Victor and Valentino is an Americananimated television series created by Diego Molano forCartoon Network. It was produced byCartoon Network Studios. The series follows the titular duo, two half-brothers staying with their grandmother in the Mexican town of Monte Macabre, as they interact with supernatural beings that plague the town, many of whom are derived fromAztec,Olmec, andMayan mythologies.

Victor and Valentino
Genre	Adventure[1] Supernatural[2] Comedy[3]
Created by	Diego Molano
Voices of	Diego Molano Sean-Ryan Petersen Laura Patalano
Composer	Arturo Rodriguez
Country of origin	United States
Original languages	English Spanish
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	119(list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Diego Molano Jennifer Pelphrey (S1–2) Tramm Wigzell (S1–2) Rob Sorcher (S1–2) Brian A. Miller (S1–2) Sam Register (S3)
Producers	Abraham Lopez Jackie Buscarino (S3)
Running time	11 minutes
Production company	Cartoon Network Studios
Original release
Network	Cartoon Network
Release	March 30, 2019 (2019-03-30) – August 26, 2022 (2022-08-26)

Molano later stated his excitement in "putting the spotlight on these cultures" and in having more representation, calling the show "a baby step" in letting Latinos feel they are "part of this tapestry that’s America".^[4] Molano also called the series "a supernatural adventure comedy with some action elements", and stated that he loves how he can explore his "favorite subject" (mythology) by focusing on "Mesoamerican mythologies of pre-Hispanic indigenous people of the Americas".^[5]

On March 30, 2019, the show premiered simultaneously in the United States and Latin America.^[6][7] On July 15, the show was renewed for a second season, which premiered on April 18, 2020.^[8] In February 2021, the show was renewed for a third season, which premiered on September 4, 2021.^[9] In August 2022, the series was removed fromHBO Max in the U.S.. Later, it was announced that the third season would be the final season of the show, with the series finale airing on August 26, 2022.^[10][11]

In the small, quiet town of Monte Macabre, two total opposite half-brothers search about the town for adventure and find strange and supernatural happenings with the help of their supernatural grandmother.^[12][5][13]

The idea for the show originally started as a thesis project titledHigh Noon in Mexico in 2002 by Molano when he was aMaryland Institute College of Art student, where Victor and Valentino were part of avideo game, along with a third brother named Vicente.^[4][14] In 2004, the idea took the name of "Victor, Valentino, and Vicente".^[15] Years later, he revisited the project when interning forTitmouse, where he worked after graduating from MICA, and worked as a "clean-up artist" onSuperjail!.^[5]

Being aLatin Americanfolk-themed show,^[16][17] itspilot episode premiered directly on the channel on October 29, 2016^[18] (two days before their localDay of the Dead). In this pilot, Molano voiced Victor, but he planned on finding someone else.^[4] However, he decided to, ultimately, voice Victor in the main show. He later stated that he was, as a kid, just like Victor, thinking he could "do no wrong", and hoped the show would give a "good lesson for kids".^[15]

The main show itself was produced at Cartoon Network's studio inBurbank, California. Molano noted that this was where all the writing, storyboarding, pre- and post-production was done, with 36 people working on pre-production, while the main production of the animation was done by two studios based inSeoul:SMIP Co., LTD. andDigital eMation, Inc.^[5] He further noted that the visual inspiration from the show came from "Mesoamerica’s beautiful, ancient art styles". In 2019, Molano expressed some of the challenges with producing the show. This included condensing "large, epic scale, sometimes adult-themed myths/stories" into 11-minute episodes and making them "digestible content rated for kids."^[5] He was inspired to borrow from "storylines from indigenous cultures all around Mesoamerica" in an attempt to bring them into the "US cultural imaginary".^[15] The art directors of the show, two brothers, Josh Parpan and Justin Parpan, who had worked onGravity Falls andDuckTales respectively, added their perspective. Their work allowed the "culturally-specific world for the series" to be constructed, which they showcased on aTumblr blog titled "Folk Art Friends – The Art of Victor and Valentino".^[19] In an interview withCartoon Brew, they expressed the need to "do something new and different artistically", and immersed themselves in "a variety of Latin American art", with many forms of inspiration.

Following the announcement that the series would end after season three, Molano pitched the idea of a spin-off about Charlene (one of the supporting characters) titledThe Lonely Haunts Club, but Cartoon Network turned it down. Concept art was drawn for the potential show.^[20] Molano has stated he is unsatisfied with the show's cliffhanger ending, and hopes to conclude the story in other media.

The show first broadcast onCartoon Network in the U.S. andLatin America on March 30, 2019, part of the channel's 2018–2019 programming lineup.^[21][22][12] The show premiered onCartoon Network UK on 26 August 2019.^[23] It then premiered on September 23 in Italy with episodes 1x7 and 1x12 and then officially premiered in October 7 with regular episodes. It also aired onCartoon Network India on November 1, 2019.

In October 2020,Cartoon Network commemoratedHispanic Heritage Month with an "ongoing content series that celebrates equality and individuality", which was narrated by Sean-Ryan Petersen (who voiced Valentino) and featured a "variety of powerful youth activists".^[24] In addition to this, fans were encouraged to streamVictor and Valentino episodes, along with those of other series, including^{[nb 1]}, in Spanish on the Cartoon Network App.

On August 17, 2022, it was announced thatHBO Max would be removing several series, includingVictor and Valentino, in the United States.^[25] The series was also removed from Cartoon Network and HBO Max in other regions the following month. Despite this, Victor and Valentino remained airing in Poland through the channelHBO 2 on Sunday mornings until the end of February 2023.

The first 18 episodes of the series were released as a DVD titled "Victor and Valentino: Folk Art Foes", on March 2, 2021 with a total running time of about 143 minutes and language options in Spanish and English.^[26]

The series has been reviewed positively.Remezcla described it as show withGravity Falls vibes and as something that aims to give Latino kids an "entertaining look at the folktales and myths that populate the American continent".^[1]Common Sense Media called the show a "comedy adventure series" based in a town which is a "setting for all kinds of supernatural oddities inspired by Latin American folklore".^[3] Other reviewers concurred. TheL.A. Times called the show a "supernatural action comedy", and praised its "mix of Mexican visual motifs and Japanese anime conventions", saying it makes for "something new, yet familiar".^[2]Gizmodo described the show as the first series onCartoon Network "starring a predominantly Hispanic cast" and praised the matter-of-fact, casual approach to "indigenous, Mesoamerican culture". The reviewer further stated that the show has the space to doworldbuilding while "letting its supernatural elements sometimes take the backseat" and called it a "clever, good-hearted show".^[27] In the same fashion,Collider stated that the animation is "a rare title that offers up something new", that it welcomes "viewers of Mesoamerican backgrounds", shares a lot withOK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes, and is a series that is "fun and funny enough for kids" while offering stories "worth watching for audiences of any age".^[28] Similarly,Deadline argued that the show gave off "some fun-filled"Steven Universe andRick and Morty vibes.^[13]

• Victor and Valentino atIMDb