Nature Cat is an American-Canadian educational animated children's television series. The series premiered on November 25, 2015 on PBS. The series is aimed at children aged 3 to 8 years old, following the adventures of four main characters: Nature Cat, Hal the Dog, Daisy the Bunny and Squeeks the Mouse. The show has been nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program". The series debut in November achieved nearly 3.7 million viewers, and by March it has achieved 69 million video streams across online platforms. As of October 2016, Nature Cat has been renewed for a second and third season. The second season premiered on January 1, 2018. On June 5th, 2018, the first DVD Onward and Ponward will be released. Tomy Toys released a Nature Cat plush in 2016, and are planning to make more in 2018.
Video Nature Cat
Overview
The series follows Fred, a house cat with dreams of exploring outside. Once his family leaves for the day, he transforms into Nature Cat, who cannot wait for backyard nature excursions. However, Fred has one problem: he has no instincts for nature. Through the learning experiences of the characters, this series intends to encourage children to similarly engage with and develop understanding of nature.
Maps Nature Cat
Episodes
Info
TV Rating: TV-G (rated C in Canada) Producer: 9 Story Media Genre: Animated, Education, Fantasy, Adventure, Comedy, Musical
Characters
Main
Many of the primary cast members are better known for their work on the hit NBC comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live.
- Nature Cat (aka. Fred) (voiced by Taran Killam) - In the absence of his owners, Fred transforms into his alter-ego Nature Cat, narrating himself as such throughout the show. He is the main protagonist in leading a group of three other animals, frequently using the expressions "tally ho!" and "onward and yonward!" when initiating and continuing his adventures, lending to his optimistic and cheerful attitude in encouraging enthusiasm for the natural world. Taran Killam appraises Nature Cat as a positive character for children, describing his handling of adversity as "a great example of when you fall down you get back right up... and try it again". He will occasionally drop from his 'Nature Cat' persona where, much like a regular housecat, he can suddenly become nervous or frightened. This can include having to interact with water, lamenting "why did it have to be water?", but in these situations he ultimately ends up finding confidence to persist. When Fred turns into Nature Cat his clothes are all green.
- Hal the Dog (voiced by Bobby Moynihan) - Characterised as being happy most of the time and very loyal to his friends, most of all for Nature Cat. He is always willing to partake in Nature Cat's outdoor excursions and share discoveries even if he initially doesn't understand them. Hal is generally absent minded, becoming a source of comic relief where he may respond to others with non-sequiturs or muddled reasoning thought out loud. He can also become blissfully unaware of when he is taken into a dangerous situation, such as becoming lost in a city. His capabilities as a playful dog is portrayed as him being a character that is uninhibited in approaching messy or unpleasant situations, such as digging in the ground or smelling strong odors. This comes much to the benefit of others, where he is utilized in digging holes or locating in the environment by smell. He is sometimes accompanied by an inanimate chewing toy, "Mr. Chewinsky," who he converses with when projecting his thoughts.
- Squeeks the Mouse (voiced by Kate McKinnon) - The smallest of the main four characters, Kate McKinnon describes her as "a sass... but sweet and so excited at the same time". At times, Squeeks can act tomboyish while on adventures, but nevertheless, she stays focused at the task at hand.
- Daisy the Bunny (voiced by Kate Micucci) - She is often carrying a smartphone for use in providing supplementary information when investigating nature. Her role is to act as the voice of reason, but nevertheless, she's mostly co-operative as the rest when venturing with Nature Cat.
- Ronald the Cat (voiced by Kenan Thompson (season 1), Chris Knowings (season 2-present)) - The main antagonist of the series. Ronald lives in the backyard next door and is Nature Cat's arch-nemesis. He is arrogant, vain (often specifically obsessed with grooming his hair) and fairly obnoxious. He also tries to compete against Nature Cat.
Others
- Chris Parnell as Sir Galahad, The Announcer, Houston
- David Rudman as Leo the Mammoth
- Stephanie D'Abruzzo as Alice the Butterfly
- Bobby Lee as MC Ferret
- James Monroe Iglehart as Michael Bluejáy (a takeoff on Michael Bublé)
- Leslie Carrara-Rudolph as Gracie the Toad
- Joey Rudman as extra characters
- Joey Mazzarino
- Fred Armisen as Herbert the Hermit Crab
- Rachel Dratch as Flo the Heron
- Cobie Smulders as Nature Dog
- Dennis Singletary
- Tom Blandford
- Richard Traub
- Lena Hall and Tony Vincent provide the vocals for "Dog Gone" (during interlude segments)
References
External links
- Nature Cat on IMDb
- Official website
Source of article : Wikipedia