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Description
Continuing on from the previous third of the month, we have a triad of shows all belonging to the “Cartoon Cartoons” collective. One of which being quite popular, while the other two… not so much.

Premiering on the 12th in 1999, Mike, Lu and Og was created by Charles Swenson, alongside Mikhail Shindel and Mikhail Aldashin, and to my knowledge is CN Studios’ only American-Russian co-production. The series follows a foreign exchange student from Manhattan named Mike, opting to live on the tropical island of Albonquetine, so far removed from human society that it seldom appears on geographical maps. There she befriends two kids named Lu and Og and tries to teach them and the other inhabitants about culture back home, all while in turn learning about their customs along the way. Amongst its contemporaries from around the time, Mike, Lu and Og is somewhat of an oddball ironically for how tonally low-key it is in comparison. It’s crude art style lends it to seeming more at home on the rival network, Nickelodeon, to the point where many often mistake it for one of Klasky Csupo’s productions. It’s possibly for these reasons that the show has historically not been acknowledged far less than most of the other Cartoon Cartoons.

Not helping it’s case is that on the same day of that year premiered another cartoon whose legacy would far eclipse it. Created by John R. Dilworth, Courage the Cowardly Dog revolves around the titular canine, having been orphaned at a young age before being taken in by an exceptionally kind elderly woman named Muriel to live with her and her husband, Eustace Bagge, who is pretty much the exact opposite personality-wise. Residing in the cozy little cottage in the middle of Nowhere however, this trio find themselves frequented by countless bouts of horrifying creatures. From invading space poultry to murderous were-moles and all sorts of nightmarish threats, it falls down to Courage to overcome his fears and protect his adopted family. Not only was this show revered for its ability to both instil a sense of pure of terror and get a hearty laugh out of its audience, it also managed to be surprisingly heartwarming through the character relationship between Courage and Muriel. More recently last year, the series came back for a one-time crossover with another easily-startled cartoon canine, Scooby-Doo, in what would be the last role of Muriel’s voice actress, Thea White, before she sadly passed away.

Then the very next year following those two, Sheep in the Big City would debut on the 17th. Created by Mo Willems of The Off-Beats fame, the show follows a seemingly ordinary Sheep on the run from a Secret Military Organisation who wish to use his kind as a power source for their ray gun (just go with it). Seeking refuge in the big city, Sheep is often to see get by doing odd jobs and trying to woo his crush, Swanky the Poodle, all while trying to evade conflict with several unsavoury characters, from General Specific, the Organisation’s leader, to Lady Richington, Swanky’s stuck-up owner. The show’s humour, as one could guess, very much revolves around how self aware it is in its own absurd premise, right down to the Narrator frequently expressing his distain for the incomprehensible script and the state of television as a medium in general. Though it’s premiere was reportedly the highest rated of any Cartoon Network original series at the time, Sheep in the Big City sadly seems to be yet another cartoon fallen into obscurity, having suffered from inconsistent schedule airings and even being cancelled TWICE during its brief run.

Next time, we'll be rocking out with the last of the November premieres just in time for the inevitable end of this lengthy lookback.

Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-January-and-February
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-March
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-April-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-April-Part-Two
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-May
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-June
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-July-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-July-Part-Two
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-August-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-August-Part-Two
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-September
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-October
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-November-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-November-Part-Three
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-December

Description
Continuing on from the previous third of the month, we have a triad of shows all belonging to the “Cartoon Cartoons” collective. One of which being quite popular, while the other two… not so much.

Premiering on the 12th in 1999, Mike, Lu and Og was created by Charles Swenson, alongside Mikhail Shindel and Mikhail Aldashin, and to my knowledge is CN Studios’ only American-Russian co-production. The series follows a foreign exchange student from Manhattan named Mike, opting to live on the tropical island of Albonquetine, so far removed from human society that it seldom appears on geographical maps. There she befriends two kids named Lu and Og and tries to teach them and the other inhabitants about culture back home, all while in turn learning about their customs along the way. Amongst its contemporaries from around the time, Mike, Lu and Og is somewhat of an oddball ironically for how tonally low-key it is in comparison. It’s crude art style lends it to seeming more at home on the rival network, Nickelodeon, to the point where many often mistake it for one of Klasky Csupo’s productions. It’s possibly for these reasons that the show has historically not been acknowledged far less than most of the other Cartoon Cartoons.

Not helping it’s case is that on the same day of that year premiered another cartoon whose legacy would far eclipse it. Created by John R. Dilworth, Courage the Cowardly Dog revolves around the titular canine, having been orphaned at a young age before being taken in by an exceptionally kind elderly woman named Muriel to live with her and her husband, Eustace Bagge, who is pretty much the exact opposite personality-wise. Residing in the cozy little cottage in the middle of Nowhere however, this trio find themselves frequented by countless bouts of horrifying creatures. From invading space poultry to murderous were-moles and all sorts of nightmarish threats, it falls down to Courage to overcome his fears and protect his adopted family. Not only was this show revered for its ability to both instil a sense of pure of terror and get a hearty laugh out of its audience, it also managed to be surprisingly heartwarming through the character relationship between Courage and Muriel. More recently last year, the series came back for a one-time crossover with another easily-startled cartoon canine, Scooby-Doo, in what would be the last role of Muriel’s voice actress, Thea White, before she sadly passed away.

Then the very next year following those two, Sheep in the Big City would debut on the 17th. Created by Mo Willems of The Off-Beats fame, the show follows a seemingly ordinary Sheep on the run from a Secret Military Organisation who wish to use his kind as a power source for their ray gun (just go with it). Seeking refuge in the big city, Sheep is often to see get by doing odd jobs and trying to woo his crush, Swanky the Poodle, all while trying to evade conflict with several unsavoury characters, from General Specific, the Organisation’s leader, to Lady Richington, Swanky’s stuck-up owner. The show’s humour, as one could guess, very much revolves around how self aware it is in its own absurd premise, right down to the Narrator frequently expressing his distain for the incomprehensible script and the state of television as a medium in general. Though it’s premiere was reportedly the highest rated of any Cartoon Network original series at the time, Sheep in the Big City sadly seems to be yet another cartoon fallen into obscurity, having suffered from inconsistent schedule airings and even being cancelled TWICE during its brief run.

Next time, we'll be rocking out with the last of the November premieres just in time for the inevitable end of this lengthy lookback.

Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-January-and-February
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-March
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-April-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-April-Part-Two
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-May
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-June
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-July-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-July-Part-Two
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-August-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-August-Part-Two
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-September
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-October
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-November-Part-One
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-November-Part-Three
Cartoon-Network-Birthdays-of-December