Skylanders Academy is a new CGI animated series set to premier this month on Netflix. According to the Skylanders Wiki (yes there is one), the series is being produced by Activision Blizzard Studios under the guidance of Eric Rogers (writer on Futurama). Spyro the dragon, Eruptor, and Stealth Elf study to use their diverse powers to protect their world from the evil forces of Kaos and the Doom Raiders. Look for it October 28th, and check out the trailer on YouTube.
Netflix
More Furry Netflix Cartoons
In addition to the aforementioned Llama Llama, we’ve learned from Cartoon Brew that Netflix have announced five more animated series coming to their streaming service over the next couple of years. At at least two of them are especially of note for furry fans: “Animated action-comedy Skylanders Academy follows the heroic adventures of the Skylanders team, a ragtag group of heroes with unique elemental skills who travel the vast Skylands universe, protecting it from evil-doers. They achieve victory by setting aside their egos, learning to trust one another and fighting as one to maintain harmony and balance in the land.” And yes, Spyro is among them. The series is set to premier on Netflix this coming fall. Then, there’s this: “Inspired by the Oscar-nominated film Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron [from Dreamworks Animation — ye ed-otter], Spirit Riding Free follows the heartfelt journey of a wild mustang who could not be tamed. A whole new generation will experience all the daring adventures when Spirit meets a girl named Lucky whose courage matches his own. Together they push limits, harness the power of friendship and discover what it means to be free.” Look for Spirit Riding Free to premier sometime in 2017.
No More is Need for Sad-Mad
Over at Animation Scoop they have word about a new TV series adapted from Dreamworks Animation’s successful (some might say keester-saving) movie Home. “Developed by Ryan Crego (Sanjay and Craig, Shrek Forever After) and Thurop Van Orman (The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack), and executive produced by Ryan Crego, DreamWorks Animation’s Home: Adventures With Tip & Oh, an all-new Netflix Original Series, answers the question: What happens after a misfit alien conquers Earth, befriends an adventurous teen girl named Tip and together they save the day? Picking up where the hit 2015 animated film left off and building upon their enduring friendship, this animated buddy comedy follows fearless Tip and overenthusiastic alien Oh, as they navigate the combined human and alien culture they live in, finding adventure everywhere they go… The first season will be available exclusively to Netflix members in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the Nordics, Benelux, and France beginning July 29.” Heard it here did you.
Black Bug Singing in the Dead of Night…
Netflix have recently announced a new CGI animated series, Beat Bugs. Premiering this summer, it’s bug-size stories set to the music of The Beatles. Yes. According to Animation World Network: “Beat Bugs features original characters and a world created by Josh Wakely, who will direct, write and produce the series… Beat Bugs incorporates songs from the Lennon/McCartney ‘Northern Songs’ catalogue, to tell uplifting and life-affirming stories filled with hope and melody. World-leading artists, animators and writers have come together to work on this extraordinary show. The Beat Bugs are charming, funny, adventurous, and have a knack for getting themselves into mischief and mayhem. Each of the five friends (Jay, Kumi, Crick, Buzz, and Walter) has a distinctive personality, and they display the charm and energy of five knockabout, lovable kids. They are best friends who band together to explore and learn in an overgrown suburban backyard, which to them is their entire universe.” The article also has a teaser trailer for the show.
This Will Take You Back. Way-Back.
You might recall that last year Dreamworks Animation’s CGI take on Mr. Peabody & Sherman was rather a disappointment at the box office according to some analysts. Evidently though that didn’t dampen Dreamworks’ interest in the characters as now they bring us The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show. It’s coming to Netflix this Friday, this time in a more traditional 2D animated version. According to the article at Cartoon Brew, “In the new series, Mr. Peabody (voiced by Chris Parnell) and his boy Sherman (Max Charles) host a talk show from their New York City penthouse, in which they interview historical figures like George Washington and Edgar Allen Poe. They also embark on time travel adventures in their WABAC machine visiting the likes of Cleopatra, Mozart, and Marco Polo.” There are also musical numbers to be had, and Cartoon Brew has a preview of one of them — as well as the show’s opening.
Animals Along for the Ride
When anthropomorphic characters aren’t the star of the show, the most common place to find them is as a human character’s sidekick. Such is the case with two more pre-school animated TV series on their way to Netflix in the near future. First up there’s Kazoops (from Cheeky Little studio) in 2016, which “…follows the inquisitive young boy Monty and his best friend, a pig named Jimmy Jones, as they seek answers to the questions children routinely ask about everyday life.” There’s a teaser trailer over at Cartoon Brew. Then in 2017 look for True & the Rainbow Kingdom from Guru Studio: It stars a young girl who “…with the help of her best friend Bartleby the cat navigates the magical Rainbow Kingdom using her creativity and ingenuity in search of harmony and love for all.”
When Young Animals Learn to Talk
According to our friends at CartoonBrew, in addition to the four new animated TV series announced recently by Netflix (and discussed here as well), the network has added an additional three new animated shows that are squarely aimed at the preschool set. One of them, at very least, is especially anthropomorphic: “Arriving worldwide in 2016 exclusively on Netflix is the Jim Henson Company’s Word Party. Produced through Henson’s digital puppetry studio, Word Party’s 11-minute episodes follow the adventures of four baby animals, whose singing and dancing aims to help build the vocabulary skills of its preschool viewers. Jim Henson Creature Shop’s digital puppetry innovation ‘allows puppeteers to perform digitally animated characters in real-time, enabling the animation to be more lifelike and spontaneous.'” Watch for it next year.
New Furry Toons for Netflix
Ears up! A recent article in Variety talks about a new set of animated TV programs that Netflix has picked up — the majority of which just happen to be very furry. Or anthropomorphic if you want to get technical! Two of the original series created just for Netflix include: Kulipari — An Army of Frogs, coming in 2016. It’s based on the original novel series by NFL star Trevor Pryce (which we have noted at In-Fur-Nation before) about an army of amphibian swamp warriors. Meanwhile Puffin Rock (coming this September) is about an adventurous young puffin (and her less-adventurous little brother) living off the coast of Ireland. The other two original series, Luna Petunia from the folks at Cirque du Soleil and a re-imagining of Tarzan & Jane, may or may not have anthropomorphic elements in them — we’ll see! On top of all that, Netflix has picked up two already-existing animated series for US premier, and they are both plenty furry: Masha and the Bear from Russia, and Elias from Norway — the latter featuring anthropomorphic boats. Check the article to find out more.
He Likes to Move It
Over at Animation Scoop there’s an article about the new Dreamworks animated TV series for Netflix, All Hail King Julien. It’s in the Madagascar/Penguins universe of course, but it’s sort of a prequel. “Set before the Zoosters arrive in Madagascar, King Julien holds court over a colorful cast that includes fan favorites Mort and Maurice, along with a host of all-new jungle dwellers. The series features a talented voice cast that includes television legend Henry Winkler (Happy Days) as Julien’s regal predecessor, Uncle King Julien, alongside Emmy-winning actor Danny Jacobs as King Julien, Andy Richter (Conan, Arrested Development) as Mort, Kevin Michael Richardson (Family Guy) as Maurice, and India de Beaufort (One Tree Hill) as Clover, the king’s special-ops expert.” This is the second Dreamworks animated TV series on Netflix, following Turbo FAST, and the studio plans on creating no less than 10 additional Netflix series by the end of 2016. Meanwhile, Julien will be available for download on December 19th.