A title that consists of the main character's name with "And Friends" or some variationnote attached to the end of it. This is commonly justified, as these type of shows are often adapted from more than one franchise (Garfield and Friends having Garfield and U.S. Acres, for example).
This is extremely common in children's shows and sitcoms, the latter usually being the Syndication Title.
A Sub-Trope of Character Title. May also sometimes overlap with Spotlight-Stealing Title. See also Artist and the Band.
There are 163 movies, TV shows, and episode titles with "and friends" in the title
at IMDb.com.
Not to be confused with My Friends... and Zoidberg, which despite the name, is unrelated.
Examples:
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Anime & Manga
- The fourth episode of Hetalia: The Beautiful World is called "Russia and Friends".
- Tama & Friends
- Little Lulu and her Little Friends (shortened to just "Little Lulu" in English dubbed compilation movie).
Comic Books
- One Big Nate book is titled "Big Nate And Friends".
- Jughead and Friends is a spin-off of Archie Comics.
- The Asterix book Obelix and Co.
- Inverted by The Deadly Foes of Spider-Man, its follow-up The Lethal Foes of Spider-Man, and its much later sucessor, The Superior Foes of Spider-Man.
- Emmie And Friends. The series started with Invisible Emmie, making it also a case of Named After First Installment.
- In 1962, Gold Key Comics gave The Tasmanian Devil his own special issue book, titled The Tasmanian Devil and His Tasty Friends. The cover had Taz about to tuck into a giant hoagie with Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Tweety in it.
Fan Works
- Referenced in Calvin & Hobbes: The Series, where Jaqueline notes that if the show gets any more Brainstorm-centered, it would have to be renamed "Dr. Brainstorm and Friends".
Literature
- Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? includes an in-universe example in the television show Buster Friendly and His Friendly Friends, a talk show presenting a philosophy counter to the empathy-based religion of Mercerism that most of humanity has embraced.
- Amelia Bedelia & Friends is a spinoff of the young Amelia Bedelia chapter books featuring the same basic style but as the title implies, with a greater emphasis on Amelia Bedelia's friends.
- Ella and Friends
- Swami and Friends
- There Is No Epic Loot Here, Only Puns: The chapter, "DEO! and Friends".
Live-Action TV
- Barney & Friends
- Ray Rayner and his Friends
- Carol Burnett and Friends, the Syndication Title of The Carol Burnett Show
- Carol and Company, a short-lived Carol Burnett show post-Carol Burnett Show. An Anthology sitcom where the actors stayed the same from week to week but each episode's story & characters were completly different.
- Laverne & Shirley & Company, the Syndication Title of Laverne & Shirley
- Romper Room: Well, it's more like Show Title and Friends in this case, but this show was renamed Romper Room and Friends when it was revamped in 1981.
- Van Dyke and Company, a Dick Van Dyke variety show from the 1970s. Featured early TV appearance by Andy Kaufman.
- Whose Line Is It Anyway? parodied this as a rejected show title.
"It's now time for Drew and Friend."
- Huckleberry Finn and His Friends
- Johnson and Friends
Music
- Although the Arthur cartoon has simply a Protagonist Title, the first music album release for the series was titled Arthur And Friends: The First Almost Real Not Live CD (or Tape).
Puppet Shows
- Garfield Goose and Friend (later changed to ...and Friends). Garfield is a sockpuppet who thinks he's King of the United States, and his "friend" is real person Frazier Thomas, whom Garfield appointed Admiral of the Royal Navy and Prime Minister.
- The Noddy Shop had a VHS release called "Noddy and Friends", which was also a Working Title for the show.
- Sam and Friends, the Washington, D.C.-based show of the late '50s that launched the career of Jim Henson and The Muppets.
Video Games
- SpongeBob SquarePants and Friends, the PAL region name for the Nicktoons Unite! series of games. By the fourth installment THQ had renamed it to a similar albeit more formal name in all regions, SpongeBob SquarePants featuring Nicktoons: Globs of Doom.
Webcomics
- Flying Man And Friends, which has a wide cast of characters.
- Solar System And Friends (also called Planetary Moe), which is about the Moe Anthropomorphisms of the solar system.
Web Videos
- Mr. Coat and Friends
- Charleyyy and Friends, a Show Within a Show from SuperMarioLogan.
- Baby Lamb & Friends
- Mitten Squad: "Halo 2: Part 22 | Rudolph and Friends"
- Vester And Friends, a low budget Puppet Show that features a cat named Vester who is the mayor of Vesterland.
Western Animation
- Amigo And Friends, known in Spanish as Cantinflas y Sus Amigos.
- Garfield and Friends. One intro sequence had Garfield and the U.S. Acres characters battling for screen time.
- Holly Hobbie and Friends
- My Little Pony 'n Friends also used the above justification, adapting no less than four toy lines.
- Oscar And Friends, a New Zealand Stop Motion series.
- Rocky & His Friends, the name of Rocky and Bullwinkle for its first two seasons.
- The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends adapted the books of Beatrix Potter, only a couple of which had Peter Rabbit in.
- Parodied with the "Coon And Friends" gang on South Park, so-named because Cartman wants his superhero alter ego, The Coon, to get top billing. This came back to haunt him when he was kicked out of the club for his selfishness by the others, who still kept the name to piss him off for fun.
- Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends (later just Thomas and Friends), adapted from The Railway Series and altered to make Thomas the Breakout Character.
- Parodied in the Freakazoid! segment "Freakazoid and Friends" which lists through a number of allies and co stars in the show (to the tune of the Animaniacs theme song), some of which aren't even real.
- Captain N: The Game Master's Syndication Title was Captain N & the Video Game Masters.
- Oliver & Company, Disney's animated film very loosely based on Oliver Twist.
- Oscar And Friends, a New Zealand Stop-motion animated series.
- Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends was an animated show in the '80s featuring the eponymous hero, Ice Man from X-Men, and Canon Immigrant Firestar, who would later move to the comics and join the New Warriors and The Avengers.
- In the late '70s Hanna-Barbera syndicated several of its cartoon series under the title Fred Flintstone and Friends.
- A Samurai Jack DVD was titled "Samurai Jack and Friends" Something of an odd title, given that most of the people who Jack met weren't exactly friendly.
- DVD releases of Walter Lantz cartoons are usually titled Woody Woodpecker and Friends
- Parodied on The Simpsons when Bart mentions a short-lived Itchy & Scratchy & Friends Hour show and shows Lisa some of the "friends" made for it such as Disgruntled Goat, Uncle Ant, and Klu Klux Klam.
- The first book adapted from material from the animated Llama Llama series is titled Llama Llama and Friends. This has led at least one source to incorrectly refer to the series itself as Llama Llama and Friends. This is wrong - the animated show is called simply Llama Llama.
- Franklin has the CGI follow-up series, Franklin and Friends.
- Both versions of Yoo Hoo And Friends, as well as the franchise itself, does this.
