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This article is about the original series. For the the characters of the same name, click here, for the 2016 reboot, click here and for the upcoming second reboot, click here.

"Sugar, spice, and everything nice. These were the ingredients chosen to create the perfect little girl. But Professor Utonium added an extra ingredient to the concoction... Chemical X! Thus, The Powerpuff Girls were born! Using their ultra-super powers, Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup have dedicated their lives to fighting crime and the forces of evil!"
— Opening narration

The Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series created by animator Craig McCracken. The program was produced by Hanna-Barbera until 2001 when Cartoon Network Studios took over production.

The Powerpuff Girls revolves around three kindergarten-aged girls with superpowers and their battles against evil opponents. The series is an action comedy with inspiration from American superheroes as well as Japanese Tokusatsu.

The series was a launching pad for an entire media franchise including an anime, three CD albums, numerous video games, a multitude of merchandise, and a feature film. In 2016, the series also received a reboot.

Overview[]

Too Pooped to Puff 3

And so, once again, the day is saved thanks to... the Powerpuff Girls!

The Powerpuff Girls revolves around the adventures of Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup, three kindergarten-aged sisters with superpowers. 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, car thieves, gangsters, mad scientists, aliens and giant monsters, amongst others.

In addition, the girls also have to deal with normal issues young kids face, such as bed-wetting or dependence on a security blanket. There is often a particular influence from 1950s, 60s, and 70s culture, ranging from bands such as The Beatles and films like Star Wars.

The show primarily had a thick line cel animation style with character designs and settings drawn with angular and/or blocky shapes with an aesthetic akin to that of a classic Hanna-Barbera cartoon mixed with that of 1950's pop art. The series also made extensive use of limited animation with its action sequences taking influence from the MTV series "Stevie and Zoia" and possibly retro anime such as Speed Racer, which took advantage of the lack of in-between frames to create action that while very sudden created a fast pace and made hits feel solid.

Starting in Season 4 after the release of the movie, the show would transition to digital ink and paint animation with updated character designs and a brighter color palette. Movie critic Bob Longino of 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]

The show's background music is of the drum and bass genre with McCracken scoring the series like a movie, with the music fitting the mood of a scene and characters having a certain sound accompanying them (similar to how characters in many films have themes or leitmotifs). For example, Blossom is defined by brass instruments that convey a "heroic" feel, Bubbles has a "belly" cute sound to her, and Buttercup has a rock sound that conveys a strong "action" vibe. The series composer, James Venable, compares the series music to that of a 50s monster movie and big beat techno.

Setting[]

The show mainly takes place in the fictional city of Townsville, USA. Townsville is depicted as a major American city, with an impressive cityscape consisting of several major skyscrapers. The physical location of Townsville has never been determined. Cities like LA, New York City, Seattle, Paris, London, Chicago, and Tokyo have been shown throughout the series.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Voice Actor(ess) Character
Cathy Cavadini Blossom
Chuck McCann Bossman
Slim
Junior
Tara Strong Bubbles
E.G. Daily Buttercup
Tom Kane Professor Utonium
HIM
Talking Dog
Tom Kenny Narrator
The Mayor of Townsville
Mitch Mitchelson
Snake
Jeff Bennett Ace
Grubber
Lil' Arthuro
Big Billy
Jennifer Hale Ms. Keane
Princess Morbucks
Sedusa
Jennifer Martin Miss Bellum
Jim Cummings Fuzzy Lumpkins
Roger L. Jackson Mojo Jojo
Butch
Rob Paulsen Brick
Boomer

Additional voices[]

  • April Winchell
  • Aubrey Ankrum
  • Billie Hayes
  • Billy West
  • Bill Farmer
  • Bob Bergen
  • Bob Joles
  • Brad Garrett
  • Brian Cummings
  • Candi Milo
  • Carlos Alazraqui
  • Charlie Adler
  • Chris Cox
  • Christine Cavanaugh
  • Colleen O'Shaughnessey
  • Corey Burton
  • Daran Norris
  • Dan Castellaneta
  • Danny Mann
  • Dave Fennoy
  • David Boat
  • David Cowgill
  • David Lodge
  • Debi DerryBerry
  • Dee Bradley Baker
  • Derin Basden
  • Don Shank
  • Drake Bell
  • Frank Welker
  • Grant Raymond George
  • Greg Berg
  • Gregg Berger
  • Grey DeLisle
  • Jack Angel
  • James Arnold Taylor
  • Jan Rabson
  • Janice Kawaye
  • Jason Marsden
  • Jeff Bergman
  • Jennifer Darling
  • Jess Harnell
  • Jim Ward
  • Joe Alaskey
  • John Cygan
  • John DeMita
  • John DiMaggio
  • John Kassir
  • Josh Peck
  • Julie Nathanson
  • Keone Young
  • Kerry Shale
  • Kevin Michael Richardson
  • Khary Payton
  • Kimberly Brook
  • Laraine Newman
  • Lara Jill Miller
  • Lou Romano
  • Mark Hamill
  • Matthew W. Taylor
  • Maurice LaMarche
  • Michael Bell
  • Michael Donovan
  • Michael Patrick Bell
  • Mike Kelley
  • Mona Marshall
  • Pat Fraley
  • Patrick Pinney
  • Pat Musick
  • Paul Eiding
  • Paul Greenburg
  • Phil LaMarr
  • Phil Proctor
  • Rachael MacFarlane
  • Richard Epcar
  • Roger Rose
  • Rodger Bumpass
  • S. Scott Bullock
  • Scott Menville
  • Sherry Lynn
  • Susan Blakeslee
  • Susan Blu
  • Susan Silo
  • Teresa Ganzel
  • Townsend Coleman
  • Tress MacNeille
  • Vanessa Marshall
  • Warren Graff
  • Will Ryan

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 1993; McCracken submitted it to Hanna-Barbera's innovative What A Cartoon! shorts program (eventually to be produced for Cartoon Network as "The Powerpuff Girls in: Meat Fuzzy Lumkins" as part of World Premiere Toons) while working on Dexter's Lab.[2] As the word "whoopass" was deemed verbally inappropriate for younger audiences, it was replaced by "powerpuff."

The Powerpuff Girls logo

The logo since the introduction of The Powerpuff Girls Movie. Used on issued related products. This logo is not used for the intertitle.

The Powerpuff Girls TV debut in 1998 was the highest rated premiere in Cartoon Network's history at the time. For the first few seasons, the series consistently scored the highest rating each week for an original program 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] By 2001, merchandising based on The Powerpuff Girls encompassed everything from T-shirts, toys and video games to lunchboxes and dishware. There was also an audio CD titled Heroes and Villains, featuring original songs about the Powerpuff Girls characters by a number of artists, including the New Wave group Devo.[3] Concerning the Powerpuff Girls success, Craig McCracken has stated "I thought it would get on Cartoon Network and college kids would watch it and there would be a few random T-shirts out there in the rave scene or in record shops. But I had no idea that it would take off to this extent." [3]

In April 2005, plans for an anime version, Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z were announced and the series premiered in Japan the following year. The series deviates highly from its American predecessor in terms of style, storyline, and characterization. Cartoon Network in the USA currently has no plans to air this show.

Characters[]

Main article: List of characters
Main article: List of minor characters

Opening and ending themes and sequences[]

The Powerpuff Girls Sitting

James L. Venable composed the opening theme of the series and Scottish band Bis performed the ending theme song, as played during the credits. Veteran announcer Ernie Anderson (more well known as "The Voice of ABC" in the 1970s and 80s) was the narrator of the two pilot episodes and would have likely continued to narrate. However, Anderson passed away in February of 1997, the year before the show became a series, which left the studio to hire voice actor and comedian Tom Kenny to be the series' narrator. Tom Kenny narrated the introduction, and also acted as the narrator through the series.

The opening narration reads as follows: "Sugar, spice, and everything nice. These were the ingredients chosen to create the perfect little girl. But Professor Utonium accidentally added an extra ingredient to the concoction: Chemical X! Thus the Powerpuff Girls were born! Using their ultra super powers, Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup have dedicated their lives to fighting crime and the forces of evil!"

As the narration reveals, Professor Utonium created the girls out of sugar, spice, and everything nice (a 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 before striking the villains, who are tossed away in slow motion.

Reception[]

In a 2000 - 2007 Entertainment Weekly review, Marc Bernadin complimented the show on its "spot-on pop-culture acumen" and "unparalleled sense of fun", giving it a warm welcome from earlier "lame" superhero cartoons that he grew up with. Peter Marks of The New York Times noted the show's use of adult humor and pop culture references, declaring it "the sort of playful satire that can appeal as much to a viewer of 37 as 7."

Joly Herman of Common Sense Media describes the show as a "cute, highly stylized series thrills the senses with its strange characters, funny situations, and lots of lowbrow humor". She goes on to say, however, that the show does go from innocent to violent in no time and that there is not much protecting young viewers against the violent undertones. Robert Lloyd of the LA Times said that the series might be "transgressive" based on little violence but "also cute".

Episodes[]

Main article: List of The Powerpuff Girls (1998) episodes

A total of 137 episodes (most of which were 11 minutes, with a handful of 22-minute specials and in one case, 45 minutes) were broadcast, spanning across six seasons and one self-titled movie.

The 45-minute special was a Christmas episode that aired in 2003, and another 22-minute episode never aired in the U.S. There was also an episode that was in production entitled "Deja View" that was turned into a Powerpuff Girls comic instead.

The Powerpuff Girls Movie[]

In 2001, production of a Powerpuff Girls movie began and suspended production of the series for a full year. The series creator Craig McCracken directed the film. On July 3, 2002, The Powerpuff Girls Movie was released in theaters. It tells the story of how Professor Utonium created the Powerpuff Girls and how they began to defend the city from the fearful villains.

The Powerpuff Girls Rule![]

On March 18, 2008, Tara Strong announced that there would be a second Powerpuff Girls special in an interview with The Big Spoon. According to C' Raggio's blog, it uses Flash animation. The special aired on January 19, 2009 in the United States.

The special's plot revolves around the powerful "Key to the World" coming to Townsville. The Powerpuff Girls must find the key before it is found by one of the many villains searching for it. They later race all the villains in vehicles and retrieve the key.

The girls decide that they each want to rule the world, then start to fight over the key until they realize their mistake. However, it is too late as the Mayor gives the key to Mojo Jojo. Surprising everyone, Mojo turns the world into a happy place. Mojo, bored with his changes to the world, then blow ups the city, prompting the Girls to fight him, ending the special.

Powerpuff Girls Special: Dance Pantsed[]

Special7

The logo from the CGI special Dance Pantsed.

On January 28, 2013, it was announced that a new CGI special titled Powerpuff Girls Special: Dance Pantsed (Originally titled Powerpuff Girls Special: Dance Pants R-EVIL-ution) starring the girls would premiere later in the year, but it was announced on December 16, 2013 that the special would premiere on January 20, 2014.

The special featured Ringo Starr of The Beatles fame singing an original song, "I Wish I Was A Powerpuff Girl", as well as voicing a new character named Fibonacci Sequins. The special was be directed by Dave Smith, who wrote and directed episodes for the series in the past. The original cast members returned to reprise their roles. The special marks the first time series creator Craig McCracken had no involvement.

The episode's plot has the Girls defeat Mojo Jojo in yet another of his kidnapping schemes. Not deterred, he then goes on to invent a video game, "Dance Pants R-EVILution", that traps the Girls with its equipment, in order to steal Professor Utonium's Chemical X and take over Townsville.

Promo[]

Reboots[]

Main article: The Powerpuff Girls (2016 TV series)
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The logo of the 2016 Powerpuff Girls reboot series.

On June 16th, 2014, Cartoon Network announced a comeback of the series that aired in 2016.[5]. Nick Jennings served as the executive producer.[6] Creator Craig McCracken was not involved, since he worked for Disney while the reboot was in production.[7]

Tara Strong stated on Twitter that the girls themselves were being recast, and later said she, Cathy Cavadini, and E.G. Daily were "beyond hurt", but held no ill will. Tom Kenny, Roger L. Jackson, and Jennifer Hale reprise their respective roles (though Hale has been replaced as Princess Morbucks).

Despite positive anticipation from audiences, the reboot was unable to live up to expectations. It received mixed to negative reviews from critics, and was lambasted by audiences. Although it gained relatively high ratings at the start of its runtime, its ratings drastically dropped. Since September of 2016, most of its newer episodes failed to reach over a million viewers.

On July 18, 2022, it was announced a new Powerpuff Girls reboot is currently in the works. Craig McCracken will be involved with it and the series will be produced by Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe.[8]

Parodies and comics[]

A crossover parody of The Powerpuff Girls and 2 Broke Girls was done in Cartoon Network's TV series MAD's second season, known as "2 Broke Powerpuff Girls". The parody, which aired on January 30, 2012, shows Bubbles and Buttercup, who are broke and work for "HIM" in a diner after the show got placed on permanent hiatus. Tara Strong (Bubbles) and Tom Kane (HIM) reprised their roles. The MAD episode with the parody ranked #26/30 for the week with 1.903 million viewers.

In February 2013, IDW Publishing announced a partnership with Cartoon Network to produce comics based on its properties; The Powerpuff Girls was one of the titles announced to be published.

A fan-produced webcomic series called PowerPuff Girls Doujinshi was created in 2004 and released through Snafu Comics. The girls are shown to be a bit older than, but with the same personalities as, their TV counterparts, and the comic includes many characters from other cartoon shows. The story has the girls now going to school in a neighboring city of Townsville known as Megaville. The comic was the "Outstanding Superhero Comic" and "Outstanding Character Art" winner on the Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards in 2005.

In 2010, an adult comedy animated series known as Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt premiered, featuring an art style that mimicks that of the Powerpuff Girls and several other Western cartoons.

Shortly after the "Dance Pantsed" special's release, a comic published by IDW Publishing was withdrawn after retailers complained that they wanted to boycott the issue. The comic, which shows the Powerpuff Girls with breasts and dressed in latex, was designed by an artist who works for Cartoon Network. The artist was "thinking of it more along the lines of 'female empowerment' than the kind of thing you guys are talking about". Cartoon Network said in a statement: "We recognise some fans' reaction to the cover and, as such, will no longer be releasing it at comic book shops."

Awards[]

The show has been nominated for an Emmy five times in 1999 & 2000 for "Outstanding Achievement in Animation". In 1999 the show won the Emmy for episode 1.09 - "Bubblevicious" & "The Bare Facts." In 1999 & 2000 the show also won Emmys, both juried for non-nominated selections.

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

DVD releases[]

Main article: List of episodes and VHS/DVD releases#VHS/DVD releasesThe series has been released on VHS tape and DVD in Episode highlights, The Christmas Special, and seasonal DVD releases respectively, with the second season coming soon to the USA. There is also a complete series DVD release that was released on January 20, 2009 to celebrate The Powerpuff Girls 10th anniversary.

See also[]

External links[]

References[]


The Powerpuff Girls
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Episodes and VHS/DVD releases - The Powerpuff Girls Movie - Powerpuff Girls Z
Characters: The Powerpuff Girls  (Main: Blossom - Bubbles - Buttercup Other: Bunny - Bullet) - Professor Utonium - Mayor - Ms. Bellum - Ms. Keane
Mojo Jojo - Fuzzy Lumpkins - HIM - Princess Morbucks - The Rowdyruff Boys (Brick - Boomer - Butch) - The Amoeba Boys - Sedusa - Gangreen Gang - Minor characters
Video Games: Fifth Generation Games:  Chemical X-Traction (PS, N64) - Bad Mojo Jojo (GBC) - Paint the Townsville Green (GBC) - Battle HIM (GBC)
Sixth Generation Games:  Relish Rampage (PS2, GCN) - Mojo Jojo-A-Go-Go (GBA) - HIM and Seek (GBA)
Seventh Generation Games:  Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z (DS)
PC Games:  Mojo Jojo Clone Zone - Princess Snorebucks - Mojo Jojo's Pet Project
Misc. Superpowers - Townsville
Creator: Craig McCracken
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