Awesome / The Flintstones

Cartoon

• Fred telling the truth in the episode "Fred's Flying Lesson". It's more epic than it sounds.
  • There's also a bit of Fridge Brilliance under the implication why he isn't always honest immediately is because he saves the truth for moments like this.
• The entire episode that sends up James Bond films is both this and a Crowning Moment Of Funny. Come on, Fred and Barney defeat Doctor No?
  • Climaxing with Fred and Barney's "A Judo Chop Chop" chase.
• Ann Margrock ain't gonna be your fool.
• Wilma casually one-punching a giant dinosaur in the snout and making it run away crying.
• Wilma's mother showing up and putting the fear of God in Grandma Dynamite and her sons after Fred accidentally hires her as a maid during the period when Wilma was pregnant.
• Bamm-Bamm comes to Pebbles' defense, protecting her from a mean neighborhood cat within minutes of meeting her! What a gentleman!
• The final outcome of "A Haunted House is Not a Home" is both this for Fred and a Crowning Moment of Funny, with Crowning Music of Awesome to boot, which sounds rather like the theme for Jonny Quest, which, incidentally, had just recently debuted at the time of this episode's release.
  Fred: Well, I'm kind of a kook myself. [pulls out a switchblade with a cleaver] Not rich, but still a kook! [begins to laugh maniacally]

Live-Action Film

• The entire film's silly aesthetic. Say what you will about anything else, it's committed to looking and feeling exactly like the cartoon and succeeds at that hands-down.
• When Cliff Vandercave uses flashy language to try to sell everyone in the boardroom on his plans for Slate & Co, Fred points out the obvious flaw in the plan in plain English. It gets laughed off right in his face, but it was still a sporting effort on his part.
• Barney and Betty calling Fred and Wilma out for getting greedy and letting Fred's success turn them into snobs, with Barney also revealing if he hadn't switched tests with Fred he'd have been the one who got canned.
  Wilma: We took you into our home-!
  Betty: Oh yeah so you could show off every chance you got! You used to be such nice people, but now you're just a couple of rich snobs! Hmph!
  Fred: Better than being a couple of petty ingrates.
  • Barney responds by "Punching out," as in punching Fred in the face.
  • Later, Wilma legitimately feels regretful for how she's acted and is unable to convince the Rubbles not to leave. When Fred asks "Who needs the Rubbles?", she realizes she truly has gone too far and decides that their friendship is more important than any material possessions. To emphasize the point, she starts trashing all the expensive junk Fred bought before leaving with Pebbles.
• Wilma and Betty sneak into Fred's office to find the Dictabird to prove Fred's innocence. The Dictabird acts very snotty to Wilma and refuses to help, so Betty tells Wilma to step back so she can reason with him. She then single-handily grabs the Dictabird by his throat and throttles him into submission.
  • There's also the fact that Wilma came up with the whole plan just from watching a television recreation of Fred's alleged crime and noticing the Dictabird. The look on her face when she has her "Eureka!" Moment is amazing, especially because she proves to be the Spanner in the Works for Cliff's entire scheme to defraud investors.
• After Wilma and Betty successfully prove Fred's innocence, they all return home—only to find that Dino and Wilma's mother are tied up, the house is ransacked, and Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm are missing. Cliff has left a ransom note—which, like all other "paper" in Bedrock, is made of solid stone—demanding the Dictabird in exchange for the children. An absolutely furious Fred doesn't say a word—instead, he simply crumbles the granite into dust with his bare hands. Talk about a Papa Wolf moment.
• The entire climax, featuring Fred and Barney facing off against Cliff to save Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm, is full of awesome moments.
  • First, Barney willingly puts himself into a giant catapult to get thrown up to the conveyor belt where the kids are trapped. Even though he hits a boulder straight on, he shrugs it off and does some surprisingly skilled acrobatics to reach them.
  • When the Dictabird briefly escapes and runs back to Fred, Cliff has them cornered with a primitive gun. It seems like all hope is lost—and then someone whacks Cliff upside the head with the bag of cash he'd stolen, knocking him unconscious. It's Miss Stone, cementing her Heel–Face Turn and coming to the rescue. The Casual Danger Dialogue she and Fred share makes it all the better.
    Sharon Stone: Will there be anything else, Mr. Flintstone?
    Fred: No, Miss Stone, take the rest of the day off.
  • Fred, who spent much of the movie doubting his intelligence, remembers practicing destroying Cliff's model with boulders and decides to the same on a real-life scale. To do so, he has to move the entire machine—which weighs tons—into a new position. After he succeeds, he lets out the most triumphant "YABBA-DABBA-DOO!" in history.
  • But the most awesome moment comes when Fred finally gets his shot at Cliff. First, he approaches him and remarks "It's time for you and me to interface." Cliff, sensing a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown is imminent, tries to run, but Fred notices a nearby spherical rock and breaks out his world-famous bowling technique, standing on his tip-toes and successfully knocking Cliff on his behind. It's also a quiet reminder of the movie's Be Yourself message—Fred ultimately saved the day by using his own skills, not pretending to be someone else.

Animated Films

• At the end of The Flintstones Meet Rockula and Frankenstone, Rockula chases the Flintstones and Rubbles all the way back to Bedrock, still intent on making Wilma his bride. Rockula tries to tempt her with all the things she could have if she marries him, ending on the promise that her wish is his command. Wilma pretends to give in, then gives him an earful about all his new chores and responsibilities until he gives up and flees. That's right, Wilma nags a powerful, centuries-old vampire into submission.
• The scene in Hollyrock-A-Bye Baby where Bamm Bamm makes short work of the gangsters in Pebbles' birthing room in the hospital. It just goes to show you, Bamm Bamm might be all grown up but he still hasn't forgotten the good old "BAMM!BAMM!BAMM!BAMM!BAMM!"

Comic

• When the mayor of Bedrock tells off the polygamists^note Keep in mind the polygamists are stand-ins for opponents of gay marriage who are complaining about people getting married.
  Man: If we allow men and women to marry, how long before they start marrying dinosaurs and street lamps? It's a slippery slope.
  Woman: What about the children?
  Mayor: I understand your concerns, but frankly, we have more important things to worry about.
  Audience Member: Like what?
  Mayor: Like everything. Every issue is more important than this.

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