Zoboomafoo

Zoboomafoo

Upon their arrival at Animal Junction, the Kratt brothers (Chris and Martin Kratt) lean out the window and call Zoboomafoo (or "Zoboo" for short, and occasionally "Zob") (portrayed by Jovian), shown in a live-action segment as an actual lemur leaping across a field to reach them. When the lemur reaches Animal Junction, the Kratt brothers offer him a snack, generally some lemur-appropriate food like garbanzo beans, sweet potato or mango slices, whereupon the real lemur burps, exclaiming "Excuse me," and then spins around on a turntable, shouting, "Zoboomafoo-oo-oo-oo!" at which point he becomes a talking lemur puppet (voiced by Robertson). This change enables Zoboo to lead into the main segment of the episode, which he begins by describing a "Mangatsika!" (a Malagasy word literally meaning "cold", but used in the series to mean "cool!") animal that he saw as he traveled to Animal Junction. As he describes the animal, a song is played wondering "Who Could It Be?" while a cartoon shows the characteristics of the "mystery animal." At the end of the song, Chris and Martin try to guess the animal Zoboo has described and the mystery is solved when the animal or animals arrive at Animal Junction. Each episode has a theme: For example, baby animals, frightening animals or the importance of play. The arrival of the "mystery animal," generally used as exposition, leads Zoboo, Chris and Martin into a conversation about various aspects of said particular animal. At least once every episode (twice in most episodes), Zoboo says that some event in Animal Junction reminds him of a time in Zobooland, where he tell stories about his best friends in Zobooland, such as Narchi (an anteater-like creature), Gooble (a bear-like creature that eats goobleberries), Sensit (a lemur that typically plays around), Wiggy Waxwing, Green Puppy, Slimantha, Noggendrill (a mole-like creature that uses his drill-shaped horn), Snow Lemur (a lemur that lives on a mountain), Baby Zoboomafooasaurus and Zoboomafooasaurus (dinosaurs, who appear in CGI, that the animals often play on), Buggly (a bug that Zoboo rides on), Fibby (a sea creature with several parts including a tentacle and a crab leg) and Cy (a levitating one-eyed squid introduced in the second season). These segments are animated, using clay animation and feature distinct voices for each character. After the first Zobooland story, Zoboo, Chris and Martin receive a letter from the Animal Helpers (Jackie in the first season and Amy in the second), who show children how to help animals, subsequently leading into Chris and Martin going out to visit creatures related to the theme (always began with a song sung by Zoboo called "Going to the Closet." In one episode, Zoboo's friends sing it, instead of Zoboo). At the end of each episode, Zoboo and the brothers sing "Animal Friends". Finally, Zoboo returns to his home in Madagascar. There are three episodes where Zoboo doesn't return home to Madagascar. Chris and Martin also leave Animal Junction to better demonstrate the theme of the day, traveling to a region, often in South Asia or Africa, to visit the creatures there. Before the credits of each episode, kids show and tell about various animals and pets they have, and a disclaimer is played telling the viewers that they should be careful with the animals they meet. Then Chris and Martin mention animal facts that lead Zoboo to a joke. Example: "Knock knock. Who's there? Panther. Panther who? Panther no pants, I'm going swimming!". The disclaimer and joke were edited out for non-PBS airings.