Go Go Gadget Inspector Gadget! If you were a kid in the 80s, chances are you watched Inspector Gadget.

Maybe you remember Inspector Gadget himself? Do you remember the villain called the Nefarious Doctor Claw?

If you had the privilege of growing up in the 80s, you may remember watching the cartoon series many times as a child. The cartoon had a lot of interesting things and super goofy gadgets that made you want to learn more about science!

The original 1980’s cartoon was also made into a movie in 1999 and it starred Matthew Broderick that was pretty great. The sequel? I think society as a whole tries to forget it as it was much lower quality than the original.

Anyway let’s get into an exciting remembrance of the 80s cartoon and movies that revolve around a bumbling bionic detective named Inspector Gadget, and his quest to defeat his nemesis the Nefarious Doctor Claw!

Who Is Inspector Gadget?

In the spring of 1983, an episode of Inspector Gadget premiered on television. Then, life as we knew it changed.

Inspector Gadget is a bumbling, accident-prone but enthusiastic crime-fighter equipped with a variety of badly constructed gadgets from Q’werks Inventing Laboratory. This subpar superhero lives at the address 555 Elm Street along with his niece, Penny.

He fights against Dr. Claw and his evil organization, MAD. Because he is handy with tools, he likes to maintain his own equipment; in fact, he is sometimes the only one who knows how they work.

Inspector Gadget is often mocked for his lack of intelligence and goofy antics but endowed with gadgets created by his niece (and later adopted daughter), Penny, that saves the day in the end.

Inspector Gadget was a staple of millions of children’s mornings in the 1980s, and they watched attentively while a bumbling police inspector perpetually at odds with his superior officers, is saved from losing his job by an army of helpful robot toys he receives from his niece. Each toy comes with a special weapon, and each episode saw him snatch victory from the jaws of defeat!

The Inspector Gadget Cartoon

The Inspector Gadget is a Canadian/French/American animated cartoon television series. The cartoon series first aired in 1983, and it went on to spur an epic industry of toys, films, and other animated series spin-offs.

Our first memory of Inspector Gadget was as a kid when we watched an episode of the cartoon. The title character was a bumbling detective who could barely tie his shoelaces without the help of his trusty sidekick, Penny.

He operated with a gadget-laden jacket which made him pretty darned unstoppable in terms of helping to solve cases.

If you love good old fashion slapstick comedy, you’ll love Inspector Gadget and all of his mystery adventures. No matter the odds against him, Inspector Gadget and his sidekick Penny always came through to save the day.

The Inspector Gadget Movie

The popularity of the Inspector Gadget cartoon eventually lead to a movie starring Mathew Broderick in 1999. The movie had a worldwide gross of $134.4 million worldwide, against a budget of $90 million. Not bad for a clumsy cartoon detective!

Hilariously enough, the film even to this day only holds a 21% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Everyone’s a critic, right? Well, try watching the film as an adult to see how it stands to your test of time. Will this film based off the epic 1980’s cartoon hold your interest as an adult?

Regardless Inspector Gadget will always be one of those cartoons that we look back on and smile. His goofy adventures and gadgets always made us laugh, and for those of you who were lucky enough to watch it during the 80s, will always remember Inspector Gadget as one of your favorite morning cartoons.