''Rusty Rivets'' is a Canadian 3D CGI animated television series, and is produced by

Arc Productions Jam Filled Entertainment is a Canadian animation studio based in Ottawa, Ontario with additional facilities in Toronto and Halifax and is a division of Boat Rocker Media. It is best known for animating '' Thomas & Friends'' between 2013 and 202 ...

and

Spin Master Entertainment Spin Master is a Canadian multinational toy and entertainment company that markets consumer products for children. Its brands include ''Bakugan'', Gund, Etch A Sketch, Meccano/ Erector, Air Hogs, ''PAW Patrol'', Aquadoodle, Tech Deck, Ha ...

. ''Rusty Rivets'' aired for three seasons, simultaneously on

Treehouse TV Treehouse TV is a Canadian English-language specialty channel for preschoolers aged 2 to 5 that was launched in 1997. Its name comes from YTV's former preschool block, " The Treehouse". The channel is owned by YTV Canada, Inc., a subsidiary of ...

in Canada and on

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

in the U.S., from November 8, 2016, to May 8, 2020. Inspired by elements of the

maker culture The maker culture is a contemporary subculture representing a technology-based extension of DIY culture that intersects with hardware-oriented parts of hacker culture and revels in the creation of new devices as well as tinkering with existing ...

, it follows the adventures of a young inventor named Rusty and his team of customized

robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be ...

s. The first season was the last animated project of

before it was absorbed into Jam Filled Toronto in August 2016.

Plot

A young boy named Rusty Rivets uses his knowledge of

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

to repurpose machine parts and create gadgets. He lives in the city of Sparkton Hills along with his friend Ruby Ramirez, a robotic tyrannosaurid named Botasaur, and a group of smaller robots known as the Bits. The show highlights a variety of concepts related to basic

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...

and

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, scien ...

. Rusty uses the recurring catch phrase "modify, customize, Rustify" when personalizing inventions. Ruby changes the last word to "Rubify" when she does the alterations (only once), and Liam changes the last word to "Liamify" when he does it (also only once).

Episodes

Characters

Main

*Rusty Rivets (voiced by Kyle Harrison Breitkopf in US, and Theo Crabb-LaHei in UK) is an engineer. He has his own mobile laboratory, which is based in a recycling yard. He is the great great grandson of Ruston Rivets IV, which Ruby guesses hearing the number, indicating he is Ruston Rivets VIII, although there are conflicting ideas about the name of Ruston Rivets IV, since in Season 3, Rusty also called him Mortimer Rivets. *Ruby Ramirez (voiced by Ava Preston in US, and Imogen Addicott in UK) is Rusty's best friend who normally carries a

tablet computer A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being com ...

that she uses to call the Bits into action. Ruby wears a red sash with white dots around her head, reminiscent of Rosie the Riveter. *Frankie Fritz (voiced by Jacob Skiba in US, and Fraser Martin in UK) is Rusty and Ruby's rival, arch-enemy and neighbor, using every opportunity he can to try and upstage Rusty and be the best engineer in Sparkton Hills, even resorting to cheating to accomplish it. *Frankford is Frankie's robotic

skunk Skunks are mammals in the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or gin ...

, best friend and counterpart to Bytes. He helps Frankie in his attempts to put Rusty out of action. *Bytes (voiced by Robert Tinkler) is Rusty's robotic dog, who communicates by barking. He generally does not take part in missions. *Kittybot is Ruby's robotic cat, who communicates by meowing. She can sit down. *Ray (voiced by Robert Tinkler) is a small, red-coloured member of the Bits with a single eye that functions as a

flashlight A flashlight (American English, US, Canadian English, Canada) or torch (British English, UK, Australian English, Australia) is a portable hand-held electric lamp. Formerly, the light source typically was a miniature incandescent light bulb, b ...

. *Whirly (voiced by Julie Lemieux) is a pink Bit who resembles a

hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the Family (biology), biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genus, genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are ...

. She has a pair of wings and a propeller on her head. *Crush (voiced by Julie Lemieux) is an orange Bit made from a clamp, who can crush and hold small objects. *Jack (voiced by Ron Pardo) is a blue, cube-shaped Bit who can lift and transport objects using his

forklift A forklift (also called lift truck, jitney, hi-lo, fork truck, fork hoist, and forklift truck) is a powered industrial truck used to lift and move materials over short distances. The forklift was developed in the early 20th century by various ...

-like arms. *Botasaur (voiced by Robert Tinkler) is the tallest member of Rusty's team, modeled after '' Tyrannosaurus rex''. He is Rusty's sidekick. *Botarilla (voiced by

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

) is Rusty's robotic

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 ...

, who can climb on trees and swing on vines. *TigerBot (voiced by Nicki Burke) is Rusty's robotic

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living Felidae, cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily pr ...

, who can climb with her tiger claws. *ElephantBot (voiced by Scott Jackson) is Rusty's robotic

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantida ...

, who can spray water on his trumpet.

Recurring

*Liam (voiced by Samuel Faraci and Jonathan Michael Sturgess in US, and Endeavour Clutterbuck in UK and Canada) is a young blonde-haired boy who often needs rescuing. *Emily (voiced by Aaliyah Cinello in US, and Amelie Halls in UK) is a young girl introduced in Season 2, who is a friend of Liam. *Ranger Anna (voiced by Helen King in US, and Niki Felstead in UK) is a redheaded animal enthusiast in charge of the Sparkton Hills Scouts which Rusty and Ruby are part of. *Chef Betty (voiced by Novie Edwards in Season 1) and Teacher Betty (voiced by Nicole Stamp in Season 2 and 3) is a culinary expert (Season 1) and later a teacher at the school where Rusty, Ruby, and Frankie go to (Season 2 and 3). *Sammy Scoops (voiced by Joshua Graham in US, and Andy Turvey in UK) is an ice cream vendor. *Samantha (aka Cream Queen and Cone Woman) (voiced by Katie Griffin) shares the nickname "Sammy". They go into business together in "Captain Scoops" and are shown playing soccer together in "Rusty's Spaceship". *Mr. Higgins (voiced by James Rankin in US, and Chris Garner in UK) is the first inventor in town who inspired Rusty. *Officer Carl (voiced by Jonathan Potts in US, and Chris Garner in UK) is the only police officer in Sparkton Hills. *Mrs. Rivets (voiced by unknown in US, and Niki Felstead in UK) is Rusty's mother. *Mrs. McCloud (voiced by unknown) is Liam's mother. (unverified.) *Orbit (voiced by unknown) is Rusty's satellite after he crashed into the ground and Rusty launched him back into space. *Frankasaurus (voiced by Ian Ho) is Frankie's former younger robot dinosaur brother. *Robo-Squirrel (voiced by unknown) is Rusty's robotic squirrel who can destroy things by taking nuts out. *Chompers (voiced by Andrew Sabiston) is Rusty's pet beaver who can wag with her beaver tail.

Production

''Rusty Rivets'' began development in late 2014. The concept was originally pitched to

Guru Studio Guru Studio (stylized and known as GURU, and simply guru in their previous logo) is a Toronto-based entertainment company best known for ''PAW Patrol'', '' Justin Time'' and ''Ever After High''. The company is currently producing original comedy ...

, which ultimately chose not to develop the show. The first season was produced in accordance with Spin Master's policy to work on 1-2 television programs a year. It is Spin Master's sixth animated television venture. Twenty-six episodes have been confirmed. Most of the first season's episodes were animated by

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. The studio closed on August 2, 2016, but its assets have been sold to the

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the c ...

-based company Jam Filled Entertainment, and the business reopened on August 22, 2016, as Jam Filled Toronto. On May 24, 2017, it was renewed for a second season. On May 22, 2018, it was renewed for a third season.

Release

The series was announced at Nickelodeon's upfront presentation in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

on March 2, 2016. It was originally slated to premiere in the United States on August 22, 2016, but it was pushed back to November 8, 2016. The first season was going to air on

in Canada throughout fall 2016, but it was delayed until January 16, 2017. Spin Master distributes the series and its product line globally. The series premiered on Nick Jr. in Israel on February 12, 2017. As of December 2018, new episodes moved to the Nick Jr. channel.

Home media

On June 11, 2016, the first episode was released to Amazon Video as a free preview. The same episode was released to Nickelodeon's mobile platforms on June 20, 2016.

and Paramount Home Entertainment released the DVD of the show on July 31, 2018.

Merchandise

Spin Master has announced that it will distribute a line of toys based on the program. The company released them in fall 2017.

Lawsuit

In 2019, an author sued Spin Master, claiming Rusty Rivets infringe the copyrights of 20-year-old comic book. Eventually Spin Master won when the judge declared that the TV series and comic book are not too similar.

References

External links

* (archived)
Nick Jr. website
(archived) * {{Nick Jr. Animated television series about robots Animated television series about children 2010s Canadian animated television series 2020s Canadian animated television series 2016 Canadian television series debuts 2020 Canadian television series endings Canadian children's animated comic science fiction television series Canadian computer-animated television series English-language television shows Nick Jr. original programming Canadian preschool education television series Animated preschool education television series 2010s preschool education television series 2020s preschool education television series Treehouse TV original programming Canadian children's animated action television series Canadian children's animated science fantasy television series Television series by Jam Filled Entertainment