A to Z of Animation Studios: DiC Entertainment
(Or: The Studio That Made 80s Kids Think Cartoons Were Just Cheap Commercials in Disguise… Because They Were.)
Welcome back to Animation Anarchy, where we expose the animation industry’s weirdest, wildest, and most unhinged creations while actively tanking any chance of working in this industry again. If you haven’t subscribed to our YouTube channel yet, let me put it this way: DiC Entertainment made more cartoons in a year than you have brain cells left after watching them. Smash that button before I start reminiscing about Street Sharks.
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🔥 D is for DiC Entertainment
Ah yes, DiC Entertainment—the animation studio whose name sounded like a prank kids would get in trouble for saying out loud.
Founded in 1971, DiC didn’t just make cartoons—they mass-produced them like they were coming off an assembly line and threw them onto TV faster than kids could beg their parents for action figures.
This studio was the absolute king of ‘80s and ‘90s after-school cartoons—not because they were good, but because they were everywhere.
What Did They Make? Everything. Literally.
If you were a child with a TV in the ‘80s or ‘90s, DiC raised you. And not always in a good way.
• Inspector Gadget – A cyborg detective with Swiss Army knife limbs, a trench coat, and exactly one functioning brain cell. 90% of the show was his niece Penny and her dog saving his life while he somehow remained employed.
• Sonic the Hedgehog (Multiple Versions) – DiC made TWO different Sonic cartoons at the same time. One was a dark, post-apocalyptic sci-fi epic (Sonic SatAM), and the other was a weird Looney Tunes knockoff (Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog). Both of them were great, and neither of them made sense.
• Captain Planet – A superhero whose only weakness was… pollution? Spoiler: Humanity is the villain, and we are losing.
• The Real Ghostbusters – The one time DiC got their hands on a franchise and actually didn’t ruin it. This show was a banger.
• M.A.S.K. – Basically Transformers, but with humans who owned cars that did things cars definitely shouldn’t do. This entire cartoon existed to sell toys, and no one cared.
• Street Sharks – Do you love mutant sharks in jeans punching people? If so, seek professional help. But also, yes, this was a real show.
• Care Bears – DiC made the Care Bears. That’s it. That’s the whole joke.
• Dennis the Menace (The Cartoon) – Imagine Home Alone, but Dennis is the burglar, and Mr. Wilson never gets a moment’s peace.
• The Super Mario Bros. Super Show – The one where Mario rapped, and Lou Albano convinced us he was the real Mario. The cartoon itself was fine. The live-action segments? A fever dream.
• Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? – A show that was supposed to teach geography but mostly taught kids how cool red trench coats are.
DiC’s Legacy: Quantity Over Quality
Let’s be real. Most of DiC’s cartoons weren’t good. Some were hilariously bad. Others were just commercials for toys disguised as Saturday morning entertainment.
But you know what? DiC was iconic. They were the kings of “good enough” animation, and somehow, they made shows that are still burned into our nostalgia-riddled brains today.
Also, if you grew up watching these shows, you definitely remember their creepy, whispering logo at the end. DiC. If you didn’t say it out loud as a kid, you weren’t doing it right.
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🎖 Honorable Mention: DisneyToon Studios (Direct-to-Video Sequel Machine)
Before streaming services made it normal to throw mediocre sequels straight onto Disney+, we had DisneyToon Studios.
DisneyToon Studios: The Art of the Shameless Cash Grab
Founded in 1990, DisneyToon Studios specialized in what can only be described as animated corporate tax write-offs.
• Aladdin: The Return of Jafar – The movie where Genie sounds just a little bit off because Robin Williams wanted nothing to do with this.
• Aladdin and the King of Thieves – Actually… kinda good? Featuring John Rhys-Davies voicing Aladdin’s dad, because why not?
• Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas – The movie that proved the Beast kidnapped an entire orchestra along with Belle.
• Cinderella II & III – Yes, there were TWO direct-to-video Cinderella sequels. One was random fairy tale nonsense, and the other was an actual time-travel heist movie that somehow slapped.
• The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride – A Romeo and Juliet rip-off with lions. The songs went harder than they had any right to.
• The Lion King 1½ – Disney said, “Let’s make a Lion King movie, but from Timon and Pumbaa’s perspective.” It… kind of worked?
• Every single Tinker Bell movie – I don’t know who was keeping Disney Fairies™ in business, but someone was buying these DVDs, and we need to talk.
DisneyToon’s Legacy: The Good, the Bad, and the Weirdly Watchable
For every absolute disaster (Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World—seriously, why?), there were surprisingly solid sequels (The Lion King II, King of Thieves).
DisneyToon cranked out direct-to-video movies like a factory, and honestly, we ate them up. Because when you’re seven years old and your parents just want five minutes of peace, you don’t care if Aladdin’s Genie sounds off—you’re just happy there’s more Aladdin.
Eventually, Disney shut it down in 2018, finally putting the direct-to-video era to rest. But let’s be honest—Disney+ is just DisneyToon Studios with a fancier budget.
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If this post made you laugh, cry, or re-evaluate your childhood, go subscribe to the YouTube channel before Inspector Gadget accidentally sets your house on fire.
Next up? E for Elzie Segar’s Popeye Cartoons—the series that proved you don’t need good posture, two functioning eyes, or a varied diet to become an animation legend.
(Spoiler: Spinach sales have never recovered.) 🚀
