Fear Not, Over the Garden Wall Fans: It's Not Leaving Hulu After All
Ten years after Over the Garden Wall made its Cartoon Network debut, its fandom has only grown more devoted—and more protective. Many have added the 10-part animated tale of young half-brothers (voiced by Elijah Wood and Collin Dean) questing through an enchanted forest to their annual list of Halloween season re-watches, and as that time of year draws near, concern sparked when it seemed Hulu was teetering on removing the show from its offerings.
Over the Garden Wall creator Patrick McHale brought the issue to widespread attention when he shared a worried tweet, containing an image from the streamer that seemed to indicate it was “expiring” yesterday, September 19. The tweet has since been removed, but it read: “Uh oh, is today the last day to watch Over the Garden Wall on Hulu this fall before it’s removed? Oops! Is that the last place for people to legally stream it? Happy 10th Anniversary!”
Later, he updated with more cheerful news:
UPDATE!!! Hulu has confirmed that Over the Garden Wall is NOT leaving their platform! Wonderful news! https://t.co/9BDbP6Sk5R
— Patrick McHale (@Patrick_McHale) September 20, 2024
However, the Over the Garden Wall faithful hadn’t quite reached the end of the saga when that tweet was posted. Earlier today, the series hadn’t quite been fully restored—at first, only episodes two and seven were accessible; upon checking a little while later, every episode except episodes two and seven popped up under the title page. Now, all 10 are fully available. This lines up with what a Disney spokesperson told io9 when contacted about the situation: it was a “technical issue” that’s since been resolved.
McHale was pleased:
Over the Garden Wall is NOT leaving Hulu! Just got official confirmation! (Most episodes are already back up and the rest should be up before too long). Phew!
Happy Fall everyone! 🔺🫖🐸🍂 pic.twitter.com/7cbnIzbMyL
— Patrick McHale (@Patrick_McHale) September 20, 2024
As viewers well know by now, it’s the nature of streaming services that content periodically comes and goes; if Over the Garden Wall was indeed slated to be rotated out just before spooky season, and on the occasion of its 10th anniversary, it seems Hulu either corrected its mistake or changed its mind—a good call either way.
Here’s the official synopsis for Over the Garden Wall: “Over the Garden Wall is Cartoon Network’s first animated mini-series event that tells the story of two brothers, Wirt and Greg, who find themselves lost in a strange forest. With the help of a bluebird named Beatrice, they must travel across this strange land in hope of finding their way home. Featuring the voices of Elijah Wood, Melanie Lynskey, Chris Isaak, Christopher Lloyd, and John Cleese.”
Other voices include Shirley Jones, Tim Curry, Thomas Lennon, Jenna Ortega, and Bebe Neuwirth. In 2015, it won an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program, and has spawned spin-off comic books and a graphic novel series; it’s also become a popular inspiration for Halloween costumes as well as comics-convention cosplay.
Is Over the Garden Wall on your annual spooky season list—and are you planning to stream it now that it’s sticking around on Hulu?
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