Cartoon Network Creator Unveils the Reboot That Never Happened

Cartoon Network is in a full-on nostalgia phase right now. Regular Show: The Lost Tapes has Mordecai and Rigby back in the mix in a big way, and this summer the network is rolling out Adventure Time: Side Quests to poke around Finn and Jake's younger years. But not every trip down memory lane gets a greenlight. Case in point: a Chowder revival that sounded genuinely fun... and got shut down anyway.

What Greenblatt pitched (and what we almost got)

Chowder creator C.H. Greenblatt says Cartoon Network actually asked him to take a swing at a reboot. He put together a prequel idea called 'Chowder: First Course' aimed at a younger audience, centered on baby-steps-in-the-kitchen versions of Chowder, Panini, and Gorgonzola learning how to cook. Mung Daal would have been back too, mentoring the kids. Greenblatt even posted three pieces of development art from the pitch on Instagram — goofy, charming sketches he did after a long break from drawing those characters. He notes he pulled this together around 2024, right after finishing Jellystone. Very behind-the-scenes, very 'here's what it could have been.'

• Title: 'Chowder: First Course' (prequel concept)
• Focus: Young Chowder, Panini, and Gorgonzola learning to cook; Mung Daal returning
• Audience: Skewed younger than the original
• Status: Pitched at Cartoon Network, not picked up
• Development art: Three pieces shared by Greenblatt on Instagram
• Timing: Work on the pitch happened around 2024, post-Jellystone

Meanwhile, the revival train rolls on

Even as First Course stalled out, Cartoon Network's 2026 throwback strategy is otherwise humming. Regular Show: The Lost Tapes is already a hit, and Adventure Time: Side Quests is due this summer to cover Finn and Jake's early-era adventures.

A quick Chowder refresher (and where to watch)

The original Chowder ran for three seasons from 2007 to 2010, following an overeager apprentice chef who basically loved food as much as he loved making it. The show picked up an Emmy win and two additional nominations along the way. It never officially returned — until now, apparently, when it almost did. If you want to revisit it: the series didn't migrate from HBO Max to Tubi like a bunch of other Cartoon Network titles. Instead, all three seasons are streaming on Hulu.

Greenblatt has kept the spirit alive elsewhere

Even without a Chowder revival, Greenblatt's Jellystone has been his big love letter to Cartoon Network and Hanna-Barbera history, mashing a ton of legacy characters together. In the crossover event Crisis on Infinite Mirths, a pile of familiar faces crashed the party — including a blink-and-you-miss-it Chowder cameo.

So... could Chowder still come back?

Last year, Greenblatt sounded game if the stars align:

'I would definitely be up for it. There's been some pitches at Warner for it. I think it really comes down to timing and budgets, but I would be open. I wouldn't say no.'

Short version: never say never. For now, though, First Course is a look at the Chowder reboot that almost was — and a reminder that even in a revival-happy year, some good ideas still get left in the test kitchen.