"Set in 2062, The Jetsons captured the technological optimism of 1962 by inviting viewers to imagine the dazzling possibilities that a wave of technological achievement could one day realize."
The technology that Jane Jetson used to talk with her husband, George, looks eerily similar to the first iMac. Photo illustration by Slate. Images via Hanna-Barbera Productions and Apple.
"While The Jetsons might have made fun of the easy lifestyles that the technological future would produce, it completely missed the impact on the humans who would live in that future. It did not speculate about what would become of our bodies if we were to eliminate physical movement from our days; if we were to abandon cooking and feed ourselves with food prepared by machines; if we were to forego nature and deprive ourselves of its sights, sounds and smells. There was no recognition, no anticipation of the consequences to our health. In fact, nearly all the characters in The Jetsons are (cartoonishly) skinny.
"...That task would be left to another cartoon: Pixar’s 2008 animated film Wall-E, in which morbidly bloated humans were shuttled around on reclined “hoverchairs,” with built-in screens and with sodas available on demand, delivered by drones (a sort of aerial refueling, perhaps). In this world, humans had become so physically dependent on their technology that, once fallen, they literally could not get up." - Stephen J. Downes
Article: The Jetsons, Now 60 Years Old, Is Iconic. That’s a Problem.