User blog:Jamesgrout/Astonishing Animation no. 21: Top 10 best cartoon episodes for relying on cultural references

Previous one here: https://bigmouth.fandom.com/wiki/User_blog:Jamesgrout/Astonishing_Animation_no._20:_%22Rankings%22,_Big_Mouth

Cultural references, often they can be seen as a cheap way around things, an easy form of humour where you refer to work that has been created by somebody else, however, at other times, it probably can't be helped if you enjoy the familiarity of these things and being reminded of them, or have them presented to you in different ways. One day, it occurred to me that there are episodes of a fair few cartoons that are made up of cultural references, and I have noticed enough that use them well, have good reason for them or have them well integrated so as to be able to make a top 10 best list for cartoon episodes of this description.

So here's how this works, there aren't a whole load of cartoon episodes that are plain made up of cultural references, these episodes tend to mostly rely on them though. So, to qualify, the concept of the episode at least needs to be open to using a lot of cultural references, said references with how they are used will be a major thing that makes the episode, as in the reason why it's good. The episodes can of course have other things that make them good, otherwise there wouldn't be too many eligible entries.

Although I say "rely", the references might not be the MAIN thing that makes every one of them stand out, but one thing that's for sure is that it will be the episode of its cartoon that uses most of them.

It's a key factor how the cultural references are used of course, or the way they're brought up, but they can't be the only good thing to say about the episode. Let's take, for example, "One False Movie" from Fosters Home For Imaginary Friends, where they make a movie which hilariously doesn't make sense and it references many other movies in a way that's actually more clever, but it's about Bloo taking ownership of Macs project, supposed to be following a brief but Bloo takes advantage of the fact that Mac isn't able to do it without him and makes it something entirely different, and even if he gets comeuppance in the end, Mac still suffers too by being left without an allowance. So the episode owns those cultural references but the story of the episode aside from them isn't actually so good, it was a contender for the list, but couldn't stay long in the running.

While on the topic of Fosters, I have already written a blog post about "Challenge of the Superfriends",https://fostershomeforimaginaryfriends.fandom.com/wiki/User_blog:Jamesgrout/Astonishing_Animation_no._14_%22Challenge_of_the_Super_Friends%22,_Fosters_Home_for_Imaginary_Friends, which would have a place on this list, but I had to do it separately because there was so much more to say about it, I'll say where it ranks on the list when I get there.

Cartoons of which every episode, or nearly every episode is a parody of something have an unfair advantage and can't be included, cartoons like Rick and Morty or Codename: Kids Next Door.

After the list, please stay tuned for a Top 3 runners up, for episodes that couldn't quite qualify but still had to be mentioned as in relation to this topic.

Number 10:
"Nursery Crimes", The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy

Billy can't sleep and phones Mandy to read him a bedtime story, She tells he and Grim her nasty version of Humpty Dumpty (not that the original version is all that nice), Billy has his own story but then Grim puts the two kids within his own story, made up of different fairy-tales.

This is a comedy show so there isn't too much I can say without ruining jokes, but the way they mess with fairy-tales is really some of the funniest humour in this show, and this show is genuinely hilarious, when it isn't too dark and sadistic. The way they mess with the happenings in Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, the witch from Hansel and Gretel always made me laugh, in some cases, they stop the bad things that happen in the original tales. Also with Billy meeting Pinocchio, but this version having the only way he can become a real boy being to eat human flesh, making him a villain.

The use of Pinocchio was so memorable he had to appear again, this time with Gepetto, in a later episode, along with how Billy can't pronounce their names properly, I always wondered if they could have done the same with Stromboli, but I don't think he ever appeared in this show.

In a similar world is The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XI segment "Scary Tales can Come True" and I almost considered doing them a joint, but what this episode implies about having kids, it isn't actually good enough.

The only reason this is at #10 is because of the ending, as Grim has fallen asleep and can't get them out of the book, although it is good when it doesn't end well for Mandy, the way she says "some day, you will all pay" always creeped me out a bit too much, but it's still on the list because that was typical for this show really and sure, they had to end it on the tone of rhymes.

Number 9:
"Art Attack", Courage the Cowardly Dog

I was aged 5-8 when this show was on TV, only an under-developed attention span but I did watch it, I wouldn't remember much of it from then until rewatching years, even a decade, later, but there are just a few episodes I do remember seeing when it was 1st on TV, there aren't many so it implies that, if I did, they must be good, and yes, this is one of them.

Courage, Muriel and Eustace visit an art museum, quite some time before Night at the Museum, but the exhibits come to life when Courage looks at them through a camera. The main characters focused on here are the Mona Lisa and The Thinker. It begins in Courage style with a bit of creepiness, when the exhibits first move, scaring Courage as he usually is, Muriel and Eustace are then trapped in their places as they come out. Once they start to interact though, it becomes one of the non scary Courage episodes, more fun and playful as Mona wants to get together with Thinker, but he just thinks too much about it, just hanging out seems tempting, for instance, but to be fair, they hadn't really gotten to speak before so it could be awkward (he's much more flirty in Night at the Museum 2).

The way for Courage to save his owners (or Muriel anyway) in this episode is to appease the art exhibits so they'll go back in their places, The Thinker won't stop questioning everything much to Monas dismay so, Courage needs to get the man from The Kiss to just go straight for her. They then get back home through a painting of their house, Eustace getting his dues as usual.

Number 8:
"Don't Touch that Dial" or "Episode 257-494", Teen Titans

In one of the more comical episodes of Teen Titans, Control Freak wants to take over TV, once the others realize that Beast Boy isn't kidding about this. They enter the world inside the TV and have to catch the villain as they hop across multiple channels to stop him using it to take control of everybody's minds.

A beautifully simple episodes but we're here for the references, channels include either spoofs of or identical depictions of Star Wars, the Looney Tunes, I'm pretty sure Scooby Doo is in there, James Bond, The Matrix, Terminator, I can hardly list them all.

This is the episode that made me think I could make this list and encouraged me to look for more, just a simple and fun episode to talk about.

Number 7:
"Aku's Fairy-tales", Samurai Jack

As the last episode of season 2, Jack has been fighting Aku long enough for people to no longer fear Aku, at least not the new generations, while the older generations have lived through too much suffering from Aku's rule, the kids are no longer afraid.

Jack doesn't appear in this episode as himself, but rather as depictions in Aku's stories, as it's very interesting how it is now Akju's turn to struggle, to get the kids to be more on board with him, doing this with, of course, fairy-tales, even the all powerful Aku having a struggle, you get what this says I'm sure.

He tries to depict Jack as a big bad samurai and has different ways of telling stories like Little Red Riding Hood (2nd appearance on this list), Goldilocks where he tries to convince them that Jack is bad and shouldn't be supported. Of course, it's not like we're watching this episode supporting Aku, hoping he will manipulate their minds, but as such an interesting turn for the cartoon against what's already a pretty high standard for its episodes generally, it is something to be admired.

Number 6:
Headhunters", Gravity Falls

It's only the 3rd episode of this legendary masterpiece, only 40 episodes and yet so many great stand outs worth talking about and here's one now. Dipper, Mable and Soos discover a room with a lot of wax figures locked inside, depicting, of course, real people or characters, Sherlock Homes, Queen Elizabeth II, Robin Hood, Thomas Edison, William Shakespeare, I couldn't list them all but they aren't the only well known ones.

These guys are the focus of this episode, the anomalies' that take centre stage for this Gravity Falls adventure, they come to life, cut the head off Wax Stan, a murder mystery type of feel which I feel I shouldn't go into too much detail in the plot, just in case (if you haven't seen it yet, either you're a bit young or you're just not looking in the right places, still though). It's not really a focus on whodunnit though, that part is pretty obvious when you think about it, still though, I won't spoil it. When you realize it's obvious though, you also realize it's a great fun story, and how much Wax Stan meant to real Stan, well paced and a great suspenseful tone.

So, they come to life, present the personalities of the people they are wax figures of and reveal their backstory of coming from a haunted garage sale.

Number 5:
"Angry Dad: The Movie", The Simpsons

There might be debate if I'm missing a Simpsons episode with more cultural references but this one is such a stand out for me. First of all, of course, for a second appearance of Angry Dad, now taken to awards for the best animated short film.

What's so great about it is that by focusing on short films, there is actually more material to use than you'd think, we have a parody of Pixar called "Mixar", Randy Newman sings "You've Got An Enemy", Luxo the lamp comes, so does some version of Mr Potato Head (I get excited to see Pixar referenced at the average time, so how about this, eh?), there's Wallace and Gromit parodied, meeting Nick Park himself, and others too. Now, some of the short films like Mixar's condaments, the short film viewings are what the episode focuses on and though "Condiments" isn't a reference to anything, just the film that Mixar made, them being the reference, it still has enough references to support it like the various Pixar characters appearing like I said earlier. It's all still cultural reference supported, well enough.

Homer might not have been especially delighted by it, but I'd say he should be prouder, shame he had to be kept away.

Number 4:
"The Hunchbudgie of Notre Dame", Count Duckula

So, yeah, you already have a novel and Disney film referenced in the title, this may imply it's just a parody but there is more. As Count Duckula, Igor and Nanny travel to France in their teleporting castle, there are art theifs about, but Duckula wants to learn about art. There are different kinds of art like impressionist, we get some literal impressions alongside.

The gang also go into an art museum, to be tricked into being accused of being the art thieves, so the real ones can get away with it, but we see the Mona Lisa (2nd appearance on this list) alongside other famous art works, briefly, but still appearing, except they're in bird form. This is a cartoon where all characters are different birds, so they show us something different through this, which is very admirable to me, even if it is only brief.

Meanwhile, Nanny has been taken away by the Hunchbudgie, who wants to keep her for company, due to her beautiful voice I believe. But Duckula is dependant on Nanny, as much of a hilarious clumsy one she is.

So, references of lots of things closely related to Paris, a good amount squeezed in and made use of all they need to be, alongside a shows general great humour, adventurousness and plot with lots of great twists and turns and lots going on juggled so well, that they always do in their single episodes, makes for a top quality episode in my book.

Number 3:
"The Blame", The Amazing World of Gumball

The cultural references of this episode are mostly done in a song, and you've got to love a song in a TV episode, haven't you? That's what puts this episode in the top 3.

Starting though, with Billy being introduced to video games, so overwhelmed with joy (before even past the loading screen), but the overload of joy includes snippets of many well know video games. The premise being that Billy's mum, Felicity is a horrible snob disapproving of things like video games. Once Gumball tries to convince her not to ban them, in video game style, losing all 3 of his lives there.

They keep fighting against the machine before the kids, all working together (that's one of the other best things about the episode) look into books to see if they can be violent as well, this leads us into that song, the different ways books are violent and "can be as bad as video games", here's what makes the episode stand out, a good message linking to open mindedness, like Little red Riding Hood (3rd appearance on the list), a wolf dresses up like a girls grandma. There's also, Oliver Twist, Alice In Wonderland, some elaborated on in accordance with the aim of the episode, some in brief snippets, Harry Potter, Lord of the Flies, The Tortoise and the Hare.

There's also Romeo and Juliet, where we get a small Gumball and Penny moment, where they act out taking the poison at the same time, that alone can make an episode worthy of any top 3, 3rd place at the lowest, but where this has to be about cultural references mainly, 2 have to rank higher.

Number 2:
'''"Fairly Odd Parents Channel Chasers"

A TV movie on the list? I know, nobody would do this normally but, come on, whatever the rules are, or should be, you can't have a countdown with 'best' and 'cultural references' in the title and not include Channel Chasers. Honestly, the fact that they have a whole TV movie basically dedicated to cultural references is enough to bring this to the #2 spot.

It could have been "Shelf Life", where they chase Tom Sawyer through different books like Moby Dick, but the premise of that episode is kids being forced to work over summer holidays, going unpunished and no kid should have to do that, so it couldn't be on the list.

His parents furious at him for accidents, with major consequences, so still understandable, now on top of always being left with Vicky, Timmy decided to leave the real world and enter the world of TV. When they say "Channels" in this, they seem to be referring to TV shows. Vicky finds her way in as well and now Timmy has to catch her.

The movie focuses on the fact that Timmy will one day grow up and not have his fairies forever (before the live action ones that didn't do it very well, so I hear) and Timmy meets an adult version of himself, in the Batman channel, where, as Timmy says, "on this Channel, the good guy always wins", so what they bring out as rules for each "channel" on this episode is another very engaging aspect. Also, adult Timmy doesn't know who Cosmo and Wanda are, adding to the theme and the emotion, and also never got braces for some reason. But it's definitely the different shows they go through that are the main event, including The Simpsons, which is recognized for adults being dumb within it, Ned Flanders, Krusty, among others, so this affects adult Timmy too, in a different way that kid Timmy isn't the brightest.

I'm pretty sure there is also Boos Clues in there and others and they do the different animation styles of all of them, or in some cases puppets and it was always just brilliant.

It raises the stakes when it gets to the stage that the only way to save Cosmo and Wanda is for Timmy to forget about them, so he must keep pressing a button to age himself until he no longer knows who they are (I can't explain this, you'd have to see the movie).

The only way for Timmy's parents to apologize is to broadcast a video apology, this is of course, the only way Timmy could see this within the TV, so it's heart warming at the end but it also included Tooty revealing Vicky's true colours to them. Timmy, in the end, has no choice but to wish everybody's memories erased so the series status quo can be restored, but this is normal in any case.

Since I've included a TV movie on my Cultural References list, I would have to mention South Park: Imagination Land. It wouldn't make the list though because I don't think it's all that great by South Park standards, the testicle sucking element is a bit too weird, and not really the good kind of weird.

Fairly Odd Parents knew how to use their TV movies, another is a musical, "Schools Out".

"Challenge of the Superfriends" of Fosters Home for Imaginary Friends ranks above Channel Chasers, it is the actual number 2, for great superhero action among other things.

And Number 1 is:
"Road to the Multiverse", Family Guy

Stewie introduces Brian to his multiverse transporter. So they travel to all different universe variations and this is just the best episode for all the different possibilities of different universes it showcases, not all of them are cultural references, no, but all that it opens up to. The selling point is the wide variety of them but, we get The Flintstones, Pac Man in the title sequence, The Disney Verse and this is where different Disney characters are references, like Meg clearly being Ursula, The evil queen from Snow White, most of them talking animals which could refer to any Disney film.

Even if what makes the episode is the wide variety of the universes and not all of them are cultural reference centred, it opens to many of them and makes good use of the ones that are there.

There is also Robot Chicken, post war cartoons of some sort and when you never know what is coming next, that is what makes the best in my book, simple as, even if it does stop when they get to the dog-verse, but it did need to have something of a conflict in the end and not all just be about random universe hopping but my, this is my favourite Family Guy episode and has to be the best for the most cultural reference centred in it's cartoon.

Now for the Top 3 runners up:

3rd Place Runner Up
'''"My Fair Mandy". The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy'''

The same show starting off this list as well. Now, it isn't made of Cultural Reference, it just has 2 at the end, but they are a big 2 and they are very impactful and so had to be mentioned. This is Mandy singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", and when she smiles and breaks reality, there is the legendary, unforgettably outrageous moment where Billy, Mandy and Grim become The PowerPuff Girls...

2nd Place Runner Up
Family Guy, The Entire Show

I found a place to celebrate this, the way Family Guy lampoon culture is unforgettable and they really know how to use them, they were always such a fresh take. Randomness, love or hate, they frequently entertained people and owned cultural references like the bill singing on the stairs being collected by a litter picker, Peter jumping into the Scrooge McDuck vault to find it's not like jumping into water as it works for Scrooge, the Cookie Monster in rehab, some good ones could still be evidenced even in some of the later worst episodes like "Herpe the Love Sore", you could still have Peter drink Spinach like Pop Eye only to find it watery.

I think their favourite ones were Charlie Brown and The Peanuts, Kermit the Frog, other Muppets too but mostly Kermit, and The Wizard of Oz. You'd also have to admit they were right a lot of the time, like "I think I'll miss you most of all Scarecrow", yeah, how DO you explain or justify that?

Speaking of which, one more episode of Family Guy more made of cultural references is "Grimm Job", that's almost too simple though as just telling different fairy-tales with the characters playing the parts, and there's one other I know that does the same, "Fairly Odd Fairy-Tales", from Fairly Odd Parents.

If I could have just had Family Guy the entire show on the list, it would be in the place just under "The Blame".

Speaking of all this, which things seemed to have had the most mentions and appearances on this list? I've helped you with some.

1st Place Runner Up
"The Cat Concerto", Tom and Jerry

It's just one cultural reference so couldn't be on main list, but it takes up the whole episode as Tom plays the well known piano piece, Franz Liszt's "Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, and it's pure Tom and Jerry slapstick with some of their renowned unforgettably hilarious facial expressions and body language. Tom plays the piece and Jerry gets in the way and they fight whilst playing it, giving each other different obstacles. You can't analyse Tom and Jerry, that's one thing that makes it my favourite cartoon series, but here's one episode I can talk about somewhat and a place to talk about it.

Phew, the next one will be another Fosters one if you'd join me.