Lucas the Spider

Lucas the Spider is an animated character created by animator Joshua Slice, named after and previously voiced by his nephew. Lucas is based on a jumping spider and has starred in multiple short YouTube videos between 2017 and 2019.

History
The first Lucas the Spider video was uploaded on November 5, 2017. Lucas was met with a highly positive reception for his gentle and warm-hearted nature.

In 2018, a plushie of Lucas the Spider was released for sale online. In May 2018, the series was acquired by Canadian production company Fresh TV. In December 2018, Lucas the Spider appeared in YouTube Rewind 2018.

2020 saw no new YouTube episodes. In various replies within posts to comments on his Instagram, Slice has stated that they "haven't posted any new content for a while because the team is hard at work on the TV show!" A short upload on YouTube on July 29, 2021 announced then-upcoming episodes on the Cartoonito programming block on Cartoon Network. This was followed by more short cartoons and excerpts from television episodes.

A species of jumping spiders, Salticus lucasi, has been named after this character.

Episode
one

YouTube video
YouTube episodes are between nineteen and eighty-five seconds in length.

Following these, three compilation shorts were posted:
 * All the Songs (March 5, 2021)
 * Boop (April 16, 2021)
 * How to be a Friend Like Lucas (May 21, 2021)

In February 2020, it was announced that a Lucas the Spider TV series has secured a global distribution deal with Cartoon Network and Boomerang. It is shown on Cartoon Network's Cartoonito block. A 'first look' cartoon titled "Fun with Findley" was uploaded on YouTube on July 29, 2021. In the following months, this was followed by more new shorts (initially introducing supporting characters from the TV series) and excerpts from the TV show (not mentioned in this table).

Characters

 * Lucas is a powerful jumping spider. He lives in a big, bright Victorian house named House with all his friends. He is known as Dr. Lucas who first appeared in “The Big Squeak”, Detective Lucas who first appeared in “Farewell Sweet Ride”, and The Mighty Boop who first appeared in “The Mighty Boop and Fly Wonder”.
 * Findley (a.k.a. Bzzz) is a housefly and one of the main characters. He is Lucas’ best friend and sidekick. He loves eating anything from the garbage. He first appeared in “New Friend".
 * Bodhi is a chameleon and one of Lucas’ friends. She loves doing different sports like snowboarding (without snow) and sometimes enjoys meditating. Because she’s a chameleon, Bodhi also has the ability to change colors and turn invisible. In Sanskrit, her name means “enlightenment”. She first appeared in “Extreme Bodhi”.
 * Avocado is a French bulldog puppy. She mostly wears pink pajamas with bones on them, but wears different clothing in some episodes.
 * Arlo is a blue and white baby owl who lives outside in a tree along with his mother and Maizie. He sometimes visits Lucas and his other friends in House. He first appeared in “Arlo’s Lullaby”.
 * Maizie is a bumblebee who lives outside along with Arlo, his mother, and her family. Maizie has a pink flower on her head. She often crashes somewhere, then calls it “landing”. Maizie also visits Lucas and his other friends in House sometimes. She first appeared in “Marvelous Maizie”.
 * Dimples is a purple goldfish who lives in a tank with Weebiscuit and Hans. She first appeared in “Stand Up Dimples”.
 * Weebiscuit is a yellow seahorse who is one of the characters in Lucas the Spider. He is one of Lucas’ friends who lives in a tank with Dimples and Hans. Unlike the other characters, he can’t talk. He first appeared in “Stand Up Dimples”.
 * Ant is an ant who is a recurring character. It is one of Lucas’ friends. It first appeared in “Extreme Bodhi”.
 * Bird is a bird who is a recurring character. She is Lucas’ primary rival. She first appeared in “Encore”.
 * Moth is a moth who is a minor character and antagonist. He only appeared in “Ghost Camp” in which he flies around the slide which scares Lucas, and Lucas thinks he’s Whitebone.
 * Skunk is a skunk who is a minor character. She first appeared in “Skunked”.
 * Jump-Jump is a caterpillar who is a minor character in Lucas the Spider. She is one of Lucas’ friends. She only appeared in “Jumping Pal”.
 * Robot is a yellow robot who is a minor character. He is known as the Beep Beep Beast in “Never Boop a Robot”. He is one of Lucas’ rivals (possibly led by Bird). He first appeared in “Never Boop a Robot”.

Television series
In March 2018, following the purchase of the series by Fresh TV, the company announced to produce a long-form series based on the web series.

In February 2020, Cartoon Network acquired the US broadcast rights to the series for a broadcast in early 2021 on the main channel and on Boomerang. However, the series instead became a launch series for the Cartoonito block, and began airing on the block on September 18, 2021. The series left Cartoonito on September 23, 2022, and later HBO Max on September 30, leaving three episodes unaired in the US, however they would air in Canada. On August 31, 2023, the series returned to Max, with all episodes of Season 1. Season 1 began streaming on Netflix on October 30, 2023. Unlike other broadcasts of it, the series premiered in PAL pitch.

The series returned to the Cartoonito lineup on December 1, 2023 to air its last three episodes, but left the lineup again on April 5, 2024.