The Backyardigans
The Backyardigans is a computer-animated musical children's TV series created by Janice Burgess. The series was written and recorded at Nickelodeon Animation Studio. It centers on five animal neighbors who imagine themselves on fantastic adventures in their backyard. Each episode is set to a different musical genre and features four songs, composed by Evan Lurie with lyrics by McPaul Smith. The Backyardigans' adventures span many different genres and settings. The show's writers took inspiration from action-adventure movies, and many episodes are parodies of movies. Nickelodeon called the show "a home-grown Nick Jr. property ," as "the whole creative team... [had] been part of the Nick Jr. family for years." Creator Janice Burgess had worked as Nick Jr.'s production executive since the mid-1990s. "The Backyardigans" originated as a live-action pilot episode titled "Me and My Friends," filmed at Nickelodeon Studios Florida in 1998. The characters were played by full-body puppets on an indoor stage. The pilot was rejected by Nickelodeon, and Burgess decided to rework the concept into an animated series. In 2002, a second pilot was animated at Nickelodeon Digital in New York. The second pilot was successful, and the series  entered production. The show ran for four seasons totaling 80 episodes. The first three seasons aired on Nickelodeon on weekday mornings. Nickelodeon only aired eight of the fourth season's 20 episodes; the remaining episodes aired exclusively on the separate Nick Jr. channel. In 2009, the show was planned to continue beyond the fourth season. However, in 2010, the series' creator Janice Burgess decided to move onto a different series: Nickelodeon's revival of "Winx Club". Burgess worked as a creative director and writer for "Winx Club" before eventually retiring from Nickelodeon in 2014. "The Backyardigans" was critically acclaimed. Many  critics felt that "The Backyardigans" was superior to Nickelodeon's other preschool shows because its writing was sophisticated and enjoyable for older viewers. "The New York Times" and Common Sense Media commended the show for including frequent nods to an older audience, such as references to action-adventure franchises. The quality of the show's music was also praised by critics, and the show received eight Daytime Emmy Award nominations for its music. Plot. The show centers around a group of five animal neighbors: Uniqua, Pablo, Tyrone, Tasha, and Austin. They share a large backyard between their houses. In each  episode, they meet in the backyard and imagine themselves on a fantastical adventure. Their adventures span a variety of different genres and settings; many episodes involve visiting different parts of the world, traveling back or forward in time, and using magic or supernatural powers. The characters give themselves different jobs or roles depending on the episode's imaginary setting, such as detectives, knights, or scientists. From the second season onward, many episodes are parodies of action-adventure films such as "James Bond", "Star Trek", "Indiana Jones", and "Ghostbusters". The openings and endings of the episodes follow a similar pattern. The  stories begin with the characters in the backyard, introducing themselves and explaining the scenario they are about to imagine. When the Backyardigans finish their adventure, the fantasy sequence fades, restoring the original backyard setting. The characters sing a closing song, then walk inside their houses for a snack and close the door. As the episode ends, at least one character reopens the door and shouts a phrase related to the adventure. The show follows the format of a stage musical. Each episode is set to a different genre of music and features four songs. The characters sing and dance to  the songs with original choreography. The song and dance routines are often used to introduce a character's imaginary role, further the plot, or explain a problem. In addition to singing songs in a new genre each episode, the show's background music changes to match, scoring all of the Backyardigans' actions. Characters. Each of the five characters on the show has two voice actors: one for speaking, and the other for singing. Live-action dancers first perform the dancing on the show, and their movements are later transported to animation. The choreographer, Beth Bogush, described the process: "What we  do is we film the live footage in the studio, send that off, and they do a Leica, and then they send it to the animators. The animators watch and were pretty precise. What we film for that day is pretty close to what you see in the character." Production. Janice Burgess drew inspiration from action films when writing episodes of the show, as she wanted to adapt high-stakes stories for a young audience. In an interview with the "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette", Burgess was asked what inspired the show; she responded, "I know this is going to sound very  strange, but the things I really draw upon are action films. I like "Die Hard", "Star Wars", the Tolkien movies ... I thought it would be fun to take kids on that big adventure." The character of Uniqua was based on how Burgess viewed herself as a child; as a result, Uniqua was written as the leader of the Backyardigans, and Uniqua was the only character who appeared in every episode. Before Nickelodeon ordered the first season, two pilot episodes of "The Backyardigans" were made. The first was a live-action pilot titled "Me and My Friends," filmed at Nickelodeon Studios  in September 1998. The characters were played by full-body puppets who danced on an indoor stage. The pilot was rejected by Nickelodeon, and Janice Burgess decided to rework the concept into an animated show. In 2002, a second pilot was created; it was a computer-animated short produced at Nickelodeon Digital. The second pilot was greenlit by Nickelodeon to become a full-length series. Nickelodeon called the show "a home-grown Nick Jr. property," as "the whole creative team... [had] been part of the Nick Jr. family for years." In December 2009, Nick Jr. president Brown Johnson stated that  Nickelodeon intended to keep the show running for "at least another five years. Maybe forever." Nickelodeon believed that "The Backyardigans" was an ideal "evergreen" property: a series that would stay in production for a long time through multiple generations. A fifth season was planned in 2009. However, in 2010, Janice Burgess decided to end "The Backyardigans" to start working on one of Nickelodeon Animation Studio's newer projects: a revival series of "Winx Club", a girls' action-adventure franchise. Burgess brought the former "Backyardigans" crew onto "Winx Club" as well. This included lyricist McPaul Smith; writers Jeff Borkin, Adam Peltzman , and Carin Greenberg; line producer Sara Kamen; and script coordinator Jonathan Foss. Burgess worked as the creative director, story editor, and writer on "Winx Club". The crew considered it a natural progression, as "Winx Club" was also a musical action-adventure show, but it targeted an older audience, allowing them to branch out. Reception. "The Backyardigans" received eight Daytime Emmy Award nominations, and Janice Burgess won the 2008 Emmy for Outstanding Special Class Animated Program. In a 2016 article for "The Chicago Tribune", drama critic Chris Jones called "The Backyardigans" "a fabulously inventive TV show." "DVD Talk"s John Crichton gave  the show a "hearty recommendation," citing its "enjoyable (and varied) music score, the character voices (both spoken and singing) and the impressive visual presentation." "Slate" named the "Backyardigans" episode "The Swamp Creature" one of the best episodes of children's television. Critics noted that the series held broad appeal to older viewers, due to its high-quality music and focus on character-driven, non-educational stories. Susan Stewart of "The New York Times" said "it's hard to say whether "The Backyardigans" is a fantasy for children or for their parents," commending the show's animation and storytelling. Common Sense  Media's Emily Ashby wrote, "It's not always easy to find a show you like as much as your youngsters do, but "The Backyardigans" definitely has the potential to fit that bill." Journalist Virginia Heffernan wrote, "with each episode devoted not just to a separate quest but also to a different musical genre...the show blows you away with its artistic exactitude." In 2021, the songs "Castaways" and "Into the Thick of It" went viral on TikTok, with the former appearing in more than 745,000 videos and the latter appearing in more than 46,000 videos as of June 2021 . Due to their success on TikTok, "Castaways" and "Into the Thick of It" reached number 5 and 13 respectively on the Spotify viral 50 chart in the US for the week beginning on June 10, 2021. Related media. Live events. "The Backyardigans" was adapted into several stage shows. These included 2008's "Tale of the Mighty Knights" and 2010's "Storytime Live!" (an event featuring other Nick Jr. characters from "Dora the Explorer", "Wonder Pets!" and "Ni Hao Kai-Lan", as well as hosts Moose and Zee). In Canada, separate live shows called "Quest for the Extra Ordinary Aliens" (2008 ) and "Sea Deep in Adventure" (2009) were created. Merchandise. Activision released a "The Backyardigans" PC game, "Mission to Mars," in October 2006. Also, there are interactive "Backyardigans" games available for the LeapPad and VTech's V.Smile consoles. There is also a LeapFrogClickStart game titled "Number Pie Samurai," teaching children the necessary computer skills. From 2005 to 2007, Kohl's had a section devoted to the series' merchandise, including a clothing line and toys exclusively in-store. Over one hundred storybooks (both original stories and episode-based) were released throughout the series' run. Most of these were released in both Canada  and the United States; however, a 2006 series of educational books were exclusively sold in Canada under the license of Treehouse TV. Fisher-Price produced numerous plush toys and interactive character toys (mostly Uniqua, Pablo, and Tyrone). There are also Beanie Babies of all the main characters available. Home media. In the United States, the show's 80 episodes were released across a series of 21 DVD releases. Ten episodes of the first season were also released to VHS across five volumes. Viacom's Paramount Home Media Distribution published all of the show's video releases. Outside North America, Paramount  released DVDs under a separate deal with Nelvana, with this worldwide deal later transitioning to Fremantle Home Entertainment. iTunes releases. All four seasons have been released on the iTunes Store in Canada and the United States; however, the US iTunes Store is missing three episodes from the first season: "Secret Mission," "It's Great to Be a Ghost!," and "High Tea". CD releases. There were four "The Backyardigans" albums released in North America, and one album released in Europe. Each has approximately 20 tracks, while "Born To Play" has four bonus tracks only available on the iTunes Store. The Adventures  Begin.... Released September 2004, this CD promoted the series' debut. Because this was a promotional album sent via mail, it was not sold in stores. It contains four tracks from the first season, including the opening theme. The songs would later be included in the next album. In the United Kingdom, this CD was released under the title "Join in the Adventures..." and replaced "Please and Thank You" with "Questing, Questing." The Backyardigans. Released on July 12, 2005, under Nick Records' label. This is the first album sold in stores. It contains nineteen tracks from the first season, including the  opening theme. The CD also contains a bonus video track titled "Go, Go, Go!" Groove to the Music. This second CD was released on July 11, 2006, under Nick Records' label. It contains eighteen tracks from seasons one and two. Born to Play. The third and final "Backyardigans" CD was released on January 22, 2008, under Sony BMG's label. It contains songs from seasons 1-2, as well as all the songs from Tale of the Mighty Knights. There is a total of 22 tracks. This album was released in a cardboard foldout case, rather than a jewel case  like the previous two releases. Borders carried the jewel case release exclusively, which included a booklet. This booklet was also included on the iTunes release as a file with purchase of a digital download.