Big brands reigned supreme this year, not just in what kids are watching and what broadcasters are coveting, but also in what you’re all reading. As the year winds to a close, Kidscreen is taking a look back at the year in stories and rounding up our top 10 stories were for 2019.

Coming in hot at number one is our interview with Daron Nefcy about the finale of her popular Disney Channel show Star vs. The Forces of Evil. While the show ended in March after its fourth season, the fandom is clearly still ravenous for more information wherever they can get it, even in a trade publication.

Other big brands that cracked our top-10 were stories about Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir (pictured), Peppa Pig and Ryan ToysReview.

The Kidscreen Awards remain quite popular with the story about this year’s winners coming in seventh followed by next year’s nominees at number 10.

Some of our magazine stories also managed to make its way into our most read stories this year. Two parts of Gary Rusak’s deep dive into music-based content in the kids entertainment space were the third and fourth most read stories.

Our ten most read stories this year were:

#1: How Daron Nefcy is ending Star vs. The Forces of Evil by Jeremy Dickson
The creator, writer and EP talks to Kidscreen about ending her hit Disney animated series and how Star became a gender-equality pioneer.

#2: Disney US makes a ‘Miraculous’ deal by Alexandra Whyte
Seasons one and two of ZAG’s popular animated series will begin airing on the US kidsnet today, following success in Europe.

#3: How Little Baby Bum inspired a music-driven biz by Gary Rusak
Moonbug used the channel’s reach and YouTube analytics to optimize creative. Now its other musical series are getting two million hits a day and Netflix deals.

#4: Will lightning strike twice for Baby Shark? By Gary Rusak
Pinkfong’s viral song was a happy accident. But its sustained success strategy has been meticulously planned.

#5: YouTube’s fate was inevitable. What’s next isn’t by Dylan Collins
The AVOD was never meant for kids, which isn’t entirely the platform’s fault. The root of the problem is a lack of investment in kid-specific technologies, says Dylan Collins.

#6: eOne grows Peppa Pig in South Korea by Ryan Tuchow
With Hasbro’s acquisition nearing, eOne has appointed a licensing agent for its flagship preschool property in the region.

#7: Who walked away with a 2019 Kidscreen Award? By Alexandra Whyte
Sinking Ship and Nickelodeon were the top winners at this year’s event hosted by actor/comedian Craig Lauzon. Read on for a full list of winners.

#8: Universal Kids halts original programming by Alexandra Whyte
With few exceptions, the US kidsnet will no longer commission or create original content, and all positions tied to content and development have been eliminated.

#9: Inside Ryan ToysReview’s linear TV strategy by Ryan Tuchow
Taking the child star from YouTube to Nickelodeon was no easy feat, but Pocket.watch CCO Albie Hecht breaks down how the prodco pulled it off.

#10: And the Kidscreen Award nominees are…by Jeremy Dickson
Disney’s Fox acquisition gave the Mouse House a leg up on the competition for most nominations, followed by DreamWorks, which got recognition for several big brands, and Nickelodeon.