2	* Many Creator/HannaBarbera cartoons turned into Creator/AdultSwim ones, such as ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Sealab 2021}}''. ''WesternAnimation/SpaceGhostCoastToCoast'' is an interesting case since it started out as a legit kids' show on Cartoon Network before moving to Adult Swim.
3	* Also from Creator/AdultSwim, ''WesternAnimation/MoralOrel'', which is based on ''Series/LeaveItToBeaver'' with the art style of ''WesternAnimation/DaveyAndGoliath''.
4	* The show ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken'' breathes and lives in this trope. It would take at least half a page to list children's shows that it "corrupted".
5	* ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeResolute'', that aired on Adult Swim, is a rather rare serious-minded example of this trope. To be more specific, it took the no-blood, nobody dies Franchise/GIJoe and took things more seriously, [[AnyoneCanDie named characters dying]] and [[{{Mooks}} Vipers being slaughtered by the dozens.]]
6	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' provides some in-universe examples:
7	** ''JustForFun/TheItchyAndScratchyShow'' is a parody of cartoon violence, most notably from UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfAnimation, by making it extremely gory in a way that would never be permitted on air for actual children in our universe. The episode "Itchy & Scratchy & Marge" has Marge and other mothers call out the show's content and demand it be overhauled into a non-violent, more kid-friendly version. The end result is so boring that it actually drives kids away from the TV to play outside. By the end of the episode, though, differences in media and art censorship lead the show to return to its gory roots.
8	** [[HatesTheJobLovesTheLimelight Krusty the Clown]] tends to accidentally follow this trope. Usually he is seen smoking on air or making sarcastic comments about stuff, not caring about the children's well being. Then again, he does show ''Itchy and Scratchy''...
9	--->'''Krusty:''' Hey Hey, kids! Watch my show and [[Music/{{Madonna}} I'll send you this book]] featuring me in a variety of [[RuleThirtyFour sexually explicit]] [[FanService positions]].\
10	''(Krusty is being dragged off by executives)''\
11	'''Krusty:''' What? Hey! It's not really me; I used a stunt butt!
12	*** Bart even has the Krusty the Klown Home Pregnancy Test.[[note]]Warning -- May cause birth defects[[/note]]
13	*** In the episode "White Christmas Blues", Krusty mentions that he's always drunk or high when ''The Itchy and Scratchy Show'' is on. When he finally watches an episode sober, he's horrified and kills the feed.
14	*** During his anniversary show, Krusty watches an old clip of him singing "Break on Through (To the Other Side)" by Music/TheDoors and is shocked.
15	---->'''Krusty:''' [[WhatDidIDoLastNight What was I on?!]]
16	** In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS13E15BlameItOnLisa Blame It on Lisa]]", the family visits UsefulNotes/{{Brazil}}, where Marge asks Bart what he's watching on local TV (the material in question featured scantily clad women wearing tassels dancing around giant letters and costumed animals). Bart responds with "kids' show" (a parody of real life Brazilian children's series ''Xuxa'').
17	** ''The Happy Little Elves'' usually {{avert\|edTrope}}s this, as it's intended to be a cheesy type of show with no subversive tone or content. During the production of ''The Simpsons''[='=]s {{pilot}} [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS1E13SomeEnchantedEvening episode]], however, animation director Kent Butterworth somehow had the idea to have a bear graphically maul an elf. When the production cut of the episode was shown to the producers, needless to say, they were appalled with the bear scene and left it out of the finalized episode.
18	* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' will do this in their "{{cutaway gag}}s", sometimes featuring kids shows and other material often associated with juvenile audiences.
19	** One example would be Elmer Fudd not only successfully shooting Bugs Bunny (to bloody effect), but watching as the hare writhes in agony before snapping his neck.
20	** Also, the time when ''Series/SesameStreet'' and ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' melded together to bring something with graphic adult situations and brought to you by the letter H.
21	** One of the most noticeable would be when the show had a ColdOpen of Stewie destroying Series/MisterRogersNeighborhood in a dream sequence. Even though the dream Rogers still got the last laugh, it's one of the few gags in the show's history that Creator/SethMacFarlane [[EveryoneHasStandards has openly apologized for]].
22	* The pilot episode of the ''WesternAnimation/BlackDynamite'' animated series features a thinly-veiled parody of ''Sesame Street'' that had fallen into crime and disrepair, with the Kermit the Frog equivalent manipulating children to give him money.
23	** Then Mister Rogers went insane from gangster-themed ExecutiveMeddling and turned his last show into an Afrikaner ChildSoldier gang holdout.
24	--->'''Black Dynamite:''' How was I supposed to know the nicest, most friendliest man in the world, was actually ''a crazy psycho-maniac''?!
25	* The ''WesternAnimation/{{Beetlejuice}}'' episode "Uncle B.J.'s Roadhouse" was a parody of ''Pee-wee's Playhouse.''
26	* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'':
27	** There's the episode "Neighbor Hood", about a children's TV show host who entreats his young viewers to send the show "happy paper" from their parents' wallets to keep the show's stars alive and happy (a nod to what Creator/SoupySales pulled in the early 60s on his kids' show). This season 5 episode was originally planned for the first season but the staff feared a lawsuit from Fred Rogers (''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'') as it paralleled his show a bit too closely. It was given to DC Comics as issue #7, "Remote Controlled," and then refurbished as this episode.
28	** The original prototype short was this. "Recap/WhoopassStew" was never meant to be a kids' show, yet is drawn in the same little girl show inspired style, with a kids show narrator, as the show proper. [[WhatCouldHaveBeen The show itself was going to be this]], but since there's no equivalent to Creator/AdultSwim at the time, it became a kids show. [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids Ostensibly, what with the violence and all]].
29	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Triptank}}'' is an animated SketchComedy show that loves pulling this with some sketches starting out rather harmless and cutesy and then someone gets slighted and...let's just say retribution ends in blood and death the majority of the time.
30	* ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'':
31	** The series does this in "Rixty Minutes", where interdimensional TV shows include a Lucky Charms parody commercial featuring zombie-like children gruesomely disemboweling the Lucky {{expy}}, and a somewhat [[ClusterFBomb cruder]] version of ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}''.
32	** In "Total Rickall", an episode about parasites that plant memories in your mind to convince you to give them your trust to take over planets, Summer's imaginary friend, Tinkles, turns out to be an alien parasite. She is shot with a laser and turned into a dead alien.
33	* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'':
34	** The series has a [[ArtStyleDissonance simple, paper cut-out art style]], [[{{UsefulNotes/Kawaisa}} cute characters]], and [[KidHero child protagonists]]. It is for these reasons that it became ''notorious'' for being a case of WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids. Way back in the '90s, MoralGuardians around America ''hated'' this show for being inappropriate and [[ThinkOfTheChildren exposing children]] to [[ToiletHumour Toilet]] and VulgarHumor. Luckily, the show's become a loved pop culture icon, despite this. Amusingly, a later promo for the [[LongRunner twentieth season]] shows the story of a young girl growing up watching ''South Park'' as if it were a kids' cartoon.
35	** ''South Park'' also has a couple of in-universe examples in ''The Terrance and Phillip Show'' and ''[[WesternAnimation/FatAlbertAndTheCosbyKids Fat Abbot]]'' which both consist of over-the-top swearing. The latter also has ethnic slurs and {{Broken Aesop}}s.
36	** "Taming Strange" had a parody of ''Series/YoGabbaGabba'' where character Foofa wants to stop doing stuff for kids and become a whore, culminating in a parody of the infamous Creator/MileyCyrus appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards.
37	* ''WesternAnimation/PibAndPog'' is a SelfParody by Creator/AardmanAnimations (yes, [[WesternAnimation/WallaceAndGromit those]] [[WesternAnimation/ChickenRun guys]]), featuring two cute claymation creatures in a pre-school children's show that rapidly descends into them committing tit-for-tat acts of graphic ultraviolence on each other.
38	* ''Franchise/ScoobyDoo'' of all shows has one in the form of ''[[Recap/SupernaturalS13E16ScoobyNatural ScoobyNatural]]''. Despite the franchise having gone into [[WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooOnZombieIsland dark]] [[WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooMysteryIncorporated places]] before, and having the same art style as some of the later [[WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooAndBatmanTheBraveAndTheBold entries]], this is not a kid-friendly episode due to its swearing, and much gorier violence. The fact it's a {{crossover}} with the clearly adult ''{{Series/Supernatural}}'' adds to this.
39	* ''[=VH1=] ILL-ustrated'' featured a spoof of the Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} show ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'' called ''[=SpongeBong=] [=HempPants=]'', which featured foul language and adult themes in addition to portraying [=SpongeBob=] as a green-skinned stoner.
40	* ''WesternAnimation/DrawnTogether'' [[CastOfExpies revolves around Expies]] of (mostly) kid's cartoon characters being put on a reality show in the raunchiest situations you can think of.
41	* Short-lived series ''What It's Like Being Alone'' is a claymation about an orphanage of rejected kids, with a lot of violence, drinking and swearing.
42	* The Creator/AdultSwim pilot ''WesternAnimation/{{Pibby}}'' starts off looking like a typical saccharine preschool show, then a few seconds in is invaded by a DigitalAbomination that consumes Creator/CartoonNetwork and Creator/HannaBarbera characters and corrupts them into glitched monstrosities, whereas Pibby will learn what it means to grow up while teaming up with new friends along the way to save the world.
43	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' has an in-universe example in ''The Dummi Bears''.
44	** In "At the Movies", ''The Dummi Bears in The Land Without Smiles'' shows the bears at work, delivering happy thoughts to children from the skies. Then, it changes its tone to a doctor bear tending to [[LittlestCancerPatient Little Shauna who is on the verge of death]]. Just before the doctor can explain Little Shauna's fate, [[TheUnreveal the film malfunctions]] thanks to the babies' antics in the projection room earlier in the episode.
45	** In "King Ten Pin", a daycare plays a ''Dummi Bears: Nightmare on Happy Street'' video, although it's not shown what dangers the bears face.
46	** In "Dummi Bear Dinner Disaster", Chas mentions an episode where Happy Bear has a close call with a taxidermist. Creator Paul Gatsby reacts to this by asking Chas if he spoke to a psychiatrist about what he saw.
47	* The short film ''WesternAnimation/ItsOppo'' initially presents itself as a fictional Creator/NickJr program, but things get weirder and creepier as it goes on. First, [[ParodyProductPlacement Chester Cheetah shows up out of nowhere to share Cheetos with Oppo]]. After that, Chester Cheetah unzips his costume to reveal he's actually a live-action human in his underwear. This causes Oppo to become curious and remove his own clothes, revealing his disgustingly detailed body (complete with uncensored penis) and ending with the narrator viciously berating Oppo for not conforming to the way a children's show is supposed to go before devouring him alive.
48	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Munro}}'' is animated and narrated like an adaptation of a children's storybook, and stars a little boy going through a harrowing situation while the adults around him just don't listen. This situation turns out to be him [[{{Conscription}} mistakenly being drafted into the military]] which grows to be increasingly stressful for him, and is supposed to double as {{satire}} of how stubborn the brass is in recognising when they've done wrong. The choice was deliberate on the part of author Jules Feiffer, whose own time serving in the military had him recognize the paternal insistence of always needing to be right from his higher-ups.
49	* ''Saturday Morning All-Star Hits'' is an {{Affectionate Parody}} of 80s and 90s Saturday morning cartoons and kids' show blocks. As a result, the cartoons shown contain elements that are definitely not for kids:
50	** Randy, the {{Totally Radical}} [[WesternAnimation/DenverTheLastDinosaur teenage dinosaur]] who loves skateboarding and music, is also a [[TheAlcoholic heavy drinker]] who fantasizes about [[DrivenToSuicide stepping in front of a train]] after his girlfriend breaks up with him.
51	** The [[WesternAnimation/CareBears Create-A-Crittles]] and their human friend, David, get creative inspiration from "Crittle Glitter" by [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything snorting it through their noses]]. Later on, the lead Crittle, Brusho, reveals that he briefly had a physical relationship with David's now-wife, Ruth [[BrainBleach (much to David's disgust)]].
52	** ''Lil' Bruce'' (a parody of cartoons based on the childhoods of [[WesternAnimation/BobbysWorld famous]] [[WesternAnimation/LifeWithLouie comedians]]) becomes an uncomfortable {{Author Filibuster}} as comedian Bruce Chandling tries (emphasis on ''tries'') to put a funny spin on his memory of his parents announcing their divorce. It's immediately cancelled after [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome a test audience of kids reacts negatively to the pilot]].
53	** ''Pro Bros'' (a parody of cartoons starring pro athletes) and ''Strongimals'' (a parody of ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats'') contain large amounts of {{Family Unfriendly Violence}}, with flimsy in-show excuses for said violence (though this disappears in the latter show after teen host Skip's [[TheCameo small appearance]] slowly turns into [[BreakoutCharacter him becoming the main character]]).
54	** Also mentioned is ''Intimate Compromise: Casino Nights Seductions: The Animated Series'', a cartoon directly based on an R-rated movie.
55	** Not even the titular block that shows the cartoons is free of drama. Once Skip's aforementioned cameo causes his celebrity status to rise, his twin brother and fellow host Treybor quits S.M.A.S.H. out of jealously and disgust, which ultimately culminates in a bitter Treybor confronting Skip at the latter's movie premiere. Meanwhile, another plot reminiscent of the Creator/OJSimpson trial plays out between shows when popular sitcom actors Lottie Wolfe and Sean Benjamin suddenly vanish without a trace, with the prime suspect being Johnny Rash, [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys bad boy popstar]] and Wolfe's boyfriend. Rash ultimately goes to trial after Benjamin's body is found, but he is acquitted due to lack of evidence; meanwhile, it's strongly implied that Wolfe is in fact alive, as a girl who looks like her in disguise appears in the audience of a new show hosted by Skip, Treybor, and [[ItMakesSenseInContext their long-lost triplet brother]]. However, the questions of why Benjamin was killed, Johnny's true involvement, and why Lottie chose to disappear are left unanswered.

Context SubvertedKidsShow / WesternAnimation