''Maya & Miguel'' is an American

animated Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...

children's

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

produced by

Scholastic Productions Scholastic Corporation () is an American multinational publishing, education, and media company that publishes and distributes books, comics, and educational materials for schools, parents, and children. Products are distributed via retail and on ...

with animation by Starburst Animation Studios and by Yeson Entertainment. It aired on

PBS Kids Go! PBS Kids Go! was an educational television brand used by PBS for programs aimed at early elementary-age children, in contrast to the younger, preschool target demographic of PBS Kids. Most PBS member stations aired the PBS Kids Go! block on ...

from October 11, 2004 to October 10, 2007, and had a total of five seasons and 65 episodes over three years. The show also ran on

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and includes ...

's Saturday morning

Planeta U ''Planeta U'' (English: ''"Planet U"''), usually referenced as ''Tu Planeta U'' (''"Your Planet U"'') is an American children's programming block that airs on the Spanish language television network Univision, which debuted on September 15, 2001. ...

block. The series focuses on the lives of

pre-teen Preadolescence is a stage of human development following middle childhood and preceding adolescence.New Oxford American Dictionary. 2nd Edition. 2005. Oxford University Press. It commonly ends with the beginning of puberty. Preadolescence is c ...

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

twins named Maya and Miguel Santos and their friends, the program is aimed at promoting

multiculturalism The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for " ethnic pluralism", with the two terms often used interchang ...

and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

. Various times throughout the episode, parts of the dialogue are in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

but only individual words or phrases are then explained in English. As of 2021, the show is currently distributed by

9 Story Media Group 9 Story Media Group Inc. (formerly known as 9 Story Entertainment) is a Canadian children's media production company and international distributor founded by Vincent "Vince" Commisso, Steve Jarosz, and Blake Tohana on September 1, 2002, and head ...

Synopsis

The show presents learning as fun, relevant and rewarding for all children, with a special emphasis on the Latino population. The show chronicles the adventures of two 10-year-old Latino siblings, Maya and Miguel Santos, as they figure out how to leave their stamp on the world around them, and features their relatives and diverse neighborhood friends. This show centers on Maya's well-intentioned meddling in her family and friends' lives, ultimately creating new quandaries to fix. Their mother is from Mexico, and their father is from

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

. The underlying message is the importance of doing good for the family and community, and the philosophy that shared happiness is greater than personal gain. The show presents a positive, culturally rich portrayal of Latino family, language and cultures. In some markets, each episode ends with Maya announcing, "Here's what some of our friends are up to," introducing live-action clips of children engaging and interacting in ways consistent with the show's themes. Maya concludes episodes by exhorting viewers to "visit your local library like 'Maya & Miguel'".

Characters

* Maya Santos (voiced by

Candi Milo Candyce Anne Rose "Candi" Milo (born January 9, 1961) Timestamps: (00:27:12-00:27:45) Milo states that she is "firmly 51". (00:06:40-00:06:47) Milo states that she was born in Palm Springs. (00:16:23-00:16:25) She says her birthday is in Januar ...

) is a sweet, gentle, and energetic girl of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent. She always manages to include her twin brother and friends into her crazy adventures. Whenever Maya comes up with an idea, she always says "''¡Éso es!''" (''That's it!'') and her hair bubbles light up while her

ponytail A ponytail is a hairstyle in which some, most or all of the hair on the head is pulled away from the face, gathered and secured at the back of the head with a hair tie, clip, or other similar accessory and allowed to hang freely from that poin ...

spins around; as shown in "The Bet" they will continue to glow until she says "''¡Éso es!''". She can sometimes be very stubborn, ignorant, and naive, and tends to get involved in other people's business. Although her ideas often don't go the way she plans them, they always accomplish their original objective in the end. Maya's heart is always in the right place. * Miguel Santos (voiced by

Nika Futterman Nika Futterman (born October 25, 1969) is an American voice and television actress. She is known for her voices in various animated series, including Asajj Ventress in '' Star Wars: The Clone Wars'' and Adam Lyon in ''My Gym Partner's a Mon ...

) is Maya's twin brother. Miguel is slightly more practical and sensible than his sister, and enjoys playing soccer and

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedbac ...

. Every time Maya gets an idea, he gets a bad feeling about it. He knows Maya means well, but he thinks she gets more involved in other people's problems than need be. He keeps track of Maya's ideas that have gone wrong, which annoys Maya. However, he would sometimes admit that an idea of hers is the best idea yet. He has a crush on a girl named Kylie, who apparently feels the same way. * Theodore "Theo" McEwen (voiced by Jerod Mixon) is Miguel's best friend and soccer buddy. He is

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

. Theo loves sports as much as Miguel does. Theo often gets straight A's in his classes, arguably making him the most intelligent of the kids. Theo is often the voice of reason among his friends. * Margaret "Maggie" Lee (voiced by

Lucy Liu Lucy Alexis Liu is an American actress. Her accolades include winning a Critics' Choice Television Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Seoul International Drama Award, in addition to nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award. Liu has sta ...

) is Maya's

Chinese-American Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage from m ...

friend. She is very dramatic, kind, fashionable, and talented. She rarely disagrees with Maya's ideas. * Christine "Chrissy" Lum (voiced by Beth Payne) is Maya's

Dominican-American Dominican Americans ( es, domínico-americanos, ) are Americans who trace their ancestry to the Dominican Republic. The word may refer to someone born in the United States of Dominican descent or to someone who has migrated to the United Stat ...

friend, and describes herself as Afro-Dominican. She is very sensitive and level-headed, though sometimes she can also be gullible. Chrissy tends to point out the flaws in Maya's plans, similar to Miguel. She also loves animals. * Andrew "Andy" Arlington (voiced by Jeannie Elias) is another friend of Miguel's. He is an

English-American English Americans (historically known as Anglo-Americans) are Americans whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in England. In the 2020 American Community Survey, 25.21 million self-identified as being of English origin. The term is distin ...

boy who was born with only one arm. Often seen in the background with Miguel and Theo, he likes to play soccer, basketball, and baseball. Andy moved to Maya and Miguel's neighborhood from

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. * Alberto "Tito" Chávez (voiced by

) is Maya and Miguel's cousin who moved to the US from Mexico with his parents. He lives in the same apartment complex. He admires his cousin Miguel; in the episode "I've Got to Be 'Mi-Guel'" he is shown pretending to act as if he is Miguel (which makes Miguel rather pleased, but eventually annoyed at one point). He loves to play soccer like the twins. * Abuela Elena (voiced by

Lupe Ontiveros Guadalupe Ontiveros ( Moreno; September 17, 1942 – July 26, 2012) was an American actress best known for portraying Rosalita in ''The Goonies'', and Yolanda Saldívar in the film ''Selena''. She acted in numerous films and television shows, ...

) is Maya and Miguel's maternal grandmother. * Paco (voiced by

Carlos Alazraqui Carlos Jaime Alazraqui (born July 20, 1962) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, impressionist, producer, and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Deputy James Garcia on '' Reno 911!'' and for his voice acting roles. His extensive ...

) is an anthropomorphic bilingual macaw who is the twins' pet, originally owned by their ''abuela''. Most commonly heard saying "Pretty Bird" and "What about Paco, what about Paco?". He often gets loose, causing much trouble and confusion. Paco also often reacts to figures of speech (mostly ones about birds), thinking they are real. *Rosa Santos (voiced by

Elizabeth Peña Elizabeth Maria Peña (September 23, 1959 – October 14, 2014) was an American actress, writer and musician. Her work in films included ''Nothing like the Holidays'', '' Batteries Not Included'', '' La Bamba'', '' Down and Out in Beverl ...

) is Santiago's wife and Maya and Miguel's mother who was originally from Mexico. *Santiago Santos (voiced by

Carlos Ponce Carlos Armando Ponce Freyre Jr. (born September 4, 1972) is a Puerto Rican actor, musician, model, and television personality. Ponce began his acting career by participating in Spanish language soap operas for Televisa and Telemundo. Ponce contin ...

) is Rosa's husband and Maya and Miguel's father who was originally from

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2004)

Season 2 (2004-05)

Season 3 (2005-06)

Season 4 (2005–07)

Season 5 (2006–07)

Broadcast history

In the United States, the series originally premiered on October 11, 2004 (along with ''

Postcards from Buster ''Postcards from Buster'' is a live-action/animated children's television series that originally aired on PBS. It is a spin-off of the '' Arthur'' TV series. The show stars Arthur's best friend, 8-year-old anthropomorphic rabbit Buster Baxter ...

'') on

. The series ended on October 10, 2007. As of 2022, PBS Stations

KLCS KLCS (channel 58) is a tertiary PBS member television station in Los Angeles, California, United States. Owned by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), it is one of eight television stations in the U.S. that are operated by a local sc ...

and

KVCR-DT KVCR-DT (channel 24) is a PBS member television station in San Bernardino, California, United States. It is owned by the San Bernardino Community College District alongside NPR member KVCR (91.9 FM). The two stations share studios at the San Be ...

still carry the show. Internationally, the series aired on

CBBC CBBC (initialised as Children's BBC and also known as the CBBC Channel) is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the bran ...

in the United Kingdom. It also aired on

Boomerang A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning ...

in Latin America debuting on June 3rd, 2006. In Brazil, the series aired on

Discovery Kids Discovery Kids (stylized as Discovery K!ds) is a brand name owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Starting as a television segment within the Discovery Channel, the brand expanded as a separate television channel. Most of its worldwide channels were e ...

. In France, the show aired on

France 5 France 5 () is a French free-to-air public television channel, part of the France Télévisions group. Principally featuring educational programming, the channel's motto is ''la chaîne de la connaissance et du savoir'' (the knowledge network). ...

and

Gulli Gulli (; stylised as gulli) is a French free-to-air television channel focused on kids programming for those aged 3 to 14. It was created as a result of a partnership between Lagardère Active and state-owned broadcaster France Télévisions. ...

. In Turkey, the show aired on

TV8 (Turkey) TV8 is a Turkish free-to-air television channel owned by MNG Media Group, which started broadcasting on 22 February 1999. Its current owner is Acun Medya. Aside from having national coverage on terrestrial television, it is also carried on cable ...

. In Israel, it aired on

Arutz HaYeladim Arutz HaYeladim ( he, ערוץ הילדים, The Children's Channel; Formerly: Arutz Shesh (ערוץ 6) ''channel 6'') is an Israeli youngster cable television channel owned by RGE, through subsidiary NOGA Communications Limited. It was one of ...

. It also aired on

Nickelodeon (Australia and New Zealand) Nickelodeon is an Australian children's pay television channel operated by a joint venture of Foxtel Networks and Paramount Networks UK & Australia. Being a version of the namesake television channel in the United States, the channel broadcas ...

in Australia. In the Philippines, it aired on

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Philippine commercial broadcast network that serves as the flagship property of ABS-CBN Corporation, a company unde ...

Home media

There have been three ''Maya & Miguel'' DVD and VHS releases released by

Lionsgate Home Entertainment Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...

. In addition, the entire series is available on digital purchase.

References

External links

* {{Scholastic 2000s American animated television series 2004 American television series debuts 2007 American television series endings American children's animated comedy television series American children's animated education television series American television series with live action and animation Animated television series about children Animated television series about families Animated television series about siblings Animated television series about twins Elementary school television series English-language education television programming Spanish-language education television programming PBS Kids shows PBS original programming Animated duos Fictional twins Hispanic and Latino American television Disability in television