YooHoo & Friends

This article is about the 2009 television series. For the 2012 television series, see YooHoo & Friends (2012 TV series).
YooHoo & Friends

Official Logo of the franchise
Genre Preschool
Comedy
Adventure
Developed by Aurora World
Written by Yi Jae-Hyo
Ga Seong-Jin
Geum Seon-Hwa
Yi Ji-Hui
Directed by Choe Gyeong-Jun
Yill Ung
Gim Seung-Hwa
Voices of See Cast List Below
Composer(s) Lucymedia
Lee Hak-Lae (Recording)
Izumi (Sound Design)
Kim Ki-Hyun (Mixing)
Gim Yeong-Ho (Recording Production)
Yi Tae-Jun (Recording Production)
I Seong-Jang
Country of origin South Korea
Original language(s) Korean
No. of seasons 3
No. of episodes 65
Production
Producer(s) Yi Sun-Ju
Im Ji-Yeon
Ill Ung
Running time 24 Minutes (Each Segment: 11 Minutes)
Production company(s) nSac Entertainment (Season 1)[1]
Studio Vandal (Season 2)[2]
Magic Image Co., Ltd. (Season 2 Beyond)
MICO Animation Studio. Ltd (Season 2 Beyond)
Distributor Aurora World (Korea)
MoonScoop Group (Worldwide)[3]
Lawless Entertainment (United States, Current)[4]
Release
Original network KBS2 (Season 1)
KBS1 (Season 2 & 3)
Picture format HDTV (720i, 16:9)
Original release July 7, 2009 (2009-07-07) – April 11, 2015 (2015-04-11)
Chronology
Related shows YooHoo & Friends
External links
Website
YooHoo & Friends
Hangul 유후와 친구들
Hanja 유후와 親舊들
Revised Romanization Yuhuwa Chingudeul

YooHoo & Friends (Hangul: 유후와 친구들; RR: Yuhuwa Chingudeul) (Officially subtitled Travel Around the World to Find Greens (Hangul: 그린을 찾아 함께 떠나는 세계여행; RR: Geulin-eul chaj-a hamkke tteonaneun segyeyeohaeng)) is a 2009 Flash animation series based on the toy line of the same name, created by Korean toy manufacturer Aurora World.[5] The series was animated by nSac Entertainment for season 1 and by Studio Vandal and by both Magic Image Co., Ltd. and MICO Animation Studio. Ltd for season 2. It first premiered on the Korean broadcasting channel KBS2 and later on KBS1 from July 7, 2009 to April 11, 2015. Officially developed back in 2007, the series was created to educate children about protection and preservation of the environment and encourages parents and their children to appreciate friendship, harmony, honesty and courage. Lawless Entertainment now currently owns the license for the series's distribution in North America. In 2012, a series based on the series was made, created by David Feiss.

Story

Season 1

YooHoo & Friends is a story about a group of animals, mostly based on endangered species, who, along with their habitat Yootopia, where they grow the "Tree of Life", are at risk of extinction because of worsening environmental conditions. But when all the seeds are accidentally blown away to Earth, the group got accidentally sent down as well. Now being separated from their home, YooHoo and his friends must go on adventures to find the missing magical seeds of the Tree of Life, avoiding danger and receiving help from new friends made along the journey as they retrieve each green seed one by one.

Season 2

After reclaiming all of the green seeds and went back to Yootopia, YooHoo and his friends were now living peacefully. However this peace didn't last long when two mysterious persons: Oops and Coops, crocodile hunters working for the corrupt leader Big Boss arrived at YooHoo's world to capture him and his friends and sell them to the black market. YooHoo must team up with his friends in order to foil their plans as well as saving their home.

Main characters

YooHoo (Hangul: 유후; RR: Yuhu)

Voiced by: Jeon Suk-gyeong

A cream and grey bush baby with blue eyes and a blue and grey striped tail. He is the main protagonist of the series, he is usually an excellent leader; being the maturest and nicest to everyone of his friends and keeps the team together. His goal is to save Yootopia and find all of the green seeds and has a crush on Pammee, usually hiding this in front of his friends. His catchphrase is "YooHoo!" As of season 2, he now carries a small brown bag at important situations.

Pammee (Hangul: 패미; RR: Paemi)

Voiced by: Yu Ji-won

A pink and white fennec fox with pink eyes, and a pink and white striped tail. She's described as a princess due to her shy and girly nature, constantly finding random things romantic. She is also very optimistic, usually is the voice of reason to the entire group. Pammee can hear things that her friends can't due to her huge ears, and she is able to converse with the nature. As of season 2, she now officially wears a pink bow at the right side of her head.

Roodee (Hangul: 루디; RR: Ludi)

Voiced by: Um Sang-hyun

A yellow and brown capuchin monkey with yellow eyes and an orange and brown striped tail, described as the inventor. He is the smartest of the team, able to construct complex inventions from twigs and leaves and usually reads his guide book for clues. He holds a persistent antagonism with Lemmee and consistently argues with him. As of season 2, he is now seen wearing glasses.

Chewoo (Hangul: 츄우; RR: Chyuu)

Voiced by: Han Shin-jeong

A red squirrel with white stripes and pink eyes. She is described as the cheerleader, and keeping to her role, she is immature, hyperactive, always cheerful. Her childishness constantly gets her into trouble. But sometimes she never think twice about her actions; more often than not she helps the team accomplish their task. She is usually the cause of the events of the first season and the reason why all the Green Seeds are scattered around the world. At the second season, she is now shown wearing a green hat.

Lemmee (Hangul: 레미; RR: Lemi)

Voiced by: Song Jeong-hui (season 1), Lee Won-chan (season 2)

A grey and white ring-tailed lemur with yellow eyes, black eye markings, and a grey and white striped tail. He is described as a sourpuss, and is in general the outcast of the group. Unsurprisingly he is narcissistic, selfish and sadistic, sometimes often argues with Roodee and later, with Yoohoo. However, despite being grumpy, he sometimes display his nice side to his friends, often giving them some good advice at some situations. As of season 2, he wears a red bowtie.

Episodes

Season No. Episode Season Premiere Season finale
1 26 Junuary 1, 2010 February 5, 2011
2 26 July 11, 2011 May 24, 2012
3 26 February 15, 2012 April 11, 2013

History

The animated series was first developed in 2007 and was first aired in South Korea on KBS2, and later on KBS1 from July 7, 2009 to April 11, 2015, lasting for three seasons and 65 episodes. The series has also aired on Al Jazeera in the United Arab Emirates, Detskiy in Russia and BBC World News in Croatia.

Toyline

Inspired by a bush baby, the first YooHoo & Friends toys introduced were five and eight-inch plush animals with big button eyes and long, soft tails. The off white color plush animal bodies featured yellow, pink, purple or turquoise colors, primarily around the eyes and as color rings on a solid grey tail. The company expanded the line beginning in July 2007 to include Valentine's and graduation themed YooHoos, eventually leading to the launch of Easter, Halloween and holiday-themed YooHoos.[6] The company continues to expand its merchandising and licensed products worldwide. Other merchandise include educational books, umbrellas, apparel, bedding, room decor and accessories for children, as well as stationery and giftware.[7] Except for the keychain toys, YooHoo & Friends plush animals make sounds when squeezed.

Reception

The series and the franchise received several awards from several Korean and International awards. The toys won the Korea Contents Design Award in 2009, received the 2010 Seal of Excellence Award by Creative Child Magazine in the United States and won the Parents’ Choice Award. It also ranked 2 in the GiftBeat Survey for Brand Awareness and won the Independent Toy Award in the United Kingdom in 2011. It later got nominated for Best Asian Property in 2013 and won the Tillywig Top Fun award in the US in 2013.

Aurora World, Inc. filed a federal copyright lawsuit against competitor Ty Inc., alleging Ty's Beanie Boos infringe on YooHoo & Friends. Among Aurora's claims: Ty is in violation of the Copyright Act, Lanham Act, section 17200 of the California Business and Professions Code; common law misappropriation; and common law unfair competition. Ty contends it did not intend to sell "Cleo" and "Bubblegum" in the United States. Ty also advised the court that the company had ceased sending out display racks and sell sheets containing images of "Cleo" and "Bubblegum".[8]

Aurora's court documents include comparisons of YooHoo & Friends characters with "Bubblegum" and "Cleo" Beanie Boos. Through its court filings, Aurora says, "Ty's unlawful imitations of the YooHoo & Friends products and blatant infringement are damaging Aurora, not only by causing actual confusion and likelihood of confusion in the marketplace...but also by diminishing the value of the YooHoo & Friends products by diluting their distinct and unique nature and erroneously associating them with Ty rather than Aurora." A pre-trial was scheduled to begin on December 20, 2010.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "nSac: Porfolio" (in Korean). Retrieved 2014-06-24.
  2. ↑ http://studiovandal.com/xe/14577
  3. ↑ http://www.animationmagazine.net/tv/moonscoop-nabs-toonzones-action-dad-yoohoo/
  4. ↑ http://lawlessent.com/blog_mod/lawless-entertainment-appointed-representatives-for-yoohoo-friends/
  5. ↑ Arrant, Chris (June 6, 2011). "ADC's "Yoohoo And Friends" Gets Picked Up By UK Channel Pop". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved December 15, 2012.
  6. ↑ http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-218311250.html
  7. ↑ "Production Profile: YooHoo & Friends". Animation World Network. February 13, 2010. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
  8. 1 2 "Court date set for Aurora vs. Ty copyright case". Kids Today. March 30, 2010. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
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