Cartoons

Chris Rice turns a whimsical daydream into a playful call to praise, imagining what would happen if cartoon characters got saved. The song opens with a repeated musing about cartoons singing praise "in a whole new way," then runs through a cast of familiar figures: Fred and Wilma Flintstone, Scooby Doo and Shaggy, the Jetsons' dog Astro, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Kermit the Frog, Elmer Fudd, Bullwinkle and Rocky, Yogi Bear, and the little blue Smurfs. Each gets a signature catchphrase bent into a hallelujah-style refrain, so "Yabba dabba do" and "Cowabunga" become vehicles for worship. The joke lands hardest when Beavis and Butt-Head are offered the same chance and simply decline with a flat "Nah." Rice then pivots to his real point: he admits he's not an Animaniacs fanatic, but insists there's plenty of praising to do, and cartoons were made for exactly that. The track closes by inviting everyone to sing hallelujah, turning a silly premise into an unforced nudge toward joy and gratitude.