Wonder Pets

Wonder Pets!

Wonder Pets! logo
Genre Animated series
Created by Josh Selig
Developed by Josh Selig
Directed by Jennifer Oxley
Voices of Sofie Zamchick
Teala Dunn
Danica Lee
Theme music composer Salim-Sulaiman
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 3
No. of episodes 42 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer(s) Viacom Media Networks
Running time 22 minutes
Production company(s) Little Airplane Productions
Distributor Nick Jr.
Release
Original network Nickelodeon
Nick Jr.
First shown in March 3, 2006 (2006-03-03)[1]
Original release March 3, 2006 (2006-03-03)[1] – July 20, 2013 (2013-07-20)[2]

Wonder Pets! is an American animated children's television series. It debuted March 3, 2006,[1] on the Nick Jr. block of the Nickelodeon cable television network and Noggin (now Nick Jr.) on the same day. It won an Emmy Award in 2008, 2010 and 2012 for Outstanding Music Direction and Composition in the United States.

History and format

The Wonder Pets! television series was created by Josh Selig for Little Airplane Productions. The show was first seen as a short Nick Jr.'s film series called Linny the Guinea Pig, in which a guinea pig named Linny traveled into space and under the ocean. Ming-Ming Duckling and Turtle Tuck were created when the show was expanded and called The Super Singing Power Pets!. The title was later shortened to Wonder Pets. The show's main characters are three elementary school classroom pets — Linny the Guinea Pig, Turtle Tuck, and Ming-Ming Duckling. They are presented as a trio of heroes who rescue baby animals as they demonstrate the benefits of teamwork.

The animation style used to create Wonder Pets! is called "photo-puppetry", and was created for the series to allow animators to manipulate photographs of real animals. It also uses drawn objects (not characters), so the total presentation could be considered animated mixed-media.

A good deal of the dialog is sung, so the show has been likened to operetta or singspiel. A 10-member live orchestra performs each episode, sometimes including other instrumentalists skilled in music from the region to which the pets are traveling during the episode.[3] Completing each episode takes thirty-three weeks from script to final delivery.[4]

Main characters

Recurring characters

Episode structure

Each episode follows a similar structure, with some variation, in terms of the storyline and the musical form.

As each episode begins, viewers hear the school children, off-screen, leaving school at the end of the day. They say goodbye to the classroom pets. Once the classroom is vacant, a pencil holder rattles to create the ringing of a telephone. Often, the classroom will be decorated with student artwork or other items related to the storyline, particular animal or geographic location of that episode.

One by one, the classroom pets wordlessly notice the ringing phone. Up to this point in the episode, they have acted like normal animals and not said a single word. However, as the phone rings, the Wonder Pets get dressed and make their way towards the phone while singing their opening verses.

The Wonder Pets answer the phone and find that an animal is in trouble somewhere. Linny, the Guinea Pig, explains the situation to the other two: Tuck, the turtle and Ming-Ming, the duckling. They all jump into a box filled with fabric scraps and jump back out, wearing various different outfits, often alluding to the area of the world they will be visiting. They make a quick joke then jump back into the box and emerge in their Wonder Pets capes.

Once dressed, they assemble a flying boat called "The Flyboat" from classroom objects: a flying disc for a body, felt marker caps as rocket exhausts, a marble, wheels, the mast, and a sheet of paper for the sail. In some episodes, the Wonder Pets will instead opt for a different mode of transportation such as sub called the "The Flysub", which they will construct using additional objects in the classroom or they will modify the Flyboat in some way either out of necessity (such as replacing one of the pieces of the Flyboat with something else) or some other reason. Usually, the Wonder Pets encounter some sort of obstacle before leaving the classroom. The solution is invariably similar to the action they will need to take to save the animal in trouble.

When saving the animal, the Wonder Pets often fail on the first few attempts. Then the danger escalates, prompting Ming-Ming to once again sing, "This is se-wious!" Suddenly, the Wonder Pets remember how they solved the problem in the classroom and realize that the rescue has the same solution. Then they have to work together to achieve the rescue.

Once the animal is saved, a parent or other relative often comes out of nowhere to give grateful thanks to the Wonder Pets for saving its baby. The Wonder Pets celebrate with a celery snack, which the rescued animal's parent sometimes adds to with a bit of regional food, or they insist on a regional preparation. Then they fly back to the classroom. They wordlessly return to their cages until the next episode. The Flying boat also disassembles by itself. Linny is always the last one to get back in her cage, and her cape and cap come off. A music style having to do with that day's rescue is played, as Linny takes a bite out of the celery in her cage and winks towards the camera as the closing credits begin.

Some episodes do not involve rescues, but instead feature the Wonder Pets doing things with friends (such as Ollie, Floopy the Elephant, and the Visitor) and family (Linny's Granny, Tuck's cousin Buck, and Ming Ming's Aunt Eleanora). This may involve helping them as they normally would during rescues.

Episodes

Debuted on March 3, 2006 on the Nick Jr. block and on Noggin on August 31, 2006, ended on July 20, 2013.

Flyboat

The Flyboat is the primary mode of transportation in the series. The main base is a red flying disc with 4 blue and yellow wheels, it has 3 lights: 1 green, 1 orange and 1 purple; the Flyboat has a clear plastic bottom where 5 gears, that are possibly part of the engine, are visible. The Flyboat's rocket boosters are 2 felt marker caps that are controlled by a green Popsicle stick that when lifted up makes boosters point down, which allows the Flyboat to hover in the air. Lastly, the boat has a mast made out of blue Erector pieces with a marble on top and a sail (the color, design, and print varies) with the Wonder Pets logo on it. Usually, Linny pilots the Flyboat, but there are episodes where Ming-Ming or Tuck pilot it instead. Most other modes of transportation are a variation of the Flyboat and primarily use the same components such as the Flysub, which is basically a modified Flyboat capable of traveling underwater or modify it to fit a specific theme tied to the theme of the episode such as The Circusboat in "Join the Circus!". In "Save the Raccoon", the Flyboat breaks down during their rescue of a Baby Raccoon stuck in a Recycling Bin and find that its gears have come loose, forcing them to create a new vehicle called the Flycycle from recyclable materials in order to save the Baby Raccoon. In "Save the Loch Ness Monster", it is shown that the Flyboat can be converted in a sail/motor boat by changing the position of the wheels and the boosters, called the Boat-Boat. In "Three Wonder Pets and a Baby", Linny decides to create Babyboat, using a red Baby carriage as its main base instead of the Flyboat's red disc. The Wonder Pets have trouble building it at first as they are all trying to do everything at the same time so Linny suggests that they build it step-by-step and this solution to build the Babyboat would later inspire them of how to deal with pacifying the crying Baby Piglet. In "Ollie to the Rescue", Ollie creates his own version for his Thunder Pets team, which he calls the Ollieboat. He uses the Flyboats red flying disc as its main base and a carrot for a mast. However, Ollie is a poor flyer and requires the Wonder Pets assistance to fly the Ollieboat out of the classroom.

Toys and merchandising

In March 2008, Fisher Price began distributing a line of official Wonder Pets toys in the United States.[10] Toys include the Flyboat, figurine playsets and plush animals. These figurine playsets have each Wonder Pet saving a different baby animal. These include Linny saving a baby penguin, Tuck saving a baby bluebird and Ming-Ming rescuing a kitten. In addition there is a whale playset for the tub. Nickelodeon Universe, a theme park inside Minnesota's Mall of America, also has a children's ride dedicated to the Flyboat.[11]

Media

DVD compilations

Name Release Date Episodes
Save the Wonder Pets!
(Alt title: Save the Blowfish) 		April 24, 2007 "Save the Wonder Pets!" (Alt title: "Save the Blowfish"), "Save the Caterpillar!", "Save the Crane!", "Save the Sea Lions!", "Save the Kangaroo!", "Save the Hedgehog!", and "Save the Crocodile!" [12]
Save The Unicorn! September 11, 2007 "Save the Unicorn!", "Save the Penguin!", "Save the Swan!", "Save the Puppy!", "Save the Three Little Pigs!", "Save the Owl!", "Save the Bullfrog!", and "Save the Poodle!" [13]
Save the Reindeer! October 2, 2007 "Save the Reindeer!", "Save the Goldfish!", "Save the Baby Birds!", "Save the Camel!", "Save the Ants!", "Save the Egg!", and "Save the Flamingo!" [14]
Save the Dinosaur! February 12, 2008 "Save the Dinosaur!", "Save the Pigeon!", "Save the Dragon!", "Save the Beaver!", "Save the Bee!", "Save the Squirrel!", "Save the Dolphin!", and "Save the Chimp!" [15]
Save the Beetles! April 22, 2008 "Save the Beetles!", "Three Wonder Pets and a Baby!", "Save the Duckling!", "Save the Kitten!", "Save the Chameleon!", "Save the Platypus!", "Save the Sheep!", and "Save the Hermit Crab!"[16]
Save the Nursery Rhyme! June 3, 2008 "Help the Cow Jump Over the Moon!", "Save the Itsy Bitsy Spider!", "Save the Griffin!", "Save the Rooster!", "Save Little Red Riding Hood!", "Save the Turtle!", "Save the Panda!", and "Save the Mouse!" [17]
Save the Bengal Tiger! September 9, 2008 "Save the Bengal Tiger!", "Save the Ladybug!", "Save the Sea Turtle!", "Save the Gecko!", "Save the What?", "Save the Goslings!", and "Ollie to the Rescue!" [18]
Save the Nutcracker! October 7, 2008 "Save the Nutcracker!", "Save the Old White Mouse", "The Adventures of Bee and Slug!", "Save the Kangaroo", "Save the Cricket", "Save the Cow", and "Save the Skunk" [19]
Join the Circus! February 24, 2009 "Join the Circus", "Save the Rat Pack", "Fiddler Crab on the Roof", "Save the Armadillo", "Save the Visitor", "Save the Tree", and "Save the Elephant" [20]
Ollie's Slumber Party 2009 "Here's Ollie", "Save the Hound Dog", "The Amazing Ollie!", "Help the Monster!", "Save the Cool Cat and the Hip Hippo!", "Tuck and Buck", "Save the Dancing Duck!", "Save the Dalmatian!"[21]
The First Rescue 2010 "How It All Began", "Happy Mother's Day!", "Save the Sun Bear!", "Save the Mermaid!", "Save the Visitor's Birthday Party!", "A Job Well Done!", "Save the Rhino!"[22]
Save The Rock Band December 18, 2013 "Save The Rock Band", "Save The Fish", "Save The Dance Slippers", "Help The Lion Cub", "Save The Bat", "Save The Donkey", "Save The Honey Bears", "Climb Everest"

Books (Wonder Pets! series)

  1. Josh Selig (2008-01-08). Teamwork Saves the Day!: Book and Beanie Baby Gift Set. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-4797-4. 
  2. Little Airplane Productions; Jennifer Oxley (2008-07-29). Flyboat Adventures. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-4742-4. 
  3. Josh Selig (2008-07-29). Go, Wonder Pets!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-4723-3. 
  4. Josh Selig (2008-07-29). The Wonder Pets Save the Dinosaur!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-4724-0. 
  5. Jennifer Oxley; Little Airplane Productions (2008-07-29). Let's Count Baby Animals!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-6393-6. 
  6. Josh Selig (2008-07-29). Good Night, Wonder Pets!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-6154-3. 
  7. Melinda Richards (2008-07-29). The Wonder Pets Save the Hedgehog!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-4727-1. 
  8. Billy Lopez; Little Airplane Productions (2008-08-26). Save the Bengal Tiger!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-6495-7. 
  9. We Can Help!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2008-08-26. ISBN 978-1-4169-6865-8. 
  10. Wonder pets!: save the reindeer!. 2008-10-07. ISBN 978-1-4169-6174-1. 
  11. Heather R. Tilert (2008-10-21). Ming-Ming Saves the Day: Follow the Reader Level 1. Simon Scribbles. ISBN 978-1-4169-6459-9. 
  12. Jennifer Oxley (2008-10-28). Let's Find Colors!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-5824-6. 
  13. Josh Selig; Little Airplane Productions (2008-12-16). The Wonder Pets Love You!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-6457-5. 
  14. Josh Selig; Melanie Pal; Little Airplane Productions (2008-12-23). Join the Circus. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-7581-6. 
  15. Kermit Frazier; Little Airplane Productions (2009-01-06). Save the Tree!: Little Green Nickelodeon. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-5111-7. 
  16. You Can Fly, Bumblebee!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-01-27. ISBN 978-1-4169-7107-8. 
  17. Billy Lopez; Little Airplane Productions (2009-01-27). Save the Egg!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-7103-0. 
  18. Tone Thyne (2009-02-10). ABC Party. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-7104-7. 
  19. Josh Selig (2009-03-24). My Family Loves Me!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-7515-1. 
  20. Clark Stubbs (2009-06-23). Let's Discover Shapes!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-7196-2. 
  21. Save the Three Little Pigs!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-06-23. ISBN 978-1-4169-7198-6. 
  22. Sascha Paladino; Little Airplane Productions (2009-06-23). Off to School!. Simon Spotlight. ISBN 978-1-4169-7197-9. 
  23. Save the Visitor!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-06-23. ISBN 978-1-4169-7868-8. 
  24. Baby Beaver Rescue. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-07-14. ISBN 978-1-4169-8499-3. 
  25. Save Little Red Riding Hood!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-07-14. ISBN 978-1-4169-8566-2. 
  26. Happy Halloween, Wonder Pets!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-08-04. ISBN 978-1-4169-7982-1. 
  27. Save the Beetles!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-09-22. ISBN 978-1-4169-9019-2. 
  28. The Wonder Pets Save the Nutcracker!: A Play-Along Storybook. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2009-10-06. ISBN 978-1-4169-9016-1. 
  29. Billy Lopez (2010-01-26). Ming-Ming's Favorite Things. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-9062-8. 
  30. Laura Brown (2010-02-09). Let's Play Outside!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-9022-2. 
  31. Tone Thyne; Little Airplane Productions (2010-02-09). Let's Play the Opposites Game. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-8507-5. 
  32. The Baby Bird Rescue!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2010-02-09. ISBN 978-1-4169-9077-2. 
  33. Floppy's First Sleepover. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2010-06-08. ISBN 978-1-4169-9756-6. 
  34. Melinda Richards (2010-06-08). Flyboat to the Rescue!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4169-9752-8. 
  35. This Is Serious!: Recycling to the Rescue! / Little Green Nickelodeon. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. 2010-06-08. ISBN 978-1-4424-0231-7. 
  36. Michael Scanlon (2010-08-31). How We Met!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4424-0654-4. 
  37. Josh Selig (2010-09-07). We Are Thankful!. Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-1-4424-0677-3. 

Source:[23]

Soundtrack

Wonder Pets
Soundtrack album by Wonder Pets
Released April 10th, 2007
Genre Children's
Label Nick Records

In addition to the DVDs and books, the show's self-titled track, Wonder Pets, was released on April 10, 2007.[24] The soundtrack features songs from the show itself, including the main self-titled theme song.

Track listing

All songs are performed by the Wonder Pets unless otherwise noted.

  1. The Wonder Pets!
  2. Poor Baby Squirrel (Ming-Ming/Voiced by Danica Lee)
  3. The Caterpillar's Song
  4. Oh, Sheep-eee-hooo!
  5. Tickle The Whale
  6. To Be Free!
  7. Hold On, Pigeon!
  8. Fruit Salad
  9. City Garden Rap
  10. Hug A Hedgy
  11. The Oasis
  12. Hola, Hermit Crab!
  13. Wee-Wee, Pee-Pee, Tinkle!
  14. Brown Cow Down
  15. Wonder Pets, We Love You!
  16. The Wonder Pets! (Instrumental) (Wonder Pets Orchestra)

Source:[24]

Game

The Wonder Pets! Save the Animals!
Publisher(s) 2K Play
Publication date October 27, 2008 (US)
April 3, 2009 (AUS)
Genre(s) Adventure
System(s) Nintendo DS, Wii
Players 1
Age range 3+
Website Official website

The show's only game was released on October 27, 2008, in the United States and on April 3, 2009, in Australia for the Nintendo DS.[25]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Wonder Pets - TVGuide.com
  2. ↑ "Wonder Pets! In the Land of Oz". Zap2it.com. Tribune Digital Ventures. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  3. ↑ Heffley, Lynne. "Unchained melodies: In scoring the kids' show 'The Wonder Pets!,' top-notch composers get a warm and fuzzy feeling". Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, CA. 2006-03-03. Accessed: 2011-01-11. (Archived by WebCite at WebCitation.org)
  4. ↑ Jennifer Oxley, "Meet the Creators of Wonder Pets!"
  5. 1 2 3 http://www.nickjr.com/wonder-pets/about-wonder-pets/wonder-pets-characters_ap.html
  6. ↑ Robert Lloyd, "'Wonder Pets!' to the rescue", Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, Calif.: Mar 3, 2006. pg. E.29.
  7. ↑ Edward Wyatt, "Nickelodeon's 'Wonder Pets' Offers Operetta for Preschoolers", New York Times, March 28, 2006. pg. E.1.
  8. ↑ Morton, Rebecca, Youngster, 7, racks up acting, modeling credits , Great Media News, gmnews.som, August 20, 2008
  9. ↑ "Wonder Pets Goes Opera Beatles". www.today.com. NBCNews.com. April 17, 2008. Archived from the original on October 27, 2014. Retrieved October 27, 2014.
  10. ↑ Video, Toys R Us television commercial
  11. ↑ "New attraction spotlight: Nickelodeon Universe at Mall of America", March 11, 2008
  12. ↑ Freisen, Eric, DVD Review:Save the Wonder Pets!, BlogCritics Magazine, April 21, 2007
  13. ↑ Save the Unicorn Wonder Pets DVD, Amazon.com
  14. ↑ Save the Reindeer!, Wonder Pets, Amazon.com DVD
  15. ↑ Save the Dinosaur!, Wonder Pets DVD, Amazon.com
  16. ↑ Save the Beetles Wonder Pets DVD, Amazon.com
  17. ↑ Save the Nursery Rhyme, Wonder Pets DVD, Amazon.com
  18. ↑ Save the Bengal Tiger, Wonder Pets DVD, Amazon.com
  19. ↑ "Wonder Pets! Save the Nutcracker!": Saving A Nutcracker Is Mistewious, Review, Toon Zone, October 10, 2008
  20. ↑ Wonder Pets Join the Circus, Wonder Pets DVD, Amazon.com
  21. ↑ Wonder Pets!: Ollie's Slumber Party: DVD Talk Review of the DVD Video June 9, 2007
  22. ↑ Wonder Pets: The First Rescue | DVD Review | The Dirty Shirt June 23, 2010
  23. ↑ Wonder Pets! book page from Simon & Schuster
  24. 1 2 Wonder Pets: Wonder Pets!: Music Retrieved from Amazon.com on Nov. 26th, 2010.
  25. ↑ IGN: Wonder Pets! Save the Animals!

External links

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