Influence and legacy Since its debut in 2007,
Upin & Ipin has wielded its influence in countries of the Malay archipelago, notably in Malaysia and Indonesia which share linguistic and cultural similarities. Its first season landed its first award, for Best Animation at the 2007
Kuala Lumpur International Film Festival (KLIFF). The twin brothers subsequently appointed as the nutrition ambassador of
Wyeth Nutrition's nutritional formula products, Progress and Promise, in June 2010. In December 2010, the
Upin & Ipin franchise had garnered income about RM12 million in 2009 and 2010, mostly the sales of the franchise's series to the international broadcasters. In 2011,
Upin & Ipin was recognized as the "Most Successful Animation" by the
Malaysia Book of Records due to its widespread popularity across the ASEAN region. UNICEF representative to Malaysia,
Wivina Belmonte said the appointment was made with the aim that the twins "would help to champion the rights and well-being of children, as well as instilling respect towards girls and women". The
Ultra Series crossover special was received positively during its release in 2014. As a response, the crossover character in the special, was officially recognized as a canon character by
Tsuburaya Productions, later making its live-action debut in the web series
Ultra Galaxy Fight in 2019. The twin brothers was appointed as the ambassador of the inaugural Japan Halal Expo 2014 by the Halal Media Japan. The expo took place at the Makuhari Messe,
Tokyo from 26 to 27 November 2014. A 3D mural of the series' characters including Upin and Ipin was displayed at the outside of Les' Copaque Production's headquarters in Shah Alam in early March 2016.
Upin & Ipin was appointed as the Malaysian Tourism Ambassador by the
Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) in August 2017. The appointment makes the twin brothers as the 12th tourism ambassador, joining other Malaysian celebrities including fashion designer
Jimmy Choo, singer
Yuna and celebrity chef, Ismail Ahmad. During the gala screening of
Upin & Ipin: The Lone Gibbon Kris at the GSC Mid Valley, Kuala Lumpur on 5 March 2019, the then-Education Minister,
Maszlee Malik described that
Upin & Ipin has made as an ambassadors of love for "their display of love and harmony among Malaysians". He said: "Upin and Ipin portrays a plural society that respect one another, and this is what we want to bring in our society. This animation also plays a role in promoting harmony, the plural society and love that exist among the people in the country". In March 2022,
Upin & Ipin was appointed as the ambassador of the
Children's National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme (PICKids) by the then-Health Minister,
Khairy Jamaluddin. At the same time, Les' Copaque's latest short video featuring the twins along with an animated version of Khairy at the Vaccination Centre (PPV) in their village, Kampung Durian Runtuh, has been released. In the short video, Upin and Ipin are seen arriving at the PPV to receive their vaccinations, accompanied by their grandmother Opah and their sister Ros.
Upin & Ipin along with
BoBoiBoy and
Ejen Ali (both created by former
Upin & Ipin animators) joined the National Day Parade during the
Malaysia National Day on 31 August 2024. Also joining the parade was a replica of Rumah Opah, where the twin brothers grew up and lived, which was carried in a decorated car.
Critical reception Upin & Ipin has received positive critical reception. In a retrospective review on the show, Review Stream commented that "nothing can match the
Upin & Ipin series in terms of relevance, practicality and the value it provides". Meor Shariman, writing for the
New Straits Times, described the twin brothers in the series as the "super twins". Reporters for
Harian Metro acknowledged that the series "has its own attraction" and "more than just entertainment, but is also recognized as rich in good moral values to emulate". John Peter Tan of
The Rakyat Post wrote that
Upin & Ipin become an "inspiration and entertainment for the public" and "has a huge followers". Subkhir Cheema of
Mashable credited
Upin & Ipin as "a game changer for the Malaysian animation industry".
Facebook announced in Memology study results that the
Upin & Ipin page was the most popular fictional character page on Facebook worldwide throughout 2011. It became the only local Facebook page with the most visits and shares over the past year, ranking fifth in the world, beating
Doraemon and
SpongeBob SquarePants. In 2012,
Upin & Ipin was the most searched keyword by Malaysian
Google users in the TV Show category according to Google Zeitgeist. As of 2013, the series' official Facebook page has reached 7 million fans.
Upin & Ipin's TikTok account has reached 7 million followers, which is the highest social media followers in Malaysia, as of March 2021.
Viewership Upin & Ipin has received consistently high viewership on TV9 in Malaysia, becoming the most watched children's program across all channels on broadcast television in 2007 and 2008. While season two was on air on Ramadan 2008, it was reportedly watched by 1.5 million viewers on TV9, making it the second most-watched animated series on all of Malaysian television, right behind
Doraemon (1.6 mil), yet ahead of
SpongeBob SquarePants (800,000). The popularity of
Upin & Ipin could have attributed to the commercial success of Malaysia's first CGI-animated feature film,
Geng: The Adventure Begins (2009), which featured the twin characters Upin and Ipin, propelling it into the
RM 6.31 million mark throughout its seven-week run in Malaysian cinemas as one of the highest-grossing Malay-language films in history. while season 18 episode, "Minyak Sawit" garnered 3.1 million views upon its premiere on 20 July 2024.
Controversies Throughout its run,
Upin & Ipin also drews many criticisms and controversies. In December 2019, many of few netizens had demanded Les' Copaque to improve the morals depicted in the series which allegedly drews controversy among fans. They were asked to "stop allowing their characters to use foul language as it is feared that it could have a bad influence on children" and "increase content with noble values or simply cancel their show if they fail to do so" as well as asking for the character of Sally to be removed immediately. In 2020, Fizi, one of the series' characters, has drawn criticism from Indonesian viewers when he making fun of Upin and Ipin in the episode "Syahdunya Syawal" where he responded by saying "Takdelah Syurga!" ("There is no Heaven!") when relating to the phrase 'Heaven under the mother's feet'. Les' Copaque's Creative Content Director, Nur Naquyah Burhanuddin, said that was among their requests after the scene broke the hearts of many viewers. Few days later, Fizi apologized through a video uploaded on their YouTube channel. In the four-minute video, Fizi admitted that he regretted the outburst he had said to Upin and Ipin. Criticism of
Upin & Ipin continues as some parents are concerned about their sexy appearance in the music video "Goyang Upin & Ipin" which is inspired by Indonesian
Dangdut. Although comments have been removed on YouTube, the criticism continues on Twitter.
Popularity in Indonesia Indonesia has been the most obvious export market for
Upin & Ipin.
Upin & Ipin has also been praised by the Indonesian press; for instance, Fadil Abidin for
Analisa who remarked on the vastness of moral content and Islamic values, such as respect for those of different ethnic or religious backgrounds, in a communal setting consisting not only of Malays, Chinese and Indian Malaysians, but also Indonesians. In March 2010, as the
Balinese Hindu community prepare for
Nyepi, images of
ogoh-ogoh (demonic
effigies used for the famed
ngrupuk ritual on the eve of Nyepi) which largely resemble
Upin & Ipin were exposed on Indonesian media. The effigy reportedly cost 4 million
rupiah. The series was called as a "Malaysian propaganda to the entire world" by Agung Suprio, the
Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) Chairman in an interview with
Deddy Corbuzier's podcast on 11 September 2021. In January 2022, rumors emerged that Upin and Ipin were based on a true story in a village in Indonesia after a TikTok video went viral on social media. Les' Copaque, via its statement on Twitter, explained that the claim was completely untrue as all the stories depicted in the series are purely fictional and are not taken or inspired by the stories of any person either living or dead. The
Harian Waspada Medan editor, Muhammad Faisal Jayadi said the use of simple and easy-to-understand language was one of the main factors that
Upin & Ipin had succeeded in gaining a place among Indonesians regardless of age. He also described the series as "rich in positive messages besides its cute characters".
Upin & Ipin's popularity in Indonesia was slightly affected when on August 19, 2023, Indonesian media reported that the
Governor of Bali,
Wayan Koster, urged students on the resort island not to watch
Upin & Ipin and prioritize local films and cartoons. Wayan also emphasized that it is important to preserve the
Balinese culture despite technological advances and modernization. Les' Copaque's Managing Director, Burhanuddin released a statement in response, stating that
Upin & Ipin continues to be well received by fans in the republic, while admitting that Wayan's remarks did not affect the series' popularity in Indonesia. Indonesian singer,
Lyodra Ginting reveals that
Upin & Ipin is a must-seen TV show during her childhood and also revealed that it also helps her improve her skills in Bahasa Malaysia proficiency.
Awards and nominations ==Other media==