Lilo and Stitch - 15th Anniversary Celebration

Sadly Craig has been notified that a US release of Stitch and Ai isn’t a sure thing and suggests anyone who do want to see the series should post comments on the Disney/ABC Television Group Facebook page. Sadly Craig has been notified that a US release of Stitch and Ai isn’t a sure thing and suggests anyone who do want to see the series should post comments on the Disney/ABC Television Group Facebook page. The things you can learn by being on social media.  For instance; I’m Facebook friends with artist David Alvarez, creator of the comic strip Yenny, who’s done outstanding work on the DC titles Looney Tunes and Scooby Doo Team-Up.  He’s Facebook friends with Tony Craig, who has worked as a director and producer for Disney on a variety of animation projects, including the Lilo and Stitch movies and TV series.  Which is how I learned that for over two years, he’s been working on a 13-episode series called Stitch and Ai which began airing in China this month. In this iteration, Stitch lands in the Huangshan Mountains of China where he’s befriended by a little girl named Ai while being pursued by evil aliens.

Unlike the anime spin-off from 2008, Disney Stitch!, where Stitch landed on a Japanese island which was made specifically for the Japanese market (Tokyopop has so far published two volumes of the translated manga adaptation done by Yumi Tsukirino under the title Disney Stitch!), Stitch and Ai was animated in English for a US release and then translated into Mandarin for Chinese audiences.  Production art and a video of a trailer for the series have been posted on Craig’s Facebook page and Disney fans, and fans of Stitch in particular, will want to take a look, because both the visuals and animation are gorgeous.