Television series
Rocket Robin Hood
- Swashbuckler
- Vigilante
- Light-hearted
A 1967 Canadian cartoon that transplants Robin Hood to the year 3000, complete with spaceships, laser guns, and a flying fortress. It's a Saturday morning adventure show that never stops moving, gleefully uninterested in logic or continuity. Pure energy and colour for kids who like their heroes quick-witted and their villains gloriously incompetent.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you have a soft spot for creaky, cheerful 1960s space adventure where the hero-versus-villain story is told with a wink and the sets are part of the charm.
Skip it if you need slick modern pacing and effects, since the budget shows and the episodes are simple, stop-start adventures that can feel thin across a full twelve-episode run.
What it asks of you: Half an hour per episode, a brisk and bright tone rather than anything heavy, and a readiness to accept its goofy premise without asking why it works.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Jonny Quest1964
Globe-trotting adventure with cutting-edge sci-fi gadgetry, a teenage hero, and Hanna-Barbera's best animation. Every episode promises danger and wonder in equal measure.
But The pacing can drag between action beats, and the family dynamics feel like filler compared to the set pieces.
The Herculoids1967
Space colonists defended by alien creatures with impossible powers. The creature design is inspired, and the show commits fully to its wild premise without a wink to camera.
But Plot repetition sets in fast, and character development is minimal; the show is essentially variations on a formula.
Batman: The Animated Series1992
Proof that cartoon adventure can be sophisticated without losing pace or fun. Gorgeous art deco design, witty writing, and villains who feel genuinely dangerous.
But It's serious enough that Rocket Robin Hood's cheerful chaos might feel lightweight by comparison afterward.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Rocket Robin Hood
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Flash Gordon1980
Both treat space exploration and outlaw heroism with wide-eyed enthusiasm and bright, unironic colour; Flash Gordon is the live-action ancestor Rocket Robin Hood was riffing on.
The 1954 film is pure technicolor space opera fun, bursting with the same optimistic retro-future energy as Rocket Robin Hood. It's the granddaddy of colourful space adventures, beautifully shot and completely sincere.
But It's a film, not a series, and the pacing is slow by modern standards; some will find the earnestness dated rather than charming.
More like this (7)
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe1983
Campy, colour-saturated, endlessly inventive. He-Man's castle, the wild character design, the rubber-faced villains—it's toy commercial perfection that transcends its origin.
But The moral lessons are blunt, and some episodes recycle plots so blatantly you'll notice mid-episode.
The Perils of Penelope Pitstop1969
A Hanna-Barbera comedy adventure with the Hoagy Carmichael-voiced Sylvester Sneekley as villain. Cheerful, silly, and packed with slapstick that lands.
But It's very gentle and very silly; if you need stakes or coherent plotting, this isn't it.
Birdman1967
Two shows in one slot: solo superhero adventures and cosmic team-ups. Vibrant Hanna-Barbera style with gadgets and aliens in abundance.
But The episodes are thin on story and thick on filler; you're watching for the design and the feeling, not narrative.
Young Samson1967
A boy and his superhero dog battle monsters and villains across a candy-coloured landscape. The voice work is charming, and it never takes itself seriously.
But It's aggressively of its time and aggressively aimed at very young viewers; sophistication is not the goal.
Beat Shazam2017
Live-action cartoon logic: a boy says a magic word and becomes a musclebound superhero. It's earnest and ridiculous in the exact right proportion.
But The special effects are primitive even by 1974 standards, and the boy-hero framing doesn't always land.
Redline2009
Both are love letters to colour and movement for their own sake; both trust that visual spectacle and breakneck pacing matter more than conventional narrative.
A hand-drawn anime about an illegal space race. Seven years in production, every frame vibrates with colour and motion. It's a visual feast that prioritizes style and excitement over coherent plotting.
But The story is deliberately thin and the dialogue is frankly weird; you have to be willing to surrender to pure sensory experience.
Defenders of the Earth1986
Both adapt classic pulp heroes into space adventure with cheerful disregard for logic; both believe a charismatic outlaw can outwit any empire.
A team-up of Flash Gordon, the Phantom, Mandrake the Magician, and Lothar against an intergalactic villain. It's unhinged pulp energy with a voice cast that commits utterly.
But The animation is cheap Golan-Globus syndication quality, and the dialogue is often groan-worthy in ways that aren't always intentional.
