I have Flash, and it doesn't cut it for me, and After Effects seems like over-kill to throw a $1,000 on. Any suggestions?
After Effects is an editing software for video and photos, if that's what you're looking for then Final Cut 4 ($199) for Macs is always an option.
Toon Boom is nice: http://www.toonboom.com/products/toon-boom-studio/ I used it for some 2D projects. It's a lot of fun if you have a tablet.