Lakewood Boys

Lakewood Boys is an American animated television series created by Brian Lisbon for. The series tells a coming-of-age story that focuses on the misadventures of Baxter and Tristan Lakewood, two middle school-aged gray wolves and their shenanigans in the fictional city of Kingston. It includes various other characters, such as the boys' younger sister Luna, mother Lynda, and father Xavier.

In the mid-2000s, Cartoon Network contacted Lisbon about pitching ideas for a series aimed at its older demographic, and he almost immediately pitched an animated comedy-drama. Lisbon began developing the show in the late 2000s under the working title The Brothers Lakewood, using characters he previously planned on using for a graphic novel. Cartoon Network would eventually greenlight a sixteen-episode first season.

Lakewood Boys is often noted for its soundtrack, blending of retro and modern technology, and mixing of 2D characters and 3D backgrounds. Though it is intended to be a family-friendly series, it is also noted for its commentary on and handling of serious or mature topics, including ageing (particularly puberty), bullying, abusive relationships, and prejudice.

The series was produced by Studio MP3 and, and animated by five South Korean studios over the course of its run. It was broadcast from October 19, 2012 to May 6, 2022, running for nine seasons and 170 episodes, making it Cartoon Network's longest-running series. On May 8, 2022, Cartoon Network confirmed that a feature film based on the series was in development under the working title Lakewood Boys: The Movie, as well as a spin-off series.

The Lakewood Boys received positive reception for its artwork, animation, storytelling, and character development. The series also became known for or pushing the boundaries of what was considered acceptable on Cartoon Network and children's television in general. In addition to critical acclaim, the show has developed a large fanbase and become a, especially among Internet users.

Premise
Lakewood Boys, which is set in a world of anthropomorphic animals, revolves around the shenanigans of two 11- to 13-year-old gray wolves, Baxter and Tristan Lakewood, in the fictional city of Kingston, during which they usually interact with their family—devious younger sister Luna, mother Lynda, and father Xavier. Baxter and Tristan attend school at the often-chaotic Kingston Middle School.

Conception and early history
Before the creation of Lakewood Boys, Cartoon Network desired a series suitable specifically for its 13- to 16-year-old demographic. In the early 2000s, was the channel's Senior Vice President and General Manager, and he came across Lisbon's comic book series, Luckie the Maniac. Miller was impressed by the character designs and art style, as well as its mildly dark humor. At some point, Miller got in touch with the series' young adult artist, Brian Lisbon, who had no experience in animation at the time. After having a discussion about the series, Lisbon accepted an offer to pitch a series.

Around the time Lisbon was working on Luckie the Maniac #9, he sought to create a graphic novel about two anthropomorphic gray wolf boys in their "tween" years, which would be published by Luckie the Maniac's publisher, Krypton Press. Amidst working on it, Lisbon gave up on the idea, thinking he could never "get it off the ground", Lisbon used the characters to pitch his animated series, then titled The Brothers Lakewood. He originally intended on having the the two boys—now named Baxter and Tristan—be the sole children of the Lakewood family. However, Cartoon Network's executives suggested adding a daughter to make the show more "gender-neutral", who was eventually named Luna.

A thirteen-minute pilot episode produced by Studio MP3 was used to pitch the show to Cartoon Network, leading to the show being greenlit by Cartoon Network. The pilot was written by Brian Lisbon and directed by soon-to-be series director Sam Crossick. The cast included several voice actors who were not in the actual series, including Reese Adam Scott as Baxter, Jason Adam Scott as Tristan, and Louise Marie Jackson as Luna. It featured music composed by Robert Carthy, who would later be replaced by George Rodrick. Lisbon stated in a 2011 interview that he "felt so much pressure jumping from working on a standalone comic to working with thousands of people at Cartoon Network", but described the final product as "not bad at all".

Voice cast
The series' main voice cast consistently included Logan Lemon (Baxter), Bryce Lemon (Tristan), Victoria Davidson (Lynda), and Bruce Hanson (Xavier). Luna was voiced by five child voice actresses during the series run: Katelyn Brisbane (seasons 1–3), Wendy Marie Jones (seasons 4–5), Laura Jean Smith (seasons 6–7), Jessica Yamagata (season 8), and Hallie Young (season 9).

Lisbon requested that casting director Marie Chen Huang choose children to voice the child characters because he thought it would make them sound more authentic; the only exceptions to this were throwaway characters, such as as Spencer Powerson in "The Money Moment" and Jamie Donald as Martina Marsbird.