Nick Cartoons

To supplement yesterday's Production post, there is this (also from yesterday, though we're just getting to it):

... Nickelodeon announced the renewals of SpongeBob SquarePants for seasons 10 and 11; and the second season pickups of Harvey Beaks and Pig Goat Banana Cricket.

New animated series on deck are:

The Loud House, picked up for 26 episodes, is inspired by first-time creator Chris Savino’s (Rocko’s Modern Life, The Powerpuff Girls) chaotic life growing up in a huge household.

Bunsen Is A Beast!, picked up for 20 episodes, is an original animated comedy created and executive produced by animation veteran Butch Hartman (The Fairly OddParents). The series follows the adventures of Bunsen, the first beast to attend a human grade school, and his best friend and classmate Mikey, who guides Bunsen through the ups and downs of life as a human.

Mysticons, picked up for 40 episodes, is a half-hour action series about four girls who transform into legendary warriors and band together to save their realm from an evil queen, Necrafa. Mysticons is licensed by Nelvana.

Welcome To The Wayne, picked up for 20 episodes, marks Nick’s first digital short-form series to be greenlit for television. It follows the comedic adventures of two 10-year-old boys exploring the crazy, unpredictable world of their New York City apartment building The Wayne. Welcome to the Wayne is created and written by Emmy Award-winning writer and composer Billy Lopez (The Wonder Pets!, Phineas And Ferb).

Pinky Malinky, picked up for 20 episodes, is a mockumentary series following the everyday life of Pinky Malinky, an infectiously positive hot dog living in a human world. Pinky’s experiences will be shared across social media and Nick’s digital platforms. The series is co-created and co-executive produced by Chris Garbutt and Rikke Asbjoern (The Amazing World of Gumball), and executive produced by Scott Kreamer (Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness).

Nick will also air new episodes of returning animated series Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Fairly OddParents and ALVINNN!!! and The Chipmunks. ...

Nick Animation is in there pitching with new and returning serives, even as its corporate parent struggles:

... Viacom's TV offerings — which include MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, Spike, and TV Land — aren't faring much better. In its most recent quarter, Viacom reported a 3% decline in revenue from its media networks, including TV. The company reported a 6% drop in revenue to $3.15 billion. ...

Nick, of course, has tried various strategies since Diz Co. knocked it off the daytime TV cartoon throne. Like other companies, they went the CG animation route, and discovered ratings don't necessarily improve because you produce CG animated half-hours, but production costs sure as hell go up.

So, Viacom/Nick has veered back to traditional (that is to say, hand-drawn television cartoons. It has also come to know that fresh-and-new doesn't always trump tried-and-true, and so a lot of old favorites remain on the roster. Nick is hitting a number of solid doubles, but what it could use right now is several monster home-runs.