The Garfield Show
The Garfield Show is a CGI animated television series produced by Dargaud Media and Paws, Inc.. It is based on the American Garfield comic strip[1] created by Jim Davis. The animated series focuses on a new series of adventures for the characters of Garfield, Odie, and their owner Jon Arbuckle, alongside staple characters from the strip and a number of unique additions for the program.[2] Both Davis and producer Mark Evanier, who previously wrote episodes for the 1988 animated series Garfield and Friends, co-wrote stories for the program, with the cast including Frank Welker, Wally Wingert, Julie Payne, Jason Marsden and Gregg Berger. Welker and Berger had previously voiced various characters in Garfield and Friends.
The Garfield Show | |
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Also known as | Garfield & Cie |
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Based on | Garfield by Jim Davis |
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Directed by | Philippe Vidal |
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No. of seasons | 5 |
No. of episodes | 107 (247 segments) (list of episodes) |
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Picture format | HDTV 1080i |
Original release | 2 November 2009 – 24 October 2016 |
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The animated series premiered on 22 December 2008 in France as Garfield & Cie and on 2 November 2009 in the United States. It ran for five seasons, with its last episode airing in America on 24 October 2016; Evanier stated shortly afterward that it was on hiatus.[3][4] On 6 August 2019, an untitled Nickelodeon series based on the Garfield comic strip was announced,[5] seemingly ending any chances of The Garfield Show coming back.
Plot
The show features loose continuity and is set in a different universe to the previous Garfield cartoon series Garfield and Friends, which is occasionally referenced. Unlike the previous show, Liz is now considered a main character and has an official relationship with Jon to reflect their current status in the comic strip. The Garfield Show also reestablishes Arlene as Garfield's potential love interest, as in the comic strip, replacing Penelope from the previous show (despite being advertised as a main character, her actual role in the series is minor). In addition, unlike the previous series and animated specials, where Garfield thought instead of vocalized his dialogue, Garfield is now a talking character. Nevertheless, only other animals are usually able to understand him; Jon and other humans sometimes can.
The Garfield Show also features many new characters that are part of the regular cast, such as Vito, an Italian chef whose cooking Garfield enjoys, and Harry, a stray cat who acts as both a friend and a nemesis to Garfield. Squeak, Garfield's mouse friend that lives in Jon's house, appeared in the comic strip; he replaces Floyd from the previous show. Unlike Garfield and Friends, the U.S. Acres cast do not feature.
Episodes
Characters
Cast
- Frank Welker - Garfield, Eddie Gourmand, Mr. Arbuckle, Nimbus, Spumomi, Ricotta
- Gregg Berger - Odie, Squeak, Harry, Herman Post, Mama Meanie, General Gorgonzola, Jim Davis, Buckley, Mr. Barker
- Wally Wingert - Jon Arbuckle, Al the Dog Catcher, Irv, The Lasagna King, Hercules, Charley
- Jason Marsden - Nermal, Vito Cappelletti, Mr. Wilson, Pete the Dog Catcher, Professor Bonkers, Humphrey, Gnarley
- Audrey Wasilewski - Arlene, Gloria, Newscaster
- Julie Payne - Dr. Liz Wilson, Mrs. Wilson, Mrs. Arbuckle
Additional
- Joe Alaskey[6] - Farley, The Sandman
- Bob Bergen[6] - Health Inspector
- Corey Burton[6] - Cousin Ratzo
- Frank Buxton[6]
- Grey DeLisle - Jack Allwork, Sandra
- Melissa Disney - Nathan
- Bill Farmer[6] - McCuckoo
- Frank Ferrante - Lyman
- June Foray - Mrs. Cauldron
- Stan Freberg - Dr. Whipple, Fluffykins, Mole, Spencer Spendington, Hippo
- Brooks Gardner[6]
- Hank Garrett
- Mark Hamill[6] - Master Control
- Laraine Newman - Aunt Ivy, News Anchorwoman, Winona, Angelica, Bella Bellissima, Tyham, Aunt Esther, Queen Tania, Abigail
- Maurice LaMarche - Samuel W. Underburger
- Phil LaMarr[6] - Armstrong
- David Lander - Doc Boy Arbuckle
- Misty Lee - Angie, Scheherazade
- Tress MacNeille - Esmeralda Brubaker, Hostess, Squirrel #1
- Rose Marie[6] - Varicella
- Diane Michelle[6]
- Candi Milo - Lester, Chester, Reporter, Squirrel #2, Celeste, Mary Margaret
- Chuck McCann - Mayor Graffton
- Marvin Kaplan - Hiram “Hi” Pressure
- Jack Riley - Anthony Allwork, Ghost Cat
- Neil Ross - King Glorm, Tyler Edge, Brandon Scoop
- Jewel Shepard - Officer Reed
- Susan Silo - Neferkitty, Metalla
- Laura Summer - Drusilla & Minerva, Lucerita & Tabitha
- Fred Tatasciore - Biff, Dirk Dinkum
- Scott Whyte[6]
- April Winchell - Ms. Gourmand
Development
The Garfield Show is a CGI series that started development in 2007 to coincide with the strip's 30th anniversary the following year premiering in France the following year.[7]
Following the previous animated series of Garfield that debuted in 1988, many of the crew members would return to work on The Garfield Show.
Broadcast
The series premiered in France on France 3 on 22 December 2008.
English-language episodes started airing on Boomerang UK on 5 May 2009.
English-Language episodes started airing on Boomerang (Middle East and Africa) and on Boomerang (Central and Eastern Europe) on 7 November 2009.
It aired on YTV in Canada from 13 September 2009 to 30 December 2011.
In the United States, it aired on Cartoon Network from 2 November 2009 to 30 May 2014. It also aired on Boomerang from 4 February 2013 to 30 December 2016.[8]
In Bangladesh, the series aired on Duronto TV from 12 January 2020.[9]
Home media
Season | Title | Episode count | Release dates | Episodes | |
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Region 1 Vivendi releases | |||||
1 | Odie Oh! | 6 | October 5, 2010 | 9, 20a, 21a, 22a, 25a | |
All You Need is Love (and Pasta) | January 4, 2011 | 1b, 6b, 10a, 11b, 14b, 26a | |||
Private-Eye Ventures | April 12, 2011 | 1a, 2b, 4b, 11a, 13a, 15a | |||
Spooky Tails | August 23, 2011 | 2a, 3b, 15b, 17b, 18a, 24b | |||
Dinosaurs & Other Animal Adventures | January 10, 2012 | 3a, 12, 14a, 16a, 21b | |||
Summer Adventures | 7 | May 29, 2012 | 5b, 10b, 17a, 18b, 19a, 22b, 24a | ||
It's Showtime! | 6 | February 18, 2014 | 8a, 4a, 6a, 7, 13b | ||
Best Friends Forever | July 29, 2014 | 5a, 16b, 23, 25a, 26b | |||
Holiday Extravaganza | 5 | September 4, 2012 | 8b, 20b, 27, 32 | ||
2 | |||||
Spring Fun Collection | 6 | February 19, 2013 | 30b, 24a, 36a, 47a, 50b, 51b | ||
Pizza Dreams | June 25, 2013 | 28b, 31a, 37a, 40b, 41a, 48a | |||
A Purr-Fect Life! | October 22, 2013 | 29a, 31b, 38b, 39, 50a | |||
Techno Cat | 7 | November 4, 2014 | 33a, 38a, 42, 43a, 48b, 49a |
Reception
The Garfield Show has received mixed reviews. Common Sense Media gave the show 3 stars out of 5, saying "Infamous cat's antics are fun, if not exactly message laden."[10]
Kevin Carr of 7M pictures gave the show 2 stars out of 5 stating that the animation felt unpolished compared to the direct-to-video movies and that the show was full of "throwaway stories" because it "aims for a more kid-friendly presentation of the fat feline." He concluded his review stating he preferred "old-school cell animation as the week-to-week series CGI looks too much like cheap video game emulations, but I’m not the target market of these things".[11]
Justin Felix of DVD talk gave the show 2.5 out of 5 stating that "The Garfield Show isn't some great work of art, but it efficiently delivers cartoon animal fun that little kids would probably enjoy. The animation is a tad rudimentary and clunky at times, but it's good enough to pass muster for cartoon fare of this type."[12]
Mike Gencarelli of Media Mikes gave the show 3.5 out of 5 stating "it doesn’t compare to the classic Jim Davis cartoon but it is all we have right now."[13]
The series has a 6.0 user score on Metacritic indicating mixed reviews.[14]
Video game
The Garfield Show: Threat of the Space Lasagna | |
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Developer(s) | Eko System |
Publisher(s) | Zoo Games |
Platform(s) | Wii, Microsoft Windows |
Release | Wii July 8, 2010 PC December 2011 |
Genre(s) | Party |
The Garfield Show: Threat of the Space Lasagna, a party video game, was released in July 2010 for the Wii. It includes over 12 minigames and supports the Wii Balance Board and Wii Motion Plus. The game was critically panned for its short length, lack of interactivity and monotonous gameplay.[15]
See also
Notes
References
- "The Garfield Show – Studios". The Garfield Show Diary.
- Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 228–230. ISBN 978-1538103739.
- Evanier, Mark. "ASK me". NewsFromMe.com. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
- Evanier, Mark. "ASK me". NewsFromMe.com. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
- Steinberg, Brian (August 6, 2019). "Viacom Acquires Comic-Strip Cat Garfield". Variety. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
- Evanier, Mark. "Why I Haven't Been Sleeping Lately…". NewsFromMe.com. Retrieved 5 March 2014.
- "AWN Headline News". Animation World Network.
- "Boomerang Schedule - Cartoon Network". Cartoon Network. Time Warner. December 19, 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-12-19.
- "Duronto Television's 10th season kicks off today". The Daily Star. 12 January 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- "The Garfield Show". commonsensemedia.org.
- "7M Pictures - 'The Garfield Show: Pizza Dreams' DVD Review". 7M Pictures.
- "Garfield Show: Odie Oh!". DVD Talk.
- "DVD Review "The Garfield Show: Holiday Extravaganza"". mediamikes.com. 5 September 2012.
- "The Garfield Show". Metacritic.
- "The Garfield Show: Threat of the Space Lasagna". IGN.