Tasha (The Backyardigans)

Tasha is a yellow hippopotamus and a major character in The Backyardigans. Tasha's speaking voice was provided by Naelee Rae in the first two seasons and by Gianna Bruzzese in the final two seasons. Her singing voice was initially provided by Kristin Klabunde, with Gabriella Malek taking over during the third season and continuing to voice the character for the remainder of the series.

Why She Is A Friendly Hippo

 * 1) She’s a hippopotamus who’s a very different, realistic, and likable character.
 * 2) Her character design is cute and original.
 * 3) She promotes creativity and imagination, like when she was pretending to be the secret boss, Miss T., for Agent Secret (Pablo), during the spy adventure.
 * 4) The kinds of people she pretends to be can be awesome at times, like when she was pretending to be Miss T., a super secret spy boss, and when she was pretending to be the Flighty Fairy, a tiny, but flighty and mischievous fairy.
 * 5) For one of the 5 main characters to focus on imagination in the show, she shows a lot of very creative and inventive moments in the episodes, such as the first episode "Knights are Brave and Strong", where she and her friends pretend they're in a medieval world.
 * 6) Naelee Rae and Gianna Bruzzese did a great job voicing her.
 * 7) Kristin Klabunde and Gabriella Malek did a great job with her singing voice.
 * 8) She has very realistic dances, as a troupe of real dancers learned each dance choreography and was filmed for the animators to watch, so that she and the other characters have amazing dances.
 * 9) She has funny jokes and running gags, such as her catchphrase, "Oh, for goodness sakes!"
 * 10) She really cares about her friends and is always there for them during their adventures.
 * 11) She is rational, skeptical, and highly motivated to get her own way, but then learns she can’t get everything to be her own way.
 * 12) She is assertive and likes to be in charge most of the time. She has some good traits of a leader, like being very opinionated, and is difficult to frighten, a fact she takes pride in.
 * 13) She got some character development, as in later episodes after the first season, her personality becomes bolder and less overbearing.
 * 14) Unlike Dora Márquez and other Nick Jr. protagonists, the way she, and her friends, breaks the fourth wall is pretty cool and it is not annoying for older children or adults making her one of the few preschool education characters that is entertaining for all ages.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) Sometimes, her singing voice is much too loud.
 * 2) Tasha's attitude can get very annoying.
 * 3) Her excessive/prolonged/repetitive singing can be annoying.
 * 4) The running gag that sometimes her stomach growls at the end of an adventure can get old pretty fast.