Animation ManiaLists about films and TV shows told by the visuals-intensive medium that allows storytellers to weave fantastical legends told by unforgettable characters.
Both The Flintstones and The Jetsons are undoubtedly two of the greatest animated series ever made. Whether it is Fred and Barney's Stone Age shenanigans or the exploits of the Jetsons family in their futuristic home, these families are loved by fans and have remained popular over several decades. This popularity has likely inspired people - such as Cracked writers Anthony Scibelli and Logan Trent - to come up with a post-apocalyptic Flintstones theory.
The theory essentially tries to explain howThe Flintstones and The Jetsonsare connected and part of the same universe - after all, both cartoons are part of the Hanna-Barbera series with similar styles and settings. This Flintstones fan theory goes to extreme lengths to try and prove how thousands of years don't separate them, but that they actually take place at almost the same time.
Could it be that Fred and Wilma Flintstone are post-apocalyptic, long-distance neighbors and best friends with George and Jane Jetson? Or could they be living in the Jetsons' world, just months after a nuclear war destroyed Orbit City? This theory might convince you that all of this is true.
'The Jetsons' And 'The Flintstones' Have A Crossover
It's not simply a theory that the two cartoon franchises take place in a shared universe. Characters from each series have already interacted with each other in the 1987 animated flick The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones.
In the movie, the child genius Elroy Jetson builds a time machine intended to take his family to the far future. Instead, it malfunctions and transports them to the Stone Age where they encounter Fred, Barney, and the rest of the gang. Of course, this meeting is technically built around the concept of time travel and not a parallel universe. The idea lays the foundation for how the two families co-exist and interact despite vastly different origins.
Elroy’s Time Machine Actually Succeeded In Reaching The Future
Rather than mistakenly taking Elroy and the rest of the Jetsons to the past, as is depicted in The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones, the theory contends that the time machine worked perfectly, taking the characters to the designated future period of the 25th century. Cracked writers Logan Trent and Anthony Scibelli sum up this premise with a simple question: "Could [The Flintstones], in fact, be set in a post-apocalyptic future wasteland that's been 'bombed back to the Stone Age' for real?"
However, the world the characters find themselves in resembles the past - after all, only remnants of human life could endure a nuclear disaster that destroyed much of society.The Flintstones and other Bedrock residents are living in a post-apocalyptic future, and the Jetsons reach this society through the time machine.
The post-apocalyptic theory argues that nuclear war destroyed the world and led to a split in society, as modern-day civilization was wiped out and replaced with a primitive form of culture. The survivors of the disaster then tried to live on the surface. Without access to traditional power and resources, society on the planet regressed to a Stone Age-like system, an idea which Trent and Scibelli also suggested in their Cracked post.
After several hundred years, the Flintstones, residents of Bedrock, and the surrounding cities are what humanity has managed to rebuild. Thus, the Jetsons's world might have even pre-dated the Flintstones's world - that is, all the futuristic technology, robots, and rockets of the Jetsons' world have collapsed, leaving the Flintstones with the remnants of high-tech devices, but with none of the fancy trappings.
Both Cartoons Were Created During A Time When Nuclear War Was A Genuine Threat
Both The Flintstonesand The Jetsons launched during the 1960s. This was a period in global history when the Cold War was escalating, an era which writers Trent and Scibelli explore as well, asking, "What if a nuclear showdown between the Soviets and Americans was what blew Bedrock to kingdom come?"
The Cold War had a profound impact on popular culture, with many films, novels, and television shows reflecting the mood. As nuclear war became a genuine threat, these cartoons somehow imagined what would have happened if bombs almost destroyed society: the survivors would have either had to live away from the Earth's surface in some kind of floating city or somehow sustain themselves on the nearly uninhabitable planet.
The Jetsons Live In Orbit City To Escape The Horrors Of The Apocalypse
The Jetsons live in a floating town known as Orbit City. Built far above the planet's surface, as evidenced by how clouds surround it, the city and its structures stand a long way up in the sky. There is only one real reason to build such a city: if the Earth's surface has become inhospitable due to a disaster.
Perhaps some people foresaw the upcoming nuclear apocalypse and built an orbiting utopia to escape - the Jetsons could be the descendants of those who were able to avoid society's nuclear war by taking to the skies.
Dinosaurs And Other Strange Animals Are The Result Of Radiation-Induced Evolution
In an episode of the Nerdist podcast, Chris Hardwick argues that the animal life on the Flintstones's post-Apocalyptic planet may be the result of rapid evolution brought about by excessive radiation.
Likewise, Cracked writers Scibelli and Trent note, "Surviving animals get a fresh start on an irradiated planet. Without humans constantly all up in their sh*t, animals would be free to evolve. Some would gain intelligence, or in the case of dinosaurs, get a second lease on life."
If the world did go through some traumatic, near-apocalyptic nuclear blast, large amounts of radiation would remain all over the surface. Coupled with the lack of humans to deplete their numbers, the animals and dinosaur-like creatures could advance at a previously impossible rate.
