Yin Yang Yo!

TV Kids
Weekly, August 08, 2007

ORIGIN: Bob Boyle, the creator of the show,
explains, “The idea for Yin Yang Yo! started when my wife and I were at a Tofu festival in Los
Angeles’s Little Tokyo neighborhood. I saw a stand that was selling baby shirts
that said ‘Samurai in Training’ on them. I loved the idea of something tiny and
adorable trying to defeat the forces of evil. I thought that it would be even
better if it were an adorable animal, and fluffy bunnies seemed like just the
right fit. I went home that night and drew a tiny ninja rabbit.”

Boyle
continues: “At the same time, I had been hearing about pitches being turned
down because they didn't have enough ‘boy appeal’ or enough ‘girl appeal.’ So I
thought, Why not have a show where the main characters are a boy and a girl of
equal importance? And so, Yin and Yang, the brother and sister heroes were
created. Once I decided that the characters were going to be the iconic ‘boy’
and ‘girl’, things just fit into place. The show became focused on contrasts.
Boy/girl, brother/sister, good/evil, Yin/Yang.”

DISTRIBUTOR:
Disney-ABC
International Television on behalf of Jetix Europe, which holds all pay-TV
rights for Europe and the Middle East, as well as TV distribution, home video
and consumer products rights.

CREATORS/PRODUCERS:
The series was created,
directed and executive-produced by Fairly Odd Parents producer Bob Boyle with comedian and
veteran animation writer Steve Marmel (Johnny Bravo, The Fairly Odd Parents, Danny Phantom) as head writer and co-executive
producer.

TV SHOW: The series consists of 26 half-hour
Flash episodes that can each be split into two 11-minute episodes to provide a
more flexible format. Yin Yang Yo! is Jetix’s fourth co-production with The Walt Disney Company as
part of the Jetix global programming alliance. The show is humorous for both
kids and their parents. The crazy adventures that Yin and Yang experience are
made even more fun with the show’s use of irreverent humor.

Geared towards
kids aged 6 to 11, the series is produced utilizing Flash animation software
and features siblings Yin and Yang who couldn’t be more different except for
one common bond—they must both become ‘Woo Foo’ Knights, defeat Carl The
Evil Cockroach Wizard, and save the world from plunging into eternal darkness.
The rabbit twins also have to finish their homework, do their chores and eat
their vegetables. Yin and Yang are taught the ‘Woo Foo Ways’ (and some algebra)
by a panda named Master Yo. ‘Woo Foo’ Knights are guardians of peace and
justice who possess martial-arts skills, mind and thought control and the
ability to move objects telepathically. They can even run up the sides of
buildings and perform 360-degree moves in the air.

Yin is smart,
sassy and stubborn. She struggles to balance her burning desire to save the
world and the nagging urge to strangle her brother. Yang is fast, furious and
out of control. His high-octane energy coupled with his love of hitting things
makes him a force to be reckoned with. Master Yo is a wise but grumpy old
panda, who teaches the twins the ‘Woo Foo Ways’ in order for them to become Woo
Foo Knights. Carl, the amazingly evil cockroach wizard, continuously schemes to
defeat Yin, Yang and the power of the Woo Foo with his insecure genius.

COMMISSIONING
BROADCASTER: As an
original production for Jetix platforms worldwide, Yin Yang Yo! has joined Jetix TV schedules across
Europe and the Middle East, as well as in Latin America and the U.S.

TV SALES: Free TV sales have been concluded in
French Belgium (RTL), Greece (Star TV), Ireland (RTE), Portugal (SIC), Spain
(Antena 3) and the U.K. (GMTV). Disney-ABC International Television services
the distribution of Yin Yang Yo! and all other series in Jetix Europe's programming portfolio.

LICENSING: JCP (Jetix Consumer Products) manages
home video, licensing and merchandising rights for Yin Yang Yo! and is in discussions with potential
toy and gift licensees. Deals have already been secured in Spain and Portugal
for categories such as back to school, stationery and beach toys; and in France
and Belgium for the apparel category.

STRATEGY
FOR ROLL OUT: Yin
Yang Yo! is the
signature comedy show for Jetix Europe. In order to maximize the success of the
series, Jetix Europe is using the strong comedy element to drive viewership and
appeal to both boys and girls. The crazy characters, the brother and sister
element, the bold and colorful style, as well as the cheeky humor, will appeal
to the audience as kids will find it easily identifiable and spontaneously
connect to it.

The
26×30-minute episodes debuted successfully last fall on a number of Jetix
channels and platforms worldwide. These include the Jetix block on Toon Disney
channels in the U.S. and Japan and Latin America.

The launch of Yin
Yang Yo! in the U.S.
resulted in a massive ratings success, making Yin Yang Yo! the most-watched original animated
series premiere in the history of the network, both in total viewers (491,000)
and the target demos of kids 2-11 (334,000) and kids 6-11 (217,000), delivering
triple-digit percentage gains over year-ago time period levels.

It is
currently rolling out across all Jetix Europe’s territories. Yin Yang Yo! launched in the U.K. in February 2007
and ranked as the joint second-most popular program on Jetix.

In order to
bring the series to life for children, JCP will be maximizing the potential of
the property by licensing all products, with a particular focus on toys,
electronic games, publishing and gifts. The eye-grabbing and fun characters of Yin
Yang Yo! will provide
extensive opportunities for licensing deals.