Observe this ridiculous screenshot from “G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero” (1983-1986). This apparently “laser gun” behaves in every way like a ballistic firearm (it even discharges spent shells). This image is absolutely representative of how gun violence was censored in 80’s/90’s American cartoons.
A G.I. Joe character fires a gun towards the camera (at something offscreen). He is dressed like a soldier, the gun looks like a real gun, and shells are coming out of the gun. But the blast from the gun is laser beam (like from Star Wars or Star Trek).