Gabby's Dollhouse

Gabby's Dollhouse is an American live-action/computer-animated preschool interactive television series created by Blue's Clues veterans Traci Paige Johnson and Jennifer Twomey for Netflix which first premiered on January 5, 2021. In the series, Gabby (voiced and portrayed by Lalia Lockhart Kraner) and her cat friends called the Gabby Cats go on adventures inside the dollhouse.^[1][2]

Premise[edit]

Gabby's Dollhouse has built-in silences designed to encourage audience participation.

Each episode begins with the live-action Gabby playing in her bedroom. She then unboxes a miniature package received in the Dollhouse Delivery brought to her Meow-Meow Mailbox that is the catalyst for an adventure inside the animated world of her dollhouse.^[3] Gabby puts on her cat ears headband and shrinks down with her stuffed toy Pandy Paws who comes alive to surprise Gabby with a "hug attack". Common rituals may involve an encounter with CatRat, who often randomly appears in one of the rooms in the dollhouse.

The dollhouse has seven key cat-themed rooms where Gabby’s adventures take place with the various Gabby Cats:

• The Bathroom where MerCat does science experiments that are "spa" themed.
• The Bedroom where Pillow Cat tells stories and encourages make believe.
• The Craft Room where Baby Box and her family teach how to make DIY projects.
• The Fairytail Garden is an adjacent area where Kitty Fairy takes care of magical plants.
• The Kitchen where Cakey makes snacks and desserts decorated with cats.
• The Music Room where DJ Catnip teaches how to play musical instruments.
• The Playroom where Carlita joins in physical education games.

At the end of each episode is a "Gabby Cat of the Day" segment where one of the Gabby Cats is selected to guide the viewer one-on-one in crafting, cooking, singing, or other activities with a few episodes having Gabby in the selection. Then it goes back to live-action Gabby who closes out the episode.^[3]

Characters[edit]

Main[edit]

• Gabby (portrayed in live-action and voiced by Laila Lockhart Kraner) is the show's host. She is a cat enthusiast and has a magical cat headband which is able to shrink her down to animated toy-size (by doing the following incantation: "A pinch on my left / Pinch pinch on my right / Grab Pandy's hand and hold on tight"). Gabby's cat headband can also do other tricks like change the color of her wavy hair and activating the "Gabby Cat of the Day" segment.
• Pandy Paws (voiced by Tucker Chandler from S1-S8, Logan Bailey starting with "Mermaid Christmas Cruise") is a kitty/panda Gabby Cat who is Gabby's sidekick and best friend. He starts off as a stuffed toy that Gabby would throw her voice off of during interactions, but comes to life when he and Gabby shrink into the dollhouse as he explains in the first episode. Pandy Paws likes ambushing Gabby with "hug attacks" upon them entering the dollhouse and carries a magenta-colored Pandy Pack which he uses to hold different items.

Gabby Cats[edit]

• Carlita (voiced by Carla Tassara) is a purple and teal kitty/car Gabby Cat. She drives around the dollhouse and likes playing games in the playroom.
• Cakey (voiced by Juliet Donenfeld) is a small white kitty/cupcake Gabby Cat and makes sweet treats and snacks in the kitchen. He is able to create sprinkles (by doing either of the following: when he is sad, he does a fake cry; whenever he is excited, she spins around and yells "Sprinkle party!'). Cakey has four younger cousins named Bakey, Flakey, Marshapan, and Paddycake.
• Daniel James "DJ" Catnip (voiced by Eduardo Franco) is a lavender Gabby Cat who wears a reddish-pink glittery hoodie which is able to stretch his tail and legs in addition to mainly using them to play instruments. He operates in the music room and sometimes wears a visor over his eyes.
• CatRat (voiced by Donovan Patton) is a blue sneaky kitty/rat Gabby Cat with dark blue and light blue markings who pops up in every room. He likes everything shiny and sometimes plays the role of a villain in certain episodes.
• Pillow Cat (voiced by Sainty Nelsen) is a multi-colored kitty/pillow Gabby Cat. She likes making stories and she's usually seen sleeping in the bedroom. Her catchphrase is "That’s how I roll!".
• Kitty Fairy (voiced by Tara Strong) is a pink kitty/fairy Gabby Cat with clear, pink and green wings, a pair of wishberry blossom-like antennae, a green flower-like dress and a flower crown. She makes garden magic with her tail or her watering can as she manages the Fairytail Garden.
• MerCat (voiced by Secunda Wood) is a turquoise kitty/mermaid Gabby Cat. She makes science "spa-themed" in the bathroom and can also swim in the air to get around.
• Baby Box (voiced by Maggie Lowe) is a young pink/peach Gabby Cat who is made of cardboard. She likes making crafts in the craft room and is the daughter of Mama Box Cat. She does, sometimes, say her catchphrase: "Whoopsies!" (which would later become a song featured in the soundtrack for the series).
• Mama Box (voiced by Tara Strong) is a fuchsia/peach Gabby Cat who is the mother of Baby Box.

Supporting[edit]

• Floyd (portrayed by a female cat named Amelia) is Gabby's live-action tabby cat who makes their only appearance in the live-action sequences and rarely interacts with the Gabby Cats if they end up passed the dollhouse (as seen in the first episode) and being the "Felis Catus" that Gabby, Pandy, and Carlita had to find (as seen in "Dollhouse Safari"). In the show, Floyd is always referred to as a male for some strange reason.
• The Cat-A-Vator is a sentient and silent cat-themed elevator in the dollhouse that takes Gabby and the Gabby Cats to any of the floors in the dollhouse.
• The Box Brothers (all voiced by Jude Schwartz) are the brothers of Baby Box and sons of Mama Box.
  • Benny Box (voiced by either Jude Schwartz or Maggie Lowe) is Baby Box's baby brother who first appeared in Season 8.
• Cupcake Cousins (respectively voiced by Henry Witcher, Archibald Englehardt, Mia Lynn Bangunan, and Amari McCoy) are Cakey's four younger cousins who appeared in the episode "Cakey's Cupcake Cousins". Their names are Bakey, Flakey, Marshapan, and Paddycake. As such, the colors are, by the following order: Bakey is pink, Flakey is blue, Marshapan is green, and Paddycake is yellow. Flakey and Marshapan are male, and Bakey and Paddycake are female. The Cupcake Cousins return to appear starting with "Baby Box's Meow-Seum Day".
• Pete (voiced by Eric Lopez) is a polar bear who appears in the episode of the same name where he came to Gabby in the Dollhouse Delivery encased in ice until MerCat used spa salts to free him. He is a friend of Gabby and the Gabby Cats where they gave him his first beach experience. In the episode "Snow Cruise", Gabby and Pandy visit him in the Arctic. He returns occasionally starting with the episode "Carlita's A Meowmazing Race".
• Fluffy Flufferton (voiced by Elena Murray) is a feline pop music star who appears in the episode of the same name in season 4 and She was supposed to return in Season 7, but it didn't happen because she only appears in a teaser scene.
• Luli-Loo (voiced by Halle Hrzich) is a young blue fairy Gabby Cat who appears in the episode "The Fairy Festival". She returns starting with "True Fairy Friends".
• Bitty Fairy (voiced by Thomas Bushell [in a British accent]) is a small male black Fairy Fly with multicolored spots, who first appeared in "True Fairy Friends". Unlike the other fairies, he wears no dress (because he is male).
• DJ Comet (voiced by Reggie Watkins) is a light green Gabby Cat who is DJ Catnip's alien cousin who appeared in "Mission to Caturn". He, like DJ Catnip, is able to stretch his tail and legs, but also to spin them around like a helicopter. He returns in the episode "Dollhouse Dress-Up Chest" and "Baby Box's Crafty-riffic Adventure".
• Figgy (voiced by Rachel Ling Gordon) is a pink Christmas elf-like Gabby Cat who appears in the episode "A CAT-Tabulous Christmas". She looks a lot like what Fluffy Flufferton used to, but pink.
• Kico (vocal effects provided by Juliet Donenfeld) is a young female kitty/unicorn hybrid who appears in the episode of the same name. By fans, due to her name, she can sometimes be mistaken for a male.
• Santa Kitty (voiced by Darrell Brown) is an orange Gabby Cat who is the cat version of Santa Claus.
• Candy Cane is a red reindeer/kitty who leads Santa Kitty's sleigh.
• The Hamster Kitties (vocal effects provided by Maggie Lowe and Juliet Donenfeld) are tiny cat/hamster hybrids who occasionally appear in the series.
• The Dust Bunnies are cute small bunnies made of dust that sometimes show up.
• The Doodads are three Gabby Cats made of cardboard and other crafty things who are the rivals of Gabby, Pandy and Carlita during the Meow-Mazing Games.
• Spongey-Saurus (voiced by Kailen Jude) is a green dinosaur who appears in the episode of the same name.
• Sunny Cat (voiced by Brittney Johnson) is MerCat's sister who first appeared in Season 8.
• Kitty Narwhal (voiced by Traci Paige Johnson) is a minor character who is one of MerCat’s sea creature friends. She returns starting with "The Mermaid Cruise Ship".
• Kitty Squiddy (voiced by PT Walkley) is a blue and purple cat/squid hybrid who appears in the episode "The Magical Mermaid-Lantis as the main antagonist. He stole the three gems that activate the rainbow and he believed that he doesn't have a sparkle like anyone else, but he eventually finds his special sparkle by dancing.
• Kittyfish - The half-kitty/half-fish creature who are pets of CatRat. They have meaningful names.
  • Zeke (vocal effects provided by Maggie Lowe) is one of CatRat's Kittyfish who is a fan of hide-and-seek.
  • Munchy (vocal effects provided by Maggie Lowe) is one of CatRat's Kittyfish who eats crunchy foods.
  • Dot (vocal effects provided by Juliet Donenfeld) is one of CatRat's Kittyfish who likes putting dots all over paintings. She is the only Kittyfish who is a female.
  • Disco (vocal effects provided by Juliet Donenfeld) is one of CatRat's Kittyfish who is a fan of dance moves.
• Hsiu Hsiu (voiced by Aria Surrec) is MerCat and Sunny Cat's younger sister, who first appeared in the Gabby’s Dollhouse Holiday Special of 2023. She will be promoted starting with season 10.
• The Silly Bad Guys (all voiced by PT Walkley) are the bad guys that CatRat invented in the episode "Baby Box's Crafty-riffic Adventure." They even had their own musical number called "Silly Bad Guys." in the series. Each of the bad guys have specialties
  • Sneaky Spoon is one the Silly Bad Guys who likes being sneaky and making messes
  • Horrible Hose is one of the Silly Bad Guys who likes flooding areas, Horrible Hose flooded Kitty Fairy's Fairy Tail Garden in "Baby Box's Crafty-riffic Adventure."
  • Tricky Trumpet is one of the Silly Bad Guys who blows DJ Catnip's banjo all the way to space.
  • Hungry Dragon is one of the Silly Bad Guys made out of paper cups as seen in "Paper Cup Poppers."
  • Dizzy the Doughnut is one of the Silly Bad Guys who was mentioned in the song "Silly Bad Guys".

Episodes[edit]

The first episode was released as a sneak peek on YouTube on August 22, 2020, while the series itself was released on January 5, 2021.^[4][5] The second season premiered on August 10, 2021,^[6] while the third season premiered on October 19, 2021.^[7] The fourth season premiered on February 1, 2022,^[8] the fifth season premiered on July 25, 2022,^[9] the sixth season premiered on November 1, 2022,^[10] the seventh season premiered on March 20, 2023,^[11] and the eighth season premiered on August 7, 2023.^[12] "The Mermaid Christmas Cruise" aired on November 6, 2023, as part of Season 8.^[13] The ninth season premiered on March 25, 2024.^[14]

Production and development[edit]

The show was created early in the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the first DreamWorks property where the creators were based in New York City instead of Los Angeles, and the whole production team, including the creators, were connected via videoconferencing, also a first for a DreamWorks production.^[15]

The basic themes of the show — dollhouses, miniatures, and cats — were creators Traci Page Johnson and Jennifer Twomey's favorites, while the concept of the "dollhouse deliveries" was inspired by unboxing videos, although tweaked so that instead of "unboxing a product", they "unbox a story".^[16] Initially, cats were not the main theme of the show — for example, the character of DJ Catnip was originally supposed to be a clock — but this was changed based on the trend of cat videos.^[15]

Early in the show's production, the creators came across Carol Dweck's book The Growth Mindset, which has led to the production team adopting the idea of celebrating mistakes and "failing fantastically", which is promoted on the show.^[15][17]

The soundtrack of the show includes genres not often found in children's shows, such as disco/pop (the genre used for DJ Catnip's theme song "The Music In You"), which is due to the creators not liking "saccharine-y sweet music".^[16]

Animation production for the show was provided by Technicolor Animation Productions (later Mikros Animation) (Seasons 1-6 only), Dave Enterprises, CGCG, and Gabby Gabby Hey Productions, Ltd. with live action provided by One-Take Floyd.^{[citation needed]}

Broadcast[edit]

The show made its linear debut on Cartoonito in Latin America on April 18, 2022, on Treehouse TV in Canada on October 15, 2022, and on Tiny Pop in the United Kingdom on October 17, 2022.^[18] The show made its American linear premiere on the Nick Jr. Channel on May 1, 2023,^[19] Nickelodeon on June 5, 2023, and Mick Kids Latinoamerica, where it is dubbed in Spanish.^[19] Gabby's Dollhouse was removed from Nickelodeon on June 8, 2023.^[19] The show airs in the Philippines on TV5, where it is dubbed in Tagalog.^[20]

In Poland series made debut on linear tv on channel MiniMini+ on 20 December 2021.

Reception[edit]

The show was nominated for a Kidscreen award in 2021 and released a series of show-themed toys for the 2021 holiday season.^[21][22] For the episode "Cakey's Cupcake Cousins", it was nominated for Best Animated Television/Broadcast Production for Preschool Children at the 50th Annie Awards.^[23]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Gabby's Dollhouse at Netflix
• Gabby's Dollhouse at IMDb