Whoopass Stew

Whoopass Stew - A Sticky Situation
General Information
Original broadcast	November 14, 1996
Details
Season	1 in (Dexter's Laboratory)
Episode	8
Pun	The name of the pilot episode itself is a pun on “Wombat Stew”, a book by Marcia Vaughan, and the title, “A Sticky Situation”, is a pun on the phrase of the same name.
Episode Guide
Next episode	Whoopass a Go-Go!
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Transcript

"Whoopass Stew - A Sticky Situation" is a one-reel film and the first ever appearance of The Powerpuff Girls.

It was a project that Craig McCracken made while in CalArts college in 1992. He sent it off to Cartoon Network while working at Hanna-Barbera Studios, Craig had to rename it "Powerpuff Girls" as "Whoopass Girls" was an inappropriate name for the channel's target audience. McCracken had four shorts planned out, but only this one got finished due to him paying to color it.

Plot

The opening title begins with an early version of Professor Utonium using the original recipe of sugar, spice, and everything nice to try and create the perfect little girl, but he accidentally adds a can of Whoopass and he creates The Whoopass Girls. In a similar way to the current series, the girls race towards an early Gangreen Gang and beat them up.

Main story

The Amoeba Boys have robbed the local bank and the girls attack them but end up getting stuck to them. They then fly them to the sun where they apparently evaporate from the heat and the day is saved.

Characters

• The Narrator (debut)
• Professor Utonium (debut)
• The Powerpuff Girls (as The Whoopass Girls) (debut)
  • Blossom (debut)
  • Bubbles (debut)
  • Buttercup (debut)
• The Gangreen Gang (debut)
  • Ace (debut)
  • Sanford Ingleberry (debut)
  • Grubber (debut)
  • William Williams (debut)
  • Arturo de la Guerra (debut)
• The Amoeba Boys (debut)
  • Bossman (debut)
  • Slim (debut)
  • Junior (debut)

Differences between the short and the finished series

• Professor Utonium looked like an aged, bald version of Dexter from Dexter’s Laboratory, with a different head shape and a head mirror.
• The girls did not have individual personalities at this point, and all of the main three of them were voiced by Jennifer Fried instead of Cathy Cavadini, E.G. Daily, and Tara Strong (making this short the only piece of related media where all three girls are voiced by the same actress). They were slightly taller and therefore looked more like first graders than kindergarteners. Aside from that, their overall designs remained the same, except for Buttercup who has a slightly more realistic looking bob-flip than later on.
• In this short, the Girls did not seem to have any superpowers except the ability to fly and breathe in space. Despite the lack of superpowers, it can be said that the Girls were more brutal here, as instead of merely beating them up, they deliberately killed the Amoeba Boys.
• The Gangreen Gang looked older and more menacing. Ace had red, rather than black, sunglasses. He also wore a short-sleeved shirt and sported crooked teeth. Little Arturo had two 0's on his shirt and a pink nose. Snake had visible ears, sharp teeth, and a red and yellow cap. Grubber had a pink nose. Big Billy's nose matched his skin color.
• In this short, the Amoeba Boys were capable of committing actual crimes and even knew how to use guns. Bossman had a cigar in his mouth, Slim had sharp teeth and Jr. had freckles. They all had purple spots on their bodies instead of light blue spots. Additionally, their voices were more garbled. In the final series, however, they are completely inept at crime and are more of a nuisance to the Girls than a real threat. Slim's body was a lighter color compared to Bossman and Junior.
• The short has a much smaller cast than the final series, as it was intended as merely a preview to the show that McCracken was pitching to Cartoon Network.
• The girls had baby blue eyelids instead of purple eyelids in this short.

Trivia

• When Bossman says “It’s the Whoopass Girls; let’s get ’em, boys!”, the instrumental in the background is the theme from Peter Gunn performed by Duane Eddy & The Art of Noise, which was a UK #8 hit in March 1986.
• Craig McCracken did the narration for this short.
• Bossman was the only of his gang to have real lines while the rest of them just screamed when the girls headed them to the sun.
• After the narrator tells that the Amoeba Boys were fried up from the sun you can hear the audience laugh used on all adult comedy shows.
• Although not acquired by Nickelodeon, this short was viewed and presented by an employee at Nickelodeon after the short was published.
• Bubbles and Buttercup spoke along with Blossom for only one line through the whole episode. After this they don’t ever speak again. Thought, Blossom spoke her line when she directs the girls to take the Amoeba Boys to the Sun.
• The girls being made from accidentally adding a can of Whoopass is a reference to the term "let's open a can of Whoop-Ass", which basically means "let's kick some butt".