Winx Club (Series)

''This article is about Series and characters overview. For information about events in the Series, see: Timeline''

Winx Club is a 2004 Italian animated fantasy/adventure series created by Iginio Straffi and produced by Rainbow S.p.A. The series is aimed toward children between the ages of six and fourteen and has spawned an international franchise of toys, books, games, clothing, DVDs, and two CGI feature-length films.

A second movie was released winter 2010 with title "Magic Adventure". Currently Nickelodeon is airing Season 5 on it's respective tv network, while Rainbow already aired all episodes. There are four one-hour mega episodes summarizing seasons 1 and 2 in 2011, a upcoming third movie and a sixth season, both in 2013, as well as possibly more seasons since Rainbow mentioned that the fifth and sixth seasons will be beginning of taking Winx Club to "another level." Iginio Straffi even said that the series may continue up till 2014.

Prototype Winx
Winx Club actually had started back in 2001, but got rehashed into the present one. Here, the girls were a bit younger at the start. Bloom, Stella, and Tecna were relatively unchanged in terms of appearance, but Flora and Musa had gone under design rehashes.

Flora originally was to wear glasses and had light purple hair.

Musa was very different, having started out with short green hair.

Their fairy forms were also largely different, especially Musa's.

Four years later, the show's design was finalized to what we know today.

Production started as early as 1999.

See the 2001 promo here.

Prototype Winx

The series was originally planned to be called "Magico Bloom" (Magical Bloom).

In 2002 the name was changed to "Winx, Solo le Fate" (Winx, Just Faries).

The name was once again changed in late 2003 to "Winx Club".

Season 1
An ordinary girl from the planet Earth, Bloom lives a perfectly normal life in the city of Gardenia until she meets Stella, a princess from the planet Solaria, who is in trouble. Coming to Stella's aid, Bloom discovers her magical powers. Stella persuades Bloom to join Alfea, the best fairy school in all the realms.

Bloom sneaks in Alfea as Varanda,with the help of Stella,and meets four girls. At Alfea, Bloom forms the Winx Club, whose members are her four friends and roommates: Stella, Musa, Tecna, and Flora. Later in the series they encounter and befriend the Specialists from Red Fountain: Prince Sky, Brandon, Riven, and Timmy. The Specialists eventually become love interests. The Winx Club girls also encounter their enemies, a trio of witches named the Trix: Icy, Darcy, and Stormy. They are seniors from Cloud Tower, a witch school equivalent to Alfea, in search of the power of the Dragon's Flame (called Dragon Fire in the 4Kids version), the power that created the magic dimension. Supposedly there is a spark of the Dragon's Flame in Stella's magic ring.

The Trix's ruthless pursuit of the ring leads to many encounters and battles with the Winx Club. Bloom also begins to discover the secrets of her origins and her magic powers. She learns through the witches that the Dragon's Flame is inside her body and that she is the last princess of the destroyed kingdom of Domino.

After revealing her origins, the witches steal the power of the Dragon's Flame. Icy, Darcy and Stormy use that power to conquer Cloud Tower, summon the Army of Darkness, and destroy Red Fountain. Bloom realizes that she still has some of her powers and, after a rough battle, the Winx manage to beat the Trix. After the battle, the Trix are sent on a purification retreat in the Lighthaven Prison (also the Fortress of Light).

Season 2
After their summer vacation, the Winx Club return to Alfea to begin their second year. They meet a new fairy, Aisha, who joins the group and asks for their help in rescuing her pixie friends held hostage by Darkar. The girls also meet another specialist, Helia, who becomes the love interest for Flora. The winx also acquire a new transformation called charmix which is earned by facing their fear.

Darkar wants to find out where the Pixie Village is in order to steal the piece of the Codex hidden there. There are four pieces of the Codex, one piece in each of four locations: Pixie Village, Red Fountain, Cloud Tower, and Alfea. Together, the four pieces open the portal to the Realm of Realix, where the ultimate power can be found. Darkar breaks the Trix out of Lighthaven and enlists their help his quest to take control of the magical realms. Darkar is actually the "Shadow Phoenix," and wields the dark-power equivalent to the Dragon's Flame. The combined powers of the Dragon's Flame and the Shadow Phoenix are required to open the portal to Realix. Darkar transforms Bloom into Dark Bloom in order to use the Dragon's Flame; however, Bloom's love for Sky is strong enough to overcome the dark transformation, and the Winx Club is able to defeat Darkar and the Trix.

Season 3
Banished to the Omega Dimension after the defeat of Darkar, the Trix are able to escape with Valtor, a sorcerer partially responsible for the destruction of Bloom's home realm, Domino. They choose to cooperate and they plan to invade several areas in the realm of Magix and seek vengeance on those who imprisoned them, stealing the magical treasures and power sources of each realm. The Winx Club begin their third year at Alfea and the girls learn about their unique Enchantix transformations, acquired by showing sacrifice.

Aisha is upset when she discovers that her parents have set up an arranged marriage for her with someone from the richest family on Andros. Her arranged fiancé, a young wizard named Nabu is also upset with this as he feels that one should only marry someone they truly love, and runs away from home so he can find Aisha and learn what she is really like. He later falls in love with her, and decides to help the Winx in the fight against Valtor.

The Secret of the Lost Kingdom (First Movie)
The story begins sometime after the third season with Valtor defeated and the magical dimension safe for the time being.

An unseen narrator begins to speak about a girl who discovered that she was a fairy and a princess; Bloom. Though her story is a magical one, it is one without an ending. The story will only have one when the girl writes the ending-i.e. creates the ending.

The scene changes to show six cloaked figures: the Winx. Bloom and her friends are on a search for Bloom's parents, King Oritel and Queen Marion which could change Bloom's life forever. The girls are on their way to find Hagen, a blacksmith who once forged the Sword of King Oritel. The girls successfully sneak into the castle but due to Stella's mistake, are forced to battle Hagen's robot guards. Fortunately, Bloom ends the battle by using her Dragon's Flame to destroy their power source. Hagen then holds Bloom at swordpoint in anger for the Winx girls trespassing his castle but Faragonda arrives in time to stop him.

At Alfea, Bloom, Hagen and Faragonda talk in her office. On Hagen's comment on the decoration of the school, Faragonda explains that some fairies are leaving the school to end their journey and become Guardian Fairies: All of the Winx except Bloom. Bloom then asks Hagen if he can sense the sword that he forged for her father, a sword that can never be separated from its master. Hagen states that he has been searching for the sword for years to find her parents but has not sensed it. Hagen tells her that she must face reality; her parents are not coming back.

Bloom, faced with the revelation that her dreams are over, runs off in tears and avoids her friends. She goes to the top of the castle where she watches the graduation ceremony. There, she befriends a small cat whom she names Ron. Talking to him and Kiko, she explains that she feels that "the world has lost all it's colors, there is no more hope". Sadly, she sees her friends become Guardian Fairies (a form where they become strong enough to protect their planets) and graduate. Whispering that she loves them, she turns away in grief. Sky appears and comforts her.

Bloom is upset that all she and the Winx have done won't matter any more. Sky however tells her,"School might be over but life goes on." Riven also speaks to Hagen, asking him why he left the Company of Light. Hagen explains that they all have darkness and light inside them, the key is keeping the darkness in check. That night, there is a party and Bloom dances with Sky on the grounds. He encourages her to keep looking for her parents despite Hagen's words. Unfortunately, a ship arrives and Sky is forced to leave with a mysterious girl. As he goes, he promises that he will explain everything and never leave her.

Back in the dorm, the girls decide to remember the good times by partying together one last time. The next morning, Bloom leaves for Earth to stay with her adoptive parents for the time-being. Though she seems happy, Mike feels that Bloom is uncomfortable living on Earth. Vanessa agrees, stating,"This is not her world anymore." One night, Bloom sees in a dream what happened to her parents. Her father was pulled into another dimension by the Ancestral Witches while her mother absorbed herself into the sword in order to be with him. Daphne then appears and tells Bloom that there is still hope; their parents are still alive. She gives Bloom her mask, telling her it will help her to see Domino before it was destroyed. She also tells her about the Book of Destiny, a book their father kept that tells the history of Domino. Daphne gives Bloom its location before she vanishes, telling Bloom that she is not alone.

In the morning, Bloom is surprised to see all her friends plus Sky there to celebrate her birthday. Bloom tells them her plan and they all agree to help her. They head to Domino where Bloom wears the mask and finds that Domino was actually a beautiful place before it was destroyed and covered with ice and snow. The group head towards the mountains where the book is hidden but Tecna tells them that a legendary bird named the Roc is guarding the library. The boys climb the mountain but thanks to Sky and Riven's arguing, the Roc awakens and flies off with the guys hanging on for dear life.

The girls run to the ship and manage to calm the bird with Musa's music and let it land. Inside the library, they meet Bartelby, Oritel's scribe in spiritual form, who shows them the Book of Destiny. In it, they discover that Oritel as well as all the people of Domino are trapped in a horrible dimension called Obsidian. Bloom learns that she must travel there to free them. Wanting to learn more, Bartelby lets her turn the page but discovers jumbled words; the future has not yet been written.

Meanwhile, Riven is bitten by Mandragora's spy bug and becomes her puppet. Soon after, Alfea is attacked by Mandragora but the Winx, Mirta, the teachers and Faragonda are able to stop her. Bloom asks Faragonda to tell her more about Obsidian and learns about its cruel nature, how all the nightmares of the universe are within it. Just before they leave, Bloom looks at the Book of Destiny and is shocked to see her parents wedding photo turn into a picture of her and Sky at the altar. Throwing the book aside in surprise, the picture changes into everyone fixing the school, which soon comes true.

The group head to Pixie Village where they enter the Tree of Portals. Only Bloom stays behind as she is not yet a guardian fairy and cannot miniaturize. Unfortunately, Jolly triggers an explosion inside the tree which causes the keys to become jumbled. Thankfully, Lockette finds the correct key and they all head to the gateway to the Obsidian dimension. As the girls enter, Mandragora appears and Riven begins to battle Sky. As he is about to stab him, Musa jumps in front of him and is injured. Riven sees what he has done and recalls all that they have been through together. He lifts her up and tells her that he now knows what he must fight for-her.

In Obsidian, the girls battle their greatest fears but survive. Next, Bloom sees a figure of stone that looks like her father. To her horror, the Ancestral Witches tell her that the figure is her father frozen in stone. The witches force her to make a choice between destroying the sword and saving her Earth parents or taking the sword and letting Mandragora kill them. Luckily, Bloom sees that in the image, her father is not sneezing as he pets Ron - her father is allergic to cats - and realizes that it is a trick. Sky arrives moments later and takes the sword but supposedly dies as he is not a king and only a king can take the sword.

Feeling all alone, Bloom is ready to give up when Daphne appears and reminds her that she is never alone. Bloom wears the mask and Daphne joins with her to destroy the witches. Suddenly, Sky wakes up and helps destroy the Obsidian dimension, freeing everyone, restoring Domino and placing Marion back in fairy form. Sky explains that he is now King of Eraklyon and that his coronation was the night he left Bloom at Alfea. Domino is restored and Bloom is finally reunited with her birth parents. There is a party afterwards where Oritel and Marion promise Bloom that they will be around for the rest of her life. Mike and Vanessa are there too and Bloom hugs them affectionately.

Oritel begins the traditional father-daughter dance but lets Bloom dance with Sky. As the whole group dances, Sky swings by Brandon and Stella and takes a beautiful blue and silver box from Brandon. Moving away, Sky shows her a diamond ring. Leaning down, he whispers quietly to Bloom, asking her if she will marry him. Happier than ever, Bloom accepts and kisses him passionately.

Bartelby then appears by the Book of Destiny, telling the audience that the prophecy has been fulfilled and there is a new Company of Light - The Winx. However, the three Ancestral Witches have not been destroyed. Instead, they were freed and are finding new bodies to take over and destroy the Winx. They are shown with their descendants, the Trix, Icy, Darcy, and Stormy, cackling madly, which could imply that they have taken over their bodies.

Season 4
The Winx Club must now stop the Wizards of Black Circle (also known as Fairy Hunters), and protect the last fairy on Earth, Roxy. She is the fairy of animals and the seventh official member of the Winx Club.

When they reach Earth, they go to Bloom's house, and though try to look for work, thanks to Stella, they are unable to find any. However, with a little help, they start a business selling pets made from a box of stuffed animals. The store then doubles as the living space. In  the begining of the season, they meet Roxy, and she helps them earn their Believix, a more powerful transformation earned through a human believing in fairies. A few episodes later, when a member of the Black Circle, Gantlos, hurts Artu, Roxy earns her Believix, it is speculated much the same way Bloom earned her Enchantix.

Magical Adventure (Second Movie)
Alfea celebrates the inauguration of the new school year when the party is interrupted by Icy, Darcy and Stormy, the perfidious Trix. The Winx, without Bloom, are forced to remedy the confusion created by the Trix who, having ruined the party, steal a powerful and mysterious object. Meanwhile, Bloom is on Domino, experiencing the best moments of her new princess life with her birth parents, King Oritel and Queen Marion, and her older sister, Daphne. Unfortunately, the three Ancestral Witches come back to haunt the Winx fairies and to Bloom's dismay, Erendor, Sky's father, forbids his son to marry her because of a dark secret that lies on Planet Eraklyon. Meanwhile, with the help of the Trix, the Ancestresses are able to find the Tree of Life that holds the positive and negative balance of magic. With an unusually strong and powerful spell, they break this balance and suck all the good energy from Magix. Bloom and her friends find themselves powerless and forced again to confront the Trix. At the end of the movie, the Winx regain their Believix powers and destroy the three Ancestresses once and for all.

Season 5
Season 5 premiered on August 26, 2012, in America on Nickelodeon and on October 16, 2012, in Italy on Rai 2. This adventure will take place in underwater with two new transformations: Harmonix and Sirenix. First aired episode had Trix after an magical plant called Lilo, which Winx rescued from them just in time.

While holding an rock concert on Earth, Aishas cousin Tritannus tried to assassinate his twin brother Nereus from becoming the crown prince. From that he was sent to Prison of Andros, where he met the Trix and fell love with Icy. An oil spill at Earth, spread through an Ocean Gate to Andros and reached Tritannus, who got enough powers from it to escape. Tritannus then decides to go after Selkies of Magic Dimension to enter the Infinite Ocean.

Winx encounter Tritannus and Faragonda sends them on a quest to acquire new transformation, Sirenix, but to get it, they get Harmonix powers to swim underwater. They visit each of their home realms, Andros, Solaria, Melody, Zenith, Linphea and Domino to acquire Gems of Self-Confidence, Empathy and Courage, which allow them to acquire Sirenix. They also bond with gatekeeper Selkie of their homeworlds: Aisha with Lemmy, Stella with Illiris, Musa with Sonna, Tecna with Lithia, Flora with Desiryee and Bloom with Serena.

Even after stealing all of the Selkies powers, Tritannus turns his brother, sister and parents into mutants along with many other tritons, causes devastation in Winx home worlds and captures Daphne so she can tell him about Sirenix. He attacks Lake Roccaluce for Source of Sirenix and steals Daphnes Sirenix and shares it with Trix. Winx save Lake Roccaluce and enters the Infinite Ocean by becoming Sirenix Fairies. Tritannus does the same and spreads his powers to summon even more mutants. If Winx manages to rid Infinite Ocean from Tritannus, each of them gets an wish.

While Winx are relaxing at Earth, Tritannus heads to the Emperors Throne, but Sirenix Curse prevents him from using it, so he gos after three Pillars of the Infinite Ocean. Each of his attacks causes devastation to whole Magic Universe. By taking an seal from Pillar of Light, he causes an eclipse that makes King Radius fall ill. Seal from Pillar of Balance causes everything to collapse without balance and Pillar of Control causes machines in Zenith to turn against people. Winx manages to stabilize first two pillars and destroy the seal from Pillar of Control, preventing Tritannus from using it. These attacks causes royalties of Magic Dimension to try to create an alliance, which only Domino and Andros agrees with first. Diaspro who is promoted by Erendor, comes between Bloom and Sky and is even against the alliance just because Bloom proposes it. However royalties finally come into an agreement and Diaspro looses her place because of abusing it.

Darcy and Stormy turns against Tritannus, who decides to use Sirenix powers of Politea to activate the Emperors Throne. However Darcy and Stormy steals that power before Icy can get it for him. Tritannus moves down the list and chooses to power up the Throne with Aisha. Power possess him and causes him to go out of control, attacking Icy and Andros. Bloom with help of Nereus manages to stop him, free all of his mutants and family. Tritannus father, King Neptune banishes Tritannus into Oblivion as an punishment. Stella uses her wish to have her parents together again, Aisha uses her wish to save Nereus life and Bloom uses her wish to restore her sister and reunite her family once more.

Season 6
Coming in Fall 2014 for USA and Italy.

Third movie
Coming in spring 2014 for USA and Italy.

Bloom
Bloom is the informal leader of the Winx Club. Her adoptive parents are Mike and Vanessa. She discovered her dormant magical powers after coming to the aid of another fairy, Stella. Strong and caring, she is always available to help her friends. After arriving at Alfea, she discovers that her powers come from the ancient Dragon Fire, of which she is the seventh known guardian. She is the princess of her birth realm, Domino, and the sole survivor of its destruction at the hands of the Ancestral Witches. Her biological parents are King Oritel and Queen Marion. She is the fairy and guardian of the Dragon Fire. She owns a blueish Grey bunny named Kiko. Her pixie is Lockette, the pixie of mazes and portals. Her selkie is Serena, Gatekeeper of Domino's Ocean Gate. Her magical pet is Belle, the sheep. Her last name is 'Peters' according to the Winx Club novels published in North America. As such she is the only Winx with a last name in any version. Her romantic love interest and sweetheart is Prince Sky of Eraklyon.

Stella
Stella is a talkative student who often gets average or low grades, but always pulls through with the help from her friends. She tends to be spontaneous and dislikes extensive planning, but she is able to recognize when her help is needed. Stella is also infamous amongst the Alfea community for blowing up a laboratory and being kept back a grade; thus, she is a year older than all the other Winx Club fairies it changes when she enrolls with bloom. She has the power of the sun and the moon because her mother represents the moon and her father represents the sun, although she rarely displays skills involving the moon. She is the princess of the planet Solaria. Her pixie is Amore, the pixie of love and her selkie is Illiris, gatekeeper of Solaria's Ocean Gate. Her magical pet is Ginger, the poodle. She falls head-over-heels in love with Brandon.

Flora
Flora is a very kind-hearted and sensitive girl with a passion for nature and life. Happy and introverted, she is always a sweet, loyal friend that doesn't believe in hurting others or the environment. She is extremely fond of plants and nature, and her room consequently resembles a greenhouse. She has the power of flowers and plants and can understand the voice of nature. She comes from the planet Linphea (the Fifth Moon of Marigold in the 4Kids dub). Her pixie is Chatta, the pixie of gossip and selkie is Desiryee, gatekeeper of Linphea's Ocean Gate. Her magical pet is Coco, the cat. She is also extremely, extremely fond of Helia.

Musa
Musa loves all forms of music. Although she tries to put up a tough front by isolating herself, and is often pessimistic, she is a loyal and caring friend. In spite of her laid-back nature, Musa has the best grades of the entire Winx Club (including, surprisingly, Tecna). She is pale, with blue-black hair and navy blue eyes. She is the fairy of music. In the 4Kids dub, she is the princess of the Harmonic Nebula, while in the original version, she is from Melody, and she is not a princess. Her pixie is Tune, the pixie of manners. The pair often clash because Musa's laid-back nature and Tune's upright primness are often at odds. Her selkie is Sonna, gatekeeper of Melody's Ocean Gate. Her magical pet is Pepe, the bear. She is the second smartest of the group. She is dating Riven.

Tecna
Tecna is always logical and rational, and initially has trouble expressing her emotions. She speaks in a technical, matter-of-fact manner. She is extremely intelligent and knowledgeable about technology and mathematics. She enjoys playing video games. She can act cold and rational at times, but always tries to do the right thing. Unsurprisingly, she is the fairy of digital technology. She comes from the planet Zenith in the original and the Binary Galaxy in the 4Kids continuity. In the official monthly comic available in Europe only, it is revealed that Tecna is the princess of her realm. Her pixie is Digit, pixie of logic, who has similar powers. Her selkie is Lithia, gatekeeper of Zenith's Ocean Gate. Her magical pet is Chicko, the chick. She mutually admires the technology Specialist Timmy.

Aisha
Aisha is athletic and very outgoing. She meets the Winx Club in Season 2, when she needs their help to rescue the pixies in trouble. Her skin is dark, with long, curly brown hair and blue eyes. She is the fairy of fluids, specializing in a substance called Morphix. She is the Princess of Andros. Her pixie is Piff, the pixie of sweet dreams, who has the power to turn nightmares into sweet dreams by falling asleep on their head. Her magical pet is Milly, the bunny. Her selkie is Lemmy who guards Andros' Ocean Gates. She is/was betrothed to Nabu. She tends to be angered and very easily impulsive but is a pure heart.

Roxy
Roxy has powers over animals. She is the last fairy on Earth. Roxy has waist-length, hot pink hair with yellow tips, and eyes of violet. She also lives in Gardenia, just like Bloom. She is described as out-going. Her father owns the Frutti Music Bar, where she works. She owns a pet dog, Artù, whom she loves very much. It is later revealed that her mother is Morgana, Queen of the Earth fairies. She is not in the second movie, Magical Adventure and her role in Season 5 is minor, but while she is attending Alfea she will be making cameos. So far, it is unknown if she has a bonded pixie or selkie.

Trix
The enemies of the Winx Club are an evil trio of teenage witch sisters who attended the Cloud Tower School for Witches (only in the first season, after which they got expelled), which rivals Alfea. They are referred to as the Trix in the all dubs outside of the 4kids English. Trix have helped all antagonists in series apart from Wizards of Black Circle. All of them had romantic affections towards Darkar and Valtor and Icy is only one to have feelings towards Tritannus.

Icy: The leader of the trio. Her name refers to her powers of ice. She despises the Winx Club, especially Bloom, and is almost outright murderous when Bloom is directly involved. She is seen as the most powerful of the three. She has long, white hair tied up high on her head, and Icy wears extremely dark or extremely light blue and white, all of the above also a reference to her powers. In the monthly comics, she possibly had genuine affections for childhood friend Darko, the son of a mafia head in Magix.

Darcy: Darcy works with all forms of darkness, as her name suggests ("Darcy" meaning "dark" in Gaelic). She has long, dark brown hair with blond bangs swept to the side of her face. She wears purple and interacts with boys more than all of her other sisters. In the first season, she used Riven to help defeat the Winx and later, abandoned him. This led her to be aggressive towards Musa in Season 1.

Stormy: Seen as the youngest of the trio, her powers involve wind, storms, and weather. She has the shortest temper of the group and is prone to violent outbursts. She is most aggressive towards Musa in season 2, for unknown reasons. She has dark purple, short curly and quite frizzy hair that looks like a storm has been through it with mauve bangs. She wears hot pink/dark purple. Stormy is often the most aggressive of her sisters.

The Specialists
The Specialists are a group of students who attend an all-boys school near Alfea, Red Fountain School for Heroics and Bravery. Several Specialists have become the boyfriends of the Winx girls.

Sky: The prince and heir apparent of Eraklyon at the beginning of the series and now king, he feels stifled by his position. However, he has a strong sense of duty that sometimes causes conflicts, be it with Riven or Bloom. He has medium blond hair and is Bloom's boyfriend. He was once engaged to Diaspro but broke it with her to pursue Bloom. He still has a friendship

Brandon: Sky's squire, a great swordsman and ladies' man. He is sometimes conceited like Stella, a reason why they are a good match. He has short brown hair. He is Stella's boyfriend.

Timmy: He acts as the geek of the group sometimes, from a long line of scientists. He has short ginger hair, wear glasses and is Tecna's boyfriend. He is an extremely good marksmen.

Riven: A lone wolf, very competitive and good at sports, he sees himself as Sky's rival. He has short spiked burgundy or dark pink hair and purple eyes. He is seen as a chauvinist by definition because he has found very few reasons to trust woman, i.e. his mother abandoning him when he was young and Darcy and Mandragora using him in season one and the first movie to impede his friends' quest. He is Musa's on-and-off boyfriend.

Helia: An artistic student, he is a great pilot and a pacifist. His uncle/grandfather, Saladin, is the headmaster of Red Fountain. He has long blue hair tied into a loose ponytail in season two and three which is then later cut to sport flicky bangs, not tied at all. He is also very romantic and is not shy about directly speaking about his opinions. He is very good at using laser string glove (a fictional weapon in the show) and tries to help everyone with it. He is Flora's boyfriend. He was the top student in Red Fountain until he decided to quit and dedicate his life to nature and poetry. He has rejoined Red Fountain now.

Nabu: Nabu is the prince of an unknown kingdom on the planet Andros whom is the betrothed to Aisha and is a wizard. He ran away from his kingdom to see what she was like, but was caught and mistaken for an enemy at first. Not wanting to tell Aisha who he really was, he went under the name "Ophir" for a time until later on, when he finally told Aisha the truth because he'd fallen in love with her. He is officially not a real specialist as he does not attend Red Fountain but he is often seen accompanying the other specialists.

The Realm of Magix
The Realm of Magix is an alternate universe where most of the series unfolds. It is also the name of a city in that universe. It is an enchanted and highly technologically-advanced universe of hospitable planets populated by fairies, witches, heroes, and monsters.

Alfea
The Alfea School for Fairies is a girl's boarding school for fairies in training. The Winx girls met and reside here and have a close relationship with its headmistress, Faragonda. At Alfea, fairies learn to fight evil, help their planets, or, in many cases, become queens of their planets.

Alfea represents one of the Three Points of Magic, the others being Cloud Tower and Red Fountain.

The school is horseshoe-shaped, with the open end facing south. At that end is the road that leads to the City of Magix, as well as the other schools. The wings have two levels, and according to the comic, a basement level divided into many rooms. These are used for storage.

The school is surrounded by the Park. It is fenced, and each end has a gate. Access can also be had through openings between the wings and the Admin Building. A trail leads from one gate to the other. Outside the fence is the Dark Forest.

The Quad is the open area of the horseshoe. The open end has a fence with a single gate that lets out at the bus stop. There are paths between the wings here, as well as benches and the Wishing Well. In the 1st season the Well was used to access the tunnel to Cloud Tower.

The East Wing is the dormitory, and the original five Winx Club members shared a suite with a common room on the upper floor. Aisha shared a room with Frances in another part of the building. Teacher's Quarters are in this wing as well. The tower at the end of the wing contains the Assembly Room that doubles as a testing area. On the Day of the Rose Musa went to the top to be alone and think. She could see Magix from her vantage point. This tower was destroyed by the Army of Decay, and in the 2nd season was restored and renamed the Dragon Fire Tower. An open observation deck with seats is on the other end of the building.

The West Wing is where the classrooms are, as well as the laboratory Stella destroyed in her first year. Its tower contains the Magical Reality Testing Chamber. Professor Wizgiz' classroom is closest to the tower. It has large windows and an observation area above. Bloom watched her friend's graduation ceremony from the observation deck on this wing.

The Administration Building is at the top of the horseshoe, the most northern point of the castle. Faragonda's office is above the entrance, and faces over the Quad. On the ground level is the Dining Hall that doubles as the Ballroom. The Museum of Magic seen in the 4th season is beneath the Admin Building and accessible only through Faragonda's office.

Cloud Tower
Cloud Tower is a young girls' boarding school for witches in training, and for most of the first season, it was the residence for the Trix witches. At Cloud Tower, the witches learn about witchcraft. After raising the Army of Decay, the Trix took over Cloud Tower. Griffin is their headmistress. It is later revealed in Season 2 that she is friends with Faragonda, and in Season 3 that she, Saladin and Faragonda are the Company of Light.

Red Fountain
Red Fountain is a boys' boarding school for the next heroes, one magical forest away from Alfea. It teaches fighting and the use of technology. The Red Fountain boys are taught how to go on dangerous missions and to fight for their respective planets. Red Fountain and Alfea have a close relationship, and Miss Faragonda and Saladin have a long history that involves Bloom's past.

Details About the Show
On September 2, 2010, Nickelodeon announced it had acquired the rights to the animated series Winx Club for broadcast on the flagship American channel and several of its international channels. The channel plans to co-produce the fifth and sixth seasons of the series, and has also gained the rights to air the existing episodes of the TV series and two theatrical films. On June 27, the first of four one-hour specials, created to summarize the first two seasons, aired, with the second set to air on August 1. Season three will air in full when the specials finish, with season four sometime after. Both the specials and the full seasons will feature a new voice cast and a re-vamped animation style, a bit different from the original. In 2011, Nickelodeon aired four one-hour specials that summarize seasons one and two, as well as seasons three and four in full. The first special aired June 27, the second special on August 1, and the third special on September 18, and the fourth and final special aired on October 16. Beginning in November, Nickelodeon aired Season 3, when it aired from that point Season 3 aired every weekday. They also co-produced the fifth season and will co-produce the upcoming sixth season. In the United States, Rainbow has revoked the distribution rights for the entire series from 4Kids, and was seeking for a new partner. On September 2, 2010, Nickelodeon announced through a press release that they will be co-producing Seasons 5 and 6 of Winx Club. In early January 2011, it was announced that Keke Palmer will be playing the voice of Aisha (Layla). In late March 2011, Molly C. Quinn announced she will be voicing Bloom. Josh Keaton announced that he will voice Valtor in Season 3. Ariana Grande announced on May 22 via Twitter that she will be voicing Princess Diaspro, a minor villain, in the new dub. Romi Dames also announced that she will voice Musa. Elizabeth Gillies will play Daphne and Matt Shively will play Sky. The first special's broadcast revealed that Amy Gross is voicing Stella, Alejandra Reynoso is voicing Flora, and Morgan Decker is voicing Tecna. The US premiere of the fourth season of the series aired in March 2012 on Nickelodeon.

Nickelodeon released the first of four one-hour specials summarizing the first two seasons, featuring newly animated scenes, on June 27, covering the first half of the first season. The second aired on August 1 and was entitled, "Revenge of the Trix." The third aired on September 18th, and is entitled, "The Battle for Magix." The fourth and final special aired on October 16th, and is entitled "The Shadow Phoenix". This special marked the first appearances of Darkar, Aisha (Layla), the Pixies, and Helia. Beginning this November, Nickelodeon will air Season 3 in full every weekday from when it airs, it's possible they may air the Rai English dub. Beginning this November, Nickelodeon will air Season 3 in full every weekday starting November 14. In Italy the four specials were broadcast on Rai Due as well as rearing Season 3 & 4. The First Special premiered on Monday November 21 on Rai Due. The UK and Ireland premiere was on Saturday, September 24, 2011. Revenge of the Trix premiered on October 22nd at 4:30 pm. Battle for Magix premiered November 13th 2011.

In Canada, the premiere was aired on September 5, 2011. The second aired on October 10, 2011, called Revenge of the Trix. The third aired on November 13, 2011. The fourth special aired on December 4, 2011. The Revenge of the Trix premiered on Saturday (of an unknown date) at 10:00 am in Australia and New Zealand. The premiere aired in Latin America on Wednesday, October 26th, 2011 in Mexico and Colombia at 4:30pm and Venezuela at 5:00pm. It also aired on Nickelodeon Brazil on the same date at 4:30pm. Revenge of the Trix aired on November 7. The Battle for Magix aired on November 14.

In Russia, the Special Premiere was aired on Sunday, October 16th, 2011. The Second Special aired on November 6 at 12:50/11:50c. The Battle for Magix aired on November 27 at 12:50/11:50c. The last Special called the Shadow Phoenix premiered on December 18 at 12:50/11:50c.

In Poland, Hungary and Romania, the Special Premiere was aired on Sunday, October 16th, 2011. On Nickelodeon Asia, the Winx Club Special Premiere aired on Friday, November 11th, 2011.

In Portugal, Nickelodeon required the rights for Winx Club.

Broadcast history
In Italy, where the series was created, it has been broadcast on Rai Due since January 28, 2004. In America, it was licensed and dubbed into English by 4Kids Entertainment and was broadcast on 4Kids TV (formerly FoxBox) beginning on June 19, 2004, with a preview episode airing on May 22, 2004. 4Kids TV continued its initial run until September 22, 2007. On April 12, 2008, Winx Club was rerun on 4Kids TV and then on July 18, 2009, reruns of Winx Club then aired on the CW4kids until July 10, 2010. Cartoon Network aired Winx Club in 2005 on their afternoon block Miguzi. After 4Kids' license for the series was relinquished, Nickelodeon acquired the rights to the franchise and is producing a new English dub in Hollywood. Nickelodeon is currently airing the Winx Club as of June 27, 2011, beginning with four-one hour specials summarizing seasons one and two. Another English dub produced by Cinelume in association with Rai Due has been broadcast in Singapore, Season 4 in Australia, and is featured as an alternate English language track on several European DVD releases.

International release
Winx Club has been dubbed and released in many different countries around the world. Sometimes the title is slightly altered or translated for the dub. For example, in Poland it is known as Klub Winx, and in South Korea it is known as Winx Friends (윙스 프렌즈).

Publications
In America, there are two ongoing monthly comic books in publication. One is a Winx Club comic book, although its storyline is generally not related to that of the animated series. The other is Pixie, a spin-off of the Winx Club comic book centered around the pixies.

A CGI feature film, Winx Club: The Secret of the Lost Kingdom, was announced in late 2006, and released in America on 30 November 2007. It was released on 20 November 2008 in Singapore. The plot of the film revolves around Bloom's origins, and takes place after the events of the third season. The official website for the film covers several markets, with release dates and other information.

At the Licensing Expo 2008 in New York, Rainbow announced the production of a second film, slated to premiere in 2010. It was later announced in spring 2010 that it would be titled Winx Club 3D: Magical Adventure and it would be Americas first 3D movie, with a release date of October 29. A 10 minute promo reel will be shown at the Giffoni Film Festival in July.

Theatre
In September 2005, the "Winx Power" musical show began in America. After a successful tour in Italy, it also expanded to Belgium and the Netherlands, before expanding to Portugal in 2009. November 2008 also saw the launch of "Winx On Ice", an ice show starring Carolina Kostner.

Video games
Winx Club games have been released for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Wii, and Microsoft Windows. Most of the Winx Club games are published by Konami; Winx Club: Believix in You was published by Namco Bandai Games. The only game by iOS in this game series was Winx Club: Love & Pet, published by Rainbow Interactive

There are currently sixteen games based on Winx Club:
 * Winx Club (Windows, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance)
 * Winx Club: Join the Club (PlayStation Portable)
 * Winx Club: Quest for the Codex (Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance)
 * Winx Studio (Windows)
 * Winx Club: Mission Enchantix (Nintendo DS)
 * Winx Club: Secret Diary 2009(Nintendo DS)
 * Dance Dance Revolution Winx Club (Wii)
 * Winx Club: Your Magical Universe (Nintendo DS)
 * Winx Club: Believix in You (Nintendo DS)
 * Winx Club: Love & Pet (iOS)
 * Winx Club: RockStars (Nintendo DS)
 * Winx Club: Magical Fairy Party (Nintendo 3DS)
 * Winx Club Card Game (iOS)
 * Winx Club Party (iOS)
 * Winx Club: Puzzle Pets (iOS)
 * Winx Club: Memory Game (iOS)
 * Winx Club: Bubble Winx (iOS)
 * Winx Card Jigsaw (iOS)

Merchandise
In Europe, Italian candy manufacturer Ferrero began to distribute plastic Winx figurines as prizes inside their Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs.

In the United States, 4Kids Entertainment held the licensing rights to the series until they lost their license.

In Singapore, bags, clothing and similar items are available.

The Winx Club dolls are the "third most popular dolls in the world" and merchandise sales are over 1 billion euros per year as of 2007.

DVD collection
In Italy, Mondo Home Entertainment released the first two seasons with both Italian and English audio tracks, the English audio being Cinélume's dub. In 2007, 01 Distribution released the third season on DVD, but these discs contained the Italian audio only. Later, 01 Distribution re-released the first and second season on DVD without the English soundtrack. Tridimensional also released the first three seasons of the show on Italian newsstands along with the Winx Club magazine. These releases contained the original English, Italian, and French audio. The third season release contained Dutch audio as well, and the fourth season contained only Italian audio. Box sets of all four seasons were released by Tridimensional with the same amount of volumes and content that were released separately on newsstands.

In North America, the entire first season of the Winx Club, first released on 12 July 2005, was available as a five-disc collection until 2008. The first DVD of the second season, "Layla and the Pixies", was released in 2007, and the second volume, "Battle for the Codex", came out in September 2007, and both are still available. The first DVD of the third season, "The Princess Ball", was released on 27 January 2009,[citation needed]however, the release of the other half, Fire & Flame, has been indefinitely suspended due to the US licensing situation (see Future above).

In Singapore, Turkey, and Hungary, the third season (as well as the first two) was released with unedited English audio (Cinélume's dub) in four and six volumes respectively; the latter containing Italian audio as well. Also, the fourth season is available in Turkey with English audio spanning six volumes. In Brazil, the first two seasons were released with unedited English subtitles and audio in sixteen volumes

Trivia

 * According to Iginio Straffi some aspects of Winx Club were inspired by Sailor Moon, including the transformations and Stella's appearance and personality being similar to Tsukino Usagi (Sailor Moon).

Links

 * Official English Winx Club Site
 * Official Italian Winx Club Site
 * Official YouTube Channel