This week, FOX Entertainment’s free streaming service Tubi treats its viewers to three full seasons of the globally popular Pokémon animated series – comprising nearly 150 episodes. The series premiered more than 20 years ago and chronicles the fantastic adventures of Ash and his Pikachu, alongside their many friends and Pokémon companions, through the different regions, islands, cities and towns in the Pokémon world.
- Pokémon: Black & White (Season 14) When Ash and his mother accompany Professor Oak to the distant Unova region, Ash discovers Pokémon that he’s never seen before… and that he can’t wait to catch! He may have Pikachu at his side together with new friends Iris and Cilan, but he’ll still need plenty of new Pokémon on his team if he wants to challenge Unova’s expert Gym Leaders. His quest to become a Pokémon Master just got even tougher!
- Pokémon: BW Rival Destinies (Season 15) New foes, new friends and dozens of never-before-seen Pokémon await as Ash and his friends continue to explore the Unova region. He’ll find himself up against the ultimate battle challenge: Alder, the Champion Master of Unova! His friends also face their own trials, one fighting for the right to continue her travels, another confronting a returning challenge from the past — and all three of them must team up to save an island from the clashing forces of three powerful and mysterious Legendary Pokémon!
- Pokémon: BW Adventures in Unova and Beyond (Season 16) Ash and his friends Iris and Cilan have foiled Team Rocket’s latest evil plan, but a new danger lurks on the horizon! But first, with eight Gym badges in hand, Ash is ready to take on the region’s ultimate challenge: the Unova League, where he’ll face familiar rivals and new opponents in his ongoing quest to become a Pokémon Master! Meanwhile, Iris has been having some trouble connecting with her powerful and stubborn Dragonite — can a visit home to the Village of Dragons help sort things out for the aspiring Dragon Master?
Frederator Media is launching Series 2 of their hyper energized, interactive game show Cartoon Punch. Created by Channel Frederator Network members 8 Bit Ultra, Ivan Animated and Getmadz, the show will be live-streamed front page on www.twitch.tv/channelfrednet on December 10-11 and January 14-15 at 8-9 p.m. EST Frederator will be donating 100% of the proceeds raised by the stream to Feed The Children, collected from game challenges and viewer contributions.
Cartoon Punch is a blend of art, creativity and zaniness. There will be eight contestants, including fan favorite creators Haminations, CircletoonsHD, Gingerpale and others, competing in a series of games ranging in various degrees of insanity, including:
- Trash Fight: We find ourselves in the middle of an apocalypse and players need to construct an awesome weapon to fight raiders. Teams will have to design weapons out of three randomly chosen trash materials.
- Monster’s Lab: Teams are tasked with designing a monster to unleash upon the village. One team member will design the head and arms the other will design the legs and torso. Whichever team can design the best monster type wins!
As the games are played, contestants will receive prompts and hindrances from fans in the audience. With each game, both teams will have to spin a wheel and be faced with an obstacle, such as having to draw with your less dominant hand or drawing while getting pied in the face.
A flurry of holiday classics are returning to primetime on ABC (U.S.) this month:
- Thurs., Dec. 23, 8-9 p.m. – Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town. In the perennial favorite created in 1970 by Rankin-Bass Productions, Fred Astaire narrates this timeless tale of Kris Kringle (Mickey Rooney), a young boy with an immense desire to do good things for others. The vocal cast also features Keenan Wynn as Winter; Paul Frees as Burgermeister Meisterburger, Grimsby, the soldiers and the townsmen; Joan Gardner as Tanta Kringle; Robie Lester as Jessica and Andrea Sacino; Dina Lynn, Gary White and Greg Thomas as the children.
- Fri., Dec. 24, 8-8:30 p.m. – Olaf’s Frozen Adventure. It’s the first holiday season since the castle gates reopened, and Anna (Krissten Bell) and Elsa (Idina Menzel) host a celebration for all of Arendelle. When the townspeople unexpectedly leave early to enjoy their individual holiday customs, the sisters realize they have no family traditions of their own. So, Olaf (Josh Gad) sets out to comb the kingdom to bring home the best traditions and save Anna and Elsa’s “first Christmas in forever.” Also starring Jonathan Groff as Kristoff.
- Fri., Dec. 24, 8:30-9 p.m. – Shrek the Halls. From DreamWorks Animation. Just when Shrek (Mike Myers) thought he could finally sit back, relax and enjoy his happily ever after with his new family, the most joyous of all holidays arrives. It’s Christmas Eve and everyone is filled with holiday cheer – except for Shrek. He isn’t exactly the picture of yuletide joy, but for the sake of Fiona (Cameron Diaz) and the kids, he tries to get into the spirit of things as only an ogre can. Unfortunately, everyone seems to have their own ideas about what Christmas is all about, so when Donkey (Eddie Murphy), Puss In Boots (Antonio Banderas), Gingerbread Man and the whole gang try to join in on the fun, Shrek’s plans for a cozy family celebration end up spiraling into one truly unforgettable Christmas.
- Fri., Dec. 24, 9-9:30 p.m. – Prep & Landing. From Walt Disney Animation Studios. After working tirelessly on Prep & Landing for 227 years, an elf named Wayne is upset when he doesn’t receive an expected promotion to be the Director of Naughty List Intelligence. Instead, Magee, the North Pole Christmas Eve Command Center Coordinator (NPCECCC for short), partners Wayne with Lanny, an idealistic rookie who has an undying enthusiasm for Christmas. During their Christmas Eve mission, Wayne and Lanny encounter unexpected challenges that push them to their limits. Will the elves be able to guide Dasher, Dancer and the rest of the reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh through a raging snowstorm to ensure a merry Christmas for all?
- Fri., Dec. 24, 9:30-10 p.m. – Prep & Landing 2: Naughty vs. Nice. With the Big 2-5 fast approaching, Wayne and Lanny must race to recover classified North Pole technology that has fallen into the hands of a computer-hacking Naughty Kid! Desperate to prevent Christmas from descending into chaos, Wayne seeks out the foremost Naughty Kid expert to aid in the mission, a bombastic member of the Coal Elf Brigade who also happens to be his estranged brother, Noel.
Cloudco Entertainment (U.S.), in conjunction with co-production partners Watchnext Media (France) and Kavaleer Productions (Ireland), announced a bevy of new sales deal for their global hit animated series Boy Girl Dog Cat Mouse Cheese, currently in production for its second 52 x 11’ season for June 2022. The comedy about an unusual blended family launched in late 2019 and has maintained consistently high ratings in the U.K. (BBC), Ireland (RTE) and Italy (DeAKids), and hit No. 1 for kids and teens when it debuted on Gulli in France in 2020.
Joining a long list of broadcasters for Season 1 are Netflix (U.K., France, Canada), Disney Channel (Benelux, CEE), WarnerMedia’s Cartoon Network, Boomerang, HBO Max and HBO GO (pan-Africa, Turkey, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand) as well as MBC Group for its children’s edutainment channel MBC3 (the Middle East) and SIC (Portugal). In addition, early Season 2 sales now include SUPER RTL (Germany) and Wildbrain’s Family Channel (Canada).
Paramount+ celebrated the premiere of its upcoming Spanish-language originals for Latin America this week with Foro Paramount+, an exclusive event held at the Sofitel Mexico City. Series stars and ViacomCBS executives and partners, shared their experiences and revealed a roster of titles coming soon to the premium streaming platform, which includes the first animated content from Mexican comedy troupe Backdoor (Porta dos Fundos)..
The animated No Te Claves Christmas Special offers a comedic look at the life of Jesus before he was Christ, arriving at a new high school and, with the help of his friend Lazaro, trying to fit in. The special will follow the misadventures of a group of friends as they navigate life in high school and will undoubtedly push the boundaries by showing just how bad kids can be.
More mini-bytes!
- The Smurfs return to MENA through a new deal between IMPS and Spacetoon TV, which are working on an Arabic dub version of the 3D CG series. The brand will also see an expanded licensing and activities program in the region.
- London-based distributor The Media Pioneers has acquired the international distribution rights to the first two seasons of sci-fi pet comedy Boris & Rufus,from Pacotinho Filmes and Belli Studio. TMP will distribute in its key territories across EMEA and Asia.
- Kids’ entertainment OTT Toon Goggles has launched the Sophie la Girafe preschool series (15 eps.) across its service, in partnership with KLB. The show is inspired on the popular giraffe toy for babies.
- DMR announced the launch of AsianCrush (K-drama and pan-Asian movies), RetroCrush (classic anime) and Midnight Pulp (horror/thriller/action) on The Roku Channel in Canada. Available now.
- Moonbug Entertainment Ltd. has partnered with Orbit Showtime Network to launch the first Moonbug Kids branded linear preschool channel in MENA, as of Dec. 12. Shows will include Cocomelon, Blippi, Morphle, Little Baby Bum, Mia’s Magic Playground, Go Buster, Playtime with Twinkle, Arpo, Gecko’s Garage, Supa Strikas and more.
- Boomerang Africa has found a new home on the GOtv app, delivering animated series like Tom and Jerry, Looney Tunes and Mr. Bean to fans in Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Zambia, Namibia, Mozambique and Malawi.
