Fishtronaut

Fishtronaut
Fishtronaut T.V. show logo
PortuguesePeixonauta
GenreChildren's television series
Educational entertainment
Educational television
Created byCélia Catunda
Kiko Mistrorigo
Directed byCélia Catunda
Kiko Mistrorigo
Rick Jones (voice)
Voices ofFábio Lucindo as Fishtronaut (Brazil)
Dawn Ford as Fishtronaut (USA)
Angela Galuppo as Marina (USA)
Terrence Scammell as Zeek and Happy Plumb (USA)
Rick Jones as Dr. Green (USA)
Justin Bradley as Mac and Billy (USA)
Holly Gauthier-Frankel as Rosy Barb (USA)
ComposerPaulo Tatit
Country of originBrazil
Canada
Original languagesPortuguese
English
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes104
Production
ProducersCelia Catunda
Kiko Mistrorigo
Ricardo Rozzino
Running time11 minutes
Production companiesTV PinGuim
Tooncan
Knowledge Network
Yoopa
Original release
NetworkDiscovery Kids
Release20 April 2009 (2009-04-20) –
10 April 2015 (2015-04-10)

Fishtronaut (Portuguese: Peixonauta) is a Brazilian-Canadian animated children's television series created by Célia Catunda[1] and Kiko Mistrorigo, and produced by TV PinGuim, in association with Discovery Kids.[2] The series is about the eponymous character, a fish in a spacesuit which allows him to fly and breathe out of water. He is a secret agent who, along with his friends Marina and Zeek, unravels the mysteries occurring in the Smiling Trees Park. They solve the mysteries with the help of a P.O.P. (Primary Objective Pod), a magical multicolored ball containing clues vital to the mission. Viewers are invited to dance along with the heroes to a tune, so that the P.O.P. will open and release the clues inside. The series is aimed at children ages 3–7 and debuted successfully on Discovery Kids in Latin America on 20 April 2009.[3]

In the international market, the series is marketed by the names of Peztronauta (Spanish) or Fishtronaut (English). After success on TV, Fishtronaut was produced as a play called Peixonauta da TV para o Teatro (in English: Fishtronaut from TV to Theatre) which premiered on 9 January 2011 in Rio de Janeiro. On 9 November 2012, a movie titled Peixonauta – Agente Secreto da O.S.T.R.A. (in English: Fishtronaut – Secret Agent of O.Y.S.T.E.R.) was released. From 30 March 2015 to 25 December 2020, the series also aired on the now-defunct Qubo network, owned by Ion Media Networks.[4]

The show has been noted for its success in teaching kids to care for the environment.[5]

Location[edit]

The show is set in the Smiling Trees Park, where elephants, monkeys and other animals from around the world roam free. Children are welcome to explore the forest and climb the trees, or ride a sub to the bottom of the cove and its colorful reef. In the park is Quiet Lake, which is fed by a long river. The river also extends beyond the lake into a sandy cove along the ocean.

Characters[edit]

Main[edit]

  • Fishtronaut (Portuguese: Peixonauta) (voiced by Fábio Lucindo in Portuguese and Dawn Ford in English) is an anthropomorphic big goldfish. He wears a Bubblex suit that allows him to fly out of water. It also has numerous tools useful during missions. He is always watching his friends Marina and Zeek, and investigating the problems of the Smiling Trees Park in order to solve them. He lives at the bottom of Quiet Lake, though he spends more time out on the surface with his friends. He is also an aspiring inventor, creating machines generally useful to the park. He usually communicates through a video screen fitted into his suit.
  • Marina (voiced by Fernanda Bullara in Portuguese and Angela Galuppo in English) is a bright and curious brown-haired 8-year-old human girl who is also Fishtronaut's best friend. Every day, she proves to be a valuable member of the park's spy team. Whenever she and Fishtronaut happen to be apart, she can always use her trusty Aquawatch to stay in touch.
  • Zeek (Portuguese: Zico) (voiced by Celso Alves in Portuguese and Terrence Scammell in English) is a tween-aged monkey who may love to monkey around, but his awesome tree-climbing abilities and finely-tuned sniffer make him invaluable to the team. Though he does come up with the most implausible of theories and even causes the occasional mix-up, his various intentions are nothing but the best.

Supporting[edit]

  • Billy (Portuguese: Pedro) and Mac (Portuguese: Juca) (both voiced by Justin Bradley) are two 8-year-old twin brothers and Marina's rascal cousins. Their shenanigans tend to get them (and the park) in a heap of trouble, but they are harmless and have only the best intentions.
  • Dr. Green (Portuguese: Dr. Jardim) (voiced by Rick Jones) is the grandfather of Marina and the twins Billy and Mac and also the wise vet and caretaker of Smiling Trees Park. He runs the park's Animal Hospital, which was built in a pod of a giant beanstalk. Whenever Marina's stuck, she knows Grandpa can help her find the answer.
  • Rosy Barb (Portuguese: Agente Rosa) (voiced by Holly Gauthier-Frankel) is a S.E.A. agent who loves color and enjoys decorating the ocean bottom until it's just right. She knows the cove inside out and whenever Fishtronaut's on dry land, he can always check in with Rosy via the Web Clam.
  • Happy Plumb (Portuguese: Chumbo Feliz) (voiced by Terrence Scammell) is a wise old fish who likes living quietly at the bottom of the cove and knows just about all there is. No one knows how long he's been around, but it's a very long time, indeed. He remembers the very beginnings of Smiling Trees Park. Whenever Fishtronaut is stumped, he knows Happy Plumb can point him in the right direction, that is, if he can decipher Plumb's riddle of an answer.

Episode list[edit]

Lost Christmas special[edit]

Fishtronaut possibly had a Christmas special.

Broadcast[edit]

Fishtronaut was first broadcast in Latin America on 20 April 2009 on Discovery Kids with the name Peixonauta in Portuguese and Peztronauta in Spanish. The Spanish version of the show was dubbed in Chile by DINT Doblajes Internacionales. A European Spanish dub that aired in Spain by Clan, owned by RTVE, has the characters speak in a Spanish accent. The series has been broadcast in the United States on Qubo. The series also has been aired in French-speaking Canada on Yoopa (as Poissonaute). It was dubbed in Czech and aired in the Czech Republic on ČT Déčko (as Agent Ploutvička). A Turkish-dubbed version of the show (called Balıktronot) was broadcast in Turkey on TRT Çocuk.

Movie[edit]

The film Peixonauta – Agente Secreto da O.S.T.R.A. was released in theaters on 9 November 2012, in commemoration of three years of the series. The film was planned for two years and was released months before the premiere of season 2 of the TV series.[6] The film is a compilation of some episodes of the first season.

A second film was released in January 2018, with an original story.[7][8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "La mujer que crea dibujos animados para fomentar la ciencia en las niñas" [The woman who creates cartoons that promote girls in science]. Pipakid (blog) (in Spanish). Chile. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  2. ^ "Brazil's TV PinGuim opens US arm". Kidscreen. 20 September 2017. Archived from the original on 9 May 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  3. ^ ""Peixonauta" reafirma sucesso no Discovery Kids". O Tempo (Magazine) (in Brazilian Portuguese). Brazil. 25 April 2013. Archived from the original on 9 May 2018. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
  4. ^ "Fishtronaut". Qubo. Archived from the original on 16 September 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
  5. ^ "SerPadres.com: Peztronauta les enseña a los pequeños a cuidar el medio ambiente" [Fishtronaut teaches children to take care of the environment]. Ser Padres (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 27 May 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  6. ^ "Peixonauta – Agente Secreto da O.S.T.R.A." [Fishtronaut – Secret Agent of O.S.T.R.A.], AdoroCinema (in Brazilian Portuguese), archived from the original on 8 May 2018, retrieved 9 May 2018
  7. ^ "Crítica: 'Peixonauta – o filme'". O Globo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 25 January 2018. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
  8. ^ "11 curiosidades sobre Peixonauta" [11 Curiosities about Fishtronaut]. Universo Estendido (in Brazilian Portuguese). 22 January 2018. Archived from the original on 27 May 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2018.

External links[edit]