One of the most impactful moments from my childhood was introduction of Nicktoons in the early 1990s, cartoons made by creators who wanted a bit more freedom on their work. During 1991, the Nickelodeon network executives held a vote on three cartoons to see which one would be staying on the channel the longest, the shows being Doug, The Ren & Stimpy Show, and Rugrats.

The first show, Doug followed middle schooler Doug Funnie as he moved into the town of Bluffington, making new friends and overcoming problems that he faced. The Ren & Stimpy show was about an ill-tempered asthma hound chihuahua named Ren who lived with a dimwitted cat named Stimpy as they went on bizarre adventures. And the third show, Rugrats was about four babies and their adventures in and out of a house, and using pure imagination.

In a collaborative concept, creators Arlene Klasky and Gabor Csupo thought up the idea about what babies would do and think about as they curiously left from the supervision of parents. From this brilliant idea to be a cartoon series, it ultimately won the vote with viewers. While Doug and Ren & Stimpy didn't win though, their shows were still given a few seasons to share the timeslot.

The show followed babies Tommy, Chuckie, and the twins, Phil and Lil going on many imaginative adventures. Tommy, the leader of the group is also bravest, while Chuckie gets easily scared and sometimes tries to conquer his fears. The twins, Phil and Lil often argue at each other, but enjoy eating bugs and also like to follow Tommy on his brave decisions to go and do things. Sometimes their fun runs short though when Tommy's cousin, Angelica gets in their way with her bratty attitude while being watched from the adults.

Aside from the series concept and summary, the visual style of the show was also unique in taking the interest of network viewers. Colors were vibrant while characters and background were drawn in a style reminiscent of Dr. Seuss. The first season of the cartoon definitely showed some roughness, but got better as the show went on. A lot of adventures the babies went on also resonated with the imaginative mind of the young viewers. What lies in the far end of the back yard? Is there a monster in the house attic? 

The show had gained quite a big following as the 90s were coming to a close, and 1998 saw the release of The Rugrats Movie during the Thanksgiving season. Tommy now has a brother named Dil, and learns about the responsibility of being an older brother while he and the other babies get themselves lost in an adventure through the woods.

With the inclusion of a new baby of the series, it also caused a bit of a discourse with fans. Some were open to a new character, while others preferred the original four babies together and thought that more babies being added would make the series unwatchable. Dil would be a mainstay for the series going ahead, while Tommy carried him along on more adventures with the other babies.

As the show continued on from 1998 to 1999, Rugrats got its second movie at the turn of the millennium in November of 2000, as the babies are taken to Paris, France as Tommy's father, Stu makes a giant animatronic Reptar for an amusement park called Euro-Reptarland, while Chuckie yearns to have a loving mother. The woman responsible for running the amusement park, Coco LaBouche gets the attention of Chuckie's dad as a potential new wife, but Chuckie convinces him to marry the more down-to-earth Kira Watanabe, one of the actresses of a Reptar stage show, becoming Chuckie's new mother, while having a new sister, Kimi.

Rugrats in Paris didn't quite hit the same numbers of box office gross sales as the first movie, but reception was still successful that it got the show to keep going for a few more years. But even with another baby introduced, show viewings began to go down, causing eventual cancellation of the series by 2003, leading up to the third and last Rugrats movie, Rugrats Go Wild.

Rugrats in Paris has the babies and their parents getting stuck on a deserted island after a failed vacation trip. The families meet up with the Thornberry family, a group of world explorers that document wildlife. The father of the family, Nigel winds up getting lost with the babies but eventually gets found, as the babies' families finally get on the cruise ship that was for their planned vacation.

Being a movie that crosses over two series made by the same animation studio, Rugrats and the Wild Thornberrys, Rugrats Go Wild was another attempt at keeping the show around for much longer, but hit even lower box office profit than Rugrats in Paris, leading to the end of the series. Add this to the fact that a certain yellow sponge was paving the way for new entertainment on the Nickelodeon network, and it only made viewers want to turn their attention to a new show.

What do you remember from the Rugrats series? Leave a comment, and as always, see you next article!