Nature Cat (TV series)

**Nature Cat** is an American-Canadian children's animated television series. The series premiered on November 25, 2015 on PBS Kids after Wild Kratts: A Creature Christmas special. The series is produced by Spiffy Pictures and WTTW Chicago. The series is aimed at children aged 3 to 8 years old, following the adventures of four main characters: Nature Cat, Hal the Dog, Daisy the Bunny and Squeeks the Mouse. The series follows Fred, a house cat with dreams of exploring outside. Once his family leaves for the day, he transforms into Nature Cat, who cannot wait for backyard nature excursions. However, Fred has one problem: he has no instincts for nature. Through the learning experiences of the characters, this series intends to encourage children to similarly engage with and develop understanding of nature, a motive which draws inspiration from the book Last Child in the Woods. The show has been nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program".

On October 18, 2016, PBS Kids greenlit the series for two more seasons.

It was later reported that the series was renewed for its fourth and fifth seasons, with the fourth season premiered in 2022. A fifth season premiered in 2023. Yowza! Animation took over the series for 2 seasons.

The last episode aired on January 2, 2024, but 2 one-hour specials are currently yet to be airing in 2024.

A preschool spin-off series to focus on Sadie is yet to be in development.

## Cast

All of the cast members (with the exception of Kate Micucci) are currently the cast members of NBC's hit late-night sitcom, Saturday Night Live.

### **Characters**

#### **Nature Cat**

Nature Cat, 'Fred' (voiced by Taran Killam) - In the absence of his owners, Fred transforms into his alter-ego Nature Cat, narrating himself as such throughout the show. He is the main protagonist in leading a group of four other animals, frequently using the expressions "tally ho!" and "onwards and yonwards!" when initiating and continuing his adventures, lending to his optimistic and cheerful attitude in encouraging enthusiasm for the natural world. Taran Killam appraises Nature Cat as a positive character for children, describing his handling of adversity as “a great example of when you fall down you get back right up… and try it again”. He will occasionally drop from his ‘Nature Cat’ persona where, much like a regular housecat, he can suddenly become nervous or frightened. This can include having to interact with water, lamenting “why does it always have to be water?”, but in these situations he ultimately ends up finding confidence to persist.

#### **Hal**

Hal the Dog (voiced by Bobby Moynihan) - Characterised as being happy most of the time and is very loyal to his friends, most of all for Nature Cat who, who is always willing in partaking in his outdoor excursions and share discoveries even if he initially doesn’t understand them. Hal is generally absent minded, becoming a source of comic relief where he may respond to others with non-sequiturs or muddled reasoning thought out loud. He can also become blissfully unaware of when he is taken into or in a dangerous situation, such as becoming lost in a city. His capabilities as a playful dog is portrayed as him being a character that is uninhibited in approaching messy or unpleasant situations, such as digging the ground or smelling strong odours. This comes much to the benefit of others, where he is utilised in digging holes or locating in the environment by smell. He is sometimes accompanied by an inanimate chewing toy, “Mr. Chewinsky”, who he converses with when projecting his thoughts.

#### **Squeeks**

Squeeks the Mouse (voiced by Kate McKinnon) - The smallest of the main four characters, Kate McKinnon describes her as “a sass… but sweet and so excited at the same time”.

#### **Daisy**

Daisy the Bunny (voiced by Kate Micucci) - She is often carrying a smartphone for use in providing supplementary information when investigating nature. Her role is to act as the voice of reason, but is nonetheless mostly co-operative as the rest when venturing with Nature Cat.

#### **Ronald**

Ronald the Cat (voiced by Kenan Thompson (season 1), Chris Knowings (season 2-present)) - Ronald lives in the backyard next door and is Nature Cat's arch-nemesis. He is arrogant, vain (often specifically obsessed with grooming his hair) and fairly obnoxious. He also tries to compete against Nature Cat.

#### **Other characters**

* Chris Parnell as Sir. Galahad, The Announcer, Houston, additional voices
* David Rudman as Leo the Mammoth,[13] additional voices
* Stephanie D'Abruzzo as Alice the Butterfly,[13] additional voices
* Joey Rudman as extra characters[13]
* Bobby Lee as MC Ferret[13]
* James Monroe Iglehart[13] as Michael Bluejay (a takeoff on Michael Buble)
* Leslie Carrara-Rudolph as Gracie the Toad, Sadie Dog, Rat, additional voices
* Joey Mazzarino
* Fred Armisen as Herbert the Hermit Crab,[13] additional voices
* Rachel Dratch as Flo the Heron,[13] Lulu Ladybug
* Cobie Smulders as Nature Dog
* Dennis Singletary
* Tom Blandford
* Richard Traub
* Lauren Lapkus as Lola the Flamingo
* Chris Jackson
* Cecily Strong as Petunia Bunny, additional voices
* Lena Hall and Tony Vincent provide the vocals for "Dog Gone" (during interlude segments and two episodes (currently))
* Emily Lynne as One Eared Winnie (aka Gwendolyn), Nature Cat's long-lost twin sister; additional voices
* Jeanne Fishman as Kathy, a spiny lobster
* Jack Shulruff
* Crystal Monee Hall, Marcus Paul James, and Kristina Nicole Miller as an off-screen chorus for the song "Can You Dig It?!"
* Erica Broder
* Tyler Bunch as Twig Stickman, host of the game show "So You Think You Know Nature?"; Johnny Spins, a radio dj
* Chris Kratt and Martin Kratt as Chris and Martin Batt
* Paul F. Tompkins as Chandler the Toad

## Broadcast

In the United States, the series aired on PBS Kids on November 25, 2015. In Canada, the series aired on Family Chrgd, Family Jr., and Télémagino for only Season 1. TVOKids and Knowledge: Kids might air the series for Season 2 onwards. In Ireland, the series airs on TG4. It is unknown when will the series will air in the United Kingdom and Australia.