Netflix's 'Tuca & Bertie' Brought Back From the Dead

Published on May 25, 2020

Critics and audiences agreed: Tuca & Bertie was a delight. It was a zany, colorful, and personal piece of animation about the friendship between two lovably flawed birds (voiced by Ali Wong and Tiffany Haddish). Unfortunately, Netflix declined a second season of the animated series, but fortunately for us fans of the show, Adult Swim has come to the rescue. 

Season Two Announcement 

More episodes of Tuca & Bertie are coming in 2021. Following the early cancelation of the series last year, its creator, Lisa Hanawalt (Bojack Horseman), expressed hope the series could live on elsewhere. Hanawalt, thankfully, got her wish. In a statement to The Wrap, she said: 

“I’ve been a fan of Adult Swim shows since my teens, so I’m thrilled to bring my beloved fowl to the party and be a new voice for a fresh decade of absurd, irreverent, yet heartwarming adult animation.”

The Cancelation 

The cancellation of Tuca & Bertie was genuinely surprising. We don’t know how many people watched the show, per usual with Netflix, but the people watching liked what they saw. It has two stars still on the rise, Ali Wong and Tiffany Haddish, as the leads. It could’ve kept growing and growing into something bigger and better. At the time of its cancellation, Hanawalt expressed gratitude and hope: 

“Tuca & Bertie is everything I wanted it to be: beautiful, funny, fresh, loving, horny, weird, experimental, comforting, and deep. Thank you to everyone who loves and supports T&B, and to everyone who was comforted and felt like this show gave you a voice. I’m hopeful we can find a home for Tuca & Bertie to continue their adventures.”

A Chance To Grow

Tuca & Bertie is a good show. It could one day even be a great show. The comedy definitely took a few episodes to find its footing and identity, but once it did towards the end, it became a goofy yet poignant series about friendship and pain. There was more underneath the surface of Tuca & Bertie season one. Once what was there was revealed, it was devastating. There’s so much more to these animal characters and the world-at-large to show in future seasons.

Perfect for Adult Swim 

Maybe Netflix simply wasn’t the right fit for Tuca & Bertie. Netflix just pumps out content like there’s no tomorrow, so sometimes even high quality shows and movies get lost in the shuffle. They don’t get their due or spotlight on the very busy platform. Some content gets strangely buried on Netflix. There was definitely noise around Tuca & Bertie, but at Adult Swim, maybe the show will get the spotlight, promotion, and love it deserves. It’s such a heartfelt, earnest, and sincere show that it really is quite wonderful to hear it’ll get 10 more episodes at the house of Adult Swim. 

Tuca & Bertie feels right at home for Adult Swim. Their audience appreciates mature, thoughtful animation, like Rick & Morty, Venture Bros., and loads of other animated programs. The fact that Tuca & Bertie are now new members and faces of the Adult Swim family, that’s great. It’s just all-around great news for all involved in the charming show. It’s great news, too, for those of us fans who thoroughly enjoyed its many charms last summer when it debuted. Cheers to Tuca & Bertie, two fantastic friends we can’t wait to resume their oddball yet personal journeys. 

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Jack Giroux is a Staff Writer at Grit Daily. Based in Los Angeles, he is an entertainment journalist who's previously written for Thrillist, Slash Film, Film School Rejects, and The Film Stage.

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