The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets

The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets (known in some countries as The New Adventures of Louise Lockridge) is a Jetanie-Kuboian traditionally animated fantasy drama television series produced by Jetanie studio Colourbox and Kuboian studio Kubokartoonz. It is the third television series based off the Sweet Treets, and the first to be co-produced in Kuboia. It is the only entry in the franchise to be a Kantasy series.

The show spawned two series consisting of fifty-two episodes that run for 18 minutes. The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets premiered in Kuboia on Nick Jr. Kuboia on 17th August, 1996 and premiered in Jetania on Z Bop in January 1997. The show also aired on Nick Jr. worldwide during the late 1990s and 2000s, and also aired on Disney Channel in several regions from 1999 to 2003 (except Tasanala, whose Disney Channel continued to air the show until 2020).

The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets is the first entry in the Sweet Treets franchise, as well as the first cartoon produced by Kubokartoonz, to use digital ink. The show has proven to be very popular and has since gained a longtime cult following throughout Europe (mostly in Kuboia). However, the show sparked controversy due to its dramatic and mature tone.

Premise
The now nine year-old Louise Lockridge is learning more about life, and much more about the outside world. Louise is starting to believe that she has the qualities to be seen as a heroine, but is under significant pressure due to fearing growing up, and being disappointed in her father's apparent lack of interest in her. Meanwhile, the Treets are starting to lose control of Louise, and are beginning to feel useless.

The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets has the tendency to flip between and/or merge drama-focused topics with a fantasy theme. The show focuses on tropes that young children often face, such as bullying, arguments and romantic relationships (including homosexual relationships).

Characters
The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets has a selection of both new and returning characters. The returning characters, however, look significantly different - everybody now has a simpler design, have round, solid-black eyes, and the human characters have new outfits.

Characters marked with an asterisk (*) make their debut in this series.

Main characters

 * The Treets
 * Louise Lockridge (main protagonist)
 * Nate Nicholson
 * Marilyn Madison
 * Hugh Halls*
 * Swoop

Major characters

 * Liane Lockridge
 * King "Borso" Rojo (main antagonist)
 * Stumpy*

Recurring characters

 * Gunge*
 * Rusty*
 * Anthem Rivers* (secondary antagonist)
 * Katie Dubious
 * Rod Fellow*
 * Zedd Farrow*
 * Tyh Farrow*

Minor characters

 * Martine Farrow*
 * Robyn Madison*
 * Tigen Halls*
 * Magfire

Development
A collaboration between Colourbox and Kubokartoonz was confirmed in mid 1993. It was later announced in September that year that the two companies were working on a third Sweet Treets cartoon. Throughout the show's production, many rumours spread regarding its premise, one being that the series had been reworked into an adult-orientated animated soap opera. However, this was confirmed false by Lake Caters in September 1995, who stated that the series was still targeted for children, but admitted that the companies wanted to take "a more serious approach" when producing the show.

The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets introduced several new characters to the franchise who have since became very popular in the Sweet Treets fanbase. Lake Caters spoke about developing new characters for the show in an interview that took place in late 1996 - Hugh Halls was introduced to balance out the males and females in Louise's group of (human) friends (Louise and Marilyn are females, whilst Nate and Hugh are males). The Kuboian team also felt that one can only do so much with King Rojo, so three minions for the king, Stumpy, Gunge and Rusty, were created, alongside an alternative antagonist, Anthem Rivers.

According to Ashley Maverick in a 2018 interview, The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets is the most expensive cartoon she has ever produced when money is adjusted for inflation. This is due to Colourbox wanting the series to match the quality of that of a feature film at the time, meaning that a lot of budget was spent on animation and music. The show used software for its digital ink.

Censorship
Due to the show featuring content that is considered culturally appropriate in Kuboia, but unsuitable for young children elsewhere in the world, The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets features significant censorship when aired internationally. This includes removing minor profanity, removing references to alcohol, toning down references to sexual references (such as puberty).

Critical reception
The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets has been met with critical acclaim from both fans and critics, with praise towards the show's animation, characters, music and storytelling. The show has reportedly been significantly enjoyed by both teenagers and young adults despite being targeted for young children.

On internet database website IMDB, the show has an average rating of 9.1 out of 10.

Change in tone
Since the show's original premiere, is has widely been debated whether the complete change in tone for the franchise was a good idea or not. Fans of previous instalments in the series argue that the show's mature premise is out of place, and occasionally comes off as silly. Others have argued that the franchise is maturing with those who watched previous instalments, and keeping up with a more then-modern demands.

Legacy
In recent years, the show has became a cult classic, with many fans of the Sweet Treets franchise referring to The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets as the best cartoon in the series, as well as one of the best television series of all time.

WatchMojo.com ranked the show number two in their Top Ten Kuboian Cartoons list.

Soundtrack

 * Main article: The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets: The Official Soundtrack

The series' official soundtrack, The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets: The Official Soundtrack, was released throughout Europe in 1997. The soundtrack contains songs that are heard at least once throughout the series.

Episodes

 * Main article: List of The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets episodes

Jetania

 * Z Bop (1997-2002)
 * Nick Jr. (1999-2005)

Kuboia

 * Nick Jr. Kuboia (1996-2010)
 * Kantasia (2018-present)

Argentina

 * Magic Kids (1997-2006)

Australia

 * ABC Kids (1997-2001)

Austria

 * Disney Channel (1999-2003)
 * 3sat (2003-2011)

Brazil

 * Rede Globo (1996-2005)

Canada

 * YTV (1997-2010)

Central and Eastern Europe

 * Fox Kids Play (2003-2005)
 * Jetix Play (2005-2010)
 * KidsCo (2007-2013)

Denmark

 * DR1 (1998-2005)

Finland

 * Yle TV1 (1998-2007)

France

 * TF1 (1996-2003)
 * M6 (1996-2009)
 * Disney Channel (1999-2003)
 * France 5 (2003-2011)

Germany

 * Super RTL (1997-2008)
 * Disney Channel (1999-2003)
 * 3sat (2003-2011)

Hungary

 * Minimax (1999-2011)

Ireland

 * RTÉ Two (1997-2005)
 * Nick Jr. (2006-2010)

Italy

 * Italia 1 (1997-2001)
 * Disney Channel (1999-2003)
 * K2 (2003-2010)

Japan

 * NHK (1997-2008)

Kidsney

 * Hoopohu Channel (????-present)

Latin America

 * ZAZ (1998-2012)
 * Nick Jr. (2001-2009)

Middle East
The show's Arabic title is "المحبوبون: العرض الجديد", and the dub was produced by Venus Company in Syria.
 * Spacetoon (2002-present)

Netherlands

 * Kindernet (1997-2003)
 * Nick Jr. (2003-2010)

New Zealand

 * TV3 (1997-2003)

Philippines

 * RPN (1996-2000)
 * Jack TV (2005-2015)
 * Hero (2009-2016)
 * Yey! (2014-present)

Sweden

 * SVT1 (1997-2008)

Switzerland

 * Disney Channel (1999-2003)
 * 3sat (2003-2011)

Tasanala

 * Disney Channel (1999-2020)

United Kingdom

 * BBC Two (1996-2007)
 * CBBC (1996-2001)
 * Disney Channel (1999-2003)
 * Nick Jr. (1999-2010)
 * Nick Jr. 2 (2006-2010)

United States

 * Nick Jr. (1997-2003)
 * Cookie Jar Toons (2010-2011)

Trivia

 * The show is generally credited as being the first Kantasy series to use digital ink. However, this is wrong, as this title actually belongs to The Adventures of Charlie and Tutu.
 * Only an English version of the theme song, "Be Me", was ever recorded. Foreign dubs of the show either use the English theme song, or use an instrumental version of it.
 * The show is one of the few shows that Nick Jr. Kuboia aired during its entire fourteen year run.
 * Louise, Nate, Swoop and the Treets are the only characters who appear in every episode.
 * It is the only Sweet Treets cartoon with a dark premise.
 * Ironically, it is also the only Sweet Treets cartoon to air on preschool channels in most countries.
 * It is the only Sweet Treets cartoon to get censored in most countries.

Tropes

 * The New Adventures of The Sweet Treets/Tropes