Go, Diego, Go! is an American animated children's television series that aired on Nick Jr. from September 6, 2005, to September 16, 2011, with 80 episodes across five seasons. Created and executive produced by Chris Gifford and Valerie Walsh Valdes, the series is a spin-off of the animated television series Dora the Explorer and follows Dora's cousin Diego, an 8-year-old boy whose adventures often involve rescuing animals and protecting the environment. The series also aired in reruns on Nick Jr. on CBS from September 17, 2005, to September 9, 2006.
The series received favorable reviews from critics and garnered acclaim for its portrayal of a bilingual Latino lead character, earning four NAACP Image Award nominations for "Outstanding Children's Program" from 2008 to 2012, and being nominated for the Imagen Award and Young Artist Award for Jake T. Austin's role as the voice of Diego.
The series follows Diego, who helps animals in danger. His cousin is Dora from Dora the Explorer, who also appears in the series; prior to Go, Diego, Go!, Diego debuted in the Dora the Explorer episode "Meet Diego!" and appeared throughout the series since then. In most episodes, Diego hears an animal's call for help at the Animal Rescue Center and sets out to rescue them. Like Dora the Explorer, the show teaches Spanish, but it is not its primary purpose. Supporting characters include Diego's sisters Alicia and Daisy, his companion Baby Jaguar, Click, an anthropomorphic camera who locates animals, and Rescue Pack, an anthropomorphic orange messenger bag Diego wears who can transform into any object. The antagonists are the Bobo Brothers, a pair of anthropomorphic spider monkeys who, like Swiper in Dora the Explorer, cause mischief and can be stopped by shouting "Freeze, Bobos!" However, unlike Swiper, they do not intentionally cause trouble.
Whenever a carnivorous predator is featured on the show, its diet is not mentioned, unlike when herbivores are shown. There are exceptions to this, including when an octopus is shown and discussed eating crabs, when a baby river dolphin eats the crabs heading toward a waterfall, when Tuga, a leatherback sea turtle, eats jellyfish, and when Jorge, a hawk, eats grasshoppers, however, these prey are not anthropomorphized. Also, when a predator threatens a featured animal, they are described as being "afraid" of them.
In 2006, a year after Go, Diego, Go! premiered, the show had several DVD and VHS releases. In 2008, Go, Diego, Go! became available on iTunes. The show is available to stream on Paramount+.
In the United States, Go, Diego, Go! first aired with the episode "Diego Saves the Mommy and Baby Sloth" as a sneak peak on Noggin throughout the week of August 22 to August 28, 2005. The show would make its official primetime premiere on Nickelodeon on September 6, 2005 at 8:00 p.m. ET with the episode "Rescue of the Red-Eyed Tree Frogs", before airing on the Nick Jr. block the next day. The show also aired on CBS within its Saturday morning Nick Jr. on CBS children's block from September 17, 2005, to the block's discontinuation on September 9, 2006. Spanish-language broadcast network Univision aired the show on its Saturday morning children's block, Planeta U, from its debut on April 5, 2008, until May 24, 2014 to accommodate the launch of the "Disney Junior en Univision" sub-block the following week. The last episode, "Fiercest Animals!", aired on September 16, 2011, with reruns continuing on the Nick Jr. Channel through August 31, 2018.
In Canada, the show aired on Nickelodeon and Treehouse TV. In the UK, the show aired on Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., and Nick Jr. 2. In Australia, the show aired on Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., and Nine Network. In India, the show aired on Nickelodeon, and Nick Jr.
Nickelodeon, with Paramount for Region 1 released a number of DVDs featuring one episode from a variety of the animated television series they have produced, including Go, Diego, Go!, Dora the Explorer, Blue's Clues, Bubble Guppies, The Fresh Beat Band, Ni Hao, Kai-Lan, Team Umizoomi, Wonder Pets!, and Yo Gabba Gabba!, an average of six on each DVD.
Go Diego Go! episodes featured as bonus episodes in the DVD releases of Dora the Explorer, produced primarily by Paramount.
Diego is featured in the live-action Dora film Dora and the Lost City of Gold played by Jeff Wahlberg. Diego is also featured in the sequel Dora and the Search for Sol Dorado played by Jacob Rodriguez.
A live show called The Great Jaguar Rescue is about Diego saving Baby Jaguar's growl. This is also the premise of an episode of the series that aired on January 15, 2007. A touring live version of the series was staged in 2007, starring Richard J. Portela as the role of Diego.