To turn SpongeBob SquarePants' catchphrase into a question: Are you ready? Are you ready? For Nickelodeon’s 2020-2021 new content slate? That’s right, friends: The popular, influential, family-friendly channel has just released the new and returning shows coming the next couple years, and they include a lot of exciting stuff – including aSpongeBob SquarePantsprequel series.
Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Yearscomes to Nickelodeon July of 2020, with 13 episodes of CG-animated glory, all with the original voice cast (includingTom Kennyin the title role). The series will follow a ten-year-old SpongeBob alongside all of your favorite characters during one fateful summer at Kamp Koral, where they’ll be “building underwater campfires, catching wild jellyfish, and swimming in Lake Yuckymuck at the craziest camp in the kelp forest.” Your mileage may vary vis-a-vis “CG SpongeBob,” but I gotta say – as a long-time fan of the series and its many spin-off iterations, this sounds charming as all heck.
There are also some brand-new, original series coming to the network.The Astronautsis a live-action series about a group of kids who are – whoops! – accidentally shot into space, and are forced into a series of intergalactic adventures. It comes from Imagine Kids+Family, the family-centered imprint fromRon HowardandBrian Grazer’s production company. Howard teased at the unique direction for the series, saying that Nickelodeon “wanted to take big creative swings with us on this series and that’s incredibly exciting.”
We’ll also be gettingTyler Perry’s Young Dylan, a live-action series centered on real-life hip-hop sensation"Young"Dylan Gilmerfrom the prolific producer. In a modern twist onThe Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,Young Dylanbegins with the titular rapper moving in with his more affluent aunt and uncle, his streetwise sensibilities clashing with their more buttoned-up vibes.
And what’s getting renewed? Some of your favorite returning and spin-off series, including a second season forAre You Afraid of the Dark?, an expanded season one forAll That, and a third season forBlue’s Clues & You!Plus: A Christmas film fromThe Loud Houseworld, aHenry Dangerspin-off series, and a series based on the bestselling booksBig Nate. No matter what you like to watch on Nickelodeon, their new slate will have you covered.
For more on the fun, family network, check out this incredibleAvatar: The Last Airbendersteelbook blu-ray. Plus, a review of the incisive, revealingdocumentary aboutRen & Stimpy.
