Since the 1980s and the 2000s, there have been many animated characters which are either junior versions (e.g., children, nephews, nieces, or protégés) or younger versions (i.e., the original characters presented as children) of other well-established characters. An example of a younger character is Scooby-Doo as a puppy, and an example of a junior character is Scrappy-Doo, Scooby-Doo's nephew.
This trend, often referred to as the "babyfication" of shows, was kicked off by the 1984 series Jim Henson's Muppet Babies, which was based on a sequence in the (live-action) film The Muppets Take Manhattan. An earlier example of younger versions of existing cartoon characters, however, would be Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd from the 1944 cartoon The Old Grey Hare, which features Bugs and Elmer as babies (as well as very old characters) The same concept was used in a cartoon featuring an elderly Foghorn Leghorn and Barnyard Dawg who each have a grandson, and in a planned scene in the Three Stooges short Three Little Pigskins in which each stooge has an identical son.
Examples from comic books are Superboy, who was introduced in 1944's More Fun Comics #101 as the teenage version of Superman; Superboy would eventually be seen in an animated series in the 1960s and a live action TV series in 1988. Other examples were Little Archie, which featured the childhood adventures of Archie Comics character Archie Andrews, and How Obelix Fell into the Magic Potion When he was a Little Boy, about the character from the French comic book series Asterix.
A common trait of many of these spin-offs is their habit of causing plot holes and/or breaking whatever semblance of continuity (however minimal or nonexistent it may be) the previous versions of the characters established; for example, the original Flintstones series stated that Fred and Barney first met Wilma and Betty as young adults while working at a resort, an assertion backed up by several later episodes/spin-offs (as well as the second live-action Flintstones movie, The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas). However, The Flintstone Kids shows them all as having known each other as ten-year-olds. Other differences between the two series include the 1980s-equivalent technology (video games, personal computers, etc.) seen in Kids vs. the 1960s-equivalent technology seen in the original series, as well as there being greater racial diversity in Bedrock in Kids (though other Flintstones spin-offs featuring the characters as adults have also shown a presence of minorities in Bedrock). For these reasons, some animation fans consider most of these "younger version" shows either as apocryphal or as having caused all the series with those characters to have "jumped the shark."
At the peak of the genre's popularity, circa 1990, even adult-oriented franchises were being adapted into younger or junior versions (see, for example, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and James Bond, Jr., and to an even greater discontinuity, Tales from the Cryptkeeper, which kept the titular Cryptkeeper at his usual age but told stories centered around children with much milder horror).
In Japan, the use of chibi versions of established characters to work out themes of self-parody has become a staple of manga and anime. It is generally the norm (where such parodies are used) to end a chapter with a page or two of chibi characters parodying the chapter's main themes. Usage of chibi in this manner often constitutes a form of catharsis for the readers and the writer, similar to the practice of having the actors in a play appear on stage to take a bow at the end of a performance, including characters who were killed off in the body of the play.
Chibi are often portrayed as leading separate, parallel lives to the characters they parody, occasionally going so far as to be portrayed as a variant species occupying the same fictional world.
Television series featuring younger and junior versions of animated characters include:
Baby Felix features the adventures of Felix the Cat as a kitten and his friends as babies.
Muppet Babies features the adventures of The Muppets in a nursery as preschoolers.
Baby Looney Tunes (Warner Bros., 2002): based on characters who appeared in the Looney Tunes cartoons. The show stars baby versions of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Sylvester, Tweety Bird, Taz, Petunia Pig, Melissa Duck, and Lola Bunny (from Space Jam). The show has also featured baby versions of Elmer Fudd (though Elmer has appeared in an episode as slightly older than the others and as a bully, obviously as a reference to the adult version always hunting the adult version of Bugs Bunny), Porky Pig, Yosemite Sam, the Road Runner, Wile E. Coyote, Foghorn Leghorn, Pepé Le Pew, and Marvin the Martian in musical segments between stories. This show is done in the style of Muppet Babies, with the characters being taken care of by Granny.
An earlier 1990 effort from Warner Bros., Tiny Toon Adventures, featured numerous younger "clones" of the traditional Looney Tunes characters. These characters existed parallel to their adult counterparts, but aside from color and age had nearly identical appearances and personalities.
In a double dose of "juniorization", Plucky Duck even had segments in which his toddler self is depicted.
Clifford's Puppy Days (Scholastic Entertainment, 2003): features the adventures of Clifford the Big Red Dog when he was a puppy.
An episode of Martha Speaks titled 'Martha and Skits' featured Skits as a puppy and a 2-part episode titled 'Martha's Life in Crime' featured Martha as a puppy.
Three episodes of Oggy and the Cockroaches titled 'Back to the Past!', 'The Time Machine' and 'Perpetual Motion' featured Dee Dee, Marky, Joey, Oggy, Jack and Bob as toddlers.
An episode of Aaahh!!! Real Monsters titled 'Rookie Monsters' featured Ickis, Oblina and Krumm when they were young.
Krypto the Superdog episodes feature Krypto and the Dog Stars as young puppies in the episode 'Puppy Problems' and him as a puppy in 'Krypto's Scrypto: Part 1'.
Several episodes of We Bare Bears features Grizzly, Panda and Ice Bear as cubs.
One episode of Ben 10: Omniverse titled 'Arrested Development' features Ben Tennyson and Rook who are turned into kids by Billy's De-ager Ray, and him in flashbacks in some episodes, however these appearances are a callback to the original Ben 10 series.
An episode of Ben 10 titled 'Don't Drink the Water' features Ben Tennyson turned into a 4-year old and his aliens younger.
Some episodes like The Angry Beavers features Daggett and Norbert who are young.
Two episodes of Invader Zim titled "Parent-Teacher Night" featured a flashback of Zim as a smeet and "Mysterious Mysteries" featured flashbacks of Dib and Gaz as babies.
Two episodes of Johnny Test titled 'Johnny's New Baby Sisters' and 'Johnny vs. Bling-Bling' feature Johnny, Dukey, Susan, Mary and Bling-Bling Boy as babies.
The Flintstone Kids (Hanna-Barbera, 1986): featuring the original cast of The Flintstones (Fred, Wilma, Barney and Betty) as ten-year-olds. In addition, the show also has backup segments, one of which also tied in a prequel to another series, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels.
Jungle Cubs (Disney, 1996): based on Disney's 1967 animated film The Jungle Book, but set in the youth of the animal characters from the movie, such as Baloo, Bagheera, King Louie, and Shere Khan.
The New Archies (DIC Entertainment, 1987): featuring the cast of The Archie Show as pre-teen junior high students.
A Pup Named Scooby-Doo (Hanna-Barbera, 1988): featuring Scooby-Doo and the Mystery, Inc. gang's adventures as junior high school students. Notably, this show made a more extensive effort to maintain continuity with its parent franchise, and would be referenced in later Scooby-Doo revivals.
Tom & Jerry Kids (Hanna-Barbera/Turner Entertainment, 1990–1995): featuring Tom and Jerry as children. Other segments on this program include:
Droopy and Dripple, featuring Droopy and his son Dripple.
Spike & Tyke, featuring the bulldog Spike, and his son Tyke. Tyke, oddly enough, is the same age here as he is in the conventional "adult" Tom and Jerry shorts.
Pink Panther and Pals (DePatie-Freleng/MGM Animation, 2010) : featuring The Pink Panther as a teenager, along with Big Nose, Horse, and The Ant and the Aardvark. It also featured the child versions of them.
Yo Yogi! (Hanna Barbera, 1991–1992): featuring Yogi Bear, Boo Boo, Cindy Bear, Huckleberry Hound and Snagglepuss as teenagers solving mysteries and detective works. Incidentally, Boo-Boo was left unaffected despite him being a cub in the usual Yogi Bear series. The voices of the characters were also left unchanged.
In Star Trek: The Animated Series, the episode "Yesteryear" had a version of Spock finding a version of himself from the past. Although the young Spock had been in a Vulcanical wrestling team. Also, he had a pet bear named Chika. Before Spock got out of the portal, he said, "Live long and prosper." In another episode, ("The Counter Clock Incident"), Captain Kirk and Spock helped Robert April to create a new dimension, but then all of the crew regressed back into children, and the Aprils reverted to teenagers or young adults.
Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers: The Power Rangers are turned into children by Master Vile. Later, Billy Cranston restores himself to his normal age.
Teen Titans: The Titans are younger than their comic book counterparts. Whereas the comic book depicts them as approximately eighteen, the Titans of the cartoon are closer to fourteen.
Gadget Boy: The popular Inspector Gadget is depicted as a child.
Camp WWE features younger versions of WWE Superstars at a summer camp. The age range isn't accurate with their real age, as it features Stephanie McMahon and Triple H as teenaged camp counselors around the same age (In real life, Triple H and McMahon are seven years apart in age.), while showcasing the likes of John Cena, The Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Roman Reigns around the same age, about 8 years old. (In real life, The Undertaker and Austin are both older than Triple H, despite their characters portraying as being younger than Triple H in the series.) "Adult" characters like Vince McMahon, Ric Flair, and Sgt. Slaughter are portrayed as full-grown adults.
Additionally, the other animated adaptation of the WWF/WWE, Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling had one episode, "Small But Mighty," where the wrestlers -- thanks to Hillbilly Jim's chili and some of his grandmother's "secret herbs" -- turns the wrestlers into 10-year-old versions of themselves; during the episode, the youth versions of the wrestlers foil a car-stripping ring.
Sabrina: The Animated Series: Sabrina Spellman as a 12 years old attending Middle School.
The Lion Guard features the clone of Young Simba (In this case, Kion, the son of Simba and Nala) with his animal friends Bunga, Ono, Beshte and Fuli.
Comic books and strips featuring younger versions of animated characters include:
Captain Marvel Jr., a teenaged apprentice to Fawcett Comics' superhero Captain Marvel, introduced in Whiz Comics in 1941 and later popular in Master Comics and his own self-titled comic book. The character's comic adventures continued until 1953; when DC Comics assumed the rights to the Fawcett characters in 1972, Captain Marvel, Jr. was returned to publication.
Superboy: featured the adventures of Superman as a teenage superhero defending his home town of Smallville from various threats. Other characters seen in this series include the teenage version of Lana Lang, who made some appearances in the adult Superman stories as well. The series ran from 1944 through 1986, when the traditional version of Superboy was retired. A newer version of Superboy exists in the current Superman comics, but this version is a younger clone of Superman.
Little Archie: featured the adventures of the Archie comics gang as elementary school students.
Spy vs. Spy Jr., a running comic strip in the juvenile-themed Mad Kids Magazine (a spin-off of Mad Magazine). Unlike the more familiar version, the junior Spy characters do not attempt to murder one another. Instead, they engage in tit-for-tat pranks and plots (in one episode, a Spy ends up soaked by his own garden hose; in another, a Spy gets splattered by bad-smelling "skunk juice").
Petey: The Adventures of Peter Parker Long Before He Became Spider-Man, a Fred Hembeck backup feature in Marvel Tales featuring humorous stories of Peter Parker, Flash Thompson, and Betty Brant as children, with Aunt May and Uncle Ben. A typical example featured Petey sent by Aunt May to the pharmacy to buy Uncle Ben's medicine and told he can keep the change. Not realizing the cost of medicine, he buys sodas for Flash and Betty, only to discover the change from the medicine is a quarter.
Spider-Man and Friends, and its successor, the Marvel Super Hero Squad, feature younger versions of Spider-Man and other superheroes from the Marvel Comics universe.
Little Endless: Child versions of the Endless from Neil Gaiman's Sandman comics, originally appearing in the story "A Parliament of Rooks]", illustrated by Jill Thompson, and subsequently in Thompson's graphic novel The Little Endless Storybook
X-Babies: Several X-Men stories parodied the concept by having younger versions of the cast created by Mojo.
Wonder Woman : Over the years there have been multiple comics involving a younger version of Wonder Woman. Some have been flashbacks comics of her early days, some have been as a result of her becoming younger and some involved 2 younger versions of herself going into the future and teaming up with her. The two younger versions of her are Wonder Tot and Wonder Girl. When writer Bob Haney, erroneously believing that Wonder Girl was a junior protégé of Wonder Woman, used Wonder Girl as a member of the all-protégé Teen Titans, the character was re-established as a genuine junior version to explain her presence as a Titan.
Senninha : Based on real racing driver Ayrton Senna as a child. It was created with the purpose of promoting the success of the driver in campaigns, including getting to have comic books and cartoons, but even after the death of Senna, the character marked legacy among fans and continued to be developed for several more years.
Topolino (an Italian Disney comic) features a version of Donald Duck (also known as PP8) as an 8-year old child, with his best friends Barney, Billy, Millicent and Betty Lou.
Some characters like Daisy Duck and Gladstone Gander in the Topolino comics as childrens.
There has been one concept album with an accompanying music video DVD on the subject of younger versions of cartoon characters.
Little Alvin and the Mini-Munks featured the adventures of Alvin and the Chipmunks and The Chipettes as infants at a nursery.
Bratz Babyz are the babies of the teenager girl dolls.
Comedy Central's Lil' Bush is a spoof of the concept, with members of the George W. Bush Administration portrayed as children.
Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation featured the Care Bears and the Care Bear Cousins as cubs.
The Muppets Take Manhattan featured The Muppets as babies in the song, "I'm Gonna Always Love You". This scene would inspire Muppet Babies.
Young Sherlock Holmes has Holmes and Watson meeting each other and fighting with Professor James Moriarty as teenagers.
Baby Strawberry Shortcake, a baby version of the American Greetings character, Strawberry Shortcake.
Balto II: Wolf Quest features Aleu, Kodi, Saba, Dingo, Yukon, and Nunivat as puppies born by Jenna.
Monsters University, a prequel to the 2001 Pixar film Monsters, Inc., features main characters Sulley and Mike as young adults in college. During pre-production of the film, the producers explicitly avoided setting the film in the characters' childhoods.
Sanrio has baby versions of their characters Hello Kitty, Mimmy, Dear Daniel, My Melody, Cinnamoroll, Tenorikuma and Kuromi. The Hello Kitty Babies design series was a request from young mothers who had been loyal fans of Hello Kitty since her debut.
Finding Dory features flashbacks of Dory as a baby with her parents.
Disney has baby versions of their characters Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, Pluto, Clarabelle Cow, Pete, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, Eeyore, Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Princess Jasmine, Mulan, Pocahontas, Tiana, Rapunzel, Stitch, Dumbo, Bambi, Thumper, Lady and the Tramp, Patch, Marie, Simba and Nala in their franchise, Disney Babies.
Rhino Entertainment has a younger version of the Elvis Presley rhino juggling 8 blocks with the words in them in the Kid Rhino Home Video videotapes.
The Star Wars prequel trilogy focuses on younger versions of Darth Vader, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Emperor Palpatine, Boba Fett, and other characters from the series. They are also prominent in the Clone Wars spin-off franchise.
The Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Rascals" depicted Captain Picard, Guinan, Ro Laren and Keiko O'Brien being physically reverted to younger versions of themselves due to a transporter accident, while retaining their memories and skills. When the ship is attacked and boarded, they turn this to their advantage, forming a commando team with the other children to re-take the ship.
Monica Baby, a baby version of main characters of Monica's Gang franchise Monica, Jimmy Five, Smudge, Maggy and Chuck Billy. This served both as a secondary franchise as the representation of the characters in some flashbacks and time travels in the comics.
Xuxinha, a child version of the real television presenter Xuxa. She appeared in some marketing and animations during the 2000s. The character was the protagonist of the 2005 animated film: "Xuxinha e Guto contra os Monstros do Espaço".
Several more adult TV series have ridiculed the concept and created more mocking parodies of the idea that lasted only one episode:
Garfield and Friends briefly parodied the idea in the short "The Automated Animated Adventure", where Mr. Sprocket, a cartoon producer fiddles around with Garfield's appearance, at one point turning him into a baby and saying that it's part of "the newest trend in cartoon shows".
Part of an episode of Homestar Runner spoofed the concept, mainly as all of the characters as babies and "imagining" being something else a la Muppet Babies, such as baby Coach Z tossing a cardboard box (which says "not a ball!") with an actual football right next to him and "pretending he is the captain of the football team."
Family Guy (Fox, 2002): In an episode called "Family Guy Viewer Mail 1", the characters are shown in a skit as children in elementary school as a parody of The Little Rascals.
Futurama (Fox, 2003): The episode "Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles" featured a plotline that involved the Fountain of Aging turning Leela, Fry, Professor Farnsworth, Amy, Bender, Zoidberg, and Hermes into younger versions of themselves.
A third season episode of Drawn Together (Comedy Central, 2007) called "Drawn Together Babies" features the characters as toddlers to spoof the theme of younger versions of cartoon characters. The episode's introduction is also a parody of the Muppet Babies opening theme (with the song also taking elements from the theme to Happy Days).
Wonder Showzen (Augenblick Studios) did an extreme parody of the concept, mostly of Muppet Babies featuring all the major Wonder Showzen puppets, even a disturbing parody of Nanny.
The concept was parodied in an episode of Uncle Grandpa called "Grounded". The show's main characters were depicted as toddlers with Pizza Steve shown as a wad of pizza dough. Throughout the short segment, Baby Uncle Grandpa would pause in between explaining the mission to the other babies by declaring "Pooping my pants!".
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and Yoshi's Island DS featured baby versions of Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Wario, Donkey Kong, and Bowser.
Baby Pokémon are young, pre-evolved versions of other Pokémon (usually those introduced in an earlier generation), usually only obtainable by breeding. This concept originated in the second generation. Examples include Pichu evolving into Pikachu, and Igglybuff becoming Jigglypuff. This concept was inspired by the younger versions of cartoon characters phenomenon. The original Pokémon often have multiple levels of "evolution" (for example, the "fire type" starter Pokémon from the first generation games had a young, childlike version named Charmander, which was followed by the adolescent Charmeleon, and later the fully-grown Charizard).
Jak's younger self (known as Mar) appeared in Jak II and Jak III.
Dr. Neo Cortex's younger identities appeared on Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped (as a baby along with a baby version of Dr. Nefarious Tropy fighting over Uka Uka) and Crash Twinsanity (as a five-year old along with kindergarten versions of his comrades).
Classic Sonic is a younger-looking reincarnation of Sonic the Hedgehog's original appearance from the early 1990s, and appears in the video game Sonic Generations, which celebrates the series' 20th anniversary.
