Poko is a Canadian stop motion children's television series.
The show is about a titular boy who can draw with his finger and make his drawings come to life by saying, "Poko pippity pop!". He also has a dog named Minus, who can erase Poko’s drawings with his nose, and a Companion Cube named Mr. Murphy, a stuffed toy monkey who often just sits around and occasionally moves subtly.
Season 2 introduces Bibi, a girl who can make her stickers from her sticker book come to life by saying, "Bibi bibbity bop!". She also has a Companion Cube named Lambert (who is a stuffed toy sheep), and a cat named Cranberry (who only appeared in two episodes of season 3).
It was created by Jeff Rosen and was produced in Canada by The Halifax Film Company. Production began in 2003 and ended in 2006 after three production cycles. Poko aired in Canada on CBC in the Kids' CBC programming block. Actor and dancer Cory Bowles narrated it.
Tropes
- Animal Superheroes: Season 1 has a segment called "Mighty Murph", in which an animated Mr. Murphy becomes the titular superhero.
- Art Initiates Life: Poko can draw with his finger and make his drawings come to life by saying, "Poko pippity pop!".
- Art Shift: The Mighty Murph segments in Season 1 are done in Adobe Flash.
- Attention Whore: Minus loves getting attention. In "Poko and Bibi's Petting Zoo", he goes as far as throwing all the animal toys out of the fence so he can get all of the petting.
- Ballet Episode: In "Bibi's Ballet Class", Bibi is the ballet teacher, and it's tutus and plies for Poko and Minus as they take important steps in learning something new.
- Bookends: A typical episode begins with the narrator explaining what Poko is doing ("Today, Poko is...") and ends in the same way, but with Poko having found the solution to a problem that has arisen from his activity.
- Birthday Episode: In "Mr. Murphy's Birthday", it's monkey in the muddle when the guests get carried away and Mr. Murphy disappears in all the party clutter.
- Cheerful Child: Poko himself is a cheerful and imaginative boy.
- Circling Birdies: A Running Gag is Minus getting dizzy and seeing stars and bones circle his head.
- Circus Episode: In "Poko's Circus", the centre ring spotlight is on a determined Poko the clown and a reluctant Minus, the super circus dog, who proves that even a young dog sometimes won't learn new tricks.
- Companion Cube: Poko has a stuffed toy monkey named Mr. Murphy. Bibi has a stuffed toy sheep named Lambert.
- Dub Name Change: In the French dub, Minus is named Nonosse, which is a childish variation of "os" ("bone").
- Edutainment Show: This show teaches children how to cope with emotions, handle frustration, and solve everyday problems through imaginative and positive strategies.
- The Faceless: In the Mighty Murph segments, Mr. Murphy's mummy is only seen from the neck down.
- Firefighting Episode: In "Fireman Poko", Poko saves the day when a water hose lands on Minus's water dish.
- Four-Fingered Hands: Poko and Bibi only have four fingers.
- Girlish Pigtails: Bibi has those.
- Gravity Is a Harsh Mistress: In "Poko's Windy Day", Minus tries to catch a balloon by climbing up Poko's slide (the slide itself, not the stairs). He's so caught on the act that he ends up climbing mid-air without noticing. Once he looks down, he falls off, slides, and lands straight into his doghouse.
- Hiccup Hijinks: In "Minus Has the Hiccups", Poko is ready to paint his Minus masterpiece... until the hound gets the hiccups.
- Interactive Narrator: The narrator can talk to Poko.
- Laugh Track: The series has a Studio Audience of kids that, aside from talking with Poko, giggle at Minus's shenanigans.
- Lemonade Stand Plot: In "Poko's Lemonade Stand", Poko goes into business with a lemonade stand.
- Meaningful Name: Minus's name refers to his ability to erase Poko's drawings (you know, "minus" as in a subtraction).
- One-Word Title: Poko
- Picnic Episode: In "Poko's Picnic", Minus and Nutty the squirrel start a game of chase around the backyard while poor Poko tries to have a picnic.
- Pirate Episode: In "Poko the Pirate", a swashbuckling tale of fun and adventure on the high seas for Poko the Pirate and Mates Minus and Murphy as they search for buried treasure.
- Protagonist Title: Poko
- Pizza Topping Conflict: In "Poko and Bibi at the Fancy Restaurant", the two friends get into a scuffle at their pretend restaurant when they argue about what toppings should be on their pizza (Poko wants peppers, while Bibi wants mushrooms). In the end, Poko managed to sort the problem by making two mini pizzas for both of them, each with their preferred toppings.
- Superhero Episode:
- In "Super Poko", it's a superhero and his super dog to the rescue when Mr. Murphy is taken captive by a fearsome froggy (the toy chest actually).
- Season 1 had a Superhero Segment in the form of "Mighty Murph", the superheroic identity of Mr. Murphy.
- Sweet and Sour Grapes: In both "Poko's Lemonade Stand" and "Poko's Popsicle", Minus wants to drink some lemonade and eat the titular popsicle, respectively. But Poko refuses to do so. Once everything is resolved in the end, Minus gets to try the food, but ultimately doesn't like its taste.
- That Makes Me Feel Angry: At an episode's climax, once Poko has a negative emotion, the show's child voiceovers will point out how he's feeling and why. An example of how it usually goes:Narrator: Poko, are you OK?Kid 1: He's getting frustrated.Kid 2: His magic tricks aren't working.
- Title Theme Tune: "P-P-P-Poko!"
- Treasure Hunt Episode: In "Poko and Bibi's Treasure Hunt", on a quest for treasure, Poko finds reading the map too difficult but discovers the value of asking for help.
- Wedding Episode: In "Lambert and Mr. Murphy’s Wedding", wedding bells ring for Lambert and Mr. Murphy, but Minus keeps upstaging the happy event with his dancing and tuba-playing.
- World of Technicolor Hair: Poko has blue hair and Bibi has purple ones.