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Hero Elementary
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Hero Elementary is an animated children's television series created and produced by Portfolio Entertainment and Twin Cities PBS.[1] The series premiered on June 1, 2020, on PBS Kids. The series was created by co-creators Carol-Lynn Parente and Christine Ferraro, who previously worked on Sesame Street.[2] The series involves the students of "The Sparks' Crew"—Lucita Sky, AJ Gadgets, Sara Snap and Benny Bubbles—who are trained in superheroics by their quirky and enthusiastic teacher, Mr. Sparks. Together the students work as a team, using their own unique superpowers, as well as the "Superpowers of Science" to help people, solve problems, and try to make the world a better place. The series is currently being produced for 40 half-hour episodes, each of them containing two segments each.[3]
| Hero Elementary | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Created by | Christine Ferraro Carol-Lynn Parente |
| Based on | "Super Hero School" by Aaron Reynolds |
| Directed by | Paul Hunt |
| Starring |
|
| Theme music composer |
|
| Opening theme | "(You Belong at) Hero Elementary", performed by Divine Brown and Cal Dodd |
| Ending theme | "(You Belong at) Hero Elementary" (instrumental) (End Credits Version) |
| Composer | Lorenzo Castelli |
| Country of origin | United States Canada |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 40 (80 segments) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Carol-Lynn Parente Lisa Olfman Joy Rosen Joann Freese Christine Ferraro |
| Producer | Trent Locke |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | Portfolio Entertainment Twin Cities PBS |
| Distributor | Twin Cities PBS |
| Release | |
| Original network | TVOKids (Canada) PBS Kids (U.S.) |
| Picture format | HDTV 720p |
| Audio format | Dolby Digital 5.1 |
| Original release | June 1, 2020 – present |
Premise
The series involves "The Sparks' Crew", a group of students from Hero Elementary: AJ Gadgets, Lucita Sky, Benny Bubbles, & Sara Snap and their enthusiastic teacher, Mr. Sparks. and the class pet Fur Blur, also known as "Sparks' Crew Hamster".
Characters
Several of the main and recurring characters of Hero Elementary. From Left to Right: AJ Gadgets, Lucita Sky, and Freeze Louise
Main
- Lucita Sky (voiced by Veronica Hortiguela) is a good-natured and compassionate Mexican-American girl who inherited the power of flight from her grandparents. She serves as the leader of the Sparks' Crew. Because she can fly, Lucita can often be seen hovering off the ground. Ironically, she is acrophobic and appears to also suffer from vertigo; when flying high, Lucita always inadvertently looks down and she must be rescued herself.
- Arnold Jasper "AJ" Gadgets (voiced by Jadiel Dowlin) is a brilliant, autistic African-American boy who has the power of thought projection, meaning he can project pictures of his own thoughts in front of others, and also enjoys inventing all kinds of gadgets. He has a backpack that contains all his super inventions and doubles as a jetpack for transportation. AJ has expertise in mathematics, applied science, mechanics, computers, robotics/cybernetics, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, chemistry, and various levels of physics, but is also admittedly fond of trains and railroad engineering.
- Sara Snap (voiced by Stephany Seki) is a tomboyish Japanese-American girl who has both the powers of super strength and teleportation; she can teleport anywhere by snapping her left fingers. At times, Sara's teleportation can take her the wrong places. She is also allergic to coconuts; instead of suffering from typical allergy symptoms, they cause a loss of powers temporarily.
- Benjamin "Benny" Bubbles (voiced by Stacey DePass) is a cheerful and good-natured Australian-American boy who has the power of bubble generation, meaning he can create bubbles for various reasons. Benny is also an avid animal lover, particularly jumping in to rescue abused or frightened animals during missions. He often provides comic relief throughout the series, making introductions/proclamations in a humorously dramatic manner (e.g. "We must rid our fair city of this pesky plant!") and is rather naive and scatterbrained at times, in contrast to AJ.
- Mr. Enrique Sparks (voiced by Carlos Díaz) is the students' teacher who guides them through their superhero training, Mr. Sparks is the narrator of the episodes and also the mentor of the Sparks' Crew. Like Lucita, Mr. Sparks is fluent in Spanish. Mr. Sparks occasionally drives the Sparks' Crew Van for when the students have missions elsewhere.
- Fur Blur is a hamster who's the class pet and also possesses the ability of super speed, Fur Blur's thoughts are exposed in large clouds. And it's clear through her emojis that she'll be as bright as the Sparks Crew one day. She can often be seen on the heads and shoulders of Mr. Sparks and the other students. Fur Blur often drives around in a red toy car while inside her hamster ball.
Other
- Heidi (voiced by Denise Oliver) wears a pink shirt, green overalls, white socks, and purple shoes.
- Jada (voiced by Barbara Mamabolo) wears a pink flower, a pink dress, orange leggings, and purple shoes.
- Freeze Louise and Petie Heat (voiced by Denise Oliver (Freeze Louise) and Cory Doran (Petie Heat)) are twin siblings who make up "Team Tornado" at Hero Elementary. Louise is a cyan-blue haired student who can freeze anything. Petie is a red spikey-haired student who can melt anything using heat generation.
- The Amazing Memory Kid (voiced by Stephany Seki) is a student in "The Mighty Brights" class at Hero Elementary who wears a blue memory helmet, The Amazing Memory Kid doesn't really have a good memory.
- "Turbo" Tina (voiced by Ana Sani) is a student in "The Mighty Brights" class at Hero Elementary who runs really fast.
- "Rubberband" Robbie (voiced by Jonathan E. Gordon) is a student in "The Mighty Brights" class at Hero Elementary who can stretch to great lengths with his elastic body.
- Dr. Inventorman (Martin Roach) is a hero inventor.
- Hail Caesar (Cory Doran) is a weather-related superhero.
- Athletica (Kristin Fairlie) is an athletic superheroine that the students idolize.
- Captain Bounceback (Alexa Hazael) is a superheroine who has the ability to bounce.
- Mrs. Mangia (Julie Lemieux) is the school's cafeteria supervisor.
Production
This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (November 2021) |
Episodes
Season 1 (2020-22)
| No. | Title [4] | Written by | Original air date [citation needed] | Prod. code [a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Hatching a Plan" "The Invisible Force" | Christine Ferraro Jill Cozza-Turner | June 1, 2020 | 101 |
| 1a: Hatching a Plan: Sparks' Crew vow to reunite a baby bird with its parents. 1b: The Invisible Force: The crew tries to find out why the decorations for a young girl's birthday party have vanished. | ||||
| 2 | "Saved from the Bell" "The Right Stuff" | Eric Peterson Jorge Aguirre | June 2, 2020 | 102 |
| 2a: Saved from the Bell: When the bell on the school's Leaping Tower continually rings, Sparks' crew investigates. 2b: The Right Stuff: The crew decide to restyle their hero suits. | ||||
| 3 | "Tail of One Kitty" "Movie Theater Meltdown" | Susan Kim Belinda Arredondo | June 3, 2020 | 103 |
| 3a: Tail of One Kitty: The crew learns how animals use their tails when it tries to rescue a little girl's kitten. 3b: Movie Theater Meltdown: The team helps a teen with an out-of-control superpower. | ||||
| 4 | "The Lake Mistake" "Plant Problem" | Melinda LaRose Louie Lazar | June 4, 2020 | 104 |
| 4a: The Lake Mistake: The Sparks' Crew try to find a way to restore the lake back to its original state after a super student accidentally freezes it. 4b: Plant Problem: A plant grows out of control. | ||||
| 5 | "Where's Fur Blur?" "The Blob" | Geri Cole Adam Rudman | June 8, 2020 | 105 |
| 5a: Where's Fur Blur?: The Sparks' Crew use their five senses to track Fur Blur throughout the school. 5b: The Blob: A giant blob invades the hallways and classrooms, causing chaos. | ||||
| 6 | "Toadal Confusion" "Hero Hideaway" | Karen Moonah George Arthur Bloom | June 9, 2020 | 106 |
| 6a: Toadal Confusion: Toads take over a new skate park. 6b: Hero Hideaway: AJ tries to build a hero clubhouse out of cardboard boxes, but it keeps falling down. | ||||
| 7 | "All Over the Map" "Lights Go Down in Citytown" | Christine Ferraro James R. Backshall | June 10, 2020 | 107 |
| 7a: All Over the Map: A bird flies off with AJ's Twigcam. 7b: Lights Go Down in Citytown: The nighttime sky, lit up by the lights of the city, make it hard for Sparks' Crew to see a meteor shower. | ||||
| 8 | "Fair Weather" "Home Sweet Home" | Patrick Granleese Jorge Aguirre | June 15, 2020 | 108 |
| 8a: Fair Weather: Sparks' Crew learns about changing weather patterns. 8b: Home Sweet Home: The crew tries to find a home for a chipmunk after a tree falls in the schoolyard. | ||||
| 9 | "The Feed for Speed" "An Uphill Task" | Eric Peterson Karen Moonah | June 16, 2020 | 109 |
| 9a: The Feed for Speed: Fur Blur competes in the school's Super Pet Races. 9b: An Uphill Task: AJ invents a wheeled robot that can do everything but go up stairs. | ||||
| 10 | "With a Little Push" "Track That Pack" | Adam Rudman Karen Moonah | June 17, 2020 | 110 |
| 10a: With a Little Push: Sparks' Crew chases a giant ball through the city, learning that pushing an object can start or stop its movement. 10b: Track That Pack: Sparks' Crew searches for AJ's backpack after it floats away in a lake. | ||||
| 11 | "The Butterfly Chasers" "Something Shady" | Sheila Rogerson Syndi Shumer | June 22, 2020 | 111 |
| 11a: The Butterfly Chasers: Benny and the crew investigate why monarch butterflies are missing from the school garden. 11b: Something Shady: AJ's shady spot disappears. | ||||
| 12 | "Turtle Beach" "Shine a Light on Me" | Patrick Granleese Bernice Vanderlaan | June 23, 2020 | 112 |
| 12a: Turtle Beach: When the crew goes to Turtle Beach to see the hatching of baby turtles, they find the beach filled with litter. 12b: Shine a Light on Me: The crew gathers at night to search for a missing superdog. | ||||
| 13 | "Sound of Ice Cream" "The Reflection Connection" | Bernice Vanderlaan Louie Lazar | June 29, 2020 | 113 |
| 13a: Sound of Ice Cream: An ice cream truck is accidentally made invisible, so the crew must rely on its sounds to find it. 13b: The Reflection Connection: People everywhere get stuck when a flying super-glue gadget goes haywire. | ||||
| 14 | "Sparks' Crew Unplugged" "Camp Catastrophe" | Karen Moonah Jiro C. Okada | June 30, 2020 | 114 |
| 14a: Sparks' Crew Unplugged (Sparks' Unplugged; TV guides): Sparks' Crew tries to determine why muffins have gone missing from the school cafeteria. 14b: Camp Catastrophe: The crew helps a scout troop build a new shelter when their tent blows away. | ||||
| 15 | "Monster Hunters" "A Soapy Situation" | Karen Moonah Jorge Aguirre | July 1, 2020 | 115 |
| 15a: Monster Hunters: When the crew investigates a backyard monster, it discovers that it's actually a mother opossum and her babies. 15b: A Soapy Situation: A sudsy mess envelopes the Super-Duper Store. | ||||
| 16 | "Bugging Out" "Eager Beavers" | Eric Peterson Sheila Rogerson | July 6, 2020[5] | 116 |
| 16a: Bugging Out: The crew must find their way out of an overgrown, weedy area after being accidentally shrunk to the size of bugs. 16b: Eager Beavers: The crew helps Lucita's grandmother when her favorite scenic spot is flooded. | ||||
| 17 | "A Leg Up" "Sneezitis Solution" | George Arthur Bloom Patrick Granleese | July 13, 2020 | 117 |
| 17a: A Leg Up: A baby porcupine needs help, but the crew has trouble getting close to it. 17b: Sneezitis Solution: Fur Blur comes down with a hamster cold and the only cure is to sniff the flower of a certain plant. | ||||
| 18 | "What You Don't See" "Super Purple Pop-Up Plants" | Kate Barris Adam Rudman | July 20, 2020 | 118 |
| 18a: What You Don't See: The crew tries to help catch a frightened horse on the loose in Citytown. 18b: Super Purple Pop-Up Plants: Mysterious purple plants keep popping up all over Citytown. | ||||
| 19 | "Dog in the Fog" "Bye, Bye Dragonfly" | Diana Moore Bob Ardiel | July 27, 2020 | 119 |
| 19a: Dog in the Fog: The crew searches for a little dog that gets lost in the fog. 19b: Bye, Bye Dragonfly: The crew uses clues from nature to catch a runaway drone. | ||||
| 20 | "Rough Sledding" "Hungry Hungry Hoppers" | Karen Moonah Patrick Granleese | August 17, 2020 | 120 |
| 20a: Rough Sledding: AJ accidentally ruins a schoolmate's box sled, so the crew helps him find the materials he needs to repair it. 20b: Hungry Hungry Hoppers: The crew takes care of someone else's class pet, a super frog, until it gets out and hops through town. | ||||
| 21 | "Hero Hit Parade" "Trouble at the Pet Wash" | Eric Peterson Jeff Sweeney | August 18, 2020 | 121 |
| 21a: Hero Hit Parade: Sparks' Crew tries to retrieve a big parade balloon that gets loose. 21b: Trouble at the Pet Wash: The crew helps a boy search for his missing dog. | ||||
| 22 | "Bouncing Ideas" "Leaning Tower, No Pizza" | Betty Quan John Slama | August 19, 2020 | 122 |
| 22a: Bouncing Ideas: Sparks' Crew tries to figure out how to stop Rubberband Robbie from bouncing all over the school. 22b: Leaning Tower, No Pizza: The Sparks' Crew tests out low-tech ways to communicate after phone service is knocked out. | ||||
| 23 | "Kite Delight" "Little Lost Horse" | Patrick Granleese Bob Ardiel | August 20, 2020 | 123 |
| 23a: Kite Delight: The crew learns about how wind moves things when they help a boy make a new kite. 23b: Little Lost Horse:The crew helps a little girl find her toy horse that she lost on the beach. | ||||
| 24 | "The Crew Who SNOWS What to Do" "Keep Your Eye on the Ball" | James R. Backshall Carol-Lynn Parente | January 4, 2021 | 124 |
| 24a:The Crew Who SNOWS What to Do: Turbo Tina is excited to see her first snowfall, but some of the snow melts quickly. 24b: Keep Your Eye on the Ball: A T-ball championship game is jeopardized when the balls go missing. | ||||
| 25 | "Going to Pieces" "Forces of Nature" | Karen Moonah Betty Quan | January 5, 2021 | 125 |
| 25a: Going to Pieces: When a piece of a statue breaks off, Sparks' Crew must find it before the statue's unveiling ceremony. 25b: Forces of Nature: The crew searches for an invention that Dr. Inventorman buried underground. | ||||
| 26 | "Knot So Fast" "Made in the Shade" | Eric Peterson Christine Ferraro | January 6, 2021 | 126 |
| 26a: Knot So Fast: AJ's shoe-tying car gets out of control, tying Citytown into knots. 26b: Made in the Shade: The crew tries to determine why the ice cream in Stevie Heat's ice cream cart melted. | ||||
| 27 | "Snowy Journey" "Super Summertime" | Jeff Sweeney Patrick Granleese | January 7, 2021 | 127 |
| 27a: Snowy Journey: The crew treks through the snow to get Fur Blur to the veterinarian. 27b: Super Summertime: AJ wants to do all the activities on his super fun list -- but they are for the winter. | ||||
| 28 | "Hall Caesar" "Picture Perfect" | Patrick Granleese Carol-Lynn Parente and Maryelizabeth Pfund | March 29, 2021 | 128 |
| 28a: Hall Caesar: Hail Caesar helps the crew understand more about hail after a hailstorm causes damage around Citytown. 28b: Picture Perfect: The crew tries to stay clean for Picture Day at school. | ||||
| 29 | "Monumental Problem" "Super Lift" | Jiro C. Okada Betty Quan | March 30, 2021 | 129 |
| 29a: Monumental Problem: The crew must figure out how to repair a monument on Hero Hill. 29b: Super Lift: The crew tries to change a broken wheel on a hot dog cart. | ||||
| 30 | "Looking Super" "Schmubble Trouble" | Eric Peterson Jiro C. Okada | March 31, 2021 | 130 |
| 30a: Looking Super: Hail Caesar helps the crew search for a self-flying cape that took off from the store. 30b: Schmubble Trouble: AJ, Lucita and Sara get caught inside Schmubble Bubbles. | ||||
| 31 | "Sara Loses Her Snap" "A Soupie Mystery" | John Slama Karen Moonah | April 1, 2021 | 131 |
| 31a: Sara Loses Her Snap: Sara loses her super strength on the same day the crew has to move a giant, heavy burger. 31b: A Soupie Mystery: The crew sets out to find Soupy, a mysterious creature that has been spotted in Super Superior Lake. | ||||
| 32 | "AJ's Extra Superpower, Part 1" "AJ's Extra Superpower, Part 2" | Christine Ferraro | April 2, 2021 | 132 |
| Part 1: The crew discovers that a dog is stealing a little girl's toys from her backyard. Part 2: AJ tries to find his Jetman Jones, at Citytown Hero Con. | ||||
| 33 | "Search and Rescue" "Secret Lives of Teachers" | Patrick Granleese Adam Rudman | May 3, 2021 | 133 |
| 33a: Search and Rescue: Sparks' Crew searches for two schoolmates who are hiding somewhere in Citytown. 33b: Secret Lives of Teachers: The kids are surprised to see their teacher on the weekend outside of school. | ||||
| 34 | "Heroes in Space, Part 1" "Heroes in Space, Part 2" | Karen Moonah | July 12, 2021 | 134 |
| Part 1: Sara and friends are excited to view the full moon, but they notice that half of the moon is missing. Part 2: The crew flies to the moon to investigate. | ||||
| 35 | "Back on Track" "Switcheroo-er" | Eric Peterson Christine Ferraro | July 13, 2021 | 135 |
| 35a: Back on Track: When a toy train is ruined, the crew sets out to learn more about the landforms that make up City Town so they can build a replica. 35b: Switcheroo-er: AJ's new gadget switches everyone's powers. | ||||
| 36 | "Squeak to Me" "Team Song's Theme Song" | Bernice Vanderlaan Christine Ferraro | July 14, 2021 | 136 |
| 36a: Squeak to Me: AJ builds a gadget to help people understand Fur Blur's squeaks, but it misfires and makes people squeak. 36b: Team Song's Theme Song: Sparks' Crew wants a theme song. | ||||
| 37 | "First Day of School, Part 1" "First Day of School, Part 2" | Eric Peterson | September 6, 2021 | 137 |
| Part 1: Everyone meets everyone on the first day of Hero Elementary. Part 2: Sparks' Crew goes on its first mission to catch a baby hamster. | ||||
| 38 | "When Fur Flies" "Pumpkin Palooza" | Christine Ferraro | October 11, 2021 | 138 |
| 38a: When Fur Flies: Something high in the sky is causing a trail of trouble across Citytown, but is it a bird, a plane, or something else? Sparks’ Crew observes the properties of things gone wrong downtown, which leads them to understand what the problem is. 38b: Pumpkin Palooza: It’s the day of Pumpkin Palooza and a little girl’s decorated pumpkin has been ruined. It’s Sparks’ Crew to the rescue! Learning that the culprit is a hungry squirrel, they work together to design and build a solution to protect all the decorated pumpkins in City Town. | ||||
| 39 | "Friends of the Forest" "Chicken Hero" | Christine Ferraro Eric Peterson | January 3, 2022 | 139 |
| 39a: Friends of the Forest: The heroes embark on a mission with Branchman to plan a solution to use less paper. 39b: Chicken Hero: The crew tries to track down a chicken on the loose. | ||||
| 40 | "Teacher of the Year" "The Sweet Smell of Success" | Christine Ferraro Eric Peterson | January 4, 2022 | 140 |
| 40a: Teacher of the Year: There's a big surprise in store for Mr. Sparks: He will be receiving the "Hero Teacher of the Year" award! His heroic students want to make everything special for the big celebration, and that includes making a cake. But, will Sparks’ Crew be able to keep the party a surprise while they figure out the right mixture for the cake batter? 40b: The Sweet Smell of Success: Invisigirl (a former student) likes to use her invisibility to play jokes, but a joke has unintended consequences when she makes a cake invisible, and then can't find it! The team tries to track it down via their sense of smell, but will it be enough to find the cake? | ||||
Broadcast
The series first premiered on PBS Kids in the United States on June 1, 2020, then it premiered on TVOKids in Canada on July 7, 2020,[6] and premiered on Discovery Kids in Latin America and IRIB TV2 and IRIB Pooya Persian in 2021.[7]
Notes
- ^ Twin Cities PBS files the copyright for the episodes under groups, rather than separate episodes, as seen here: *"Public Catalog". United States Copyright Office. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
References
- ^ "PBS KIDS to Premiere 'Hero Elementary' in Summer 2020". Animation Magazine. October 1, 2019.
- ^ "PBS KIDS Suits Up with 'Hero Elementary' Premiering June 1". Animation Magazine. January 29, 2020.
- ^ "Hero Elementary".
- ^ "Episode Descriptions & Curriculum" (DOC). pressroom.pbs.org. March 31, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
- ^ . Alabama Public Television. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
- ^ "Hero Elementary (@HeroElementary) | Twitter". twitter.com. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
- ^ "Deals of the Week: Portfolio, Genius, Babyfirst". kidscreen.com. March 5, 2021.