90s Cartoons - 90s Nostalgia Theme

Attention '90s kids: this whole month is for you! To start off our nostalgic trip down memory lane, Quizmaster Tanner recounted four facts from 90s cartoons. But one of them is actually a total lie! How well do you remember these animated shows from decades ago? See if you can guess which fact he's lying about along with hosts Andi and Sups. 

Transcript

Andi 0:01

Wait, what? Someone else somewhere in the world had already come up with the words sponge boy?

Sups 0:09

that's as far as my cartoon knowledge goes.

Tanner 0:12

Oh goodness.

Andi 0:13

wow. You're doomed

Tanner 0:16

not to go all nerdy, but Goku isn't his birth name, that's actually his adopted name.

Andi 0:22

We have so little faith in your creative abilities. Hello and welcome to this episode of I Should Have Known, the trivia game show that can't be trusted. Each week, one of our Quizmasters will present you with four facts about a topic, but one of those facts is a lie. And this month, we are throwing it back, we're getting nostalgic for the 90s, and to kick it off, one of our Resident 90s babies? We are all 90s babies. Um, your quiz master is Tanner.

Tanner 0:52

Hello.

Andi 0:53

He was born in the 90s.

Tanner 0:54

Yes, I was.

Andi 0:56

He is going to be kicking off our theme with an episode on 90s cartoons. So he will us with four facts about four different cartoons from the 90s, but one of his facts is a lie. So join me, Andi, also born in the 90s, and our other host, Supes, also born in the 90s, and figuring out which one it is. We just aged ourselves, I hope that's okay. Fun fact, we were all born within like three months of one another.

Tanner 1:27

So let's start off with our pub quiz question

Sups 1:29

Yeah.

Tanner 1:30

what cartoon show holds the records for the most outstanding animated series Emmys, the longest running American animated series, the longest running American sitcom, and the longest running American scripted primetime television series?

Andi 1:48

gotta be The Simpsons.

Sups 1:49

Simpsons.

Tanner 1:50

With 35 seasons and over 700 episodes, it is The Simpsons.

Sups 1:54

Yeah. Okay. that's as far as my cartoon knowledge goes.

Tanner 1:58

Oh goodness.

Andi 1:59

wow. You're doomed.

Sups 2:01

Yeah.

Tanner 2:02

today we're talking about 90s cartoons, so strictly shows that started in the 1990s. So some people might consider the prime seasons of the Simpsons in the 90s, but it actually started in 89, and it's still going, so. Doesn't qualify.

Sups 2:17

Okay.

Andi 2:18

Okay. So it had to be a PQQ.

Tanner 2:20

exactly. So let's begin. Fact number one. The Simpsons. Squarepants was originally called Spongeboy Ahoy. I love that name so much more than Spongebob

Andi 2:34

Um, I really, really hope you made that up, because that's hilarious. And he's just so proud of his made up name.

Sups 2:41

yeah.

Tanner 2:42

Spongebob started in 1999 on Nickelodeon, and it's still going.

Andi 2:46

I did watch Spongebob, But I watched it in the 2000s,

Tanner 2:50

Oh, right, right, right. Yeah.. So SpongeBob is Nickelodeon's top cartoon. It makes the most money for them. It's the biggest, most popular cartoon they have,

Andi 3:00

wow.

Tanner 3:00

But when they were coming up with the show, they, They drew this yellow sponge, and they wanted to call him Spongeboy. And they had a pilot episode for it all, and it was called Spongeboy but then they found out that Spongeboy was already copyrighted. So they couldn't call it Spongeboy.

Andi 3:17

Wait, what? Someone else somewhere in the world had already come up with the words sponge boy?

Tanner 3:23

yes, it was already

Andi 3:25

Okay, sure.

Tanner 3:26

So they wanted to keep the sponge part in the name and they thought that sponge Bob was still nerdy. Still funny, sounding close enough to sponge boy So, it was actually changed to Spongebob before it was broadcast.

Andi 3:41

mean,

Sups 3:41

Okay.

Andi 3:42

You know, a likely story.

Sups 3:44

Yeah.

Andi 3:44

I don't know, I'm a little skeptical skeptical because I don't really see what about Spongebob would ever be like, boyish. That sounds really weird just from the get go. And I really want Tanner to have invented that name. Because I think that's hilarious.

Sups 4:00

Yeah.

Andi 4:00

I don't know if he could though. Which is my biggest reservation in believing this story. they really, really like, they should be thankful to whoever owned that copyright because that name is not nearly as good.

Sups 4:12

Yeah, I think the story is very believable.

Andi 4:15

mean, Sponge Boy is just like a weird, it doesn't fit at all. I feel like So much of Spongebob's personality is the fact that he, I mean he is childish. He has like a very like childlike whimsy about him, but like he also hilariously has like a nine to five and a pet cat and like, like, He's like very adult, he wears a tie.

Sups 4:34

Yeah.

Andi 4:35

this is is the first one we've heard, so we need to hear a lot more, but I'm already like, I want to believe that Tater invented Spongeboy Ahoy, but thinking, it's wishful thinking

Tanner 4:46

Okay.

Andi 4:46

We'll take a little, jellyfishing break, on that one, and we'll come back Let's hear about some other cartoons,

Tanner 4:53

Alright. Number two. Powerpuff Girls was originally called the Whoop Ass Girls.

Andi 4:59

Why?

Tanner 5:00

Ha ha!

Andi 5:01

Just why?

Sups 5:02

Wasn't the show meant for children.

Tanner 5:04

Yes, so, Powerpuff Girls, started on Cartoon Network in 1998, and then it ran until 2005, originally the Powerpuff Girls were created by Craig McCracken, when he was still at film school, he called them the Whoop Ass Girls, and instead of Sugar, Spice, Everything Nice, and Chemical X, they were made of Sugar, Spice, Everything Nice, and a can of Whoop Ass,

Andi 5:26

Okay.

Tanner 5:27

and it created our Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup that we know and love.

Andi 5:31

Okay, so it's not like they were really originally called that in the sense of, like, when they were, you know, making this at the studio. It was that when he came up with this idea, that's what he called them.

Tanner 5:44

Exactly.

Andi 5:46

when, he pitched it to Cartoon Network, then, he definitely didn't pitch it to them under the name Whoop Ass Girls, did he?

Tanner 5:52

I don't think so, no. no.

Sups 5:54

I don't think the project would see the light of the day if it was called Lopez Girls

Andi 5:59

yeah. So that makes more sense that it's not really like the working title was Whoop Ass Girls. It was that Powerpuff Girls are descended from another cartoon called Whoop Ass Girls.

Tanner 6:11

Right.

Andi 6:11

I suppose that's believable ish. do I think Tanner came up with this?

Sups 6:16

I don't

Andi 6:16

No. We have so little faith in your creative abilities.

Sups 6:22

No, it's not, it's not about, having faith. I think the story sounds very straightforward. it's very uncreative story for the fact that this is highly possible, So thinking in those terms, and I think we know many similar stories, films, series, I think have had similar history Where the working title was one, but when it finally goes to the producer, yeah, it's completely changed. So in that way, I would say. I have a little bit more faith than you, Andy, on Tanner, about Crip, is

Andi 6:53

Yeah, I think the whole, like, can of whoop ass thing, like, that makes sense. that would be, like, where you would originally come up with that. I think I find this one more believable than Spongeboy, Because I still think that Tanner could have come up with Spongeboy Ahoy.

Tanner 7:10

Would you still have watched them if they were called Spongeboy, Ahoy, and Whoop Ass Girls?

Andi 7:14

Mmm, No!

Tanner 7:15

You think the name matters that much?

Andi 7:17

no, see, this is I think you're thinking of it the wrong way. I think we were children when these came out, so we would've watched whatever Cartoon Network or Nickelodeon showed us. But I don't think those networks ever would've made these shows. at least with Whoop Ass Girls, they never would've made it under that title.

Sups 7:33

It was a choice between doing math homework and watching Spongeboy Ahoy, I would choose spongebob

Andi 7:39

right?

Sups 7:39

any day, I don't, think the name mattered by any means.

Andi 7:42

Alright. So, we've had two iconic 90s cartoons. are they all gonna be about the name? Or, you know, are you switching it up here?

Tanner 7:50

Those are just connected so I did those first.

Andi 7:52

Okay.

Tanner 7:53

let's move on to fact number three. Fact number three, Dexter's lab episode, Dexter sees a future where he creates the Powerpuff Girls.

Sups 8:03

Oh, I

Andi 8:03

Hmm.

Sups 8:04

this episode.

Andi 8:07

there's one of those situations where You're like, Are you trying to incept me right now? Because You're making me question reality. it does sound like something that could have happened.

Tanner 8:19

It's one of those crossover episodes that they loved to do in the 90s. the episode was called Professor Dexter. Dexter creates a mechanical crystal ball. That shows its user the future. And before DeeDee comes in and smashes it on the ground, Dexter sees multiple futures, and one of them, he becomes a professor who concocts an experiment where he combines sugar, spice, everything nice, and chemical acts, creating the Powerpuff Girls.

Sups 8:49

So multiverse, basically, uh, a form of multiverse. Yeah, I'm like almost so sure that I've seen this episode, but who knows, this was like a while ago. It wasn't yesterday. Maybe a couple of decades

Tanner 9:01

ha

Andi 9:02

I, but, like, I know what you mean, though. I'm like, oh, no. I feel like I also can remember such an episode, but then I feel like, no, this is some kind of, like, conspiracy or made up

Sups 9:14

Mm hmm.

Andi 9:15

or something.

Sups 9:16

could be when did Dexter's lab come out,

Tanner 9:18

Dexter's Lab started in 1996 on Cartoon Network, but this episode aired in 1998. It's last year, after Powerpuff Girls started.

Andi 9:28

Oh, okay. Well, that makes sense, I guess. Your fake timeline checks out.

Sups 9:35

I think There was a crossover episode because I remember Cartoon Network used to do a lot of these, crossover thingies, right?

Tanner 9:43

Yeah, it's classic for 90s, cartoons and 90s sitcoms to do and a lot of the same people were making these shows, so they would just throw it into their other shows.

Sups 9:52

yeah. we know that this kind of things used to happen. So the question is, did it happen with our popcorn? And if it wasn't Dexter, then who else? And I don't think there was, what else was a scientific lab cartoon during that

Andi 10:04

Yeah, So I think that that's like, maybe if this is a lie, this happened in a show, but it wasn't Dexter's lab. That could maybe be the lie.

Sups 10:14

Yeah.

Andi 10:14

I don't know how creative Tanner would be, but like you said, like that kind of checks out. Dexter would be the professor.

Sups 10:22

Of the three that I've heard so far. I think this one's the most believable to me.

Andi 10:26

Hmm.

Sups 10:26

Yeah. I'm betting on my memory.

Andi 10:28

Wow. So much confidence.

Sups 10:31

yes.

Andi 10:32

okay, I mean, I can see there are places where, like Spongebob, there could be holes, but, I'm kind of okay with it for now. But we have one more. And then, as Tanner would say, then I'll be sure.

Tanner 10:45

We really see if the confidence is put to the test.

Andi 10:48

Yeah, right.

Tanner 10:49

fact number four, we're growing up a little bit here. Not so much for little kids, but more for pre teens and teens. Fact number four, Dragon Ball Z main characters are named after food puns. Ha Ha

Andi 11:04

first of all, I was waiting for Dragon Ball Z because I know Tanner loves the show. And he watches it as an adult. And he was Goku for Halloween once. And I don't know how that's a vegetable pun. So,

Tanner 11:17

not to go all nerdy, but Goku isn't his birth name, that's actually his adopted name.

Sups 11:23

when you say things like this, don't start the sentence by saying not to go all nerdy. Like, that doesn't make

Andi 11:31

ever watch Dragon Ball Z Supes?

Sups 11:33

My only connection with Dragon Ball Z were that, uh, Cheetos at some point had like some promotions with them, so to buy Cheetos which then you could get one of those thingies inside, right? Um, I used to have, a stationary box that you take to school. Yeah, with Dragon Ball Z, because it was cool, and hairstyle is cool, but I never, never really watched.

Andi 11:53

actually watched. it.

Sups 11:55

no, maybe fleeting men passing by here and

Andi 11:58

Yeah, right? I don't think I've seen a full episode.

Sups 12:01

No,

Tanner 12:02

Oh boy, you guys are not DBZ nerds, okay.

Andi 12:05

You already knew that

Sups 12:06

You found out today? DBZ?

Andi 12:09

right? because I live with Tanner and have been hearing about Dragon Ball Z for, like, years, I know, like, an obnoxious amount of what happens and I think if I did a recap of what I think Dragon Ball Z is about, that it would be either really infuriating or really hilarious, depending on, you know.

Sups 12:29

I think you should do it. I think both of us should make an attempt to say what we think Dragon Ball Z is.

Andi 12:35

Okay, so they're aliens, for one thing. And, The one species of aliens that some of the characters are, they, like, turn into, like, planet ending monkeys, unless you cut off their tails when they're children? And then, they, like, go to Earth or something? I don't know exactly. They, like, fight each other, and then they have, like, different versions of themselves. but that's not the main part of the show somehow. There's like the part where there are these dragon balls, and there are like seven of them, and if you collect all of them, a giant dragon appears and grants you a wish. And I think that's what happens in that show.

Sups 13:12

You definitely know more than me. What I can say, the main attraction is dragon balls, right?

Andi 13:17

I don't know if there's dragon balls A through Y, but let

Sups 13:20

Okay. But I'm guessing dragon ball Z is like the main dragon ball that everyone's after. everyone wants to collect it, one main character who could collect that Dragon Ball and becomes like immortal or something.

Andi 13:34

Yeah, and they turn blonde when they get more powerful, which like, I don't know, that's kind of like,

Sups 13:38

yeah, that's the hairstyle that, that's attracted me. Yeah.

Andi 13:41

Yeah, That's the hair you wanted to.

Sups 13:44

Yeah.

Andi 13:44

your dream hair.

Sups 13:45

Blonde spiker. Yeah.

Andi 13:47

Yeah, was anything of what we just said remotely accurate?

Tanner 13:50

it was surprisingly accurate about a lot of things. Yeah.

Andi 13:55

Yeah, I love that that's the main premise of the show, is you collect all these balls and a dragon grants you a wish.

Tanner 14:01

most of the episodes don't revolve around that, though. They're just fighting. like some villain comes and wants to destroy everyone on Earth, so they have to defend the Earth.

Andi 14:11

And then for some reason, all of their names are Food puns.

Tanner 14:15

All of their names are puns, the main characters are food puns. Yes.

Sups 14:19

us an

Andi 14:19

So, I can only name one character, and, uh, unless it's a Japanese word for some kind of food, I don't know how

Tanner 14:27

No. Goku's birth name was Kakarot. Which is a pun on Carrot.

Sups 14:33

Kakarot. Carrot. Okay. Yeah.

Tanner 14:36

Yes.

Sups 14:36

mean, it's not outlandish, but yeah.

Tanner 14:39

His brother is named Reddits.

Sups 14:43

Oh, from Ladish,

Tanner 14:44

some of the other main characters are Brawly, broccoli? yes. There's Napa.

Sups 14:50

Napa. Napa from?

Andi 14:51

Cabbage.

Sups 14:53

Oh, Cabbage. Okay.

Tanner 14:54

Vegeta, which is just vegetable,

Andi 14:57

Vegeta?

Tanner 14:58

yes.

Sups 14:59

Isn't, isn't what the Poles use that as like a mix of,

Andi 15:02

Yeah, yeah, the, it's the, it's the, like, Slavic, like, okay, so, Tanner made all of this up

Tanner 15:10

No.

Andi 15:10

You're, you're trying to make me believe that these are puns on food names.

Tanner 15:14

yes.

Andi 15:15

So, with this fact then, the question is, do we think he's making up names? Or do we think these are real names from Dragon Ball Z? alternatively, are these even food puns? Cause I'm not so sure.

Sups 15:29

I think if he's fake was on DBZ facts, given how both of us, we are also experts in DBZ, I think that'd be quite unfair.

Tanner 15:36

you guys are such experts on DBZ,

Sups 15:39

I know,

Andi 15:40

Oh, I was dead serious. when I explained it and then Tanner didn't say anything that I said was wrong, then I'm like, yeah, okay, obviously no.

Sups 15:47

But also, and this is Japan, anything goes in Japan. So, you know, I'm sure their creative team must have sat and like, What is broccoli's name? Brawley? How can you not see it?

Tanner 15:58

Yeah, there's so many puns,

Andi 16:00

I guess I don't see how we can even argue with this. So, I guess we're really choosing between the first three. Like, okay, I guess I believe you. Sure. you're not entirely making up names right now. Like, that's a pretty deep lie. To be like, yeah, they're all food puns, and then you say a bunch of character names, but then they're not even in Dragon Ball Z, then honestly, that's such a deep lie that, like, you can have that one. I have one. You know? that was a good one. You got me. I should have known. So yeah. those were some very tricky and interesting facts about some classic 90s cartoons. But before Supes and I make our final guesses on which fact we think is a lie, could you please repeat the four of them for us?

Tanner 16:43

Sure fact number Spongebob Squarepants was originally called Spongeboy ahoy Fact number two, The Powerpuff Girls was originally called The Whoop Ass Girls. Fact number three, In a Dexter's Lab episode, Dexter sees a future where he creates the Powerpuff Girls. And fact number four, Dragon Ball Z main characters are named after food puns. One of those is a lie.

Andi 17:24

Oof,

Sups 17:24

I have a feeling it's number one.

Andi 17:26

you think it's number one? You think Tanner invented Spongeboy Ahoy?

Sups 17:29

Yeah

Andi 17:29

really love that. Honestly, part of me wants that to be the lie, because I love the idea that Tanner Lucas came up with the phrase Spongeboy I love that.

Sups 17:42

and I actually think how he came up with the lie. he found out about the DPZ thing, about puns, So he's like, okay, there's also this 90s cartoon SpongeBob and maybe we can do something with that. So I'm feeling it's in that direction.

Andi 17:54

could be. I think the lie is fact number three and only because I Have such a hard time believing that he fully invented these fake original names for these two shows Like where would he have gotten whoop ass girls? I don't know. I'm kind of like I can't see the path for where, where did Tanner find that. But what I can see is how in fact number three, he's just simply lying about which show it is. So he didn't make up the fact, you know, this does happen in some episode. maybe it's something where like Powerpuff Girls, but he makes a different show or it's a different show where they make the Powerpuff Girls. You know, that's something where I could see, like, I could connect the dots of how his brain would work and make a lie. The first two, it's too creative on Tanner's part. So, maybe I will be very impressed, but I have low expectations.

Tanner 18:49

Wow.

Sups 18:50

going with number one.

Andi 18:51

So, I'm gonna pick number three.

Tanner 18:52

Okay, so we have number one and number three. the lie is number three. Yes, Dexter's Lab did

Andi 18:59

hmm.

Tanner 19:00

this episode. I made up this episode.

Andi 19:02

You invented the episode.

Tanner 19:04

I did, yes. I completely invented it. But I felt a lot like Supes did. Where I felt like I didn't make it up. I felt like I was remembering it,

Andi 19:13

Yeah.

Tanner 19:13

Dexter's Lab and Powerpuff Girls were both made by the same guy, Tartakovsky, and that's why they kind of have the same animation style. And

Sups 19:22

see.

Tanner 19:23

of cameos in both shows.

Sups 19:25

Cameos. That's what

Tanner 19:27

in the background, Dexter will be a child among other children, or Dexter's Lab episode, like, some other character will be walking down the street. But they never actually made an episode where he became the professor who makes them. But they did have a lot of commercials where they were all, all the Cartoon Network characters were together. And they had a lot of cameos. So this is sort of like the Mandela effect, where it's like,

Andi 19:52

Yeah.

Tanner 19:53

you know, your memory.

Andi 19:54

Yeah. exactly. I'm like, did you just incept us? Like, really? Like,

Tanner 19:57

incepted you

Andi 19:58

when you say it, it's like, I can picture this.

Sups 20:00

I've definitely seen the four of them in one frame. Right. And, it definitely makes sense. Like there were commercials, like promos for the next episode or something like that, or even in the episode, there's Dexter walking behind.

Andi 20:14

hmm.

Sups 20:15

Wow.

Andi 20:15

Well, I do have to say that you deserve more credit than I gave you. If you actually invented the episode, that is pretty impressive, because I just thought you just switched the show. It feels so real, like he's the professor, like, oh yeah, Yeah. So I should have known.

Sups 20:30

I should have known

Andi 20:31

Thanks for listening to this episode of I should have known. We'll be continuing to get nostalgic with our 90s theme Next week, our quiz master will be Supes, and he is going to be telling us about some Electronics from the 90s. So get excited for that. And as always,

Tanner 20:51

No!