Saturday Cereal Bowl Cartoons: Choose Your Cereal and Serials!

Back in the 80s and 90s, Saturday morning cartoons were something of a religious institution. I recall getting up in the wee hours of the morning, still in pajamas and grabbing a bowl, a spoon, milk, a box of my favorite breakfast cereal and the TV remote for 90 minutes of animated awesomeness. Those were the days man, it was all pure Greaties, sugary, milky dreamy jazz.

But hey, it's time to throw on those nostalgic slippers and get ready, cos here at Life of uZ, we're all about pop culture and fandom. We've created a line-up of cartoons based off your favorite breakfast cereal. Take you picks from the below!

uZ Note: I've selected the cartoons below based on what's available now for the Netflix, Disney Plus and Amazon Prime streaming services in South Africa. These may not be relevant later as these shows move or are discontinued for whatever reason. Also, there are lot more nostalgic 80s cartoon shows that are currently not available through our streaming platforms (Batman, Bravestar, Thundercats, GI Joe, Care Bears, Ghostbusters etc) but I am keen for any feedback!

Kellogg's Strawberry Pops/ Kellogg's Rice Krispies

Ah, the stalwarts of the breakfast cereals. Strawberry Pops brings back some fond childhood memories as being the 'posh' version of Rice Krispies and definitely worth at least 2 bowls and a smile at Sammy the Seal. Then of course, the awesomeness that is 'Snap', 'Crackle' and 'Pop'. These three elves have been with us since the beginning and if you aren't adding sugar, bananas and mini marshmallows to your Rice Krispies, are you even breakfasting? If you're into these cereals, then this should be your Saturday morning cartoon lineup:

First up we have The Adventures of the Gummi Bears which is the quintessential 80s nostalgic cartoon of all time and still worth watching (I'm currently rewatching!). Just be sure to sing along to the catchy theme song. Next we have the oblivious Inspector Gadget with his hilarious antics, cool car and go-go-gadget everything! Again, another catchy song for your Saturday morning soprano. Speaking of catchy songs, your next animated series is the 90s version of a very radioactive Spiderman. Really worth re-watch as it features Marvel cameos galore from Spiderman regulars such as Venom, Carnage, Dr Octopus and more to some lesser-seen Marvel heroes such as Blade and The Punisher. Lastly, set your phases to stun as we boldly go where no man has gone before with Star Trek: The Animated series. Join Kirk, Spock and the crew as they take us on thrilling adventures through space.

Gummi Bears (Disney Plus)
Inspector Gadget (Prime)
Spiderman (Disney Plus)
Star Trek: The Animated Series (Netflix)

Kellogg's Cocoa Pops/ Kellogg's Froot Loops

Next up, we have the cereals that defined most of our childhood as being the go-to for Saturday morning cartoons. Back then, milk was completely optional if you had a box of Froot Loops or Coco Pops and I vividly recall hours and hours of Nintendo gaming with either of these two to keep us energized and going. Still, milk makes all the difference and if you're swinging onto your couch with Coco the monkey and Coco Pops or diving down with Toucan Sam and Froot Loops (my favorite!) then this should be your lineup below:

Ducktales, yoohoo! You're gonna want at least two bowls of cereals to get through this awesome lineup starting with the antics of Scrooge McDuck and his nephews Huey, Louie and Dewey as they head off on adventures and of course, save pennies along the way. Next up, we have the heroic Chip and Dale's Rescue Rangers which always followed Ducktales for what was always a brilliant cartoon hour. Then we head off to some serious animation with the uncanny X-Men animated series followed by Gargoyles. Our Saturday mornings were really lit with these lineups and our Saturday afternoons would involve all manner of geekery with comic books, gaming (Nintendo for Ducktales, Chip n Dale and Sega for Gargoyles and X-Men) and of course lots of debates about which actor who the most powerful mutant is.

Ducktales (Disney Plus)
Chip n Dale (Disney Plus)
X-Men: The Animated Series (Disney Plus)
Gargoyles (Disney Plus)

Nestle Honey Cheerios/ Nestle Milo Duo

So these weren't around when I was a kid but my kids loved eating them growing up and me, being something of a cereal killer myself, grew a fondness for these two as well. Milo is groovy - whether you have it as a drink or a chocolate bar or a milkshake, the duo cereal balls are malted chocolatey fan-freaking-tastic. My favorite of the two has got to be Honey Cheerios. A somewhat throwback to honey nut Corn Flakes (another great cereal that's no longer available) but in a hoop shape and delicious enough to snack on as-is with that distinctively honey crunch bite that will keep you craving more. If these are your go-to breakfast bowls, then you want this cartoon line up for your Saturday cereals:

You can't have a honey-based cereal without some homage to that silly old Winnie the Pooh. A catchy theme song and some really wonderful life lessons and deep provoking one-liners makes The New Adventures of Winnie The Pooh a must-have on this lineup. Next up we have a fairly new entry - Voltron: Legendary Defender. A remake of the original Voltron but equally brilliant and worth watching. Following this, we have the escapades of everyone's favorite reporter Tintin and his faithful dog Snowy as they explore the depths of the oceans to the vast reaches of space. Lastly, we have Masters of the Universe Revelation. Now, I know that die-hard He-Man fans weren't happy with the Netflix mini-series but I thought it had all the nostalgia and awesomeness that will have you yelling "I have the power!" by the time your breakfast bowl hits the sink.

The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (Disney Plus)
Voltron: Legendary Defender (Netflix)
Tintin (Prime)
Masters Of The Universe: Revelation (Netflix)

Jungle Crunchalots Multigrain Loops (Strawberry)/ Crunchalots Chocolate Fillows

There's a LOT of variety to be had from the Jungle range. Whether you go for the traditional 'Crunchalots' available in chocolate or strawberry loops and honey crispies or for the creamy centered 'Fillows' available in chocolate, orginal and strawberry, these cereals are high in energy, vitamins and minerals. Keep telling yourself that as you snack on them secretly! For fans of the Jungle range, you want this cartoon lineup:

Let's get dangerous! Darkwing Duck was one of my all-time favorite cartoons with its hilarity and cool superhero take. Next up we have an oldy but a goody as we head back to the old west with Lucky Luke as he takes on the Dalton gang. No Saturday morning lineup would be complete without some Transformers thrown in and the War for Cybertron trilogy is absolutely choc-full of action and coolness. Lastly, we're navigating over the Jungle with our cereals and some fantastic flying with Captain Baloo in Tailspin!

Darkwing Duck (Disney Plus)

Lucky Luke (Prime)
Transformers: War for Cybertron: Siege (Netflix)
Tailspin (Disney Plus)

Morning Mills Choco Puffs/ Bokomo Bubblegum Flavored Otees with Marshmallows

Craving something different? Hey, if it has cartoons on the box, it's practically made-for TV-viewing right? Morning Mills' Choco Puffs will satisfy your sweet cravings before you can say you thought you saw a 'puddycat' and Bokomo's Otees comes with marshmallows, is bubblegum flavored and, most importantly, is blue! If this is your go-to cereal combo, then the following cartoons should be your lineup:

Our final lineup kicks off with our explosive secret agent Danger Mouse, the very first mouse to have his martini stirred and with a side of cheese. Then we have the angst of teenage years with Doug and his friends Skeeter, Patti and Beebe. Next up, we jump right into The Clone Wars which is essential viewing for any fan of Star Wars. Lastly, we end with some laughs and goofing off with the Goof Troop.

Danger Mouse (Netflix)
Doug (Disney Plus)
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Disney Plus)
Goof Troupe (Disney Plus)