My Gym Partner's a Monkey

My Gym Partner's a Monkey is an American animated television series created by Tim Cahill and Julie McNally Cahill and produced by Cartoon Network Studios. It aired on Cartoon Network from February 24, 2006, to November 27, 2008, with a total of four seasons and fifty-six episodes.[1] The series follows Adam Lyon, a human who, after a clerical error listed his surname as "Lion", is forced to transfer to Charles Darwin Middle School, a school for local anthropomorphic zoo animals, where he is partnered with Jake Spidermonkey in gym, and quickly becomes best friends with him. Two DVD volumes have been released in 2007 and 2008 in Australia.

My Gym Partner's a Monkey
Genre
Created byJulie McNally Cahill
Timothy Cahill
Written by
  • Julie McNally Cahill
  • Timothy Cahill
  • Tom Sheppard
  • Patrick Doran
  • Zephaniah Eje
  • Roger Eschbacher
  • Mitch Larson
  • Adam Pava
Directed by
  • Timothy Cahill
  • Gary Hartle (supervising director, Season 1–2)
  • John McIntyre (supervising director, Season 3–4)
Voices of
Theme music composerTom Sheppard
Pat Irwin
Opening theme"My Gym Partner's a Monkey" by Nika Futterman and Tom Kenny
ComposerTom Sheppard (original songs)
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes56 (100 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersJulie McNally-Cahill
Timothy Cahill
Producers
  • Victoria McCollum (Season 1–3)
  • Haven Alexander (Season 4)
Running time22 minutes
11 minutes for normal segments
22 minutes for special segments
44 minutes for TV movies
Production companies
DistributorWarner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original network
First shown inDecember 26, 2005 (2005-12-26)
Original releaseFebruary 24, 2006 (2006-02-24) –
November 27, 2008 (2008-11-27)

The series won an Emmy Award in 2007 and was nominated for four Annie Awards.

Summary

A 12-year-old student named Adam Lyon is transferred to a middle school established for anthropomorphic zoo animals due to a spelling error making his surname "Lion". There, he is befriended by a mischievous, eccentric spider monkey named Jake, hence the title of the series, along with a sassy toucan named Lupe, a giraffe named Ingrid, who is infatuated with Adam, the intelligent, wise gorilla Windsor, and Slips the easygoing python. In spite of his usual kindness and fondness for his friends, Adam despises being banished to Charles Darwin Middle School because of something beyond his control and longs for his previous human middle school.

Usually, the episodes are focused on Adam's experiences at Charles Darwin Middle School due to his inability to fit in with his anthropomorphic schoolmates, the challenges that he must face (such as the presumed stupidity of his peers, being schooled in subjects of use only to animals, the introductions of new students of odd, dangerous, or fictional species to the school or the misadventures that Adam stumbles into with them, or the common effects of adolescence as they are experienced by zoo animals).

Episodes
Main article: List of My Gym Partner's a Monkey episodes
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
Pilots2003 (2003)2004 (2004)
113December 26, 2005 (2005-12-26)May 19, 2006 (2006-05-19)
213June 8, 2006 (2006-06-08)January 5, 2007 (2007-01-05)
315January 12, 2007 (2007-01-12)August 31, 2007 (2007-08-31)
415September 17, 2007 (2007-09-17)November 27, 2008 (2008-11-27)
Shorts13September 9, 2006 (2006-09-09)February 22, 2008 (2008-02-22)

Characters

Main
Adam and Jake

Recurring

Minor

Production

My Gym Partner's a Monkey was the first Cartoon Network original series to be made by a married couple. Julie McNally and Timothy Cahill had both had their head start at Warner Bros. Animation on shows like Animaniacs, The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries, Detention, Histeria!, ¡Mucha Lucha!, and Krypto the Superdog. The two came up with the idea when they needed a job. They had a friend of theirs who told Timothy Cahill that, when he was in first grade, he went to an experimental school that had a monkey in the science area; and that friend of theirs used to go hang out with the monkey. Tim Cahill found that story hilarious, thinking it would be a great idea for an animated series. Despite which, the characters weren't actually based on people in their life, but rather, types of people, such as the stoner with Slips, the strong silent type with Windsor, the girl who suddenly got tall over summer with Ingrid, and more.

The series had been a thing in Tim's back pocket for years beforehand into the 1990s, with the pitch actually being the second choice of what they wanted done. The series was pitched to Cartoon Network in 2001 under the title The Zoo, but the named was changed a year later in 2002 under the more comedic title My Gym Partner's a Monkey, and two pilot episodes were planned, one in 2003 that began the concept of the show, and one more in 2004 that featured the final designs for the show.

The art style of the show is reminiscent of older Hanna-Barbera cartoons, which heavily influenced the style of the show. The series regularly makes use of the same score used in Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Saerom Animation, who would later do animation work for Adventure Time, Regular Show, and The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack, provided the animation.

The series was met with 4 seasons, 56 episodes, and two TV movie specials.

The series' second to last episode "A Thanksgiving Carol" was delayed until November 2008, due to it being a Thanksgiving episode. "A Whole Zoo World" became the series finale due to the creators' intention on ending the series.

Release

Broadcast

The series aired its first episode on December 26, 2005 during Cartoon Network's “Sneak Peek Week” along with Cartoon Network original series Ben 10 and acquired series Robotboy and Zixx. The series began its regular run with a two-episode premiere on Cartoon Network's "Fridays" block on February 24, 2006.[2] The My Gym Partner's a Monkey-based television film The Big Field Trip aired on January 14, 2007, as part of season 3.[3] A special episode, "That Darn Platypus", aired on Cartoon Network on May 18, 2007,[4] as part of Cartoon Network Invaded, a mini-series that aired 5 specials of different series from May 4 to May 28, 2007.[5] The series ended its 4 season-run on November 27, 2008, with the episode "A Thanksgiving Carol".[4] In April 9, 2017 the show was added on the Boomerang app making it one of the few shows that Premiered on the app in 2017-2021 and will make its broadcast premiere on the Actual Boomerang channel in the US in Fall 2021. The series was also shown on the revived block Cartoon Planet from 2012 to 2014.[6] In Latin America, the series currently airs on Tooncast since 2013. In Ukraine, the series aired on Novyi Kanal. The show runs in India on channel Cartoon Network by the name "Samsher Sikander Chuddie Buddie".[7]

Reception

Ratings

My Gym Partner's a Monkey was a ratings success for Cartoon Network. On the series' Cartoon Network "Fridays" block two-episode premiere at 9:00 and 9:30 P.M. EST, the first episode was seen by 1.2 million and the second by 1.3 million children ages 2–11, according to preliminary data from Nielsen Media Research.[2] The 9:30 P.M. telecast ranked as the #1 telecast on all television, broadcast and cable, with both boys 6–11 and boys 2–11 in the time period.[2] The series went on top the Fridays block ratings, gaining millions of viewers.[8]

Critical response

William Barker of Web Wombat gave the King of the Jungle DVD a positive review, awarding it with a score of 70%, saying: "With an original – dare I say unique? – premise, My Gym Partner's a Monkey makes for a somewhat refreshing change from super heroes and mutants, and the cut-out animation style is captivating, though far from novel. It's not the most impressive cartoon show I've ever seen, but it's quite cute and fairly amusing – even for the older primates among us."[9] Larisa Wiseman of Common Sense Media awarded the series three out of five stars, saying: "It's difficult to tell what age group the show's producers were aiming at – the animation style and slapstick by themselves would seem to appeal mainly to grade-schoolers, while the jokes and life lessons are definitely aimed at the tween set. The sly humor may even give some adults the occasional laugh-out-loud moment. Overall, My Gym Partner's a Monkey is commendable for its effort to include a subtle message in each episode. Younger viewers will probably find Jake's sometimes-annoying goofiness amusing, and will definitely find the story lines entertaining."[10]

Awards and nominations
YearAwardCategoryNomineeResult
2006 Annie Awards Writing in an Animated Television Production[11] Tom Sheppard
for "Nice Moustache"		 Nominated
Production Design in an Animated Television Production[11] Dan Krall
for "Grub Drive"		 Nominated
2007 Emmy Awards Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation[12] Narina Sokolova
for The Big Field Trip		 Won
Annie Awards Writing in an Animated Television Production[13] Tom Sheppard
for "The Butt of Jake"		 Nominated
Best Animation Production Artist[13] Jim Worthy
for "Meet the Spidermonkeys"		 Nominated

Criticism and controversy
A screenshot of an angry blogger within Animal School Musical during "I Love My Butt", repetitively typing "Monkey Butts Are Gross" in reference to the real-life criticism the show had for its use of butt jokes.

Despite the popularity and success, My Gym Partner's a Monkey received heavy criticism online for its writing, cruelty towards Adam Lyon, concept, characters, and most of all, humor about Jake's butt. Most of the criticism comes from internet bloggers, who cited the show as immature and childish, making it one of Cartoon Network's most controversial shows in the 2000s. My Gym Partner's a Monkey used online criticism within the show as a running gag, similar to Teen Titans Go!, sometimes as means to get back at the bloggers. One of the biggest examples was in the second movie special Animal School Musical (a parody of High School Musical); during the song "I Love My Butt", an angry internet blogger is seen repetitively typing "Monkey Butts Are Gross", in response to Jake's constant butt jokes. This is a reference to the real-life criticism My Gym Partner's a Monkey has received for it's butt jokes. This was an attempt to get back at people online who were commenting about the show being too "butt-heavy" with the jokes.

In other episodes, it would be referenced as well, even citing angry internet bloggers to critique the amount of butt jokes. For example, in the episode "A Very Special Boy", Jake mentions that, as a result of his own show where he loves his own butt, most predators, bullies, and even internet bloggers, were so sickened, that nobody can see him as a potential food source. It was also referenced in "Lonely Lyon", where Lupe tells Jake that his constant jokes about his butt drives internet bloggers crazy.

The series has also been met with heavy controversy, such as with the episode "Amazon Kevin", in which the title character is a brief parody of famed Australian nature export Steve Irwin, and his show The Crocodile Hunter. Cartoon Network banned the episode from broadcast in Australia following Irwin's death on September 4, 2006, as he was one of their most beloved icons.

Another episode that got banned, this time from around the world, was "the Butt of the Jake", which was banned from showing on Cartoon Network after its second time airing in early September 2007. Cartoon Network's new Executive General Manager (out of Atlanta) pulled the episode after he found it offensive and "too-butt-filled", which was deemed inappropriate and vulgar for the intended audience of children. Shortly after its removal it was nominated for an Annie Award in Writing. However, despite the episode being banned, it is still available through DVD boxsets, iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, Netflix and other online streaming sites and services. It is unknown whether the episode's ban is permanent and whether or not reruns will air on any Turner-related network via broadcast television. The sister episode, "Shark Fin Soupy", was later re-paired with the later Season 4 episode "Hygiene Hijinks" on May 28, 2008.

References
  1. Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 415–416. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  2. Zedd (March 3, 2006). "My Gym Partner's a Monkey Delivers Ratings Gains for Cartoon Network". ToonZone. Archived from the original on May 11, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  3. My Gym Partner's a Monkey Seasons at the iTunes Store: 1 Archived 2013-10-16 at the Wayback Machine, 2 Archived 2013-10-15 at the Wayback Machine, 3 Archived 2013-10-16 at the Wayback Machine, 4 Archived 2013-10-16 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved June 12, 2012
  4. Baisley, Sarah (January 12, 2007). "My Gym Partner's a Monkey First Feature Movie Airs Jan. 14". Animation World Network. Archived from the original on October 4, 2013. Retrieved July 1, 2012.
  5. "Cartoon Network Scares Up Halloween Programming". Animation World Network. October 27, 2005. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  6. "Cartoon Network Brings Back 'Powerpuff Girls,' 'Dexter's Laboratory' And More With 'Cartoon Planet' (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. AOL. March 29, 2012. Archived from the original on May 8, 2012. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  7. "TV Serial & New Episodes On – Latest News, Photos & Videos". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 15 February 2018. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  8. Zedd (March 18, 2006). "CN's "My Gym Partner's a Monkey" Tops FRIDAYS Ratings in Third Week; TOONAMI Ratings". ToonZone. Archived from the original on May 11, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  9. Barker, William. "My Gym Partner's a Monkey". Web Wombat. Archived from the original on November 5, 2011. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  10. Wiseman, Larisa. "My Gym Partner's a Monkey". Common Sense Media. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  11. "Legacy: 34th Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (2006)". Annie Awards. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  12. "Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Announces Emmy® Award Winners in Costumes for a Variety or Music Program and Individual Achievement in Animation". Emmy Awards. August 21, 2007. Archived from the original on September 7, 2010. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  13. "Legacy: 35th Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (2007)". Annie Awards. Archived from the original on March 13, 2012. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
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