Just Wild

Just Wild is an animated series. Created by Jan Hokkanen, it focuses on Michael (Zachary Betts), Alissa (Dionne Des Pres) and Aaron as they pursue various activities around their hometown of,.

The series premiered on July 6, 2002 on in the United States. Nickelodeon cancelled the series after just three seasons in 2004 due to low ratings, with one unaired episode airing on in 2005 finishing the show's original run. Favorable DVD sales, fan campaigning and high ratings from Nicktoons reruns led Nickelodeon to renew the show for a fourth season, which premiered on March 29, 2007 after the.

Since its premiere, Just Wild has received generally positive reviews from critics, with particular praise going to its humor, writing, animation, and the way it helped to push the boundaries of what was considered acceptable on children's television; although more recent seasons have been accused of showing a decline in quality.

Premise
The series revolves around the adventures of Michael Newtsen (Zachary Betts), Alissa Wellington (Dionne Des Pres) and Aaron Ressel, as they go on various misadventures in their hometown of ,.

Characters

 * Zachary Betts as Michael Newtsen
 * Dionne Des Pres as Alissa Wellington
 * as Aaron Ressel

Conception and development
Although cartoonist Jan Hokkanen began his career working on children's animation for, his own company Spiral Animation largely dealt with the production of animation for commercials and TV network idents.

While working on an anti-smoking PSA, he drew three characters that he felt could make for "great TV show leads." He named them Michael, Alissa and Aaron. He then spent the next few months developing a series around it, which he titled Just Wild. In 1999, he faxed a one-page concept sheet and pitched the series to, who rejected the series for being "too cynical." He then pitched the series to, who refused to give Hokkanen creative control and wanted the show to be produced at the studio in  rather than at Spiral Animation, which led Hokkanen to reject their offer. Finally, he pitched the series to. Nickelodeon agreed to give Hokkanen creative control, and discussions continued.

Nickelodeon president developed an interest in the series, and requested a, which Hokkanen faxed in. After a start-up meeting in, a deal was made for Just Wild to be the first Nicktoon to be written, voiced and animated outside of the United States, with much of the production to take place at Spiral Animation's studio in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Early history and cancellation
The series premiered on July 6, 2002 on Nickelodeon.

Cult success and revival
Nickelodeon moved reruns of the series to their sibling network,, while Nickelodeon executives "debated heavily" on whether or not to sell DVDs of the series. Eventually, bought the DVD rights to the show "basically for free", according to Hokkanen. Anchor Bay released Volumes 1 and 2 in June 2005. The DVD releases became hugely successful, selling 300,000 copies each in one month. Volume 1 became the second-best-selling children's TV DVD of 2005. Nicktoons' reruns of the series made the show the network's highest-rated show on weeknights. The show's popularity boost from DVD sales and reruns led Nickelodeon to order 25 new episodes of the series in May 2006, making it the second Nicktoon to be revived after an initial run, after , and the first to be revived thanks to DVD sales.