Roger Pavelle's Top Ten Toon List

1. "Pinocchio"
   As I said in my top 10 movie list, this is simply the best animated movie ever made. The animation is phenominal, the story is solid and enjoyable by both adults and younger people, the music is classic. Nothing else compares.
   
   
2. "Fantasia"
   This comes close to Pinocchio in terms of animation quality (after all, they were done back to back), but drags during the Beethoven's 6th/Rite of Spring segments. Still, it was totally original and the first movie ever made in stereo (for you trivia buffs).
   
   
3. Scooby Doo
   I don't know anyone who doesn't like Scooby Doo (and if someone disagrees, you're wrong!!!).

   Tim comments: I don't disagree unless you include the dreaded "Scrappy Doo" years.
   
   

4. Animaniacs
   I have to agree with Tim on this one...Animaniacs can be pure pleasure, mixing classic cartoon situations with a twisted modern bent.
   
   
5. Tom and Jerry
   I'm talking about the classics from the 40s or 50s produced by Fred Quimby. They had everything you look for in a cartoon and are still hilarious.
   
   
6. South Park
   An animated series for adults that has no compunction or sense of restraint. It is a refreshing breath of something that was missing before this came along (I think my favorite episode is still "Pink Eye" , the first Halloween episode. Everything works, down to Chef's turning into Michael Jackson and Cartman's mom on the cover of Crack Whore magazine).

   There are two animated series that have stuck with me since I was around 5 or 6, but I haven't seen or heard anything about since then. They are Gigantor and Prince Planet . [If anyone knows where I can get copies of these shows, please send me an email and I will be incredibly grateful.]
   
   

7. Schoolhouse Rock
   You remember those fillers between the Saturday Morning cartoons. Who is unable to recite the Preamble to the Constitution or give examples of Conjunctions, Exclamations, or tell the steps it takes for a Bill to become a Law?
   
   
8. "Dark Crystal"
   I don't know if this counts as animation or not, but since there are no actual people on the screen I'll stretch the definition. This film showed better than anything else how much Jim Henson was able to do with his Muppets. You could sit and watch the film in awe of those accomplishments if it weren't for the fact that you get so caught up in the story you sometimes forget that they are muppets and not people.

   Tim comments: I don't know weather to call this animation or not. I suppose that works better than creating a category for Muppet Movies, which would force you to choose "The Muppets Take Manhattan".

By the way, I intentionally left off all the Looney Toons cartoons because I can't remember titles for most of them and don't want to feel like I'm missing one or twenty (not to mention trying to list them by description of the story or particular scenes).

p.s. When I was really young my brother and I had a album of Disney songs that ended with The Three Little Pigs. I have never actually seen the cartoon (which is why it isn't on the list above) but this deserves an honorable mention since it works wonderfully just as an audio story. I really don't know how much the animation can add to it.