Penguins (Madagascar)

The Madagascar Penguins, from the film, Madagascar, are a group of four penguins who believe they are spies. Though they all have different abilities, they are all skilled in gymnastics and martial arts. They also starred in The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper, a short film directed by Gary Trousdale and written by Michael Lachance. There is going to be a 2008 Nicktoon featuring these penguins, as revealed on November 24, 2007 in an ad for Nickelodeon.

The Penguins

• Skipper is the leader of the group. His appearance is rounder than the rest of the penguins. He is good at barking out orders, naming plans and slapping (especially Private). He is voiced by the co-director of the movie, Tom McGrath, who based his portrayal of Skipper's voice on Charlton Heston.

• Kowalski - The smartest and tallest of the penguins, sometimes referred to as "Lt. Kowalski" (usually in the commentaries with the penguins). He forms plans for the group and usually takes notes for Skipper. He is voiced by Chris Miller.

• Private - Distinguishable by his googly eyes and soft British accent, he is the youngest of the group. He is often tasked with various jobs such as cracking codes, taking notes and acting 'cute and cuddly'. His naivety at times (e.g. when telling Marty of their plans to go to Antarctica) often results in him being slapped by Skipper. In the Christmas Caper short, he was the one captured by the old lady. His name is probably a reference to his 'rank' among the group of penguins and a play on the movie Saving Private Ryan (also from DreamWorks). He is often viewed as the most expendable of the group. He is voiced by Christopher Knights.

• Rico - Psychotic knife wizard and explosives expert. Rico displays a certain talent for the Culinary arts, able to render a raw fish into sushi in mere seconds and to carve a block of ice into the shape of a Christmas tree. Can store various items in his stomach (like the dynamite stick in the Christmas Caper short). Also seems to be an excellent swimmer (he is the only penguin seen swimming). He has dark circles under his eyes. He had a mohawk and scar on his face in the Christmas Caper (which generates some inconsistency as the short took place before the actual movie as they are all still at the zoo, and he did not have any scar on the movie). The only real words known in his vocabulary are "Eggnog", "Hai" (Japanese) and "Ka-boom." He is voiced by John DiMaggio.

Organization

The Penguins act like they are either spies, Special Forces or Navy SEALs. They are all skilled in combat of all kinds, from all their training at the zoo . They seem to think they are part of a secret government agency. How they end being in the zoo is summed up by the quote, "We don't belong here, It's all some kind of whacked out conspiracy." Skipper and the rest of the crew want to return to Antarctica (though this goal is destroyed when they reach Antarctica and discover that it is a frozen wasteland with the quote, "Well, this sucks"). According to "Penguin Chat" (a special feature, which shows scenes with the penguins and commentaries by Skipper, Kowalski, and Private), they reclaim Madagascar as "New Antarctica" and discuss a plan to take it over by getting rid of the old regime and placing in a puppet government, under their control. This seems to be a satire or a parody of the Central Intelligence Agency and of spies, who are often rumored to be involved in various plots and coup attempts.

Future

Nickelodeon and DreamWorks Animation SKG will collaborate on a new 26-episode, CG-animated series based on the penguin brothers from the hit feature. The series, tentatively entitled "The Penguins of Madagascar", follows the adventures of Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private who believe they head up an elite strike force from their Central Park Zoo headquarters. Just as the team thinks it has its chunk of NYC (New York City) under control, it gets some new neighbors: Julien, the egotistical, party-hearty King of the Lemurs, and his entourage. Headed by exec-prods Mark McCorkle & Bob Schooley ("Kim Possible", Hercules, Sky High), the show will be produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio in Burbank, California.

"The DreamWorks Animation team developed richly creative characters that lend themselves to a series of their own," said Cyma Zarghami, President, Nickelodeon & MTV Networks Kids and Family Group. "They are just plain hysterical. We can’t wait to treat our audience to the same vibrant and vivid CG animation that audiences loved in the film."

"Our Madagascar penguins were hugely popular on the big screen," DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg commented, "so it seemed natural to give them their own television show on the premier entertainment network for kids."

"The Penguins of Madagascar" is scheduled to premiere on Nickelodeon in early '09.

Trivia

• The Old Lady who captures Private in The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper also played a cameo part in Madagascar as the crazy lady who assaulted Alex the lion (and Melman the giraffe briefly) with her bag in Grand Central Station.
• Rico is the only penguin character that doesn't speak English in Madagascar - his only line is "hai" (a Japanese word that means "yes"), while cutting the fish. In The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper, Rico speaks English - saying "eggnog", and later "kaboom".
• Rico's scar & hair style in The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper short make him almost look like Dr. Drakken from Disney's Kim Possible, who is also voiced by John DiMaggio.
• On the Madagascar DVD, the penguins provide their own commentary on their scenes. When Private is struggling to operate a computer, Skipper comments, "You told me you knew Linux, Private!". This is a reference to Tux, a penguin who is the mascot for the Linux operating system.
• Skipper makes an appearance in the Shrek the Third video game located in Hook's Ship. If the player collects the second souvenir mug, he will need to destroy some crates. Skipper is hidden in one of those crates and will recite the same line he told Marty when the penguins were escaping from the zoo.
• During the sequence in the film when the penguins are attempting to take control over the ship Skipper can be found slapping Private yelling at him to give him results, not excuses. In the background is a computer monitor that Private was using to crack a code. When slowed down and paused the words, "WhAtApiece OFworkIsPenGuin" can be found in the code on the computer monitor in the background.