Kickin' It

Located in a strip mall, the Bobby Wasabi Martial Arts Academy is known as the worst dojo in the under-performing nationwide Bobby Wasabi chain. To improve the dojo's image, a tight knit crew of underdogs enlists new kid Jack to join and help teach them about life, karate and friendship. All the members of the dojo follow the Wasabi code: "We swear by the light of the dragon's eye, to be loyal and honest and never say die. Wasabi!" There are always two to three story lines. The main one teaches a lesson and the others are for comic relief."^[3]

The series was created by Emmy nominated producer, Jim O'Doherty who started his career as a sitcom writer and producer for the television comedies 3rd Rock from the Sun, Grounded for Life, and The Tracy Morgan Show.^[9] Kickin' It is said to be inspired by O'Doherty's childhood growing up on Long Island, New York where he earned a green belt in martial arts, but was forced to end his training when his local dojo closed down and was turned into a veterinary clinic.^[9] This childhood connection to martial arts, combined with two of his daughters' interest in karate, laid the foundation for the premise of the series.^[9]

Casting for the series began in early 2010^[10] with Jason Earles, former star of Disney's Hannah Montana cast in the role of Sensei "Rudy".^[11] Leo Howard, a black-belt in karate and former star of Disney's Leo Little's Big Show was cast in the role of "Jack".^[12] Dylan Riley Snyder, former star of Disney's Broadway musical Tarzan was cast in the role of "Milton".^[13] Mateo Arias, brother of Disney star Moises Arias was cast in the role of "Jerry".^[14] Olivia Holt, whose previous credits included appearances in commercials for Hasbro, Mattel, and Bratz was cast in the role of "Kim".^[15] And Alex Christian Jones, who had appeared in Ruben Studdard's "Flying Without Wings" music video, was cast in the role of "Eddie".^[16]

The pilot episode of Kickin' It was filmed in August 2010 and in November 2010, Disney XD announced it had green-lit the series (then known as Wasabi Warriors) and filming would begin in January 2011.^[17][18] With the announcement of the series, Disney Channel CEO, Gary Marsh commented on the groundbreaking martial arts sitcom formula, saying, - "By weaving martial arts into the fabric of a traditional situation comedy, we've created a completely unique sitcom form. Plus, by pairing our star Leo Howard -- a real life black-belt martial artist -- with a brilliant comedian like Jason Earles, we've tipped the scales towards success."^[19]

• Jack (Leo Howard), the new kid in town who is an experienced martial artist and skateboarder. He learned karate from his grandfather who also trained Bobby Wasabi for all of his movies. He is loyal to his friends and inspires them to try their best. He is the most skilled and talented student in the dojo. The Black Dragons also tried to recruit Jack but were unsuccessful.^[12] It's revealed that in the episode "Boo Gi Nights" Jack is scared of clowns. It is hinted at that Jack and Kim may have crushes on each other throughout Season 1 and 2, until they finally begin dating in Season 3, episode 8 ("Two Dates and a Funeral"). It is also revealed that Jack has a cousin named Kai, who beat him in a karate duel two years ago. Jack gave up karate until he came to the Bobby Wasabi martial arts academy. In the episode, "New Jack City", his last name is revealed to be "Brewer". His signature line is "You probably shouldn't have done that."

• Milton (Dylan Riley Snyder), an honors student who enrolls in martial arts to defend himself after being bullied for taking French horn lessons. He is oddly unaware of his own shortcomings and has an awkward sense of confidence.^[13] In later episodes he gets an equally geeky, but more romantic girlfriend named Julie. His signature lines are "Gah!!!" and "Holy Christmas Nuts!!".

• Jerry (Mateo Arias), a lone wolf who winds up at the dojo to complete his school P.E. credit. He is Latino and speaks Spanish fluently. He's a talented dancer who acts like a tough guy, but is loyal and serious when it comes to friendships. He is not especially smartest person in the world, but can have good ideas sometimes. His two signature lines are a very happy "WOO!!" and when he realizes he's made a mistake, he'll exclaim, "Really, Jerry? Really??". He often finds ways to end up in detention. His girlfriend as of season 2's name is Mika and she is Phil's niece. He is shown to be close to the Wasabi Warriors.^[14]

• Kim (Olivia Holt, seasons 1-3), a confident martial artist and the only girl in the dojo. She was a former member of the rival dojo, The Black Dragons but joined the Bobby Wasabi Academy after finding out The Black Dragons were cheaters. Many people underestimate her because she's a girl.^[15] In the episode "Hit the Road Jack," it is revealed that she has feelings for Jack and in Season 3 episode 8, they begin dating. She is a blackbelt and the second best martial artist in the dojo, after Jack.

• Eddie (Alex Christian Jones, seasons 1–2), a sweet but uncoordinated kid who attends Bobby Wasabi to get into shape. He loves the sense of achievement, and fears that if the dojo closes he will have no choice but to return to Mrs. King's Dance Academy. He is fiercely loyal and believes that he is a 'playa'.^[16]

• Rudy (Jason Earles), a former top amateur martial artist who was sidelined by an injury and, for a time, lost his fire to compete before using his entire life savings to become the owner and Sensei of the Bobby Wasabi Martial Arts Academy.^[11] He is in a relationship with the kids health teacher Ms. Applebaum. He is extremely close to the Wasabi Warriors. In "The new girl", he revealed that his name used to be "Rags".

• Bobby Wasabi (Joel McCrary), an international movie star and owner of the Bobby Wasabi chain.
• Phil (Dan Ahdoot), the owner of the restaurant, Falafel Phil's, Mika's uncle.
• Joan (Brooke Dillman), a security guard at the strip mall.
• Mr. Funderburk (Eric Nenninger), started out as a coach, but then became Seaford High School's principal.
• Sensei Ty (Ian Reed Kesler), the Black Dragon's master and rival of Rudy.
• Frank (Wayne Dalglish), a student at Seaford High School who trains with the Black Dragons. He is Jack's rival and has a big crush on Kim. also the school bully.
• Julie (Hannah Leigh), Milton's former girlfriend. She is known to be the niece of Sensei Ty.
• Randy (Evan Hofer), is a student at Seaford High School.
• Bethany Applebaum (Rachel Cannon), the high school health teacher who is dating Rudy.
• Sam (Rio Mangini), adopted by Rudy who became his legal guardian in Season 3.

The series's premiere of Kickin' It garnered approximately 873,000 viewers, which made it the highest-rated series premiere in Disney XD's history (including the network's former incarnation as Toon Disney), followed by I'm in the Band's premiere which garnered 863,000 viewers.^[20] The premiere scored 578,000 viewers among children 6-14 and 393,000 among tweens 9-14, and was Disney XD's number one live-action series premiere of all time among Kids 6-11 (431,000).^[20]

This show originally premiered on Disney XD on June 13, 2011.^[23] In Canada it premiered on July 2, 2011, in the UK and Ireland as a preview on July 21, 2011 and as an official premiere on September 1, 2011, and in Singapore on October 27, 2011.^[24][25][26] It later aired in Australia and New Zealand as a preview on December 31, 2011 and as a premiere on August 25, 2012.^[27] The show premiered with the launch of Disney XD in Malaysia on September 15, 2012.^{[citation needed]}

• Official website
• Kickin' It at IMDb
• Kickin' It at TV.com
• Kickin' It at TV Guide