Kappa Mikey, an animated sitcom set in the world of Japanese anime but created and produced in New York City, will debut on the Nicktoons Network with two half-hour, back-to-back episodes on Saturday, February 25 from 8 pm to 9 pm (ET, PT).  Produced by MTV Networks, the 26-episode series takes place on and off the set of a fictional anime series, LilyMu, and revolves around the comic misadventures of Mikey Simon, an unknown U.S. actor from Cleveland who won a contest that gave him a shot at a voice acting job in Japan, where he unexpectedly became an immediate hit.  Kappa Mikey (see 'Faux Anime Series From MTV') is filled with fish-out-of-water cross-cultural comedy and slapstick action and leavened with plenty of pop culture references and in-jokes for kids and adults alike.

Sony Music Japan recording artists Beat Crusaders provided the theme song for the series, which should help create an authentic anime flavor (Beat Crusaders lead vocalist Toru Hidaka supervised the musical aspects of the hit anime series Beck). 

Larry Schwarz, the founder of Animation Collective, created Kappa Mikey.   Schwarz served as a producer on Wulin Warriors for the Cartoon Network and on the first season of The Incredible Crash Dummies for 4Kids.

The various Nickelodeon cable channels have never presented much in the way of true anime programming, but they have been quick to adapt the style and techniques of anime in series such as Avatar: The Last Airbender (see 'Faux Anime Feted in N.Y. Times') and now Kappa Mikey.