Nerds and Monsters facts for kids

Nerds and Monsters is a fun Canadian cartoon show. It aired on YTV and is all about adventure! The story follows three super smart kids, often called "nerds," and a strong but not-so-smart football player. They get stuck on a strange, uncharted island.

This island is full of funny and sometimes scary monsters! The show mixes comedy, sci-fi, and action-adventure. It was made by Slap Happy Cartoons Inc.. The series also aired in many other countries, like the United Kingdom, France, Poland, Brazil, and Australia. The show ran for two seasons and ended in 2016. You can even stream it on Hulu Kids!

Meet the Characters: Nerds and Monsters!

The Nerds

These are the four main human characters who get stranded on Monster Island. They have to use their brains (and sometimes Stan's brawn) to survive!

• Dudley Squat (voiced by Tabitha St. Germain) – Dudley is the leader of the nerds, even though he's the shortest. He likes things done his way, but he tries not to be too bossy. He's usually the one coming up with the plans.
• Irwin Chang-Stein (voiced by Vincent Tong) – Irwin is a very smart Chinese Canadian nerd. He's scared of almost everything! But he has a big crush on Becky.
• Becky Hooger (voiced by Tabitha St. Germain) – Becky is a tall and very energetic nerd. She's the only girl in the group. She's also Irwin's crush, but she seems to like Stan more.
• Stan Grissle (voiced by Ty Olsson) – Stan is a strong football player, but he's not very bright. He was the best lineman on his team, the Beaverton Bulldogs. He ended up on the island by accident, saying he "got on the wrong bus." He's often the muscle of the group.

The Monsters

The island is home to many different monsters, some friendly, some not so much!

• Zarg (voiced by Brian Dobson) – Zarg is the king of all the monsters on the island. He's also Lyle's uncle. He feels like the nerds are a threat to his power as the Supreme Leader.
• Skur (voiced by Ian James Corlett) – Skur is Zarg's helper. He's a winged monster who looks a bit like a lizard. He's tired of being second-in-command and really wants to take Zarg's place as king.
• Lyle (voiced by Brian Drummond) – Lyle is a monster, but he's actually quite nerdy! He's King Zarg's nephew. He often feels pressured to act like the other monsters, even when he doesn't want to.
• Urp and Durn (voiced by Lee Tockar and Michael Adamthwaite) – These two are Lyle's parents and they share the same body! Durn is King Zarg's sister.
• Vink (voiced by Michael Daingerfield) – Vink is a huge monster, but he acts like a little kid. He gets easily distracted and has a very short attention span.
• Maiden Cheena – She is the Queen of Monster Island. Surprisingly, she's an inflatable pool toy that washed ashore! Her name comes from the "Made in China" label on her back.

Episodes: Adventures on Monster Island

The show has two exciting seasons, with a total of 40 episodes (each episode has two shorter stories).

Season 1 (2014)

The first season of Nerds and Monsters aired in 2014. It featured 20 episodes, starting with "Dear Diary / Monster and Commander" on March 12, 2014. The season ended on August 27, 2014, with "Molting Day / Zanti-Clops."

Season 2 (2016)

The second season of the show came out in 2016. It also had 20 episodes. It kicked off with "Miss Monster Island / Lucky Day" on January 8, 2016. The series wrapped up with "Behind the Scrotch / Night of the Living Nerds" on August 27, 2016.

How the Show Started: Early Ideas

Before Nerds and Monsters became the show we know, it had some different ideas! This is called an "early prototype."

The first idea for the show had four nerds instead of three. Their names were Becky Hoogerstein, Dudley Squat, Winston Chang, and Fareed Singh. They looked quite different too! Becky had curly brown hair, Dudley wore bigger glasses and had blonde hair, and Winston had shorter hair and was described as being like Spock from Star Trek. Fareed Singh was removed from the show, and Stan took his place. Becky's name was made shorter, and Winston became Irwin, with "stein" from Becky's original name added to his. Dudley's name stayed the same, but his look changed.

The monsters also looked a bit different. Zarg was first called Zar and had orange fur. Skur didn't have any fur at all. Urp and Durn's main change was getting fingers instead of their original tentacle-like hands.

Awards and Recognitions

Nerds and Monsters won and was nominated for several awards, celebrating its writing, directing, and voice acting!