Esme & Roy

Last updated
Esme & Roy
Esme & Roy logo.png
Genre
Created by
  • Dustin Ferrer
  • Amy Steinberg
Written by
List
  • Dustin Ferrer
    Leah Gotcsik
    Becky Friedman
    Jennifer Hamburg
    Clark Stubbs
    Jim Nolan
    Sam Dransfield
    Ron Holsey
    Dana Starfield
    Liz Hara
    Dan Danko
    Evan Sinclair
    Corey Powell
    Margaret Hoffman
    Lucas Mills
    Brian Hohlfeld
    Caitlin Hodson
    Rick Suvalle
    Laura Kleinbaum
    Kristofer Wellman
    Guy Toubes
    Lisa Kettle
    Keion Jackson
    Leah Kanabroski
    Michael Matosic
    Mike Nawrocki
Directed byMike Fallows
Voices of
Theme music composerJonathan Evans
Opening theme"Esme & Roy Theme Song"
by Kellylee Evans
Ending theme"Esme & Roy Theme Song" (instrumental)
Composers
Country of origin
  • United States
  • Canada
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes57 (113 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Melissa Graham
  • Machi Tantillo
  • Studio "MIDI-Cinema"
Running time23 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network
ReleaseAugust 18, 2018 (2018-08-18) 
February 4, 2021 (2021-02-04)

Esme & Roy is an animated children's television series created by Dustin Ferrer and Amy Steinberg. The series is produced by Canada-based animation studio Nelvana and Sesame Street producer Sesame Workshop, in association with Corus Entertainment. [2]

Contents

The series focuses on a young girl named Esme and her best friend, a monster named Roy, who care for all kinds of creatures when their regular guardians need aid. Esme and Roy was broadcast simultaneously on HBO in the United States and Treehouse TV in Canada on August 18, 2018. [3] [4] [5] It was the first original show for HBO Family since Classical Baby, but ironically, it also ended up being the final original show for HBO Family at all.

On May 6, 2019, it was announced that the series was renewed for a second season. [6] The show began airing on PBS Kids on August 30, 2019. [7] In September 2019, it was announced new episodes of the show would be moving from HBO to HBO Max (now Max), starting with the second season. [8] The second season premiered on June 25, 2020. A holiday-themed episode was released on December 10, 2020. [9] The second season premiered on PBS Kids on Saturday, March 6, 2021. [10]

The show was removed from HBO Max on August 17, 2022. [11]

Plot

Esme & Roy follows a young girl named Esme and her best monster friend, Roy, the most in-demand "monstersitters" (like babysitters, but they look after monsters) in Monsterdale, a town populated mostly by colorful monsters. The duo set out to solve big problems by playing and helping out the young monsters with their problems. [1]

Episodes

SeasonSegmentsEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast airedNetwork
1 5226August 18, 2018 (2018-08-18)April 27, 2019 (2019-04-27) HBO (United States)
Treehouse TV (Canada)
Tiny Pop (United Kingdom)
2 5126June 25, 2020 (2020-06-25)February 4, 2021 (2021-02-04) HBO Max (United States)
Treehouse TV (Canada)
Tiny Pop (United Kingdom)

Characters

Main

Recurring

Production

Nelvana ordered 52 11-minute segments, equal to 26 half-hours, of each season of Esme & Roy, for 130 11-minute segments (two of which comprise the 22-minute special episode) in total. [17]

Broadcast

Esme & Roy premiered on Treehouse TV in Canada and HBO in the United States on August 18, 2018. The show began international broadcast following its U.S. and Canadian premieres.

The show made its public television debut during the Family Night block on the PBS Kids 24/7 Channel on August 30, 2019, [18] [19] and was added to the regular schedule on August 31, 2019. [7] The last airing on PBS Kids was June 27, 2021. [20]

The show began airing on the Cartoonito preschool block on Cartoon Network and HBO Max on September 18, 2021, in the United States. Esme & Roy was premiered on Disney Junior Asia from August 12, 2019, until April 2021 before being moved to Cartoon Network Asia in 2022 as part of the Cartoonito block.

Reception

Critical

Esme & Roy has been met with mostly positive reception. Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media rated Esme & Roy a total of 5 out of 5 stars, stating that Esme & Roy's "thoughtful approach to self-awareness and mindful behavior makes it an excellent tool for families and caretakers to use in teaching similar skills to kids," and that the broader emotions will relate to a child's experiences. [21]

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNomineeResultRefs
2019Kidscreen AwardsBest New SeriesEsme & RoyWon
2019Canadian Screen AwardsBest Original Song – Animation"Ballet Pirates", from the episode "Two Can Play At That Game"Nominated [22]
2019NAMIC Vision AwardsChildren's seriesEsme & RoyNominated [23]
2019Daytime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Preschool Children's Animated SeriesEsme & RoyNominated
Outstanding Interactive Media for a Daytime ProgramEsme & RoyNominated
Outstanding Casting for an Animated Series or SpecialEsme & RoyNominated
2019YMA Awards of ExcellenceBest Program, Animation – Preschool"Hugo, We Have a Problem" / "A New Chapter"Nominated [24]
2021Daytime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Preschool Children's Animated SeriesEsme & RoyNominated

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References

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