Blue's Clues & You!
Blue's Clues & You! | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Genre | Educational |
Created by | Traci Paige Johnson Todd Kessler Angela C. Santomero |
Based on | Blue's Clues |
Developed by | Traci Paige Johnson Angela C. Santomero |
Directed by | Vadim Kapridov M.R. Horhager Jennifer Sherman Steve Burns |
Presented by | Josh Dela Cruz |
Voices of |
|
Opening theme | "Blue's Clues & You! Theme Song" by Josh Dela Cruz |
Composers | PT Walkley Michael Rubin (original songs) Nick Balaban (original songs) |
Country of origin | United States Canada |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 3 |
No. of episodes | 43 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
|
Production companies | 9 Story Media Group Brown Bag Films Nickelodeon Animation Studio |
Release | |
Original network | Nickelodeon |
Picture format | HDTV 1080i |
Original release | November 11, 2019 present | –
Chronology | |
Preceded by | Blue's Clues (1996–2006) |
Related shows | Blue's Room |
External links | |
Website |
Blue's Clues & You! is a live-action/computer-animated interactive educational children's television series. It is a revival of the 1996–2006 Blue's Clues TV series with a new host, Josh Dela Cruz, and it is co-developed by original series creators Angela C. Santomero and Traci Paige Johnson. The series is produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio and 9 Story Media Group's Brown Bag Films. It premiered on November 11, 2019.[1]
Premise[]
Similar to the original 1996 series, this series has a live-action host in an animated world. The series features new production designs and the characters (aside from the host) are animated digitally, though the visual style remains similar to the style used in the original series.
Like the original show, Blue's Clues & You! depends upon built-in silences designed to encourage audience participation and what The New York Times called "direct address inviting preschoolers to play along with games and solve mini-mysteries".[2] The show's producers recognized that its return was due to nostalgia, and that although young children had more access to technology and were more visual than preschoolers before, they still had the same developmental and emotional needs to "slow down".[2]
Cast and characters[]
Main[]
- Blue (voiced by Traci Paige Johnson)[3][4] – A blue puppy who leaves pawprints on objects (and occasionally characters) as clues to what she wants to do.
- Josh (played by Josh Dela Cruz)[3][4] – The host of the new series. He is a cousin of Steve and Joe from the original series.[5]
- Mailbox (voiced by Doug Murray)[4] – A mailbox who delivers a letter or e-mail to Josh every day.
- Sidetable Drawer (voiced by Liyou Abere in season one and Shazdeh Kapadia in season two)[3] – The keeper of the Handy Dandy Notebook, who lives in the living room.
- Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper (voiced by Brad Adamson and Gisele Rousseau)[4] – A married couple of condiment dispensers who live in the kitchen.
- Paprika (voiced by Shechinah Mpumlwana in season one and Abigail Nicholson in season two)[4] – Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper's eldest child. She carries a cell phone made from a piece of bread.
- Cinnamon (voiced by Jaiden Cannatelli in season one and Niko Ceci in season two)[4] – A cinnamon shaker who is Paprika's younger brother. He wears a baseball cap.
- Sage and Ginger – Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper's newborn twins. Paprika and Cinnamon are learning how to take care of them.
- Shovel and Pail (voiced by Leo Orgil and Jordana Blake) – A brother and sister who live in the backyard.
- Tickety Tock (voiced by Ava Augustin)[4] – An alarm clock who wakes the residents of the Blue's Clues House each morning.
- Slippery Soap (voiced by Jacob Soley)[4] – A bar of soap who lives in the bathroom sink. He slides around everywhere he goes.
Recurring[]
- Magenta (voiced by Diane Salema)[4] – A magenta puppy who is Blue's best friend from school.
- Periwinkle – A kitten who made his debut in the third season.[6]
- Steve (played by Steve Burns)[4] – Josh's cousin and Joe's older brother, a college graduate who works at the Blue Prints Detective Agency (a nod to the title of the pilot for the original series). He was the first host of the original series.
- Joe (played by Donovan Patton)[4] – Josh's other cousin and Steve's younger brother, who works at the Present Store. He was the second host of the original series.
- Lola (played by Carolyn Fe)[6] – Josh's grandmother, originally from the Philippines (lola translates to "grandmother" in Filipino).
Production[]
In 2017, the original show's creators, Angela C. Santomero and Traci Paige Johnson, after many years of trying to bring Blue's Clues back to Nickelodeon, were given permission to develop a reboot for 20 episodes.[2]
On April 17, 2018, Nickelodeon posted a video discussing the audition process for the series. Over a thousand people participated in the auditions.[7]
On September 13, 2018, Nickelodeon announced that Josh Dela Cruz, best known as an understudy for Disney's Aladdin on Broadway for five years, would be the series' host. Dela Cruz, who grew up in New Jersey, watched the original show with his younger sister and is the first Asian-American to host Blue's Clues. Steve Burns, the first host of the original series, participated in the casting process.[2][8]
9 Story Media Group's live-action and animation division co-produces the series with animators from Brown Bag Films.[9] The animators updated the show with objects familiar to preschoolers of the modern age; for example, the handy dandy notebook doubles as a smartphone and emails arrive during mail time.[2] The series is being filmed in 9 Story's Toronto studio.[10]
On May 27, 2019, a first-look trailer was released to the public.[11] On August 2, an extended version of the theme song was released.[12]
On August 26, 2019, it was announced that the series would premiere on November 11, and that the show's two original hosts, Burns and Donovan Patton, would be returning to portray their respective characters in the series premiere episode.[5] The New York Times reported that Burns was at first reluctant to continue his association with the show, but was persuaded by its fans on social media to write, direct, and appear on the show.[2]
On November 19, 2019, the series was renewed for a second season of 20 episodes.[13][14] The series was later renewed for a third season of 20 episodes on February 19, 2020.[6] On February 18, 2021, the series was renewed for a fourth season of 26 episodes.[15][16]
Episodes[]
Series overview[]
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | ||||
1 | 17 | November 11, 2019 | July 14, 2020 | ||
2 | 21 | August 19, 2020 | September 17, 2021 | ||
3 | TBA | October 1, 2021 | TBA |
Season 1 (2019–20)[]
No. overall | No. in season | Title [16][17] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [16][17] | Prod. code [16] | U.S. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "Meet Josh!" | M.R. Horhager & Jennifer Sherman | Angela C. Santomero | November 11, 2019[note 1] | 101 | 0.87[20] |
2 | 2 | "Playdate with Magenta" | Steve Burns & M.R. Horhager | Original script : Alice Wilder & Michael Smith Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | November 12, 2019[note 1] | 103 | N/A |
3 | 3 | "Big News with Blue" | Steve Burns & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | November 13, 2019[note 1] | 104 | 0.55[21] |
4 | 4 | "ABC's with Blue" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | November 14, 2019 | 105 | 0.59[22] |
5 | 5 | "123's with Blue" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | November 18, 2019 | 106 | 0.53[23] |
6 | 6 | "Sad Day with Blue" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Angela C. Santomero | November 19, 2019 | 107 | 0.66[24] |
7 | 7 | "Laugh with Blue" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Adam Peltzman Edited by : Angela C. Santomero | November 20, 2019 | 108 | 0.49[25] |
8 | 8 | "Song Time with Blue" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | November 21, 2019 | 109 | 0.49[26] |
9 | 9 | "Getting Glasses with Magenta" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | December 13, 2019 | 111 | 0.61[27] |
10 | 10 | "Growing with Blue" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | January 10, 2020 | 110 | 0.50[28] |
11 | 11 | "Happy Birthday Blue" | M.R. Horhager & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | February 7, 2020 | 102 | 0.77[29] |
12 | 12 | "Story Time with Blue" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | March 6, 2020 | 113 | 0.49[30] |
13 | 13 | "The Thinking Squad" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Adam Peltzman & Michael T. Smith Edited by : Alyson Piekarsky | April 3, 2020 | 116 | 0.58[31] |
14 | 14 | "Science with Blue" | Jeremy Slutskin & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | May 5, 2020 | 112 | 0.51[32] |
15 | 15 | "Colors Everywhere with Blue" | M.R. Horhager | Original script : Jennifer Twomey Edited by : Angela C. Santomero | June 2, 2020 | 117 | 0.52[33] |
16 | 16 | "Pajama Party with Blue" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Adam Peltzman Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | June 16, 2020 | 118 | 0.56[34] |
17 | 17 | "Bluestock" "Blue's Sing-Along Spectacular"[35][36] | Jeremy Slutskin & M.R. Horhager | Original script : Sascha Paladino Edited by : Angela C. Santomero | July 14, 2020 | 115 | 0.45[37] |
Season 2 (2020–21)[]
No. overall | No. in season | Title [16][38] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [16][38] | Prod. code [16] | U.S. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
18 | 1 | "Blue's Big Beat Band" | Jeremy Slutskin & Jennifer Sherman | Jorge Aguirre | August 19, 2020 | 201 | 0.42[39] |
19 | 2 | "Hide and Seek with Blue" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Pammy Salmon | September 16, 2020 | 202 | 0.50[40] |
20 | 3 | "Blue's Treasure Hunt" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Alyson Piekarsky | September 30, 2020 | 203 | 0.48[41] |
21 | 4 | "Spooky Costume Party with Blue" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Original script : Alice Wilder & Michael Smith Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | October 16, 2020 | 119 | 0.50[42] |
22 | 5 | "Thankful with Blue" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Original script : Jennifer Brackenbury & Angela C. Santomero Edited by : Angela C. Santomero & Becky Friedman Lowitt | November 6, 2020 | 120 | 0.59[43] |
23 | 6 | "Welcome to Blue's Bistro" | Steve Burns & M.R. Horhager | Steve Burns | November 13, 2020 | 206 | 0.43[44] |
24 | 7 | "Blue's Big Baking Show" | Jeremy Slutskin & M.R. Horhager | Jorge Aguirre | November 20, 2020 | 204 | 0.40[45] |
25 | 8 | "Blue's Night Before Christmas" | Steve Burns & M.R. Horhager | Steve Burns | December 4, 2020 | 208 | 0.52[46] |
26 | 9 | "Sleepy Singalong with Blue" | Jeremy Slutskin & Jennifer Sherman | Mary Jacobson | December 18, 2020 | 207 | 0.49[47] |
27 | 10 | "Blue's Big Dance Party" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Pammy Salmon | January 1, 2021 | 205 | 0.45[48] |
28 | 11 | "Blue's Big Imagination" | Donovan Patton & Jennifer Sherman | Angela C. Santomero | January 22, 2021 | 209 | 0.44[49] |
29 | 12 | "What I Like About Blue" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Pammy Salmon | February 12, 2021 | 214 | 0.31[50] |
30 | 13 | "Blue's Show and Tell Surprise" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Caitlin Hodson | March 5, 2021 | 213 | 0.38[51] |
31 | 14 | "Blue's Rainy Day Rainbow" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Caitlin Hodson | March 12, 2021 | 211 | 0.40[52] |
32 | 15 | "Spring is Here!" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Alyson Piekarsky | April 23, 2021 | 217 | 0.34[53] |
33 | 16 | "Blue's Big Neighborhood Adventure" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Jorge Aguirre | May 21, 2021 | 215 | 0.34[54] |
34 | 17 | "Blue's Beach Bonanza" | Steve Burns & Jennifer Sherman | Steve Burns | June 4, 2021 | 219 | 0.40[55] |
35 | 18 | "Blue's Anywhere Box Surprise" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Jorge Aguirre | June 25, 2021 | 212 | 0.42[56] |
36 | 19 | "Mystery of the Missing Pies" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Jill Cozza-Turner | July 2, 2021 | 220 | 0.32[57] |
37 | 20 | "Blue Makes a Movie with YOU!" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Caitlin Hodson | August 20, 2021 | 218 | 0.32[58] |
38 | 21 | "It's YOUR Birthday!" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Pammy Salmon | September 17, 2021 | 216 | 0.31[59] |
Season 3 (2021)[]
No. overall | No. in season | Title [16][60] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [16][60] | Prod. code [16] | U.S. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
39 | 1 | "Our New Neighbor!" | Jeremy Slutskin & Jennifer Sherman | Kevin Del Aguila | October 1, 2021 | 301 | 0.17[61] |
40 | 2 | "The Ghost of the Living Room" | Alyson Court & M.R. Horhager | Steve Burns | October 18, 2021 | 304 | 0.29[62] |
41 | 3 | "Blue's Big Costume Parade" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Alyson Piekarsky | October 29, 2021 | 210 | 0.28[63] |
42 | 4 | "A Blue's Clues Festival of Lights" | Steve Wright & M.R. Horhager | Alyson Piekarsky | November 26, 2021 | 306 | 0.29[64] |
43 | 5 | "Blue's Snowy Day Surprise" | Steve Wright & Jennifer Sherman | Caitlin Hodson | December 6, 2021 | 307 | 0.31[65] |
Notes[]
Release[]
The series premiered on Nickelodeon on November 11, 2019.[66][1] Three episodes were made available to stream for free on Vudu on September 27, ahead of the official release on Nickelodeon.[18][19] In Canada, the series premiered on Treehouse TV on the same day as the U.S. date.[67]
Awards and nominations[]
Year | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2020 | 47th Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Preschool Children's Series | Nominated | [68] |
Outstanding Interactive Media for a Daytime Program | Nominated | [68] | ||
Cynopsis Best of the Best Awards | Best Preschool Series | Nominated | [69] | |
2021 | Kidscreen Awards | Best Mixed-Media Series | Nominated | [70][71] |
48th Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Writing Team for a Preschool, Children’s or Family Viewing Program | Nominated | [72] | |
Outstanding Directing Team for a Preschool, Children’s or Family Viewing Program | Nominated | [72] | ||
4th Annual Gay Emmys | Outstanding Animated Series | Nominated | [73] |
Film[]
On July 12, 2021, it was revealed that an animated movie for the series will be made, marking the 25th anniversary of the franchise. In the film, Josh and Blue will try to audition for a Broadway musical. Directed by Matt Stawski and written by Angela Santomero and Liz Maccie, the film began production in summer 2021.[74]
Merchandising[]
In July 2019, Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products announced that Just Play, a Florida toy company, would produce plush, figurines, playsets, and roleplay merchandise based on the series, while VTech, a Hong Kong company, would produce "early learning toys with modern tech features".[18] Cardinal, a New York-based company, will manage games and puzzles. The products became available for purchase in fall 2020.[75]
References[]
- ^ a b "Nickelodeon's Brand-New Preschool Series Blue's Clues & You! Bows Monday, Nov. 11, at 9 A.M. (ET/PT)" (Press release). Nickelodeon. August 26, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2020 – via The Futon Critic.
- ^ a b c d e f Katrina Onstad (November 6, 2019). "Blue's Clues Returns, and Silence Is Still the Star". The New York Times. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
- ^ a b c "Story Time with Blue". Blue's Clues & You!. Season 1. Episode 12. March 6, 2020. Nickelodeon.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Blue's Night Before Christmas". Blue's Clues & You!. Season 2. Episode 8. December 4, 2020. Nickelodeon.
- ^ a b Meredith Jacobs (August 26, 2019). "Blue's Clues & You!: Nickelodeon Reveals Premiere Date & Returning Hosts (VIDEO)". TV Insider. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
- ^ a b c Erik Pedersen (February 19, 2020). "Are You Afraid Of The Dark?, All That, Top Elf, Blue's Clues, The Casagrandes & PAW Patrol Among Slew Of Nickelodeon Renewals". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
- ^ Blue’s Clues: The Search for the New Host & Best Friend!