In 1991 there was an animated series based on a spinoff novel from Ian Flemming’s James Bond series. I just watched Chitty Chitty Bang Bang for the first time in… decades, and I was suprised to learn that it was also based on an Ian Flemming novel and produced by Albert R. Broccoli, the guy who did all the early James Bond movies. Ian didn’t write the James Bond Jr book, so he can’t really be blamed for the atrocity that is the James Bond Jr cartoon. They made over 60 episodes, but apparently the toy line was more popular than the actual series. What you see here is the Gordo Leiter figure, complete with weaponized skateboard. Turns out there were two episodes that featured skateboarding. [Sources: Wikipedia and James Bond Jr Online]

Adventure Time may be the best animated show on television, although It’s tough to top the Venture Brothers. I’m still waiting for skateboarding to show up in the Venture Brothers, somehow I thought it happen there first, maybe Dean trying to impress Triana Orpheus, or Dr Venture getting hassled by teenagers on the street… Meanwhile, Adventure Time snuck in some skateboarding. The kingdom of Ooo may be magical, but it’s not a free or all. It’s fairly flushed out, there is some crossover with the real universes, but then again Finn is the only human alive, and skateboarding has always been the domain of homo sapiens. I want to see skateboarding in my favorite shows (is that wrong?) but I don’t want it to be awkward. What the math indeed. Spoiler alert, don’t watch this clip if you haven’t seen the Mystery Train episode because it will give away the ending.

I was not a fan of Phineas and Ferb when I first saw it. I think it was the animation style and color pallet made it seem kind of cheap. My kids are into it though, and like any lazy American good parent I watch a lot of TV monitor what my children watch to make sure it’s appropriate. I’ve since grown to appreciate it. Phineas and Ferb have a spin off now called Phineas and Ferb: Take Two. It’s essentially the same premise as Space Ghost Coast to Coast, a virtual set and hosts with real guests. Space Ghost Coast to Coast is one of the most brilliant shows ever put on late night TV, so Phineas and Ferb has a tough act to follow. I’ve only seen the one episode, and it falls flat. Part of what made SGC2C work was the general weirdness of the situation. Some of the guests didn’t quite know what was going on, and the writers occasionally deliberately created a semi hostile atmosphere. At it’s best, Space Ghost Coast to Coast was a bizarre masterpiece of postmodern awkwardness. Then again, Phineas and Ferb is aimed at a grade school audience, so maybe I…

The Real Adventures of Johnny Quest was a 1986 retread of the original 60’s version of the show. Episode 16 of season 2 was titled Other Space and features hoverboard action. In the words of Grover, who unearthed this footage, “They hover the shit out of this episode.”

Two of the best animated shows ever. What about Family Guy? Meh. It has its moments, but it’s not in the same class as these two. This is actually part of a panel from a Fururama comic book where the Futurama cast is trapped in a Simpson’s comic book by evil floating brains. I found this over at Insane Journal after getting sidetracked while doing an image search for Stella Stevens on a skateboard. It was a fruitless search, but I did find illustrations of Fry and Bart Simpson skateboarding together. There’s even a Back to the Future plug. Let’s analyze that. A real movie reference in a comic book that takes place inside the universe of a different comic book. Now if only there was a skateboard in The Venture Brothers.

Two comics with skateboarding, one is Cyanide & Happiness and the other is from a Imperial Valley, Ca paper, as featured on a crackpot’s blog The Snake on the Flag. Thanks to Boy Ipoh and Ryan Mann.

Art Clokey passed away on Friday. His early work was pretty surreal at times. What good hearted person doesn’t love Gumby? There were at least two Gumby episodes that revolved around skateboarding. The first one was a 1967 episode of the Gumby Show, titled Dog Catchers. I believe that is the first skateboarding dog, unless you count this one. The second was a 1988 creation titled Skateboard Rally, in which the Blockheads rip his stick. There’s a dramatic car chase, Skate Rock on a half pipe – performed while skating, no less, a contest with loop action and some heavy eigties guitar riffs. I think David Dink got ripped off by the judges though. Check em out after the jump. – Thanks to ehdubya for the tip.

Porky Pig gets r-r-radical with some X-Mas skateboarding action in this 2006 Looney Tunes special titled Bah Humduck!. It’s another adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, with Daffy as the greedy owner of a department store.