After over 25 years on the air, Arthur is coming to an end.
IGN confirmed this news after Carol Greenwald, Executive Producer for Arthur, told them that no new episodes would be produced, but that the show would continue to be available on PBS Kids.
“In the winter of 2022, the 25th and final season of Arthur will debut. Arthur will continue to be available on PBS KIDS for years to come,” Greenwald told IGN in an email. “Producer GBH and PBS KIDS are continuing to work together on additional Arthur content, sharing the lessons of Arthur and his friends in new ways.”
It was also revealed that the team had actually wrapped production on the series’ final episode “two years ago,” according to Kathy Waugh, the writer and editor who originally developed the program for PBS. Waugh also feels like this decision was unneeded, since the series has always felt “evergreen” and there was no need for it to end.
“I think [PBS] made a mistake, and I think ‘Arthur’ should come back and I know I’m not alone in thinking they made a mistake,” Waugh said, according to the NY Post. “I don’t know if it was a ratings issue or if it felt like it needed to be retired. To me, it felt evergreen, like it was never going to end.”
I can certainly understand that feeling. As someone who learned so much and can name my favorite moments from Arthur episodes, it has always had this timeless quality that has worked so well. Not to mention the second life it gained by becoming a fountain of Twitter memes, mostly around Arthur’s fist and D.W. always having a shady comment for everything and everyone.
The show is set in the fictional Elwood City and revolves around the life of 8-year-old Arthur Read, an anthropomorphic aardvark (and there is a whole episode that teaches us how to spell that word). We have adventures with Arthur, his friends and family, and their daily interactions with each other.
Based on the Arthur Adventure book series, written and illustrated by Marc Brown, it is the longest-running children’s animated series in the U.S., and the second longest-running animated series in the U.S., behind Fox’s The Simpsons. Its iconic theme song, “Believe in Yourself,” was written by Judy Henderson and Jerry de Villiers Jr. and was performed by Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers.
I will miss Arthur, but I think it had a fantastic run that will absolutely have a legacy that will live beyond these 20+ years. And most importantly, we outlasted that asshole Caillou.
What are some of your favorite moments/episodes from Arthur?
(via IGN, image: PBS)
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