Rocket Monkeys

Last updated
Rocket Monkeys
RocketMonkeysLogotrans.gif
Also known asThe Rocket Monkeys
Genre Science fiction comedy [1]
Created by
  • Dan Abdo
  • Jason Patterson
Developed by
  • Alex Galatis
  • Mark Evestaff
Directed byJ Falconer
Creative directorMark Evestaff
Voices of
Opening theme"Rocket Monkeys" performed by Tony Daniels
Ending theme"Rocket Monkeys" performed by David Berni (as YAY-OK)
Composers
  • Eggplant LF
  • Steve D'Angelo
  • Terry Tompkins
  • Jeffrey Morrow
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes65 (130 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Ira Levy
  • Peter Williamson
  • Joan Lambur
  • Dan Abdo (S1)
  • Michael Feder (S1)
  • Jason Patterson (S1)
  • Michael McGuigan (S3)
  • Nat Abraham (S3)
ProducerMark Evestaff
Running time22 minutes (11 minutes per segment)
Production companies
Original release
Network Teletoon
ReleaseJanuary 10, 2013 (2013-01-10) 
November 23, 2016 (2016-11-23)

Rocket Monkeys is a Canadian animated television series created by Dan Abdo and Jason Patterson for Teletoon. It premiered in Canada on January 10, 2013, [2] and aired its last new episode on November 23, 2016, before entering reruns. The series is produced by Breakthrough Entertainment in association with Hornet Films and Atomic Cartoons. 65 episodes were produced. [3]

Contents

The series won several Canadian Screen Awards, [4] including Best Animated Program in both 2015 and 2016.

Plot

Two anthropomorphic monkey astronauts named Gus and Wally, work at the GASI Headquarters. They're not the brightest or coolest astronauts, but since they are the only ones around, they are called upon to go into space and carry out different kinds of important missions—including battling rogue black holes and vengeful aliens. Other members of the brothers' crew include bossy astrophysicist Dr. Chimpsky, who gives the monkeys their assignments; YAY-OK, a devoted robot that is slightly outdated and is the brothers' only hope to help keep them on course; and Inky, a space octopus and artist who communicates through his ink drawings.

Characters

Production and development

The development of the series begins in 2006. The two protagonist monkeys, Gus and Wally, are inspired by the complicity of the two creators of the series, Dan Abdo and Jason Patterson, [7] friends since high school. Jason and Dan did some animation tests and sketches which they showed Michael Feder. Feder, a partner of Hornet Inc, then helped in the development of Rocket Monkeys, under the label of Hornet Films. In 2007, the animation division of their studio closed. 4Kids Entertainment then volunteered to take care of the pre-production of the series from spring 2008. [8] [9] [10]

At the beginning of 2012, production was completed and the animation was taken over by Atomic Cartoons in Vancouver. [11]

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginal airdate
First airedLast aired
1 26 (52 segments)January 10, 2013 (2013-01-10)April 2, 2014 (2014-04-02)
2 13 (26 segments)November 5, 2014 (2014-11-05)February 26, 2015 (2015-02-26)
Special October 25, 2015
3 26 (52 segments)March 1, 2016 (2016-03-01)November 23, 2016 (2016-11-23)

Broadcast and home media

Rocket Monkeys had been broadcast in Canada on its original channel, Teletoon, since January 10, 2013. [12] The series is available for digital per-episode purchase in Canada, and cannot be purchased in the U.S. in that manner. As of 2021, the series (with the exception of some episodes), can be seen on the completely free streaming service, Tubi.

On February 21, 2013, Nickelodeon announced that they had acquired the broadcast rights to the series, including for the U.S., though its history on that network was marked with several shifts. It premiered on March 4, 2013, but then shifted over to sister network Nicktoons due to low ratings and waning promotion on Nickelodeon, before that network dropped it entirely in May 2014, leaving it off US airwaves for just over three years. [13] The second season finally premiered in the U.S. on July 3, 2017 as part of the over-the-air KidsClick syndicated children's block and has aired until the block shut down in 2019. [14] In the United Kingdom, it premiered on Nicktoons in 2013 and ended sometime in 2017, but repeats aired from December 2017 to 28 January 2018, and it also aired on CITV. In Southeast Asia and Poland, it aired on Disney XD.

Related Research Articles

<i>The Ren & Stimpy Show</i> American animated television series

The Ren & Stimpy Show, commonly referred to as simply Ren & Stimpy, is an American comedy animated television series created by Canadian animator John Kricfalusi for Nickelodeon. Originally produced by Spümcø, the series aired from August 11, 1991, to December 16, 1995, spanning a total of five seasons and 52 episodes. The series follows the misadventures of Ren Höek, an emotionally unstable and psychopathic chihuahua dog; and Stimpy, a good-natured and dimwitted Manx cat. It is the third cartoon to be aired of the original three Nickelodeon animated series known as "Nicktoons", alongside Doug and Rugrats, and is considered to be one of the progenitor series of the brand.

<i>My Life as a Teenage Robot</i> American animated science fantasy television series

My Life as a Teenage Robot is an American animated science fiction superhero comedy television series created by Rob Renzetti for Nickelodeon. It was produced by Frederator Studios and Nickelodeon Animation Studio. Set in the fictional town of Tremorton, the series follows the adventures of a robot super-heroine named XJ-9, or Jenny, as she prefers to be called, who attempts to juggle her duties of protecting Earth while trying to live a normal human life as a teenage girl.

<i>ChalkZone</i> American animated television series

ChalkZone is an American animated television series created by Bill Burnett and Larry Huber for Nickelodeon. The series follows Rudy Tabootie, an elementary school student who discovers a box of magic chalk that allows him to draw portals into the ChalkZone, an alternate dimension where everything ever drawn on a blackboard and erased turns to life. Rudy is joined in his adventures by Snap, a wisecracking superhero Rudy once drew with chalk, and Penny Sanchez, Rudy's academically intellectual classmate and personal friend.

<i>Oh Yeah! Cartoons</i> American animation showcase series on Nickelodeon

Oh Yeah! Cartoons is an American animated anthology series that aired on Nickelodeon. Created by Fred Seibert, it was produced by Frederator Incorporated and Nickelodeon Animation Studio, running as part of Nickelodeon's Nicktoons lineup. In the show's first season, it was hosted by a variety of schoolchildren, and the second season was hosted by Kenan Thompson of All That and Kenan & Kel, and later Josh Server of All That in the third and final season. Bill Burnett composed the show's theme music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicktoons</span> Animated series brand used by Nickelodeon

Nicktoons is a collective name used by Nickelodeon for their original animated series. All Nicktoons are produced partly at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio and list Nickelodeon's parent company in their copyright bylines.

<i>Nicktoons Film Festival</i> American TV series or program

The Nicktoons Film Festival was an annual event that was created by producer Fred Seibert and produced for its first three years by his Frederator Studios.

<i>KaBlam!</i> American animated sketch comedy television series programming block

KaBlam! is an American animated sketch comedy anthology television series that ran on Nickelodeon from October 11, 1996 to January 22, 2000, with repeats until November 2, 2001. The series was created by Robert Mittenthal, Will McRobb, and Chris Viscardi. The show was developed as a fully animated showcase for alternative forms of animation that were more common in indie films and commercials. Each episode thus features a collection of short films in different innovative styles of animation, bridged by the characters Henry and June, who introduce the short animations and have zany hijinks of their own in between.

<i>Yakkity Yak</i> Canadian animated television series

Yakkity Yak is a Flash animated television series produced by the Vancouver-based animation studio Studio B Productions and Kapow Pictures. It was created by Mark Gravas and aired on Teletoon in Canada and on Nickelodeon in Australia and US from 9 November 2002 until 12 December 2003. 26 episodes were produced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederator Studios</span> American animation television production studio

Frederator Studios is an American animation television production studio founded by Fred Seibert, which is a division of Frederator Networks, Inc. It was formally launched by Seibert in 1998, with its initial formation in January of the prior year. Seibert remained at the company until founding FredFilms, its successor company in February 2021. The studio has been credited with producing various media projects, predominantly in children's animation. Their slogan is "Original Cartoons since 1998." The studio has locations in New York City, where Frederator Digital is based, and Burbank, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John R. Dilworth</span> Creator of Courage the Cowardly Dog (1999-2002)

John Russell Dilworth is an American animator, actor, writer, director, storyboard artist, producer and the creator of the animated television series Courage the Cowardly Dog. His work has mainly appeared on PBS, CBS, Showtime, HBO, Fox, ABC, NBC, Arte, CBC Television, YTV, Teletoon, BBC Two, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and MTV, among others.

<i>Random! Cartoons</i> Television series

Random! Cartoons is an American animated anthology series that aired on Nicktoons. Much like Oh Yeah! Cartoons, it was created by Fred Seibert and produced by Frederator Studios and Nickelodeon Animation Studio. It premiered on December 6, 2008, and ended on December 20, 2009.

<i>Invader Zim</i> American animated television series

Invader Zim is an American animated science fiction dark comedy television series created by comic book writer and cartoonist Jhonen Vasquez for Nickelodeon. The series centers on an extraterrestrial named Zim, from the planet Irk, and his mission is to conquer Earth and enslave the human race along with his malfunctioning robot servant GIR. He is antagonized by Dib, a young paranormal investigator who is determined to stop Zim from succeeding.

<i>CatDog</i> American animated comedy television series

CatDog is an American animated television series created by Peter Hannan for Nickelodeon. The series follows the zany hijinks of golden-furred conjoined brothers of different species, with one half of the resultant animal being a cat and the other a dog. Nickelodeon produced the series from Burbank, California. The first episode aired on April 4, 1998, following the 1998 Kids' Choice Awards, before the show officially premiered in October of that year. Similarly, the Season 2 episode "Fetch" was shown in theaters in 1998 before airing on television.

<i>Planet Sheen</i> American animated television series

Planet Sheen is an American CGI-animated television series created by Keith Alcorn and Steve Oedekerk. It is the second sequel television series of the film Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, and a spin-off sequel to The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius. The series was picked up for 26 episodes by Nickelodeon for its first and only season. Jeffrey Garcia returns as the voice of Sheen, and Bob Joles and Rob Paulsen are the voices of Nesmith and Doppy. The series was originally animated by C.O.R.E. in Toronto, but animation production moved to Bardel Entertainment in Vancouver after C.O.R.E closed down. At that time, Chris Neuhahn took over as Supervising Producer. Planet Sheen premiered on Nickelodeon on October 2, 2010, in the United States. The series aired its final episode on February 15, 2013.

<i>Breadwinners</i> (TV series) Nickelodeon animated original series

Breadwinners is an American animated television series created by Gary "Doodles" DiRaffaele and Steve Borst and developed by Bill Braudis for Nickelodeon. The series is about two ducks named SwaySway and Buhdeuce who run a bread delivery company around Pondgea, the show's world.

Numb Chucks is a Canadian animated television series that was created by Phil LaFrance and Jamie LeClaire and premiered on YTV in Canada on January 7, 2014. The series was focused on Dilweed and Fungus, two woodchucks with big hearts, who are obsessed with using their bungling kung-fu skills to protect the lives of the citizens in their town of Ding-a-Ling Springs. The series was cancelled, and its final episode aired on December 1, 2016, after a total of 52 episodes were produced.

<i>Alvinnn!!! and the Chipmunks</i> American animated television sitcom series started in 2015

Alvinnn!!! and the Chipmunks is an American animated musical comedy television series created by Janice Karman. Produced by Bagdasarian Productions and Technicolor Animation Productions with the participation of M6, it features Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Chipettes and marks their first television appearance together since 1990. First announced by Bagdasarian Productions in 2010, a promotional trailer for the series was posted on YouTube.

<i>ToonMarty</i> Canadian TV series or program

ToonMarty is a Canadian animated television series produced by Sardine Productions which first premiered on Teletoon on May 1, 2017.

References

  1. "Rocket Monkeys - The TVDB.com". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  2. "Rocket Monkeys premieres January 10 on Teletoon". 3 January 2013. Archived from the original on 30 June 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  3. Crump, William D. (2019). Happy Holidays—Animated! A Worldwide Encyclopedia of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year's Cartoons on Television and Film. McFarland & Co. pp. 256–257. ISBN   9781476672939.
  4. "Indie producers win big at 2016 Canadian Screen Awards". Archived from the original on 2022-12-27. Retrieved 2022-12-27.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "ROCKET MONKEYS | teletoon.com". Archived from the original on 2018-06-06. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
  6. "INKY". Nicktoons.co.uk. Archived from the original on 4 August 2018. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  7. Etan Vlessing (19 February 2013). "Nickelodeon Acquires Canadian Cartoon Rocket Monkeys for Global Network". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  8. AARON (24 January 2008). "Hornet Team Builds Buzz for Rocket Monkeys". Cold Hard Flash. Archived from the original on 5 March 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2013..
  9. "Rocket Monkeys Prepped for Blast-off at MIPCOM". Animation Magazine. 14 September 2009. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2013..
  10. "4Licensing Corporation Launches Rocket Monkeys Licensing Program". Business Wire. 8 August 2013. Archived from the original on 16 April 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  11. Cadet, Open Space (2016-01-22). "AndrewLucasArt: Rocket Monkeys!". AndrewLucasArt. Archived from the original on 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
  12. "The Press Room « Teletoon « Press Release « TELETOON GOES BANANAS WITH NEW ORIGINAL SERIES ROCKET MONKEYS". 19 June 2013. Archived from the original on 19 June 2013.
  13. "Nickelodeon Acquires Canadian Cartoon 'Rocket Monkeys' for Global Network". The Hollywood Reporter . 19 February 2013. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  14. "KidsClick Lineup Revealed". ToonBarn. June 19, 2017. Archived from the original on June 23, 2017. Retrieved June 19, 2017.