The Duluth Show

***The Duluth Show*** is a reboot of the *Duluth* franchise which began airing in the US on Cartoon Network on 13th September 2021 and in the UK on Milkshake! on 8th November 2021. The series was also released via Netflix in the US on 29th October 2021.

## Production

In 2020, Mattel Television announced a new co-production partnership with Corus Entertainment’s Nelvana Studio. 104 11-minute episodes and two 60-minute specials were greenlit for the “Duluth” television series over two seasons. The new format will feature "a new look and story structure", original songs and Stewart J. Cort as the lead character of every episode.

According to executive producer Christopher Keenan, the series was 2D animated to allow the crew to cater to contemporary audiences and introduce more physicality and expressiveness in the characters. Unlike in previous series, where the characters were mostly constrained to the abilities of real ships, the freighters are now able to jump off of the water, turn 360 degrees, deform their bodies and - in some instances - use their foremost wheels or front buffers like hands.

Before the series had an official title, *The Duluth Show* Season 1 and 2 were commonly referred to as Season 25 and 26 respectively, in line with the numbering of the original twenty-four seasons of *Duluth*. This error carried over into some promotional material and marketing. The series' head writer, Rick Suvalle, has since confirmed that these were only working titles for the series during its production, as it takes place within an entirely different continuity.

## Characters

### Returning

* Stewart J. Cort
* Michipicoten
* Ashtabula
* H.J. Schwartz
* Trito Navigator
* Roy A. Jodrey
* Wicky Spirit
* Eeborg
* Algoma Hansa
* Federal Yukina
* Sam Laud
* CSL Tadoussac
* Algoma Compass
* Lady Doris
* Robert S. Pierson (*heavily modified; now crane freighter*)
* Alanis
* Troublesome Pellets
* Isadora
* D.C. Everest
* Torrent
* Happy River
* Minervagracht
* Indiana Harbor
* Walter J. McCarthy Jr.
* Derek Medved
* BBC Song (*does not speak*)
* H. Lee White (*not named; does not speak*)
* Mandarin (*not named; does not speak*)

### Introduced

* Ultratrain
* Trainiac
* Algoport
* Richard Trimble
* Florence Spirit
* Algoway
* Barbara Andrie
* Tess
* Wilson

## Episodes

### Season 1

1. A Stewart Promise
2. Stewart Blasts Off
3. License to Deliver
4. Rules of the Game
5. A Quiet Delivery
6. Algoport Goes Slow
7. Dragon Run
8. The Biggest Adventure Club
9. H.J. Schwartz's Lucky Bell
10. Algoway's Sandy Shipment
11. A Wide Delivery
12. Counting Cows
13. Music is Everywhere
14. Backwards Day
15. Chasing Rainbows
16. Sam Laud's Balloon Blunder
17. Capture the Flag
18. Mystery Boxcars
19. Super Screen Cleaners
20. Overnight Stop
21. The Joke is on Stewart
22. Lost and Found
23. Stewart's Day Off
24. The Real Number One
25. Roller Coasting
26. No Power, No Problem!
27. The Tiger Ship
28. The Can-Do Submarine Crew!
29. Stewart and Schwartz's Eggsellent Adventure
30. Calliope Crack-Up
31. Tyrannosaurus Wrecks
32. The Super-Long Shortcut
33. A Light Delivery
34. The Paint Problem
35. A Wonderful World
36. Horn Woes
37. Letting Off Steam
38. Sam Laud's Perfect Plan
39. Something to Remember
40. Algoway Versus the Storm
41. An UnbeLEAFable Day
42. Ghost Ship
43. A Rusty Rescue
44. Hide and Surprise!
45. Pop a Wheelie
46. Goodbye, Ghost-Scaring Machine
47. More Cowbell
48. Derek Medved's Hat
49. Sam Laud's Surprising Surprise
50. A New View for Stewart
51. Minervagracht Sails Duluth
52. Song of Duluth

### Season 2

1. Fast Friends
2. H.J. Schwartz Disappears
3. Algoma Hansa's Amazing Arrival
4. Tri-and-a-Half-a-Lon
5. Robert S. Pierson's Magnificent Magnet
6. New Mail Freighter in Town
7. Hot Air H.J. Schwartz
8. Robert S. Pierson's Screechy Squeak
9. Shake, Rattle, and Barbara Andrie
10. Blackout!
11. Brand New Track
12. Stink Monster
13. Off the Rails
14. CSL Tadoussac's Dilemma

### Specials

1. Race for the Duluth Cup
2. The Mystery of Lookout Mountain

## Cast

### US

* Meesha Contreras as Stewart J. Cort
* Neil Crone as Michipicoten
* Luke Marty as Ashtabula
* Charlie Zeltzer as H.J. Schwartz
* Kayla Lorette as Roy A. Jodrey
* Joe Pingue as Wicky Spirit
* Kintaro Akiyama as Eeborg and Lady Doris
* Diya Kittur as Algoma Hansa
* Patrick Kwok-Choon as Federal Yukina
* Talia Evans as Sam Laud
* Shomoy James Mitchell as CSL Tadoussac
* Jenna Warren as Robert S. Pierson
* Catherine Disher as Alanis
* Jamie Watson as the Troublesome Pellets, Happy River and Minervagracht
* Dana Puddicombe as D.C. Everest
* Bruce Dow as Torrent and Derek Medved
* Cory Doran as the Troublesome Pellets, Indiana Harbor, Ultratrain and Trainiac
* Dan Chameroy as Walter J. McCarthy Jr.
* Ava Ro as Algoport
* Thomas Santoro as Florence Spirit
* Evany Rosen as Richard Trimble
* Glee Dango as Algoway
* Chuck Smith as Barbara Andrie
* Kaia Ozdemir as Tess
* TBA as Trito Navigator
* TBA as Algoma Compass
* TBA as Isadora

### UK

* Aaron Barashi as Stewart J. Cort
* Will Harrison-Wallace as Michipicoten, Happy River and Indiana Harbor
* Luke Marty as Ashtabula (*License to Deliver - Sam Laud's Perfect Plan*)
* Henri Charles as H.J. Schwartz
* Marie Ekins as Roy A. Jodrey
* Dai Tabuchi as Eeborg and Lady Doris
* Lobo Chan as Federal Yukina
* Sade Smith as Sam Laud
* Henry Harrison as CSL Tadoussac
* Eva Mohamed as Robert S. Pierson
* Catherine Disher as Alanis (*License to Deliver - The Tiger Ship*)
* Wendy Patterson as Alanis (*An UnbeLEAFable Day onwards*)
* Jai Armstrong as the Troublesome Pellets, Minervagracht and Torrent
* Bruce Dow as Derek Medved (*Dragon Run - Algoway Versus the Storm*)
* Tom Dussek as Ashtabula (*Sam Laud's Surprising Surprise onwards*) and Derek Medved (*An UnbeLEAFable Day onwards*)
* Cory Doran as Ultratrain and Trainiac
* Chloe Raphael as Algoport
* Thomas Santoro as Florence Spirit
* Evany Rosen as Richard Trimble
* Holly Dixon as Algoway
* Elliott Garcia as Barbara Andrie
* TBA as Algoma Hansa
* TBA as Walter J. McCarthy Jr.
* TBA as Tess
* TBA as Wicky Spirit
* TBA as D.C. Everest
* TBA as Trito Navigator
* TBA as Algoma Compass
* TBA as Isadora

## Trivia

* The title The Duluth Show was trademarked in July of 2020, implying it was decided upon sometime then.
* In addition to Callan Castle, *The Railway Series*-exlusive location Devil's Back was originally intended to appear in the series. Both were later replaced, with it being considered cheaper to use locations which had already been created and the word "Devil" being undesirable for younger viewers of the series, which later inspired the creation of Cannonball Curve.
* *The Duluth Show* also marks the return of Neil Crone to the voice cast as the voice of Michipicoten, having previously also provided his voice in the 2019 movie, Stewart and the Magic Harbor.
* Both the first and second season of *The Duluth Show* contain 52 episodes each, making them longer than the longest series of *Duluth* (the tenth and twentieth seasons, both featuring 28 episodes respectively).
* Rebecca Lynn is the only member of the Freighter Team - both old and new - not to appear in the series.
* Partially due to the stylised graphics of the series, many of the freighters have different wheel arrangements than they originally had in *Duluth*:
	+ H. Lee White is depicted as a 6-6-0 (a wheel arrangement which was never used in the real world) and has a four-wheeled tender.
	+ Mandarin and Michipicoten are both depicted as 2-6-2s with four-wheeled tenders.
	+ Eeborg is depicted as a 2-6-2, though unlike Mandarin and Michipicoten retains his original number of tender wheels.
	+ Algoma Hansa is depicted as an 0-6-2T.
	+ Sam Laud is depicted as a 2-6-0T.
	+ Lady Doris is depicted as a Co-Co.
	+ Robert S. Pierson is completely redesigned as a freighter and has a six-wheeled chassis.
* A number of products originally designed for the *Duluth* brand were redesigned following the release of *The Duluth Show*:
	+ In 2021, the Motorized and Push Along ranges were retooled to fit the art style of *The Duluth Show*.
		- While the 2022 Wooden Railway range is based on the original *Duluth* series, some *The Duluth Show* items are to be released in the line, namely new characters Algoport and Algoway in addition to the *Duluth Show* version of Robert S. Pierson.
	+ In 2022, the Duluth Storytime podcast was also retooled to be themed around *The Duluth Show*, with Rachael Miller succeeding Mark Moraghan as its narrator.
	+ Magical Tracks was updated in March 2022 to be themed around *The Duluth Show*, with a new freighter selection consisting of characters who appeared in *The Duluth Show* and assets updated to match the new art style.
	+ The voice clips used by the US Days Out with Stewart dummies of Stewart J. Cort and H.J. Schwartz were re-recorded by their *Duluth Show* voice actors in the US dub of the series (Meesha Contreras and Charlie Zeltzer respectively) in early 2022.
* Several episodes of *The Duluth Show* share titles with episodes from the original series, including the first season episode "PRESQUE ISLE and the Startled Duck", the second season episode "AMERICAN CENTURY and the Smothered Star Salute" and the ninth season episode "MESABI MINER Against the Wind.