Animation Monday: Top Veterans Day Cartoons

By Nathan Young on November 12, 2012

Since we are celebrating Veterans Day I wanted to talk about cartoons that salute the military! Yes some past animated shows have done an episode saluting the people who protect America. Here is my top 5 Veterans Day Cartoons!

GI Joe – A Real American Hero

This list could not be done without GI Joe. What started as a line of action figures from Hasbro has turned into a powerhouse. The first GI Joe animated series premiered in 1985. Sure, there has been several animated series since the premiere and a couple of movies as well. But I do prefer the original animated series! The premise of the 1985 cartoon series was “good vs. evil.” The show’s opening theme song included the narration: “GI Joe is the code name for America’s daring, highly trained special mission force. Its purpose: to defend human freedom against Cobra, a ruthless terrorist organization determined to rule the world.” This series is the greatest salute to our armed forces!

American Dad

Yeah; this list could also not been done without mentioning American Dad. This show is now on season 8. The series centers on the Smiths, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Stan and Francine and their children, budding adolescent Steve and new-age hippie Hayley. The show also has a talking fish and an alien named Roger, and yes the government is looking for him. Stan works for the C.I.A. and yes you do see some military on the show.

Hey Arnold Veterans Day Episode

Hey Arnold was a popular show on Nickelodeon. And they had a special Veterans Day episode. The episode had Arnold’s Grandpa recall his adventures as a soldier in the Second World War, beating up Hitler personally, with Gerald’s dad, Martin, who remembers his own time fighting in Vietnam. Many people thought this was a very special episode and was well done!

Peanuts and Snoopy

The classic comic strip and cartoon featuring Charlie Brown and the Peanuts Gang did some special scenes depicting wartime. During It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Snoopy would get on top of his doghouse and pretend he’s shooting down airplanes until he is shot down! Then Snoopy had to survive being down behind enemy lines in France in WWI. Peanuts was that special show that many people still enjoys today!

Super Friends

Nothing can say Veterans Day more than superheroes! During the original animated series the superheroes responded to an emergency detected by the massive TroubAlert computer in the Hall of Justice, which served as the headquarters of the team. Colonel Wilcox, a U.S. Army official, was a recurring character who would act as a government liaison with the Super Friends during emergencies. If the military could not get the mission solved. The superheroes would finish it! This is the American way!