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Genres

Drama Comedy Animation Action Crime Adventure Romance Reality-TV More genres →

Decades

2020s 2010s 2000s 1990s 1980s 1970s 1960s 1950s 1940s 1930s 1920s 1900s

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Genres

Drama Comedy Animation Action Crime Adventure Romance Reality-TV More genres →

Decades

2020s 2010s 2000s 1990s 1980s 1970s 1960s 1950s 1940s 1930s 1920s 1900s

Tags Search My ratings Sign in

Best Animation TV Series of 1981

57 Animation series that started in 1981, ranked by popularity

All Animation series All series from 1981

Filter & sort

Genres

Genres as assigned by IMDb. Selecting several means a show must match all of them.

Action 14 Adult 0 Adventure 23 Animation 57 Biography 0 Comedy 21 Crime 1 Documentary 0 Drama 5 Family 19 Fantasy 4 Game-Show 0 History 1 Horror 1 Music 0 Musical 0 Mystery 1 News 0 Reality-TV 0 Romance 1 Sci-Fi 2 Short 1 Sport 2 Talk-Show 0 Thriller 0 War 0 Western 0

Decades

By first-air year. Several selections widen the range; a specific year narrows within its decade.

2020s 3324 2010s 4238 2000s 2717 1990s 1492 1980s 775 1970s 464 1960s 282 1950s 47 1940s 10 1930s 2 1920s 1 1900s 0

Specific year

2026 224 2025 436 2024 531 2023 552 2022 534 2021 538 2020 509 2019 488 2018 528 2017 475 2016 489 2015 426 2014 419 2013 390 2012 359 2011 351 2010 313 2009 313 2008 275 2007 309 2006 334 2005 294 2004 256 2003 268 2002 232 2001 237 2000 199 1999 219 1998 195 1997 175 1996 155 1995 155 1994 141 1993 116 1992 109 1991 122 1990 105 1989 113 1988 81 1987 89 1986 83 1985 84 1984 77 1983 83 1982 53 1981 57 1980 55 1979 55 1978 53 1977 65 1976 57 1975 44 1974 35 1973 47 1972 50 1971 35 1970 23 1969 45 1968 34 1967 42 1966 40 1965 31 1964 24 1963 16 1962 15 1961 14 1960 21 1959 19 1958 5 1957 9 1956 6 1955 2 1954 1 1953 2 1950 3 1949 4 1947 2 1946 1 1944 1 1943 2 1931 1 1930 1 1928 1

Tags

Rating patterns, computed from IMDb episode-rating trajectories. Deliberately strict: only shows with an unmistakable pattern carry one, so expect small numbers.

Rating patterns

Fumbled the Finale 0 Stuck the Landing 0 Grew the Beard 0 Rock Solid 0 Past Its Prime 0 Roller Coaster 0

Taste tags, judged by our AI taste model. They cover the 5,000 most-rated shows.

Tone & mood

Bleak 0 Gritty 0 Dark tone 0 Feel-good 0 Cozy 1 Wholesome 3 Melancholic 0 Tense 0 Unsettling 0 Whimsical 2 Campy 0 Cynical 0 Hopeful 0 Sentimental 0 Nostalgic 1 Bittersweet 0 Chaotic energy 0 Deadpan cool 0

Pacing & structure

Slow burn 0 Fast-paced 0 Episodic 4 Serialized 0 Procedural 0 Mystery box 0 Anthology 0 Cliffhanger-driven 0 Sprawling saga 0 Tight limited run 0 Puzzle plot 0 Vignette style 0

Humor style

Dry humor 0 Absurdist 1 Satirical 0 Cringe comedy 0 Slapstick 0 Witty banter 0 Dark comedy 0 Warm humor 0 Raunchy 0 Parody 1 Ironic & meta 0

Themes & subject matter

Criminal underworld 0 Detective mystery 0 True crime 0 Heists & cons 0 Legal 0 Medical 0 Political intrigue 0 Espionage 0 War & military 0 Family saga 0 Coming of age 0 Workplace 0 School & campus 0 Love story 0 Friendship 0 Found family 0 Survival 0 Post-apocalyptic 0 Dystopia 0 Supernatural 0 Space & sci-fi 0 Near-future tech 0 Time travel 0 High fantasy 0 Urban fantasy 0 Monster horror 0 Psychological horror 0 Addiction & vice 0 Mental health 0 Faith & religion 0 Sports 0 Music scene 0 Food & cooking 0 Nature & science 0 Real history 0 Royalty & aristocracy 0 Small town 1 Big city life 0 Rural & frontier 0 Suburban underbelly 0 Class divide 0 Immigrant experience 0 Queer stories 0 Female perspective 0 Social commentary 0 Philosophical 0 Existential dread 0 Revenge 0 Redemption 0 Secrets & lies 0

Characters & perspective

Antihero lead 0 Morally gray 0 Villain's POV 0 Ensemble cast 0 Central duo 0 Strong female lead 0 Child's perspective 0 Outsider lead 0 Genius lead 0 Working class 0 Elites & privilege 0 Unreliable narrator 0 Character study 0 Banter chemistry 0

Emotional payoff

Tearjerker 0 Adrenaline 0 Intellectual challenge 0 Comfort rewatch 1 Romantic yearning 0 Cathartic 0 Wonder & awe 0 Mounting dread 0 Warm glow 1 Gut punch 0

Craft & style

Dialogue-driven 0 Visually striking 0 Stylized direction 0 Naturalistic 0 Big-budget spectacle 0 Lo-fi charm 0 Atmospheric 0 Distinctive score 0 Experimental 0 Deep worldbuilding 0 Tight writing 0

Format & audience

Sitcom 0 Adult animation 0 Anime 0 Kids & family 4 Young adult 0 Soap & telenovela 0 Event miniseries 0 Reality competition 0 Lifestyle reality 0 Docuseries 0 Sketch & variety 0 Game & quiz show 0 Talk & panel 0 Period piece 0 Contemporary life 0 Long-runner 0 Built to binge 0

Viewing-culture clusters

British TV 2 Nordic noir 0 K-drama 0 Turkish drama 0 Indian TV 0

Intensity & content character

Graphic violence 0 Disturbing 0 Sexually explicit 0 Family-safe 4 Emotionally heavy 0 Easy watching 3

Sort

57 series

The Smurfs

24K 261 1981–1989

Kids & family · Family-safe

Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends

5K 24 1981–1986

Kids & family · Family-safe

Danger Mouse

4K 94 1981–1992

Parody · Kids & family

Postman Pat

4K 190 1981–2017

Kids & family · Family-safe · Cozy

Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds

3K 27 1981–1982

Adventure · Animation · Comedy

Ulysses 31

3K 27 1981–1982

Action · Adventure · Animation

Spider-Man

2K 26 1981–1982

Adventure · Animation · Family

Ninja Hattori

2K 694 1981–1987

Action · Animation · Comedy

Urusei Yatsura

2K 195 1981–1986

Action · Adventure · Animation

Swiss Family Robinson

1K 50 1981–1981

Adventure · Animation · Family

Belle and Sebastian

1K 52 1981–1982

Adventure · Animation

Hello! Sandy Bell

1K 47 1981–1982

Adventure · Animation · Romance

Löwenzahn

961 477 1981–present

Animation · Comedy · Family

Blackstar

931 13 1981–1982

Adventure · Animation · Family

Alice in Wonderland

870 3 1981–1981

Animation · Comedy · Family

Dr. Slump

766 243 1981–1986

Animation · Comedy · Fantasy

Manga Mito Kômon

725 46 1981–1982

Action · Adventure · Animation

Dash!! Kappei

576 65 1981–1982

Animation · Comedy · Sport

Willo the Wisp

560 26 1981–1981

Animation · Family

SuperBook

490 52 1981–1983

Adventure · Animation · Drama

School of mice

405 3 1981–1984

Animation · Comedy · Fantasy

The New Adventures of Zorro

352 13 1981–1981

Action · Adventure · Animation

School of Love

323 26 1981–1981

Animation · Drama · Family

The Great Space Coaster

312 2 1981–1986

Animation · Comedy · Family

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