Originally airing from 1962–63 and again from 1985–87, The Jetsons was Hanna-Barbera’s Space Age complement to The Flinstones. Both franchises are amongHanna-Barbera’s most popular creations, so it makes perfect sense they would be brought together in 1987’s The Jetsons Meet the Flinstones. 92 minutes long, the feature aired as part of their Hanna-Barbera Superstars series, the same show that presented Top Cat and the Beverly Hills Cats and The Good, the Bad, and Huckleberry Hound, among others.
As The Jetsons Meet the Flinstones begins, each family is facing serious troubles at work. George Jetson (voiced by George O’Hanlon) finds himself caught up in a case of industrial, espionage, when Spacely Space Sprockets’ robot computer begins leaking information to Cogswell (Daws Butler).
Thousands of years in the past, Barney Rubble (Mel Blanc), and Fred Flintstone (Henry Corden), believe they can make enough money to take Betty (Julie McWhirter) and Wilma (Jean Vander Pyl) on a wonderful vacation. Unfortunately, dodging their duties at the quarry to participate in a poker match backfires, and they’re fired from their jobs.
At the same time, boy genius Elroy Jetson (Daws Butler) is busy putting the finishing touches on a time machine. George doesn’t believe it works, until Elroy uses it to pluck a girl out of Arabian times and back. Sensing an opportunity to get away from Mr. Spacely (Mel Blanc) and mounting work pressure, George decides they should use the time machine to take a vacation. Unbeknownst to everyone, Astro has accidently set the machine to “Past,” and the Jetsons find themselves in prehistoric times.
The Jetsons initial meeting with the Flinstones and the Ribble’s sets up what becomes a significant culture clash. In most films that are considered part of the science fiction genre, the use of a time machine, and people hurtling through space to a different time would likely mean the end of the world as the characters know it. Here, however, Hanna-Barbera set that expectation aside in favor of an adventure that plays more like a comedy tinged episode of Doctor Who. Everyone has fun, and ends up where their supposed to be in the end.
As a fan of the Jetsons and the Flinstones, I enjoyed this “Present” meets “Past” adventure when I first saw it in 1987, and my appreciation for it hasn’t cooled. The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones has had VHS releases in the past, but this is the first time it’s had an official DVD release. It’s now available through Warner Bros.’ Hanna-Barbera Classic Collection, being sold exclusively through WBShop.
As part of the Warner Archive Collection, The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones is prepared On Demand. The film is shown in 137:1 widescreen and features no special features.
