, based_on = {{basedon, ''

Exploding Kittens ''Exploding Kittens'' is a casual dedicated deck card game designed by Matthew Inman of '' The Oatmeal'' webcomic, Elan Lee and Shane Small, and first published by ''The Oatmeal'' in 2015. Beginning as a Kickstarter project seeking US$10,00 ...

'', Matthew Inman and

Elan Lee Elan Lee is an American game designer, developer, and creator. He has designed games for the Xbox; helped create the world’s first Alternate Reality Games; and with Matthew Inman created the card game '' Exploding Kittens'', whose Kickstarter ...

, creator = Matthew Inman
&
Shane Kosakowski , starring = {{Plainlist, * Tom Ellis *

Sasheer Zamata Sasheer Zamata Moore (; born May 6, 1986) is an American actress and stand-up comedian. She is best known for her tenure as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 2014 to 2017. Since her departure from ''SNL'' ...

Suzy Nakamura Suzy Nakamura (born December 2, 1968) is an American actress and Improvisational theatre, improv comedian. She is known for her many guest appearances on sitcoms such as ''According to Jim'', ''Half & Half (TV series), Half and Half'', ''8 Simpl ...

Mark Proksch Mark Proksch ( '; born ) is an American comedian and character actor. He is best known for acting in the television series ''The Office'', ''Better Call Saul'', '' Dream Corp LLC'', ''What We Do in the Shadows'' and as a fictionalized version o ...

Ally Maki Ally Maki Matsumura (born December 29, 1986), known professionally as Ally Maki, is an American actress and former musician. She portrayed Jess Kato in the TBS comedy series '' Wrecked'' and was the voice of Giggle McDimples in ''Toy Story 4'' ...

Betsy Sodaro Betsy Sodaro is an American actress. She is a regular performer at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles. She is best known for her appearances on comedy programs such as ''Ghosts'', '' Another Period'', '' Duncanville'', '' Clipped ...

Tom Kenny Thomas James Kenny (born July 13, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He has been voicing SpongeBob SquarePants (character), the titular character in ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' and associated media since its debut in 1999. Kenny has voice ...

* David Gborie * Kenny Yates , theme_music_composer = , opentheme = , endtheme = , music =

Shirley Song Shirley Song is an Australian born Chinese film and TV composer. She has composed and co-composed scores for an array of films and television shows, including Netflix's '' Exploding Kittens'' (2024), ''XO, Kitty'' (2023), '' Five Blind Dates'' (20 ...

&
Jina Hyojin An , country = {{Plainlist, * United States * Canada , language = English , num_seasons = 1 , num_episodes = 9 , list_episodes = , executive_producer = {{Plainlist, * Shane Kosakowski * Matthew Inman *

Greg Daniels Gregory Martin Daniels (born June 13, 1963) is an American screenwriter, television producer, and director. He has worked on several television series, including writing for ''Saturday Night Live'' and ''The Simpsons'', adapting '' The Office'' ...

Mike Judge Michael Craig Judge (born October 17, 1962) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, and director. He is best known for being the creator of the animated television series ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' (1993–1997, 2011, 2022–present). He ...

* Dustin Davis *

Peter Chernin Peter Chernin (born May 29, 1951) is an American film and television producer, businessman and investor. He is the chairman and CEO of The Chernin Group (TCG), which he founded in 2010. TCG manages, operates and invests in businesses in the media ...

Jenno Topping Jenno Topping is an American film producer. Films she has produced include '' Dr. Dolittle'' (1998), ''Charlie's Angels'' (2000), ''St. Vincent'' (2014), '' Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children'' (2016) and ''Hidden Figures'' (2016), which ...

, producer = Janet Dimon , editor = {{Plainlist, * Lauren Hecht * Matt Steinauer , runtime = 24—27 minutes , company = {{Plainlist, * Chomp City *

Bandera Entertainment Bandera Entertainment (credited on-screen simply as Bandera) is an American animation studio founded by ''King of the Hill'' creators, Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, in January 2019, and based in Los Angeles, California. The studio's president is ...

Chernin Entertainment Chernin Entertainment is an American film and television production company owned by The North Road Company that is based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on February 24, 2009 by producer and former media executive Peter Chernin, who is ...

exploding kittens ''Exploding Kittens'' is a casual dedicated deck card game designed by Matthew Inman of '' The Oatmeal'' webcomic, Elan Lee and Shane Small, and first published by ''The Oatmeal'' in 2015. Beginning as a Kickstarter project seeking US$10,00 ...

netflix , network =

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

, released = {{Start date, 2024, 07, 12 ''Exploding Kittens'' is an American

adult animated An adult is an animal that has reached full growth. The biological definition of the word means an animal reaching sexual maturity and thus capable of reproduction. In the human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and ...

fantasy comedy television series loosely based on the tabletop card game of the same name designed by Matthew Inman, of ''

The Oatmeal ''The Oatmeal'' is a webcomic and humor website created in 2009 by cartoonist Matthew Inman. It offers original comics, quizzes, and occasional articles. Inman has produced a series of ''Oatmeal'' books with content from the webcomic and previou ...

'' webcomic, and

. It features the voices of Tom Ellis,

, David Gborie and Kenny Yates. Produced by Chomp City,

Jam Filled Entertainment Jam Filled Entertainment is a Canadian animation studio based in Ottawa, Ontario (with additional facilities in Toronto and Halifax), and a subsidiary of Boat Rocker Media. The company is known for animating several Nicktoons series such as ''T ...

and

, it premiered on

on July 12, 2024, to mixed reception from critics.

Premise

{{Quote, text=In this animated comedy series, God and the Devil are sent to Earth in the form of talking cats. God, voiced by Tom Ellis, must reconnect with humanity while navigating life as a house cat. Living with a dysfunctional family, he attempts to solve their problems and faces humorous challenges, all while engaging in slapstick antics. The show is based on the popular card game of the same name., author=

{{citation needed, date=August 2024

Voice cast

* Tom Ellis as Godcat/

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

as Devilcat/

Beelzebub Ba'al Zabub , Ba'al Zvuv or Beelzebub ( ; ''Baʿal-zəḇūḇ''), also spelled Beelzebul or Belzebuth, and occasionally known as the Lord of the Flies, is a name derived from a Philistine god, formerly worshipped in Ekron, and later adopted ...

as Abbie Higgins *

as Marv Higgins *

as Greta Higgins * Kenny Yates as Travis Higgins *

as Aidan *

as Cherub Craig * David Gborie as Cherub Aslandeus

Additional Voices

Carlos Alazraqui Carlos Jaime Alazraqui (born July 20, 1962) is an American actor. His voice acting roles include the original voice of Spyro from '' Spyro the Dragon'', the Taco Bell chihuahua in the Taco Bell commercials, Rocko on ''Rocko's Modern Life'', D ...

Eric Bauza Eric Bauza (born December 7, 1979) is a Canadian voice actor based in the United States. He is mostly known for voicing several ''Looney Tunes'' characters, for which he won three Emmy Awards for his performances in '' Looney Tunes Cartoons'' (20 ...

Nika Futterman Nika Futterman (born October 25, 1969) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her voices in various animated series, including Mike in '' Mike, Lu & Og'', Asajj Ventress in '' Star Wars: The Clone Wars'', Stretch and Squeeze in ' ...

* Matthew Inman *

Cree Summer Cree Summer Francks (born July 7, 1969) is an American-Canadian actress and singer. She is best known for her extensive work in animation, voicing characters such as Elmyra Duff in ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' and related media, Susie Carmichael ...

Jill Talley Jill Talley is an American actress and comedian. She is a main cast member on the animated series ''SpongeBob SquarePants'', in which she voices Karen Plankton. Her other voice roles include Sarah Dubois on Adult Swim's ''The Boondocks'' and Ri ...

Lucky Yates Matt "Lucky" Yates (born October 18, 1967) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his voice roles as Dr. Krieger on ''Archer'' and the Xtacles on ''Frisky Dingo''. He was also a recurring actor on the Food Network series '' Good Eats'' ...

Gary Anthony Williams Gary Anthony Williams (born March 14, 1966) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He has voiced the character Uncle Ruckus on ''The Boondocks'', General Horace Warfield in '' StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty'' and Dr. Richard Tygan in '' ...

Fred Tatasciore Fred Tatasciore ( , , born June 13, 1967) is an American voice actor who has provided voices in animated and live-action films, television shows, and video games. He is known for voicing the Hulk, Volstagg, and Beast in various Marvel media and ...

Episodes

{{No plot, section, date=August 2024 {{Episode table , background=#FDA805 , total_width=auto , overall=5 , title=29 , director=18 , writer=19 , airdate=24 , airdateR= , episodes= {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 1 , Title = Pilot , DirectedBy = Eddie Rosas , WrittenBy = Matthew Inman & Shane Kosakowski , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = After a series of incidents leave his apartment and a section of Heaven in ruin, God is sent to Earth to answer a family's prayer in an effort to repair his image. However, he is sent in the body of a cat so he can grow closer to the humans, the Higgins family, which also limits his magical powers. After a series of failed attempts to get the family to bond, God, now going by Godcat, shrinks the family so they can play a board game created by Marv, the nerdy patriarch of the Higgins family. The plan works and the Higgins grow closer, but Godcat is informed that he must stay on Earth longer to further repair his reputation. After being notified of this, Godcat spots a black cat in the family's yard that creates a pentagram made of fire. , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 2 , Title = Tartar Recall , DirectedBy = Scott Bern , WrittenBy = Matthew Inman & Shane Kosakowski , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = Feeling she is not evil enough, Hell's board of directors send Beelzebub to Earth in a cat's body, stealing the idea from Heaven, to create "hell on earth". During a fight with Godcat, Devilcat accidentally sends Aidan, a friend of Marv's son Travis, to Heck, a version of Hell for teenagers. Travis and his mother, Abbie, infiltrate Heck in order to save Aidan. Meanwhile, Marv is approached at work to create a presentation for the world's largest tarter sauce company and enlists the help of his daughter Greta in order to bond with her. Marv's plan backfires when Greta convinces the other workers to go on strike. , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 3 , Title = Shane & Chugger's , DirectedBy = Eddie Rosas , WrittenBy = Caitie Delaney , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = Due to his birthday falling on Christmas, Travis tries to convince his parents to throw him a half-birthday party. Godcat takes Travis out while Marv and Abbie prep for the party and brings along his two Cherub assistants, Aslandeus and Craig, in order to show them the wonders of Earth and they eventually end up at the entertainment restaurant Shane & Chugger's. Karen, the Higgins' neighbor and Devilcat's owner, notices the party and tries to shut it down. , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 4 , Title = Emotions Are Hard , DirectedBy = Traci Honda , WrittenBy = Noah Prestwich , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = Greta enters into a rocket-building contest at school sponsored by a billionaire but has trouble finding people at school to help her. Travis runs away from home after discovering that Abbie has been posing as his therapist in a video game, thinking she is using it to eavesdrop on him and control his life. Abbie then seeks help from Karen in order to become a better mom. Godcat and Devilcat enter into a wager over good vs. evil with Marv's soul at stake. , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 5 , Title = No Regrets , DirectedBy = Scott Bern , WrittenBy =

Sierra Katow Sierra Lynn Katow is an American stand-up comedian, actress, writer and podcaster. Early life Sierra Lynn Katow was born to Vincent and Corinne Katow at the Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, California and is a fourth-generation America ...

, OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 6 , Title = The Town with No Internet , DirectedBy = Traci Honda , WrittenBy = Shawn Kenji Pearlman , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 7 , Title = SeaWorld Is Hell , DirectedBy = Eddie Rosas , WrittenBy = Maggie Gottlieb , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 8 , Title = Let the Games Begin , DirectedBy = Traci Honda , WrittenBy = Shane Kosakowski , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = , LineColor = FDA805 {{Episode list , EpisodeNumber = 9 , Title = The Westminster Human Show , DirectedBy = Eddie Rosas , WrittenBy = Matthew Inman & Shane Kosakowski , OriginalAirDate = {{Start date, 2024, 7, 12 , ShortSummary = , LineColor = FDA805

Production

Development

In April 2022, it was announced that an animated

streaming television Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as films and television series, streamed over the Internet. Standing in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air aerial systems, cable t ...

series was first officially ordered by

, with ''

King of the Hill ''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels that initially aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, with four more episodes airing in First-run syndicati ...

'' creators

and

as executive producers, alongside

. Additional game mechanics and cards tied to the show will be added to the mobile game at a later date.

Casting

Alongside the series' announcement, Tom Ellis,

Abraham Lim Abraham Lim may refer to: * Abraham Lincoln Lim Abraham Lincoln Lim is an American film director, editor, and actor. His NYU thesis film "Fly" won recognition at the Haig Manoogian Directors Guild of America screening, where it caught the att ...

Lucy Liu Lucy Alexis Liu (; born December 2, 1968) is an American actress, producer, and artist. Widely regarded as a trailblazer for Asian Americans in arts and entertainment, Asian American representation in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, she is t ...

, David Gborie and

, were cast as the ensemble cast. In May 2024,

and Kenny Yates joined the cast;{{cite web, url=https://www.animationmagazine.net/2024/05/trailer-feline-foes-collide-in-netflixs-exploding-kittens/, title=Trailer: Feline Foes Collide in Netflix's 'Exploding Kittens', last=Milligran, first=Mercedes, website=

Animation Magazine ''Animation Magazine'' is an American print magazine and website covering the animation industry and education, as well as visual effects. The print magazine is published 10 times a year in the United States. History ''Animation Magazine'' was f ...

, date=May 9, 2024, access-date=May 10, 2024 but within the two year span of the show's development, Liu and Lim dropped out from the project.

Release

''Exploding Kittens'' had its first look preview at the

Annecy International Animation Film Festival The Annecy International Animation Film Festival (, officially abbreviated in English as the Annecy Festival, or simply Annecy) was created in 1960 and takes place at the beginning of June in the town of Annecy, France. Initially occurring ever ...

on June 14, 2023. Originally planned for a release in late 2023,{{cite web, url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/exploding-kittens-animated-series-mobile-game-coming-to-netflix-1235130935/, title='Exploding Kittens' Animated Series, Mobile Game Coming to Netflix, last=Goldberg, first=Lesley, website=

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

, date=April 18, 2022, access-date=April 18, 2022 the series was delayed for a 2024 premiere. The series was released on July 12, 2024.

Reception

{{TV ratings , title = Exploding Kittens , MC = 54/100 , RT = 72% , rev1 = ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

'' , rev1score = C− , rev2 = ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' , rev2score = {{Rating, 1, 5 , rev3 =

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

, rev3score = 4/10 On the

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the series holds a 72% approval rating with an average rating of 5.0/10, based on 16 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "A battle between heaven and hell translated into daffy slapstick, ''Exploding Kittens'' won't blow viewers' minds but serves up some fun animated mayhem."{{cite Rotten Tomatoes, id=exploding_kittens, title=Exploding Kittens, type=tv, season=1, access-date=July 22, 2024, publisher_hide=y{{cbignore On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the series has a score of 54 out of 100, indicating "mixed or average reviews" based on 9 critic reviews.{{Cite Metacritic, id=exploding-kittens, title=Exploding Kittens, type=tv, season=1, access-date=July 14, 2024, publisher_hide=y{{cbignore

Lucy Mangan Lucy Mangan (born 1974) is a British journalist and author. She is a columnist, features writer and TV critic for ''The Guardian'' and an opinion writer for '' i'' news. Early life and education Mangan was born in 1974 and grew up in Catford, ...

, reviewing for ''

'', gave the series one star, saying it was "carelessly made, infuriating and unfunny" and criticising the poor storyline.{{cite web , first=Lucy , last=Mangan , author1-link=Lucy Mangan , title=Exploding Kittens review – unfunny, infuriating and life-sapping , url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/article/2024/jul/12/exploding-kittens-review-unfunny-infuriating-and-life-sapping , website=

, access-date=July 12, 2024 , date=July 12, 2024 ''

's'' Isobel Lewis gives the series a C−, saying that the jokes are "the kind that lead to a small smile but rarely makes anyone laugh out loud" though there are "nuggets of comedy gold"; she criticises the writing as "tame" and "lack ngthe bravery of other animated series".{{cite web , author1=Isobel Lewis , title=Netflix's Exploding Kittens series is lost in translation , url=https://www.avclub.com/exploding-kittens-review-tv-show-netflix-1851581621 , website=

, access-date=12 July 2024 , date=11 July 2024 Chase Hutchinson, writing for ''

'' rated the series 4/10, saying that throughout the show "premises are stretched well beyond their breaking point, jokes land with tiresome thuds, and every cliffhanger feels like a forced attempt to get Netflix subscribers to keep the app open."{{cite web , author1=Chase Hutchinson , title=Exploding Kittens Season 1 Review , url=https://www.ign.com/articles/exploding-kittens-season-1-review-netflix , website=

, access-date=15 July 2024 , date=12 July 2024 In the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'', Robert Lloyd notes that while the series is a "lesson ... that anything can amount to exploitable intellectual property", it is also "corny as... hell, but it's genuine corn". Angie Han in ''

'' said the show's plot was "admirably zany" but that the comedy " endedto be obvious"; she concludes that "if you're looking for light humor, you could do worse".{{cite web , first=Angie , last=Han , title='Exploding Kittens' Review: Netflix's Admirably Zany Animated Cat Comedy Could Use Sharper Jokes , url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/exploding-kittens-review-netflix-animated-1235939983/ , website=

, access-date=July 12, 2024 , date=July 12, 2024

References

{{Reflist

External links

* {{Netflix title * {{IMDb title {{Netflix original current series {{Netflix original animated series and films 2024 American television series debuts 2020s American adult animated television series 2020s American animated comedy television series 2020s American sitcoms American adult animated action television series American adult animated comedy television series American adult animated fantasy television series American animated sitcoms American English-language television shows Animated television series about cats Animated television series about dysfunctional families Fiction about God Fiction about the Devil Netflix sitcoms Religious comedy television series Television series about talking animals Television series about Christianity Television series by Chernin Entertainment Television series by Jam Filled Entertainment Television shows based on card games