New Series Alert: The Loud House To Make Its Freemium Debut On eToonz

eToonz, South Africa's only free-to-air children's channel home to variety of animated and live-action content part of which is currently viewed on e.tv's youth block Craze has acquired rights to one of Nickelodeon's most popular shows, The Loud House.

Synopsis for The Loud House:

The series revolves around the chaotic everyday life of a boy named Lincoln Loud, who is the middle child and only son in a large family of 11 children. It is set in a fictional town in southeastern Michigan called Royal Woods.

Since the series inception back in 2016, it has spawned seven seasons currently seen on Nickelodeon alongside three feature films two of which are live-action. It has also spawned two spinoffs, The Casagrandes and it's live-action counterpart, The Really Loud House.

In June 2017, the Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB), headed by CEO Ezekiel Mutua, ordered a ban of the series alongside several shows seen on Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon and Disney Channel for allegedly promoting homosexual themes to minors.

Although, The Loud House can't be viewed in other parts of Africa alongside Nicktoons. It is however very much active in South Africa on Nickelodeon with eToonz set to be a number of alternatives for The Loud House from 1st June at 16:00.

Everyday Novelas Shorts: Shaka iLembe Make It's Highly Anticipated Debut On Mzansi Magic, Galaxy TV Acquired Broadcasting Rights To Si Nos Dejan And A Rebroadcast Of On The Other Side Of The Wall Rolls Out On Telemundo Africa

Shaka Zulu remake is coming to Mzansi Magic

Set in the 1700s, Shaka iLembe tells the story of the making of the iconic African king, with iterations from his early childhood through to adulthood. The production has been six years in the making, consulting historians, academics, and family descendants, including the incumbent King Misuzulu ka Zwelithini, Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, as well as the late King Goodwill Zwelithin.

The series premieres 18 June on Mzansi Magic and will be made available on Africa Magic Showcase, Africa Magic Urban, Pearl Magic Prime and Maisha Magic Plus.

Si Nos Dejan expands to more African territories

Alicia Montiel has the perfect family and is married to Sergio Carranza, one of the most respected and recognized journalists in Mexico. They have 3 children and are icons and the synonym of the ideal family in society. Alicia's world falls apart when she discovers that Sergio has been unfaithful to her for the last 3 years with the co-host from his television show, Julieta Lugo.

The series launched on Ghanaian platform UTV back in 2022 and was picked up Galaxy TV during the week.

Marjorie De Sousa and Litzy star in this mother duo drama Al Otro Lado Del Muro

The story follows the lives of two women, one of humble origin and the other a prominent figure, who cross the border from Mexico to the United States for different reasons: one chasing a dream and the other fleeing a nightmare. In this contemporary series, which reflects the reality of many emigrants, both women will have to do the impossible to move their children forward and survive, leaving behind everything they knew until then.

It is expected to replace the double bill slot of Blood And Wine from 28 May at 19:00.

The Real Life Story Of Disney's The Little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid, a tale that endured over the centuries

This story is certainly one of the most popular cartoons of the 1990s and 2000s. Ariel, a young mermaid, dreams of becoming human and living on the surface herself. With the help of her friend, she disobeys her father King Triton, and trades her precious voice for a pair of legs with the witch Ursula. But once on land, the young woman, who finds the sailor she has fallen in love with, Prince Eric, must succeed in making him fall under her spell in less than three days without the help of her voice. Should she fail, she would end up damned by the witch’s curse. Only a true love’s kiss can save her, and the whole plot of the film leads viewer to hope for a happy ending, which eventually comes.

At least, this is Disney’s 1989 version. And also the one the studio has chosen to use for the release of a live-action version of The Little Mermaid, due May 2023.

The Little Mermaid, a not-so-fairy story

Although Disney opted to make it a love story, this very much not the plot of the original story as written by Hans Christian Andersen. In fact, in 1837, the author of the Danish tale published Den Lille Havfrue (The Little Mermaid), a story that is very different from the one retold by the animation studio. In the original tale, the Little Mermaid fell under the spell of a human whom she saves from drowning, but unlike Disney’s adaptation, she was not driven to wish for legs out of curiosity for life on earth, or her love for the princes. In Andersen’s story, the young mermaid learns that the souls of humans are eternal and decides to go to the witch to get legs so that she too can acquire this “ability” by marrying a human. Once again, the Danish author’s story is much less squeamish than Disney’s: the Little Mermaid has her tongue cut out by the witch and the “creation” of her legs is so painful that every step she takes feels as if she is being “pierced by knives.”

Similarly, you’ll find no “happily ever after” for Hans Christian Andersen. The prince falls in love with another woman, and decides to marry her, so Ariel knows she is doomed to have her heart broken, literally, and to be turned into sea foam. In a fit of despair, urged on by her sisters, the young woman decides to stab Prince Eric, her only means of breaking her curse and becoming a mermaid again. But at the last moment, Ariel finally decides to spare him. As she throws herself into the sea, ready to accept her fate, she joins a metaphorical paradise, “the women of the air,” as a reward for her good deed.

No great love story, then. Hans Christian Andersen portrays a young woman who idealises her future and sacrifices everything to get there, without taking into account the risks and warnings. It is not her love for the prince that drives her to leave the ocean, but her desire to be immortal.

The Little Mermaid, a work forever linked to Copenhagen

Hans Christian Andersen died in Copenhagen in August 1875 after leaving his mark on the capital and on Danish culture. Although he may have been mocked by his peers during his lifetime, this great friend of Charles Dickens enjoyed worldwide success in posterity. The Danish capital erected many statues of the author, such as the one in Rådhuspladsen Square or the one at City Hall, but also of his most popular work: The Little Mermaid. In Copenhagen harbour, not far from Churchill Park, there is a bronze statue of the famous character in the waters of the Kattegat.

Outside the capital, you can also visit the writer’s childhood home in his home town of Odense. In the south of the country, in the heart of the Efteling amusement park, the Fairy Tale Wood features many of the local hero’s works in their original setting.

Could Toonami Be On The Chopping Block Perhaps For Adult Swim?

Adult Swim is a general entertainment brand owned by Warner Bros. Discovery that is home to various adult animation including Rick And Morty, Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Robot Chicken. It is currently operating as a programming block on Cartoon Network in the U.S.

During the year, Cartoon Network's president Michael Ouweleen unveiled two series My Adventures With Superman and Unicorn Warriors Eternal shows initially meant to be released by Cartoon Network was folded under Adult Swim.

Later in the week, it was heard from sources that Ouweleen would be investing more airtime in Adult Swim therefore reducing the airtime seen on Cartoon Network in the affected region. Although, these changes don't seem to have an affect on the channel in other countries.

It does however bring out a lot of curiosity for the brands that do such as Toonami cause the last brand to have gotten this much attention was Cartoonito and by the end of March 2023 a lot of Boomerang feeds were phased out for this offering.

Similar to Boomerang, Toonami has a come off as repetitive and less productive or at least the feed situated in Africa as France was able to do a proper rebrand which saw the channel supply wrestling promotion AEW, anime and content from Adult Swim.

Kind of like how most of Cartoonito's existence was based off Boomerang, the same could be said about Adult Swim with Toonami. Content from the brand could help boost the offering in Africa and get more viewers invested on the channel currently it's a DC wasteland.

Another problem probably establishing a dedicated Adult Swim channel off the ground would be contractual issues as MultiChoice a platform that doesn't offer Toonami have rights to a portion of their content or in this case Adult Swim.

Considering Warner Bros. Discovery plans to rollout the Max streaming service in new destinations by 2024 that might as well change.

Recap To The Month: ESPN To Exit DStv, StarSat And The Rest Of Africa As The Walt Disney Company Facilitates Streaming

In 2021, The Walt Disney Company unveiled plans to close 100 international channels in the coming future which included a range of  FOX, National Geographic and Disney Channels. This past week it was reported that the brand is opting to make ESPN a streaming exclusive.

This news doesn't come as a surprise as mentioned they already closed a couple of channels across the world and also this was discussed back in 2022 but more of a what if scenario as they're still looking at ways of getting this off the ground.

The idea similar to Disney+ is to rollout ESPN as a standalone streaming service. There is regions already bundling sports under Disney+ so it's likely that this streaming service will rollout under the streamer if not a standalone or add-on.

Despite their cancellation on DStv and StarSat, The Walt Disney Company revealed they're still willing to distribute selected content on cable meaning these outlets alongside various in the region will likely use existing sports channels if not replacements for the content.

Similar to National Geographic and Disney Channel where content such as The World According To Jeff Goldblum and Monster Inc: The Series were made exclusive to Disney+ now the content can be viewed on the mentioned brands alongside local broadcasters.

Seeing as there's no timeframe as to when the indefinite will occur my guess would be between 2025-2027 as the company is currently looking to review the NBA deal in the hopes to stream them on ESPN+ (or Disney+) and the other BBC is looking to become an online platform.

Recap To The Decade: eMedia Investments Has Yet To Cutback On Repeats Currently Viewed On Openview

MultiChoice has been providing repeats to DStv consumers since the dawn of time and over the years they found ways to simplify that offering by either reducing the number of alternatives available or at least on a particular package as seen with Magic Showcase.

Of course, Openview serving as a free-to-view component from eMedia Investments has took part in a similar scenario. Following the success of eExtra's Kuiertyd (Turkwood), they launched a dedicated channel in 2022 to relive the moments even after axing Rewind.

During that year, SABC unveiled plans to restructure the rebroadcasts seen across their plans which would see shows such as 7de Laan being made viewable to consumers on SABC 2 and SABC+ and no longer on the loss making SABC 3.

Alas, eMedia Investments has yet to take a similar route with consumers on the Openview platform as they offer primetime on eExtra and catch-up on e.tv despite the existence of ePlesier let's not forget eVOD where this content can be streamed at anytime.

Just like the public broadcaster, it almost seems as if they don't have enough content to fill up a single channel. As mentioned, e.tv offers a catch-up service to Kuiertyd with eXposed playing second fiddle to above-mentioned brands alongside eReality.

If I had to be honest, ePlesier would have probably been better off had eMedia Investments reduced the airtime on e.tv or move this catch-up service to the Rewind type channel with the main channel airing selected content in the hopes to lure potential Openview consumers.

Recap To Last Year: OnseTV And MyTV Are No Longer Available On StarSat, Should eMedia Investments Perhaps Get It For The Openview Platform?

Last year, it was announced that OnseTV and My TV would be scrapped from the StarSat platform. As of 2023, Glow TV join the brands as another list of channels that can't be viewed anywhere in the market.

OnseTV was a general entertainment channel which is meant to serve as a rival to the kykNET channels on the DStv platform offering a lineup of drama series, movies, reality shows and documentaries. It includes shows like Suidooster and Snoek & Patat.

MyTV was a lifestyle channel and by the looks of it a rival to Media24's VIA also seen on the DStv platform. It offers a mixture of lifestyle and factual content ranging from home, decor, food, fashion and several others. It includes shows like Vaskap and Eksieperfeksie.

As seen in 2022, StarSat has been focused on reshaping the South African landscape through content adaption, dubbing, sub-titling supported by innovative low-cost commissioning of unique programme formats that appeal to the "vast majority" of consumers.

Unfortunately, OnseTV and MyTV didn't resonate with those plans for consumers which led to the untimely demise on the StarSat platform after 13 years.

MyTV (formerly ASTV) was added onto eMedia Investments' Openview platform back in 2013 but died out over the years as consumers weren't that invested at the time as seen with eExtra's Kuiertyd which has luckily pulled close to half a million viewers.

Over the years, eMedia Investments had begun investing in more content for the brand including Saturday Night Movies on eExtra and the Afrikaans game show, Die Kontrak.

I mean the idea of getting a brand similar to OnseTV or MyTV perhaps for Openview Ultra wouldn't be the most far fetched thing to happen. eExtra is telenovela skewed particularly with Kuiertyd but with their fanbase they could as well get this content to new heights.

Initially, Openview was more like StarSat with this offering and following Kuiertyd. You got to see more of this brand as well as the community it caters for. At the moment, it kinds of repetitive and maybe content from both these parties will help change that.

NCPD And Marvel Unite For Call To Celebrate Youth With Disabilities

The National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities (NCPD) today announced that it has joined forces once again with The Walt Disney Company Africa to bring awareness to and celebrate children and youth across the country.

Inspired by the Marvel retail campaign of the same name, the Marvel Heroes Unite initiative kicks off this month with a call for all South Africans to show their support for youth with disabilities. From 16 May 2023, fans are able to purchase specially branded wristbands from www.ncpd.org.za for R30.00 each.

On Youth Day, 16 June 2023, those who have purchased the wristbands are invited to wear them, showing their support and celebration of inclusion and equity for children and young persons with disabilities. Schools in particular are invited to show their support with learners encouraged to wear their wristbands on 15 June 2023, with a chance to win prizes for both the schools and individual learners. Wristbands will be available to purchase throughout the remainder of 2023.

Participants are welcome to share their support on social media by using the hashtag #NCPDHeroesUnite #Marvel and tagging @vavaiyouth on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. It is through these channels that you can enter the photo competition with fabulous prizes to be won.

Driven by the youth-focused project of the NCPD, Vava iYouth, the campaign seeks to further build on the long-term objective of facilitating full economic and social participation, rights and enjoyment for youth with disabilities. Funds raised from the campaign will go towards funding, education and training, as well as seeking opportunities for self-representation for this sector of the population. Ultimately, the long-term goal is ensuring that youth people with disabilities have equal access to resources and opportunities, leading to meaningful and fulfilling participation in society.

“Marvel Super Heroes showcase attributes such as heroism, relatability and community, with an openness in an interconnected world,” says Luke Roberts, General Manager, Consumer Products, Games and Publishing, The Walt Disney Company Africa Consumer. “We are excited to lend our support to the NCPD, after two successful collaborations under the Disney Princess banners, and bring this powerful campaign to life, all in an effort to showcase and celebrate young South Africans with disabilities.”

“The Heroes United campaign is a reminder that when we join in unity we can achieve great things and make the world a better place for everyone. It demonstrates that age, gender, race or ability do not have to be barriers to working together towards a common goal. Indeed, real life heroes do exist, they are ordinary people who show kindness and who are not afraid to advocate for social justice. So, let’s stand hand-in-hand and work to create an inclusive society that values and celebrates diversity.” Ado Bakasa, NCPD Coordinator Youth Affairs: Vava iYouth.

Inspired by the diverse, heroic, inspirational Marvel Super Heroes, the campaign seeks to show that the attributes that make the characters who they are – strength, endurance, kindness, courage, etc. – are found in all of us. In addition, it is when our characters unite that they are able to overcome all obstacles. Retailers are currently celebrating Marvel Heroes Unite across the country.

Marvel Heroes Unite wristbands are available online at https://ncpd.org.za for R30 and bulk orders are available to organisations and schools who would like to support. All funds will go directly to the NCPD.

New Channel Alert (Rumour): Could MultiChoice Be Adding Boing As A New Channel To The DStv Platform?

Boing is a children's channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery that is home to various shows formerly seen on Cartoon Network and Boomerang (now Cartoonito). Some of the shows include Total Drama Island, Adventure Time, Wacky Races and The Jungle Bunch.

During the year, Warner Bros. Discovery held a virtual conference for Cartoonito where it was mentioned that the channel had been garnering popularity within the market particularly for shows such as Dexter's Laboratory, Uncle Grandpa and Clarence.

It's kind of clear that the channel is in high demand particularly for consumers who grew up viewing these shows on Cartoon Network and at the time Boomerang. Another being the crowded lineup of preschool channels onboard the platform.

Over the years, MultiChoice has been restructuring repeats seen across the platforms and Boing does come off as a channel that would likely join existing brands such as kykNET Lekker and BBC UKTV.

Similar to Nicktoons and in some capacity Discovery Family, Warner Bros. Discovery has been licencing content that you wouldn't come across on Cartoon Network much less Cartoonito. On top of that, Boing has often been used to continue shows these brands axe.

Over to DStv, rumours of the brand's possible entry to the platform first started when Warner Bros. Discovery supposedly promoted Puffy AmiYumi as Cartoonito and now The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy joins the list now with including Cartoon Network.

Next month, schools will be closing so maybe Boing will be announced by then as The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy is listed under Warner Bros. Discovery's upcoming attractions for June 2023.

Again nothing is official considering MultiChoice already supply a large selection of channels from Warner Bros. Discovery the idea of Boing joining that list doesn't seem far fetched. As the brand in some form or manner can fill the void left by Boomerang.