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The Powerpuff Girls

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The Powerpuff Girls
File:Powerpuffg.gif
The Powerpuff Girls logo
GenreAnimated television series
Created byCraig McCracken
Voices ofCathy Cavadini

Tara Strong
E.G. Daily
Tom Kane
Tom Kenny
Roger L. Jackson
Jennifer Hale
Jennifer Martin
Jim Cummings
Jeff Bennett

Kath Soucie
Narrated byTom Kenny
Theme music composerJames L. Venable
Country of origin United States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons6
No. of episodes79 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time30 minutes (usually 15 minutes per episode)
Original release
NetworkCartoon Network
ReleaseNovember 18, 1998 –
March 25, 2005
Related
Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z

The Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series about three little girls in kindergarten who have superpowers. Created by animator Craig McCracken, the program was produced by Hanna-Barbera until 2001 when Cartoon Network Studios took over production for Cartoon Network. The series is a spoof on American superheroes as well as Japanese Tokusatsu heroes like Super Sentai. As is typical in McCracken's work, the show also makes heavy use of references to 1960s pop culture, particularly the band The Beatles.

The animation director is Genndy Tartakovsky, of Dexter's Laboratory and Samurai Jack fame, who has also directed many of the show's episodes himself.

Overview

The Powerpuff Girls is a fast-paced action comedy. The show revolves around the adventures of Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup, three little girls with super powers. The plot of a typical episode is some humorous variation of standard superhero and/or tokusatsu fare, with the girls using their powers to defend their town from various villains, such as bank robbers, mad scientists, aliens or giant monsters, and often dealing with normal issues young children face, such as bed wetting or dependence on a security blanket. The show is one in a long line of cartoons that derives a great deal of humor from pop culture parody and satire.

The show has a highly stylized, minimalistic visual look, reminiscent of 1950s and 1960s pop art. Movie critic Bob Longino of the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution praised the style in his review of The Powerpuff Girls Movie by saying that "the intricate drawings emanate 1950s futuristic pizazz like a David Hockney scenescape", and that The Powerpuff Girls is "one of the few American creations that is both gleeful pop culture and exquisite high art".[1]

History

Craig McCracken, a student of California Institute of the Arts, created The Whoopass Girls in 1992 in his short film The Whoopass Girls in A Sticky Situation. Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation selected the short in 1994; McCracken submitted it to Cartoon Network while working on Dexter's Laboratory.[2] As the word "whoopass" was deemed inappropriate for younger audiences, the word was replaced by "powerpuff", which may be a pun on "powderpuff", as indicated in episode number one,"Powerpuff Bluff", where one of the bad guys pronounce "powerpuff" as "powderpuff". Their first appearance on Cartoon Network was the short "The Powerpuff Girls in: Meat Fuzzy Lumkins" as part of World Premiere Toons.

The Powerpuff Girls TV debut in 1998 was the highest rated premiere in Cartoon Network history.[3] For several seasons, the series consistently scored the highest rating each week for the network across a wide range of demographics -- from young children to adults.[3] In October 2000, Cartoon Network credited the Powerpuff Girls for its Friday night prime time ratings win among cable networks.[4]

Opening and ending themes and sequences

James L. Venable composed the opening theme of the series and Tom Kenny, who also narrated throughout the whole series, narrated the introduction. The narration reveals that Professor Utonium created the girls out of sugar, spice, and everything nice, which are the reference to the nursery rhyme "What are Little Boys Made of?", plus the accidental addition of Chemical X. The opening of the series pays homage to the animated beginning of 1960s live-action television series, Batman, as both shows feature a pan across a gallery of villains, with the animated heroes running toward the viewer while striking the villains, who are tossed away in slow motion.

Scottish band Bis performed the ending theme song of the series, as played during the credits. The closing logo seen at the end of the series through 2002 is an update of the 1986 CGI variation of Hanna-Barbera's Swirling Star logo, which originally was used by the company in 1979, except that the company name referenced here is of Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, and has appeared with the "A Time Warner Company" byline. When Cartoon Network Studios took over Hanna-Barbera's missions for Cartoon Network, Cartoon Network Studios' closing logo, with the scene which the girls defeating Mojo Jojo, replaced Hanna-Barbera's.

Characters

The Powerpuff Girls

Main article: The Powerpuff Girls (characters)

Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup, who are collectively known as the Powerpuff Girls live in the fictional city of Townsville (not to be confused with Townsville in Queensland, Australia). The girls are drawn with physical traits that make them exaggeratedly cute (possibly meant to be kawaii.) They have large eyes, and, although they are able to hear, smell, and hold, their bodies are drawn without noses, ears, fingers, or toes. Whether they actually have these features is not clear and may be a running gag; for example in the episodes "Criss Cross Crisis", when the girls switch bodies with other people in Townsville, Buttercup, who had swapped bodies with the Professor, complained that his hand did not work.

The girls have many superpowers like those possessed by Superman, including super-strength, flight, super-speed, X-ray vision, the ability to project a variety of kinetic blasts, limited invulnerability and the ability to survive in outer space.

Citizens of Townsville

File:Profesor Utonium.JPG
Professor Utonium
  • Professor Utonium (voiced by Tom Kane): The scientist who creates the Powerpuff Girls. The Professor is very "square" and old-fashioned, and he is unlucky in love (which perhaps explains why he created the girls through science). His first name is never mentioned; he introduces himself as "Professor. Professor Utonium." He is fiercely protective of the girls, sometimes to a fault. He is a very affectionate and supportive father whose pep talks often bring the girls around when they are discouraged. His most successful inventions are those that he makes by accident --- such as the Powerpuff Girls themselves, or the containment device seen in "Bubble Boy" (he says of it, "once again, I have no idea what I did!")
File:Sra Keane.JPG
Ms. Keane
  • Ms. Keane (voiced by Kath Soucie in the "What-A-Cartoon" episodes and by Jennifer Hale in the series): The Kindergarten Teacher of Pokey Oaks. She looks very much as she does today—orange shirt, red vest, brown pants, short black hair, light blue eyes, but taller. Her first name has never been mentioned. She is patient, understanding and very protective of her students, making her a well-liked, motherly figure. Her name is a tribute to Margaret Keane, an artist whose paintings feature children with huge eyes. She may also represent a nod to cartoonist Bil Keane, creator of The Family Circus, as she closely resembles that cartoon's character Mommy (Thel), with dark hair and flip hairdo. She also seems to have a fair command of general relativity, able to produce complex equations quickly, as seen in "Speed Demon." In several episodes, her innate motherly instincts come into play when she is teaching her surrogate children in class, particularly when weaker kids (like Elmer Sklue in "Paste Makes Waste") get picked on and bullied by the other children. She even fell in love with the Professor and went on a date with him in "Keen On Keane", however the romance failed after she failed to believe the Professor's story about a cat who controlled his actions (the events of the episode "Cat Man Do").
File:MayorTownsville.JPG
The Mayor
  • Mayor of Townsville (voiced by Tom Kenny): The empty-headed mayor of Townsville who is referred throughout only as "Mayor" (even campaigning with the slogan "vote Mayor for Mayor"), although he is referred to as "Barney" by his wife in the episode "Boogie Frights". He is short and old with a fringe of white hair around a bald scalp and a thick mustache. He wears a monocle and a small top hat that floats just above his head. He is very fond of pickles, and his little hat. He is almost infantile in his stupidity, and without the Powerpuff Girls, Townsville would have been destroyed long ago. The Mayor is married (to a woman who looks very much like him), although apparently their marriage is a rather lame one and he rarely mentions her. In the episode "Powerpuff Bluff", he is willing to trade his wife in exchange for a "priceless, very rare, one-of-a-kind" porcelain poodle. In the episode, "Pee Pee G's," he shows Bubbles that he wears a diaper underneath his pants. He also had a crush on Ms. Bellum when she was replaced by Sedusa. "Meat Fuzzy Lumpkins" featured a different Mayor, who had a voice like that of Paul Lynde. He was younger and taller, and seemed much smarter than the Mayor.
File:Sra. Sara Bellum.JPG
Ms. Bellum
  • Ms. Sara Bellum (voiced by Jennifer Martin): Mayor's very competent assistant, a statuesque redhead. She handles things the Mayor cannot, which is practically everything. Her face is never revealed onscreen. Whenever she appears, an object will either block her face or the camera will "cut off" everything above her neck. Whenever she is the center of attention (as when Blossom took over her body or when she fought Sedusa) her hair often covers her face. Other onscreen characters often claim that she is very beautiful, with the exception of the abrasive Talking Dog. In the bleak future of the episode "Speed Demon," she expresses an obsessive attachment to the Mayor, suggesting that she may be in love with him. She is named after the cerebellum, probably in reference to her job as the "brains" of the mayor's operation. Like the Powerpuff Girls themselves, Ms. Bellum's name begins with a 'B' and contains a double consonant.
  • Narrator (voiced by Tom Kenny): The series' enthusiastic but unseen narrator, known for opening nearly every episode with "The city of Townsville!" and ending them with "So once again, the day is saved, thanks to . . . The Powerpuff Girls!" (except in a few episodes where someone else or another form of the girls gets credit). He will often comment on the proceedings of the episode, and frequently breaks the fourth wall. He is never seen at any point in the series, though he is a person and not just a disembodied voice. He also seems to be the only connection between the audience and the girls, as he can "talk" to both and even be involved, such as Mojo transforming him into a dog. His name is also apparently "Narrator". In the episode "Simian Says", he is kidnapped by Mojo, who promptly takes his place as the episode begins, granting Mojo the power to narrate the story as he sees fits; the girls have no choice but to go along with the narrative until they accidentally blast Mojo, suggesting that the Narrator has absolute power over the story, though he never seems to exercise it himself.
File:Talkingdogpolice.JPG
Talking Dog in police uniform
  • The Talking Dog (voiced by Tom Kane): A small white dog with black ears and nose and a black spot on his back, wearing a red collar with yellow dogtag. He mostly appears as a background character, but always has something to say. In the episode "Shut the Pup Up", he was taken in by the Girls when he became the sole witness to a mystery crime. When he stays with the girls he is shown to be blunt, abrasive and insulting, though his demeanor remains straightforward and earnest. In "Mo Linguish," he was the only one in the city whose English was good enough to reverse Mojo Jojo's language lessons.
  • Mitchel "Mitch" Mitchelson (voiced by Tom Kenny): The bully at Pokey Oaks Kindergarten. Mitch has brown hair, and wears a black T-shirt with the words “MITCH ROCKS” on the front. Usually talks in a gruff voice; he torments the kids in the class in a few episodes, though he is not a major threat. His laugh is almost the same as Popeye. He is Buttercup's best friend.[episode needed]

Villains

File:Mojo jojo.jpg
Mojo Jojo
  • Mojo Jojo (voiced by Roger L. Jackson): A mad scientist chimp with great intelligence, notable for his cod-Japanese accent and his overly convoluted manner of speaking. He has been known to go completely berserk and rage like a ravenous chimp. However, Mojo also has shown that he has an affinity for gourmet cooking, and is fond of hibachi. As revealed in the episode "Mr. Mojo's Rising", and again in "The Powerpuff Girls Movie", Mojo Jojo was Professor Utonium's lab assistant, Jojo, before Professor Utonium created the Powerpuff Girls, and it was he who caused the Professor to accidentally add Chemical X to the mixture (thus making him responsible for their creation). He is the Powerpuff Girls' most frequent villain. Mojo Jojo seems to look similar to Piccolo from Dragon Ball Z, and has a similar attitude. It looks like he has superpowers, however, he can only use them when he is gone Berserk as seen in the episode "Forced Kin".
File:Fuzzy-mad.jpg
Fuzzy Lumpkins
  • Fuzzy Lumpkins (voiced by Jim Cummings): A large, husky, furry pink hillbilly monster with a green nose and two antennae on his head wearing bib overalls who loves his hunting gun (or "boomstick") and his banjo (nicknamed "Joe"), and who will shoot anything he finds trespassing "on his property". He lives in the woods next to the city of Townsville. He is well-known for his insane anger and immense physical strength. It is unknown what species Fuzzy actually is, though in the episode "Shotgun Wedding" the Professor speculates that he is the missing link between humans and apes. The same episode shows a tribe of "Fuzzies" who look much like him. In the first season episode "Impeach Fuzz," Fuzzy's three cousins are seen, the same age as the Powerpuff Girls, named Furry, Fluffy, and Hairy. In "Meat Fuzzy Lumpkins", he has a ray gun that turns things into meat. Bubbles goes berserk after he turns one of her pigtails into a drumstick and soundly pummels him, finally using his ray gun to turn him into a hamburger patty (which is then cooked by the mayor, himself now a steak).
File:Elppgp.jpg
Him
  • Him (voiced by Tom Kane): A mysterious, super powerful, red-skinned, effeminate, and immortal devil creature with crab-like hands, lobster-like skin, pointed ears, a hooked nose and a long, curled beard, wearing makeup, a woman’s red jacket and skirt with pink tulle at the collar and hemline, and black, thigh-high, spike-heeled boots. It's implied that he may be Satan, but he is so evil that his real name "can never be said". He is the ultimate embodiment of pure evil, and talks in a chilling voice that echoes at all times, alternating between high-pitched and almost gentle when amused or thoughtful to growling and raging when angry. He often disguises himself or creates psychological events or catastrophes which he uses as an attempt to cause the Powerpuff Girls to break mentally. When forced to fight, he is a force to be reckoned with, as he heralds doom in every direction (as seen in the episode "Speed Demon"). He has shown numerous satanic forms, most of which are revealed in hell or apocalyptic situations or realms. He is undoubtedly the most powerful villain of all, as other villains envy him and even Mojo Jojo, the most persistent of the villains, feels uneasy around him. The Powerpuff Girls themselves are often unsure how to fight him as well. It was Him who, in an alternate future without the Powerpuff Girls, controlled Townsville (again, in the episode "Speed Demon"). The scene in the episode "Tough Love" that depicts Him hovering above Townsville sowing the seeds of hatred in the minds of the citizens is probably a parody or a tribute to the scene in FW Murnau's 1926 adaptation of Faust which depicts Mephistopheles hovering above the sleeping town sowing the seeds of plague. His voice and mannerisms were inspired by the Chief of the Blue Meanies in Yellow Submarine. His physical appearance is an amalgamation of sorts, borrowing a mix of concepts and imagery in regards to Satan with cross-dresser attire.
File:Gangreengang.JPG
The Gangreen Gang
  • The Gangreen Gang: A gang of hoodlums that are green-skinned and unhealthy looking (as if suffering from gangrene). They have the personality of juvenile delinquents and have been known to form a good stratagem or two. They somewhat resemble the band Gorillaz:
    • Ace (voiced by Jeff Bennett): The Gang's leader, Ace is a mean-spirited, bullying, opportunistic rogue. Being the Gang's smartest member, he is the instigator of most of their antisocial activities, and he does possess a certain charismatic charm that allows him to sweet-talk people who ought to know better, including Buttercup in the episode "Buttercrush".
    • Snake (voiced by Tom Kenny): As his name suggests, Snake is a slippery character, with a forked tongue and hissing voice. He seems to be the Gang's second-in-command, but mostly this simply means that Snake acts as a sniveling yes-man to Ace, who will usually punch Snake in the face if he speaks out of turn.
    • Grubber (voiced by Jeff Bennett): Grubber is the Gang's most physically grotesque member, with untidy hair, grubby clothes and protruding eyes. He also appears to be mostly mute, communicating instead through blowing a raspberry. He does, however, occasionally demonstrate unexpected talents, such as playing the violin, speaking eloquently or performing impersonations (at first, they were so obvious it was a wonder how he fooled anyone, but later he was able to do them perfectly).
    • Big Billy (voiced by Jeff Bennett): A hulking colossus who acts as the Gang's muscle. His intelligence level is extremely low, which makes him a useful lackey at some points and less so at others. Though he does at times display a childlike innocence, he mostly just does the bidding of his more savvy and vindictive friends. In the episode "School House Rocked", he is revealed to be a Cyclops (perhaps this explains his huge strength). His name is a takeoff on Big Bill, a nickname applied to American President William Howard Taft.
    • Li'l Arturo (voiced by Tom Kenny and by Carlos Alazraqui in two episodes[episode needed]): A malevolent, midget with a Hispanic accent, Li'l Arturo seems to take the most amusement from the Gang's activities. His diminutive stature is both an advantage and disadvantage, as he can fit into small spaces, but is often thrown, by friends and foes alike.
File:La Banda Ameba.JPG
The Amoeba Boys
  • The Amoeba Boys (voiced by Chuck McCann): A gang of amoebae who were the villains featured in McCrackens original short, Whoopass Stew. They reappered in the World Premiere Toons "Crime 101". With their gangster-ish affectations, are aspiring criminals who would love nothing more than to be regarded as serious villains, but whose brains are too primitive to devise a crime above the level of littering or jaywalking (in contrast to the original short, where they are seen having successfully robbed a bank); indeed, they considered stealing a discarded orange to be their greatest crime ever (in the episode "Divide and Conquer"). They are generally harmless, but their actions have on several occasions endangered both the girls and the town purely by accident.

    The Amoeba Boys are:
    • Bossman, leader of The Amoeba Boys. He wears a gray fedora and sounds very much like Edward G. Robinson.
    • Tiny, the little one. He wears a black cap.
    • Slim, the tall one. He wears a brown fedora.
File:RRB newlook.jpg
The Rowdyruff Boys.
  • The Rowdyruff Boys: Evil male counterparts of the Powerpuff Girls created by Mojo Jojo from snips, snails and a puppy dog tail (based on the Nursery rhyme entitled "What are Little Boys Made of?") in a prison toilet. They have bully-like personalities and are very violent. Although the girls destroyed them in their first appearance (the episode "Rowdyruff Boys"), the boys were later resurrected by Him in the episode "The Boys Are Back in Town". Each boy can be seen as an evil variation on their female counterpart;
    • Brick, Blossom's equivalent, is the abrasive, bullying leader.
    • Boomer, Bubbles's equivalent, is a loudmouthed dimwit.
    • Butch, Buttercup's equivalent, is a hyper-aggressive borderline psychotic.
File:Miss Sedusa.JPG
Sedusa
  • Sedusa (voiced by Jennifer Hale): A mistress of disguise who uses her feminine wiles to influence people to do her bidding. When her identity is revealed, she often fights with her whip-like hair which she can control. In one episode, she had the ability to whip off globs of uber-sticky hair gel adhering people to walls. Her name is a combination of seduce, which she does quite often, and Medusa. Her appearance was based on The Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz, especially the original version played by Gale Sondergaard.
File:Princess-tada!.jpg
Princess Morbucks
  • Princess Morbucks (voiced by Jennifer Hale): Princess is a spoiled, insecure little rich girl, whose unseen "daddy" allows her to finance various evil plots to destroy the Powerpuff Girls. Her hatred of the girls stems from her rebuffed attempt to become one of them. Her name is a play on words of Daddy Warbucks from Annie.
See also: Minor characters of the Powerpuff Girls
  • The girls frequently combat a wide assortment of giant monsters, all of which seem to visit Earth solely for the purpose of demolishing Townsville. In the episode "Super Zeroes", a giant monster explains to the girls that going to Townsville and encountering the Powerpuff Girls is a symbol of honor on Monster Isle, whose very name is a reference to Monster Island in the Godzilla series. Ironically, in the episode "Three Girls and a Monster" they fought a giant monster that had powers and body structure very similar to Godzilla. This monster was invulnerable to any attack they could muster, and became the only monster the girls bested with diplomacy (Bubbles nicely asked the monster to leave — and he complied).

Episodes

Main article: List of The Powerpuff Girls episodes
  • 79 episodes (one of which was never shown in the U.S.A.) spanning six seasons and one self-titled movie have been made. No more episodes have been planned at the moment.
  • There is an hour-long Christmas episode, "Powerpuff Girls: Twas the Fight Before Christmas". In this episode, Princess Morbucks gets her wish to become a Powerpuff Girl, but she eventually loses her powers when Santa discovers her crime of switching lists and, as her punishment, he puts her name on the Permanent Naughty List, and takes her powers away, so that Princess will never return to terrorize Townsville with the other villains.

DVD releases

Episode highlights

# Title Listed episodes DVD Release
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4 Cover Art
Down N' Dirty November 7, 2000 February 11, 2003
The Mane Event April 3, 2001 February 11, 2003
Meet the Beat Alls December 4, 2001 (Reissue)
Powerpuff Bluff November 7, 2000 September 7, 2001

Television specials

# Title Listed episodes DVD Release
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4 Cover Art
'Twas The Fight Before Christmas "'Twas The Fight Before Christmas" October 07, 2003

Seasonal release

The entire first season of the show was released in America on a 2-disc set on June 19, 2007.[5] Bonus features include the original pilot pitch, episode commentaries, and never before seen footage. Was released in Australia April 16, 2007.[6]

# Title Listed episodes DVD Release
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4 Cover Art
The Powerpuff Girls: Complete Season 1 Entire first season episodes June 19, 2007 April 16, 2007

Awards

The show has been nominated for an Emmy five times in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004 & 2005 for "Outstanding Achievement in Animation". In 1999 the show actually won the Emmy. In 2000 & 2005 the show also won Emmys, but both in juried for non-nominated selections.[7]

The show has also been nominated for an Annie award nine times, winning it twice.[7]

Cultural references

Like many animated television series that strive to be entertaining to older audiences as well as children, The Powerpuff Girls is filled with pop culture references and parodies. Some of these include:

  • In the episode "Los Dos Mojos", in which Bubbles gets knocked on the head and thinks she's Mojo Jojo, the real Mojo defeats Bubbles at the end of the episode and then boldly proclaims, "There can only be one Mojo Jojo in this world. One shall be the number of Mojo Jojos in this world, and the number of Mojo Jojos shall be one. Two is too many, and three is right out!" This is an obvious reference to the "Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch" scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail in which it is stated that "First shalt thou take out the Holy Pin, then shalt thou count to three, no more, no less. Three shall be the number thou shalt count, and the number of the counting shall be three. Four shalt thou not count, neither count thou two, excepting that thou then proceed to three. Five is right out."
  • The episode "Cat Man Do" includes a white cat on the knees of a well-dressed criminal who supervises operations and pets the feline. That is a reference to Ernst Stavro Blofeld's famous pose in the James Bond movies, although in this case it's the cat that makes the orders. The title of the episode puns on Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal.
  • In "Imaginary Fiend," when Blossom falls into a pile of clothes, she comes out dressed in a large red jacket, a round blue cap and yellow gloves, which make her look just like Eric Cartman and she utters the phrase "He tripped me, seriously" in the style of Eric Cartman from South Park.
  • In "Collect Her," while trying to find who captured the Powerpuff Girls by naming off all the citizens of Townsville, the Mayor says "Genndy McCracken" as one of the names, a nod to the creator, Craig McCracken, and Genndy Tartakovsky, the creator of Dexter's Laboratory and animation director for The Powerpuff Girls.
  • There are numerous appearances by characters from Dexter's Laboratory. Dexter appears in the episode "Nano of the North". Also, a kid who looks like Dexter is shown attending Pokey Oaks kindergarten in "Powerpuff Bluff." In the episode "Ploys R'Us", in which a sleepwalking Professor Utonium steals toys for the girls, Dexter, Dee Dee and Monkey appear as toys and dolls. A Monkey doll also appears briefly in Mojo Jojo's bed in "Prime Mates". In "Members Only", Major Glory and Val Halen appear as members of the "Association of World Super Men," and Koosalagoopagoop is seen in "Imaginary Fiend".
  • The episode "Meet the Beat-Alls" is saturated with references to The Beatles, from an intro to their songs playing as background music to song titles slipping into dialogue. Another Beatles reference was in the episode "Mime for a Change" when Mr. Mime colors Townsville a depressing gray and how the girls used music to give the town back its color. This is similar to how in the animated film, Yellow Submarine, the Blue Meanies overtook Pepperland and how The Beatles thwarted their evil plan. Yet another occurs in the episode "Mo Job," in which Princess speaks several lines from the song "Help."
  • In the episode "Members Only", the Hanna-Barbera superheroes Birdman and Space Ghost can be seen in the background of several shots.
  • George Jetson of The Jetsons can be seen in crowd shots of several episodes, including "Mime for a Change" and "Major Competition."
  • In the episode "Child Fearing", the Mayor is seen playing what resembles The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and subsequently killing Navi, the guide to the game who was often considered annoying.
  • There are several references to the series Pokémon within the show. The Mayor can be seen wearing a watch with the Pokémon Jigglypuff in the background in the episode "Super Zeroes." In several episodes, including "Cover Up", a doll that resembles the Pokémon Pikachu is seen among the girls' dolls in their bedroom. Additionally, Mr. Mime, the villain appearing in "Mime for a Change", shares the name of a Pokémon.
  • In the episode "Super Zeroes", the girls assume alternate identities which parody various comic book personalities after being inspired by comic books. Blossom takes on the guise of Liberty Belle, who is essentially Wonder Woman and the name could possibly be from Liberty Belle in the DC comic Boy Commandos (complete with the trademark lasso) and has a rocket car to drive to crimes in. Bubbles becomes Harmony Bunny, a bunny that is sort of a parody of Hello Kitty and similar characters from Japanese animation who gets around by riding a pogo stick and has a box full of stickers and other cute items. Buttercup embodies Mange, who receives her powers from the underworld and becomes a shadowy creature with glowing green eyes and wispy trails coming off her costume but refuses to fight crime during the day (due to the light), much like Spawn. Their inspirations in the episode are Freedom Gal, Bunny-Bunny, and Spore, respectively. All three personae backfire in the end and they resume their normal identities after the episode (following a talking-to by the monster they were supposed to be fighting).
  • The costume design for Spore, seen at the beginning of the episode "Super Zeroes" and in the background in "Members Only," is a mixture of a number of anti-heroes from various contemporary American comics: his cape and mask is that of Spawn (as is his name), he has the trademark "ears" of Batman, as well as the blades from his gloves, and the skull on his chest comes from the Punisher.
  • Buttercup is seen playing what appears to be Pitfall for the Atari 2600 in the episode "The Powerpuff Girls Best Rainy Day Adventure Ever." However, the system resembles a Nintendo 64.
  • An ad on Cartoon Network featured the Powerpuff Girls saving Aquaman and Wonder Woman from Lex Luthor and the Legion of Doom. Luthor incorrectly calls them "The Powderpuff Girls" which gets the girls angry. They proceed to bring down the Legion and save the heroes, who the girls refer to as "Old School". Wonder Woman says that the girls are developing into good super heroines to which Bubbles replies "Someday we will be as developed as you!", which prompts laughter from everyone in the room while an embarrassed Wonder Woman covers her breast with one of her hands.
  • In the Christmas special, "'Twas the Fight before Christmas," the top name on the permanently naughty list is Bill McCracken. Additionally, Princess' infiltration of Santa's workshop is similar to Mission: Impossible and other heist and infiltration films.
  • The Powerpuff Dynamo (from "Uh Oh, Dynamo" and "Live and Let Dynamo") uses a similar naming convention as a robot from the Super Robot Wars: DaiZenGer (Dynamic 'Zeneral' Guardian - 'General' being somewhat cumbersome to pronounce).
  • The image of the girls' silhouettes zipping across the screen before the title card of the episode is a homage to the opening credits of Science Ninja Team Gatchaman.
  • In the episode "Stuck Up, Up and Away," when the girls first meet Princess, the fight between the girls is a parody of Dragon Ball Z style fighting. The fight is a parody of the battle between Goku, Krillin, Vegeta and Freeza, copying it even down to the dialogue (but does substitute names).
  • The episode title "Oops, I did it again," is one of Britney Spears song title.

References in other media

  • In the Johnny Bravo episode "Johnny Makeover", Don Knotts, "Weird Al" Yankovic, and Blue Falcon, discuss making over the Powerpuff Girls.
  • In The Simpsons episode "The Dad Who Knew Too Little", Lisa disguises herself using ink, exclaiming "I look just like a Powerpuff Girl."
  • In the beginning of the book Cell by Stephen King the protagonist, Clay, notices that a pair of girls have hairstyles resembling the Powerpuff Girls.
  • In the Homestar Runner flash cartoons, one of the opening themes Strong Bad suggested for his show in an email uses the background from the opening of The Powerpuff Girls.
  • In the episode of The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, "My Fair Mandy", Mandy's smile causes a vortex to an alternate reality where Billy, Grim, and Mandy all appear as the Powerpuff Girls in the same bed. The Professor tells them Mojo Jojo has sneaked into a movie theater and they fly off in frustration.
  • In The Life and Times of Juniper Lee, Juniper Lee claims there are over three hundred episodes of the show.
  • A young character watches the Powerpuff Girls upside-down while channel surfing in the film Unbreakable (2000).
  • A scene in the film Blade II (2002) depicts Blade's assistant, Scud, watching an episode of The Powerpuff Girls.
  • In episode 14 of the anime Excel Saga, Blossom is seen flying out of a time bomb as it is being disarmed.
  • At the end of volume 2, chapter 5 of the Yume Tsukai manga they talk about how Rinko could be turned into a Powerpuff Girl.
  • In one episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation, when asked what her favorite superhero is by a cute boy, Manny asks if Bubbles from The Powerpuff Girls is suitable enough.
  • In King of Queens, Deacon's son Kirby dressed up as Blossom for Halloween.
  • There are many references to the show in Aqua Teen Hunger Force. The mall which the Aqua Teens attend is called the "Powerpuff Mall," the episode Universal Remonster features tee shirts with a Powerpuff-like character on them, and in Aquateen Hunger Force movie, Meatwad's parachute has pictures of the girls on them, predominantly Bubbles.
  • There also are many references to the show in Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends. Although it's not always obvious because it is concealed by her green hoodie, the character Frankie Foster wears a t-shirt with the Powerpuff Girls in silhouette. In the Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends pilot "House of Bloo's", Wilt shows Mac and Bloo an "unimaginary friend", made by kids who have no imagination and who just copy what they see on TV. One of them is Mojo Jojo. Also, at the epilogue of this episode, Bloo is seen channel-surfing, and finally sits back, pleased, while the opening theme of the Powerpuff Girls is heard. In the episode "Land of the Flea", there was a flea that was the mayor of Eduardo's fur that looked and acted much the Mayor, and was even voiced by the same voice actor. And in the episode "Say it isn't Sew", Bloo, while perusing a number of different air fresheners at a fabrics store, comes across one that's actually the head of Blossom.
  • In Samurai Jack Episode II, the talking dogs are uncovering ancient architecture and in the background in a frame you can see the 'Spike the Talking Dog' billboard.
  • In Super Robot Wars Judgement, three female characters (Festenia Muse, Melua Melna Meia and Katia Grineal) bear a resemblance to the Powerpuff Girls.
  • In one episode of Gilmore Girls, Lorelai mentions writing a note on Powerpuff Girls stationery, saying "Who does he think is setting him up, Hello Kitty?
  • In Scooby-Doo (film) 2002, Scrappy Doo says that he is "as cute as a Powerpuff Girl."
  • In an episode of My Wife & Kids, Cady asks Franklin who his favorite Powerpuff Girl is, but he gives names like, Spiky, Dancy etc.

References

  1. ^ Longino, B. "The Powerpuff Girls Movie." The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. [1]
  2. ^ "Animator Profile: CRAIG McCRACKEN". CartoonNetwork.com. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
  3. ^ a b "The Powerpuff Girls' Phenomenal Merchandising Mantra". Animation World Magazine. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  4. ^ "Cartoon Network Tops Weekly and Friday Prime Ratings for the Week of Oct. 2-8". TimeWarner. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  5. ^ "The Powerpuff Girls get a season set". TVShowsonDVD.com. 2007-02-16. Retrieved 2007-03-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "Powerpuff Girls, The - Complete Season 1 (2 Disc Set)". ezydvd.com.au. 2007-04-11. Retrieved 2007-03-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ a b "Awards for The Powerpuff Girls". IMDB.com. Retrieved 2007-03-26.

See also

Wikiquote has quotations related to The Powerpuff Girls.



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