6teen

6teen, originally titled The Mall, is a Canadian 2D-animated teen comedy drama television series created by Jennifer Pertsch and Tom McGillis which originally aired for four seasons and 93 episodes on Teletoon from November 7, 2004 until February 11, 2010.[1][2]

6teen
Genre
Created by
Directed byKaren Lessman
Voices of
Theme music composer
Opening theme6Teen Theme by Phil Naro
Ending theme6Teen Theme (instrumental)
Composers
  • Don Breithaupt
  • Anthony Vanderburgh
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes93 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Scott Dyer
  • Doug Murphy
  • Tom McGillis
  • Jennifer Pertsch
  • George Elliott (S3-4)
  • Brian Irving (S3-4)
Producers
  • Jaelyn Galbraith (line producer; (S2)
  • Tom McGillis (S1)
Running time22 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original network
Original releaseNovember 7, 2004 (2004-11-07) –
February 11, 2010 (2010-02-11)
Related

Majority-directed by Karen Lessman and produced by Nelvana and Fresh TV for two seasons each, it also aired in the U.S. on Nickelodeon from December 18, 2005 to May 13, 2006 and on Cartoon Network (along with Total Drama Island and Stoked) from October 23, 2008 until June 21, 2010. Nelvana produced 78 of the overall 93 episodes and two 45-minute television specials.[3][4][5]

As of February 2023, it is available in various compilation bundles on YouTube.[6]

Plot

6teen is an animated comedy that delves into themes of friendship, personal growth, self-discovery, and the challenges of being a teenager. Set in the Galleria Mall, a fictional large shopping complex based on the Toronto Eaton Centre and the West Edmonton Mall, the show revolves around the lives of six sixteen-year-old friends who work part-time jobs at different stores within the mall. The main characters, Jude, Caitlin, Jonesy, Nikki, Jen, and Wyatt, face various adventures while dealing with typical teenage issues, such as crushes, relationships, friendships, school and jobs. The group frequently hangs out at the mall's central food court, where they share their experiences, provide support to one another, and engage in banter.

Production and reunion

The show's creators, Tom McGillis and Jennifer Pertsch, researched by taking the writers to visit the Toronto Eaton Centre to observe teens hanging out in there.[7][8] They have also observed multiple students in their classrooms and homes.[9] According to its research, preteen-aged children watched adult-targeted sitcoms on the basis of their smart writing, fast-paced dialogue and various plot lines.[9] The working title of the show was The Mall in reference to shopping and teenage antics at the Toronto Eaton Centre.[9]

Among the team of writers and directors for the show include Sean Cullen (The Sean Cullen Show), George Westerholm (This Hour Has 22 Minutes), Gary Hurst, Alice Prodanou and Hugh Duffy. The series' main characters were designed by Brad Coombs and the music was composed by Donald "Don" Breithaupt and Anthony Vanderburgh.

The show was produced with a then newly-implemented hybrid-2D-computer animation animation software called "Opus" through a development partnership between Teletoon, Nelvana and Montreal-based acclaimed animation software company Toon Boom Animation.[9]

An acoustic version of the theme music by Brian Melo is included in the show's final episode, "Bye Bye Nikki?".

A special reunion public service announcement titled "Vote, Dude!" was released on YouTube on September 12, 2018,[10] with the original voice cast reprising their respective roles to raise awareness for voting in the 2018 US midterm elections.

Characters
From L-R: Jen, Caitlin, Jude, Wyatt, Nikki and Jonesy.
Character Voice artist Description
Jude LizowskiChristian PotenzaA fun-loving, easy-going Jewish Canadian boy with a knack for extreme sports, over-the-top comportment and pranks. A younger version of Jude is featured in the Total Drama spin-off, Total DramaRama.[11]
Caitlin CookeBrooke D'OrsayA peppy, spoiled blonde-haired English Canadian girl with a love for fashion and shopping. She joined the group after she started working at The Big Squeeze lemonade stand in order to pay off the debt she accrued on her father's credit card.
Jonesy GarciaTerry McGurrinA laid-back, flirtatious Latin Canadian boy who is in a relationship with Nikki Wong for most of the series. He picks on Jen Masterson and calls her "step-sis" because his father eventually marries Jen's mother. As a running gag, he gets fired from a new job at a store in almost every episode.
Nicole 'Nikki' WongStacey DePassA rebellious, no-nonsense punk Chinese Canadian girl with a quick, sarcastic wit who is in a relationship with Jonesy Garcia for most of the series. A younger version of Nikki made a cameo appearance in the second episode of Total DramaRama (similar to Jude's age), titled "Duck Duck Juice".
Jennifer 'Jen' MastersonMegan FahlenbockA responsible, athletic Irish Canadian girl who is the tomboy of the group. Her mother marries Jonesy's father, reluctantly making the pair step-siblings. Jen also has a controlling side and often pushes herself in other people's business.
Wyatt WilliamsJess Mal GibbonsA sensitive, music-loving African Canadian boy with a caffeine addiction. He fancies himself as being somewhat more mature than his friends, and is often portrayed as the most responsible of the group, along with Jen.

Episodes
Main article: List of 6teen episodes
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
127November 7, 2004 (2004-11-07)June 22, 2005 (2005-06-22)
227November 2, 2005 (2005-11-02)December 21, 2006 (2006-12-21)
326September 5, 2007 (2007-09-05)April 25, 2008 (2008-04-25)
413September 10, 2009 (2009-09-10)February 11, 2010 (2010-02-11)
WebisodeSeptember 12, 2018 (2018-09-12)

Reception and honours

The show received critical acclaim throughout its run for its relatable characters, humor, and authentic portrayal of teen life. In the winter/spring season of 2005, '6teen' ranked among Teletoon's Top 10 for children aged 10+ in both English and French markets, and was also the only Canadian production to be nominated for that year's Italian "TV Series for All Audiences" Pulcinella Award.[12] Furthermore, it received an award from the Alliance for Children and Television for being the best of children's television to fall under the 9–14 age group on June 2, 2007. Carole Bonneau, the then-vice-president of programming at Teletoon, has remarked about the show:

Aesthetically appealing, with an upbeat musical score, combined with its power to invite empathy from teens towards the main characters, with 6teen Teletoon delivers a series that is a perfect match for today's generation.[12]

Locally, the show garnered about 2.5 million viewers each episode and about 1.8 million viewers each episode on Cartoon Network in the United States. It soon became one of the network's top shows between October 2008 and September 2009 with the steady increase in ratings up to its peak of 3.7 million viewers on June 11, 2009 following the season premiere of Total Drama Action. As time went on, starting in October 2009, the show declined in ratings falling to its lowest rating at 1.6 million viewers for its June 21, 2010 series finale.

In 2009, the show won the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Original Song (Main Title and Promo) for its theme song which was performed by Phil Naro.[13]

U.S. broadcast censorship

Because the show was targeted towards an older youth audience (preteens and teenagers), 24 out of the 93 produced episodes were considered too risqué or inappropriate for younger children by its American broadcasters Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon, leading to either their censorship or removals.[lower-alpha 1] With the legalization of same-sex marriage in Canada occurring around the time of the series' release, many of its episodes included references and innuendos to homosexuality, most of which were censored in the U.S.[14] Other censorships and bans in the U.S. included a plot line that focused on shoplifting and nude images that were modified from the series' original blur-out to a full black bar.

Notes
  1. See those censored/removed episodes from American broadcast at List of 6teen episodes.

References
  1. "TELETOON Salutes 6TEEN with On Air and Online send-off". Channel Canada. 6 February 2010. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  2. "Press Release - 6TEEN LIVE-ACTION TV MOVIE IN DEVELOPMENT AT FRESH TV" (Press release). Corus Entertainment. 12 February 2008. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
  3. "– Shows - 6teen". Nelvana. Archived from the original on 15 September 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2013. 15 September 2020
  4. "– Shows - 6teen: Dude of the Living Dead". Nelvana. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  5. "– Shows - 6teen: Snow Job". Nelvana. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  6. "6Teen Marathon". Retro Rerun. 12 December 2022. Archived from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2023 – via YouTube.
  7. Rupp, Shannon (October 1, 2005). "First-job reality meets sitcom reality". Brandon Sun. p. 108. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
  8. LaSalle, LuAnn (March 26, 2005). "It's not easy being teen". Lethbridge Herald. p. 26. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
  9. Guillotte, Pascale; Bonneau, Carole (12 October 2004). "6teen Press Release". Media Caster Magazine. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  10. Vote, Dude! (PSA) - 6Teen Reunion 2018. Christian Potenza (as TheChristianPotenza). 12 September 2018. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2018 – via YouTube.
  11. Zahed, Ramin (18 October 2018). "'Total DramaRama': Toon Reality Stars Return in Daycare Adventures". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on 4 June 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  12. "Corus Entertainment – Press Corporate". Corus Entertainment. 14 April 2005. Archived from the original on 25 February 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  13. "Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards - Creative Arts Winners Announced". Emmy Awards. Archived from the original on 24 November 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  14. Bein, Sierra (17 September 2018). "Cult Cartoon '6Teen' is Back in a Really Weird Way". VICE. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
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