The original Rainbow Brite animated series is ready to bring nostalgic color back into fans’ lives with a 40th anniversary re-launch across its social channels. Comprising 13 episodes, the iconically ’80s cartoon was produced by DIC Enterprises with animation from TMS Entertainment in Japan, voice starring actress and pop star Bettina Bush.
For RB’s big celebration, the official Rainbow Brite Instagram, Facebook and TikTok channels have received a refresh. Thanks to enthusiastic fan response (engagement of nearly +10% over industry average; 250,000 views in one month), the original show will make its free streaming debut through YouTube, re-releasing episodes starting at 5 p.m. EST / 2 p.m. PST today (April 3).
The series follows a young girl named Wisp on a quest to bring color back into the world with the magical “Sphere of Light.” With the help of new friends Twink the sprite and Starlite the talking horse, the little hero discovers a baby who holds the key to her mission, retrieves the legendary Color Belt, frees the Color Kids from the King of Shadows and restores light and beauty to the land, fulfilling her destiny as Rainbow Brite. Through the series, Rainbow Brite and the Color Kids seek to spread color across the universe — although their mission is often impeded by gloom-bringing villains like Murky Dismal and his sidekick, Lurky.
Launched as a franchise by Hallmark Cards in 1984, the Rainbow Brite cartoon followed the same year and was quickly joined by a popular toy line from Mattel. The animated feature Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer was released by Warner Bros. in 1985. An evergreen licensing brand, Rainbow Brite has also translated to comics and received an animated series reboot with a modern redesign for Hallmark’s Feeln platform in 2014, voice starring Emily Osment as Rainbow Brite and Molly Ringwald as Dark Princess.
Rainbow Brite has spawned countless product lines over the last four decades, generating more than $600 million in wholesale revenue. In celebration of the brand’s anniversary this year, fans can look forward to an expansive new licensing program with 15-plus licensees bringing new products to retail shelves across multiple categories. There will also be special events and activations, such as the roller skating party in L.A. presented by The Loyal Subjects that welcomed more than 500 kids and their families.
