Special Agent Oso

Special Agent Oso
Opening title logo
Voices of	Sean Astin Meghan Strange Gary Anthony Williams Phill Lewis Amber Hood Cam Clarke
Theme music composer	Ford Riley
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English Spanish
No. of series	2
No. of episodes	61 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time	12 minutes
Production company(s)	Walt Disney Television Animation
Release
Original network	Disney Channel Playhouse Disney (2009–2011) Disney Junior
Picture format	480i (4:3 SDTV) 1080i (16:9 HDTV)
Audio format	Stereo
First shown in	United States
Original release	April 4, 2009 – May 17, 2012
External links
Official website

Special Agent Oso is an American CGI-animated series for pre-school audiences series created by Ford Riley.^[1] The series premiered on April 4, 2009 as part of Disney Channel's Playhouse Disney block, and was one of the charter series that was part of the replacement Disney Junior block which started on February 11, 2011, and later, the Disney Junior channel.^[2]

Cast and characters

Character's name	Voiced by in the English version	Character description
Special Agent Oso	Sean Astin	The colorful special agent teddy bear who predominantly works on helping children perform tasks such as blowing bubbles, making a card or cleaning their rooms; he is the main character of the series. His name 'oso' is Spanish for 'bear'. He and his friends work for U.N.I.Q.U.E. (The United Network for the Investigation of Quite Usual Events).[3] The show was designed for encouraging and educational purposes.
Paw Pilot	Meghan Strange	Oso's computerized assistant who guides Oso through the "three special steps" he needs to accomplish his current mission. Her name is a reference to the Palm Pilot series of handheld computers.
Mr. Dos	Gary Anthony Williams	Oso's boss, a mysterious figure that assigns Oso missions. Mr. Dos is never actually seen; only his voice is heard on Oso's watch-communicator.
Special Agent Wolfie	Phill Lewis	A blue stuffed wolf; one of the special agent animals that regularly oversee Oso's training.
Special Agent Dotty	Amber Hood	A spotted orange stuffed cat with a Southern accent; the other special agent animal that regularly oversees Oso's training. It's hinted that she may have feelings for Oso.
Professor Buffo	Brad Garrett, later voiced by Jess Harnell	A slightly clumsy and excitable Italian-speaking buffalo who is the inventor of Oso's gadgets. Introduced in the Season 2 episode, "From China with Love".
Special Agent Musa	N/A	A silent, dark brown squirrel ninja, the "master of stealth and speed." Introduced in the Season 2 episode, "Table Manners are Forever".
Whirly Bird	Cam Clarke	Oso's talking bird-shaped autogyro, who takes Oso to wherever someone needs help. He doesn't hear very well and often misunderstands what Oso tells him, which usually leads to Oso's ejection at inopportune moments and places.
R.R. Rapide	Cam Clarke	Oso's French-speaking train. Though his French accent would suggest a TGV, he is likely a reference to the Fastech 360, based on his shape and retractable speedbrake ears.
Shutterbug	N/A	A ladybug-shaped robotic camera, who keeps an eye out for children who need help. She doesn't speak. Appears only in the English and Russian versions.

Guest voices

• Rowan Atkinson as Tyler
• Matthew Broderick as Lin
• Rosario Dawson as Mia/Tyler's Mom
• Lisa Ortiz as Faith
• Rebecca Honig as Sarah
• John C. Reilly as Liam
• Jonathan Taylor Thomas as Joe
• Niketa Calame as Katie/Tara
• Jason David Frank as Rasheed
• Steve Cardenas as Aiden
• Wilmer Valderrama as Handy Manny
• Nika Futterman as Stretch & Squeeze
• Carlos Alazraqui as Felipe
• Dee Bradley Baker as Turner
• Tom Kenny as Pat
• Fred Stoller as Rusty
• Kath Soucie as Dusty
• Nancy Truman as Kelly
• Roger Craig Smith as John/Michael
• Stefanie Scott as Briana/Emma
• Dan Russell as Andrew
• Andrew Rannells as Noah
• Eric Stuart as Tyler's Dad
• Darren Dunstan as Grayson

Additional voices

• Lou Holtz as Uncle Lou (character was modeled to look like himself)
• Nathan Lane as Briana's Dad/Emma's Dad
• Lara Flynn Boyle as Isabella's Mom
• Megan Hollingshead as David's Mom
• Jeremy Irons as Nave's Dad
• James Earl Jones as Mr. Thompson
• Madge Sinclair as Maya's Mom
• Mel Brooks as Grandpa Mel
• Malcolm-Jamal Warner as Braden's Dad
• Kimberly Brooks as Doc's Mom

Components

Each episode is composed of four components:

• The Three Special Steps are the steps that Paw Pilot gives Oso to follow when he is on his special assignments. Oso has a matter of time to finish the three special steps. The third step usually has a time limit between 3 and 19 seconds.
• The training exercises are Oso's training task assigned by Wolfie, Dotty or Bufo. Oso usually makes a mistake such as falling off, getting drenched and destroying things, but in the course of doing the special assignments he refers to the mistake he made in his training exercise, thanks to the person he is helping. He then returns to his training exercise and does it correctly, then earns a "Digi-Medal.
• Audience participation or interaction with Oso. Sometimes, Oso will ask the audience to help him find something hidden or missing on the screen. Other times, Oso will ask the audience to try something physically demanding that he is doing.
• The special assignments are missions that Oso is requested to complete by the mysterious Mr. Dos, in order to help a child in need. Oso tries to complete the Three Special Steps that Paw Pilot gives him. Then he earns a "Digi-Medal".

Episodes

The show has 62 episodes; 24 in the first season and 38 in the second. The episode names are usually references to the names of James Bond films, such as Three Wheels Are Not Enough and The Boy with the Golden Gift. The first two seasons contain at least one episode title that parodies all 22 of the existing Bond films at the time (as Skyfall was released after Season 2 originally concluded, same with Spectre). Some episode titles also parody the Carly Simon song "Nobody Does it Better" which is the popular theme song to The Spy Who Loved Me.

Three Healthy Steps

Special Agent Oso: Three Healthy Steps is a short series that airs in the United States and the United Kingdom during the Disney Junior programming block. It encourages children to use "three healthy steps" regarding eating, being healthy and exercising.

Characters that are featured in the short series are Special Agent Oso, Paw Pilot, Special Agent Wolfie, Special Agent Dotty, and Professor Buffo.

External links

• Official website
• Disney Channel press release for Special Agent Oso
• Special Agent Oso at the Big Cartoon DataBase
• Special Agent Oso on TV.com
• Special Agent Oso on LOVEFiLM

Notes

1. http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/42239
2. "Special Agent Oso". www.bcdb.com, May 13, 2012
3. Special Agent Oso. Disney Junior Canada. . URL:http://www.disneyjunior.ca/en/shows/special-agent-oso. Accessed: 2014-05-11. (Archived URL:https://web.archive.org/web/20130306121009/http://www.disneyjunior.ca/en/shows/special-agent-oso)