The Backyardigans

The Backyardigans is a Canadian 3-D CGI - animatedchildren's TV series , created by Janice Burgess . It is a joint production of Nick Jr. and the Canadian animation studio Nelvana. Debuting on November 22 , 2004, The characters are designed by children's book author and illustrator Dan Yaccarino.

The show is an animated musical-adventure series aimed at children between the ages of 2 and 10. In each episode, the show's five preschool friends — Pablo, Tyrone, Uniqua, Tasha, and Austin — rely on their vivid imaginations to transform their backyard into completely different worlds, in which they go through many sorts of stories and adventures. The time-frame of the show can range from a few hours to more than one full day, but in reality, the story always ends just in time for one of them to invite the others for a snack. The episodes focus on the stories as much as they do on music and dancing, with each one featuring a different music genre (such as big band, reggae, Spaghetti Western, polka, Motown, and disco) and four new songs, usually with at least one rearrangement of a well-known ortraditional song . Not all of the characters are in each episode.

Pablo

Pablo, a bubbly blue penguin , famous for his blue bow tie and his blue and yellow propeller hat, is the one who most often has the ideas. Due to his energy and impetuousness, he takes the lead in many situations, but often goes into a "panic attack" when he faces an obstacle, running around in circles and blabbering nonsense – "Oh boy! Oh boy! Don't lose your heads! We'll find a way out! Oh, boy! Oh no! Oh man! Oh man!" – until someone interrupts him to propose a solution with "Pablo...Pablo?...PABLO!", at which point he stops, turns to the character and calmly asks "Yeah?".

Tyrone

A good-natured (and sometimes fearful) red-haired orange moose, he is Pablo's best friend, and almost his complete opposite in terms of personality. He is laid-back, cool-headed, and known for his ironic comments – for example, "That most certainly is!" and "That certainly is convenient!" upon the arrival of some sort of deus ex machina. At the end of every episode, he remarks, "That was an excellent (type) adventure, don't you think?" (This was intentionally self-parodied at the end of "Tale of the Mighty Knights", when Tyrone said it was an 'egg-cellent' knightly adventure.) Despite not appearing to wear trousers (except on rare occasions, such as "Race Around the World"), Tyrone somehow manages to put his hands in his pockets.

Uniqua

A curious, self-confident and high-spirited pink creature with polka dots and overalls, she is almost always sweet and friendly, though her strong opinions and occasional stubbornness get in the way of her relationships. She is more tomboyish than Tasha, and often imagines herself in roles requiring brains and fortitude (scientist, pirate captain, etc). More than once, when she has got the mystery solved she will interject with a "You guys!"

Much controversy has been raised over what species she belongs to. Suggestions included a ladybug (due to her pink polka dots), an ant (due to her antennae), and even an alien. But actually, she is a unique creature that is unlike any other in the world, and Uniqua is also the name of her species. She has been called simply "Uniqua, the pink" in Knights Are Brave and Strong.

Austin

A fun-loving purple kangaroo who moved into the block recently; this makes him a little shy on some occasions, and reluctant to join in. He is also very self-confident, and tries to help his friends whenever they need, sometimes in quirky ways. Says Bogush: "Austin's usually the one pulling up the rear. He's kind of a get-along guy." Although he appears in the show the least-often, he was voted the second-favorite character in a poll, only behind Pablo.

Tasha

A little girl Hippotamus, in red shoes and a flowered dress. Tasha is Uniqua’s much-admired and always eagerly-awaited play date. She looks sweet as pie but underneath her extra girly exterior beats the heart of a CEO -- tough-as-nails, take-no-prisoners, my-way-or-the-highway kind of gal. She's rational, skeptical, and highly motivated to get her own way. But it's always special for Uniqua when Tasha is there, because she's someone who can also be giggly, silly and full of fun.

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