My Personal List of Hidden Gems:
- Kulipari: Army of Frogs
Total Episodes: 23
Episodes in the 2010s: 23
Air Dates: 2016-2018
IMDB Rating: 6.9/7.6 (IMDB lists each season as separate series)
Total Award Nominations/Wins: 1
This series was not seen by enough folks even though it is streaming on Netflix. A diverse voice cast including the likes of Lacey Chabert, Mikey Kelley, and Mark Hamill amongst many other legendary voices this show is a lot of fun. The mythology and fantasy elements had me wanting more. I highly recommend this series regardless of its short shelf life.
- Niko and the Sword of Light
Total Episodes: 23
Episodes in the 2010s: 23
Air Dates: 2017-2019
IMDB Rating: 7.8
Total Award Nominations/Wins: 5
Critically adored with multiple Annie and Emmy Awards, this comic book-based series was a very short yet very sweet fantasy adventure that left me wanting even more. A who’s who of Voice acting with Kari Wahlgren, Jim Cummings, Dee Bradley Baker, Steve Blum, Corey Burton, Tom Kenny, Kevin Michael Richardson and the young lead Andre Robinson, this Amazon original should be sought out immediately by any fan of animation.
- Trollhunters
Total Episodes: 52
Episodes in the 2010s: 52
Air Dates: 2016-2018
IMDB Rating: 8.5
Total Award Nominations/Wins: 2
Perhaps not quite as hidden as the other picks in my list here I still wanted to take the chance to highlight this fun series from DreamWorks. Perhaps it will live on thanks to one of the final starring roles from Anton Yelchin before his unfortunate death. (which resulted in Emile Hirsch having to take over the lead role in later episodes. This series is a great mixture of comedy, drama, and adventure worth checking out. Don’t take my word for it, the IMDB community clearly agrees with a spectacular 8.5 rating!
- Apollo Gauntlet
Total Episodes: 6
Episodes in the 2010s: 6
Air Dates: 2017
IMDB Rating: 6.7
Total Award Nominations/Wins: 0
Another hidden gem from 2017, Adult Swim’s Apollo Gauntlet deserved a better fate. Perhaps I was too much the intended demographic but as someone who heavily consumes 80s action cartoons, this was a perfect comedy take on that genre. Myles Langlois the series creator and writer not to mention one of the voice actors deserves more work for sure!
- Jeff & Some Aliens
Total Episodes: 10
Episodes in the 2010s: 10
Air Dates: 2017
IMDB Rating: 8.0
Total Award Nominations/Wins: 0
For the life of me, I cannot understand why this Comedy Central gem didn’t last more than the 10 episodes that it aired in 2017. It was a breath of fresh air when it comes to the MacFarlane style dominated adult prime time cartoon landscape. Based on sketches from TripTank this series was very cleverly written and many times hilarious. I was not surprised at all to see it with a very high 8.0 rating on IMDB. It will be forgotten by the annals of time and that’s a shame.
- Kaijudo
Total Episodes: 52
Episodes in the 2010s: 52
Air Dates: 2012-2013
IMDB Rating: 7.1
Total Award Nominations/Wins: 0
I wasn’t expecting much from this series based on the trading card game but I came away pleasantly surprised. They did a good job creating the world and developing multiple interesting personalities on all sides of the spectrum. A star-studded cast of the likes of Dee Bradley Baker, Grey DeLisle, John Dimaggio, Phil Lamarr, Jason Marsden, David Sobolov, James Arnold Taylor and Kari Wahlgren among others is led by a very good Scott Wolf. This show might have flown by undetected by many but with an IMDB score of 7.1, it’s still worth a viewing.
- Robot & Monster
Total Episodes: 26
Episodes in the 2010s: 26
Air Dates: 2012-2015
IMDB Rating: 5.6
Total Award Nominations/Wins: 2
Robot and Monster is a show that deserved a longer shelf life. It was an intelligently written comedy series starring Curtis Armstrong and Harland Williams that I highly recommend. It only aired for 26 episodes but that just means you don’t have to invest a ton of your time. With a supporting cast including Maurice LaMarche, Jeff Bennett, Cree Summer, Megan Hilty, Jonathan Slavin and many more this series is just pure fun.
This was a very interesting way to arrange the list. It was pretty fun, though, and incredibly varied. I particularly enjoyed reading the Hidden Gems list and I’m glad Niko and Kulipari made it. I’m a bit frustrated Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters never caught on, as it felt like a spiritual successor to The Spectacular Spider-Man. Also, I prefer Paws of Destiny over Legends of Awesomeness in terms of Kung Fu Panda shows.
Yea, Stretch Armstrong was definitely one I looked at but just missed out. I also was torn on which Kung-Fu Panda to list. I could see it all be listed as one almost actually. Thanks for the comment and the kind words. It was a fun thing to put together. It started out as a simple list I was going to throw together and ended up as a month long project haha!
I feel Detentionaire should’ve been on here or at least been an honorable mention. It is such a good show and the mystery is on par with Gravity Falls in my opinion.
Was not familiar with this one since it mainly aired in Canada unless I’m mistaken. I’ll have to check it out!