Atomic Puppet is a Canadian-French animated television series created by Jerry Leibowitz and Mark Drop. The series is a co-production between Canadian independent animation studio Mercury Filmworks, French VFX, motion graphics and animation company Technicolor and French film studio Gaumont's animation division Gaumont Animation. The series premiered on Teletoon in Canada, on France 4 in France, and on Disney XD worldwide. It made its debut on July 18, 2016 on Disney XD in the United States, with the final episode aired on February 21, 2017. A total of 26 episodes were produced.
The series revolves around the adventures of seventh grader Joey Felt and his partner AP, a world-renowned superhero who has been reduced to life as a powerless, blue sock puppet, until he's placed on Joey's hand. Together, the two transform into Mega City's newest superhero duo, Atomic Puppet.
Mega City's superhero Captain Atomic suffers a setback, as he is shaking hands with 12-year-old[2] fanboy Joey Felt, his disgruntled sidekick Mookie (or Sergeant Subatomic) transforms him into a living sock puppet. The suddenly powerless superhero quickly realizes that the only way he can regain his former powers is to team up with the boy—a dream come true for Joey, but not so much for Captain Atomic. Together, the two form an unlikely and awkward partnership that allows them to become the city's newest superhero duo — Atomic Puppet.
Series creators Mark Drop and Jerry Leibotwitz originally pitched the concept of Atomic Puppet to Mercury Filmworks in 2011. The studio took interest in the concept, but chose to redevelop it under the supervision of series developer Travis Williams and director Andy Coyle. One such change the team introduced was the idea of the titular sock puppet being a polymorphed superhero, but one that "had a bit bigger of an ego". They believed this would emphasize the humiliation of the character's transformation and force him to show his more vulnerable side.[43]
According to Mercury Filmworks president Clint Eland, Atomic Puppet was envisioned as a comedic superhero-driven show focused on the close friendship between the main duo of Joey Felt and AP. Coyle and Williams both added that the show also intended to explore various genres, allowing the series to exhibit a wide range of tones and emotions. Additionally, Mercury Filmworks sought to have Joey and AP grows as characters through the pair's episodic adventures, with direction on the series focusing on character-driven elements to create characters the audience would grow attached to and who could be flexible enough for many kinds of story.[43]
The music for the series was composed and performed by Amaury Laurent Bernier and David Gana.
The first season is designed as 52 11-minute segments, with 2 two-part specials.[44] Atomic Puppet have its first world premiere on Disney XD in France on March 13, 2016. The series later debuted on Disney XD in the United States as a sneak peek on May 30, 2016, before making its debut on July 18. The series finally made its second on Teletoon in Canada on September 11, 2016, and ABC ME in Australia. In Latin America, it began airing on Disney XD on October 27, 2016.
Atomic Puppet received rave reviews from professional critics and animators, who praised its animation, action, voice acting, premise, and humor.
The series was nominated in 2017 for two Annie Awards: Outstanding Achievement in Character Animation in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production and Outstanding Achievement in Storyboarding in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production.[45] It was also nominated for a Reuben Award in the category of Television Animation, alongside The Loud House and The Simpsons, in 2016 by the National Cartoonists Society.[46]
Dawn M. Burkes of The Dallas Morning News spoke positively on the series, calling it "a hoot of a superhero show". She praised its premise as fresh, unique, and entertaining, and its execution as making for a fun, humorous, and interesting take on the "old-school" superhero dynamic of the hero and his young sidekick.[47]
On the other hand, the online animation community mostly dismissed the show as average. Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media gave this the show rate three stars out of five, describing it as "lighthearted buddy comedy is filled with fast-paced action and humor that's just right for grade-schoolers' liking." She also remarks about the messages that "stand out to kids aren't these kinds of [it]" and the humor "kind of exaggerated."[48]
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