Sítio do Picapau Amarelo is a Brazilian animation series, produced by Rede Globo and the producer "Mixer", based on the book series of the same name by Monteiro Lobato. It was first shown on January 7, 2012 and each episode was made from both Monteiro Lobato's books and original scripts. Before its debut, Globo.com also launched the virtual community "Mundo do Sítio", which introduced the public to the new incarnation of the characters. The series also started to be shown by the Brazilian feed of Cartoon Network starting on April 15, 2012.
Premise[]
The series is the first adaptation of Sítio do Picapau Amarelo in a cartoon. It shows the adventures of Emília, Pedrinho, Narizinho and Visconde at the Dona Benta farm. The site has magical connections with dolls having a life of their own (Emília and Visconde), talking animals and frequent appearances by magical creatures that sometimes serve as antagonists to the main characters.
Why It Rocks[]
- Amazing animation quality (mainly for a Brazilian cartoon produced in the first half of 2010s), which can even be compared with North American productions from the same time.
- The series is very faithful to the original source material.
- Memorable character, including Pedrinho, its main protagonist.
- Has a cute and unique art style made by Bruno Okada.
- It removed some themes considered inappropriate and dark for the current audience that were present in the original books.
- The character designs are based on the 2001 live-action series, which can be considered a good tribute to the previous adaptation of Sitio do Picapau Amarelo.
- The show has good morals about friendship and respect for others.
- The series explored the Águas Claras Kingdom well, since this place was often forgotten in the previous live-action adaptations (appearing only in the first episodes that adapted the first book).
- During the broadcast during Cartoon Network the series was among the 10 most watched programs on the channel, becoming even more popular in Latin countries neighboring Brazil.
- The series was even awarded in Chile in 2014, as the best animated series in Latin America.
- The characters' personalities were improved over the previous 2001 series, with Emília being less rude and arrogant, Narizinho being more prominent, Rabicó being less annoying, Prince Escamado being a regular character, Saci being more mischievous and Cuca being a more enjoyable villain.
- The script for the episodes improved considerably after the first season.
- The opening retains the iconic theme song sung by Gilberto Gil for the original 1977 live-action series that has become a tradition, having also been used in the openings of the 2001 series.
- Amazing voice acting from Isabella Guarnieri, César Marchetti, Larissa Manoela, Vyni Takahashi, Gessy Fonseca, Patrícia Scalvi, Hugo Picchi Neto, Alessandra Araújo, Daniel Figueira, Nestor Chiesse, Zayra Zordan, Luiza Telles Rosa, Pedro Volpato, Matheus Moreira, Fernanda Bock, César Marchetti, Renato Calvacanti and Patrícia Pichamone.
- Gessy Fonseca previously had done Dona Benta's voice for a radio soap opera in the 1940s.
- The cartoon was a improvement over the 2001 series, which had been canceled in 2007 because it went through a huge decline in quality.
- The final episode, is a very good way to end the series, with Pedrinho going back home to the big city.
Bad Qualities[]
- The series starts without showing the beginning of the story (different from previous live-action versions), without showing that Pedrinho is a boy from the city who is vacationing on his grandmother's farm, how Narizinho met Prince Escamado and the Águas Claras Kingdom for the first time and how the characters got the magic dust. Many fans hopes, that Sítio do Picapau Amarelo spawned a comedic-toned prequel series, featuring Pedrinho, living in a big city.
- The first episode was also not a good start with some concepts dropped in the following episodes like Dona Benta wearing glasses the whole time and the characters trying to hide the existence of living dolls and talking animals in the farm to outsiders.
- Conselheiro (the talking donkey) never appeared in the series, even though he was present in concept arts before the debut of the cartoon.
- It has some mean-spirited episodes.
- The new art style may not please some old fans of Sítio do Picapau Amarelo, since at first glance it looks more childish compared to the comic books that have been published previously.
- The series ended without adapting all the books in the series, just a few of the first books.