Arthur - Where is the Show Going?

[MikaelaMuppet]

'Arthur', the iconic kids' show, is getting a Sikh character | CNN

In “Arthur’s First Day,” an upcoming special scheduled to premiere on PBS on September 6, the bespectacled aardvark and his pals befriend some new classmates – including a Sikh boy named Samir.

www.cnn.com

 

[D'Snowth]

Wasn't "Uncle Slam Wilson" the wrestler who appeared in "Thanks a Lot, Binky" in 2003?

The same.

 

[wiley207]

The trailer for "Arthur's First Day."

Once again, they're going to throw continuity out the window by having Mrs. Grimslid be the gang's fourth grade teacher, the no-nonsense teacher Buster was dreading in "The Last Day" (though when she was shown as a P.E. teacher, like in "Arthur's Birthday," she seemed friendlier.) I say this, because (SPOILER ALERT!) "The Last Day" announced that Mr. Ratburn would be moving up to the fourth grade with Arthur and his friends, while Mr. Cramp takes Ratburn's place as a third grade teacher. (And again, you can tell "The Last Day" was intended to be a possible series finale, but PBS ended up ordering more episodes.)
At least it's a smart move for the show's final season they are doing a special about everyone moving up a grade. (Maybe "The Simpsons" will do so in its' eventual final season, too!) And I'm not surprised D.W. and her friends will be attending kindergarten at Lakewood Elementary. I'm kind of reminded of this fanfic I wrote in 2018 where they move up a grade, and this was before the Compsons moved away, so it has Mr. Ratburn teaching Arthur and his friends's fourth grade class (with Ladonna accompanying them), while his sister Ms. Rodentia Ratburn (from "Arthur's Substitute Teacher Trouble") teaches D.W.'s kindergarten class (which Bud is also part of!)

When DW Went to Kindergarten!, an arthur fanfic | FanFiction

www.fanfiction.net

 

[D'Snowth]

(And again, you can tell "The Last Day" was intended to be a possible series finale, but PBS ended up ordering more episodes.)

Greg Bailey told me that the show was essentially renewed on a season-to-season basis, by the end of whatever current season they were producing, they didn't always know if they would be renewed or not, hence why a number of more recent seasons conclude with an episode that could be considered to be series fauxnales, not just "The Last Day" but also "The Best Day Ever."

 

[Muppet Master]

I also wouldn't be surprised if the older episodes are also rarely seen nowadays due to not being HD-compatible. Though I did learn in this thread a while ago, during the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, that some of the oldest episodes did resurface on PBS at some point.

It probably depends on your station but the 24/7 PBS Kids channel in my area frequently airs reruns of the old seasons.

 

[D'Snowth]

They're kind of "remastered" the pre-HD episodes; the actual episode footage is pillarboxed, but they've completely replaced the end titles with new versions that are true HD.

 

[KremlingWhatnot]

With Arthur ending, I decided to watch Arthur's First Day a few weeks ago, it was a cute episode, and it's to finally see them move up another grade and even give a clothes change (I mean the clothes the characters were already wearing were starting to get dated by the late 2000's, so they really needed the change), but aside from that, I can see why Arthur is ending, I don't even hear about any kids into it on Twitter nor with my family, it's mainly just nostalgic adults such as myself who are really into the show. I don't even think the books even get any read that much anymore, which basically shows it's a dying IP in the kids demographic, sad, but true. It really does show why's it cancelled for a block such as PBS KIDS!, maybe someday one kid will pick up an Arthur book or watch the show via streaming, and maybe the series will get popular again, but for now, it's ending and time will only tell if it picks back up.

 

[wiley207]

Yep, I actually really enjoyed "The Last Day." I particularly liked the plot about D.W. starting kindergarten, now attending the same elementary school as Arthur! It was also nice to see Muffy help out with Emily, and Alex finally playing a more prominent role in an episode after years of being an extra in Mr. Ratburn's class...

 

[D'Snowth]

For whatever reason, Alex and Maria have been quite the Ensemble Darkhorses in the Arthur fandom for a loooong time - so much so that it's what inspired Greg Bailey to pitch the episode "Maria Speaks," since he was fully aware that many fans have been speculating for many years why we've never heard Maria speak . . . even though she was always just a silent, background extra character who never had a reason to speak before anyway.

 

[Muppet Master]

Last Day was alright. It really did capture that back-to-school vibe perfectly. The stuff with Muffy and Emily was kinda grating but I really did enjoy Alex actually having a part in the show for once.