Do you remember Saturday morning cartoons?

I can remember waking up early, 6 a.m. on Saturday morning, to watch Ultra Man, a very fine Japanese cartoon in the Godzilla genre.

What a guy, that Ultra Man. He worked in some sort of office by day, but whenever there was trouble he would slip off to a quite spot and shoot his little ray gun in the air and … FLASH … he transformed into Ultra Man.

He wore one of those form-fitting rubber suits and of course, a mask to hide his identity.

It was always so exciting to me to witness that miraculous transformation. The average person just can’t do that &045; well not in a split second, anyway.

And Ultra Man always fought to defend the little guy and protect the innocent and weak &045; or so the theme song said.

Now that was a worthy undertaking.

Ultra Man, Superman, Batman and all the other super heroes were idols to me back then.

The superheroes stood for truth, justice and the American way of life.

I distinctly remember achieving a sense of justice solely from watching those Saturday morning shows.

During the Fourth of July holiday this year, I had the chance

to preview some of the cartoons that my kids watch today.

Some of the old standards are still around, although with a few modifications &045; just to keep up with the times.

Ultra Man may have gone by the wayside, but Superman and Batman, with more aerodynamic costumes, are still there but are not really in the favorites category at my house.

Today, there are the Power Puff Girls, Cat-Dog, Rug Rats and Dexter of Dexter’s Laboratory.

While most of these cartoons insult my intelligence, my kids seem to soak it in like fresh water on an old sponge.

I was appalled at the silly storylines of Cat-Dog and the unhealthy living conditions of the Rug Rats (does anyone ever change that kid’s diaper?)

I was completely put off by the appearance of the Power Puff Girls.

Their ragdoll bodies, huge heads and oversized eyes looked

like something from a bad horror movie. The first 10 minutes were extremely hard to sit through, but as the plot thickened, I ultimately decided these chicks do have spunk.

They fly through the galaxy, protecting the people of Earth from the hideous, otherworldly creatures which threaten on a daily basis and never do they muss their hair.

Let’s see Superman do that.

I was informed by my daughter that the Power Puff Girls were cool because they were girls and they weren’t afraid of anything.

She drew pictures of the Power Puff Girls and added two more characters to the show which she "creatively" named after herself and Miss Candace (Miss Candace even got an autographed copy of her character).

From now on, instead of the bat sign, it will be "Power Puff Girls to the rescue!"

So long, Ultra Man.

Move over, Wonder Woman.

Make way for the Power Puff Girls Plus Two.