True and the Rainbow Kingdom is an animated children's web series produced by Home Plate Entertainment and Guru Studio in collaboration with American artist duo FriendsWithYou and Pharrell Williams' I Am Other. Based on the artwork by FriendsWithYou, it aired on CBC Television in Canada and Netflix in the United States and internationally.
The 10-episode first season of the series was released on Netflix on August 11, 2017, which led to two five-episode spin-off series, Season 2, titled True: Magical Friends and True: Wonderful Wishes, both of which debuted on June 15, 2018. The series was renewed for a 4-episode second season of the series, titled Mushroom Town, which was released on Netflix on May 3, 2019. True Tunes was released on July 12 on Netflix, with 8 new tracks. The series finale, titled Wild Yetis, was released on August 30, 2019.
The series was broadcast in the UK as a TV show on Tiny Pop from April 4, 2020 until March 2023.
Plot
True and the Rainbow Kingdom follows True and her best friend Bartleby the Cat, as they help the whimsical citizens of the Rainbow Kingdom, a wondrous, colorful universe filled with delightful and fantastical citizens. True is the only one with the ability to activate the magical powers of The Wishes of the Wishing Tree, solve problems in the Rainbow Kingdom, and empower viewers with her imagination, mindfulness, and empathy.
Development and production
The series was originally announced in March 2013. Titled Wish Come True at that time after the eponymous designer toys by FriendsWithYou, it was planned to have 10 half-hour episodes in a season, as produced by Home Plate Entertainment.
In June 2015, TVO has announced 5 new titles for their line-up of preschool series. Among them was True and the Rainbow Kingdom, and this time, it was announced to have ten 22-24-minute episodes in a season and slated to be released in 2017. In the announcement, Pharrell Williams' I Am Other was also included in the list of companies.
Characters
True (voiced by Michela Luci) is an 8-year-old strong heroine who possesses a warm heart, a clever mind and boundless energy. She accepts every challenge head-on with a beaming smile; what makes True "truly" extraordinary is that she is the only one in the Rainbow Kingdom to activate the Wishes’ special powers that unleash magical energy. Bartleby (Voiced by Jamie Watson) is True's funny cat sidekick who has a lot of bravado and the gift of gab. However, only his best friend True knows he is actually a bit of a scaredy-cat. He is, as replied by True, an opinionated cat and provides a lot of commentary, which helps trigger True's creative problem-solving skills. Rainbow King (voiced by Eric Peterson) is the lovable ruler of the Rainbow Kingdom. He is a kind, sympathetic and humble king. Though he possesses a wealth of knowledge, he shares his wisdom in riddles by adding fun complexity to True's adventures. He does anything to help True on her journey, but he knows that "true" success is achieved when True solves all of the problems with him. Zee (Voiced by Dante Zee and Nicolas Aqui) is True's buddy, an apprentice to the Rainbow King, and the wish keeper. He is one or two years older than True. Being a trained Wishologist, he takes care of the Wishes and knows all about their strengths and powers. Meanwhile, when a problem arises in the kingdom, True seeks out Zee's advice and wish help in the Wishing Tree. Grizelda (voiced by Anna Bartlam) is a self-centered young princess. Deep down, she realizes she needs a friend like True. Although True tries to reach out to the Princess, Grizelda's self-absorbed ways can make that challenging; however, love in Rainbow Kingdom is unconditional, so True never stops trying. The best reason for Grizelda is that someone who is a little selfish means she needs a little more love, for some reason. Frookie is a dog and Grizelda's sidekick. He looks out for the difficult princess because he knows the inner Grizelda is not so bad. The Wishes are various non-verbal but highly expressive wishes which communicate with goofy gestures and sweet sounds. Each one has a unique, big personality that complements or contrasts their power. The Wishes share a special bond with True but until they are called to action, they stay busy training with Zee. Each Wish is imbued with a special power that only True can "spark".