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7 ’90s Fox Kids Animated Shows That Need a Reboot in 2026
If you grew up in the 90s, there were essentially two blocks of television that were must-watch each and every single week, and those were Fox Kids and TGIF. While there’s much to explore in the TGIF lineup as well, for this trip down memory lane, we are focusing on Fox Kids and highlighting which 7 animated shows from its lineup need a reboot in 2026.
5. Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot
When you think of Frank Miller, a number of iconic projects likely come to mind, but one you might have forgotten is also part of the talented creator’s extensive catalog. That would be the Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot comic series from Miller and Geof Darrow, and it was turned into a Fox Kids series in 1999 and ran for two seasons.
The series is based around a robot known as Big Guy, which is actually a powerful mech suit guided by Dwayne Hunter. Quark Industries successfully creates a robot with a real AI named Rusty to replace Hunter, but he ends up becoming more of a sidekick to Big Guy due to how inexperienced he is. The two make a fun team, and while the series was rough around the edges, it had a lot of heart and some real potential that could benefit from a modern revamp.
4. Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century
Another overlooked series in the Fox Kids lineup was Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century, and as its name suggests, it followed the famous detective and his robotic ally Watson as they try to track down the clone of their greatest enemy, Moriarty.
The series was more mature than expected, and included tense moments and fun banter between the main heroes, including Holmes, Watson, and Inspector Beth Lestrade. Fans of the Sherlock character will get a kick out of this particular iteration, and moving him to a future era shook things up and gave the franchise a fresh look and feel. Even with the dated computer graphics, it still captures the high-tech vibe well, and with modern effects, it could be something pretty cool for fans of the franchise if it were to get a second run.
3. The Tick
Few shows feel like they embody Fox Kids more than The Tick thanks to its combination of self-aware comedy and off-the-wall superhero action. The show’s roster of oddball characters alone is worth the price of admission, but it’s really the dynamic between Tick and Arthur that consistently steals the show.
Over the course of the series, not only is it hilarious to see Tick deal with the mundane challenges of regular day life, but the villains are delightfully absurd, with Chairface Chippendale, The Terror, and the Evil Midnight Bomber What Bombs at Midnight all getting their chance to shine throughout. Even in a crowded superhero space at the time, The Tick always stood on its own and felt like it was marching to the beat of its own drum, and it would be wonderful to see the animated series soar once more.
2. Animaniacs
This is the only entry on this list that has already received a revival, which happened in 2020, and that series is Animaniacs. The Animaniacs returned and ended up running for three seasons, but it wasn’t a completely smooth revival.
While Yak, Wakko, and Dot returned alongside Pinky and the Brain, a lot of favorites from the original were missing outside of a random cameo or two. Slappy and Skippy Squirrel, Chicken Boo, Bobby, Squit, and Pesto, The Mime, Buttons and Mindy, and more weren’t heavily featured or featured at all in the new series, and even Pinky and the Brain was a bit more divisive than the original. If it were to get another run, having more of the original characters back in the fold would be a big win, especially if the comedy can find the right balance between off-the-wall shenanigans and topical commentary.
1. Spider-Man: The Animated Series
While X-Men: The Animated Series has been revived thanks to X-Men ’97, another ’90s Marvel staple has yet to make a return to the screen. That would be Spider-Man: The Animated Series, which has been brought back as a comic series but hasn’t received a revival or continuation on the small screen, though it absolutely should.
The series brought some of Spider-Man’s all-time stories to life for a new audience, and it captured the tone of not only Spidey but his extensive list of iconic rogues perfectly. This would be a great candidate to bring back, and following the blueprint for X-Men and picking up the story from where the series left off seems like a winning strategy.
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