The Life & Times of Juniper Lee is an American animated television series created by former MTV reality star Judd Winick for Cartoon Network and produced by Cartoon Network Studios. It premiered May 30, 2005, on Cartoon Network and ended its run on May 14, 2007.
Premise
The series centers on the life of a preteen girl named Juniper Lee, who lives in Orchid Bay City. Based on Winick's adopted hometown of San Francisco, the city is a hub for magical activity and is filled with various monsters and demons, both good and evil. The magic and human worlds have been separated by an invisible, mystical shield known as "the Veil," which prevents ordinary humans from seeing any magic-related events or the creatures related to them. Juniper has recently been made the new Te Xuan Ze, the protector of the balance between the human and magical worlds.
To accomplish her task, Juniper has been magically enhanced, making her far stronger and faster than ordinary humans; her abilities include superhuman strength, speed, agility, and reflexes. She can also use several different types of spells to assist her. Maintaining the balance often interferes with her personal life, including her schoolwork and social life, but she always manages to keep everything in order.
Production
The Life and Times of Juniper Lee was first announced during Cartoon Network's upfront presentation on February 26, 2004, which cited an initial premiere date of February 2005. In May 2005, Cartoon Network rescheduled the premiere date to May 30, 2005, and announced that 26 episodes had been produced or were in production. Animation Magazine announced that the series' second season would premiere on January 14, 2006.
Inspiration
Series creator Judd Winick was having dinner with his wife, a fellow cast member from The Real World: San Francisco, when they discussed the idea of "a TV show that was exactly what we wanted to see on the air." Winick and his wife "got drunk and ate burgers and in two hours came up with the idea for a show that centered on an 11-year-old Asian American girl who has to protect humanity from the monsters that others can't see around them." Winick stated, "At the end of the day, it's about a little girl who fights monsters. There's a rather massive backstory to the whole thing, which really provides a spine to build from. I've only tapped into it a little in the show, but for me, knowing it's there is important."
|-
| Annie Awards || Best Production Design in an Animated Television Production || Alan Bodner <br /> || ||
|-
| rowspan="3"|2007 || rowspan="2"|Annie Awards || Best Character Design in an Animated Television Production || Mike Kunkel<br /> || ||
|-
| Best Production Design in an Animated Television Production || Alan Bodner<br /> || ||
|}
Comics
Stories based on the series were featured in issues of Cartoon Network Action Pack.