Nickelodeon vs. Cartoon Network: The Battle of Nostalgia

[Michael the Spikester]

There's no denying and without a doubt that both these cartoon companies had a rivalry back in the 90s and still continuing on to this day which is why I decided to create this thread and ask this question.

In terms of growing up watching as a kid and the shows both had. We're you more of a Nickelodeon kid or a Cartoon Network kid?

 

[KneeOfJustice99]

I was, and still am, a CN kid. Whilst I know of Nick, CN has weirdly stuck with me - be it in the form of shows like Ben 10, or even [adult swim] stuff like Aqua Teen Hunger Force and the like, it's a hella cool thing to me.

SCREAMS IN TOONAMI

 

[Wario Wario Wario]

Speaking just cartoons...

CN are more consistant, they have few duds, but when Nick makes a good show it's usually much better than most of CN's stuff.

Nick are better at preserving their earlier shows, wheras CN are better at introducing new shows. You can find all of Nick's toons, even stuff they screwed over like Making Fiends, on Amazon - but there's a lot of shows they screwed over. On the other hand, CN have barely screwed over any shows - but good luck legally finding the ones they did. (Robot Jones, Sheep in the Big City)

Nick also provide a lot of new content for fans of those old shows to enjoy (even if at the expense of new shows) through merchandise; crossover games; and social media engagement, wheras CN are hyperfixated on promoting their newest shows and have never really gone anywhere with their attempts to build a "Classics" brand and mostly rely on Hanna-Barbera for that nostalgia fix. CN focus on expanding recently-ended properties like SU and AT while the fandom is is still clamouring for more.

They're pretty equal to be frank, but as a retro nut I have a preferance for Nick, even if I grew up as more of a CN kid.

 

[Kirby Dragons]

I grew up with Ben 10, and Regular Show is my favorite cartoon of all time. So my answer should be obvious.

 

[YoshiandToad]

Cartoon Network was home to some of my most cherished childhood cartoon memories, such as Courage the Cowardly Dog, Dexter's Lab, Cow and Chicken, Powerpuff Girls, Samurai Jack, Johnny Bravo, Megas XLR and my absolute favourite of all time, Ed, Edd n Eddy, a show so good I consider it's movie one of the greatest animated finales of all time.

Their newer stuff isn't too bad either, Gumball, Adventure Time, The Looney Tunes Show and Steven Universe were all addictive enough to binge and ya know what? I'd even say Teen Titans Go has it's moments where it shines surprisingly bright.

Comparatively I enjoyed Hey Arnold, CatDog, Angry Beavers, Rugrats and Fairly Odd Parents but none of them stood out as must watches for me...outside Kenan and Kel and Avatar anyway.

 

[Butters Stotch]

For the most part, I grew up with Nickelodeon. SpongeBob, Drake & Josh, and later Big Time Rush (the theme song was so good) were the shows I frequented the most.

For some reason, I didn't actually watch Cartoon Network until circa 2011. I don't know if it's because I wasn't aware of it or if my cable didn't have it, but one day at a friend's house, I was channel surfing and came across the channel. Regular Show was playing and the first thing I saw was Rigby getting pushed off the microwave and disintegrating.

Strangely enough, that episode was what kickstarted my viewings of Cartoon Network and my love of Regular Show, my favorite show on the channel. While older shows like Edd, Edd N Eddy and Johnny Bravo were long gone by that time, I did have access to some of their more modern shows like Adventure Time and Gumball, which I thoroughly enjoy. From then on, viewings of both channels were pretty even if my memory is correct.

Funny how a one-off moment led to all of this.

 

[osby]

As a kid, I was more into Nickledoen shows like Spongebob, Rugrats, Wild Thornberries, CatDog, and Real Monsters.

As a teenager, I was far, far more into Cartoon Network. I watched so many of the shows to completion, especially Ben 10, Adventure Time, Regular Show, Steven Universe, Flapjack, and Powerpuff Girls.

 

[Tankman from Newgrounds]

You know, I used to grow up more on Cartoon Network than Nickelodeon.
Plus, I watched Courage the Cowardly Dog, Powerpuff Girls, Ben 10, Generator Rex, Gumball and Regular Show for examples.

I also watched Nickelodeon shows, but I find Cartoon Network shows more appealing to me.