Having done individual critiques for all 75 episodes, I thought I would analyze the series as a whole and give my feelings about it, having been a long-time fan and having my share of both favorite episodes and loathed ones. All things considered, The Jetsons is a very good series and quite underrated, even during its time. I would have to say that the only real problem the show had was with its character development as well as story, as the show seems to be built more around the futuristic machinery used by the characters, than the characters themselves. During an episode, they'll cut away in the middle of what's going on to show them using some neat little gadget to accomplish a mundane task. It has no baring on the story whatsoever, it was merely put in as a diversion. Comparing this show to, say, The Flintstones, you'd see that The Flintstones was more about the characters as opposed to their setting. The show was about two families living in the Stone Age, and occasionally they did use Stone Age gadgets, including an animal operating something that would otherwise be electric, but this didn't always take away from what was happening in the story. We got to know Fred, Barney, Wilma and Betty, we followed them around, we learned a bit about their passions, their pasts, their dreams. With The Jetsons, we didn't really get that. Sure there was an episode that recalled George and Jane meeting and then getting married, but that was about it. Also, I think it would have helped if there was a Barney Rubble character in the series. A friend for George, who really had nobody to play off of except for Spacely, and I'll get into Mr. Spacely in a moment. We, the audience, don't really get to know The Jetsons as characters, or at least not in a sense that goes beyond their gimmicks. For example, Judy is the stereotypical teenage girl who's into cars, clothes, hair and boys, and she has a passion for music, but we rarely if ever got to see anything beyond that until Rockin' with Judy Jetson, which I'll get to later. Also what does Jane like besides shopping? What are her passions? How about George? We know he's a terrific pitcher in space ball, a great bowler, a hard worker, a good provider, but what is he really like? Same with Elroy, he's a boy genius and very precocious, but not very strong. You see, we don't really get to know these characters very well, we're only supposed to identify with their gimmicks and follow them as they do stuff and we're not sure why. This doesn't take away from the show's entertainment value, but it leaves a bit to be desired.Mr. Spacely, oh boy, the meanest boss in the universe and a really deplorable character. He must have been put there for the little kids, because all he does is yell, scream and jump around a lot. Astro was the same way, a very flamboyant character, and I know a cartoon show needs cartoon characters, but these guys are often shoe-horned into scenes where they don't really belong, other than to liven things up. Comic relief, if you will. It's apparent, particularly in the later episodes that whenever the writers couldn't think of anything engaging to do with the Jetson family, they'd always bring in Spacely and his ever-growing rivalry with Cogswell Cogs. Yet another gimmick and a chance to throw in gags for no real reason other than to move the plot along. I think Cogswell was added just to try and make Spacely seem like a good guy and at times, he has expressed some affection for George and his family, though not very often. Now, I've already said which episodes are my favorites, but I'll go ahead and recap right here. I liked "The Swiss Family Jetson" because it took the characters out of their element and showed them having to thrive off instinct and know-how, which I had said should have been the movie, but it worked out fine as a 22 minute episode. Most of the shows were pretty good, but one episode I've always hated is "The Wrong Stuff" purely for the way it was set up, the story was stupid, the plot was weak, what should have been a great opportunity for character development was cast aside so Spacely could show up and exploit Elroy for no reason other than to allow him to be in an episode where he didn't belong. "Space Bong" was alright, but I didn't like the subplot of Spacely being invited to dinner, as this shows The Jetsons' universe didn't allow for any other characters to be their friends. Character is definitely where the show falls flat.Overall, I love The Jetsons, it's a great show and the characters, while not very deep, are still enjoyable and even the horrible episodes are better than most cartoons coming out today. George, Jane, Judy, Elroy, Rosie and Astro are all endearing and you enjoy watching them do what they do. I also liked Orbitty, he was a nice addition to the cast, I don't know why they got rid of him in Season 3. Did they think he was the Jetson's answer to Cousin Oliver? Even Mr. Spacely, you love to hate him. He's so mean and cruel, yet he has his endearing moments. I would also like Mr. Cogswell if I got to know him better. Just once I would have liked to see him without Spacely and see what he's really like. I really recommend the show, as I said, some episodes are great, some are stupid, but for the most part, it's just corny fun. Suspend your disbelief and you'll enjoy what you see.

Golly, I remember this show when it was on Sunday nights, for only one season before getting the cancellation ax! After enjoying the surprising (or was it?) success of THE FLINTSTONES, Hanna & Barbera reasoned that they could have just as much with the future with THE JETSONS. Unfortunately, they had one big problem in the present (1962). ABC pitted THE JETSONS against WALT DISNEY'S WONDERFUL WORLD OF COLOR, which was a very popular family institution. THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF COLOR had it all, fun, cartoons, comedy, drama, not to mention the loyalty of, well, almost everybody! The fact that THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF COLOR was ... in color, further guaranteed its success, thus insuring that anyone competing would become a casualty in the ratings war.Well, THE JETSONS became a casualty in the ratings war and was canceled after only one season. But the series was given a second chance when it went into syndication and became a very popular favorite as a Saturday morning cartoon.The fact that there were so few (only 24) episodes did not affect its popularity. The networks simply spaced each episode further apart.The kids loved THE JETSONS and after growing up into college students, STILL loved THE JETSONS. And after getting married and having kids, they introduced their children to THE JETSONS (as an excuse to continue to watch and enjoy the cartoon).So in 1984, seeing that THE JETSONS was one success story that refused to die, Hanna & Barbera decided that it was time to launch Season Two of THE JETSONS, continuing to keep the series "futuristic" 1962-style and while sneaking a classic episode or two in with the new batch of episodes.A new character or two were introduced. And in the newer episodes, there were some devices (not yet in existence in 1962) like pocket calculators, VHS players and a few other gadgets that were gradually added to the mix of futuristic gimmicks used on THE JETSONS.The Jetsons are a normal modern day family not like any other modern day family of today, except, of course that they live in the future. And that is exactly why this show is such a wonderfully entertaining program that thankfully has seen the light of digital release!

I first discovered The Jetsons when I was 7, and remember how much I loved it then, how funny I thought it was, and how clever all the gadgets were. Then, rediscovering it 10 years later, late night on a cartoons channel has brought about the same things as it had done before - laughter. This says to me that the show is hilarious for any age. Younger children can feel with Elroy's trials of school, and teenage girls can laugh and cry with Judy's boy troubles.I think the scripts were wrote brilliantly, and had a brilliant cast to voice the lines. I'd love to see The Jetsons brought back, because I think that even now - it'd be a big hit.

I grew up watching the Jetsons, and it was always funny to me, but it is really just a kid's cartoon. It obviously has to be compared to the Flintstones, which really was the point of it, after all, to take the Flintstones and try it in a different setting. But the Flintstones was not just a kid's cartoon, it is entertaining to adults too, because it had more meaning. Because it focused on the friendship of Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble. In creating the Jetsons, a Barney character was sadly left out. George Jetson interacts with his wife, boss, and dog (all true for Fred as well), but he really cries out for someone else for his character to play against.