Summer Camp Island

Characters

Oscar Peltzer (voiced by Justin Felbinger in the pilot and Elliott Smith in "The First Day"–"The Library", Asher Bishop in "Spell Crushers"–"Glow Worm", and Antonio Raul Corbo in Season 3 onwards in the series) is an 11-year-old anthropomorphic elephant who is best friends with Hedgehog. Oscar tends to be socially awkward and slightly uncomfortable with his new surroundings. When he sets his mind to something, he will become determined to perform any task or complete any objective.

He has a strong connection to Hedgehog to the point that if she disappeared or something happened to her, he becomes inconsolable, though he does learn to work without her. He believes in order and will do anything to outsmart or outdo Susie, the camp counselor. He lives in New Jersey. In the episode "Glow Worm", he is revealed to be a magical glow worm who is able to make positive and happy events occur when he does something nice, dedicated, considerate and happy and gives magic to other beings.

Hedgehog (voiced by Ashley Boettcher in the pilot and Oona Laurence in the series) is an 11-year-old anthropomorphic hedgehog who is best friends with Oscar. She is the more level-headed and logical of the two. She mostly wants to help Oscar out of his comfort zone, but also wants to outdo Susie. In the episode "Hedgehog Werewolf", Hedgehog is bitten by the Werewolf Queen, giving her the ability to transform into a werewolf at the full moon every month.

Hedgehog comes to accept her condition and does wolf activities with Betsy and the other werewolves of the island. She used to have crush on Max but she was heartbroken when she found out he wasn't interested in her. Luckily, her friends helped her get over it. She lives in New Jersey.

Hedgehog enjoys playing music, radio show hosting, science and spells throughout episodes. Susie McCallister (voiced by Julia Pott; Poppy DeAbaitua (young); Joanna Lumley (adult)) is an anthropomorphic cat, a witch and lead camp counselor. She can be mean and condescending to the campers at times. Deep down, she does display some responsible and sympathetic behavior, but would rather be rude to the campers.

Despite looking and acting as a 15-year-old, she is around 400 years old, having gained immortality from a magic potion. She loves to tease and torment Oscar and Hedgehog whenever she gets the chance to do it, especially Oscar. Later in the series, Susie becomes Hedgehog's new magic teacher at Ramona's insistence. In the fifth season, it is revealed that her parents went missing in the North Pole when they were planned to be escorted to London with the potion to help her sister Mildred control her growing uncontrollable magic power.

Alice Fefferman (voiced by Lo Mutuc) is an anthropomorphic woolly mammoth, a witch and one of the camp's counselors and the most powerful of the three. She serves as Susie's right-hand woman but generally is not as mean to the campers as Susie is. She is very commanding, however, and would rather turn everything around her cute just to please her. Betsy Spellman (voiced by Nikki Castillo) is an anthropomorphic horse, a witch and one of the camp's counselors.

She appears to be the kindest and most down-to-earth of the witches and seems to clash with Susie at times. It is revealed in "Hedgehog Werewolf" that she herself is a werewolf, something she keeps secret from everyone except Hedgehog. She also teaches Hedgehog the ways of magic in secret especially from Susie. In Season 3, it is revealed that she is the youngest witch on the island.

Max (voiced by Thomas Vaethroeder in the pilot and Ramone Hamilton in the series) is an anthropomorphic part bat and part vampire. He is a fun-loving, wily, and also helpful kid who likes to enjoy the company of Oscar and Hedgehog. However, in the pilot he shows a more aggressive attitude towards Oscar, seeing him as somewhat of a nuisance. Everyone appears to think he is cool because of his backwards cap.

Pajamas (voiced by Anna Strupinsky in the pilot and Naomi Hansen in the series) is a pair of sentient pajamas owned by Oscar. Believed to be gender-fluid (referred to as "she" and "he" throughout the series.) Pepper Corn (voiced by Sam Lavagnino in seasons 1–3 and Julian Edwards in season 4 onward) is an anthropomorphic part panda and part cloud person normally seen with his security blanket. He has an innocent yet somewhat neurotic personality at times.

Lucy Thompson (voiced by Indie Nameth) is a 9-year-old anthropomorphic part aardvark and part yeti. She lives in Manhattan and is very independent. She is unaware of the fact that her mother's letters are actually from Susie. She has a crush on Oscar.

She can understand yeti language. Her yeti name is Bagpipes. Oliver (voiced by Andre Robinson) is an anthropomorphic part dog and part monster who is musically gifted. Alexa (voiced by Alexa Nisenson) and Lem Mongello (voiced by Daphne Thomas in season 1, Mattea Quin in seasons 2-4 and Mykal-Michelle Harris in seasons 5-present) are two anthropomorphic giraffes who are sisters.

Alexa is part giant who is athletic and active. Multiple times throughout the series, she is seen watching over and protecting Lem like a parental figure. Lem, who is the youngest camper. She is shown to have a very strong relationship with her older sister Alexa, even sharing the same cabin as her sibling.

She attended the camp with a fake invitation, and is therefore the only member of the camp without a magical identity. Dr. P. Shark (voiced by Judd Hirsch in the pilot and Richard Kind in the series) is an anthropomorphic talking shark who lives in the pool by Oscar's cabin. He is revealed to be a therapist. Barb Goldberg (voiced by Whoopi Goldberg) is a hard working elf and friend to Oscar and Hedgehog.

In the fifth season, it is revealed Barb has been around since the dawn of time. Howard (voiced by Mike Birbiglia) is a grey monster with glasses who inhabits the island. He is friends with Oscar and the other campers. Ava (voiced by Fortune Feimster) is a black-spotted dalmatian-like monster who inhabits the island.

In "Ava's Yard Sale", it is revealed that she is Blanche's girlfriend. Mortimer (voiced by Bobby Moynihan) is a blueish grey rabbit-like monster who inhabits the island. In Season 1, he is revealed to be former student from Harvard University. Blanche (voiced by Alia Shawkat) is a brown horned monster who inhabits the island.

In "Ava's Yard Sale", it is revealed that she is Ava's girlfriend. Melvin (voiced by Bobby Moynihan) is a small orange monster who inhabits the island. Margot (voiced by Kimiko Glenn) is a purple winged monster who inhabits the island. Godmonster (voiced by Brenda Vaccaro) is an elderly purple monster who inhabits the island.

Freddie (voiced by Cole Sanchez) is an infant blue monster who lives in Heartforde. Paulette (voiced by Paula Poundstone) is a brown monster who works at Heartforde Herald. The Sun (voiced by Melanie Lynskey) is a New Zealand-accented sun who is indifferent to those around her. The Moon (voiced by Cedric the Entertainer in Seasons 1-5 and Stefan Johnson in Season 6 onwards) is the friendly moon who is friends with Oscar and Hedgehog.

Monster Under the Bed (voiced by Judd Hirsch in the pilot and Alfred Molina in the series) is a monster who resides under Hedgehog's bed. Sue Peltzer (voiced by Kathleen Wilhoite) is an anthropomorphic elephant and Oscar's mother. Andy Peltzer (voiced by Alfred Molina) is an anthropomorphic elephant and Oscar's father.

Production

The series was first announced in January 2017 and was shown at festivals including Sundance. At MipJunior in Cannes in October 2018, creator Julia Pott described the series as intended for viewers craving gentleness, comparing its soothing tone to Gilmore Girls. She stated that nothing bad ever happens in that show and that the series aims to soothe viewers, though darker elements exist in a cute package. Rob Sorcher, then Chief Content Officer at Cartoon Network, presented the European premiere at the session, noting the depth of the show's world-building and creative direction.

The series was developed through Cartoon Network's Artists Program, which curates distinct artists, many of whom have never run a show or worked in television. Pott drew inspiration from her childhood interest in spooky folklore and supernatural series like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Sabrina the Teenage Witch, designing the world to reflect a kid-logic perspective where fantastical elements are accepted as reality. After working on short films such as Belly and The Event, Pott joined the crew of Adventure Time, which served as a transition to her role as creator and showrunner of Summer Camp Island, a production valued at approximately $30 million.

Pott described the transition from independent filmmaking to managing a large team as overwhelming, leading to personal struggles with anxiety and panic attacks, and noted that the hardest thing to deal with was her own expectations.

Broadcast

The series premiered on Cartoon Network on July 7, 2018, with the premiere marathon also airing on Boomerang that same day, ending on July 9, 2018, at 6:00 AM. The marathon also aired on Teletoon on August 13, 2018. A sneak peek aired on Cartoon Network Australia and New Zealand on December 15, 2018, with premieres on Cartoon Network Southeast Asia/Philippines on January 25, 2019, Cartoon Network UK on March 4, 2019, and Cartoon Network India around July 19, 2019.

The second half of the first season, originally announced for late 2018, premiered on June 23, 2019. Subsequent seasons premiered exclusively on HBO Max: season two on June 18, 2020, season three on December 10, 2020, season four on June 17, 2021, and season five on December 9, 2021. The sixth and final season, scheduled for June 9, 2022, was removed from HBO Max in the United States in mid-2022 and instead premiered on Cartoon Network in mid-2023. The series mostly airs on Cartoon Network as two 11-minute segments of a half-hour show.

Reception

Reception to the series has been positive. Journalist Abbey White of The Hollywood Reporter and Insider praised a storyline about two non-binary aliens who love each other, calling it age-appropriate and accessible for children. Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media described the series as quirky and heartwarming with cross-generational appeal, noting its quirky characters and silly adventures that are relatable in daily experiences, and called it a worthy contender for families' attention.

Lore and Story

The series is set in a world populated by anthropomorphic animals. Summer Camp Island follows two childhood best friends Oscar Peltzer, an elephant, and Hedgehog, a hedgehog, who are dropped off at a magical summer camp. The camp is a host to many bizarre occurrences, such as camp counselors who are popular girl witches, horses that transform into unicorns, talking sharks, yetis, haunted cabins, post-it notes that lead to other dimensions, and nosey monsters that live under the bed.

Oscar and Hedgehog must contend with these out-of-place events and make their stay at camp worthwhile. In the episode "Glow Worm", Oscar is revealed to be a magical glow worm who is able to make positive and happy events occur when he does something nice, dedicated, considerate and happy and gives magic to other beings. In "Hedgehog Werewolf", Hedgehog is bitten by the Werewolf Queen, giving her the ability to transform into a werewolf at the full moon every month.

Hedgehog comes to accept her condition and does wolf activities with Betsy and the other werewolves of the island. Susie McCallister, despite looking and acting as a 15-year-old, is around 400 years old, having gained immortality from a magic potion. In the fifth season, it is revealed that her parents went missing in the North Pole when they were planned to be escorted to London with the potion to help her sister Mildred control her growing uncontrollable magic power.

Betsy Spellman is revealed in "Hedgehog Werewolf" to be a werewolf herself, something she keeps secret from everyone except Hedgehog. She also teaches Hedgehog the ways of magic in secret especially from Susie. In Season 3, it is revealed that she is the youngest witch on the island. Lem attended the camp with a fake invitation, and is therefore the only member of the camp without a magical identity.

In the fifth season, it is revealed Barb has been around since the dawn of time. In "Ava's Yard Sale", it is revealed that Ava is Blanche's girlfriend. In Season 1, Mortimer is revealed to be a former student from Harvard University.