''My Gym Partner's a Monkey'' is an American

animated television series An animated series is a set of Animation, animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can ...

created by

Tim Cahill Timothy Filiga Cahill (; born 6 December 1979) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder but also played as a striker on many occasions. A box-to-box midfielder, Cahill became recognised for "his ag ...

and

Julie McNally Cahill Julie Annabelle McNally Cahill (née McNally; born March 5, 1966) is an American producer, writer and animator who co-created the Cartoon Network series ''My Gym Partner's a Monkey'' with her husband Tim Cahill. She, along with her husband, have c ...

for

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

. It aired from December 26, 2005, to November 27, 2008, ending with a total of four seasons and 56 episodes. The series follows Adam Lyon, a human who, after a clerical error listed his surname as "Lion", is forced to transfer to Charles Darwin Middle School, a

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

for local

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for Conservation biology, conservation purposes. The term ''zoological g ...

animals Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage in ...

, where he is partnered with Jake Spidermonkey in gym, and quickly becomes best friends with him. Two DVD volumes have been released in 2007 and 2008 in Australia.

Saerom Animation Saerom Animation, Inc ( ko, 새롬 애니메이션) is an animation studio located in Seoul, South Korea which was founded in 1987 by Kil Whan Kim. While it mainly animates shows from American animation studios, the company has started making its ...

, who also did animation work for ''

Adventure Time ''Adventure Time'' is an American fantasy animated television series created by Pendleton Ward for Cartoon Network and distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television. The series follows the adventures of a boy named Finn (Jeremy Shada) and ...

'', ''

Regular Show ''Regular Show'' (known as ''Regular Show in Space'' during its eighth season) is an American animated sitcom created by J. G. Quintel for Cartoon Network. It ran from September 6, 2010, to January 16, 2017, over the course of eight seasons a ...

'', and ''

The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack ''The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack'' (also known as ''The Misadventures of Flapjack'', or simply ''Flapjack'') is an American animated television series created by Thurop Van Orman for Cartoon Network. It premiered in the United States on ...

'', provided the animation. The series won an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

in 2007 and was nominated for four

Annie Awards The Annie Awards are accolades which the Los Angeles branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood, has presented each year since 1972 to recognize excellence in animation shown in cinema and television. Originally desig ...

Summary

A 12-year-old

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or elementar ...

named Adam Lyon is transferred to a

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

established for anthropomorphic zoo animals due to a spelling error making his surname "Lion". There, he is befriended by a mischievous, eccentric

spider monkey Spider monkeys are New World monkeys belonging to the genus ''Ateles'', part of the subfamily Atelinae, family Atelidae. Like other atelines, they are found in tropical forests of Central and South America, from southern Mexico to Brazil. The g ...

named Jake, hence the title of the series, along with a sassy

toucan Toucans (, ) are members of the Neotropical near passerine bird family Ramphastidae. The Ramphastidae are most closely related to the American barbets. They are brightly marked and have large, often colorful bills. The family includes five ge ...

named Lupe, a

giraffe The giraffe is a large African hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa''. It is the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on Earth. Traditionally, giraffes were thought to be one species, ''Giraffa camelopardalis ...

named Ingrid, who is infatuated with Adam, the intelligent, wise

gorilla Gorillas are herbivorous, predominantly ground-dwelling great apes that inhabit the tropical forests of equatorial Africa. The genus ''Gorilla'' is divided into two species: the eastern gorilla and the western gorilla, and either four or fi ...

Windsor, and Slips the easygoing

python Python may refer to: Snakes * Pythonidae, a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia ** ''Python'' (genus), a genus of Pythonidae found in Africa and Asia * Python (mythology), a mythical serpent Computing * Python (pro ...

. In spite of his usual kindness and fondness for his friends, Adam despises being banished to

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

Middle School because of something beyond his control and longs for his previous human middle school. Usually, the episodes are focused on Adam's experiences at Charles Darwin Middle School due to his inability to fit in with his anthropomorphic schoolmates, the challenges that he must face (such as the presumed stupidity of his peers, being schooled in subjects of use only to animals, the introductions of new students of odd, dangerous, or fictional species to the school or the misadventures that Adam stumbles into with them, or the common effects of

adolescence Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the t ...

as they are experienced by zoo animals).

Episodes

Characters

Main

* Adam Lyon (voiced by

Nika Futterman Nika Futterman (born October 25, 1969) is an American voice and television actress. She is known for her voices in various animated series, including Asajj Ventress in '' Star Wars: The Clone Wars'' and Adam Lyon in ''My Gym Partner's a Mo ...

) * Jacob P. "Jake" Spidermonkey (voiced by

Tom Kenny Thomas James Kenny (born July 13, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for voicing the titular character in ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' and associated media. Kenny has voiced many other characters, including Heffer Wolfe in ''R ...

) * Windsor Gorilla (voiced by

Rick Gomez Richard Harper Gomez (born June 1, 1972) is an American actor. He is known for portraying Radio Technician 4th Grade George Luz in the HBO television miniseries '' Band of Brothers'', and as "Endless Mike" Hellstrom in the Nickelodeon TV series ...

) * Slips Python (voiced by

) * Guadalupe "Lupe" Toucan (voiced by

Grey DeLisle Grey DeLisle (; born Erin Grey Van Oosbree; August 24, 1973), sometimes credited as Grey Griffin, is an American voice actress, comedian and singer-songwriter. DeLisle is known for various roles in animated productions and video games. On Sept ...

) * Ingrid Giraffe (voiced by

) * Virgil "Bull" Sharkowski (voiced by

Phil LaMarr Phillip LaMarr (born January 24, 1967) is an American actor, comedian and screenwriter. LaMarr was one of the original featured cast members on the sketch comedy television series ''Mad TV''. His voice acting roles in animated series include Jo ...

) * Principal Poncherello W. Pixiefrog (voiced by

Maurice LaMarche Maurice LaMarche (born March 30, 1958) is a Canadian voice actor, comedian, and impressionist. He has voiced the Brain in '' Animaniacs'' as well as its spin-off '' Pinky and the Brain'', Big Bob in ''Hey Arnold!'' (1996–2004), and a variety of ...

)

Recurring

* Mrs. Geraldine Sharon Warthog (voiced by

) * Nurse Jacqueline Gazelle (voiced by

) * Henry Armadillo (voiced by

) * Coach Tiffany Gills (voiced by

Brian Doyle-Murray Brian Murray (born October 31, 1945), known professionally by his stage name as Brian Doyle-Murray, is an American actor, voice-actor and screenwriter. He has appeared with his younger brother, actor/comedian Bill Murray, in several movies, i ...

) * Miss Anna Chameleon (voiced by

) * Mr. Cyrus Q. Hornbill (voiced by

) * Mrs. Eugenia Tusk (voiced by

Cree Summer Cree Summer Francks (born July 7, 1969) is a American-Canadian actress and singer. She has worked extensively in animation, voicing long-running characters such as Susie Carmichael in ''Rugrats'' and Elmyra Duff in ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' and r ...

) * Mr. Maurice Mandrill (voiced by

) * Kerry Anderson (voiced by

) * Larry "Mr. I Didn't" (voiced by

)

Minor

* Phineas Porpoise (voiced by

) * Margaret Rhino (voiced by

) * LaTanya Hippo (voiced by

) * Joanie Ox (voiced by

) * James Ant (voiced by

) * Dickie Sugarjumper (voiced by

) * Endugu Elephant (voiced by

) * Superintendent Wolverine (voiced by

Chris Edgerly Chris Edgerly (born August 6, 1969) is an American voice actor, comedian and singer. Life and career Edgerly provided the voice of Peter Potamus on the Adult Swim animated series, ''Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law'', in addition to several g ...

) * Vice Coach Horace Ferret (voiced by

Robert Goulet Robert Gérard Goulet (November 26, 1933 October 30, 2007) was an American and Canadian singer and actor of French-Canadian ancestry. Goulet was born and raised in Lawrence, Massachusetts until age 13, and then spent his formative years in Cana ...

in "Animal School Musical") * Mr. Otto Blowhole (voiced by

) * Mr. Ernesto Cheetah (voiced by

John DiMaggio John William DiMaggio (; born September 4, 1968) is an American actor. His various voice roles include Bender on ''Futurama'', Jake the Dog on ''Adventure Time'', Marcus Fenix in the '' Gears of War'' series, Dr. Drakken on '' Kim Possible'', ...

) * Euripides Sharkowski (voiced by

) * Deidre Koala (voiced by

Kath Soucie Kath or KATH may refer to: * Kath (city), the historical capital of Khwarezm * Kath (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname * KATH-TV, the NBC TV station in Juneau, Alaska * KATH (AM) KATH (910 kHz) is an ...

) * Deb Ape (voiced by

) * Dustin Flounder (voiced by

) * Bruce Wolf (voiced by

) * Vanna Flamingo (voiced by

) * Janet Musk Ox (voiced by

) * Eddie Panther (voiced by

) * Phillip "Lippy" Zebra (voiced by

)

Release

Broadcast

The series aired its first episode on December 26, 2005 during

's “Sneak Peek Week” along with Cartoon Network original series

Ben 10 ''Ben 10'' is an American media franchise created by Man of Action Studios, produced by Cartoon Network Studios and owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The series centers on a boy named Ben Tennyson who acquires the Omnitrix, an alien device rese ...

and acquired series

Robotboy ''Robotboy'' is a Anglo-French-American animated television series produced by Gaumont Animation (originally Alphanim) for France 3 and Cartoon Network Europe, in association with studios LuxAnimation and Cofinova 1 for ''Series 1'' only. In a to ...

and

Zixx ''Zixx'' (full title is ''Zixx: Level One'' for season one, ''Zixx: Level Two'' for season two, and ''Zixx: Level Three'' for season three) is a Canadian television series that aired on YTV. This series was developed by Savi Media and The Nigh ...

. The series began its regular run with a two-episode premiere on Cartoon Network's "Fridays" block on February 24, 2006. The ''My Gym Partner's a Monkey''-based

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

''The Big Field Trip'' aired on January 14, 2007, as part of season 3.''My Gym Partner's a Monkey'' Seasons at the ''

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

''
1

2

3

4
. Retrieved June 12, 2012 A special episode, "That Darn Platypus", aired on Cartoon Network on May 18, 2007, as part of Cartoon Network Invaded, a mini-series that aired 5 specials of different series from May 4 to May 28, 2007. The series ended its 4 season-run on November 27, 2008, with the episode "A Thanksgiving Carol". In April 9, 2017, the show was added on the Boomerang app making it one of the few shows that premiered on the app in 2017-2021. The series was also shown on the revived block Cartoon Planet from 2012 to 2014. In Latin America, the series currently airs on

Tooncast Tooncast is a Latin American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery through its Warner Bros. Discovery#Assets, International division. It was launched on 1 December 2008; its programming consists of classical animation, both from H ...

since 2013. In Ukraine, the series aired on

Novyi Kanal Novyi Kanal (Ukrainian: Новий Канал) is a Ukrainian television channel. The channel is a part of the Starlight Media broadcasting group, created by Viktor Pinchuk. History The channel was launched on July 15, 1998. At first, it was ...

. The show runs in India on channel

by the name "Samsher Sikander Chuddie Buddie".

Reception

Ratings

''My Gym Partner's a Monkey'' was a ratings success for

. On the series' Cartoon Network "Fridays" block two-episode premiere at 9:00 and 9:30 P.M. EST, the first episode was seen by 1.2 million and the second by 1.3 million children ages 2–11, according to preliminary data from

Nielsen Media Research Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

. The 9:30 P.M. telecast ranked as the #1 telecast on all television, broadcast and cable, with both boys 6–11 and boys 2–11 in the time period. The series went on top the Fridays block ratings, gaining millions of viewers.

Critical response

William Barker of Web Wombat gave the ''King of the Jungle'' DVD a positive review, awarding it with a score of 70%, saying: "With an original – dare I say unique? – premise, ''My Gym Partner's a Monkey'' makes for a somewhat refreshing change from super heroes and mutants, and the cut-out animation style is captivating, though far from novel. It's not the most impressive cartoon show I've ever seen, but it's quite cute and fairly amusing – even for the older primates among us." Larisa Wiseman of

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

awarded the series three out of five stars, saying: "It's difficult to tell what age group the show's producers were aiming at – the animation style and slapstick by themselves would seem to appeal mainly to grade-schoolers, while the jokes and life lessons are definitely aimed at the tween set. The sly humor may even give some adults the occasional laugh-out-loud moment. Overall, ''My Gym Partner's a Monkey'' is commendable for its effort to include a subtle message in each episode. Younger viewers will probably find Jake's sometimes-annoying goofiness amusing, and will definitely find the story lines entertaining."

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:My Gym Partner's A Monkey 2000s American animated television series 2000s American children's comedy television series 2000s American school television series 2005 American television series debuts 2008 American television series endings American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated comedy television series Animated television series about apes Animated television series about birds Animated television series about frogs Animated television series about monkeys Fictional giraffes Television series about snakes Cartoon Network original programming Television series by Cartoon Network Studios English-language television shows Middle school television series Television shows set in Minnesota Fictional monkeys Animated television series about children Television series created by Julie McNally Cahill and Timothy Cahill