TV REVIEWS : New Cartoon Series Mostly Copycats

Saturday-morning kidvid has never been noted for originality, so it’s hardly surprising that the ‘50s comic-book styling of the popular “Batman” series on Fox has spawned a crop of imitators. The other new programs try to be hip in various ways but seem long on attitude and short on imagination.

Four new series debut on ABC today. “Cro” (8 a.m.) depicts the adventures of a Cro-Magnon boy as recounted by Phil, his pet woolly mammoth. Each episode teaches something about science or technology: The first program uses a prehistoric band to explain how vibrating air in an instrument produces music. The well-intended didacticism impedes the story and makes a trip to the Paleolithic seem tamer than a visit to the mall.

In “Sonic the Hedgehog” (9 a.m.), the video-game character stars in a thinly veiled reworking of “Star Wars”: Brash Sonic is Luke Skywalker; intelligent Princess Sally, Leia; the whiny Antoine, C3P0, etc. Their battles against Dr. Robotnik’s evil machines may appeal to kids who play the games. Another “Sonic” recently debuted in syndication.

The backgrounds and color scheme of “Tales From the Cryptkeeper” (10 a.m.) evoke the look of the old “Tales From the Crypt” comics, but not the grisly stories. The alleged macabre tone of the series provoked a minor controversy, but there really isn’t much to fuss about: The opening story was a formula “scary” adventure in the threadbare tradition of “Goober and the Ghost Chasers.”

A mixture of live-action, animation and Muppet characters, “City Kids” (11:30 a.m.) feels like a hip-hop version of “Pee-wee’s Playhouse.” The multiracial cast of blue-collar New York teens uses various media to explore problems of urban life. The opening show, which blends a warning about lying with the efforts of a girl to attract the new boy in school, seems a little too frantic and a lot too preachy. “City Kids” may pick up as the cast and crew relax.

Two cartoon series debuted earlier this week on TBS. “Swat Kats: The Radical Squadron” (6:30 a.m.) is a by-the-numbers super hero adventure starring a not-so-dynamic feline duo that dons costumes to fight monsters, wizards and mad scientists. The backgrounds suggest comic-book panels; the panning shots, smoke effects, explosions and aerial battles are borrowed from Japanese sci-fi features. The characters talk a lot about “kicking some tail,” an expression parents may not want small children to adopt.

“2 Stupid Dogs” (Sunday at 6:35 a.m. and 2:05 p.m.) certainly lives up to its title: The nervous thin dog and the lumpy gray dog are dim nonentities whose weary adventures seem, well, stupid. The simple designs recall the bargain-basement minimalism of the old “Tom Terrific” cartoons. “Secret Squirrel,” a James Bond spoof Hanna-Barbera introduced in 1965, also appears on the show, although jokes about “Agent Double-0 Zero” seem hopelessly out of date in 1993.

Things hit rock bottom with “Rocko’s Modern Life,” a tasteless attempt to capture the “Ren and Stimpy” audience (it debuts at 9:30 tonight on Nickelodeon but will normally be seen Sundays at 11:30 a.m.). Rocko is a kangaroo who lives with his “sweet but brain-dead” dog, Spunky, and Heffer, a steer. There are drool jokes, vomit jokes, nose-picking jokes and a few suggestive remarks: e.g. addressing a rhino as “Mr. Horny.” Herb Scannell, senior vice president of programming, says, “Innovative and quality entertainment for kids is the core of Nickelodeon’s philosophy.” If so, they must be airing “Rocko” under the equal time provisions.