"animation"

2018 · Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman · 117 min · Animation / Action

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse took a character audiences thought they knew inside out and found something completely new to say about him. It built a visual language that no animated film had attempted before, grounded it in a coming-of-age story with real emotional weight, and delivered one of the best superhero films in a genre that was already overflowing with them. A handful of side characters deserved more screen time and the villain could have been sharper, but those are footnotes in a film that won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and convinced millions of people that animation could redefine what a comic book movie looks like.

2001 · Hayao Miyazaki · 125 min · Animation / Fantasy

Spirited Away is one of those rare films that earns every bit of its reputation. Hayao Miyazaki built a world so vivid and strange that it feels like stepping into someone else's dream, and then he grounded the whole thing in a story about a scared kid learning to be brave. A small number of viewers bounce off the loose narrative structure or find themselves confused by the spirit world's unexplained rules, but the overwhelming majority walk away calling it one of the best animated films ever made. It won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for a reason, and twenty-five years later, nothing in animation has quite replicated what it does.

1999 · Brad Bird · 86 min · Animation / Sci-Fi

Brad Bird made a film about a boy and a giant robot that manages to be funnier, smarter, and more emotionally devastating than most live-action dramas twice its length. The animation is gorgeous, the voice cast nails every beat, and the story asks questions about identity and choice that resonate with adults just as powerfully as they do with children. A thin villain and a predictable structure are real flaws, but they barely register against everything the film gets right. This is one of those rare movies that was ignored when it mattered and then slowly, stubbornly proved the world wrong.

2015 · Pete Docter, Ronnie del Carmen · 95 min · Animation / Comedy

Inside Out is Pixar firing on all cylinders, taking a high-concept premise about the emotions inside a child's head and turning it into something that hits harder than most live-action dramas. The world-building is endlessly inventive, the voice cast is perfectly matched to their roles, and the central message about the necessity of sadness lands with a force that catches most viewers off guard. A few criticisms stick, mainly that Riley herself feels underwritten and that the adventure plot follows a familiar path, but those feel like small complaints against a film that won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature and left entire theater audiences in tears. It's one of those rare animated films that earns its emotional payoff honestly.

1994 · Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff · 88 min · Animation / Drama

The Lion King earns its place among the greatest animated films ever made through sheer force of craft. Hans Zimmer's score and the Elton John songs give it a musical foundation that few animated movies have matched. The animation remains stunning, the voice cast is perfectly chosen, and Mufasa's death still hits like a freight train no matter how many times you've seen it. The second half can't quite sustain the brilliance of what comes before, and Simba's journey back to responsibility happens faster than it probably should. None of that keeps this from being the kind of movie that shapes how people think about animation for the rest of their lives.

1995 · John Lasseter · 81 min · Animation / Comedy

Toy Story took a massive creative gamble and won so completely that it reshaped an entire industry overnight. The first fully computer-animated feature film still works thirty years later because Pixar built it on a foundation of sharp writing, perfect voice casting, and a story about friendship and jealousy that connects on a gut level. The animation has aged and the plot is simpler than what the studio would go on to produce, but 81 minutes of this much charm, humor, and heart is hard to argue with. It launched a franchise, launched a studio, and proved that animated films could be just as smart and emotionally honest as anything made for adults.

2008 · Andrew Stanton · 98 min · Animation / Sci-Fi

WALL-E is one of Pixar's finest achievements, a film that communicates more through beeps and gestures than most movies manage with pages of dialogue. Its first act is a near-perfect piece of visual storytelling, and the love story at its center is among the most emotionally affecting romances in animation. The spaceship sequences don't quite match the brilliance of those early Earth scenes, and a few elements land with less nuance than the rest. But the highs here are so high that the dips barely register in the final accounting. It won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, and almost two decades later, nothing in animation has told a better love story with fewer words.

2003 · 7 Seasons · Adult Swim · Animated Comedy / Action-Adventure

The Venture Bros. spent seven seasons and a wrap-up film building one of the richest, funniest, and most emotionally rewarding universes in adult animation. Its character development puts most prestige dramas to shame, its comedy remains endlessly quotable, and its willingness to let characters truly change gave it a depth that no other superhero parody has matched. The long hiatuses between seasons tested patience, and the show's density makes it impenetrable for casual viewers, but for anyone willing to commit, this is one of the finest animated series ever produced.

2001 · 5 Seasons · Cartoon Network / Adult Swim · Animated Action-Adventure / Science Fantasy

Samurai Jack remains one of the most visually inventive animated series ever produced. Genndy Tartakovsky's masterful use of minimal dialogue, cinematic composition, and bold graphic design pushed the medium forward in ways that still haven't been surpassed. The original four seasons are nearly flawless in their execution. The revival's final season delivers darker themes and a satisfying character arc for Jack, but a rushed finale and uneven pacing in its back half prevent it from reaching the heights of what came before. As a complete work, this is still a landmark achievement in animated storytelling.

2012 · 2 Seasons · Disney Channel · Animation, Adventure, Comedy

Gravity Falls is a masterfully crafted animated series that layers genuine mystery, sharp humor, and emotional depth into a show that respects its audience regardless of age.

1992 · 2 Seasons · Fox · Animation, Action, Adventure

Batman: The Animated Series redefined what superhero animation could achieve, delivering mature storytelling, iconic voice performances, and a visual style that remains unmatched more than three decades later.

2023 · Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson · 140 min · Animation / Action

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse expands on its predecessor's visual revolution with animation so ambitious that each universe has its own art style, creating a film that looks like nothing else in cinema. Miles Morales' struggle between destiny and choice drives a narrative that's more emotionally complex than most live-action superhero films, and the action sequences push animation into territory that live-action physically cannot follow. The cliffhanger ending is the film's most divisive choice, leaving a complete emotional arc unresolved for a sequel.

2021 · 2 Seasons · Netflix · Animation / Action / Adventure / Fantasy

Arcane took a video game property that had no business producing great television and turned it into one of the most ambitious animated series in recent memory. Its first season is a near-flawless piece of character-driven storytelling, elevated by animation that redefined what the medium could look like. The second season reaches higher but stumbles with pacing that leaves too many threads feeling rushed. That's a real flaw in an otherwise remarkable achievement. Taken as a whole, this is a show that proved animated drama deserves the same respect as its live-action counterparts, and it earned every bit of the attention it received.

2017 · Lee Unkrich, Adrian Molina · 105 min · Animation / Fantasy / Comedy-Drama

Coco is Pixar operating at something close to full power, using the studio's technical brilliance and emotional precision to tell a story about family, memory, and what it means to truly disappear. The cultural authenticity gives it a specificity that most animated films lack, and the final act delivers the kind of gut-punch that Pixar has built its reputation on. A somewhat predictable villain reveal and a few too many familiar story beats keep it just short of the studio's absolute peak. But when Miguel sings to his great-grandmother in that final scene, none of that matters. You'll be too busy trying to hold it together.

2003 · Andrew Stanton · 100 min · Animation / Adventure / Comedy-Drama

Finding Nemo remains one of Pixar's finest achievements, a film that works as a colorful underwater adventure for kids and a surprisingly affecting meditation on parenthood and letting go for everyone else. Dory alone is worth the price of admission. The episodic structure keeps it from building the kind of sustained momentum that Pixar's very best films manage, and a few of the supporting characters fade into the background. But the emotional core, a terrified father learning that love means giving his kid room to fail, hits just as hard on the twentieth viewing as it did on the first.

2007 · Brad Bird · 111 min · Animation / Comedy

Ratatouille is Pixar operating at peak confidence, telling a story about a rat who wants to cook and somehow making it one of the most thoughtful animated films about creativity ever produced. The animation is stunning, Paris has never looked this good in any medium, and Anton Ego's climactic scene remains one of the most powerful moments in Pixar's entire catalog. Linguini is a bit of a blank slate and the romance never fully lands, but everything surrounding those weak spots is so assured and so smart that they barely register. It won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and earned over $620 million worldwide, and close to two decades later, it still holds up beautifully.

2019 · 3 Seasons · Adult Swim · Animation / Action / Horror / Drama

Primal is one of the most remarkable achievements in modern animation, a series that tells a deeply emotional story about grief, survival, and unlikely companionship without a single word of dialogue. Genndy Tartakovsky's visual storytelling is operating at a level that makes most animated shows look timid by comparison, and the bond between Spear and Fang is as affecting as any relationship on television. The second season's shift toward more fantastical elements divided some fans, and the relentless violence won't be for everyone. But when Primal is firing on all cylinders, there is nothing else like it on TV.

2021 · 4 Seasons · Amazon Prime Video · Superhero / Drama / Action

Invincible takes the familiar origin story of a teenager discovering superpowers and turns it into something brutal, complicated, and surprisingly moving. The voice cast, led by Steven Yeun, J.K. Simmons, and Sandra Oh, elevates every scene they touch, and the writing consistently finds ways to make superhero violence feel like it costs something. Animation quality dips too often for a show this popular, and pacing stumbles crop up across multiple seasons. Those flaws haven't stopped it from becoming one of the strongest superhero series in any medium, animated or otherwise. Four seasons in, with more on the way, Invincible keeps earning its place near the top.

2009 · Pete Docter, Bob Peterson · 96 min · Animation / Adventure

A film defined by the best ten minutes Pixar has ever produced, followed by an adventure that never quite reaches the same height. That opening sequence earns its place among the most emotionally powerful moments in animation, and the score alone justifies watching it twice. The adventure half is fun, colorful, and occasionally thrilling, even if it settles into more familiar territory. What saves the whole thing is Carl's emotional arc, which gives the action real stakes and real heart. It's a very good movie that happens to contain a great one inside it.

2022 · 3 Seasons · Adult Swim · Animation / Comedy / Absurdist

Smiling Friends packed more creative energy into its 11-minute episodes than most shows manage in an hour. The mixed-media animation was constantly surprising, the humor landed with the kind of density that rewards rewatching, and the show never lost the handmade quality that made it feel like nothing else on television. It ended after three seasons by choice rather than decline, which is the rarest kind of exit in animation. For a show about making people smile, it turned out to be pretty good at it.

2017 · 4 Seasons · Netflix · Animation / Action / Dark Fantasy / Horror

Castlevania did something the entire entertainment industry had spent decades failing at: it turned a video game into a great television show. Four seasons of gorgeous animation, morally complex characters, and action choreography that set a new standard for the medium. The pacing stumbles in the back half, particularly once Dracula exits the stage, and some storylines in seasons three and four feel stretched thin. But the highs are extraordinary, the character work is far deeper than anyone expected from a Konami adaptation, and the fight sequences alone are worth the price of entry. This is the show that proved video game stories could work on screen.

2019 · 2 Seasons · Amazon Prime Video · Animation / Drama / Fantasy / Comedy

Undone is one of the most visually inventive and thematically ambitious animated series of recent years, using its rotoscope technique not as a gimmick but as an essential storytelling tool that mirrors its protagonist's fractured relationship with reality. Rosa Salazar's performance anchors a show that's simultaneously funny, heartbreaking, and philosophically rich. The second season expands the story in ways that don't always match the first season's focus, and the deliberate ambiguity will frustrate viewers who want clear answers. But as an exploration of family, trauma, mental health, and the nature of perception, Undone does things that no other show is attempting.

2022 · 2 Seasons · AMC+ · Animation / Sci-Fi / Drama / Thriller

Pantheon is the kind of show that deserved a bigger audience and got buried by a streaming platform that didn't know what to do with it. Its exploration of digital consciousness, corporate power, and what makes a person a person is handled with the kind of philosophical seriousness that most animated series wouldn't attempt. The slow start is real, and the technical jargon can be dense, but the payoff across both seasons justifies the patience required to get there. This is smart, ambitious science fiction that treats animation as a legitimate vehicle for adult drama.

2008 · 7 Seasons · Cartoon Network / Disney+ · Animation / Action / Adventure / Sci-Fi

Star Wars: The Clone Wars transformed a gap between two movies into one of the most expansive storytelling achievements in the franchise. Its best arcs deliver drama, moral complexity, and emotional weight that stand alongside anything in the films. Getting to those arcs means pushing through a significant amount of filler and accepting that the show's anthology format creates an uneven viewing experience by design. For anyone willing to meet it on those terms, Clone Wars adds layers of depth to the Star Wars universe that nothing else in the franchise has matched.

2011 · 16 Seasons · Fox · Animation, Comedy

Bob's Burgers built one of television's most likable families and sustained quality comedy for years, even as its later seasons struggle to match the creative energy of its peak.

2004 · Hayao Miyazaki · 119 min · Animation / Fantasy

Howl's Moving Castle is a film that enchants first and explains later, if it explains at all. Miyazaki's animation is breathtaking, Joe Hisaishi's score is among the best in the Ghibli catalog, and Sophie's journey from timid young woman to someone who actually likes herself is worth the price of admission. The plot loses its way in the second half, the war subplot never fully integrates, and first-time viewers will almost certainly leave with questions. These are real flaws, not minor quibbles. But there's a warmth and sincerity to this film that makes its rough edges feel like part of its charm rather than reasons to dismiss it.

2012 · 4 Seasons · Nickelodeon · Animation / Action / Adventure / Fantasy

The Legend of Korra is a bold sequel that chose to forge its own identity rather than repeat what came before, and that decision is both its greatest strength and the source of most of its problems. When the show is at its best, particularly across its third and fourth seasons, it delivers some of the richest storytelling in American animation. When it stumbles, mostly in its second season, the drop in quality is hard to ignore. The result is a series that rewards patience and never plays it safe, even when playing it safe would have been the easier path.

2020 · 6 Seasons · Hulu · Animation / Comedy / Sci-Fi

Solar Opposites is a show at war with itself. Its main storyline delivers reliable animated comedy that coasts on rapid-fire gags and alien absurdity without ever becoming essential viewing. Its Wall subplot is something entirely different: a sprawling, inventive story-within-a-story that earned a level of investment the primary narrative never matched. Six seasons and 63 episodes produced plenty of laughs, but the show's most lasting legacy might be proving that its best idea deserved to be its own series.