There are few animated franchises that are quite as beloved, or that have achieved quite as much success, as Ice Age. With its numerous movies and its very lovable characters, it stands as a testament to how a franchise can maintain its central character even as it moves into a new era of movie-making. Fortunately for fans, there is a new animated series focusing on everyone’s favorite saber-toothed squirrel, Scrat.
And, even more fortunately, there are also a number of series that are similar to this new show, Scrat Tales, that fans will certainly enjoy.
Disney has been responsible for some of the best animated series in the history of the genre. One of their more exemplary recent efforts is DuckTales, the reboot of the classic series from the 1980s.
What makes it especially appealing to fans of Scrat Tales–which focuses on the main characters' discoveries involved with fatherhood–is its emphasis on its characters and their backstories. In particular, it explores the fraught relationship between Donald and Scrooge. However, it also contains enough of the magic of the original to serve as a fitting homage.
Scrat Tales, like many other cartoons, focuses on the bond between a father and son. That is the driving dynamic of Goof Troop, which remains one of the best animated series of the 1990s.
In fact, the bonds between Goofy and his son Max and between Pete and his son PJ occupy the center of most of the stories. It has a unique blend of heart and humor that is very much of a piece with 1990s animation, and it retains its power to entertain.
One of the hallmarks of Scrat as a character has been his unpredictable presence. Somehow, he always manages to cause chaos wherever he goes. A similar aesthetic is at work in Animaniacs, another classic animated series from the 1990s. The title characters are a trio who, wherever they go, end up causing all sorts of mayhem.
The series is something of a throwback to earlier periods of animation, and though the humor can at times be a bit broad, it also maintains its power to enchant.
The Simpsons remains one of the most iconic, long-running animated sitcoms of all time. While it has become famous for its ability to tap into the cultural unconscious of the US, it is also very much about family.
In that respect, it is sure to appeal to fans of Scrat Tales. Whatever else he might be, the truth is that Homer Simpson is still one of the most iconic fathers to have ever appeared on television, and he clearly loves his family, even Bart.
As the shorts unfold, Scrat continues to have to deal with the various challenges posed by having a new child. While the children in Bob’s Burgers are hardly new, they continue to pose new and interesting challenges for both their father, Bob, and his wife, Linda.
Bob’s Burgers has an animation style that is unique, but there’s no question that it is also one of the funniest shows on television. What’s more, it constantly encourages the viewer to love this zany family and to laugh with them rather than at them.
Given that it was co-created by one of the creators of Bob’s Burgers, it’s not surprising that Central Park would also feature a similar animation style and comedic sensibility.
However, it also sets out on its own territory, as it focuses on New York’s Central Park, the people in charge of taking care of it, and those who would see it bent to their own ends. More than anything else, however, the series is about the extraordinary power of family, which is why it is such a great fit for those who enjoy Scrat Tales.
King of the Hill has the distinction of being one of the longest-running animated series ever. Among other things, it is, like Scrat Tales, about the challenges of fatherhood.
Its main character, Hank Hill, has to constantly contend not only with the antics of his high-strung (but deeply loving) wife Peg but also with his son Bobby, whom he doesn’t seem to understand at all. Despite their many differences, however, it’s clear that Hank and Bobby truly love one another, emerging as one of the best father/son duos on TV.
The 1980s was something of a golden age for Saturday morning cartoons, and none were quite as successful or as influential as DuckTales, which helped to demonstrate the viability of this programming block.
Though not quite as in-depth in its exploration of character psychology as its successor series, there’s still much about DuckTales that recommends it to fans of Scrat Tales, particularly the undeniable bond between Scrooge and his nephews.
With Scrat Tales, Disney continues to show that it knows how to create animated shows that excel at displaying the many complications involved with parenting. Small surprise, then, that they also decided to reboot The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder.
As with the greatest animated series, this new iteration of The Proud Family manages to be both socially conscious–teaching many lessons in the course of an episode–while not losing sight of the power of animation to entertain and delight the audience.
Donald Duck is arguably one of the most iconic and recognizable characters in the history of animation. He has also appeared in a number of series of his own, including Quack Pack.
As its title suggests, it centers around Donald and his (at times difficult) relationship with his nephews, Huey, Duey, and Louie, who in this version are adolescents. Given that Donald is a father figure to the three boys, fans of the more recent Scrat Tales will likely enjoy it as well.
