Codename: Kids Next Door, also known as Kids Next Door or by its acronym KND, is an American animated television series that debuted on the Cartoon Network on December 6,2002. Like The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy before it and Megas XLR after it, this series came about as the result of a viewer's poll by Cartoon Network. Broadcast as two episodes per half-hour (except for a few half-hour episodes, the first being "Op G.R.O.W.-U.P."), the central characters of the series are five ten-year olds who operate out of their treehouse against the tyranny of adults and teenagers (e.g. early bedtimes, homework, and any place where kids aren't allowed). The series was created by Tom Warburton, who appears only as "Mr. Warburton" in the credits.
| Codename: Kids Next Door | |
|---|---|
| File:Kids Next Door title.png Codename: Kids Next Door logo | |
| Created by | "Mr Warburton" |
| Starring | Ben Diskin Lauren Tom Dee Bradley Baker Cree Summer Tom Kenny Grey DeLisle Tara Strong Jeff Bennett Maurice LaMarche Jennifer Hale |
| Country of origin | USA |
| No. of episodes | 78 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 22 minutes approx. |
| Original release | |
| Network | Cartoon Network |
| Release | December 6, 2002 – Present |
To accomplish their various missions, the Kids Next Door have access to a variety of gadgets and devices stored in their treehouse (often Rube Goldberg devices that are products of "two-by-four technology") as well as a worldwide organization of other children, collectively forming the Kids Next Door. Although the Kids Next Door of Sector V often call themselves agents, or even soldiers, they normally do not wear modernized armor during missions, instead they typically wear regular clothes.
Storylines
The stories are titled as missions, denoted as "Operation: " followed by an acronym which often give viewers clues to what the story is about. The stories are often about typical problems that children face, but usually magnified in the cartoon. Every mission might or might not be chronologically ordered in relation to the previous or the next, but it's accepted that most of the time they occur in the order that the episodes are shown. Sometimes a mission can make a reference to a certain situation, or lead to consequences in another mission. An example of this is the Age Cigar, which first appeared in Operation: C.A.B.L.E.-T.V. but was found and reused by the Delightful Children From Down The Lane in Operation: G.R.O.W.-U.P. In Season 2, one ongoing plot arc involves an attempt of Cree to destroy the Kids Next Door Moonbase. This story arc runs through Operation: S.U.P.P.O.R.T., Operation: K.I.S.S., Operation: S.P.A.C.E. and Operation: E.N.D. Another example are the story arcs of Heinrich Von Marzipan and James Nixon McGarfield, who prefers being called Master President, as revealed in operation S.N.O.W.I.N.G..
In season 3, several stories take place at Gallagher Elementary School. This is due to the adults extending school to 52 weeks a year, according to a press release from Curious Pictures.[1]
A recurring plot device involves the KND fighting the Delightful Children From Down The Lane over the latter's birthday cake. These stories always have the word "CAKED" in the title. Also seen throughout the series are the Delightful Children bribing other kids to do their bidding with slices of their birthday cake. There have been five "CAKED" episodes so far, which have all taken place on the same year, since there are five delightful children.
Kids Next Door Universe
In the KND Universe, this is the history of kids and adults:
Operation: A.R.C.H.I.V.E. shows a paranoid version of how adults were created by kids in the KND Universe, (Operation: Z.E.R.O. shows the start of the 7th age of KND) but whatever the case is a fact that both groups faced confrontations before establishing peace and an organized society. Some adults decided not to agree with this peace and try to establish superiority over the kids, reason why The Kids Next Door Organization was founded. This is a global group of trained kids that fight evil adults (and only evil adults, as mentioned in Operation: M.A.T.A.D.O.R.) that reunite at theaters to plan how to make kid's lives miserable .
The KND Universe has several places that might place it in the real world, like the United States, Russia, Egypt, China, England, France, India, and Jamaica. However, there are some landmarks that can only be fiction, like a Sea of Asparagus or a Chocolate Volcano.
Kids Next Door Organization
The Kids Next Door, or KND for short, is a worldwide organization of trained kids under the age of 13 who battle adult tyranny. The current age of the KND, the seventh age, was founded by Numbuh Zero, after he discovered “The book of KND”.
The current highest ranking official, the Supreme Commander, is Numbuh 362. The majority of the KND operatives works and lives in treehouses called Sectors. For example, the KND treehouse in China is called Sector C, while the treehouse in Jamaica is called Sector J. The KND Headquarters, the Moonbase, is located on the Moon. The second-most-important headquarter, the KND Arctic Base, serves as the training center for future KND operatives. The KND Prison is also located there.
All KND operatives start as Cadets Next Door. They are trained by Numbuh 60 in the Artic Base. After completeing training, the Cadets graduate at the Moonbase where they pick a codename (codenames are usually numbers, but they can also be letters). They then register by inserting their genetic material (i.e. booger) into the Code Module. After that, they are assigned to a sector and will work there until they are thirteen. When an operative turns thirteen, they will be decommissioned, having all their memories as a KND operative removed. However, certain operatives will continue service undercover to report the plans of teens and adult faculties to the KND.
Characters
The main five characters belong to Sector V, one of many groups in the overall KND network.
The Kids Next Door are regularly pitted against villains that embody the characteristics they resent. Among their more tenacious adversaries are Father and the Delightful Children from Down the Lane, well-behaved, obedient children who want to punish and destroy them for setting a bad example; the Common Cold, who blames children's germs for his cold and seeks to infect all people as sick as he is; Stickybeard, who, with his crew of Candy Pirates, sails about the city stealing candy from children; and Gramma Stuffum, who fattens up people with disgusting dishes from her bottomless cookpot.
Other adults who aren't enemies of the Kids Next Door (most often their parents) are often hidden characters whose faces are not usually seen. As of 2006, viewers have seen all the children's parents with the notable exceptions of Numbuh Two's father (whose absence is a point of debate among fans) and the faces of Numbuh One's Mother, Four's Mother, and Five's parents, which are always hidden (other than a shot of Mr. Lincoln's lower face).
On occasion, the younger siblings of the Kids Next Door have accompanied them on missions. A few episodes feature Numbuh Three's younger sister Mushi (Operations S.P.A.C.E., K.A.S.T.L.E., N.U.G.G.E.T., and C.L.U.E.S.), Numbuh Four's baby brother Joey (Operations S.P.R.O.U.T. and D.O.D.G.E.B.A.L.L.) and Numbuh Two's younger brother Tommy has gone on to become an adult-fighting crusader himself (he was briefly a Kids Next Door member, codenamed "Numbuh T", but he took himself out of their database to save the group; the KND security system won't let him re-enlist, and at the time no one except Numbuh 86 knew that the Recommissioning Module was functoining which would explain why Numbuhs 2-5 got re-enlisted but Tommy didn't. He now goes by the alias "The Tommy" and functions as an independent operative.
The missions (Episode list)
Vocal Operatives (Voice Cast)
Here is the cast list of Codename: Kids Next Door:
- Benjamin Diskin - Nigel Uno/Numbuh One, Hoagie Pennywhistle Gilligan Jr./Numbuh Two, DCFDTL, Hall Squad Member, Honor Roll, Numbuh 92, Teen Ninja, Candy Pirates
- Lauren Tom - Kuki Sanban/Numbuh Three, Virginia Sims/Numbuh 23, Numbuhs 44 and 44, Numbuh 78, Genki Sanban, Rainbow Monkey Cult Member
- Dee Bradley Baker - Wallabee Beatles/Numbuh Four, Tommy Gilligan/The Tommy, DCFDTL, Toilenator, Heinrich Von Marzipan, Big Badolescent, Mr. B, Mr. Fibb, Hall Squad Member, Honor Roll, Professor Bob, Maurice, Numbuh 19th Century, Numbuh 65.3, Joaquin the Hamster, Teen Ninja, Ice Cream Man, Abominable Snowsuit, Mother Tie, Thesaurus Rex, Candy Pirates, Mr. Mogul (Operation: M.O.V.I.E.)
- Cree Summer - Abigail Lincoln/Numbuh Five, DCFDTL, Cree Lincoln, Mrs. Lincoln, Betty Gilligan
- Carlos Alazraqui - The Kid
- Jeff Bennett - Mr. Boss, Mr. Fizz, Destructo Dad, Mad Dad, Mr. Beetles, Knights of the Round Towel
- Jim Cummings - Vin Moosk
- Grey DeLisle - Lizzie Devine, Gramma Stuffum, Crazy Old Cat Lady, Laura Limpin, Mega Mom, Midwestern Mom, Soccer Mom, Numbuh 14, Teen Ninja
- John DiMaggio - Emperor Dave
- Keith Ferguson - Numbuh 1-Love
- Marc Guare - Black John Licorice
- Jennifer Hale - Fanny Fulbright/Numbuh 86, Computer, Major Mrs. Manners, Nurse Clairborne, Mrs. Uno, Mrs. Beetles, Rainbow Monkey Cult Member
- Mark Hamill - Stickybeard, Candy Pirates
- Jess Harnell - Chef Pierre, Elite Ice Cream Man
- Jason Harris - Chad Dickson
- Roger L. Jackson -
- Tom Kane - Simon
- Janice Kawaye Numbuh 83: Sonya, Numbuh 84: Lee
- Tom Kenny - Knightbrace, Common Cold, Chester, Cuppa Joe, Jimmy McGarfield, Mr. Fibb, Principal, Hall Squad Member, Twin Boy, Sheldon, Numbuh 30c, Numbuh 34, Numbuh 142, Teen Ninja, Ice Cream Man, Candy Pirates, Hoagie Gilligan IV (Numbuh 2's Grandson)
- Maurice LaMarche - Father, Mr. Frybingle, Elite Ice Cream Man, Candy Pirates
- Matt Levin - Patton Drilovsky/Numbuh 60, Elite Ice Cream Man
- Rachael MacFarlane - Rachel/Numbuh 362, Bethany
- Jason Marsden - Jerry Rassic, Windsor, Teen Ninja
- Masasa -
- Anndi McAfee - Anna Worthington
- Scott Menville - Patrick "Paddy" Fulbright/Numbuh 85
- Candi Milo - Madame Margaret, Miss Goodwall, Heli-Teacher, Lydia Gilligan, Betty Gilligan
- Daran Norris - Count Spankulot, Sergeant Sensible, Joe Balooka, Cheese Ninja, Mr. Physically Fit-astic, Ice Cream Man, Elite Ice Cream Man, Candy Pirates, Big Brother (Operation: M.O.V.I.E.)
- Rob Paulsen - Numbuh VO5, Al Sugarh, The Great Lenny Puttinski, Mr. Mogul, Mr. Washer, Robin Food, Hall Squad Member
- Khary Payton - Maurice/Numbuh 9, Hall Squad Member, Elite Ice Cream Man
- Josh Peck - Numbuh 50,000,000 B.C.
- Moira Quirk -
- Kevin Michael Richardson - Dr. Lincoln, Cheese Shogun Roguefort, Cheese Ninja, Teen Ninja, Ice Cream Man
- Roger Rose - Little Juan
- Santos - Mushi Sanban (Live-Action)
- Kurtwood Smith - Retirement Home Secretary
- Tara Strong - Numbuh 93, Baby Jackson, Twin Girl, Hall Squad Member, Teen Ninja, Mushi Sanban, Rainbow Monkey Cult Member
- Jill Talley - Mrs. Dirt
- James Arnold Taylor - King Sandy, Knights of the Round Towel
- Brian Tochi - Cheese Ninja Leader
- Frank Welker - Monty Uno, Professor Triple Extra Large, Rainbow Monkey Kong
- Billy West - Numbuh 13
- Dave Wittenberg - Numbuh 74.239, Dodgeball Wizard, Ernest
- Keone Young - Kani Sanban
Trivia
- The show was originally going to be in Kids' WB!.
- The full name of each kid is a reference to his/her code name.
- Numbuh 5 Abigail Lincoln: The U.S. $5 bill features Abraham Lincoln.
- Numbuh 4 Wallabee Beetles: The Beatles had 4 members
- Numbuh 3 Kuki Sanban: 三番 ([sanban] Error: {{nihongo}}: text has italic markup (help)) means "Number 3" in Japanese.
- Numbuh 2 Hoagie P. Gilligan, Jr.: Gilligan, a character in the television comedy series Gilligan's Island, is the second in command of the S.S. Minnow. Also he was the second in his family to be named "Hoagie P. Gilligan".
- Numbuh 1 Nigel Uno. "Uno" means One in Spanish and Italian.
- The KND also have THE aliases, which were part of the original series pitch but aren't directly mentioned on the show:
- Numbuh 1="The Leader"
- Numbuh 2="The Pilot" "The Inventor" "The Doofus"
- Numbuh 3="The Girly One" "The Flirt"
- Numbuh 4="The Tough Kid" "The Stupid One"
- Numbuh 5="The Cool One" "The Quiet One" also second in command
- In episode LOCKDOWN Numbuh 2 and 5 have ranks, and most likely the others do too, but those are not mentioned.
- Numbuh 2="2x4 Technology Officer of Sector V"
- Numbuh 5="Second in Command of Sector V"
- In Operation: C.A.K.E.D., Numbuh 4 was referred to as Wallace, not Wallabee. Also, in the original advertisements he was called "Wannabe," which was an ironic typo because he looked like a wanna-be Beatle.
- Numbuh 1 is the only "only child" of 1-5
- So far the series has inspired 2 videogames: "Operation: S.O.D.A." for the Game Boy Advance and "Operation: V.I.D.E.O.G.A.M.E." for the Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox.
- The KND musical score is composed by Stephen Rucker & Tom Chase. The end theme song is sung by Fake Brain.
- From season 4 (Ops R.A.B.B.I.T. and F.L.U.S.H. onwards), the closing credits were redone, so that they show on half the screen (the secret agent-themed crediting and closing theme remain) with a "beauty shot" on the right. This is usually showcasing a humorous event inspired from the episode which follows the ending. The storyboard of one such sequence can be seen here. (These type of credits were also used in the first two season 3 episodes (F.U.T.U.R.E., A.F.L.O.A.T., and L.E.A.D.E.R.), while other episodes in that season used the old credits.)
- KND were referred to in The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy. In the episode "Sickly Sweet", Grim was watching TV, and someone sounding like Numbuh 4 said: "Numbuh 3! Get back to the treehouse and clean up this Numbuh 2 mess, before Numbuh 1 gets back!"
- Also in "Billy and Mandy vs. the Martians", when the kids see a hologram similar to the hologram in KND (Billy says "Hey, This isn't Codename: Kids Next Door! It's just as mesmerizing, though.")
- Ironically, there will be a crossover between the two shows.
- In some episodes there is a kid that dresses like Ash Ketchum.
- In some episodes there is a kid that looks like Yugi Mutou (Yu-Gi-Oh!) except that he wears glasses.
- From episodes "CAKED" through "CAKED-FOUR" it seemed as though the KND were not getting older. By then, they would have been at least 13 as they were advertised as 10 years old. Apperently, episode "CAKED-FIVE" cleared that up as Numbuh 1 says that we only get to do this 5 times every year (one for each of the individual Delightful Childrens's birthdays).
- The first KND movie aired August 11, 2006. It is called Operation: Z.E.R.O., {Zero Explanation Reveals Origins} in which the KND must recommission their greatest operative, Numbuh Zero.
- A crossover with The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy will air after Season 6[2].
- It is rumored that the episode where there'll be a crossover of Billy and Mandy will be titled Operation: G.R.I.M., Codename: Grim Adventures of the Kids Next Door or other.
- A live action film adaptation is currently being kicked around, possibly revealing why Numbuh 1 is bald [[3]].
- In some episodes, Sheep from "Sheep in the Big City" made dozens of cameos throughout the seasons.
- Each of the KND Characters of Sector V have something that would cover up their eyes:
Numbah 1's sunglasses, Numbah 2's goggles, Numbah 3 closes her eyes (a number of other characters seem to possess this ability as well, presumably by coincidence), Numbah 4's hair and Numbah 5's hat.
- The series didn't originally focus on kids fighting adults, but later on did.
- The show was originally "The Kids Who Lived Next Door".
- In earlier episodes Numbah 5 is seen wearing glasses.
- In many episodes, the plot is an altered twin of a famous Sci-fi/Horror/Action/Adventure movie. Such used are Star Wars, James Bond, Dawn of the Dead, Resident Evil, etc.
- In Op. A.R.C.H.I.V.E. there is a kid who plays pitcher wears Numbuh 5's hat. This might prove that the hat had been around for years.
- Sector V can be refered to a pun, such as V also stands for the number five as there are five kids.
- Several times both Knight Brace and the Toilenator use floss or toilet paper in the same manner SpiderMan uses his webs.
References
List of references in Codename: Kids Next Door -One of the teens in the ship that Numbuh Five attacks from the episode "Maurice" has a skull with a smile on it that is also on Sticky Beard's hat.
Titles in other languages
- Bulgarian: Кодово име: Съседските деца (literally: "The neighbor-kids")
- Danish: Kodenavn: Naboens børn (literally: "The neighbor-kids")
- Dutch: the title is the original English title, though the Dutch version has a Dutch-language script and voicecast. Even though sometimes they are called "kids van hiernaast"
- French: Nom de Code: KND
- German: Deckname KND
- Hebrew: שם קוד: המורדים (Shem kod: Ha-mordim, literally "Codename: The rebels")
- Hungarian: Rémkölykök (Jelszó: Kölyök, Nem Dedós) (literally: Gruesomekids (Password: The kid is not babyish!)
- Japanese: KND ハチャメチャ大作戦/KND: Hachamecha Daisakusen (literally "KND: Great Chaotic Operations")
- Lithuanian: Kaimynų vaikai (literally "Neighbour kids")
- Macedonian: Лозинка: Децата од соседството
- Norwegian: Kodenavn: Nabobarna
- Polish: Kryptonim: Klan Na Drzewie
- Portuguese:
- Brasil: KND: A Turma do Bairro (also Kids from the Hood)
- Russian: Кодовое Имя: Соседские Ребята (literally "Codename: Neighborly Children")
- Italian: Nome in codice: KND Kommando Nuovi Diavoli
- Spanish
- Spain: Código: KND
- Swedish: Kodnamn: Grannungarna (Literally The neighbourkids)
- Latin America: KND: Los Chicos del Barrio (literally "Kids from the community")
- Traditional Chinese:小孩大聯盟 (literally "Child big alliance")
External links
- Official site at Cartoon Network (USA)
- Codename: Kids Next Door at Curious Pictures (producer)
- Stardrifter's Forum the Kids Next Door fanbase.
- The KND Oekaki Free online art program for Kids Next Door fans
- KNDpedia KND Encyclopedia Project