Baby Blues (U.S. TV series)

"Baby Blues (TV series)" redirects here. For the unrelated Singapore production, see Baby Blues (Singaporean TV series).
Baby Blues
Genre Animated Comedy
Surreal humor
Based on Baby Blues by Rick Kirkman & Jerry Scott
Developed by Jeff Martin
Peter Ocko
Voices of Mike O'Malley
Julia Sweeney
E.G. Daily
Joel Murray
Kath Soucie
Arabella Field
Diedrich Bader
Nicole Sullivan
Opening theme "It's All Been Done" by Barenaked Ladies
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 2 (1 unaired)
No. of episodes 26 (13 unaired) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Jeff Martin
Pete Ocko
Rick Kirkman (co-executive producer)
Jerry Scott (co-executive producer)
Producer(s) Claudia Katz
Karen K. Miller
Running time 22 minutes
Production company(s) Split the Difference Productions
King Features Entertainment
Warner Bros. Television
Distributor Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original network The WB
Adult Swim (episodes 9–13)
Picture format 4:3 SDTV
Original release July 28 
August 24, 2000
Episodes 9–13:
January 20, 2002 –
March 10, 2002

Baby Blues is an animated television series, based on the Baby Blues comic strip by Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott, produced by Warner Bros.. The first eight episodes of Baby Blues originally aired in the United States on The WB Television Network from July 28, 2000 until August 24, 2000, before the series cancellation. Five then-unaired episodes were later aired on Adult Swim in 2002. A season consisting of thirteen episodes was produced but never aired.

The animated adaptation of Baby Blues differs from the comic by having it take place when Zoe was still an infant, even though she was the older sister to Hammie in the strip at the time. In addition, it focuses on Darryl and Wanda's relationship with supporting characters created for this series, including the Bittermans (a dysfunctional next-door family with three children), Bizzy (Zoe's babysitter), and Kenny (Darryl's laid-back close friend and co-worker).

Production

Warner Bros. Animation has produced eight of the 13 aired episodes, with overseas animation done by Varga Studio in Hungary for five of them (including the pilot), and Sunwoo Entertainment in Korea for the three others. Rough Draft Studios in Los Angeles did five episodes, which include "Bizzy Moves In", "Rodney Has Two Daddies", "Hurtin' Inside", "Ugly Zoe", and "Wanda Moves Up".[1][2]

In another attempt to compete with Fox's popular animated sitcoms, The WB made the show to be more adult-oriented than the comic strip (by having some sexuality, mild swearing, etc.). Because Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott had little creative control over the animated version, they were not completely pleased about this kind of difference, though Scott said he liked "part of it".[3]

The Baby Blues animated series took nearly five years to develop and produce,[4] and what was initially the pilot, "A Baby Blues Christmas Special" was supposed to air in December 1998, but it was postponed more than once,[5] while other episodes were being ordered and completed. The Christmas episode finally aired on Adult Swim on February 24, 2002. In 1999, the show was almost to be retitled Bluesville, with Scott's unawareness but Baby Blues was kept as the title, given how popular the comic strip is with more than 60 million readers.[3]

Broadcast

The WB typically aired two episodes each week, thus enabling eight different episodes to be shown in the five-week run, but abandoned plans to air additional episodes which had been completed. Previously unaired episodes were later aired on Cartoon Network's late night programming block, Adult Swim, and on Teletoon in Canada. The show was canceled after 13 episodes.

Opening sequence

The opening theme song was a shorter version of "It's All Been Done" by Barenaked Ladies, from their 1998 album Stunt. The title sequence was designed by Renegade Animation,[6] and shows the characters at the Warner Bros. studios.

In the episode "Rodney Has Two Daddies" the song "Alternative Girlfriend" also by Barenaked Ladies was featured during the cooking montage.

Characters

Main

From left to right: Melinda, Carl, Megan, Charlie the dog, Darryl, Wanda, Zoe, Rodney, Kenny, Shelby, and Bizzy.

Minor and recurring

Episodes

Season 1 (2000–02)

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code
1"God Forbid"Shawn BjörklundRobert Kurtz & Eric BrandJuly 28, 2000 (2000-07-28)225-047
After worrying about who should be Zoe's godparents, Wanda designates the Bittermans, their dysfunctional next-door neighbors. However, noting that Darryl and Carl don't get along very well, Melinda invites the MacPhersons to go with her family on a camping trip.
2"Bizzy Moves In"Rich MooreJill SolowayJuly 28, 2000 (2000-07-28)225-048
Wanda is upset when Darryl gives her a minivan for her birthday and starts to hang out with their teenage babysitter Bizzy. Darryl becomes worried about Wanda after she and Bizzy's friends get caught sneaking into the aquarium. Guest starring Drew Carey.
3"Rodney Has Two Daddies"Ron Hughart & Chris SauveTeleplay by: Jeff Martin and Peter Ocko
Story by: Jeff Martin and Peter Ocko and Leonard Dick and Jill Soloway
August 4, 2000 (2000-08-04)225-049
After Wanda asks Carl to help with some repairs around the house Darryl began to feels his masculinity is being threatened, so he teaches Carl's son Rodney (who developed an interest for gourmet food after tasting Darryl's stuffed mushrooms) to cook in secret for Rodney's fear of his dad finding out. Meanwhile, Wanda worries Darryl might be cheating on her.
4"Hurtin' Inside"Susie DietterLeonard DickAugust 4, 2000 (2000-08-04)N/A
Wanda tries to find Bizzy a new boyfriend, since her current boyfriend Ray is a selfish jerk. Meanwhile, Darryl wonders why women seem to prefer jerks to nice guys and Rodney feels alone when Zoe begins to hang around Shelby.
5"The Bitterman Hillbillies"John KafkaJill SolowayAugust 11, 2000 (2000-08-11)225-057
Darryl becomes insanely jealous of Carl when Carl gets a job installing sprinklers at baseball stadiums and becomes wealthy. Wanda thinks that Darryl is acting too selfish until the Bittermans start hiring Bizzy, the MacPherson's babysitter.
6"World's Greatest Dad"Bob CurtisJackie Behan & Jeff FilgoAugust 11, 2000 (2000-08-11)225-052
When Melinda invites Wanda to her ceramic painting class, Darryl takes Zoe with Carl and his kids to Gumdrop Station, a Chuck E. Cheese-style arcade/pizzeria where the star attraction is a buxom, scantily-clad blonde known as "The Birthday Lady".
7"Rodney Moves In"John KafkaJeff Martin & Peter OckoAugust 18, 2000 (2000-08-18)225-051
Feeling unwanted in his family, Rodney moves in with the MacPhersons, who find that he's the only person who keeps Zoe from crying.
8"Ugly Zoe"Brian SheesleyJeff Martin & Peter OckoAugust 24, 2000 (2000-08-24)225-205
Days before an interview with a prestigious preschool, Wanda freaks out when Zoe gets lesions on her head, a scab above her lip, and pink eye. Meanwhile, Darryl tells his boss that the teenage babysitter Bizzy is his wife to be invited onto his boat.
9"Wanda Proof"Shawn BjörklundLeonard DickJanuary 20, 2002 (2002-01-20)225-053
After accidentally breaking off a thermometer in Zoe's rectum and letting Zoe fall off the diaper-changing table, Darryl hires a baby-proofer to keep the house accident-free (and Wanda away from her baby daughter).
10"The Bad Family"John KafkaMatthew WeinerJanuary 27, 2002 (2002-01-27)225-054
After a series of mishaps (Wanda answering the door waving a bottle of her father's liquor around and holding Zoe and Darryl caught in a tree outside the Bittermans' house), the neighbors believe that Wanda and Darryl are irresponsible parents.
11"Teddy-Cam"Bob CurtisLeonard DickFebruary 3, 2002 (2002-02-03)225-055
Darryl installs a camera into a teddy bear to spy on Bizzy while she babysits Zoe.
12"A Baby Blues Christmas Special"Tony CervoneAdam Barr, Jeff Martin & Peter OchsFebruary 24, 2002 (2002-02-24)475-137
In this flashback episode, viewers see how Wanda gave birth to Zoe and how Wanda and Darryl argued over how to raise her kids.
13"Wanda Moves Up"Peter AvanzinoBill FreibergerMarch 10, 2002 (2002-03-10)225-203
Wanda becomes Melinda's business partner when Melinda opens up a shop specializing in clam-shaped knick-knacks (after misinterpreting a Ku Klux Klan engraving on her father's tombstone) while Darryl becomes a stay-at-home dad.

Season 2

A second season of 13 episodes was produced but never aired.[7]

Reception

When Baby Blues aired on The WB, it got moderate to low ratings, resulting in its cancellation in August 2000. The series also received mixed to negative reviews from professional critics. Particularly, on its premiere night, South Coast Today wrote that "'Baby Blues' is hardly perfect. Its teen characters are right out of the MTV/WB playbook; the notion of a nutty family next door is as old as the sitcom hills. But as a slightly silly, slightly sweet summer series that's not afraid to show it has a heart, it more than exceeds even this cranky critic's expectations."[8] David Bianculli of New York Daily News was negative towards Baby Blues, giving it 1 1/2 stars, and called it "depressingly flat". Also in the article, he wrote "Timing and originality, even in comedy, may not be everything - but they count for a lot, and WB's new 'Baby Blues' series doesn't get high marks in either category. First, 'Baby Blues', which premieres with a double header tonight at 8, is an animated prime-time comedy, arriving the summer after a season in which there were too many dull entries in that particular genre. That's bad timing. 'Baby Blues' could overcome that by being funnier than the rest. Unfortunately, it's not. Second, 'Baby Blues', based on the syndicated comic strip by Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott, is a sitcom in two dimensions. That is, it's an animated show in which human beings engage in everyday activities - working, goofing off, sleeping, fighting and so on. At its best, this particular category of animated comedy gives you 'The Simpsons'. At its worst, it gives you 'Clerks'."[9]

John Kiesewetter from the Television Critics Association wrote a negative article on the show. He calls it "an embarrassment to the newspaper comic's loyal readers, all 60 million", and criticizes The WB for turning "the sweet family musings into a cross between Dennis the Menace and Dawson's Creek", and for having it lack "the charm, wit and insights of the daily strip about weary new parents Darryl and Wanda MacPherson, and baby Zoe."[3]

References

  1. "Baby Blues: God Forbid". TV.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  2. "Rough Draft to produce "Baby Blues", fueling rumor of Warner layoffs". Animation World Network. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 "Network puts too much blue in 'Baby Blues'". enquirer.com. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  4. "Baby Blues Celebrates 10 Years!". kingfeatures.com. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  5. "Baby Blues: A Baby Blues Christmas Special (a.k.a. The Christmas)". TV.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  6. The Big Cartoon DataBase (24 February 2002). "Cartoon Characters, Cast and Crew for A Baby Blues Christmas Special (The Christmas)". Big Cartoon DataBase (BCDB). Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  7. http://babyblues.com/more/faq/
  8. "WB's 'Baby Blues' exceeds critic's (low) expectations". southcoasttoday.com. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  9. http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/entertainment/baby-blues-cries-originality-article-1.893527

External links

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