Welcome to the Listening Time podcast. Hey everybody, this is Conner, and you’re listening to Episode 61 of the Listening Time podcast.

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Okay, so today, we’re going to talk about cartoons. Honestly, I’m really excited for this topic, because whenever I talk about cartoons, it brings me back to my childhood, and it makes me reminisce. In English, when we say that something “brings you back,” it means that it transports you to the past. It makes you start thinking and remembering the past, and the word “reminisce” just means to think in a positive way about past experiences or memories. So, I love talking about cartoons because it makes me reminisce about my childhood and how much fun I had watching cartoons. So, today, we’ll talk a little bit about that, and I’ll tell you about some of my favorite cartoons when I was a child.

So, before we get started, remember that you also have the transcript available for this episode. That’s in the Episode Description below this episode. So, click on that if you need it. And please share this podcast with anyone else who might find it useful, anyone you know who’s learning English who could benefit from this podcast. And if you’re listening on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, please give this podcast a five-star rating if you like it, and that will help the podcast grow and reach more people. Alright, let’s get started.

Alright, so let’s talk about cartoons. So, first of all, let’s define this word. What is a cartoon? A cartoon is a motion picture that uses animation instead of real objects or people. Right? So, these are shows that have drawings, that show a series of drawings and not real people, real actors who are on screen. Cartoons can be for kids and for adults. Many of the cartoons that exist today are specifically meant for kids, but of course there are plenty of cartoons that adults enjoy watching too.

So, when I think of cartoons, I think of my childhood. And when I think back to the cartoons I watched, I remember watching cartoons at three specific time periods during the day or during the week. I remember that when I got home from school, I would usually turn on the TV and maybe watch 30 minutes of cartoons while I ate my afternoon snack. In English, the word “snack” refers to food that you eat between meals. So, for example, between breakfast and lunch, or between lunch and dinner, you might eat a little bit of food, like some chips or a piece of fruit or a cookie or whatever it might be. This is a snack.

So, I remember coming home from school and eating my afternoon snack and watching cartoons at that time. And I also remember watching cartoons at night before I went to bed, and there were often new episodes on on certain weeknights. And so, that was the prime time to watch cartoons. In English, when we use the phrase “prime time,” we’re saying that it’s the important time, it’s the significant time when you do something. So, for example, primetime television is usually at 8pm or 9pm in the US. This is when you can watch new episodes of your favorite shows because this is prime time, this is when most people are at home. They’re not working. And a lot of people are watching TV. So, this is primetime television. So, on certain weeknights, I would watch cartoons because they would have new episodes of my favorite cartoons.

But when I think back to my childhood, and I think back to the excitement I had to watch new episodes of my favorite cartoons, I always think of Saturday mornings. So, in the US, at least when I was growing up, Saturday mornings were the best time to watch cartoons because you would wake up early and you would have like four, five, or six different TV shows, different cartoons, that would have a new episode every week. And it was so exciting to watch all the new episodes and just spend that Saturday morning watching cartoons because you didn’t have to go to school and you could just relax.

And so, I remember this ritual: waking up early on Saturday mornings. I think I would usually wake up a few minutes before 7am because at 7am This is when the first new cartoons started on Saturday mornings. And I think I would watch cartoons until maybe 9:30am, maybe 10am. And of course, I would eat my cereal while watching these cartoons and just enjoy the morning. So, when I think back to my childhood, and I think about the cartoons I watched, I always think about these Saturday mornings, these really fun mornings where I could just relax, eat cereal, lie on the couch, watch cartoons. And life seemed a lot simpler then.

So, why do kids like cartoons so much? And specifically, why did I like watching cartoons as a kid? Well, for me, I think that when I watched cartoons, I really felt like I was placed in that world. I felt like I was really in the world with the characters, and I felt like it was very engrossing. In English, when we say that something is “engrossing,” that means that it really draws you in, it really makes you feel close or connected to that thing. So, I felt like it was really engrossing, and I just really identified with a lot of the characters, and I could use my imagination a lot and imagine myself in this world with these characters. And I think that I really liked the lessons that these cartoons taught when I was a kid. Nowadays, I don’t know if the cartoons that kids watch teach a lot of good lessons, but at least when I was a kid, I remember there being some very important life lessons taught in the shows. So, I liked that as well.

So, now, let me tell you about some of my favorite cartoons from when I was a kid. So, first, I want to talk about the cartoon Rugrats. This is a very popular one. And I’m sure a lot of you watch this as a kid, or maybe you’ve heard of it. This is a cartoon focused on babies. It’s kind of strange, but it was a really good cartoon, a really interesting cartoon, because these babies would go on all kinds of adventures in their house or backyard or wherever they were. And it was really interesting because they would imagine the setting to be something more amazing or incredible or interesting than it actually was. In English, the word “setting” refers to the place and time where some story happens. This is the setting.

So, for example, in the show Rugrats, if they went on an adventure upstairs in their house, instead of just seeing the upstairs, oftentimes, the story would change this setting and it would be something more fantastic than just the upstairs. And this kind of reflects little kids’ imagination. We always imagine things being more incredible than they really are when we’re young kids. And I remember when I was a kid that I loved using my imagination to create games. I loved making up new games to play with my neighbor. And we would just invent all kinds of stuff and have fun like that. And I think because of that, I could really identify with the babies in the show Rugrats because I loved this sense of imagination and adventure.

And I think one of the major themes in this cartoon is bravery. So, oftentimes, the task that they would have to do, the adventure that they would go on, seemed pretty intimidating. In English, when we say that something is intimidating, this means that it makes you feel a little bit nervous or anxious or scared because it seems like a big, challenging or scary task. So, a lot of their adventures seemed intimidating, and one of these little babies, in particular, was always very scared of doing these things. And he would have to overcome this fear and be brave in order to go on the adventure or solve the problem or whatever. So, I liked that theme.

Alright, the next cartoon I want to talk about is Scooby-Doo. This is another really famous one. I’m sure a lot of you have heard of this cartoon before. I loved Scooby-Doo when I was growing up, because I’m a big mystery fan. I’ve always loved mysteries, and in particular, I really like whodunits. The word “whodunit” is an invented word in English that refers to mystery stories or shows or movies where some crime was committed, and everyone is trying to figure out who it was. There are only a certain number of people or characters that could have done it, and they’re trying to figure out who the bad guy is. I really love these types of stories. If you’ve ever read the author Agatha Christie, she is the most famous writer of whodunit stories. So, I really like her books, of course.

So, Scooby-Doo really appealed to me as a kid because I loved this sense of mystery. In English, when we use the word “appeal,” we’re saying that it attracts you, it seems interesting to you. It appeals to you. You like it. So, I really liked Scooby-Doo, and I feel like this cartoon is just a classic cartoon. I feel like it will never get old. I think that kids today could easily enjoy it, and to be honest, I think I could even enjoy it as an adult. I think that I just really appreciate the mystery stories that they told in this show. So, Scooby-Doo will always be high on my list of my favorite cartoons.

The next cartoon I want to talk about is Rocket Power. A lot of you might not have heard of this cartoon before, but in the US, it was really popular back in the day. In English, when we say the phrase “back in the day,” this just means a long time ago, at a certain point in the past, back in the day. So, back in the day, Rocket Power was pretty popular cartoon, and especially with young boys because this show was focused on a few kids that loved to do extreme sports. So, they skateboarded, they surfed, they snowboarded, they did all these cool things that boys, especially, really like.

So, I remember that when I watched this show, I wanted to be like these super cool characters. I wanted to be able to do amazing tricks on my skateboard, and I wanted to be able to surf, and do all these cool extreme sports. In English, when we’re talking about skateboarding, and we say the word “trick,” we’re talking about some special move, some special thing you can do with that skateboard. So, you can cause the skateboard to move in a cool way. This is a trick. So, I wanted to replicate these tricks that the characters did on their skateboards, and I thought it was such a cool cartoon. I really liked watching this when I was a kid, and I really identified with the characters because I wanted to do all of these cool things as well. So, I really liked Rocket Power. It really appealed to me as a kid, and it was just a really fun show overall.

Alright, so now, I want to tell you what my favorite cartoon was when I was a kid. My favorite cartoon was Hey Arnold! I’m sure a lot of you have heard of this cartoon, and maybe a lot of you happened. Hey Arnold! was my favorite show. I really loved it, and I actually rewatched most of the episodes when I was 17. I remember at that age, I was thinking a lot about this show that I used to watch, and I said, “I want to rewatch this show. It was so good. I’m sure I could still enjoy it now.” And I did. At the age of 17, I watched a lot of the same Hey Arnold! episodes that I had watched as a kid, and I enjoyed them again at that age.

So, I loved this show. I really liked the lessons that this show talked. There were always valuable lessons to be learned, and there were always things that you could apply to your real life. And I remember that I really liked the main character, the protagonist, Arnold. In English, when we use the word “protagonist,” we’re talking about the main character of the story, the good guy, usually. So, I really liked the protagonist, Arnold. He was such a good character. He was the moral compass of the show. In English, when we use the phrase “moral compass” we’re talking about the character that is the most moral and has the most ethical values out of all of the characters. So, he was definitely the moral compass of the show.

And I thought that it was just a really good show to teach kids different lessons. I haven’t watched it in many years, of course, so maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit and maybe the lessons weren’t that amazing, but from what I remember, I always learned a lot from this show. I always took away some interesting life lesson from each episode. So, that’s why I would consider it to be my favorite childhood cartoon.

And so now, I just want to talk about one bonus cartoon. I just want to talk about one bonus cartoon. I say “bonus” because it’s not a children’s cartoon, and I spent this whole podcast episode talking about children’s cartoons, but I wanted to mention one adult cartoon because I would consider this cartoon to be my favorite show of all time. I like it more than any other cartoon or real show. And this show is King of the Hill. I know that most of you have probably never heard of this show before, and that’s okay. There’s a good reason for that. King of the Hill is a very, very American cartoon. It’s a cartoon that I wouldn’t recommend to you guys, probably, because if you’ve never had the experience of living in the US and really getting to know American life in a deep way, then this show probably won’t be that interesting or funny for you.

This show is funny if you’re an American and you appreciate this depiction of American life. In English when we use the word “depiction,” we’re talking about someone’s interpretation or illustration of something. So, this show’s depiction of American life is very funny. It has a lot of humor that is only funny in the context of American society. And the main character, Hank Hill, he’s my favorite character of any show, in any series, any movie, he’s my favorite character of all time. So, I love this character, and he just makes this show so funny and makes it so interesting for me to watch.

You’re probably wondering what’s so great about this show? And it’s kind of hard for me to explain it. And like I said, I don’t really recommend it to people that aren’t from the US. And so, it probably doesn’t seem that appealing to you, and I’m not really explaining it well, but I would just say that it’s a cartoon for adults that pokes fun at American life and American values, but it does so in a way that shows that these values and this life is actually really good in a lot of ways, and so, it makes fun of this life, but it actually reinforces these same values, and the things that we hold dear as Americans. In English, when we say that you “hold something dear,” this just means that you consider this thing very important. So, it’s funny to watch this show that makes fun of the things that American society holds dear, but it also reinforces these same values in a way. So, this is my favorite show of all time.

Alright, why don’t we stop there for today? Remember that if you need my help to improve your listening and understand native speakers when they speak fast, then make sure to become a member. Click on the link in the Episode Description below this episode. That’s patreon.com/listeningtime and more specifically, if you want to train with my advanced podcast episodes to reach an advanced level of listening, then become a Listening Time Family Member. Okay? Also, remember that you have the transcript for this episode in the Episode Description. So, click on that if you need it. And before you go, remember to give this podcast a five-star rating if you like it, and that will help this podcast grow. Alright, thank you for listening to this episode, and I’ll talk to you on the next episode of Listening Time.