Wednesday, 27 August 2014

The Smoggies

Here we have another of the environmentally friendly cartoons that were prevalent in the early 90's. This time we have The Smoggies!



The show took place on or around the fictional Coral Island, and revolved around a group of island-dwelling people called Suntots and a trio of polluting treasure hunters called the Smoggies. The Suntots spent much of their time defending their island paradise from the Smoggies, who polluted everything around them and lived on a coal fired steam ship, the SS Stinky Poo, which polluted the water and air around the island. The Smoggies constantly tried to destroy the Suntots' home for their own benefit.
Almost every episode had the environmentalist Suntots outsmarting the Smoggies latest scheme, after which the Smoggies invariably hatched another scheme. Thus, the show also explains the importance of protecting the environment.
A recurring theme was their attempt to steal the island's "magic coral" (which the Smoggies believed granted eternal youth), or find some alternative way to maintain youth. The show often implied that the magic coral did not actually exist, however, and were just manifestations of the Smoggies' (mainly Emma's) greed and vanity.

Tuesday, 26 August 2014

Alias the Jester

Time for another classic Cosgrove Hall cartoon for you, this time we have Alias the Jester!



The show follows the adventures of a time traveller by the name of Alias and his dog-like companion Boswell. After their malfunctioning ship gets stuck in the Earth's magnetic pole, they crash-land in a Middle Age kingdom called Houghton Bottoms, ruled by the diminutive King Arthur and his Queen Edith. Taking up a secret identity of sorts as Alias the Jester, he gains employment at the court and befriends the bumbling court wizard Meredith. When the situation calls for it, Alias instantly changes back into his red uniform, which enables him to fly, and presumably a degree of super strength, which he can use to face the various villains of the show. Each episode inevitably ends with Arthur firing Alias and Meredith

Monday, 25 August 2014

Teen Wolf

Loosely based upon the movie of the same name comes the adventures of Scott Howard, better known as Teen Wolf!




The series is about a teenage boy and his family who can transform into werewolves, focusing on themes of coming of age and fitting in. While generally keeping true to the main ideas, this version made some changes from the film.
Scott Howard and his family live in the fictional town of Wolverton, a small town that draws tourists because of its history of werewolf sightings. Unlike the film, Scott's status as a werewolf is a secret.
Despite the youth audience, the cartoon series delivered very powerful critiques of disability-as-civil rights. Freely invoking an asthma attack or seizure, the series centered on how Scott felt "weird" immediately before and during his werewolf transformation.
Although he never hurt anybody while he was a werewolf, Scott was conscious of his difference from other teenagers and had to make accommodations for himself. He also expressed frustration that the residents of this town had stereotyped "his people". A jock named Mick constantly picks on Scott for being the "outsider" at Wolverton High.


Sunday, 24 August 2014

Mrs Pepperpot

Time to view things from a pint-sized perspective now in the tiny world of Mrs Pepperpot!



Mrs. Pepper Pot lives in a small little village with her husband. She wears a small magical teaspoon around her neck which every now and then shrinks her to the size of her teaspoon which does not shrink as well, and she must drag it along with her on her back when she gets shrunk. She always changes back to her original size after a certain amount of time. This special condition had its advantages—she can communicate with animals and enjoy wonderful adventures in the woods. This way she wins new and interesting friends on a regular basis. She is a good friend of Lily, a mysterious little girl who lives in the forest alone, she is also friends with a mouse family. She can not reveal her secret or show herself in the shrunk condition, which sometimes gets quite difficult. Her husband, Mr. Pepperpot, eventually finds out his wife's secret, later on in the series.

The Ghosts of Motley Hall

A haunting tale now by request from a BCC fan! It's The Ghosts of Motley Hall!




The Ghosts of Motley Hall is a British children's television series written by Richard Carpenter. It was produced and directed by Quentin Lawrence for Granada Television, and broadcast between 1976 and 1978 on the ITV network. The series relates the adventures of five ghosts who haunt Motley Hall. Each is from a different era, and all except Matt are unable to leave the confines of the building and Matt himself is unable to travel outside the grounds of the Hall. The only regular character who is not a ghost is Mr Gudgin the caretaker of Motley Hall.