2011 in animation is an overview of notable events, including notable awards, list of films released, television show debuts and endings, and notable deaths. __TOC__
Events
January January 1: The first episode of Dan Vs. airs. January 3: The first episode of Wild Kratts airs on PBS Kids Go!, later on PBS Kids. January 7: Puella Magi Madoka Magica premieres on MBS (and later TBS and CBC), receiving widespread acclaim audiences and critics for its beautifully dark, boundary-pushing reinvention of the magical girl subgenre and becoming one of the greatest anime series of the 2010s and of all time. January 9: The first episode of Bob's Burgers aired. January 14: The first episode of Ninjago airs on Cartoon Network. January 24: The first episode of Bubble Guppies airs on Nickelodeon.
February February 11: Entertainment One Films' Gnomeo & Juliet premieres. Phineas and Ferb concludes its second season on Disney Channel with the premiere of the episodes "Make Play/Candace Gets Busted". February 14: Disney Junior launches as Disney Channel's new preschool block after Playhouse Disney was shut down. February 27: 83rd Academy Awards: Toy Story 3 by Lee Unkrich wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. The song We Belong Together by Randy Newman from the same movie wins the Academy Award for Best Original Song. The Lost Thing by Andrew Ruhemann and Shaun Tan wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
March March 4: Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon's Rango premieres. The movie gained controversy in California for the depictions of smoking in a children's movie. It was petitioned to receive an R rating, but failed to so. Further tobacco depictions would be phased out from the subsequent family-friendly films because of it. Season 3 of Phineas and Ferb begins on Disney Channel with the premiere of the episodes "The Great Outdoors/Canderemy". The premiere of the season brought in a total of over 3.3 million viewers that night.Seidman, Robert (March 7, 2011). "Friday Cable Ratings: NBA on ESPN Tops Night + 'Suite Life on Deck,' 'Smackdown' 'Merlin' & More". TV by the Numbers. Zap2it. Archived from the original on March 11, 2011. Retrieved March 7, 2011. March 11: Walt Disney Pictures and ImageMovers Digital's Mars Needs Moms is released, the film will become a major box-office bomb. March 13: The first episode of BoBoiBoy airs. March 22: The film Rio is released. March 23: Sym-Bionic Titan is canceled after 20 episodes due to low merchandise sales and series creator Genndy Tartakovsky leaving Cartoon Network to work with Sony Pictures Animation. March 26: The first episode of Larva airs.
April April 1: Illumination's live-action/animated film, Hop is released. April 3: Tiger & Bunny premieres on Tokyo MX (with subsequent broadcasts on BS11 and MBS), instantly winning over critics and audiences with its refreshing, corporate-sponsored buddy-cop dynamic and becoming one of the standout superhero anime hits of the decade. Nichijou premieres on TV Aichi (and later across independent regional networks), gradually overcoming mixed reviews from critics to earn a passionate cult following as one of the finest and most masterfully animated surreal comedies of all time. April 4: Cartoon Network's infamous program The Problem Solverz premieres, which received extremely negative reviews for its intense visual designs as the program was removed from the channel's schedule shortly after one season. April 6: Steins;Gate premieres on Tokyo MX (and later across independent UHF stations in Japan), earning critical and public acclaim for its deeply human, psychologically harrowing time-travel narrative and securing its legacy as one of the greatest anime series ever made. April 14: Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day premieres on Fuji TV's Noitamina block, gaining acclaim from audiences and critics for its profoundly devastating, cathartic exploration of shared childhood grief and becoming one of the premier anime tear-jerkers of the 2010s. April 24: The series finale of Total Drama World Tour premieres on Teletoon in Canada. April 27: Season 15 of South Park begins on Comedy Central with the premiere of the episode "HumancentiPad". It was seen by just over 3.1 million viewers that night.Gorman, Bill (April 28, 2011). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'South Park' Premiere, NBA Playoffs Lead Night + 'Justified,' 'Mythbusters,' 'Real World' and More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 1, 2011. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
May May 1: The first episode of Raa Raa the Noisy Lion aired. May 3: The first episodes of The Amazing World of Gumball & The Looney Tunes Show aired on Cartoon Network. Punky airs for the first time. May 15: The Cleveland Show concludes its second season on Fox with the episode "Hot Cocoa Bang Bang". The finale was seen by exactly 4.9 million viewers that night.Calabria, Rosario T. (May 23, 2011). "Broadcast TV Ratings for Sunday, May 22, 2011". Your Entertainment Now. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2023. May 22: The film Kung Fu Panda 2 premiered. American Dad! concludes its seventh season on Fox with the episode "Gorillas in the Mist". The finale was seen by over 3.5 million viewers that night.Gorman, Bill (May 24, 2011). "Sunday Final Ratings: 'Billboard Music Awards,' 'Celebrity Apprentice,' 'Funniest Videos,' 'Family Guy,' 'American Dad,' '60 Minutes' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 27, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2023. The Simpsons concludes its 22nd season on Fox with the episode "The Ned-Liest Catch", in which Ned Flanders and Edna Krabappel become romantically involved, ending on a cliffhanger regarding whether or not they will stay together. Viewers are invited to vote over the matter. On September 25, at the start of the new season, the next episode "The Falcon and the D'ohman" reveals that they have indeed become a couple by viewer request. Bob's Burgers concludes its first season on Fox with the episode "Torpedo". The finale was seen by just over 4.3 million viewers that night. Family Guy concludes its ninth season on Fox with the final episode in the Star Wars trilogy parody "Its a Trap!". The finale was seen by over 5.8 million viewers that night.
June June 1: Peter Dodd's Freddy Frogface premiered. Joann Sfar and Antoine Delesvaux' The Rabbi's Cat was released, based on Sfar's graphic novel of the same name. June 13: Season 5 of Johnny Test begins on Cartoon Network with the premiere of the episodes "Johnny Goes Nuts/Johnny Daddy Day"."Shows A-Z - johnny Test on cartoon". The Futon Critic. Retrieved May 29, 2026. June 18: The Walt Disney Company/Pixar film Cars 2 was released, which gained negative attention over the 2006 predecessor for lacking the originality, unnecessary spy themes, and gun violence. June 27: Nickelodeon launches a revival of Winx Club with a one-hour special. Specific date unknown: Dutch animator Rosto's The Monster of Nix was released, a mixture of live-action and animation, with the voices of Tom Waits, Terry Gilliam and The Residents.
July July 15: Winnie the Pooh is released, receiving favorable reviews. Due to John Lasseter’s involvement and devotion with the CG animation for subsequent films, this would be the last traditionally animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios until Lasseter left Disney in 2018 and the studio announced in 2019 that there would be possibilities for more hand-drawn films in the future. July 17: Goro Miyazaki's From Up on Poppy Hill premieres.
August August 1: Secret Mountain Fort Awesome airs its first episode on Cartoon Network. August 5: Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension, the first film based on Phineas and Ferb, premiered on Disney Channel to critical acclaim. The film's premiere reeled in a total of 7.6 million viewers that night, thus making it the highest-rated animated children's program of the year."Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension" Averages 7.6 Million Total Viewers By Robert Seidman – August 6, 2011 August 19: Alan Becker releases "Animator vs Animation III" on Newgrounds. August 25: Phineas and Ferb creators Dan Povenmire & Jeff "Swampy" Marsh make a multi-year deal with Disney Television Animation which includes the following:Andreeva, Nellie (August 25, 2011). "'Phineas And Ferb' Creators Sign Deals With Disney For Series, Feature, Potential Spinoff". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved November 4, 2014. A fourth season renewal of the show. A pilot for a potential spin-off of the show. August 31: After 11 years, Between the Lions is removed from PBS Kids.
September September 3: Scooby-Doo! Legend of the Phantosaur premieres on Cartoon Network. The film gave us the "Ultra Instinct Shaggy" meme 6 years later.Radulovic, Petrana (January 29, 2019). "What is the Ultra Instinct Shaggy meme?: an investigation". Polygon. Archived from the original on June 1, 2022. Retrieved February 4, 2019. September 8: Futurama concludes its sixth season on Comedy Central with the episode "Reincarnation". The finale was seen by over 1.4 million viewers that night.Gorman, Bill (September 9, 2011). "Thursday Cable: 'Jersey Shore' Takes A Hit, Still Dominates, 'Burn Notice,' 'Suits,' 'Wilfred,' 'Futurama' Finales & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on September 25, 2011. Retrieved September 10, 2011. September 12: The first episode of Detentionaire airs. Johnny Test concludes its fourth season on Cartoon Network with the episode "Johnny X Strikes Back Again!". September 16: The film Top Cat: The Movie premieres. September 21: The first episode of Plim Plim airs. September 25:Gorman, Bill (September 27, 2011). "Sunday Final Ratings: 'Desperate Housewives,' 'CSI:Miami,' 'The Simpsons' Adjusted Up; '60 Minutes' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved September 28, 2011. Season 23 of The Simpsons begins on Fox with the premiere of the episode "The Falcon and the D'ohman", which features the following guest stars: Tom Colicchio, Kevin Michael Richardson, & Kiefer Sutherland. Season 3 of The Cleveland Show begins on Fox with the premiere of the episode "BFFs", guest starring professional wrestler Ric Flair. Season 10 of Family Guy begins on Fox with the premiere of the episode "Lottery Fever". Season 8 of American Dad! begins on Fox with the premiere of the episode "Hot Water". September 29: The Danish film Ronal the Barbarian is released. The Problem Solverz concludes its first season on Cartoon Network with the episode "Tux Dog's Island". This was the last episode to air on Cartoon Network as the show's second & final season would instead release on Netflix due to its critically negative reception.
October October 1: Fate/Zero first airs on Tokyo MX (along with other Japanese syndication networks), quickly receiving widespread critical and audience acclaim for its mature storytelling and stellar animation and becoming largely recognized as one of the best anime series of both 2011 and the entire decade. October 2: The first episode of China, IL airs. The Seth MacFarlane crossover event "Night of the Hurricane" occurs on Fox: Part 1: The Hurricane! (The Cleveland Show) Part 2: Seahorse Seashell Party (Family Guy) Critics & fans have declared this to be the worst episode of the show, mainly due to Meg taking back everything she said about Peter, Lois, & Chris at the end of the episode, even though she had every right to scold them for constantly bullying her all these years. Part 3: Hurricane! (American Dad!) Hunter × Hunter premieres on Nippon TV, surpassing the 1999 anime adaptation to achieve near-universal acclaim as one of the greatest anime series of the decade and of all time. October 16: Puss in Boots, a spin-off in the Shrek franchise, is first released.