Yam Roll (or the long title, The Very Good Adventures of Yam Roll in Happy Kingdom) is a Canadian animated television series created by Jono Howard and Jon Izen for CBC Television. Produced by March Entertainment, the series premiered on February 6, 2006, airing on Saturday at 10:00am and 10:17am on local CBC channels.

Yam Roll
Also known asThe Very Good Adventures of Yam Roll in Happy Kingdom
GenreComedy
Created byJono Howard
Jon Izen
Directed byJon Izen
StarringLee Tockar
Joe Pingue
Sunday Muse
Dwayne Hill
Carlos Díaz
Robert Smith
Gary Krawford
Country of originCanada
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes78
Production
Executive producersDaniel Hawes, Catherine Tait, Liliana Vogt
ProducerDaniel Hawes
EditorJono Howard
Running time10-11 minutes (2-3 minutes for the other season)
Production companyMarch Entertainment
Original release
NetworkCBC
ReleaseFebruary 6 (2006-02-06) –
December 23, 2006 (2006-12-23)

Premise

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Yam Roll features a cast of animated sushi characters, and other anthropomorphic instances of Japanese cuisine, all living in Happy Kingdom, a prosperous city which is upset quite often by monsters.

Quoting from March Entertainment's site:

Yam Roll tells the story of an exotic land of sushi and how one of its inhabitants, a super-powered cab driver named Yam Roll, braves monsters and bad guys all in the name of unrequited love. Despite being well liked in Happy Kingdom due to his good nature and sweet, root-vegetable flavouring, Yam Roll is still a frustrated guy. Why? Because he is hopelessly in love with the town sweetheart, a spicy tuna roll named Minamiko.[1]

With the help of his wise Zen master, Katcho Miso (an old lump of salty bean paste), his sidekick and best friend Ebi-san (a severely hyperactive shrimp), and the rest of his motley maritime crew, Yam Roll's life is always an exciting ride.

Characters

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  • Yam Roll: A taxicab driver by profession who wears a cowboy hat and boots. He is portrayed as an orange yam wrapped in rice, his body being circular in appearance, with stick-like arms and legs. Yam Roll is bestowed with a certain degree of super powers thanks to his instructor Katcho and the powers of Mount Foopi. These powers allow him to fly, lift incredibly heavy objects, and change form (into a door, a table, a potato masher, etc.). But despite his powers, Yam Roll leads a mostly normal life. Well, as normal as life gets in Happy Kingdom. Voiced by Lee Tockar.
  • Ebi: Ebi-San is Yam Roll's best friend and confidant. He is a boiled shrimp, who wears a band around his "head" and sandals. Ebi is extremely enthusiastic and excitable, and always tries to force Yam Roll into some escapade or other, often with dangerous and embarrassing results. Ebi is never happy to sit still and is constantly bouncing off the walls with energy. Voiced by Carlos Diaz.
  • Edamame: Edamame Legume is another one of Yam Roll's best friends, a soybean lightly dusted with sea salt. Unlike most of the characters in Yam Roll, Edamame has no arms. Instead, he uses his two legs as arms instead.
  • Tamago: Poor Tamago is forced to wear a very heavy and rare omelette on his back all the time. This unfortunate impediment leaves him bitter and emotional, and he constantly complains about the strain on his back (and any other issues that happen to be plaguing him). He tags along with Yam Roll, Ebi and Edamame on their adventures, but never without his fair share of complaints. Voiced by Joe Pingue.
  • Minamiko: Minamiko is Yam Roll's main love interest, a spicy tuna roll who draws the eye of almost every man in Happy Kingdom. Unfortunately for Yam Roll, Minamiko is practically unaware he exists, even though he consistently saves her from the clutches of evil monsters. Her popularity nets her many dates around the city, and Yam Roll is often low on her list. Yam Roll's rival, Milk Man — a carton of milk — is usually Minamiko's main boyfriend. Voiced by Sunday Muse.
  • Katcho: Katcho Miso is "an old lump of salty miso bean paste" and Yam Roll's Zen master, who lives atop Mount Foopi. He often has wise teachings for his only pupil, and occasionally a good whack or two from his magic staff. But most of the time Katcho watches from a distance as Yam Roll faces his daily tribulations, preferring to observe instead of interfering.
  • Spicy Tuna Cone: Another boyfriend of Minamiko, Spicy Tuna Cone appears to be mayor of the Happy Kingdom, and sometimes EmCees at Hakamaryoke's Karaoke's bar. He also seems to be a minor friend of Yam Roll.
  • Genki: A girl who would be happy to date Yam Roll. She is kindhearted and loves stuffed animals.

Yam Roll also hosts a large variety of other sushi characters, including Yam Roll's friends, enemies, and random passers-by. Each character is wittingly named after their sushi names (e.g., Ebi, which means "shrimp" in Japanese).

Episodes

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No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
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1"Ding Dong Danger"Jon IzenDoug SinclairFebruary 7, 2006 (2006-02-07)TBA
2"High-Heeled Heel"Jon IzenJono HowardFebruary 28, 2006 (2006-02-28)TBA
3"Sand In Bikini Problem"Jon IzenDoug SinclairFebruary 8, 2006 (2006-02-08)TBA
4"A Doozy Of a Doze"Jon IzenDoug SinclairFebruary 27, 2006 (2006-02-27)TBA
5"Who Cut The Chi?"Jon IzenMike DrachFebruary 6, 2006 (2006-02-06)TBA
6"T-Shirt Swapper Go Home"Jon IzenDoug SinclairFebruary 9, 2006 (2006-02-09)TBA
7"Whoop There It Isn't"Jon IzenTony ElliotMarch 1, 2006 (2006-03-01)TBA
8"Kissy Kissy Kiss"Jon IzenChristine AlexiouMarch 2, 2006 (2006-03-02)TBA
9"Miso In Love"Jon IzenRobin SteinMarch 9, 2006 (2006-03-09)TBA
10"Secret Roommate Man"Jon IzenShane SimmonsMarch 16, 2006 (2006-03-16)TBA
11"Forty Winks Of Fury"Jon IzenJeremy WinkelsMarch 23, 2006 (2006-03-23)TBA
12"The Yolk's On You"Jon IzenJono HowardMarch 30, 2006 (2006-03-30)TBA
13"Egg In Your Face"Jon IzenMike DrachApril 8, 2006 (2006-04-08)TBA
14"Place Your Order"Jon IzenBrian HartiganApril 13, 2006 (2006-04-13)TBA
15"Hairy Carry"Jon IzenAdam HalpernApril 20, 2006 (2006-04-20)TBA
16"Karaoke Okey-Dokey"Jon IzenChristine AlexiouApril 27, 2006 (2006-04-27)TBA
17"Maybe Next Tuesday"Jon IzenJeremy WinkelsMay 1, 2006 (2006-05-01)TBA
18"Hot Potato Jam"Jon IzenRobin SteinMay 2, 2006 (2006-05-02)TBA
19"A Look Ma, No Powers"Jon IzenMike KubatMay 3, 2006 (2006-05-03)TBA
20"Happy Birth-Daze"Jon IzenMichael Izen and Gina WoolseyMay 4, 2006 (2006-05-04)TBA
21"Big Bubbles, No Troubles"Jon IzenTony ElliotJune 1, 2006 (2006-06-01)TBA
22"The Way Of Woo"Jon IzenMartin MarkleJune 6, 2006 (2006-06-06)TBA
23"Two Tons Of Love"Jon IzenAlex LevineJune 5, 2006 (2006-06-05)TBA
24"Krappy Kingdom"Jon IzenMike DrachJune 8, 2006 (2006-06-08)TBA
25"Holy Teriyaki!"Jon IzenRobin J. SteinJune 15, 2006 (2006-06-15)TBA
26"A Pasta Of Evil"Jon IzenBrian HartiganJune 14, 2006 (2006-06-14)TBA
27"Meatloaf In The Middle"Jon IzenJeremy WinkelsSeptember 9, 2006 (2006-09-09)TBA
28"Honey I Shrunk The Tamago"Jon IzenJono HowardSeptember 16, 2006 (2006-09-16)TBA
29"Monkey See, Money Scratch"Jon IzenMike DrachSeptember 23, 2006 (2006-09-23)TBA
30"Give Peas a Chance"Jon IzenJono Howard and Christine AlexiouSeptember 30, 2006 (2006-09-30)TBA
31"Raging Bullpen"Jon IzenMike FrolickSeptember 30, 2006 (2006-09-30)TBA
32"Don't Fear The Curdler"Jon IzenDanny Ditata & Jeremy WinklesOctober 28, 2006 (2006-10-28)TBA
33"The Katcho Hat Show"Jon IzenAlex LevineNovember 4, 2006 (2006-11-04)TBA
34"Dial E for Edamame"Jon IzenMike KubatNovember 11, 2006 (2006-11-11)TBA
35"Doody Calls"Jon IzenChristine AlexiouNovember 18, 2006 (2006-11-18)TBA
36"Happy Friend Time"Jon IzenRobin SteinNovember 25, 2006 (2006-11-25)TBA
37"The Yam and I"Jon IzenPanny Pitata and Jeremy WinklesDecember 9, 2006 (2006-12-09)TBA
38"Rock On"Jon IzenMike FrolickDecember 16, 2006 (2006-12-16)TBA
39"Par For The Course"Jon IzenJono Howard & Jon IzenDecember 23, 2006 (2006-12-23)TBA

References

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