Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends is an American animated television series created by Craig McCracken for Cartoon Network Studios. The series centers on an eight-year-old boy, Mac, who is pressured by his mother to abandon his imaginary friend Bloo, who moves into an orphanage for imaginary friends, and is kept from adoption so that Mac can visit him daily. The episodes center on the day-to-day adventures and predicaments in which Mac, Bloo and other characters get involved.
It premiered on August 13, 2004, on Cartoon Network as a 90-minute special titled "House of Bloo's" and, on August 20, it began its normal run on Fridays, at 7 pm E/P. Its finale, "Goodbye to Bloo", premiered on May 3, 2009. The series has a total of seventy-nine episodes and eighteen shorts. Aside from the premiere episode, two specials were produced: "Good Wilt Hunting", the season four finale which premiered on November 23, 2006, and "Destination: Imagination", which premiered on November 27, 2008, as part of season six. Although the specials were released in their integrity, they would be later divided in parts and broadcast as individual episodes. "Goodbye to Bloo" and "Destination: Imagination" were divided in three episodes, whilst "Good Wilt Hunting" was divided in two episodes.
Foster's received positive reviews from television critics and was one of Cartoon Network's highest-rated series during its original run. It received many industry accolades, winning five Annie Awards and seven Emmy Awards. It won an additional sixteen awards out of thirty-five nominations. The show was popular among both younger and older audiences. It has since been named by Entertainment Weekly as one of the best Cartoon Network shows and by IGN as one of the best animated series of all time.
Note: All episodes were directed by series creator Craig McCracken, with the only co-direction of Rob Renzetti in "Destination: Imagination".