History WesternAnimation / WildKratts

''Wild Kratts'' is an [[LongRunner long-running]] educational TV show produced for PBS Kids and TVO Kids which is premiered in January 2011 and is currently ongoing. It's an animated and live action-mixed cartoon starring Martin and Chris Kratt of ''Series/KrattsCreatures,'' ''Series/{{Zoboomafoo}},'' and the short-lived ''Series/{{Be the Creature}}'' fame. They travel around the world in a turtle-shaped, go-wherever transport they call Tortuga HQ along with three techies: Aviva, the head techie who built the creature power suits and other gadgets, Koki, who does a lot of data monitoring and communications work, and Jimmy Z, whose jobs seem to be teleport master, pilot, and eater of pizza. With the Creature Power Suits (devices that scan an animal's DNA and allow the user to transform into that animal), Martin and Chris can become any animal in the world, in a rather {{mecha}}-like way. Like its predecessors, the show's focus is on animal education and conservation, but because of the animated environment it's not limited by what the brothers happen to catch on tape. This means that they can show rare, ridiculously cool things like [[UltimateShowdownOfUltimateDestiny a bull sperm whale and a colossal squid battling it out]].

* CatchphraseSpoutingDuo: most episodes of the show end with Chris saying his [[signing off catchphrase]] and Chris complimenting it with his own.

* CelebrityToons: A Saturday morning cartoon-influenced show starring two beloved zoologists.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* AllGirlsLikePonies: When the Wild Kratts happen upon some ponies, Koki and Aviva are anxious to get a good look at them.

* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: "Mystery of the North Pole Penguins" is all about...well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin penguins]], specifically emperor penguins, the largest extant species of penguin.

* BalefulPolymorph: There are a few of these when the creature power suits malfunction.

* TurtlePower: Tortuga HQ is shaped like a large, flying blue turtle. Even its name is significant. [[note]] Turtle in Portuguese or Spanish.[[/note]] Actual "turtle powers" have been explored in episodes dedicated to box turtles and sea turtles, and the extreme longevity of the Galapagos tortoises is cited as one.

* TomatoSkunkStinkCure: In "Skunked!", the crew attempt to have Jimmy bathe in tomato soup when he gets sprayed by a spotted skunk. It doesn't work.

* SeldomSeenSpecies: Too many to list. And not just in the animated segments either: the live-action FramingDevice scenes often have the RealLife Kratts observing exotic wildlife such as the galidia (ring-tailed mongoose) and striped tenrec in Madagascar.

* EmotionlessReptile: In “Mom of a Croc”, Aviva has a hard time believing a crocodile could be a good mother because she only sees them as aggressive and cold-blooded. She learns her lesson at the end of the episode once she sees crocs do care a lot for their children and will go against anything to protect them.

%%* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Zach

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters:
** Averted. There are only 9 - 11, as of "Spirit Bear" - truly main characters, and the rest/majority are the Wild Kratts Kids.
** Played straight if you count all the recurring ''animal'' characters, like Blur, Gular, Bumper, Kid Musky, Shadow, Baby Tooth, or Click & Whistle.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The pilot episode, "Polar Bears Don't Dance," sports different animation, different rules for the power suits (which seem to be actual suits in this episode alone, rather than entire body transformations), a different director, and different designs for both the exterior and interior of the Tortuga.

* BioAugmentation

** In "Day of the Dodo", the great auk is described as a penguin. It was actually an auk. This one is actually justified though-- when great auks were discovered, they were initially called penguins, and only later was the name [[CallASmeerpARabbit given to the birds that bear that name today]].

* {{Expy}}: Martin is one of [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic Pinkie Pie]]. In fact, it's so implied that some older fans call him [[FanNickname Martin Pie]].

* EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: Any episode starring primates lives for this trope.

* FiveManBand:
** TheHero[=/=]TheLancer: Martin and Chris take turns being these to each other.
** {{The Smart G|uy}}irl: Aviva.
** TheChick: Koki.
** NonActionGuy: Jimmy Z.

Not to be confused with ComicBook/{{WildCATS}}.

* NeverSayDie:
** Averted in "Voyage of the Butterflier XT", which follows the life cycle of the monarch butterfly. Having a named animal die in the arms of one of the main characters? Not something you see every day in a kid's show.
** Also averted with Juice, Martin's pet fruit fly, which dies of old age at 5 weeks in "Animals Who Live To Be 100 Years Old".
** "She's dying" is used in "Hero's Journey" in reference to a salmon expiring after migration and egg-laying. Essentially, this trope is disregarded when animals die of natural causes, but played straight for ''violent'' death.