Cartoon Network's Most Influential Show Is Coming Back to TV

Cartoon Network's legendary What a Cartoon! is coming to Adult Swim's Checkered Past block!

By Nick Valdez

What a Cartoon!, one of the most influential shows in Cartoon Network's history, is coming back to TV as part of Adult Swim's Checkered Past nostalgia block! Checkered Past has been doing very well for Adult Swim as the block has been airing reruns of classic Cartoon Network series such as Ed, Edd n Eddy, The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, and more. There have been a few shake ups to the schedule over the last few months, and later this month there are listings for one of the biggest shake ups yet with a grand return on the way. 

What a Cartoon! was a special pilot program that Hanna-Barbera produced with the intent of trying to make as many original shows, from as many original creators as possible for the then very young Cartoon Network programming. These pilots went on to become franchises like Dexter's Laboratory, Johnny Bravo, The Powerpuff Girls, and some of the most successful shows in Cartoon Network's history overall. Now these pilots will be making their way back to TV according to new listings later this July. 

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What a Cartoon! Returns to Cartoon Network

According to new listings spotted by @Swimpedia on X, What a Cartoon! will be airing with Adult Swim's Checkered Past block on July 29th with the first five pilots from the series beginning at 6:00PM. These listings could change as Cartoon Network or Adult Swim themselves have yet to promote them, but here's the current breakdown for the first few What a Cartoon! comebacks including Larry and Steve, which would eventually form the foundation for Seth MacFarlane's Family Guy. 

  • 6:00PM ET – Pizza Boy: No Tip – Pizza Boy tries to deliver a pizza to the Arctic Circle in five minutes to get a big tip. He has many problems on the way, like getting thrown out of a plane. 
  • 6:10PM ET – Help? – After Jof injures his finger while sewing, a trip to the hospital leads him to through a maze of corridors and offices where he encounters all types of quirky doctors and dubious examinations
  • 6:20PM ET – Buy One, Get One Free – A man named Reilly gets a cat named Flinch in order to impress a female cat lover named Sofie and threatens the cat that if there is a scratch on anything while he's away, he will send him to the violin factory. 
  • 6:30PM ET – Yuckie Duck: I'm on My Way – Yuckie Duck works as a paramedic, but does more harm than good to his patients.
  • 6:40PM ET – Larry & Steve – Steve, a homeless dog, is adopted by dimwit Larry (the only man to understand dog) and lives disaster after disaster when Larry takes him shopping. 

Adult Swim and Cartoon Network have yet to confirm What a Cartoon!'s return as of the time of this publication, but this could be huge if these respective shorts have been restored for modern broadcast.

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