Trolls: TrollsTopia (also listed as DreamWorks Trolls: TrollsTopia) is an American animated television series based upon the events of the film Trolls World Tour.[1] It takes over from Trolls: The Beat Goes On! as the main support serial series, being the second TV series overall in the "DreamWorks Trolls" franchise. Produced by DreamWorks Animation and Atomic Cartoons, it aired from November 19, 2020 to August 11, 2022 on Hulu and Peacock, with a web mini-series titled What They Got Right and a series of Trolls Scrapbook Stories shorts.
The series' art style is the same as Trolls: The Beat Goes On! with a different animation style and improvements. Many of the Trolls from previous 2D animations return in this series, as do their voice actors, including minor or background characters.
A series of trademarks were also registered by DreamWorks related to this series.
About[]
Trolls: TrollsTopia was formerly scheduled for April 15, 2020, to be released on the Peacock streaming app and Hulu. The announcement came alongside those for DreamWorks films The Croods: A New Age and The Boss Baby: Family Business, other DreamWorks and Universal-related properties such as Cleopatra in Space, Where's Waldo?, The Mighty Ones and Madagascar: A Little Wild, and new episodes of Curious George.[2]
In March 2020, due to the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic was having on the entertainment industry, the Peacock service announced that it would push back the release of all original shows, including Trolls: TrollsTopia, until 2021.[3] Despite this, the series was later set to premiere on both Hulu and Peacock on November 19, 2020.[4]
The first screenshot was seen in the TV Kids magazine's October 2020 issue.[5] Universal had signed a long-term agreement with Sky, with Trolls: TrollsTopia being confirmed to be among the shows included in the contract, which would see customers in Ireland and the UK getting to see the shows on the aforementioned platform.[6]
In that same month, a storyboard of an episode titled "Dinner with Dante" (which later premiered as "My Dinner with Dante") was leaked onto Tumblr, but was removed shortly afterwards. It revolved around a Classical Troll named Dante Crescendo. At the same time, the series' animatic opening credits sequence was leaked.[7] Jim Mortensen confirmed that the leaks were stolen. He thanked fans for their patience in regards to the stolen material, which had been shared regardless of its origins.[8]
Megan Hilty noted that the voice acting was still going on during the Covid-19 lockdown and that things progressed via Zoom.[9]
The series premiered on November 19, 2020 on Hulu & Peacock. The second season consisted of six episodes was released on March 18, 2021, a third season with 7 episodes on June 10, 2021, a fourth season with 6 episodes on September 2, 2021, a fifth season with 7 episodes on December 9, 2021, a sixth season with 6 episodes on February 17, 2022 and the seventh and final season with 7 episodes was released on August 11, 2022.
The show had two promotional web mini-series aired alongside it, titled What They Got Right and Trolls Scrapbook Stories.
When it came to the event of Trolls World Tour, it was noted that now thanks to the movie, the world was expanded and the series couldn't go back to Poppy and Pop Village; it had to go beyond that. The idea of TrollsTopia was to avoid Poppy always visiting other places and instead bring things to her. Matthew Beans confirmed that the series takes place a few months after Trolls World Tour. Part of the problem was that Poppy couldn't just go off to have adventures with characters such as Barb, as she's too busy ruling her domain. In addition, it was noted that movie feature characters come with restrictions on what they can do with them, as the movie crew need to think about the next movie. The creators' own characters can do a lot more than the movie ones, and this is why they went for new characters.[10]
The episode format was carried on from Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, and the 11-minute episodes were kept. The time limit allows the plot to move forward. Matthew Beans noted from his experience in Robot Chicken, which consisted of episodes with normally 30-second skits, it becomes important to get plots moving with such a short time. Usually, they aim for every other line to be a joke, but do slow things down from time to time. The show was a blank slate, and adds 12 new main cast characters to the show. Working their characters and interactions was fun for the crew, and they felt that they haven't made a single flat character. One difference between this show and Trolls: The Beat Goes On! is that the number of songs was doubled; instead of every other episode, most episodes have at least one song.[10]
Jim Mortensen tweeted in November 2020 about his artwork style, the process, revealing that "Girls' Night" was storyboarded in 2019.[11]
As with Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, the series is not considered canon with the main 3D movie canon. However, it is canon with Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, making it unique compared to its predecessor. As a result, stories have been continued and expanded from the previous series, and Trolls: TrollsTopia is able to build up its own secondary canon storylines distinct from the primary ones while acknowledging the movies.
Tim Heitz confirmed that the Trolls: Holiday in Harmony special, Trolls: TrollsTopia and Trolls World Tour are separate entities to each other.[12]
Synopsis[]
TrollsTopia is a new original based off the famous Trolls franchise following Poppy, Branch and other enchanting characters from the feature film Trolls World Tour.
After the events of Trolls World Tour, Poppy invites delegates from all Troll Tribes to live in Troll Forest to unite in Pop Village and live in harmony. This is an experiment by Poppy called "TrollsTopia" and seeks to unite the scattered Trolls.
Trolls: TrollsTopia! is the next chapter in the Trolls' hair-raising adventures. During the Trolls sequel, Trolls: World Tour, everything gets turned on their hair when Poppy learns there are five other musically themed Trolls tribes scattered throughout the forest. Now, armed with her endless positivity she decides to bring delegates from the Country Western, Classical, Funk, Techno and Hard Rock tribes to live together in her village, to form a new Trolls city and promote friendship and harmony in a grand experiment she calls... TrollsTopia!
The delegates from other villages won't be the kings and queens we met in Trolls World Tour - those characters will remain in their respective villages and continue to function as the leaders of their tribes. Instead, we're going to meet new, original characters that represent the fun features of their home tribes.
Plot[]
The series focuses on the trial and error of TrollsTopia and the everyday events of the Trolls residing in the city. It covers the hurdles that face as each Tribe learns to get along with the other ones.
Most stories take place in TrollsTopia as a result. The second season of Trolls: The Beat Goes On! was confirmed to take place 1 month after the events of Trolls. Meanwhile, Trolls: TrollsTopia takes place 1 year after Trolls, according to "The Makeunder". In "Cloud Control", Cloud Guy also notes that it's his and Branch's "annoyversary" since the day he began to annoy Branch, indicating that it's been a year since Cloud Guy begun to annoy Branch. According to "Girls' Night", TrollsTopia has already been set up for "months", which would put Trolls World Tour itself at happening in less than a year after Trolls.
However, the Season 3 episode "Disgruntle Weeds" was the first episode that took the story out of TrollsTopia and into the Country Trolls domain to return the Disgruntle Weeds to Grumble Gulch. Despite Lonesome Flats being mentioned in the episode, it does not appear.
Almost all character development is related to a conflict of cultural-based nature and is cause by the habits of that Tribe prior to said Troll coming to be part of TrollsTopia. As such, a lot of the stories are how TrollsTopia is changing its residents for the better, how they resist that change or accept it and adapt as a response to both TrollsTopia itself and to each other.
As a result of this, the series has a number of subplots, some of which were carried on from Trolls: The Beat Goes On! but has expanded to take in the new characters introduced within the series. Like with Trolls: The Beat Goes On! before it, a result of the the continued development of characters a number of common story types are often linked to certain Trolls, and form the basis of the episodic plots.
Often, Trolls from the same Tribe have similar subplots and arcs to each other, but they tend to go in different directions. The plots are both positive and negative at each Tribe's goals. Note that in many cases, the plots can swing both for and against the Tribes approach or even show other Trolls sampling another Tribes' cultures.
Cast[]
Pop Trolls
- Amanda Leighton as Queen Poppy
- Skylar Astin as Branch
- Fryda Wolff as DJ Suki, Satin & Chenille, Gia Grooves and Dr. Moonbloom
- Sean T. Krishnan as Guy Diamond
- Kenan Thompson as Tiny Diamond
- David Fynn as Biggie
- Kevin Michael Richardson as Smidge, Rufus, and Klaus Von Frousting
- Matt Lowe as Creek, Striped Smiley, and H.T. Hairnum
- Walt Dohrn as Fuzzbert
- David Kaye as King Peppy
- Ashly Burch as Meadow Spriggs
- Kari Wahlgren as Mags Gumdrop and Harper
- Gary Cole as Sky Toronto
- Megan Hilty as Rhonda Sparkleman
- GloZell Green as Grandma Rosiepuff
- Kyla Carter as CJ Suki
- Abby Ryder Fortson as Priscilla
- Declan Churchill Carter as Keith
- Maddy (non-speaking, no voice actor credited)
- Ripley Wisp (picture only)
- Master Controll (picture only)
Rock Trolls
- Lauren Mayhew as Val Thundershock
- Charles DeWayne as Demo
- Tru Valentino as Blaze Powerchord
- Larissa Gallagher as Petra
- Jake Green as Billy Reverb
- Raul Ceballos as Romper
- Kat Palardy as Rose
- Queen Barb (only mentioned)
- George Thrashington (only mentioned)
- Alexander Slam-ilton (only mentioned)
- Jill (only mentioned)
Country Trolls
- Megan Hilty as Holly Darlin'
- Eric Lopez as Gust Tumbleweed and Slim Stuck 'Em
- Matt Lowe as Haystack Wiggins
- Annie Applecore (non-speaking, no voice actor credited)
- Hair-aldine Groundwater (picture only)
- Charlie (only mentioned)
- Chester (only mentioned)
- Chelsea (only mentioned)
Classical Trolls
- JP Karliak as Dante Crescendo
- Jeanine Mason as Minuet Sonata
- Brian T. Delaney as Ludwig van Beetrollven
- David Errigo Jr. as Forte Crescendo
Funk Trolls
- Michael-Leon Wooley as Lownote Jones
- Kat Graham as Rhythm and Blues
- Ron Funches as Cooper
- Big J, Little J, and Medium J (Big J and Little J have non-credited speaking roles, while Medium J is non-speaking)
- Delbert Hunt as Dr. Groovetavius Ravenhug
Techno Trolls
- Vladimir Caamaño as Synth
- Anita Kalathara as Laguna Tidepool
- Anthony Lee Medina as King Trollex
Misc. Trolls
- Sam Haft as Chaz
- Judy Alice Lee as Bi-Na
- Jennifer Sun Bell as Young
- Victoria Grace as Min
Alternate Dimension Trolls
- Amanda Leighton as Pushy Poppy
- Sean T. Krishnan as Dingy Diamond
- Megan Hilty as Hollizabeth Darlintonshire
Fictional Trolls
- Lauren Mayhew as Felt Madame Maelstrom
- Megan Hilty as Lady Marigold
Bergens
- King Gristle Jr. (non-speaking, no voice actor credited)
- Brian Kimmet as Barnald
Other Non-Trolls
- Walt Dohrn as Cloud Guy
- Corina Boettger as Marshtato Mary
- David Fynn as Mr. Dinkles
- Gary
- JP Karliak as Caruthers ("Dante the Entertainer")
Related Media & Merchandise[]
Merchandise related to Trolls: TrollsTopia began to be released in January 2021. Characters who received merchandise include Poppy, Branch, Val, Holly and Tiny Diamond. A new toyline from Hasbro was also released by the time of the series, known as the Hasbro Squad Minis.
Unlike past media, the toys received a much smaller lineup. In 2022 it was revealed that this was related to the Hasbro company losing the licensing rights to "Trolls" to Mattel, starting from Fall 2023.[13]
However, a number of the products of returning characters from the movies were previously released under the Trolls World Tour promotional series. As a result, many of the early products were simply re-prints with new packaging.
Several episodes were converted into a book form. These include A Different Groove, Gift Time! and Let's Work Together. Other books include One Colorful World and Happy Trollsmas!.
Burger King ran a promotion for the series in 2021.
Trivia[]
- Notable returning staff from Trolls: The Beat Goes On! include Matthew Beans (executive producer)[14], Alex Geringas (composer and songwriter).[15]
- At one point, an application was set up to encourage animators to work in the series.[18]
- Before the series first aired, a lot of storyboards were put up by Gregersen. They have since been hidden or removed as of 2021.[19]
- The title cards of the series' episodes indicate what Troll Tribe is their focus. For example, "Kick-Off Party" focuses on the Rock Trolls, and therefore has a Rock-themed title card. Meanwhile, "Bring It In" is based around the Classical Trolls, and thus has a Classical-themed title card. The title texts are also stylized like the Trolls Logo, unlike the ones of Trolls: The Beat Goes On!. In later seasons, there were episodes that broke this rule, for example, "The Party Switcheroo" is labelled as a "Classical" episode but is merely set in Classical Crest - it stars Val Thundershock and Smidge.
- The Pop-themed title card features a landscape similar to the ones featured in the title cards of Trolls: The Beat Goes On!. The title text is colored in a pale shade of blue. The Pop Tribe had the most episodes dedicated to them, at 42.
- The Rock-themed title card depicts a number of speakers, wires and lights. The title text is in lavender. 16 episodes were dedicated to the Rock Tribe.
- The Country-themed title card shows a rising sun alongside a sea and some rocks. The title text is in a mix between bright blue and purple. 16 episodes were dedicated to the Country Tribe.
- The Classical-themed title card depicts a number hair-like sculptures on a golden floor. The title text has a golden color. 12 episodes were dedicated to Classical Tribe.
- The Funk-themed title card shows a rainbow splatters on a black background, with a purple light in the center. The title text is colored mint green. 10 episodes were dedicated to the Funk Tribe.
- The Techno-themed title card features a number of corals in an underwater environment. The title text is a mixture between cyan and lime green in color, and has an ocean-like pattern put onto it. 7 episodes were dedicated to Techno Tribe.
- There have been no such cards for any hinterland Trolls.
- Mr. Dinkles now says "mew" like the movies. In Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, he said "meep" instead.
- Most of the series' episodes make references to popular culture, which was already common in Trolls: The Beat Goes On!. Compared to the previous series, though, Trolls: TrollsTopia makes references to music media more frequently, whereas Trolls: The Beat Goes On! almost always made references to movies and other TV series.
- The series continues with running gag referencing the classic cartoon rule of "gravity doesn't work until you look down" from Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, starting with the episode "Branch Out of Water" up until "Gal Pal Getawaycation".
- Trolls: The Beat Goes On! tended to end each season with a cliffhanger or hint at the first episode of the next season (with the cliffhanger in Season 8 being a mere gag instead). However, Trolls: TrollsTopia mostly ends each season on a final story segment that's more plot-driven, showing character development and progress as the series goes on.
References[]
- ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/B7ZYAZ9l3Xd/
- ↑ https://www.animationmagazine.net/2020/01/nbc-details-new-peacock-platform-animated-originals/
- ↑ https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/peacock-streaming-lineup-free-tv-shows-movies-1234580315/
- ↑ https://www.animationmagazine.net/2020/11/trailers-peacock-premieres-trollstopia-the-mighty-ones-this-month/
- ↑ https://issuu.com/worldscreen/docs/tv_kids_october_2020
- ↑ https://www.awn.com/news/sky-signs-long-term-dreamworks-animation-tv-series-deal
- ↑ https://twitter.com/jimmortensen/status/1316551271789207553
- ↑ https://twitter.com/jimmortensen/status/1318553238396936193
- ↑ https://toonado.com/dreamworks/trollstopia-season-seven-voice-actress-megan-hilty-reflects-on-the-show-now-that-it-has-ended-exclusive-a5989
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 https://lyricsodus.com/podcast/PodcastPlayer.html?title=Trolls%3A%20TrollsTopia%20with%20Matthew%20Beans&artist=Animation%20Station%20Podcast&id=id1139874556
- ↑ https://twitter.com/LakeFama/status/1332042842164789248
- ↑ https://twitter.com/theitz/status/1464986148401344512
- ↑ https://kidscreen.com/2022/03/29/mattel-takes-over-trolls-toy-license-from-hasbro/
- ↑ https://deadline.com/2020/01/hulu-orders-kids-series-madagascar-a-little-wild-trollstopia-the-mighty-ones-tca-1202833552/
- ↑ https://www.rarebehavior.com/composers-songwriters
- ↑ https://twitter.com/jimmortensen/status/1332394456226557957
- ↑ https://jimmortensen.tumblr.com/post/616866756608278528/do-you-have-a-favorite-memory-from-working-on
- ↑ https://www.showbizjobs.com/posting/details/rnoe3g/dreamworks-jobs/visual-development-artist-in-glendale
- ↑ https://speakerdeck.com/hgregersen