Winx Club

Winx Club is a 2004 Italian animated fantasy/adventure series created by Iginio Straffi and produced by Rainbow S.p.A.. The seventy-eight episodes series is aimed toward children between the ages of six and fourteen[1] , although following its international release has gained popularity with teenagers and adults as well[citation needed]. It spawned a franchise of toys, books, clothing, DVDs and a CGI feature film.

Story

Winx Club revolves around the adventures of a group of fairies who call themselves the Winx Club as they deal with various evils, usually in the form of three witches known as the Trix, while studying at Alfea, a college for fairies. Much of the storyline also revolves around Bloom, an Earth girl who has discovered fairy powers within herself, as she searches for the truth about her past and her powers

Main Characters

~Winx Club
Bloom: She discovered her dormant magical powers after coming to the aid of another fairy, Stella. Strong and caring, she is always available to help her friends. She is the leader of the group, always full of ideas and affection. Shortly after arriving at Alfea she discovers that her powers of fire come from the ancient Dragon's Flame, of which she is the seventh known guardian. She is the princess of the planet Domino, her birthplace. Her pixie is Lockette, the pixie of mazes and finding things.

Stella: She is a talkative student who often gets average or low grades, but always pulls through with the help from her friends. She tends to be spontaneous and dislikes extensive planning, but she is able to recognize when her help is needed. Stella is also infamous amongst the Alfea houses for blowing up a laboratory (trying to invent a new shade of pink [in the 4kids version]) and being kept back a grade, thus she is a year older than all the other Winx Club fairies. She has the power of the Sun and the Moon because her mother represents the moon and her father the sun. She is the princess of the planet Solaria, her birthplace. Her pixie is Amore, the pixie of love.

Flora: Flora is a very kind-hearted and sensitive girl with a passion for nature and life. Happy, introverted, and sensitive, she is always a sweet, loyal friend, and doesn't believe in hurting others or the environment. She is extremely fond of plants and nature, and her room consequently resembles a greenhouse. She has the power of Nature, which allows her to use plants in her attacks and natural predators to exterminate pests. She comes from the planet Linphea/All Green Fairyland (or "5th Moon of Marigold" in the 4kids version). Her pixie is Chatta, the pixie of talking.

Musa: Musa loves all forms of music, and although she tries to put up a tough front, isolate herself, and is often pessimistic, she is a loyal and caring friend. In spite of her laid-back nature, Musa has the best grades of the entire Winx Club except Tecna. She is pale, Asian in appearance, with blue-black pigtails and blue eyes. She has the power of Music, and she gets her energy from all kinds of music. She comes from the planet Melody (or "Harmonic Nebula" in the 4kids version). Her pixie is Tune, who often gets on Musa's nerves because they are almost the exact opposite of each others' personalities.

Tecna: Tecna is always logical and rational, and initially had trouble expressing her emotions. She speaks in a technical and a matter-of-fact manner. She is extremely intelligent and strong in technology and mathematics and enjoys playing video games and dismantling stuff. She can act cold and rational at times, but always tries to do the right thing. She has the power of Technology and can control everything provided by Technology. She comes from the planet Zenith (or 3rd Vector of the Binary Galaxy in the 4kids version). Her pixie is Digit who has similar powers.

Aisha: Aisha ("Layla" in some adaptations) is the Princess of Andros ("Tides" in the 4Kids version). She has a restless, rebellious, and wild nature. Aisha is a good athlete, fighter, dancer, and wind-raider rider. She is also a feminist, and thus opposes Riven, a chauvinist. She has the power of Fluids, and has the ability to manipulate a pink fluid called "Morfix" to take on any form she chooses. She joins the Winx Club in season two and brings her pixie friends along with her. Her pixie is Piff, the pixie of sleeping.

~The Trix
The Trix are an evil trio of teenage witch sisters who attended the Cloudtower School For Witches (only in the first season which was before they got expelled), which rivals Alfea. They are the enemies of the Winx Club.

Icy: The leader and middle of the trio, her name refers to her powers of ice. She is quite charismatic. She despises Bloom and is most competitive with her in the first season. In the second she is more spiteful towards Stella. She is the most powerful of the three and thinks she is the most beautiful. She has long, white hair tied up high on her head. She wears blue.

Darcy: The eldest of the trio, Darcy works with all forms of darkness, as her name suggests ("Darcy" meaning "Dark One"). She is the smartest of the Trix. She enjoys tormenting "pathetic pixies." In season one, she is most aggressive towards Musa because Musa loved Riven, who was Darcy's boyfriend in the first season. She has long, dark brown hair. She wears purple and interacts with boys more than all of her other sisters.

Stormy: The youngest of the trio, her powers involve wind, storms, and weather. She has the shortest temper of the group and is prone to violent outbursts. She is most aggressive towards Musa in season 2. She has purple, short curly and quite fuzzy hair that looks like a storm has been through it. She often doesn't think before she does something. She secretly believes she is more powerful than her older sister Icy. She wears hot pink.

~The Specialists
The Specialists are a group of students who attend an all-boys school near Alfea, Red Fountain School For Specialists. Several Specialists have become the boyfriends of the Winx girls.

Sky:The prince of Eraklyon, he feels stifled by his position. He has medium blond hair. He is Bloom's boyfriend. As he loves Bloom, he refuses to marry Princess Diaspro, the girl of his parents' choice.

Brandon: Sky's squire, a great swordsman and ladies' man. He has short brown hair. He is Stella's boyfriend.

Timmy: He acts as the geek of the group sometimes, from a long line of scientists. He has short ginger hair. He is Tecna's boyfriend. He is shy, sweet, and smart.

Riven: A lone wolf, very competitive and good at sports. He has short red spiked hair. He is a chauvinist; he and Aisha, a feminist, are in opposition. He is Musa's boyfriend.

Helia: An artistic student, he is a great pilot and a pacifist, although his grandfather, Saladin, is the Headmaster of Red Fountain. He has long black hair tied into a loose ponytail. He is also very romantic and shy about directly speaking about his feelings. He is very good at laser string glove and tries to help everyone with it. He is Flora's boyfriend. He was the top student in Redfountain until he decided to quit and dedicate his life to nature and poetry. He has rejoined Redfountain now.

The Realm of Magix

The Realm of Magix is an alternate universe where most of the series unfolds. It is an enchanted and highly technologically-advanced universe of hospitable planets populated by fairies, witches, heroes, and monsters.

~Alfea
The Alfea School for Fairies is a young girls' boarding school for fairies in training. All of the Winx girls met and resided here and had a close relationship with its headmistress, Ms. Faragonda. At Alfea, fairies learn to fight evil, help their planets, or, in many cases, become queens of their planets.

~Cloudtower
The Cloudtower School for Witches is a young girls' boarding school for witches in training, and for most of Season 1, it was the residence for the Trix witches. At Cloudtower, the witches learn about witchcraft.

~Red Fountain
The Red Fountain School for Heroes is a boys' boarding school for the next heroes, one forest away from Alfea. It teaches fighting and the use of technology. The Red Fountain boys are taught how to go on dangerous missions and to fight for their respective planets. Red Fountain and Alfea have a close relationship, and Miss Faragonda and Saladin have a long history that involves Bloom's past.

Variations

The original Italian version of the Winx Club was dubbed by Cinelume Film Video for international distribution by Rai International, but was later redubbed, mainly for the US market, by 4Kids corporation which modified the show to make it more suitable for an American audience. The original dub is commonly referred to as being the "Rai English" or "UK" (even though the UK airs the 4Kids version) version and is primarily screened in southeast Asia, including Singapore and Malaysia, while the 4Kids version is more common in English-speaking countries in the West (although Australia airs the 4Kids version, while New Zealand airs the other version).

4Kids altered the dialog to include references to pop culture, fashion, and other issues familiar to American pre-teen audiences. Expressions and idioms were added or changed to their American equivalents, and extra narration was added to explain or even modifying some situations. Music was added or changed to make scenes seem more lively or upbeat.

In addition to altering the series to make it more familiar to domestic viewers, 4Kids also altered several scenes or plot elements. An example is located in the 10th episode of the 2nd season, "Crypt of the Codex" (Original English version) "Reaching for the Sky" (4Kids version). Timmy aims his weapon at the Trix (who are stealing Red Fountain's Codex) but loses hope and is unable to bring himself to fire; his hesitation results in Tecna calling him a coward (the source of much of Tecna's frustration with Timmy that season). In the 4Kids adaptation, Timmy cannot fire because he is under the influence of a magic spell, and Tecna leaves to get help. Other changes include a general weakening of romantic elements contained within the show.

Broadcasting

Since its Italian premiere on January 28, 2004, on Rai Due in Italy, Winx Club has been broadcast on six continents.
In Romania, it aired on TVR2.
In the U.S., it aired on the FoxBox, later 4Kids TV, block on most FOX stations between 2004 and 2007. Reruns of season 1 were also briefly shown on Cartoon Network. Americans can still view the show online at 4Kids' website.
In Wales on S4C (uncut version with Welsh soundtrack) it airs at 5 p.m. on Tuesdays and at 4 p.m. on Wednesdays.
In Australia (Public TV), Network Ten airs it on its Toasted TV block.
In Canada, it airs on YTV.
In Brazil, it airs on SBT, Cartoon Network, and Boomerang.
In Indonesia, it airs on Lativi.
In Israel, it airs on ערוץ הילדים (The Kids Channel).
In Finland, it airs on MTV3 (channel information link now unavailable)
In United Kingdom, it airs on the Pop Girl channel; previously, it had aired on GMTV and Nickelodeon UK.
In India, it airs on Cartoon Network and Pogo.
It is also broadcast on cable and satellite networks in U.S., Latin America, Brazil, and Spain. In Australia , Southeast Asia, the Philippines, India, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Winx airs on the local variant of the Cartoon Network. In Benelux and Scandinavia, it is shown on Nickelodeon. In Germany, Winx Club is shown on RTL II (Seasons 1-2) and Nick (Seasons 1-3). In Belgium it is aired on VT4, in Hungary on RTL Klub, in Poland on ZigZap and in Slovenia on POP TV.

The version that has been edited by 4Kids and voiced with their voice actors airs in almost all English-speaking countries that have aired the show, with only a handful of exceptions (India, Singapore and New Zealand).

In The Netherlands, Jetix wanted to broadcast the US version, but Nickelodeon acquired the rights first and decided to broadcast the original version instead.


Other media

~Feature Film
A CGI feature film, Winx Club - Il Segreto Del Regno Perduto (The Secret Of The Lost Kingdom), has been released in Italy on November 30, 2007 and will be released on April 23, 2008 in the Netherlands. The plot of the film revolves around Bloom's origins, and takes place after the events of the third season[2] . The official website of the movie covers the United Kingdom, Italy and Netherlands markets, with release dates and other information.

~Theatre
This short section requires expansion.

In September 2005, the "Winx Power" musical show began in Italy.[3][4] After a successful touring in Italy, it also expanded to Belgium and the Netherlands.

~Video Games
Winx Club has been adapted into video games for the Playstation 2, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, and PC, all published by Konami.

Winx Club video games include:

Winx Club (Game Boy Advance)
Winx Club (PC & PS2)
Winx Club: Join the Club (PSP)
Winx Club: The Quest for the Codex (DS & GBA)

~DVD Collection
In North America, the entire first season of the Winx Club is available as a five-discs collection. The first of the series, Winx Club Volume 1 - Welcome to Magix, was released on July 12, 2005. The first DVD of Season Two was released in 2007, with the second volume coming out on September 2007.

In Europe, various DVD releases of the show are available in several languages, and mostly cover the show up to the Second Season. The Italian DVDs of the first two seasons also feature the English dub. Season Three DVDs with only the Italian soundtrack are available as well.

In Australia, Magna Pacific released the entire First and Second Season in DVD using the 4Kids dub, while in Singapore, Vinci has distributed DVDs of the first 2 seasons featuring the original English dub.

Merchandising

In the United States, 4Kids Entertainment holds the licensing rights to the series and has licensed the Winx Club name and image to an assortment of children's apparel and books. Toys such as dolls made by Mattel and a card game created with Upper Deck Entertainment are available in major stores such Wal-Mart and Toys R Us.

In Europe, Italian candy manufacturer Ferrero began to distribute plastic Winx figurines as prizes inside their Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs. Also, a monthly Winx comic book has been published, with some storylines unrelated to the TV series.

In Singapore bags, clothing and similar items are available.

See also

List of Winx Club episodes
List of minor Winx Club characters
List of magical creatures in Winx Club

Notes and references

^ Rainbow S.p.A.. Winx Club. Retrieved on 2006-11-15.
^ Rainbow S.p.A.. FEATURE FILMS. Retrieved on 2006-11-12.
^ Rainbow S.p.A.. Winx Power Music Show. Retrieved on 2006-11-15.
^ Winx Club On Tour. Winx Club On Tour. Retrieved on 2006-11-15.

External links

Official website Available in multiple languages including that in English currently for the United Kingdom
Official website for the theatrical film (Italian) (Dutch) (English)
Pixie Fun (Italian), (Dutch) Operated by Rainbow S.p.A.
Broadcaster websites

Website operated by 4Kids Entertainment
Description at Cartoon Network (USA)
Winx Club at YTV