Ed, Edd n Eddy

Ed, Edd n Eddy is a Canadian American animated television series created by Danny Antonucci and produced by a.k.a. Cartoon, for Cartoon Network. The series, which was Cartoon Network's ninth animated series, was first aired in November 1998. Originally, there were only going to be four seasons; however, Cartoon Network ordered two more, giving the series a total of six seasons. It is currently the longest-running original cartoon on Cartoon Network. The series revolves around three pre-adolescent boys: Ed, who is slow-witted and often speaks in non sequiturs; Edd, who is usually called "Double D" and is rather intelligent, if high-strung; and Eddy, the avaricious 'leader' of the trio. Collectively known as "the Eds," the three hang around in their suburban neighborhood of Peach Creek Estates, where "the cul-de-sac" is located. Unofficially led by Eddy, the Eds scheme to make money off their peers to buy jawbreakers, but their plans usually fail, leaving them in various predicaments. The characters rarely leave the neighborhood, and no adults are ever seen.

Overview
Ed, Edd n Eddy was animated wholly using traditional cell animation. Most cartoons are now animated using digital ink and paint. The use of painted cells lasted up to the end of the fourth season. Though the show is still entirely hand-drawn, all cells are colored digitally, since no animation studios paint cels anymore. It is the last major cartoon to use painted cels. Ed, Edd n Eddy uses a moderated version of Squigglevision. The crawling lines are not nearly as active as those in Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, but are still visible. Much of the unfavorable press that Ed, Edd n Eddy received has been because of this animation technique. However, Danny Antonucci calls it a "wobble" effect, and likens it to cartoons of the 1930s where the film tended to be unstable and cause a similar effect.

There is a strong theme of vagueness in the series, including the setting and deeper facts about the children. The show revolves solely around the Eds, the other cul-de-sac children, and the Kanker sisters. There are no hints as to where the cartoon takes place, but it takes place in a town called Peach Creek. Little is known about any other people in the town and if they even have any type of relation to the regular characters of the series, other than the fact that Ed is Sarah's older brother.

The show frequently makes meta-references and often breaks the fourth wall. Almost every episode contains references to pop culture, especially movies. All the episode titles, are popular sayings with a word replaced with the name "Ed" (e.g., "Stop, Look, and Ed": Stop, Look, and Listen.) Some are also parodies of movie titles (e.g., "For Your Ed Only" = For Your Eyes Only, "The Day the Ed Stood Still" = The Day the Earth Stood Still, "O-Ed Eleven" = Ocean's Eleven, "Mission Ed-possible = Mission Impossible).

The letters "AKA", the abbreviation for the name of the company that produces the show (a.k.a. Cartoon), frequently appear in the show on license plates, magazines, T-shirts, etc.

On July 2011, Cartoon Network has stopped airing reruns of Ed, Edd n Eddy. The last rerun of the show was airing on July 15th. The show was replaced by 2 Stupid Dogs. It started rerunning on the Cartoon Network block Cartoon Planet and also shows 2 episodes every 4:00 and 4:30 on weekdays.

Setting
The number of characters in Ed, Edd n Eddy is fixed at 12. (13 if you count Plank) No other characters have appeared besides the main cast and adults are never seen. Danny Antonucci has stated that he wanted the show to appeal to any generation. If a VCR is needed in a plot, it is there. In the first episode, Edd used a computer to give Jonny a lie detector test, powered through a toaster. The kids do not have any current modern day technology stuff such as computers or mobile phones. They do have TVs though, but the kids normally go outside to play for fun. However, in the episode Mission: Ed-possible, Rolf is revealed to be failing Basic Computer Applications, meaning the school has computers.

Jawbreakers
The most coveted treat in the show, especially among the Eds, is the jawbreaker. A majority of episodes have used the Eds' quest for jawbreakers as the plot or a sub-plot device. The jawbreakers in the show are noticeably oversized and thus larger than a kid's head. Kids enjoying jawbreakers will have characteristic bowling ball-sized bulges on one side of their cheeks.

Date-Setting
The first 4 seasons took place during the summer. Season 5 revolved around school and took place in the fall. Season 6 was set in the winter. Most of the episodes begin with something completely unrelated to the storyline of the episode. This is to emphasize the spontaneity of childhood.

Characters

 * Main article: List of Ed, Edd n Eddy characters

According to the interview with Antonucci (a special feature of the Season 1 DVD set), the characters were based on people in his life. Ed, Edd, and Eddy were based on himself and his children, and the cul-de-sac kids were based on people he grew up with. Antonucci also stated that he believed it was important to add Plank to the show; he "thought it would be really cool to do the show with Plank taking on a character of his own" and to cause Johnny to do things he would usually never do. He also stated that Rolf is strongly based on himself and his cousins, since he was part of an immigrant family, and grew up in a first generation foreign household with different customs and ways of life. The kids have multi-colored tongues, because, as Danny Antonucci stated "Kids are almost always eating something that turns their tongues different colors".

Episodes

 * Main article: List of Ed, Edd n Eddy episodes

Ed, Edd n Eddy had 134 episodes, 6 seasons, 4 specials, and a movie.

Video Games
Scam of the central in the action category, and developed by the lesser-known gaming company of D3 Publisher. The original storyline is developed around Eddy losing his precious “Who to Scam and When” book. When the three friends realize their classmate Kevin has the book in his hands and an angry mob of kids has developed, they run for the woods. Splitting up to throw off the crowd, they plan to meet up back at the cul-de-sac. Several adventures in the game await them. When they make their way back at the cul-de-sac, they find that Rolf has built a giant fort to keep them out. The game features 13 total stages, special attacks using the touch screen, the option to blow into the microphone to bring characters back to life, three side story mini-games and special items.
 * There have been three video games based on Ed, Edd n Eddy. Ed, Edd n Eddy: Jawbreakers! was released on September 15, 2002 for the Game Boy Advance, and The Mis-Edventures was released in 2005 for the Xbox, Nintendo GameCube, Playstation 2, Game Boy Advance and PC. Ed, Edd n Eddy: Scam of the Century was released in 2009 for the Nintendo DS.
 * The Cul-de-sac was also featured in the game Cartoon Network: Block Party, where Eddy and Sarah were playable characters.
 * The Eds and Johnny have also starred in a video game called Cartoon Network Speedway as playable characters.

Critical Reaction
The reaction to Ed, Edd n Eddy was extremely positive. Terrence Briggs of Animation World Magazine argued that every second of the show is "filler" and that the main characters are drawn as "products from the school of acid-trip caricature." After the review was published, support letters of the show started to pile up at Animation World Magazine's website. This made the magazine write a more positive review of Ed, Edd n Eddy, calling it a "fresh show with very different approaches." Target audiences have left much criticism for ending the show and only leaving behind reruns on the schedule. While most TV shows from the past on Cartoon Network have almost never aired reruns again or were moved onto the channel Boomerang, Ed Edd n' Eddy is still one of the most frequently broadcast programs despite its' end. The movie Ed Edd n' Eddy's Big Picture Show has earned positive reviews especially for surprising twists, although some of the criticism belonged to how the movie kept putting in random events and places to keep the length long while having little to do with the plot.

Ed, Edd n Eddy &amp; Cartoon Network
There have been other produced works in which the Eds would appear than just their regular series airings. An oft used style by Cartoon Network is an integration with other shows through cultural references, including "Ed, Edd n Eddy."

There have been many specials in which Cartoon Network would run all day marathons for either a promotion or just a special airing for one of their shows. A marathon called Best Day Edder aired on April 21 and April 22, 2007. Every episode was shown in chronological order, ending with the previously unaired last episode of Season 5. Despite Cartoon Network's dramatization of this being the last episode of Ed, Edd, and Eddy, it was mentioned that there will indeed be a shortened, two-episode season six.

Shorts
Cartoon Network has also produced shorts, some involving the Eds during commercial breaks. For a short while, Cartoon Network made a series of roughly 2-minute shorts called Ed, Edd, y Eduardo in which Eduardo from Foster's appeared in an Ed, Edd n Eddy episode. These shorts began airing on July 11, 2006 on Cartoon Network. There was also a short video that was part of Cartoon Network Grovies, which were music videos of top songs and stared cartoons. The video was of They Might Be Giant's I'm Not Coming In Anymore with stylized versions of Ed, Edd, Eddy and Sarah, entitled "The Incredible Shrinking Day", which aired on Cartoon Network in 2002 and 2003, in which Sarah used a potion to shrink the Eds to a size capable of playing in her dollhouse, with predictable results. Plank starred in a similar video "My Best Friend Plank" which aired in 2002.

Special Events
Cameos:
 * Cartoon Network Invaded: A special episode of Ed, Edd n Eddy aired on May 11, 2007 in the Cartoon Network event, Cartoon Network Invaded, in which aliens invade Rolf's house. This alien invasion is in adjunct with other Cartoon Network series, such as Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends, My Gym Partner's a Monkey, Camp Lazlo, and The Grim Adventures of Billy &amp; Mandy. The episode is part a mini-series that aired all 5 specials on May 11, 2007.
 * Ed, Edd n Eddy's Big Picture Show


 * Ed, Edd, and Eddy make a cameo appearance in the Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends episode "Eddie Monster" where they are seen listening to a thinly discuise version of Dexter about the imaginary friend inside the crate.


 * Ed, Edd, and Eddy appear in a episode of "My Gym Partner's a Monkey" where they are seen on a newspaper (It is to be noted that the said episode is the Invaded episode of My Gym Partner's a Monkey).


 * Ed, Edd n Eddy make a brief cameo appearance in the beginning of The Grim Adventures of the Kids Next Door.

USA
Cartoon Network (1999-2009, original-run; 2009-2011, 2012-present, reruns)