Chowder (TV series)

Chowder
Off-Screen Logo
Genre	Comedy Surreal humor Satire Farce
Format	Animation Comedy Stop motion
Created by	C. H. Greenblatt
Written by	C. H. Greenblatt William Reiss Alex Almaguer Darick Bachman Kevin A. Kramer Brett Varon
Directed by	Juli Hashiguchi Kris Sherwood Eddy Houchins Shaun Cashman Mike Milo Majella Milne
Voices of	Nicky Jones Dwight Schultz John DiMaggio Tara Strong Liliana Mumy Mindy Sterling
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	49 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	C. H. Greenblatt
Producer(s)	Louis J. Cuck
Running time	22 minutes
Production company(s)	Cartoon Network Studios
Broadcast
Original channel	Cartoon Network
Original run	November 2, 2007 (2007-11-02) – August 7, 2010 (2010-08-07)
External links
Website

Chowder is an American animated television series which ran from November 2, 2007 to August 7, 2010 on Cartoon Network. The series was created by C. H. Greenblatt, a former storyboard artist on SpongeBob SquarePants and The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy.

Production

The puppet versions of the characters Chowder (a Hand-Rod puppet) and Mung Daal

During his time working on Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants, Greenblatt had been sketching various characters for his own animation series concept. Greenblatt originally based the premise on the idea of the sorcerer's apprentice style of story, such as The Sword in the Stone. The plot devices were modified so that the story revolves around a master chef who teaches his young apprentice how to cook. Chowder himself was developed with no specific species in mind, but rather with the intentions of invoking the image of a child's soft squeeze toy. Some of the inspiration comes from Richard Scarry, with other inspiration from Saturday morning cartoons.

Once Greenblatt pitched the concept to Cartoon Network, it was about two years before the series was approved for production with another year in production before the pilot episode aired. Greenblatt estimates he spent about seven years working on Chowder before the show made it to air.

Episodes are produced in seasons which consist of 20 24-Minute episodes. Each episode is produced with a 30-second puppet sequence that is meant to run over the ending credits. Cartoon Network chooses not to air the puppet credit sequences, but starting on September 3, 2007, episodes have aired the puppet segments. Episodes can be purchased from the iTunes store in the United States which are delivered with the sequences as are episodes which are available on Cartoon Network's VOD website also within the United States.

One of the unusual design features of the show is the patterns used on the clothing or players. The patterns are developed as a full screen image and then sent to the production house where the characters are modified to fill the patterns in over the character clothing. Using this technique, when a character moves, their patterns do not follow, but display as a "static" background. A similar technique was used in the Monkey Island video game series (particularly for the Stan) and the Mr. Bean animated series.

The show is also known for the very wide variety of media used in various episodes. These include animation using watercolors and ink-and-paint in addition to the cartoon's classic pattern style. It also uses stop motion animation with real food, action figures and clay; live-action scenes with the voice actors of the show and puppets; both marionette and hand-controlled. This was also sometimes used in Courage the Cowardly Dog. It boasts one of the most diverse varieties of mediums used in any single series.

Characters

The main characters of Chowder (left to right) Shnitzel (voiced by John DiMaggio), Mung Daal (voiced by Dwight Schultz), Chowder (voiced by Nicky Jones), and Truffles (voiced by Tara Strong) shown in a typical city scene.

Main characters

• Chowder (voiced by Nicky Jones): An 11-year-old eccentric lavender tiger who serves as a chef's apprentice under Mung Daal, Chowder lives with Mung Daal and his wife, Truffles, in a room at the top of the catering business. Chowder wants to become a great chef, but he is very impulsive, and often gives in to his urges. He is always hungry and eats anything, even a customer's order. He seems to already know that he is in his own series. Chowder can also regurgitate objects, and is used as a storage container by the other characters. Chowder is light purple in color. According to Greenblatt, he is a composite of a cat, a bear and a rabbit,^{[citation needed]} and his species was verified in at least one episode. C. H. Greenblatt voiced his adult self in the last episode.
• Mung Daal (voiced by Dwight Schultz): The elderly Blue lizard chef who runs the catering company at which Chowder works. Although his exact age has not been stated, he has mentioned that he has cooked for at least 386 years, and he celebrated 450 years of marriage to Truffles (see below). He is a blue-colored humanoid of indeterminate species. Mung is named after the Indian dish mung daal; Greenblatt had originally planned to give Mung an Indian accent, but later decided against it.
• Shnitzel (voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson in "The Froggy Apple Crumble Thumpkin", and John DiMaggio afterward): A starfish-new york voice by astubborn owl and professional chef who works at Mung Daal's Catering Company. His vocabulary consists almost entirely of "Rada", although he sometimes says other simple words. He talks in episode 'The Problem with Truffles' because he finally gets calm enough. Shnitzel is the "straight man" to the other more excitable characters, and is frequently agitated. He gets stuck with menial labor or cleanup duty, as well as the heavy lifting, because he is extremely strong. In the episode "The Lead Farfel" Shnitzel is shown to have carried him the farthest and plans to move him farther. Although usually angered by Chowder's antics, Shnitzel really has a soft spot for Chowder, as he cries when it was thought that Chowder has vanished forever. Kevin Michael Richardson voiced Shnitzel for the debut episode "The Froggy Apple Crumple Thumpkin", and was replaced at the last moment by DiMaggio due to Richardson being busy with other projects at the time. He also works part-time as a comedian.
• Truffles (voiced by Tara Strong): Mung Daal's wife, who handles the business side of Mung's catering business. She is a mushroom pixie. She is practical, but has a foul temper and easily loses patience with her husband, his staff and their customers. Greenblatt said that he based Truffles on his mother. Greenblatt said that he initially found difficulty in working on any story with Truffles since the character could be "so abrasive" that the Chowder staff had to be "a little more sensitive about finding her softer side." Greenblatt said that the staff eventually decided that "a little Truffles goes a long way." Therefore she would appear occasionally in Chowder in a manner similar to how Oscar the Grouch appears in Sesame Street.
• Gazpacho (voiced by Dana Snyder): A woolly mammoth storekeeper who sells strange produce and ingredients at the farmers market. He does his best to offer advice to Chowder when needed. He lives with his overbearing mother, who never appears. Gazpacho shows no interest in moving out and improving his own life. Gazpacho's worst enemies are ninjas. Greenblatt named him after the cold soup gazpacho; Greenblatt said that he did not know why the name suited the character, but that the name suited the character immediately.
• Panini (voiced by Liliana Mumy): An 11-year-old girl who has a crush on Chowder, and lets him know this at every opportunity. Chowder does not return the feelings, and responds with "I'm not your boyfriend!" whenever she greets him. Panini is an apprentice to Ms. Endive, and is also over-protective of Chowder. Panini was first seen in the second episode: Chowder's Girlfriend. According to Greenblatt, she is of the same composite species as Chowder,^{[citation needed]} although she is pink and has large ears. Originally Panini, who was named Borlotti, had pointed ears and an outfit in which only her face was visible. Her original character concept had her bully Chowder in a manner described by Greenblatt as similar to Angelica Pickles from Rugrats. Greenblatt removed the pointy ears since he felt this did not fit in with the rounded shapes in Chowder. Greenblatt did not like characters similar to Angelica and believed that he needed to make Panini "cuter and sweeter." Greenblatt said that the details of Panini formed when the creator decided that Panini had a crush on Chowder; since Chowder is not old enough to fall in love with females, according to Greenblatt this aspect would frustrate Chowder "in a more fun way."

Supporting characters

• Ms. Endive (voiced by Mindy Sterling): A smart obese female chef who teaches cooking to Panini with strict discipline. She's also occasionally portrayed as the show's main antagonist or villain. She is usually depicted as gargantuan. She regularly berates Mung Daal, whom she considers a rival. In the episode "Chowder's Girlfriend", it is revealed she despises boys and boyfriends because her fiancé did not show up on their wedding day. Ms. Endive is first seen in the second episode with Panini, "Chowder's Girlfriend". The creator describes her as Martha Stewart with Oompa-Loompa colors. Greenblatt chose to name her after the endive since endive is bitter and Belgian endive is fancy; hence the character is bitter and fancy. Endive's character stayed constant throughout the initial development. The long nose, which changed from a rectangular shape to a triangle shape for the final version, represents how Endive looks down at other characters. It was revealed in "The Prank" that Endive may be in love with Mung. Greenblatt said that he felt that her evolution throughout the series was fun to observe, especially when William Reiss wrote plots involving Endive.
• Kiwi (voiced by C. H. Greenblatt) is a photorealistic pink creature who always gives advice to Chowder and his friends. His name is only pronounced in the episode "Brain Grub", where it is known that after Chowder alterates the animated universe, Kiwi is reduced to selling used cars.
• Kimchi (voiced by C. H. Greenblatt): Chowder's pet, who lives in a cage next to his bed. Kimchi is a brown-colored stink cloud (due to the unpleasant odor of kimchi). He likes things with odors unpleasant for the other characters, and he "talks" by making flatulent sounds. Kimchi was first seen in the episode "Stinky Love". Kimchi is usually shown with a blank personality but in an episode where he gets married it is shown he has an opinion.
• Gorgonzola (voiced by Will Shadley): A young green mouse apprentice candle holder with a surly attitude. He resents Chowder due to Chowder having a better job than him. He will occasionally use Chowder, and if forced, will partner with him in games. Since blue cheese was one of the few foods Greenblatt disliked, he decided to use the name "gorgonzola" for a character who did not get along with Chowder. Gorgonzola resembles a green opossum. He wears tattered brown clothes and no shoes, and has a partially-melted candle on his head (for traditional reasons). He is desperate to get cash, and will do almost anything to get it. Gorgonzola also loves to play Sniffleball, where he meets Chowder in an episode. Gorgonzola is an apprentice to Stilton, who is a candle holder, hence why both characters have burning candles on their heads.
• Ceviche (voiced by Elan Garfias): The goat apprentice to Paté and Panini's best friend, Ceviche was introduced in the episode "The Apprentice Games". Ceviche was framed for stealing Chowder's dice cycle and is revealed to be a boy instead of a girl, which is shocking to some viewers. Ceviche also helps old people and donates to the poor. He practices aerobic-style dancing and is very charitable and kind to others. He is good friends with Panini and will make unwanted advances upon her, which are either refused or unnoticed. He speaks in a monotonous voice and serves as deadpan humor for the show.
• Chestnut (originally voiced by Tone Loc, then John DiMaggio): Like the food, Chestnut is small and tough. He is a tiny, blue horned devil-like creature with a deep, gravelly voice and, to many character's surprise, is physically very strong. Because of his size, he uses everyday objects as other things (e.g. using a briefcase for a hydrofoil, or a hat as a vacation home). He sings small songs to himself, usually consisting of his catchphrase of "Dinky lee dinka loo." He is teacher of the BLTs, a parody of the SATs. He always refers to himself in the third person when speaking.
• Reuben (voiced by Paul Reubens): A pig who is a conman and steals from others. He was Mung's "Inspector" when he needed to renew his cooking license but he just used that to fail Mung and pass Endive. He later made the group, minus Truffles, used his boat for their fishing trip but just spent the trip annoying Mung and keeping the other passengers on board so he can get more money out of them. At the end of the episode, it turned out that the ship was stolen and Reuben abandoned ship when the real owners came and left the group to be arrested.

Episodes

Main article: List of Chowder episodes

This is a list of episodes from the animated series Chowder.

Seasons

Pilot: 2003

Season		Episodes	Originally aired	Premiere Date	Finale Date
	1	20	2007-2008	November 2, 2007	July 24,2008
	2	20	2008-2009	October 1, 2008	October 2,2009
	3	9	2009–2010	October 15, 2009	August 7, 2010

Season 1: 2007–2008

This season consists of 20 episodes.

#	Title	Directed by	Written by	Airdate	Prod. code
1	"The Froggy Apple Crumple Thumpkin / Chowder's Girlfriend"	Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt William Reiss	November 2, 2007 (2007-11-02)	102
"The Froggy Apple Crumple Thumpkin" - In the series pilot episode, Mung Daal, Chowder, and Shnitzel make a "Froggy Apple Crumple Thumpkin" for a customer. They go through many dangerous steps to make it. The last one: defeat it in a thumb wrestling match. "Chowder's Girlfriend" - A girl named Panini has a crush on Chowder, and he attempts to convince her that he isn't her boyfriend. But Chowder finds himself in a dilemma when Gazpacho tells him that he must marry Panini, since she has kissed him and needs to make an "honest woman" out of her.
2	"Burple Nurples / Shnitzel Makes a Deposit"	Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	William Reiss C.H. Greenblatt	November 2, 2007 (2007-11-02)	107
"Burple Nurples" - When Chowder unwittingly puts rat poison in a dish, Mung Daal must stop him from selling the tainted treats. "Shnitzel Makes a Deposit" - Shnitzel goes to deposit a paycheck at the bank, but Chowder (along with some other people) prevent him from doing so.
3	"Grubble Gum / The Cinnamini Monster"	Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	Tom King William Reiss	November 9, 2007 (2007-11-09)	105
"Grubble Gum" - When Chowder makes a big mistake of not sharing his gum with Truffles, his attempt to hide the mistake leads to a sticky mess of drastic proportions. "The Cinnamini Monster" - When Chowder shrinks down in size, and is then held captive in a tree that is home to a lonely monster, the others must beat the monster in a board game to set him free.
5	"Certifrycation Class / Sing Beans"	Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Clayton Morrow Alex Almaguer	November 16, 2007 (2007-11-16)	104
"Certifrycation Class" - When Mung Daal is forced to spend a day in Certifrycation School to renew his cooking license, Mung must decide whether to stay true to his instincts or swallow his pride in order to pass the class. "Sing Beans" - In order to cook Sing Beans, a musical food, Chowder and the others must stay up during the night to watch the dish as it cooks. But when Mung Daal and Shnitzel fall asleep (due to Chowder telling an extremely boring joke in an attempt to pass the time), Chowder takes it upon himself to finish the process.
4	"The Wrong Address / The Wrong Customer"	Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Alex Almaguer Clayton Morrow	November 23, 2007 (2007-11-23)	106
"The Wrong Address" - Chowder and Mung Daal go to an unfamiliar part of Marzipan City to deliver a customer's order, a Roast Most. But the place is dirty and somewhat crime-infested, and goes through a disastrous event in which a large rat, who seems to have malicious purposes, chases them. "The Wrong Customer" - Set during the events of "The Wrong Address". While Chowder and Mung Daal deliver the Roast Most, an unexpected outlaw (who seems to be blind and deaf) uses the catering company as a hideout, leaving Shnitzel to save Truffles' life. But Truffles thinks the outlaw is a customer, and criticizes him for seeming to be unwilling to serve him. The police are supposed to enter the building and arrest the outlaw, but are too busy deciding who goes first...
6	"Mahjongg Night / Stinky Love"	Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt Tom King	November 30, 2007 (2007-11-30)	103
"Mahjongg Night" - Chowder attempts to eat a dish called Meviled Eggs, no matter what it takes, even if it means ruining Truffles' game night with her friends. "Stinky Love" - Mung Daal makes a Clabbage Cobbler, which Kimchi falls in love with it. In order to retrieve the dish Chowder goes up to the top of a building Kimchi escaped to and keeps the stink cloud company during the night.
7	"The Thrice Cream Man / The Flibber-Flabber Diet"	Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Clayton Morrow Alex Almaguer and William Reiss	December 7, 2007 (2007-12-07)	101
"The Thrice Cream Man" - Mung Daal tries to break Chowder's Thrice Cream obsession by creating a living Thrice Cream Man. However, when this plan works and Chowder becomes sick of the food, the Thrice Cream Man goes into a deep rage. "The Flibber-Flabber Diet" - When Truffles believes that everyone in the catering company is overweight, she puts everyone on a strict diet, to the dismay of everyone (except Chowder).
8	"Gazpacho Stands Up / A Taste of Marzipan"	Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Tom King Kevin A. Kramer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Alex Almaguer	December 14, 2007 (2007-12-14)	108
"Gazpacho Stands Up" - Gazpacho has a stand-up comedy gig coming up soon, but he has no material for it. He asks Chowder to write down his jokes in a book, but problems occur when Chowder's handwriting is illegible to everyone. "A Taste of Marzipan" - An all-out food war ensues when Mung Daal and Endive clash after they realize they have made the same dish for Marzipan City's annual street fair.
9	"The Puckerberry Overlords / The Elemelons"	Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	Maxwell Atoms William Reiss	January 18, 2008 (2008-01-18)	109
"Puckerberry Overlords" - Chowder eats an extremely sour piece of fruit and ends up having a bizarre journey within his mouth, with his wisdom tooth narrating the story. "The Elemelons" - When Truffles' behavior causes giant fruits called Elemelons to go on strike, Mung Daal forces her to solve the problem by staying in their cage for a night.
10	"Sniffleball / Mung on the Rocks"	Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt, and Clayton Morrow Tom King	March 6, 2008 (2008-03-06)	110
"Sniffleball" - Feeling that Chowder has been spending too much time in the kitchen, Mung Daal forces him to play sports with other kids. Upset by Panini's kisses and Gorgonzola's taunts, Chowder has to figure out a way to escape the game and get back to the kitchen. "Mung on the Rocks" - After Mung Daal forgets his and Truffles' wedding anniversary, Truffles gives him the cold shoulder. Seeing that Mung is depressed by this, Chowder decides to use advice from Gazpacho help out.
11	"The Moldy Touch / The Heavy Sleeper"	Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Cindy Morrow C.H. Greenblatt	April 3, 2008 (2008-04-03)	111
"The Moldy Touch" - After accidentally letting a mold creature out of its bottle, everything Chowder touches becomes covered in mold. After realizing what has happened, Mung Daal tries to solve things before the entire city becomes moldy. "The Heavy Sleeper" - When Chowder accidentally messes up a drink, Mung Daal goes into a deep sleep, leaving Chowder and Shnitzel to find something to awaken the chef.
12	"At Your Service / Chowder & Mr. Fugu"	Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins	William Reiss Tom King	May 1, 2008 (2008-05-01)	112
"At Your Service" - Mung Daal and Chowder are forced to work for Ms. Endive in order to receive a rare fruit from her. "Chowder & Mr. Fugu" - Chowder must take a consumer on tour around Marzipan City, but to his dismay, Mr. Fugu can eat more than he does and doesn't get any of the food. Guest stars: George Takei as Foie Gras, the "Lucky Cat".
13	"The Vacation / The Sleep Eater"	Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt and Clayton Morrow Pete Browngardt	June 5, 2008 (2008-06-05)	113
"The Vacation" - Chowder, Mung Daal and Shnitzel accidentally lock themselves in the bathroom when they are about to go on a vacation. Note: This is the last segment to be done by the original crew from Chowder. "The Sleep Eater" - After he has a midnight snack, Chowder's internal clock goes haywire and he becomes a monster at night. Chowder must now go an entire night food-free to become normal again. Note: Beginning with this segment, the series' animation style and humor would change significantly due to some of the original crew from the series departing. This varies on some character designs and the breaking of the fourth wall more than usual.
14	"The Bruised Bluenana / Schnitzel & The Lead Farfel"	Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	William Reiss Tom King and C.H. Greenblatt	June 12, 2008 (2008-06-12)	114
"The Bruised Bluenana" - After an accident at Gazpacho's fruit stand, Chowder and Panini become surrogate parents to an injured bluenana, in order to nurse it back to good health. "Shnitzel & The Lead Farfel" - After becoming soft and weak, Shnitzel must train to regain his strength and lift the heaviest object in Marzipan City: "The Lead Farfel".
15	"The Thousand Pound Cake / The Rat Sandwich"	Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins	Pete Browngardt William Reiss	June 19, 2008 (2008-06-19)	115
"The Thousand Pound Cake" - Chowder and Shnitzel must race against the clock when delivering an order to a man that lives on top of a giant, since he gets it free if it comes after sunset. "The Rat Sandwich" - The gang tries to get rid of Reuben, who is blackmailing the company by using his pet rat.
16	"Chowder Loses His Hat / Brain Grub"	Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Mike Bell and C.H. Greenblatt Alex Almaguer	June 26, 2008 (2008-06-26)	116
"Chowder Loses His Hat" - When Chowder loses his hat to Chestnut, he must travel across town in order to trade the items needed to get it back. "Brain Grub" - When Mung Daal attempts to make Chowder smarter using a food called "Brain Grub", Chowder soon becomes aware that their universe is simply an animated series, and changes it into a talk show. Mung tells him about how without Chowder, it's awful. Chowder smashes his big brain and eventually destroys the Chowder universe.
17	"Shnitzel Quits"	Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins	Kevin A. Kramer, C.H. Greenblatt, Mark Segurson, and Pete Browngardt	July 3, 2008 (2008-07-03)	117
When Shnitzel feels that he is not getting enough respect from Mung Daal and Truffles, he quits the catering company and decides to work for their rival, Ms. Endive. But he soon discovers that she in actually in love with him, and sees him as more than hired help.
18	"Broken Part / The Meach Harvest"	Shaun Cashman and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Pete Browngardt Pietro "Pappy" Piumetti, Brook Chalmers,	July 10, 2008 (2008-07-10)	118
"The Broken Part" - When Chowder accidentally breaks Mung Daal's new feetsa-making machine, he is forced to go and buy a new part for it. But Chowder becomes easily distracted while in town, and ends up having to find a way to make money after wasting the money Mung gave him. "The Meach Harvest" - When Mung Daal has to make a dish that requires a certain fruit that he fears due to a past experience with it, he sends Chowder and Shnitzel in his place to retrieve it.
19	"Banned From the Stand / Creme Puff Hands"	Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins Juli Hashiguchi and Eddie Houchins	Tom King Danielle McCole, C.H. Greenblatt, Clayton Morrow, and William Reiss	July 17, 2008 (2008-07-17)	119
"Banned from the Stand" - Gazpacho bans everyone (including himself) from his fruit stand after an argument with Mung Daal, and must find a way to fix the problem he has caused. "Créme Puff Hands" - When Chowder's hands inflate after a cooking accident, he suddenly becomes every helpful to the people of Marzipan City. But his hands soon become a liability, when Chowder starts to go crazy, believing that he is useless without his huge hand.
20	"The Apprentice Games"	Juli Hashiguchi, Kris Sherwood, and Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt, Clayton Morrow, and William Reiss	July 24, 2008 (2008-07-24)	120
Chowder and Gorgonzola are forced team-up for the Marzipan City Apprentice Games, but are kicked out of the competition by their masters after they lose several events. The duo must now get back into the games in order to reclaim their dignity.

Season 2: 2008–2009

This season consists of 20 episodes.

#	Title	Directed by	Written by	Airdate	Prod. code
21	"The Arborians / The Garage Sale"	Kris Sherwood, William Reiss, and Eddie Houchins Majella Milne and Eddie Houchins	Alex Almaguer Pete Browngardt	October 1, 2008 (2008-10-01) November 20, 2008	201
"The Arborians" - Mung Daal, Chowder and Shnitzel need a special syrup from an annoying tree in order to complete a pancake recipe, but soon the tree and his family end up taking over the catering company, leaving them to find a solution. "The Garage Sale" - Chowder becomes obsessed with eating the stuff sold at Mung Daal's garage sale.
22	"Panini for President / Chowder's Babysitter"	Juli Hashiguchi, William Reiss, and Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	William Reiss Pete Browngardt	November 6, 2008 (2008-11-06)	202
"Panini for President" - When Panini declares herself as the new president of the apprentice's society, Gorgonzola (through Chowder) ends up competing against her the title. "Chowder's Babysitter" - While babysitting Chowder, Gazpacho believes he has accidentally killed Chowder. Convincing Chowder that he's dead, they both attempt to get his "spirit" to pass on to the other side.
23	"The Fire Breather / The Flying Flinger Lingons"	Eddie Houchins Mike Milo and Eddie Houchins	Ian Wasseluk Dave Smith	November 13, 2008 (2008-11-13)	203
"The Fire Breather" - After Chowder eats a group of hot peppers in order to keep them from escaping the kitchen and burn down the city, he begins to breathe fire whenever he opens his mouth, whether he wants to or not. Quickly becoming an incovenience to Mung Daal and the others, he runs away to go live with dragons. "The Flying Flinger Lingons" - While helping Mung Daal make a giant bread bowl for a traveling circus troupe, Chowder becomes obsessed with being a member of the Flying Flinger Lingons, and runs away to join them. Note: This episode aired in widescreen.
24	"Hey, Hey It's Knishmas!"	Mike Milo and Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt, William Reiss, and Alex Almaguer	December 4, 2008 (2008-12-04)	204
Chowder worries he won't receive the gift he wants on Knishmas, when he sees Mung Daal attempt to make a perfect Schmingerbread house and fail several times. Upon seeing this, he recruits Panini and Gorgonzola to help him make Knish Kringle like Mung's house.
25	"Chowder's Catering Company / The Catch Phrase"	Eddie Houchins Majella Milne and Eddie Houchins	Ian Wasseluk Mike Vazor	December 11, 2008 (2008-12-11)	205
"Chowder's Catering Company" - Against Mung Daal's wishes, Chowder secretly starts his own catering company for a bunch of trash-dwelling vermin. However, when these vermin attempt to kill Mung, Shnitzel and Truffles, Chowder must choose between his friends and his dreams. "The Catch Phrase" - When a celebrity chef takes Marzipan City by storm, and wins the admiration of Chowder from Mung Daal, Mung must come up with a catch phrase to win back Chowder's adoration.
26	"The Hot Date / Shopping Spree"	Majella Milne and Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	Alex Almaguer Pete Browngardt	February 12, 2009 (2009-02-12)	206
"The Hot Date" - Sergent Hoagie prepares to go on a blind date, but must first deal with a crime committed at Ms. Endive's swimming pool caused by herself. "Shopping Spree" - When Truffles becomes sick, Mung, Chowder and Shnitzel are left in charge of the company's money box. However, they become tempted by the large amount of money and go on a huge shopping spree, leaving no money left in the box. The gang must now find a way stop Truffles from noticing the missing money (that is, as soon as they get enough money to continue animating the show).
27	"The Party Cruise / Won-Ton Bombs"	Eddie Houchins Mike Milo and Eddie Houchins	Chris Reccardi, William Reiss Brett Varon	April 2, 2009 (2009-04-02) June 1, 2009	207
"The Party Cruise" - Mung Daal takes Chowder and Shnitzel to go fishing, but end up on a cruise ship owned by Reuben. "Won Ton Bombs" - When Mung Daal's old cooking master tells about Mung's greatest failure to all of Marzipan City, Chowder and Mung travel back to the past to fix his failure.
28	"The Big Hat Biddies / The Deadly Maze"	Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins Majella Milne and Eddie Houchins	Ian Wasseluk Pete Browngardt	June 2, 2009 (2009-06-02) June 3, 2009	208
"The Big Hat Biddies" - Truffles tries to impress the members of The Big Hat Biddies, and the others try to help by making a big feast for the club. "The Deadly Maze" - Mung's old apprentice Gumbo traps Chowder within a huge maze so he can get rid of Mung, but soon finds himself lost within it also, not knowing the way back, which the two have to find a way out. And when an over-professional Bird-headed body-builder named Jeffery hired to destroy Chowder threatens Gumbo, the two are forced to work together to escape from him.
29	"Kid Shnitzel / Gazpacho Fights Back"	Eddie Houchins Majella Milne and Eddie Houchins	Ian Wasseluk William Reiss and Phil Rynda	June 4, 2009 (2009-06-04) June 5, 2009	209
"Kid Shnitzel" - Shnitzel tires of his adult responsibilities and decides to act like a child, much to Mung Daal's chagrin. Forcing Shnitzel's responsibilities on Chowder, Chowder then decides to act like a baby and Shnitzel follows suit: forcing Mung to send them to the baby pound. "Gazpacho Fights Back" - When an intimidating woman bullies Gazpacho into giving her free produce, he and Chowder must think of a way to fight back, by going to the strongest person they know.
30	"The B.L.T.'s / The Trouble With Truffles"	Eddie Houchins Mike Milo and Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt and Alex Almaguer Brett Varon	June 11, 2009 (2009-06-11)	210
"The B.L.T.'s" - When Chowder must pass the upcoming "Basic Learning Test" (B.L.T.'s) or he can't cook anymore, Mung Daal is forced to take matters into his own hands and attempt to stop the test. "The Trouble with Truffles" - Truffles gets a new voice after Mung Daal tells her that her old one scares customers away. However, her new voice is so relaxed and non-threatening, so Chowder, Mung Daal, and Shnitzel no longer take her seriously and become feral primitives, leaving Truffles to decide between her new voice and her old one. NOTE: This is the first episode in which Shnitzel says words other than "Radda".
31	"The Dinner Theater"	Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	C.H. Greenblatt, William Reiss, Brett Varon	June 25, 2009 (2009-06-25)	211
Mung Daal's Catering Company has a mystery-themed theater show called "Who dunit? T'was not me: A romp in the glorious world of barber shop" in order to earn more money, but Chowder thinks that the play is real events and that Gazpacho will act out the play in real-life as Baron Von Bon Bon and kill the others. Chowder is then forced to go to Gorgonzola and Ceviché's help in order to stop him.
32	"Big Ball / The Brain Freeze"	Mike Milo and Eddie Houchins Eddie Houchins	Alex Almaguer Brett Varon	July 2, 2009 (2009-07-02) July 9, 2009	212
"Big Ball" - While catering at a special sports event, Truffles and Mung argue about the rules of the game, resulting in the two competing in the games. "The Brain Freeze" - Chowder drinks a cool drink too fast, causing him to be frozen in a block of ice. But in order to get back to the kitchen, Chowder must get the help of 2 flenguins to get the fur coat of Flazpacho. The full title of "Big Ball" is Field Tournament Style Up and Down on the Ground Manja Flanja Blanja Banja Ishka Bibble-Babble Flabble Doma Roma Floma Boma Jingle Jangle Every Angle Bricka Bracka Flacka Stacka Two Ton Re-Run Free For All Big Ball, but is usually shortened for television listings. Note:Mung and Truffles start to argue but then make-out which shows how long they've been married.
33	"The Snail Car / The Lollistops"	Majella Milne and Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	John Infantino Carl Faruolo	July 16, 2009 (2009-07-16) July 23, 2009	213
"The Snail Car" - Mung gets a new car, but Chowder wants the old one back. "The Lollistops" - Chowder wrecks his teeth so he can go to his dentist, who gives out delicious "lollistops".
34	"Endive's Dirty Secret / Big Food"	Eddie Houchins Mike Milo and Eddie Houchins	Ian Wasseluk Darrick Bachmann, Kristina Baranovich, Steve Little, and Pete Browngardt	July 30, 2009 (2009-07-30)	214
"Endive's Dirty Secret" - Mung (and eventually everyone in town) blackmails Ms. Endive with an embarrassing picture to gain access to her pool. "Big Food" - Mung Daal, Chowder and Shnitzel go on a camping trip, where Chowder attempts to prove Mung that legendary Big Food exists.
35	"Paint the Town / The Blackout"	Eddie Houchins Kris Sherwood and Eddie Houchins	Alex Almaguer Pete Browngardt	August 6, 2009 (2009-08-06)	215
"Paint the Town" - Chowder paints his own world after discovering a blank-canvas dimension behind his bedroom. "The Blackout" - Chowder and Gorgonzola must restore power to the city after a blackout occurs.
36	"The Dice Cycle / The Chain Recipe"	Mike Milo and Eddie Houchins Mike Milo	Mark O'Hare Kent Osborne	August 13, 2009 (2009-08-13)	216
"The Dice Cycle" - Chowder breaks Mung's dice cycle and blames it on Ceviche under Gazpacho's command. "The Chain Recipe" - Mung get cursed for 100 years after refusing to make a chain recipe.
37	"The Garden / Sheboodles"		Alex Almaguer Pete Browngardt	August 20, 2009 (2009-08-20)	217
"The Garden" - After Truffles makes the plants grow with her voice, Chowder becomes her apprentice. But that leaves Mung heartbroken and now he'll do anything to win Chowder back. "Sheboodles" - Longing for a companion, Miss Endive cooks a man-dish for a date. Unfortunately she doesn't bake it 100% complete and as a result gets stuck with a repulsive-looking man named Todd with a catchphrase, sheboodles. Things go worse for Endive once everyone starts to like Todd.
38	"Gazpacho Moves In / My Big Fat Stinky Wedding"		Ian Wasseluk William Reiss	August 27, 2009 (2009-08-27) ("Gazpacho Moves In") September 3, 2009 (2009-09-03) ("My Big Fat Stinky Wedding")	218
"Gazpacho Moves In" - Gazpacho leaves his mom's home and moves into the catering company over an argument. Gazpacho gradually wears out his welcome and the catering company work out a plan to get rid of him. "My Big Fat Stinky Wedding" - Chowder takes Kimchi to his family's home in the swamp for an arranged marriage and worries about the future of their friendship after Chowder is accused by his smart but evil twin brother of kidnapping Kimchi from his family.
39	"Apprentice Appreciation Day / The Grape Worm"		Alex Almaguer Alex Hirsch	September 10, 2009 (2009-09-10) ("Apprentice Appreciation Day") September 17, 2009 (2009-09-17) ("The Grape Worm")	219
"Apprentice Appreciation Day" - Mung and Miss Endive compete over who throws the best Apprentice Appreciation Day party, alienating Chowder and Panini in the process. "The Grape Worm" - A parasite moves into Chowder's stomach, driving away Chowder's friends.
40	"A Faire to Remember / Tofu-Town Showdown"		Brett Varon Alex Hirsch	September 24, 2009 (2009-09-24) ("A Faire to Remember") October 1, 2009 (2009-10-01) ("Tofu-Town Showdown")	220
"A Faire to Remember" - Chowder becomes friends with a girl named Marmalade, making Panini very jealous. "Tofu-Town Showdown" - Chowder discovers that Shnitzel had a previous life as a samurai bodyguard.

Season 3: 2009–2010

This season consists of 9 episodes.

#	Title	Airdate	Prod. code
41	"Hands on a Big Mixer / The Blast Raz"	October 15, 2009 (2009-10-15) ("Hands on a Big Mixer") November 5, 2009 (2009-11-05) ("The Blast Raz")	301a/303a
"Hands on a Big Mixer" - Chowder and Mung compete in an intense contest in order to win an amazing mixer. "The Blast Raz" - Mung, Chowder and Shnitzel agree to help Gazpacho deliver a fruit to Mr. Fugu. The fruit turns out to be a highly explosive Blast Raz.
42	"The Poultry Geist / The Spookiest House in Marzipan"	October 29, 2009 (2009-10-29) ("The Poultry Geist") October 22, 2009 (2009-10-22) (" "The Spookiest House in Marzipan")	303b/301b
"The Poultry Geist" - A chicken ghost takes over Chowder's body, causing problems for the gang. "The Spookiest House in Marzipan" - Gazpacho tells a story about Chowder having to deliver an order to a scary house. Note: The Poultry Geist is somewhat a spoof to 'The Exorcist'.
43	"The Belgian Waffle Slobber-Barker / The Apprentice Scouts"	November 12, 2009 (2009-11-12) ("The Belgian Waffle Slobber-Barker") November 19, 2009 (2009-11-19) ("The Apprentice Scouts")	304b/304a
"The Belgian Waffle Slobber-Barker" - Mung Daal creates a guard dog out of food to protect the catering company, but Chowder adds a crazy fruit that makes it incredibly dangerous. "The Apprentice Scouts" - Chowder, Panini, Gorgonzola and Ceviché go on an scouting trip led by Gazpacho, but Chowder thinks he has Rabie-C's since Gazpacho is going hard on them. NOTE: This episode was dedicated Don LaFontaine.
44	"A Little Bit of Pizzazz / The Birthday Suits"	December 3, 2009 (2009-12-03) ("A Little Bit of Pizzazz") December 10, 2009 (2009-12-10) ("The Birthday Suits")	302
"A Little Bit of Pizzazz" - A baking accident causes Mung Daal, Truffles, Chowder and Schnitzel to switch bodies. "The Birthday Suits" - While trying to go to Mr. Fugu's fruit party, the gang's fruit costumes are destroyed. Now they must try to get new ones before an angry mob and the police catch them.
45	"The Heist / The Prank"	January 7, 2010 (2010-01-07) ("The Heist") January 14, 2010 (2010-01-14) ("The Prank")	305
"The Heist" - The gang finds a stash of rock candy called sugar sapphires under Endive's house and try to raid the loot before she discovers. "The Prank" - Endive feels guilty after playing a trick on Mung.
46	"Old Man Thyme / Chowder's Magazine"	January 21, 2010 (2010-01-21) ("Old Man Thyme") January 28, 2010 (2010-01-28) ("Chowder's Magazine")	306
"Old Man Thyme" - When Chowder sees the terrible effects of old age on Mung and Truffles, Chowder tries to find a way to stop Old Man Thyme from making him old and ugly. "Chowder's Magazine" - When Chowder's newspaper fails to sell, Chowder makes a new cover title known as the MIP (Most Important Person).
47	"Weekend at Schnitzel's / Taste Buds"	March 4, 2010 (2010-03-04) ("Weekend at Shnitzel's") March 11, 2010 (2010-03-11) ("Taste Buds")	307
Weekend at Shnitzel's - Shnitzel has to watch Chowder over at his house while Mung and Truffles are out of town. When Chowder says his life is too boring and drags him to a parody of Chuck E. Cheese, Shnitzel falls in love with an Animatronic, "Seniorita Mesquite". Pretty soon, his love goes too far and causes chaos. Taste Buds - Mung accidentally ruins his tongue which make makes him unable to taste things. So he asked Chowder to be his "taste buds". (This was the final appearance of Chest Nut)
48	"Gazpacho! / The Toots"	March 18, 2010 (2010-03-18) ("Gazpacho!") April 5, 2010 (2010-04-05) ("The Toots")	308
Gazpacho! - A ninja-hating friend (voiced by Steven Blum) of Gazpacho's tries to help Gazpacho find his mother. The Toots - Chowder accidentally eat a tootin' fruit and becomes a musical sensation, but his life is taken over by his agent, Gorgonzola, and soon he misses Mung and has to go back with him.
49	"Chowder Grows Up"	August 7, 2010 (2010-08-07)	309
Series Finale: Mung tells Chowder that one day he'll have to grow up and run the kitchen on his own once he becomes old enough. Chowder didn't want to grow up and sings a song explaining why, but he sings the same song for twenty years and grows up naturally. He then sees what all of his friends grew up to be, and he finally realizes that he should stop acting like a kid and grow up. Note: Series creator C. H. Greenblatt provided the voice for Adult Chowder.

References

A total of 49 episodes were aired in the series. Season One, which consists of 20 episodes, started on November 2, 2007, with "The Froggy Apple Crumble Thumpkin/Chowder's Girlfriend", and ended on July 24, 2008 with the special "The Apprentice Games". Season Two also is 20 episodes long and started on October 1, 2008, with "The Arborians/The Garage Sale", and ended out with "A Faire to Remember/Tofu-Town Showdown" on September 29, 2009 and October 6, 2009. Season Three, which is the final season, consists of only 9 episodes and began on October 12, 2009 with "The Blast Raz". The series finale aired August 7, 2010. It was entitled "Chowder Grows Up". It was a double-length episode. After the episodes air, many rumors started up about a third season or spin-off.

Reviews

After its premiere, the show was given mixed reviews by most newspapers and online animation websites. Some of the reviews were positive, two raising questions as to whether Chowder can entertain with its occasional bathroom style humor, or sometimes recycled material.

Barry Garron of The Hollywood Reporter thinks that the show will appeal to both children and adults alike, using exotic artwork, unusual settings, and a zany cast of characters. On Toon Zone, Ed Liu expands on the animation and crazy antics of the characters, pointing that the humor of the show is kid-friendly without being juvenile. Liu reminds his readers that Chowder is still in its early phases, and with just a little more time to develop, he feels that the show will be successful. Aaron H. Bynum on Animation Insider also mentions the animation, settings and crazy characters of the show, ending with the comment that Chowder is one of the biggest projects Cartoon Network has undertaken in recent times.

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Award Category	Notes	Result
2008	Annie Awards	Best Animated Television Production for Children, Writing in an Animated Television Production	C. H. Greenblatt and William Reiss for the episode "Burple Nurples"	Nominated
2008	Emmy Awards	Outstanding Special Class — Short-format Animated Programs	Episode: "Burple Nurples"	Nominated
2009	Annie Awards	Production Design in an Animated Television Production or Short Form	Dan Krall for the episode "The Heavy Sleeper"	Nominated
2009	Annie Awards	Voice Acting in an Animated Television Production or Short Form	Dwight Schultz for the role of Mung Daal	Nominated
2009	Emmy Awards	Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation	Joe Binggeli	Won
2010	Annie Awards	Voice Acting in a Television Production	Dwight Schultz, Nicky Jones	Nominated

External links

• Official website
• Chowder at the Internet Movie Database
• Chowder at the Big Cartoon DataBase
• Chowder at TV.com