Cartoon Cartoons is a collective name used by Cartoon Network for their original animated television series from July 14, 1997, to June 14, 2004, and produced primarily by Hanna-Barbera and later Cartoon Network Studios. The first Cartoon Cartoon, Dexter's Laboratory, premiered in 1996, a year before the moniker's introduction. Further original series followed: Johnny Bravo, Cow and Chicken, I Am Weasel, The Powerpuff Girls, Ed, Edd n Eddy, Mike, Lu & Og, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Sheep in the Big City, Time Squad, Grim & Evil (later split into The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy and Evil Con Carne), Whatever Happened to... Robot Jones?, and Codename: Kids Next Door.
Originally, Cartoon Network mainly focused its programming on reruns of older animated series which it had acquired through its parent company's film library, but soon began to introduce more original programming. The Cartoon Cartoons originated with Fred Seibert's animation anthology series What a Cartoon! (1995), an animation showcase series featuring pilots of original cartoon ideas submitted by independent animators. Dexter's Laboratory was the first such pilot to be greenlit by the network for a full series in 1996. After other pilots were successfully produced into their own series, including Cow and Chicken, Johnny Bravo, and The Powerpuff Girls, the collective Cartoon Cartoons were featured on the network's Friday night programming block, Cartoon Cartoon Fridays from 1999 to 2003. Not all CN original series created around this time were officially recognized as Cartoon Cartoons; Samurai Jack, for example, did not bear the moniker.
The moniker was retired by the network in 2004, and its last surviving series, Ed, Edd n Eddy, ended in 2009 after a ten-year run. Since their heyday, reruns of the Cartoon Cartoons continued to air on The Cartoon Cartoon Show (2005–2008) and Cartoon Planet (2012–2014). In 2021, the name was resurrected by the network for a new shorts program on YouTube.
History Cartoon Cartoons first appeared as shorts on animation showcase series What a Cartoon! in 1995, under the name of World Premiere Toons. The series was produced by Hanna-Barbera and Cartoon Network Studios under the direction of Fred Seibert. Seibert had been a guiding force for Nickelodeon (having overseen the creation of Nicktoons shortly prior to his departure) prior to joining Hanna-Barbera and would establish Frederator Studios years later.
Through What a Cartoon!, Cartoon Network was able to assess the potential of certain shorts to serve as pilots for spin-off series and signed contracts with their creators to create ongoing series.Mittell (2004), p. 82–83 Dexter's Laboratory was the most popular short series according to a vote held in 1995, and became a full series in 1996. Dexter was retroactively labeled the first Cartoon Cartoon in 1997; however, the network's previous original shows, The Moxy Show and Space Ghost Coast to Coast, were not retroactively given the label.
The Cartoon Cartoon brand was first introduced in July 1997 for the network's Cartoon Cartoon Weekend block. Two more series based on shorts debuted in 1997: Johnny Bravo and Cow and Chicken. I Am Weasel, which aired as segments on Cow and Chicken, was spun off into its own series in 1999. These were followed by The Powerpuff Girls in late 1998 and Ed, Edd n Eddy in early 1999. Mike, Lu & Og and Courage the Cowardly Dog premiered in November 1999, creating a lineup of critically acclaimed shows.Mittell (2004), p. 80 From 1999 to 2003, the Cartoon Cartoon Fridays block was the network's marquee night for premieres of new episodes and series.
In 2001, the network received Time Squad and Grim & Evil. In 2002, Codename: Kids Next Door became a full series after being chosen in the previous year's Big Pick Weekend. In 2003, Grim & Evil was split into The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy and Evil Con Carne; they were the last original series to officially carry the Cartoon Cartoon branding before it was discontinued.
The Cartoon Cartoons were intended to appeal to a wider audience than the average Saturday-morning cartoon. Linda Simensky, vice president of original animation, reminded adults and teenage girls that the cartoons could appeal to them as well. Kevin Sandler's article on them claimed that these cartoons were both less "bawdy" than their counterparts at Comedy Central and less "socially responsible" than their counterparts at Nickelodeon. Sandler pointed to the whimsical rebelliousness, high rate of exaggeration and self-consciousness of the overall output which each individual series managed.Stabile, Harrison (2003), p. 98–99
In October 2003, the live-action Fridays premiered on the network as a replacement for Cartoon Cartoon Fridays. The Cartoon Cartoons bumpers (that appeared before and after episodes of its original series) were dropped after the network's CN City rebrand on June 14, 2004. In November 2004, the block Cartoon Cartoons: The Top 5 was renamed to simply The Top 5. Cartoon Network still kept the Cartoon Cartoons name around in various forms applying to their older series (such as for The Cartoon Cartoon Show from 2005 to 2008), but since newer shows such as Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends and Camp Lazlo were stylistically different from previous shows, the moniker was not applied to them.
Revival
On April 15, 2021, Cartoon Network announced a new iteration of the Cartoon Cartoons shorts program. On November 24, 2021, the first new Cartoon Cartoons shorts were announced. The first nine shorts include Accordions Geoffrey & Mary Melodica by Louie Zong (of The Ghost and Molly McGee and We Bare Bears), Dang! It's Dracula by Levon Jihanian (of Tig n' Seek), Hungy Ghost by Jesse Moynihan (of Adventure Time), Fruit Stand at the End of the World by Rachel Liu, Off the Menu by Shavonne Cherry (of Ren & Stimpy and The Looney Tunes Show), Harmony in Despair by Andrew Dickman (of Looney Tunes Cartoons), Unravel by Alexis Sugden, Mouthwash Madness by Lisa Vandenberg (of Animaniacs), and Scaredy Cat by JJ Villard (of King Star King).
On June 7, 2022, more Cartoon Cartoons were announced. The next seven shorts include The All-Nimal by Nick Edwards (of Apple & Onion and The Fungies!), Buttons' Gamezone by Fernando Puig (of The Cuphead Show!, Middlemost Post and Tig n' Seek), Tib Tub, We Need You by Sean Godsey and Mike Rosenthal, I Love You Jocelyn by Tracey Laguerre, Pig in a Wig by Sam Marin (of Regular Show), The Good Boy Report (based on the webcomic of the same name) by Kasey Williams (of Niko and the Sword of Light and Harley Quinn) and Maude Macher and Dom Duck by Kali Fontecchio (of The Looney Tunes Show and Jellystone!).
On March 21, 2024, GiAnna Ligammari (of Niko and the Sword of Light and Inside Job) announced a Cartoon Cartoons short ISCREAM created by her. Four days after, the short was announced as being completed. Violane Briat (of Craig of the Creek and The Loud House) would also announce a Cartoon Cartoons short, Madison and Skylar created by her. The shorts were showcased in a screening on April 25, 2024. The short The All-Nimal was shown at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 11, 2024. A panel for the shorts was also hosted at San Diego Comic-Con on July 25, 2025.
In addition to the aforementioned shorts, six more unannounced shorts, A For Angel by Chime Merra, Duck by Mic Graves and Tony Hull (both of The Amazing World of Gumball and Elliott from Earth), Foools by Seo Kim (of Adventure Time) and Steve Manale (of Summer Camp Island), Mandie Mander by Nick Bachman (of Sanjay and Craig and Yo Gabba Gabba!), Sleeping Giants by Maha Tabikh (of Apple and Onion and Pinky Malinky), and The Journey to Donut Palace by Somvilay Xayaphone (of Adventure Time and Summer Camp Island) were revealed and completed by 2023-2024, with footage and art being leaked online.
These Cartoon Cartoons shorts were never aired on Cartoon Network, and initially, the studio had no plans to release them after production of new shorts ceased in 2024. However, Warner Bros. Television's YouTube channel began to release the shorts every Monday, starting with A For Angel on January 26, 2026. Warner Bros. TV's YouTube channel also used the Cartoon Cartoons label to release shorts previously unreleased from Cartoon Network Shorts Department produced from 2017 to 2021 including Afternoon Super by Ben Crouse (of Pickle and Peanut and Young Love) and Jacob Sluka (of Close Enough), Bird & Squirrel by James Burks (of Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! and Ni Hao, Kai-Lan), Greetings from Samson by Tiffany Ford (of Craig of the Creek and Steven Universe), OutRunners by Ashe Jacobson and Adam Ganse (of Glitch Techs), Turtle Rock by Jeff Liu (of Steven Universe) and Unlovable by Esther Pearl Watson and Mark Todd.
List of shorts Title Created by Original premiere(s) Running time Animation by A For Angel Chime Merra (Online) 7 minutes Saerom Animation Accordions Geoffrey & Mary MelodicaComputer animationBased on the web series of the same name. Louie Zong (Online) 2 minutes Louie Zong Afternoon Super Label only; produced as part of Cartoon Network Shorts Department. Ben Crouse and Jacob Sluka (Online) 10 minutes Rough Draft Korea Bird & SquirrelBased off the children's book series of the same name. James Burks (CFF Seattle)February 25, 2024(Workprint)(Online) 8 minutes Studio Redfrog Buttons' Gamezone Fernando Puig (Online) 7 minutes Sunmin Image Pictures Dang! It's Dracula Levon Jihanian (Online) 6 minutes DuckAdult animationComputer animation Mic Graves and Tony Hull (Online) 8 minutes Saffronic and Nancy Parczyk FooolsStop-motion animation mixed with computer animationPreschool short Seo Kim and Steve Manale (Online) Louie Zong, Nick Cross, Seo Kim and Nick Jennings Fruit Stand at the End of the World Rachel Liu (Online) 2 minutes Rachel Liu and Jason Merrin Greetings from SamsonBased on the webcomic Samson at Work. Tiffany Ford (Online) 8 minutes Rough Draft Korea Harmony in Despair Andrew Dickman (Online) 7 minutes Yowza! Animation Hungy GhostAdult animation Jesse Moynihan (Online) Saerom Animation I Love You, Jocelyn Tracey Laguerre (Online) ISCREAM GiAnna Ligammari (Online) Madison and Skylar Violaine Briat (Online) Victor Courtright Mandie ManderPreschool short Nick Bachman (Online) Edward Artinian, Ye Aung and Hal Newman Maude Macher and Dom Duck Kali Fontecchio (Online) 2 minutes Saerom Animation Mouthwash MadnessAdult animation Lisa Vandenberg (Online) 7 minutes Off the Menu Shavonne Cherry (Online) Yowza! Animation OutRunners Ashe Jacobson and Adam Ganse (Online) 8 minutes Tiger Animation Pig in a Wig Sam Marin (Online) 7 minutesSaerom Animation Scaredy Cat JJ Villard (Online)Weird Beard, Inc. Sleeping Giants Maha Tabikh (Online)Saerom Animation The All-Nimal Nick Edwards (Annecy)(Online)6 minutesSaerom Animation, Nick Edwards and Dominik Johann The Good Boy Report Kasey Williams (Online)2 minutesAbby Goss The Journey to Donut Palace Somvilay Xayaphone (Online) 7 minutes Saerom Animation Tib Tub, We Need You! Sean Godsey and Mike Rosenthal (Online) Turtle Rock Jeff Liu (Online) 10 minutes Sunmin Image Pictures UnlovableBased on the comic strip of the same name.Adult animation Esther Pearl Watson and Mark Todd (Online) 11 minutes Rough Draft Korea Unravel Alexis Sugden (Online) 2 minutes Alexis Sugden
Promotions In June 1999, Cartoon Network began promoting its Cartoon Cartoons lineup with an advertising campaign to draw in viewership for its new Friday-night block Cartoon Cartoon Fridays, which was targeted toward viewers aged 6 to 11. Marketing included brand partnerships with General Mills, Hasbro, and Pepperidge Farm as well as an on-air sweepstakes and an 11-market live touring event. Advertisements appeared on television, radio, online, in movie theaters, at Six Flags theme parks, and billboards among other media with the tagline "You with us?".