Over 800 Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of Nickelodeon Shows That Are Better Than Anything Kids Can Watch Today
Voting Rules
Vote up the shows that make you yearn for the good ol' days.
To this day, old Nick shows are still a fantastic form of nostalgia. Whether it's the catchy theme songs or amusing characters, the familiar fun brings you back to a time when life wasn't full of responsibility. In fact, the only responsibility you had was to enjoy being a kid.
While today's kids' programming has its audience, these shows can't really compete with old-school Nickelodeon shows. They miss that '90s and early 2000s charm. These old Nickelodeon shows can still hold their own against the current slate of kids' programming.
Aaahh!!! Real Monsters gave kids a hilarious behind-the-scenes look at monsters in training. Ickis, Oblina, and Krumm must please their teacher, The Gromble, by scaring humans in New York City.
In 1995, the show was nominated for a Daytime Emmy in the category of Outstanding Achievement in Animation. While the show ended in 1997, Ickis, Oblina, and Krumm guest-starred in a 1999 episode of Rugrats titled "Ghost Story."
Comic book creator Jhonen Vasquez left his mark on cartoons with 2001's Invader Zim. The dark comedy, which follows the title character's attempts at world domination, won an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation.
While it was canceled after two seasons, the show gained a massive cult following. "I just think that it did not jive well with Nickelodeon's image," Vasquez told SyFy Wire.
In 2019, Netflix unveiled the animated film Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus, which picks up where the original series ended.
Extreme sports fanatics gave the thumbs up to Rocket Power upon its release in 1999. The animated series follows a group of friends learning about life while shredding on the streets.
Joseph Ashton, who provided the voice of Otto, earned two Young Artist Awards nominations for Best Performance in a Voice-Over. The show's popularity inspired the Maximum Rocket Power Live: The Battle for Madtown Park, which was a touring live play in 2002.
Based on the book Salute Your Shorts: Life at Summer Camp, the Salute Your Shorts series depicts the wild adventures of camping.
Unlike most live-action Nickelodeon shows in the '90s, Salute Your Shorts was shot at Los Angeles' Griffith Park Boys Camp and Franklin Canyon Park. A third season was nixed after the cast chose to not relocate to Nickelodeon Studios for filming.
While the show was canceled in 1992, it remained popular on the channel through constant reruns.
In As Told by Ginger, Ginger Foutley and her friends go through the trials and tribulations of high school. The show stood out for its strong character development, which included callbacks to previous episodes.
Nickelodeon couldn't pack everything in a single TV series, and four TV movies were released to expand on storylines. The show was nominated for three Emmy Awards for Outstanding Animated Program.
Nickelodeon Guts had kids answering the question "Do you have it?" Premiering in 1992, the American Gladiators-influenced show pit kids together in a contest for a glowing piece of the Aggro Crag.
Two years later, American Gladiators unveiled their own kid-friendly version of their program with Gladiators 2000, but it couldn't compete with Guts.
Backstreet Boys' A.J. McLean and actor Mike Vogel appeared on the show as contestants.
