Viva Piñata (TV series) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Viva Piñata |
|
|---|---|
The lead characters (l-r): Franklin, Hudson, Paulie, Fergy
|
|
| Developed by | Norman J. Grossfeld Lloyd Golfdine |
| Directed by | Paul Griffin Eric Stuart (voice) |
| Voices of | Dan Green Brian Maillard David Wills Marc Thompson Kathleen Delaney Jamie McGonnigal Rebecca Soler Eric Stuart |
| Theme music composer | John Siegler Norman J. Grossfeld |
| Composer(s) | Louis Cortelezzi Elik Alvarez Peter Lurye Matt McGuire Ralph Schuckett Freddy Sheinfeld Dan Stein Russell Velazquez |
| Country of origin | Canada United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 52 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Deina Bhesania Norman J. Grossfeld Alfred R. Kahn Barry Ward Lloyd Goldfine |
| Running time | 20 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Bardel Entertainment 4Kids Entertainment Microsoft |
| Distributor | 4Kids Entertainment (formerly) Xbox Game Studios (current) |
| Release | |
| Original network | YTV (Canada) 4Kids TV The CW4Kids Nickelodeon (Australia) |
| Picture format | 480i (4:3 SDTV) |
| Original release | August 26, 2006 – May 18, 2009 |
Viva Piñata is a fun cartoon show from Canada and America. It was made by 4Kids Productions and Bardel Entertainment, with help from Microsoft. The show is based on the popular Viva Piñata video game for the Xbox 360, which was created by Xbox Game Studios and Rare. The TV show and the game came out around the same time.
The Viva Piñata show first aired on August 26, 2006, as part of the 4Kids TV block. Later, it moved to The CW4Kids. In Canada, the show was on YTV, and its last episode aired on May 18, 2009. You could still watch reruns until June 24, 2011. The series also aired in other countries, like the UK on Nicktoons Network and CITV, and in Australia on Nickelodeon and ABC Television.
Contents
About Piñata Island
On a special place called Piñata Island, many different kinds of piñatas live freely in beautiful gardens. They eat candy and get along peacefully. When a piñata has enough candy inside, they are sent to a party through a giant cannon called the Piñata Central Cannoñata. At the party, people break them open to get the candy. But don't worry! After the party, the piñatas are fixed up and sent back to the island. The show follows a group of best piñata friends and their daily adventures on the island.
Meet the Characters
Main Piñata Friends
- Hudson Horstachio: (voiced by Dan Green) Hudson is a horse piñata with a cool green body, like a pistachio. He's super popular, almost like a celebrity! Sometimes he has to wear disguises to go out. His friends often help him stay humble. Hudson loves to dance and say big, exciting things about himself.
- Paulie Pretztail: (voiced by Brian Maillard) Paulie is a mix of a pretzel and a red-tailed fox. He's very sensible and often the smartest one in the group, besides Les. He's Fergy's best friend and doesn't like going to parties, though it's more of an annoyance for him than a big fear like Fergy's. Paulie is also a good cook!
- Fergy Fudgehog: (voiced by David Wills) Fergy is a hedgehog piñata made of fudge. He loves candy more than anything, but he's terrified of parties! He's Paulie's best friend. Langston often tries to catch Fergy to send him to parties, but Fergy always finds a way to escape. His favorite thing to say is, "Oh, fudge!"
- Franklin Fizzlybear: (voiced by Marc Thompson) Franklin is a brown grizzly bear piñata with purple and yellow stripes. He loves surfing and talks like a surfer. He's usually pretty chill and sometimes has really smart ideas. Franklin isn't good at telling lies. He also enjoys drawing pictures of his piñata friends.
- Tina & Teddington Twingersnap: (voiced by Kathleen Delaney and Jamie McGonnigal) These two are a two-headed serpent piñata, mixed with gingersnap. They share one body but argue a lot because they are brother and sister. They aren't very good at gardening. Even though they seem to dislike each other, when they got separated once, they missed each other a lot. Teddington has a fancy British accent and is the worst singer on the island!
- Ella Elephanilla: (voiced by Rebecca Soler) Ella is an elephant piñata mixed with vanilla. She often forgets things, which is funny because elephants are known for having good memories! Ella loves ballet. Her graceful dancing made Paulie and Fergy both like her a lot for a while.
- Les Galagoogoo: (voiced by Eric Stuart) Les is a smart and clever piñata, a mix of a Galago and GooGoo. But when he talks, it comes out as high-pitched gibberish. The other main characters seem to understand him, but they often ignore him. In one episode, he could speak clearly, but he was still ignored!
- Langston Lickatoad: (voiced by Mike Pollock) Langston is a toad piñata made of licorice. He's in charge of the Cannoñata, the big cannon that sends piñatas to parties. He's always trying to catch Fergy and Paulie to send them off.
- Professor Pester: (voiced by David Brimmer) Professor Pester is the main bad guy in the show. He and his clumsy helpers, the Ruffians, try to catch and destroy piñatas, usually Hudson, to get their candy. Professor Pester and his Ruffians aren't piñatas themselves. His catchphrase is, "I have no regrets," which he says when his plans fail.
Other Island Residents
- Chortles Chippopotamus: (voiced by Sean Schemmel) Chortles is a great gardener, but his jokes are terrible! Only Cecil Cocoadile finds them funny. Chortles uses Cecil's tears, which are great fertilizer, to help his garden grow.
- Dr. Quincy Quackberry: A doctor and therapist who wears glasses and tells bad jokes.
- The Great Bonboon: This creature pretends to be a wise guru to trick candy from piñatas like Professor Pester. He often meditates, but when no one is around, he talks to his friend Sid on the phone in his normal voice. Paulie is the only piñata who knows he's faking it.
- King Roario: (voiced by Dan Green) He is the King of Piñata Island.
- Mabel Moozipan: Mabel has a very neat vegetable garden and doesn't like anyone trespassing.
- Pecky Pudgeon: (voiced by Eric Stuart) Pecky is a photographer for the local newspaper, the Pinata Yada Yada. He loves to gossip and will do anything for a good story!
- Pierre Parrybo: (voiced by Pete Zarustica) Pierre organizes many activities on Piñata Island. He's also a DJ for a radio show where people call in.
- Ruffians: These are Professor Pester's clumsy helpers. They often mess up his plans because they don't understand orders very well. They waddle when they walk and love to play pranks on each other.
- Simone Cinnamonkey: (voiced by Rebecca Soler) Simone is Hudson's busy and clever agent. He talks very fast, listing all of Hudson's appointments. Sometimes it seems like he cares more about his pay than Hudson's fame, but he does show he cares for Hudson too.
Episodes List
Home Media Releases
A couple of episodes, "Chewnicorn in the Garden" and "Horstachio of a Different Color," were available for free download on the Xbox Live Marketplace before the show officially came out. The episode "Horstachio of a Different Color" was also included on a bonus disc with the special edition of the Viva Piñata video game.
Shout! Factory released two DVD sets for Viva Piñata. The first one, called The Piñatas Must Be Crazy And Other Stories., came out in February 2009 and included the first five episodes of the show.
