Once Upon a Time... Man poster

Once Upon a Time... Man

★ 8.0 5K votes 1978–1979 1 season · 26 episodes Ended France 3
Real historyReal historical events and figures woven into the story.This show: 10/10Kids & familyGenuinely watchable for and with children.This show: 8/10Family-safeNothing to worry about with anyone in the room.This show: 8/10EpisodicSelf-contained episodes you can watch in almost any order.This show: 7/10
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Starring
Albert BarilléRoger CarelAnnie BalestraClaude BertrandYves BarsacqPatrick Préjean
Starring
Albert BarilléRoger CarelAnnie BalestraClaude BertrandYves BarsacqPatrick Préjean
Ratings per Episode
246810
Votes per Episode
03875113150

Once Upon a Time... Man Episode Ratings Heatmap

AvgE1E2E3E4E5E6E7E8E9E10E11E12E13E14E15E16E17E18E19E20E21E22E23E24E25E26
S17.17.37.07.07.27.17.57.46.97.17.47.37.37.07.66.96.56.97.27.27.16.86.77.16.67.36.8

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About

"World history condensed into cartoon fables for kids"

This French animated series traces the entire sweep of human history, from cave-dwelling ancestors through empires, revolutions, and industrial upheaval, using a recurring cast of simply drawn, big-nosed characters who represent recurring social types across every era. Each episode is a brisk, narrated chapter that compresses centuries into twenty-some minutes, favoring broad historical strokes over nuance. It plays like a picture-book history lesson brought to life, warm and earnest rather than flashy, clearly aimed at children but carried by genuine ambition and a surprising amount of heart for something so didactic.

Watch it for

the ambitious attempt to compress all of human history into approachable animated parables.

Maybe skip if

you want nuanced storytelling rather than simplified, narrator-driven historical summaries.

Written by our AI editor to help you decide, spoiler-free by design.

All Seasons

▼
Season 11978
7.12K2611h 17m
EpTitleRatingYoursVotesRuntime
▶1Et la terre fut...7.3
12524 min
▶2L'homme du Néanderthal7.0
10625 min
▶3Le Cro-Magnon7.0
10025 min
▶4Les vallées fertiles7.2
9625 min
▶5Les premiers empires7.1
9325 min
▶6Le siècle de Périclès7.5
8725 min
▶7Pax Romana7.4
8526 min
▶8Les conquêtes de l'Islam6.9
8126 min
▶9Les Carolingiens7.1
8025 min
▶10L'âge des Vikings7.4
7927 min
▶11Les bâtisseurs de cathédrales7.3
7827 min
▶12Les voyages de Marco Polo7.3
7725 min
▶13La guerre de cent ans7.0
7625 min
▶14Le quattrocento7.6
7727 min
▶15Le siècle d'or espagnol6.9
7626 min
▶16L'Angleterre d'Élizabeth6.5
7426 min
▶17L'âge d'or des Provinces-Unies6.9
7328 min
▶18Le grand siècle de Louis XIV7.2
7226 min
▶19Pierre le Grand et son époque7.2
7328 min
▶20Le siècle des lumières7.1
7125 min
▶21L'Amérique6.8
7427 min
▶221789-1814 (La révolution française)6.7
7627 min
▶23Le printemps des peuples7.1
7228 min
▶24Ah! La Belle Époque (de 1900 à 1914)6.6
7126 min
▶25Les années folles7.3
7528 min
▶26Il était une fois... la terre (Et demain?)6.8
8725 min

Full Cast & Crew

Cast

Albert Barillé Narrator
Roger Carel Maestro, Pierre
Annie Balestra Pierette
Claude Bertrand Le Teigneux
Yves Barsacq Le Gros
Patrick Préjean Le Nabot
Vincent Ropion Pierrot

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