Franklin (TV series)

Did You Know?

• Franklin television stories always begin with the line, '[Franklin] could count by twos and tie his shoes'.
• Joly Herman of Common Sense Media stated that 'Franklin is a show that takes for granted respect for elders and vice versa'.
• The show has no interstitial segments or end-tags featuring the characters.

Setting and characters

The main character is Franklin, an anthropomorphic turtle who lives in a village called Woodland. Almost all events are presented from his point of view, though some episodes focus on other characters. Franklin enjoys swimming, arts and crafts, and shoofly pie. He has a blue blanket and a blue plush dog with short purple ears named Sam, and in earlier seasons he sleeps with them. He is afraid of the dark and thunderstorms; Sam and the blanket help calm him. Franklin's family includes his parents Mr. and Mrs. Turtle, who are gentle and provide guidance, and his younger sister Harriet, born in the film Franklin and the Green Knight and featured in the fifth and sixth seasons. His paternal grandmother lives nearby, and his maternal grandparents live on a remote farm. In Franklin and the Turtle Lake Treasure, his paternal aunt Lucy and her goddaughter Sam settle in Woodland. The CGI series introduces his paternal aunt Teeny. Later episodes introduce a maternal aunt, uncle, and cousin. Franklin's best friend is Bear, a grizzly bear who loves to eat and later has a sister named Beatrice. Other close friends include Snail, Beaver, Goose, Rabbit, Fox, Badger, Raccoon, and Skunk. Mr. Owl is his primary teacher, temporarily replaced by Miss Koala in Back to School with Franklin. Other characters include Mr. Mole, Mrs. Muskrat, Coach Porcupine, Moose, Otter, Wolvie, and Bat.

Production

The character design of Franklin was created by Canadian animation artist Kurt Lehner at Nelvana in 1997, based on the book series. Lehner also designed Beaver, Rabbit, and Skunk. In December 2001, Neuroplanet liquidated, leaving 80 employees unemployed. Two former employees, Lilian Eche and Ariane Payen, founded LuxAnimation, which animated the sixth and final season. In May 2004, new episodes began airing on Treehouse TV with new voice actors, including Grant Eubanks, though many writers and staff remained. Premises in these episodes include Franklin facing a flood, worrying about the old treehouse, and earning a badge in the Woodland Trailblazers. For the sixth season, Funbag and other studios joined development. The most recent film, Franklin and the Turtle Lake Treasure, was written by John van Bruggen and directed by Dominique Monféry; it premiered in theaters in 2006 and debuted on Noggin on New Year's Eve 2007. Franklin is traditionally animated with some computer aid, especially in later seasons, and is closed-captioned. It mostly aired as two 11-minute stories, except on CBC which splits them. DVD releases group stories by theme. The opening introduction changed after the first season, and many scenes featured Otter, who left early in the first season.

Release

The series was broadcast across Canada on CBC Television, Family Channel, and Treehouse TV. In the United States, it first appeared on CBS as part of the CBS Kidshow block from October 3, 1998 to January 2, 1999, then returned on Nick Jr. on CBS from September 16, 2000 to September 7, 2002. It also ran on Nickelodeon’s Nick Jr. block from January 11, 1999 to July 30, 2004, and on Noggin from October 4, 1999 until September 25, 2009, returning as a streaming service on August 26, 2015 until September 30, 2018. The Nick Jr. Channel carried it from September 28, 2009 to June 14, 2013, and Qubo aired it from January 1, 2021 to February 28, 2021. In the United Kingdom, it aired on Sky One, Channel 4, Tiny Living, Nick Jr., Five, and Tiny Pop, with some channels using British voice actors. It also aired in India on Pogo and in Australia on ABC. In the Arab World, Spacetoon broadcast it from 2004 to 2015.

In other media

Franklin television stories are mostly based on books in the original Franklin Adventure series, though this practice was dropped in the second season; elements from books are incorporated into later stories. Many television stories have been adapted into books in the Franklin TV Storybook and Franklin First Readers series, usually written by Sharon Jennings. Harriet was introduced in the direct-to-video film Franklin and the Green Knight on September 11, 2000. Franklin's Magic Christmas was released on November 24, 2001, and Back to School with Franklin on August 19, 2003. Franklin has appeared in touring stage shows including 'Franklin's Big Adventure', 'Franklin's Class Concert', 'Franklin's Family Christmas Concert', and 'Franklin's Carnival Of Animals', produced by Koba Entertainment and presented by Paquin Entertainment. In 2009, a new touring show, 'Franklin and The Adventures of the Noble Knights', was developed and toured in France and Canada in 2010. A soundtrack CD is available. Educational video games include Franklin's Activity Center, Franklin's Reading World, and Franklin Learns Math (1995–1996), Franklin the Turtle Goes to School and Franklin the Turtle's Clubhouse (2000), Franklin the Turtle After School (2004), and Franklin the Turtle, Franklin's Great Adventures (2005), and Franklin's Birthday Surprise (2006).