A cartoon’s theme song tends to be one of the most memorable parts of the cartoon itself; chances are you’re already humming a particular tune to yourself even if you can’t remember anything about the show. That’s where we come in! Not only have we rounded up the very best in 80s cartoon theme songs for your listening and viewing pleasure, we’ve included some deep cuts pulled from the dark corners of TV history that you might barely remember or might never have seen at all.
To be clear, these cartoons had to have a substantial run in the 1980s to be considered “80s Cartoons”; sorry,The Simpsons. Also, there had to be some sort of lyrical song, noticeable theme, or anything other than the straight-up exposition style in the intro, like the ones used in these disqualified series:The Centurions,Dino-Riders,He-Man and the Masters of the Universe,She-Ra: Princess ofPower,SkyCommanders,Thundarr the Barbarian,Turbo Teen,Blackstar,G-Force Guardians of Space,Sectaurs.(These were tough cuts, believe me.)
Some entries joined the list based on pure, audacious style, like my buddy Overlord up there from the easily missed series,Spiral Zone. Some other honorable mentions thatdidn’tmake the cut include:The Littles,Galaxy High,Mister T,The Incredible Hulk, andPopples, though I’m sure I missed a few of your favorites along the way. You might think you know your 80s cartoons, but you haven’t seenanythingyet!
Even the best cartoon can be sunk by a bad theme song, and vice versa. The following 10 shows feature some of the “So Bad, It’s Good” theme songs ever to come out of the 80s. There are certainly some obscure references here, but give them a listen regardless. You should be delightedly at how awesomely bad these really are!
Here’s how the Top 3 in this category panned out:
3)Defenders of the Earth
2)SilverHawks
1)Spiral Zone
48.) Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light
(1987) 13 Episodes
Visionariesknows that repeating the name of the title and mumbling incoherently is the key to success. Take that, science!
47.) Pole Position
(1984-85) 13 Episodes
The only thing better than repeating the show’s title is screaming it at the top of your hair-metal lungs, straining the vocal chords to hit the ultimate sour note.
46.) InHumanoids
(1986) 13 Episodes
Seeing a pattern yet? This time, however, the title is growled at you, perhaps by a youngVin Diesel.
45.) BraveStarr
(1987-89) 65 Episodes
More atonal repetition of the show’s title and rushed, unintelligible gibberish delivering exposition. “Strength of the BEAR, The Bear, the bear!”
44.) Fantastic Max
(1988-91) 26 Episodes
We finally get an actual song for this one, but in addition to the fact that it’s weirdly obsessed with “four-ply diapers and that safety pin”, it’s just not great, Bob.
43.) Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling
(1985-86) 25 Episodes
Oh yeah, brother! A strange blend of live-action and animation–and chants of Hulk! Hulk!–make this one unforgettable, no matter how hard we try.
42.) Bigfoot and the Muscle Machines
(1985) Miniseries
When you want your heroes to be “big, bad, dirty, and mean” and also monster trucks.
41.) Ulysses 31
(1981) 27 Episodes
I honestly have no clue what Space Jesus and his lightsaber are doing in this cartoon, but the synth is real. And rhyming Ulysses with galaxies? Mwah!
40.) Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors
(1985) 65 Episodes
This one gets an A for effort and hitting the high notes, sadly marking the beginning of the end for these “so bad they’re good” songs and toeing into “actually good” territory.
