Nickelodeon Is Delivering A Sword And Sorcery Series… With Puppets?

Friends, I want to give a big tip of the hat to Rob Bricken of io9 for the heads up on the fact that Nickelodeon is preparing to release a brand new series entitled The Barbarian and the Troll. A show set to debut on April 2nd but more importantly one that takes place in the sword and sorcery genre and also happens to feature puppets who are quick to draw weapons and get into fights in taverns. At least that seems to be the case judging by the six minute preview that Nickelodeon released a few days ago, not to mention that The Barbarian and the Troll certainly appears to be very meta in its approach to humor.

The story for the upcoming series focuses on Brendar (voiced by Spencer Grammer of Rick & Morty), a mighty barbarian who finds herself on an epic quest… along with a bridge troll, a talking owl, and possibly a bumbling wizard to battle a demon in the hopes of freeing her brother.

While I am definitely an easy mark when it comes to any entertainment involving puppetry, I suppose we need to chalk that one up to the legacy of Jim Henson and The Muppets, but I believe that preview shows a lot of promise. There were quite a few laugh-out-loud moments, in particular I have to admit that I giggled for a bit when seeing the skeleton minion wearing braces.

The Barbarian and the Troll was co-created by Drew Massey and Mike Mitchell, the former is not only co-writer along with Mitchell but provides the voice for Evan the Troll. In addition Massey has worked on the likes of Men in Black, Muppets Tonight, as well as the overlooked Disney+ series Earth to Ned. Mitchell has been known to provide voice work as well, just a few highlights include Monkeybone, Monsters vs. Aliens, and Megamind. Although having said that he might be better known for his role as a director with Sky High, Trolls, and The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part to name just a few.

In closing out this article, it looks like we have a lot of entertainment headed our way in the next couple of weeks. From the just released Pacific Rim: The Black, to the upcoming The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Godzilla vs. Kong, the second season of Shudder’s Creepshow, and now The Barbarian and the Troll.