Collection The Flintstones

The Flintstones was the first animated series to air in American prime time, which is easy to forget now. In 1960 it was a sitcom for adults that happened to be drawn, modelled openly on The Honeymooners and set in a stone age with full modern conveniences.

The gag engine is the anachronism. Everything in Bedrock is a household appliance operated by an animal who then breaks the fourth wall to complain about it. The car runs on feet. The record player is a bird with a beak. It's a joke the show tells hundreds of times and it never quite wears out.

Fred and Barney's friendship is the actual substance. Fred is loud and constantly scheming, Barney is agreeable to a fault, and the show is honest about the fact that they irritate each other and would be lost apart.

It also gave the world Bamm-Bamm, Dino, and a theme song that a remarkable number of people can still sing unprompted.

This collection covers the families and their prehistoric equipment. Yabba dabba doo, unavoidably.