"Xiaolin Showdown" (2003) TV series 2003-????

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3

Release Date:

1 NOVEMBER 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Adventure | Comedy | Family

Plot:

A young Xiaolin monk named Omi with a giant yellow head leads a trio of other students to collect powerful items known as Shen Gong Wu while battling the evil Jack Spicer who is also after the artifacts

Plot Keywords:

Magic | Martial Arts | Dragon

Awards:

1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Jeff Bennett	...	Clay Bailey / ... (53 episodes, 2003-2006)
Danny Cooksey	...	Jack Spicer (52 episodes, 2003-2006)
Grey DeLisle	...	Kimiko Tohomiko (52 episodes, 2003-2006)
Tom Kenny	...	Raimundo Pedrosa / ... (52 episodes, 2003-2006)
Wayne Knight	...	Dojo Kanojo Cho (52 episodes, 2003-2006)
Tara Strong	...	Omi (52 episodes, 2003-2006)
Susan Silo	...	Wuya (38 episodes, 2003-2006)

Runtime:

USA:30 min (including commercials)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:TV-Y

Company:

Warner Bros. Animation

Trivia:

The name of the Dragon of Wind is Raimundo. 'Rai' means 'Thunder' in Japanese, and through Season Two of the show Raimundo's main attack is called 'Typhoon Boom' and sounds like Thunder.

Quotes:

Jack Spicer: You're nuts! Get off of me!

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "Grim & Evil: Billy Idiot/Home of the Ancients (#4.13)" (2005)

Humor and action combination works

When I first heard of Xiaolin Showdown, I thought that it was just going to be another one of those stupid action cartoons that try to keep kids around with really lame jokes that even they hate. So, I never watched it until two years later. It was summer, and I had nothing better to do than watch some childish cartoon and make fun of it later. First thing I noticed was the characters. Most of them were overused stereotypes, and I hated them. The only character that I took a liking to was Jack Spicer. Sure, cartoons often make fun of the villain, but they never intentionally make you laugh. Jack broke that chain and actually came off as being the most amusing villain I have ever seen in a cartoon. In general, the entire style of humor in Xiaolin is fairly decent. It has that kind of humor that everyone likes. You know, the kind where you can tell it to an eight-year-old and you both will think it's funny. Second thing I noticed was the animation style. They seemed to have combined modern American with ancient Asian scroll styles. It makes for a good combination for both humor and action. Plus, the Xialon Showdown scenes really are fantastic. The animators make good use of what would naturally be around and turn it into something totally unrealistic and fantastic. Xiaolin Showdown may have some pretty major characters that are just stereotypes, but they have managed to break the chain of predictable cartoons. The villains are the main source of humor, the animation style can easily be turned from humor to action, and my favorite part, the good guys don't always win.