Common Sense Media Review
By Ashley Moulton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Charming Peanuts special about friendship and fitting in.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin
What's the Story?
SNOOPY PRESENTS: WELCOME HOME, FRANKLIN explains how Franklin (voiced by Caleb Bellavance) joined the Peanuts gang. Since Franklin's dad is in the military, he's lived all over the world. Making friends in new places has never been difficult, thanks to his grandfather's handy advice book. Franklin's surprised when his go-to friend-making strategies fall flat with the Peanuts gang. Once he meets fellow outsider Charlie Brown (Etienne Kellici), they team up to build a soapbox derby car together. Charlie Brown and Franklin overcome their differences and become friends. Will winning the big race help make Franklin popular with the rest of the Peanuts gang?
Is It Any Good?
This Peanuts special is a sweet meditation on the difficulties and rewards of new friendship. Kids will identify with Franklin and Charlie Brown's realistic interactions in Welcome Home, Franklin. The 40-minute special may be a bit slow-paced for some viewers, but Snoopy and Woodstock provide comic relief. Like other Peanuts specials, gentle piano music provides a soothing soundtrack throughout.
Franklin was the first Black character in the Peanuts comic strip, and this special is his time to shine. He makes one comment on the "lack of variety" (i.e., all-White population) in the Peanuts town, and he introduces Charlie Brown to jazz music and Negro League baseball. These moments are subtle and will go over many kids' heads. Welcome Home, Franklin has great messages about making new friends, but it feels like a missed opportunity to talk more explicitly about cross-racial friendship.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the reasons that both Franklin and Charlie Brown might feel like outsiders, or like they don't fit in with the other kids.
Charlie Brown and Franklin are really good at communicating with each other. Can you think of some times in the story when they expressed their thoughts and feelings with each other?
Have you ever had a hard time making friends? Do you think any of Franklin's friend-making tricks would work for you?
TV Details
- Premiere date : February 16, 2024
- Cast : Caleb Bellavance , Etienne Kellici , Terry McGurrin , Isabella Leo
- Network : Apple TV
- Genre : Kids' Animation
- Topics : Book Characters , Friendship
- Character Strengths : Communication
- TV rating :
- Award : Common Sense Selection
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate