Bee and PuppyCat
| Bee and PuppyCat | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | Comedy, Fantasy |
| Created by | Natasha Allegri |
| Written by | Natasha Allegri |
| Directed by | Larry Leichliter |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 5 |
| Production company(s) | Frederator Studios Dong Woo Animation and OLM, Inc. |
| Release | |
| Original release | July 11, 2013 – present |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Bee and PuppyCat is an American animated web series created and written by Natasha Allegri, and directed by Larry Leichliter.[1][2] The series revolves around Bee (voiced by Allyn Rachel), an unemployed woman in her twenties, who encounters a mysterious creature named PuppyCat (voiced by the Vocaloid program Oliver). She adopts this apparent cat-dog hybrid, and together they go on a series of temporary jobs to pay her monthly rent. The show is produced by Frederator Studios and is animated by Dong Woo Animation and OLM, Inc..[3] The series has since expanded to include an ongoing comic book series by the same name, which is released via KaBoom! Studios.
Critical reception for the series has been positive.[4][5] In December 2014, critic Robert Lloyd of The L.A. Times listed it as one of the best TV shows of the year.[6] The A.V. Club favorably rated the episodes "Food" and "Farmer", which they felt did a good job expanding Bee's character.[7]
Synopsis
Bee is a cheerful young woman in her twenties who is habitually fired from menial, low-paying jobs. On her way home from a failed job opportunity, PuppyCat, a strange, mysterious creature, falls from the sky. She takes him in and, when he sees that she is broke and unemployed, PuppyCat teleports himself and Bee to an alternate dimension where they are given a job by TempBot, a gigantic, intelligent television screen. Despite the dangers that this line of temporary jobs would pose, Bee finds that she has a talent for the work and that it pays well enough for her to disregard the dangers. An ongoing plot element of the series is PuppyCat's past, which is shrouded in mystery. There are hints that he may be a space outlaw who was transformed into a monster by the Space King, who was angry over the pirate's romance with his daughter. Another ongoing plot element is Bee's romantic feelings for her friend Deckard, a talented chef who seems to harbor a crush on Bee but finds that this complicates his decision to pursue a cooking career.
Characters
- Bee (voiced by Allyn Rachel) — The main character along with PuppyCat, Bee is a young woman who, while walking home in the rain after being fired, is hit on the head by PuppyCat, who mysteriously appears out of the sky and lands on her. After being transported to Fishbowl Space with PuppyCat, she gains magical powers, including the ability to draw a magical sword from a bell located on the collar of the outfit she is given by TempBot. She is also seen to have a strong dislike of water, as in the episode "Beach" she refuses to walk into the ocean, and in the following episode, "Cats", she also refuses to take a bath when she gets dirty.
- PuppyCat (voiced by the Vocaloid "Oliver") — The mysterious creature that is both a dog and a cat, and is the companion to the main character, Bee. Not much is known about PuppyCat except that he can "talk" and be used as an energy cannon, as demonstrated in the battle with Wallace.
- TempBot — Also referred to as AssignBot, is a robot that acts as a temporary employment agent for PuppyCat. This character is voiced by a different actor in each episode. In the pilot episode the character was voiced by Marina Sirtis, Hannah Hart for "Farmer", and Roz Ryan in "Cats".
- Deckard (voiced by Kent Osborne) — A friend of Bee and neighbor, he works as a prep cook and harbors romantic feelings for Bee.
- Cass (voiced by Ashly Burch) — Cass is Deckard's sister, and while she likes Bee, Cass is afraid that Bee is holding Deckard back — something she knows that Bee would hate if it were true.
- Cardamon (voiced by Alexander Rodriguez) — Cardamon is a young boy who is Bee's landlord. He is business-like and mature for his age, in stark contrast to his appearance as an elementary schoolboy.
Background
The series began as a two-part episode, which was uploaded to Frederator Studio's YouTube channel Cartoon Hangover as two 5-minute shorts as part of Too Cool! Cartoons, as well as a 10-minute video combining the two parts.[8] Part one went online on July 11, 2013, while part two and the full film went online on August 6, 2013.
After gaining popularity online, Cartoon Hangover started its first Kickstarter project in order to fund additional episodes. The Kickstarter started on October 15, 2013, and achieved its US$600,000 goal with 6 days left; by the end, it had raised $872,133, funding nine 6-minute episodes, the first of which would air in the summer of 2014.[9] As of its funding date, Bee and PuppyCat became the most successful animation Kickstarter in history, the #4 film/video Kickstarter (behind only three Hollywood-based projects), and the #1 Kickstarter based on a YouTube video.[10]
In May 2014 KaBoom! Studios launched a Bee and PuppyCat comic book.[11]
Bee and PuppyCat: The Series premiered November 6, 2014 with a second two-part episode.[12]
Outside of a Kickstarter-exclusive early showing of episodes 5 and 6 in August via VHX, no new episodes were released in 2015.
In February 2016, it was announced that the remaining completed episodes of Bee and PuppyCat will be released on YouTube in late Spring/early Summer 2016.[13]
Production was wrapped up on March 2016.[14]
Episodes
| Episode # |
Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | "Bee and PuppyCat (Part 1 and 2)" | July 11, 2013 |
| The episode begins with Bee walking home after being fired. She meets PuppyCat, a small and mysterious creature resembling both a puppy and a cat, after he lands on her head. Bee takes PuppyCat home and she's shocked when the two of them are teleported to an alternate dimension where they must perform a temporary babysitting job for Wallace, an overly sad talking fish. PuppyCat placates him by telling him a story about a Space Outlaw who was seemingly tricked by a Space Princess. The two were supposed to run away together but when he arrived at the proposed meeting place he was instead met by her father the Space King and his wizards, who transformed him into a monster but then escapes. The story ends at this point, and Wallace then turns into a monster, which Bee and PuppyCat manage to defeat. The two return home and are paid for their job by TempBot (who acts as the go-between for the jobs). As the episode ends, Bee turns out the lights and as PuppyCat stares out the window, the Space Outlaw is reflected back. | ||
| 1 | "Food (Part 1)" | November 6, 2014 |
| The episode opens with Bee dreaming about PuppyCat swimming in a large amount of floating water. She tries to reach out and pet him, but is shocked instead. This wakes her up, and as the dream wasn't pleasant, she decides to spend the day cooking with her friend Deckard in hopes that she will dream about food. She and PuppyCat gather the necessary ingredients along with a pack of gum, then set out for Deckard's house. Once there Bee and Deckard try to cook but are continually interrupted by PuppyCat, who intentionally tries to ruin the recipe. Deckard's sister appears partway through and reveals that he has been accepted to a cooking school far away. He replies that he wouldn't do well anyway since the recipe turned out badly and lacked an ingredient. Bee decides to go out to purchase the ingredient but finds that she is broke. The episode ends with the pair traveling to see TempBot in hopes of getting a job. | ||
| 2 | "Farmer (Part 2)" | November 6, 2014 |
| TempBot assigns Bee and PuppyCat to a job on Jelly Cube Planet helping a farmer feed his animals. The two are sent to the other end of the planet (which is shaped like a small cube) to retrieve a cherry that should feed the animals. Once there they discover that the cherry is not a food source but rather a way to create the food, which is made out of the people who are sent to assist it. Upset, Bee destroys the cherry and releases the souls of everyone who had been fed to the cherry. She then spits her gum (which she had been chewing) into the cherry, which begins to produce food. Bee then angrily gives the farmer the gum and leaves, after which he is devoured by his own animals. Bee returns to Deckard's house, only to find that many hours have passed and that he is now asleep. Next to Deckard is his acceptance letter to the cooking school, which gives Bee pause. She and PuppyCat return home, and that night Bee has the same dream she had the night before, except that when she reaches into the water she is not shocked and PuppyCat nuzzles her hand. | ||
| 3 | "Beach (Part 1)" | December 4, 2014 |
| When Bee's landlord Cardamon shows up to repair her toilet, Bee and PuppyCat are kicked out of the apartment. This frustrates the two, as they were watching a marathon of the show Pretty Patrick (which is similar to Rachel Ray and other food shows), that would lead to a new episode where Pretty Patrick would reveal his favorite food. They travel from location to location in hopes of finding a television, but are unsuccessful. They eventually just go to the beach and sunbathe. Desperate, Bee suggests going to see TempBot since the robot is shaped like a huge television. | ||
| 4 | "Cats (Part 2)" | December 18, 2014 |
| The pair discovers that not only is TempBot incapable of working as a television, but they must also perform a temporary job at a cat spa at Cat-Head Planet. They are put into oversized cat costumes (much to PuppyCat's chagrin) and sent to the spa, which is frequented by large humanoid cats. Bee is received warmly and treated favorably, but PuppyCat is shunned as a hideous monster. As the spa has a TV capable of showing Pretty Patrick, Bee is overjoyed until she accidentally drops food on her suit. The cats try to give her a bath, but Bee rebels since she hates water with a passion. She escapes and is chased by the cats, who give up only after PuppyCat blocks their path and contorts his body in a cat-like manner, causing them to give up in disgust. The pair return home, where they find that Cardamon has taped the episode for them, and unknowingly spoils the result. | ||
| 5 | "Birthday (Part 1)" | August 27, 2015 (Kickstarter backers) |
| 6 | "Game (Part 2)" | August 27, 2015 (Kickstarter backers) |
| 7 | "TBA" | TBA |
| 8 | "TBA" | TBA |
| 9 | "TBA" | TBA |
References
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- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ja-oPED0Am8
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ccsxo52q2s
