Xiaolin Showdown
 | This article may need clearer distinction between fact and fiction. |
| Xiaolin Showdown | |
|---|---|
| File:Like-A-Rock.jpg The main characters riding Dojo, clockwise from bottom: Omi, Kimiko, Raimundo, and Clay. | |
| Created by | Christy Hui Warner Bros. Animation |
| Starring | Tara Strong Grey Delisle Tom Kenny Jeff Bennett Danny Cooksey Wayne Knight Maurice LaMarche Susan Silo Jason Marsden |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 52 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 22 minutes approx. |
| Original release | |
| Network | Kids' WB! (United States domestic) Cartoon Network (worldwide repeats) |
| Release | November 1, 2003 – May 13, 2006 |
Xiaolin Showdown is an American animated television series that currently airs on the Cartoon Network. Set in a world where Martial Arts battles and Eastern Magic are common place, the series follows four young warriors in training that battle the forces of evil. They do this by protecting Shen Gong Wu (ancient artifacts that possess great magical powers) from villains (witches, mad scientists, evil warlords) that would use them to conquer the world.
Originally airing on the Kids WB! block of programming on the CW Television Network in 2003, the series ran for 3 seasons and 52 episodes. Despite heavy promotion in other media, including Postopia, a trading card game and a video game, Warner Bros have not yet shown any signs of broadcasting a fourth season. Cartoon Network is currently airing the series, but episodes that they claim to be new are solely new to that network, and not the series as a whole.
Background
Development
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Plot Synopsis
Four young Xiaolin monks, Omi, street-smart Raimundo from Brazil, high-tech focused Kimiko Tohomiko from Japan, and cowboy Clay Bailey from Texas have been chosen by the temple's head monk Master Fung to become the Xiaolin Dragons of legend. Their task is to find and protect the sacred Shen Gong Wu from being taken and used by the Heylin (forces of evil), predominantly represented by the ghost of the ancient witch Wuya and her bumbling protégé Jack Spicer, evil boy genius. The Shen Gong Wu give the user strange, but mostly helpful, powers, that can be used for good or evil.
Typical episodes revolve around a specific Shen Gong Wu being revealed, which results in both sides racing to find it. Episodes usually reach a head when one good and one evil character must challenge each other to a magical duel, called a Xiaolin Showdown, for posession of the artifact.
Characters
Xiaolin Showdown features an extremely large cast. Many of whom do not appear for more than one episode, occasionally making cameos or return for single episodes later in the series. While supporting characters are often one dimensional and serve an immediate purpose in the episode that they appear, main characters are often well developed with strengths and flaws that become present as the series progresses.
Main Characters
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Supporting Characters
| Master Fung (Rene Auberjonois in season 1, Maurice LaMarche onwards): The Xiaolin Warrior's Master, trainer, and guide, Master Fung can get mortified by his charges' behavior at times. He also is nearly always calm, despite the Warriors' behavior and mistakes. |
| Master Monk Guan (Jeff Bennett): A Xiaolin Master that has mastered all forms of Tai Chi. He holds the Spear of Guan, a powerful staff. He temporarily looks over the Xiaolin Warriors' training. When Omi once used the Sands of Time to prevent Chase Young from becoming evil, he saw that Master Monk Guan turned to the Heylin side instead. |
| Jermaine: A streetwise basketball player from New York that helped Omi to obtain the Serpent's Tail. At one time, Jermaine was on the Heylin side without knowing it, during which period he was once Chase Young's apprentice. He knows as many skills as Omi and when he joined the Heylin team temporarily, he was made a Wudai Warrior by Chase. He has not been seen in the series since. |
| Grand Master Dashi (Tom Kenny): The Greatest Xiaolin Dragon that ever lived (so far) trapped Wuya in a puzzle box 1,500 years ago. He also is the creator of all of the Shen Gong Wu. In "Days Past", he hints as to the fact that Omi will become a Grand Master Xiaolin Dragon one day. |
| Katnappe: A crafty cat burglar with many Catwoman references, Katnappe has made numerous appearances in about 4 episodes. Katnappe also has a large collection of cats in her home, including genetically modified kittens that she often uses as weapons/henchmen. However, when she does ally herself with the Heylin, she is not exactly trustworthy or loyal. |
| Tubbimura (Maurice LaMarche): Tubbimura is an extremely fat ninja who is surprisingly agile and can manipulate his folds of fat like a gelatinous blob. Tubbimura was hired by Jack to retrieve the Sword of the Storm. Tubbimura occasionally does odd jobs for the Heylin whenever possible. |
| Vlad (Tom Kenny): A street vendor from Russia who joins the Xiaolin Warriors, but he truly had joined with Jack Spicer and he helped steal various unknown Shen Gong Wu. He was seen in the crystal glasses episode along with a couple other episodes. |
| The Chameleon-Bot: One of Jack Spicer's robots, the Chameleon-Bot is Jack's strongest robot and a master of disguise. It is able to take the forms of the Xiaolin Warriors, Master Fung, Jack Spicer, Wuya, and others and is able to extend its arms and spin his waist. It was originally used to disguise itself as Kimiko so it could steal the Xiaolin's Shen Gong Wu. However, Omi stopped it. |
| PandaBubba (Kevin Michael Richardson): A crooked syndicate boss, PandaBubba was planning to use the Shen Gong Wu to take over Hong Kong's Underground Crime World, a plan that didn't go well with the monks and Jack Spicer. He looks like a big panda bear (hence the name). PandaBubba made 2 appearances in the series (Pandatown, & The Return of PandaBubba). He fought Kimiko and Raimundo for Shen Gong Wu but both monks retrieved the Shen Gong Wu back to the Xiaolin side. |
| Mala Mala Jong: Mala Mala Jong is an indestructible warrior composed out of the Helmet of Jong, the Third-Arm Sash, the Shroud of Shadows, the Fist of Tebigong, the Eye of Dashi, the Two-Ton Tunic, the Jetbootsu and most importantly, the Heart of Jong, all held together by a field of either fire or plasma. Jong can be summoned at will or automatically summoned every 1,000 years. With the Ring of the Nine Dragons, Mala Mala Jong can split into 4 different beings that made up the Fearsome Four. Since Mala Mala Jong is composed of Shen Gong Wu, he can be controlled through the Emperor Scorpion. |
| Cyclops (Jeff Bennett): He is an enormous, fat, red, and dim-witted giant. Because of his single eye, he has no depth perception, and can be quite clumsy. He can also fire a beam of destructive dark energy from his eye. |
Mystical elements
Shen Gong Wu
The focus of the series is on collecting the fictional Shen Gong Wu, mystical artifacts that have magical powers, activated by an action of will combined with saying the artifact's name aloud. Wuya's activation caused Shen Gong Wu to reveal themselves.
Xiaolin Showdowns
In Xiaolin Showdown, when more than one person grabs a Shen Gong Wu at the same time, a Xiaolin Showdown occurs. In this namesake competition, each side wagers a Shen Gong Wu he/she already owns. In some cases, the competitors invoke a Shen Yi Bu Dare, where multiple (usually two) Shen Gong Wu are wagered. The winner obtains all of the Shen Gong Wu fought for, totaling five Shen Gong Wu. In some cases, when more than two people touch a Shen Gong Wu at once, a different kind of Xiaolin Showdown occurs: the Showdown Trio is a three person free-for-all, a Xiaolin Showdown Tsunami is either a two-on-two or a four person free-for-all Showdown, and an Eight-Way Xiaolin Showdown is a four-on-four Showdown. One can also call for a Cosmic Clash Showdown, allowing the caller to bring more people into the Showdown who did not touch the Shen Gong Wu. Generally, the competitors in a Xiaolin Showdown of any type use the Shen Gong Wu that they wagered to compete with. However, there have been instances where a Shen Gong Wu not wagered was used in the Xiaolin Showdown, as in "The Last Temptation of Raimundo" when Wuya used the Shroud of Shadows against the Xiaolin Warriors while she was possessing Raimundo. Such actions are considered cheating.
The challenge in a Xiaolin Showdown can be anything, but most commonly is some sort of race to the Shen Gong Wu. When the Showdown is called, the world warps around the competitors and by-standers, and the terrain they are on becomes an extreme extent, such as a mountainside becoming a field of rock pillars, or a snowfield becoming a large snowboarding course. Some Showdowns have also affected those involved, such as gaining weight for a sumo wrestling showdown. Other contests have been games of tag, basketball, or combat. The challenge officially begins after the change, and when both (or all) combatants yell "Gong Yi Tanpai!" Then the decided contest starts. When one is victorious, the terrain returns to normal, and the winner gains possession of all of the wagered Shen Gong Wu.
"Gong Yi Tanpai!" is a Chinese way of saying "Ready, Set, Go!". Tanpai means "showdown" in Chinese, Gong is Chinese for "begin" as to attack, and Yi means "the" in Chinese, so it literally means "Begin the showdown!"
Techniques learned
- Wudai Orion Formation — like Dragon X-Kumei, but they appear in a monochromic color with colored outlines. Learned during Wudai Warrior level.
- The Monks and The Color of their Outlines:
- Omi — Blue (Dragon X-Kumei); White (Wudai Orion)
- Kimiko — Red
- Raimundo — White (Dragon X-Kumei); Blue (Wudai Orion)
- Clay — Green
- In Dragon X-Kumei, Raimundo's color is white, and Omi's is blue, but they switched in Wudai Orion (with Raimundo's outline as light blue).
- Wudai Iron Palm — A combined Wudai attack that has only been used once. The details of this attack are very vague, but it seems that this technique increases their power and strength to the point that they can break rocks with their bare hands.
- Omi's Moves: Water, Tsunami Strike (later changed to Tornado Strike), Monkey Strike, Repulse the Monkey (taught to him by Chase Young), Wudai Neptune — Water, Ice, Steam (Omi has also learned "Heylin Power - Tsunami Strike -- Water" and "Heylin Power - Tsunami Water Blade -- Ice" while on the Heylin side). In 'The Emperor Scorpion Strikes Back', Omi does the 'Monkey Strike' against The Fearsome Four.
- Kimiko's Moves: Fire, Judolette Flip, Wudai Fire Shield and Wudai Mars — Fire
- Raimundo's Moves: Wind, Typhoon Boom, One-Eyed Wind (used at the end of 'Saving Omi' to attack Chase Young), Wudai Star — Wind.
- Clay's Moves: Earth, Seismic Kick and Wudai Crater — Earth.
It is also noted that during the episode Wu Got The Power, Omi temporarily learned the Wudai Crater - Earth, Wudai Star - Wind, and Wudai Mars - Fire techniques, while using the Longhorn Taurus, Crest of the Condor, and Cat's Eye Draco, respectively. Doing this caused him to have a surplus of elemental energy, which was worn down later in the episode. Omi now only retains his Water techniques.
Other Magic Besides Shen Gong Wu
Ancient Scroll of the Shen Gong Wu: This magical scroll that Dojo was entrusted with guarding for 1,500 years contains information on every Shen Gong Wu including the magical powers a specific Shen Gong Wu possesses and how it can be used with other Shen Gong Wu. The Scroll itself is magical because on the section for each Shen Gong Wu, there is an unexplained animation of figures showing how the specific Shen Gong Wu is used.
The Puzzle Box: Any simple pebble in the hands of a great Xiaolin Grand Master Dragon can be turned into a magical puzzle box that can trap any person inside and reduce them to a ghost. According to Dashi, the box will only open when the person who needs to open it, opens it. There have been two puzzle boxes in the history of Xiaolin Showdown, and both were used to trap Wuya within them. The first was used by Dashi 1500 years ago in the first Xiaolin Showdown, and Raimundo used the second after Omi went into the past to retrieve the second puzzle box from Grand Master Dashi.
Le Mime's Tricks: The French mime in Like a Rock!, Le Mime, uses real mime tricks to lure and capture enemies. Hired by Jack Spicer in an attempt to get the Fist of Tebigong.
Spear of Guan: The Spear of Guan is a jagged spear used by Master Monk Guan and given to Omi and Raimundo. There is a whole room full of these spears. It appeared many times. However, it was only Heylin in 'Time after Time' where Master Monk Guan became evil aided by Wuya, Chase Young and Hannibal Roy Bean. Soon almost all the evil characters encountered in the series such as Jack Spicer, Vlad and Tubbimura joined the four Heylin warriors.
The Lao Mang Long Soup: The Lao Mang Long Soup is an ancient Heylin potion that once drunk turns the person to the Heylin Side. The user of the Soup trades their soul for eternal youth. Once the user has traded their soul and has been placed on the Heylin Side, they become a form of a monster. If the user does not drink the soup everyday, he/she will turn into this monster. Apparently, one can also turn into the monster at any moment. Its ingredients are a cup of wheat grass juice, a tablespoon of salt, a pinch of dried frog, and, of course, one whole dragon (known as Long in Chinese), such as Dojo. The alternate form's appearance varies from person to person. This fact is shown in "Time After Time (2)": while Chase Young turns into a lizard, Master Monk Guan becomes an insect-lizard-like creature.
Heylin Seed: A puny seed that holds a huge and powerful plant (which Jack named Gigi). It almost destroyed the world 1500 years ago. Raimundo later defeated it, in a Xiaolin Showdown, and destroyed it, using the Moonstone Locust, the only Shen Gong Wu that can be used against it.
Heylin Comet: A special comet that will affect the Shen Gong Wu, giving the Wu a mind of its own. It was shown by Raimundo after he came back from his hometown in Brazil after saving it, and after removing the Sword of the Storm, he was unable to take the Golden Tiger Claws off.
The Year of the Green Monkey: One special year is made for the power of monkeys, green monkeys. Their power is ripe and terrible. It happened once in the show so far in The Year of the Green Monkey where Jack (using the Monkey Staff and the Tongue of Saiping) commanded them to attack the Xiaolin Temple.
The Bird of Paradise: The Bird of Paradise is a bird that rumors say can crush buildings and do other terrible things. It appears not as a bird, but as an old lady who cannot sing very well. The Bird has a lot of mastered ability. When the Monks reach her, they are given true inner-powers.
- Moving Trees & Fire-breathing Squirrels: Some of the guardians of the Bird of Paradise. The Moving Trees attacked the Monks and Jack as they moved through the Valley of Death. The Moving Trees resulted in revealing Clay's incredible Earth Wudai Powers. The Fire-breathing Squirrels attacked the Monks as well and kept Jack captive in a nest. Considering Omi's one fear is of squirrels he mostly stayed out of the battle but when Kimiko was in danger, he put his fears aside. The Squirrels revealed Kimiko's burning Fire Wudai Powers. The result of the flames set on the trees around revealed Omi's magnificent Water Wudai Powers combined with Raimundo's 'breezy' Wind Wudai Powers.
- The Leaf: The Leaf was the key to getting the Bird. By being put in water, the leaf points the direction of the Bird. Usually Omi was the one to use the Leaf with his Water Powers. The Leaf also seems to have feelings of its own.
The Ying-Ying Bird: Hannibal Roy Bean's bird. It can travel in and out of the Ying-Yang World at will. It sometimes changes into a parrot for cover.
Wudai Weapons
- Omi — Shimo Staff, a staff which changes into other weapons at will.
- Kimiko — Arrow Sparrow, a purse-like object which carries metal, flaming sparrows that can be thrown and will blow up in a fiery explosion. In mid-flight they can join to create one large phoenix like object.
- Raimundo — Blade of the Nebula, a blue, jagged version of the Sword Of The Storm which turn into powerful nunchaku and can be used to throw the opponent around. It is also used to make Raimundo fly by creating a tornado. Combined with the Crest of the Condor it is capable of creating giant sweeps of wind.
- Clay — Big Bang Meteorang, a bronze boomerang so extremely powerful it is able to cut through anything. It is also capable of splitting for multiple attacks.
Heylin Eclipse: An eclipse named after the Heylin Side. It affects some parts of the Heylin Side. Most notably, it affects Chase Young.
Reception
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Cultural references
Xiaolin Stages
Stages of progression in the show are reached when characters accomplish a specific task or reach some sort of catharsis that helps either that individual character or the entire team to develop. These ranks are reminiscent of belt ranking in most martial arts and serve as a representation of development.
- Monk - Others living at the Xiaolin Temple. May or may not have magical powers like the Dragons. They are seen using bows, fire arrows, and spears (or halberds) against Mala Mala Jong on his first attack on the temple.
- Dragon-in-training - Not capable of a lot of power, just using one's element to boost attacks.
- Xiaolin Apprentice - Capable of bigger amounts of power; using elements with a corresponding attack and Shen Gong Wu. At the Apprentice level, the Warriors gain a new type of ability - the Dragon X-Kumei Formation - that can multiply their 'Apprentice Powers'. Identified by a blue sash.
- Wudai Warrior - Capable of huge amounts of strength and power; using elements with attacks, weapons, and power-ups or enhancers. In addition, a special form is acquired which could be called a Wudai or Orion form, allowing the user to boost his or her elemental power. The look of this form is pretty much a black silhouette of the person with a colored outline, the color connected to the element (Blue-Raimundo, Red-Kimiko, Silver-Omi, and Green-Clay). Identified by an aqua sash. This form makes its debut in season three and it seems the user can change into it via the Orion Formation. Though in the Episode Dream Stalker, Raimundo is the only one to change into it without the formations help, but it is most likely that he was able to since he was fighting in his dream world, and just about anything can happen there.
- Shoku Warrior - Is the leader of the Xiaolin group and is the one who makes all the decisions. Further abilities are unknown. Raimundo is promoted to this level at the end of the episode "Time After Time (2)". A black robe with a tiger on the sleeve and a golden sash identify this level.
- Master - Master Fung's stage. He has probably mastered half of a Master Monk.
- Master Monk - Has mastered all tai chi forms. The only known individual of this level is Master Monk Guan.
- Dragon- Not explained, but has been mentioned by omi and master fung before.
- Grand Master Dragon - The ultimate stage of the Xiaolin. Not fully explained, but a Grand Master Dragon is so extremely talented they can turn a pebble into a puzzle box capable of trapping a certain Heylin witch, but this is only one of many unknown abilities. The only known individual of this level is Grand Master Dashi, who lived more than 1,500 years ago.
Taijitu
Stylized taijitu (more commonly known as the yin-yang) can be seen in nearly every episode, as yin and yang are important beliefs in Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. The taijitu can be seen primarily in the center of the Reversing Mirror, but it has also shown up as a crater on the moon, in clouds, and many other places.
Forehead dots
In Buddhist culture, dots or markings are made on a monks forehead or brow chakra to indicate the mystical third eye, and symbolizes spiritual wisdom. This marking helps serve as a reminder to the monk to focus their energies toward acheiving higher understanding of the world around them. In the series, the dots that appear on the aforementioned characters have never been explained.
Several characters are seen with such dots on their forehead. Omi has nine white dots, in three rows of three. Master Monk Guan has six yellow dots, two rows of three standing on the width. One of the elder monks in the Xiaolin Temple had the same pattern as Master Monk Guan, as seen in the episode with the Sapphire Dragon. When Master Monk Guan showed Omi the scroll that showed a large shadow along with a goat-demon enslaving Chase Young to evil, the shadow had four dots as a square in his debut. Four is considered an unlucky number in Chinese culture because the Mandarin and Cantonese word for four sounds like the word for death.
When he left behind his good chi in the Ying-Yang world was turned to evil, Omi's forehead dots turned red red dots balancing on a corner. When Omi turned into a cat, the essence of Omi made Chase Young stronger, which is how he got his dots. However, when the Xiaolin Warriors defeated him in the showdown, Omi got his dots back and Chase Young lost them.
Continuing with this numerological interpretation, the Mandarin and Cantonese word for three sounds like the word for life. In addition, to a Buddhist monk, three represents the Three Jewels.
Fashion
The monks in Xiaolin Showdown dress in standard Gi at the temple and various martial arts outfits when using their powers, they also wear street clothes when on the road. In each episode, Kimiko stands out in this area wearing a new colorful outfit in the style of Japanese Street fashion worn by teenagers that gather in shopping areas like the Harajuku district of Tokyo. This clothing style is displayed in Japanese magazines published under the title FRUiTS, and two collections of this photography have been released in the US by Phaidon Press titled FRUiTS (2001) and FRESH FRUiTS (2005).
In other media
Games
Konami developed a Xiaolin Showdown video game, that was released on November 10 2006 for PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Xbox, and Nintendo DS.
DVD release
A Season One DVD has been released. It is a 2-disc set, and has special features on disc 2, but the only features are trailers for other shows/movies.
References
See also
