Toonatics is an American animated comedy musical television series created by Alexandra Farwell and Penny Fleischer for both the syndicated programming block Paramount ToonWorld and CBS in 1992, before moving to UPN in 1995, as part of its UPN Kids Sunday morning block, until the series ended on July 18, 1999. The show follows three cartoon characters present themselves in a variety show with shorts featuring characters who were "rejected" from Noveltoons franchise. It initially ran a total of 241 episodes, along with three feature-length films: Journey Around Hollywood (1996), A Toonatics Summer Vacation (1998) and The Zany Quest Begins (2000). Reruns later aired on Nickelodeon, Nicktoons, UltraToons, Paramount Kids, and NickRewind.
Like Warner Bros.' Animaniacs, Toonatics is a variety show, with short skits featuring a large cast of characters. While the show had no set format, the majority of episodes were composed of three short mini-episodes, each starring a different set of characters, and bridging segments. Hallmarks of the series included its music, satirical social commentary, pop culture references, character catchphrases, and innuendo directed at an adult audience.
The series ended production in early 1999 in favor of other shows, such as Little Audrey & Friends, Toony Tales: Wacky Classics and Noveltoons Mania. After the show's production ended, much of the staff regrouped to work on Disney Channel's The Proud Family, created by Toonatics director and producer Bruce W. Smith.
A revival of the series, titled Toonatics Unleashed, was announced in October 2020, with a two-season order, to be produced by Omation Animation Studio and Paramount Television Animation, with show creator Farwell and most of the main voice actors returning. It was premiered on March 10, 2022, on Paramount+.
Premise[]
Freddy, Ruger and Beth live in the Studio Vault at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Hollywood, California, but sometimes they secretly live in the fictional town of "Mountville". Like most Noveltoons shorts, the series makes use of cartoon violence (e.g. anvils falling on someone, liberal use of explosives) and slapstick. However, characters from the series had episodes in various places and periods of time. The Toonatics characters interacted with famous people and creators of the past and present, as well as mythological characters and characters from contemporary pop culture and television. The series parodies and references the current events of the early-to-mid 1990s and Hollywood culture.
The series had also made fun of celebrities, major motion pictures, and popular television series for adults and children at the time. Many Toonatics songs were also parodies of classical or folk music with educational lyrics. Occasionally, episodes delve into veiled ethical and morality stories of ecology, self-esteem, and crime. Each Toonatics episode usually consisted of two or three cartoon shorts. Toonatics segments ranged in time, from bridging segments less than a minute long to episodes spanning the entire show's length.
Segments[]
- Freddy, Ruger and Beth - The misadventures of three cartoon characters outsmart their enemies and cause havoc anywhere.
- Princess Meadow - A young beautiful princess who lives in fairy tales of modern day, as she tried to be a prefect princess while trying to live her own life.
- Sweet Maria/Maria & Angela - A former female human cartoon star who is now grown as an adult, as she still mischievous and outsmart her enemies, while taking care of her niece Angela.
- Rap Teens - A group of teenage rappers present music clips around the world.
- Happy and Evie - A happy woodpecker tries to befriend a villainous badger who creates monsters.
- The Goodheart Scouts - A group of six children (three boys and three girls) who are part of a scout troop and try to do good deeds in the hopes of getting rewards and badges.
- Wingy the Bat - A rubberhose-styled series about a little bat who lives many misadventures with his girlfriend.
- Botgirl - The misadventures of 12-year-old robot girl who tried to defend the futuristic city.
- Black vs. White - TBD.
- Emily Husky - TBD.
- Feathers and Lucy - TBD.
- Ping and Pong - a duo of penguins who live insane misadventures.
Characters[]
Main[]
- Freddy Squirrel (voiced by Charlie Adler) - A squirrel-like creature who is one of the main characters of this show. He is a mischievous troublemaker with a knack for physical comedy.
- Ruger Dog (voiced by Rob Paulsen) - A dog-like creature who is one of the main characters of this show. He is a lovable goofball who often finds himself in absurd situations.
- Beth Fox (voiced by Kath Soucie) - A fox-like creature who is one of the main characters of this show. She is smart and resourceful character who serves as the voice of reason within the group.
Princess Meadow[]
- Princess Meadow (voiced by Tara Charendoff) - A lovely beautiful, but tomboyish princess who is ruler of the modern-day of fairy tale.
- Chippy (also voiced by Rob Paulsen) - A squirrel who befriend with Meadow.
Sweet Maria/Maria & Angela[]
- Maria Baker (voiced by Julie Young) - A stubborn but optimistic and trustworthy woman who used to be a cartoon star as a little kid.
- Angela Baker (voiced by Thora Birch from 1992 until 1995 and Cathy Cavadini from 1995 until 1999) - A funny, sweet, loveable, and cheerful girl who is Maria's niece.
Rap Teens[]
- Alex (voiced by Billy West) - TBD.
- Tracey (voiced by Tara Charendoff) - TBD.
- Sophie (voiced by E.G. Daily) - TBD.
- Rodney (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) - TBD.
Happy and Evie[]
- Evie (voiced by Tress MacNeille) - a green badger who tried to take over the entire world with her own army.
- Happy (voiced by Russi Taylor) - a blue woodpecker who always being very sweet but dimwitted.
The Goodheart Scouts[]
- Bennett (also voiced by Tara Charendoff) - TBD.
- Fred (also voiced by Kath Soucie) - TBD.
- Philip (also voiced by Tress MacNeille) - TBD.
- Diana (also voiced by Cathy Cavadini) - TBD.
- Kate (also voiced by Kath Soucie) - TBD.
- Judith (voiced by Cree Summer) - TBD.
Wingy the Bat[]
- Wingy Bat (voiced by Tom Kenny)
- Batina Bat (also voiced by Russi Taylor)
Botgirl[]
- Shayna Bolt/Botgirl (voiced by Tara Charendoff) - TBD.
Black vs. White[]
- Black Cat - TBD.
- White Cat - TBD.
Emily Husky[]
- Emily Husky (also voiced by Kath Soucie) - TBD.
- Croak
Feathers and Lucy[]
- Feathers (voiced by Jeff Bennett) - TBD.
- Lucy (also voiced by Kath Soucie) - TBD.
Ping and Pong[]
- Ping (also voiced by Jeff Bennett) - TBD.
- Pong (also voiced by Rob Paulsen) - TBD.
Supporting[]
- Darryl Tendlar (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) - an animator who accidently releases Freddy, Ruger and Beth and tried to make them behave.
- Dr. Partnership (also voiced by Jeff Bennett) - a psychologist who helps Darryl to make Freddy, Ruger and Beth behave.
- Freya Meza (voiced by Tress MacNeille) - a beautiful, smart and very attractive yet stubborn woman who is Dr. Partnership's assistant whom Darryl has a crush on and Freddy and Ruger fawn over.
- Fredrick Tropes (voiced by Jeff Bergman) - a busy and bossy men who is the CEO of Paramount Pictures.
- Bob (voiced by Jim Cummings) - a lazy man who is the studio's security guard and frequently chases Freddy, Ruger and Beth around either the studio or other place.
- Jack (vocal effects by Frank Welker) - A guard hound dog who is Bob's pet and help him chases Freddy, Ruger and Beth.
- Brett Bird (voiced by Billy West) - A yellow bird who shares much of his features with his mentor.
- Rizzy Rat (also voiced by Charlie Adler) - A brown rat who is often dragged by Brett into his plans.
- Sophie Waker (voiced by Cathy Cavadini) - a young teenage human girl who always a big fan of Sylvia Barker as she wanted to be like her when she grows up. She sometimes befriend with Freddy, Ruger and Beth.
- Whack Bear (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) - an anthropomorphic clumsy bear who tried learns Freddy, Ruger and Beth who to do.
- Ashley Cute (also voiced by Kath Soucie) - a cute little girl.
- Lizzy Lizard (also voiced by Tress MacNeille) - an anthropomorphic magical and lovable lizard who used to be created by Evie, but after she abandoned her, she later befriend with Freddy, Ruger and Beth, if she like or not.
Princess Meadow[]
- Stephanie Soft (also voiced by Cathy Cavadini) - a optimistic and cheerful "wannabe princess" who always wanted to act like Meadow someday.
Sweet Maria/Maria & Angela[]
Coming soon!
Rap Teens[]
- Texas McCoy (voiced by Jess Harnell) - TBD.
- Linda and Rita (also voiced by Kath Soucie and Tress MacNeille) - TBD.
Happy and Evie[]
Coming soon!
The Goodheart Scouts[]
Coming soon!
Wingy the Bat[]
Coming soon!
Botgirl[]
- Professor Blot (voiced by Tom Kane) - TBD.
Emily Husky[]
Coming soon!
Feathers and Lucy[]
Coming soon!
Ping and Pong[]
Coming soon!
Antagonists[]
- Melanie Nunez (also voiced by Kath Soucie) - a selfish teenage movie star who always want what she ever wanted but sometimes she hated Freddy, Ruger and Beth so much as she tried to get rid of them.
More coming soon!
Princess Meadow[]
- [Dragon character]
Sweet Maria/Maria & Angela[]
Coming soon!
Rap Teens[]
Coming soon!
Happy and Evie[]
Coming soon!
The Goodheart Scouts[]
Coming soon!
Wingy the Bat[]
Coming soon!
Botgirl[]
Coming soon!
Emily Husky[]
Coming soon!
Feathers and Lucy[]
Coming soon!
Ping and Pong[]
Coming soon!
Production[]
Development[]
The idea for Toonatics originated in the early 1980s, when Alexandra Farwell, while at college, created a series of comic books titled The Toons that starred various characters, many of which would evolve into Toonatics characters, especially the titular protagonist. Farwell tried selling the comic book so it can be professionally published, but none of the companies she sent it to were interested. After graduating from college to work at Paramount's animation division, her work laid untouched in her attic for a few years.
In August 1988, Willard Carroll, the founder of Hyperion Pictures, who wanted to "inject new life into the Noveltoons franchise for a new generation", and at the same time create a television series with a completely different versions of the Noveltoons characters, while capturing the same wackiness of the classic cartoons. On February 22, 1989, Hyperion Pictures approached Paramount Pictures CEO Frank Mancuso, Sr. and animation head Nancy Farwell for a meeting discussing about the spin-off series, and they eventually decided that the new characters would be similar to the Noveltoons characters with no direct relation. However, Toonatics did not go into production then, nor was it even planned to be made for television; the series initially was to be a theatrical feature-length film.
On October 22, 1989, Toonatics was changed from a film to a television series, with Steve Oedekerk overseeing production of the first 65 episodes. Oedekerk said that Toonatics was changed to a television series to "reach a broader audience". For the series, Oedekerk hired Alexandra Farwell and Penny Fleischer, to produce. Alexandra Farwell made a connection to Paramount after walking around the studio lot. Farwell revisited her idea and wanted to adapt her comic series to television.
More coming soon!
Writing[]
Coming soon!
Voice actors[]
Coming soon!
Animation[]
Coming soon!
Music[]
Paramount selected Bruce Broughton to write the theme tune and serve as music supervisor. Screen credits for the composers were given based on the amount of music composed for/or composed and reused in the episode.
More coming soon!
Episodes[]
- Main article: List of Toonatics episodes
Broadcast[]
- Main article: Toonatics/Broadcast
Hallmarks and humor[]
Coming soon!
Reception[]
Since its debut in 1992, Toonatics has generally received positive reviews from critics and fans. It was considered Paramount's own answer to Warner Bros.' 1990s animated series such as Tiny Toon Adventures and Animaniacs. The series was also considered a strong point in UPN Kids' rise in the mid-1990s. It was named the 85th-best animated series by IGN.
Several critics drew comparisons to other shows like Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, Tyler & Marky and Nickelodeon's The Ren & Stimpy Show due to the series' similar art style. The New York Times complimented the show's premise by describing the show as "Tyler & Marky meets Tiny Toon". However, not all reviews were positive. Ted Drozdowski of The Boston Phoenix described the series as "a poor man's Animaniacs", while Jonathan Valania of The Morning Call called the series "a failed attempt to cash-in on not just The Simpsons but Tiny Toon Adventures too".
Nominations and awards[]
Coming soon!
Merchandise[]
Home media[]
- Main article: List of Toonatics videos
Episodes of the show have been released on DVD and VHS during and after the series' run.
VHS tapes of Toonatics were released in the United States and in the United Kingdom. All of these tapes are out of print, but are still available at online sellers. The episodes featured are jumbled at random and are in no particular order with the series. Each video featured four to five episodes each which were accompanied by a handful of shorter skits, with a running time of about 45 minutes.
Paramount Home Entertainment later released the first two seasons on DVD in July 2005 and December 2005, but starting with season 2, the rights to the series was later moved to CBS Home Entertainment in 2006; however, Paramount still distributed its releases. Volume one of Toonatics sold very well; over half of the product being sold in the first week made it one of the fastest selling animation DVD sets that Paramount ever put out.
On June 11, 2021, Paramount announced that the complete series of Toonatics would be released for the first time on Blu-ray and a shelf-friendly DVD box set with the Blu-ray containing a new 1080p restoration and a remastered DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 audio remix on every episode of the show and was released on February 8, 2022 to commentate the 30th anniversary of the series, as well as to promote the 2022 revival series, Toonatics Unleashed.
As of March 2020, the show is available to stream on Paramount+ in the United States and Canada.
| Title | Release date | No. of episodes | Years aired | No. of discs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ToonMania: Season 1, Volume 1 | June 7, 2005 | 25 | 1992 | 2 |
| ToonMania: Season 1, Volume 2 | September 6, 2005 | 20 | 1992-1993 | 2 |
| ToonMania: Season 1, Volume 3 | December 6, 2005 | 15 | 1993 | 2 |
| ToonMania: Season 2, Volume 1 | July 25, 2006 | 15 | 1992-1993 | 2 |
| ToonMania: Season 2, Volume 2 | November 7, 2006 | 15 | 1993 | 2 |
| ToonMania: Season 3, Volume 1 | May 15, 2007 | 15 | 1993 | 2 |
| ToonMania: Season 3, Volume 2 | October 16, 2007 | 15 | 1994 | 2 |
| ToonMania: The Complete First Season | May 20, 2008 | 65 | 1992-1993 | 6 |
| ToonMania: The Complete Second Season | 13 | 1992 | 2 | |
| ToonMania: The Complete Third Season | 30 | 1993-1994 | 4 | |
| ToonMania: The Complete Fourth Season | 25 | 1994-1995 | 3 | |
| ToonMania: The Complete Fifth Season | October 21, 2008 | 20 | 1995-1996 | 3 |
| ToonMania: The Complete Sixth Season | June 16, 2009 | 25 | 1996-1997 | 3 |
| ToonMania: The Complete Seventh Season | February 16, 2010 | 25 | 1997-1998 | 3 |
| ToonMania: The Complete Final Season | October 12, 2010 | 33 | 1998-1999 | 3 |
| ToonMania: The Complete Series | 253 | 1992-1999 | 32 (+ 2 film, 2 special and 1 bonus disc) | |
| ToonMania: The Complete Series: The 30th Anniversary Commemorative Blu-ray Edition | February 8, 2022 | 1992-1999 | 8 (+ 2 film, 2 special and 1 bonus disc) |
Print[]
Coming soon!
Video games[]
Coming soon!
Films and television specials[]
Coming soon!
Revival[]
- Main article: Toonatics Unleashed
A revival of the series, Toonatics Unleashed, was announced on October 8, 2020. The series will be produced by Omation Animation Studio and Paramount Television Animation for Paramount+. Steve Oedekerk and series creator Alexandra Farwell will return as a executive producers. The series will focus on the characters from the original series trying to adapt to the changes and life of the 21st century while embarking on further adventures after being absent from television for many years. However, some characters will not be returning. On June 14, 2021, during the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Paramount Television Animation announced that the new revival is scheduled to debut on Paramount+ in March 2022, with 26 episodes set to be in the series' first season. On July 23, 2021, during the series' San Diego Comic-Con panel, it was announced that the reboot will premiere on March 10, 2022.
Gallery[]
Coming soon!
Trivia[]
Coming soon!