Pearlie
| Pearlie | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Wendy Harmer |
| Written by |
Wendy Harmer Kim Thompson |
| Voices of |
Marieve Herington Hélène Joy Nathan Stephenson Michelle Monteith Jonathan Wilson Fiona Reid David Berni Christian Potenza Neil Crone Stacey DePass |
| Theme music composer |
Clive Harrison Wendy Harmer |
| Opening theme | "Magic in the City", performed by Louise Anton |
| Country of origin |
Australia Canada |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Cherrie Bottger Scott Dyer Doug Murphy Paul Robertson Donna Andrews Tim Brooke-Hurst |
| Producer(s) |
Jocelyn Hamilton Tracey Dodokin Jennifer Hill Marie-Anne Ridley Rodney Whitham Wendy Harmer |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Sticky Pictures Nelvana |
| Release | |
| Original network |
YTV (Canada) ABC3 (Australia) |
| Picture format | 576i (SDTV) |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original release | 19 September 2009 – 31 January 2011 |
Pearlie is a 2009 Australian-Canadian animated comedy series based on the children's book series Pearlie the Park Fairy by Wendy Harmer.[1] Pearlie is a co-production between Australian children's television producer Sticky Pictures and Canadian animation house Nelvana. The series airs on Australia’s ABC3, in North America by YTV in Canada and Qubo now on NBC in the United States, and in the United Kingdom on Pop Girl. Australian media distributor Madman Entertainment released five DVDs of Pearlie in 2010.
Synopsis
Pearlie is a park fairy appointed by Fairy Headquarters to keep Jubilee Park in order. She is full of over-the-top plans for parties and events for the park and its residents, and as she puts it, "everything has to be perfect" for whatever it is she's planning. She is assisted by Jasper, an elf who prefers to not do any real work. There is also Opal, an outback fairy from Australia sent to learn the ropes of park management from Pearlie.
Pearlie’s cousin Sapphire is jealous of Pearlie’s popularity in the fairy world and desperately wants her to be fired. With her assistant Ludwig, a common bat with a stereotypical Transylvanian accent, Saphira sets out to spoil perky Pearlie’s day any way she can. Pearlie remains oblivious—always thinking the best of her cousin—while Opal and Jasper are aware of Sapphire's plans.
Characters
Fairies
Pearlie
Appointed by Fairy Headquarters, Pearlie is a park fairy who keeps Jubilee Park in sparkling order. Her eyes are green, she has freckles, and her hair is light blonde with light turquoise highlights.
She is the protagonist of the series and she appears in all episodes. Pearlie is a do-gooder with a lot of compassion, kindness with a bubbly personality that is well liked amongst the inhabitants of Jublilee Park. She knows the Fairy Rules and follows them while warning others of "big persons" (humans) as fairies and elves cannot and shouldn't be seen by humans.
Pearlie is well meaning and has fun but of over-the-top plans and parties for the park and its residents and sometimes doesn't listen to her clients needs. Once she does slow down and listen, Pearlie sincerely apologizes changes the plans happily. Some of Pearlie's catchphrases are "stars and moonbeams", "hurley burley", "roots and twigs", and "buds and blossoms!"
She also loves singing and dancing and she always weara a pearly tiara with two colors; causally blue and pink during fancy events. Pearlie has no idea of her cousin's evil plans, always thinking the best of her. She has a crush on an autumn fairy named Leaf, and he likes her as well which is shown in the series. Pearlie's magic wand has a snowflake made of pearls on the tip (hence, the pearl is her namesake).
Opal
Opal is an Australian Outback fairy that is of African heritage who is sent to America by the Fairy Council to learn Advanced Potion Making. She has an Australian accent and uses Australian lingo. Opal does not use a wand, instead she has a magic lasso. Opal lives in a hollow log at the edge of the desert garden within the park. A bit of a tomboy, Opal loves to dance, boots are her favorite footwear and she is also a bug rodeo champion.
Opal knows that Sapphire is mean and has a very conceited attitude which shows that she is always up to no good. Opal makes it known that she dislikes Sapphire and does her best to defend anyone from Sapphire's wrath. Opal can be impatient but she has a big heart who is always there to help her friends and other animals. Opal sometimes gets really irritated at Pearlie who at times gets in over her head when it comes to getting tasks done. Every now and then Opal doesn't think before she does something, but she admits her mistakes and works on them.
Some of her catchphrases are "Look out, bugs! Here comes Lasso Girl!" "Oh, no!" "pay no attention to her, Jasp!" and "I fear that Saphira is up to no good." She loves bugs and reptiles as they are indigenous to Australia. Opal owns a pet frilled lizard called Ned.
Sapphire
Sapphire (pronounced Sapphira in the tv show). Her name is commonly mispelled because of how it is said on the show - even though the books clearly writes her name as Sapphire. She is Pearlie's vain, lazy, evil cousin and the main antagonist of the series. She calls herself the Queen of Darkness, as all she wears is sapphire blue (the same color as her eyes) and black that thinks she can overrule everyone else. Sapphire has been thwarted many times.
She lives in the Jubilee Park greenhouse within Jubilee Park and runs it as a successful, well maintained and gorgeous exclusive spa. Sapphire is jealous of her cousin's cheerful disposition, being on top of things who is well liked, and wants Pearlie fired. Sapphire spends her days plotting new and dastardly ways to sabotage Pearlie at every turn who is totally oblivious to her cousin's motives, but they often lead to Saphira's own undoing. On very rare occasions, she helps Pearlie and her friends.
Sapphire has two ready and willing assistants to do her bidding: one is Ludwig who is a common bat with a stereotypical Transylvanian accent, and the park’s Fairy HQ representative goblin Gobsmack, who will do anything for her. She often berates Ludwig: "shut up, you [insert bad name for Ludwig]!", and there has been times Sapphire was rude to Gobsmack and he didn't notice or care because of his infatuation for her.
In one episode Sapphire fired Ludwig and they were both happy to be away from each other...for a short time. When Pearlie went to check on Sapphire, her hair and clothes were in a disarray, she was bumbling, the greenhouse spa and her room was extremely messy and utterly disorganized. Ludwig was bored and missed Sapphire. Pearlie, Jasper and Opal did their best to get Sapphire to rehire Ludwig which worked.
Some of her catchphrases are "stop fooling around with me!" and "I'll trick them for sure!". She is named after the sapphire gemstone.
Fern
Fern is a wood nymph, with red/orange hair, who is Jasper's crush in the series. She also shares Jasper's love for nature, having a fascination in particular with birds. She is kind, open minded with zen like patience, looks and acts a lot like a 1960s hippie and talks to animals in a chant, saying 'Love, Peace, Trees,' although she only actually does this in 'Trick In the Stick.' She appears in three episodes; 'Trick in the Stick', 'The Fern Turns' and 'Come Fly With Me.' Her wand is a twig.
Great Aunt Garnet
Pearlie’s well-meaning but absent minded great aunt. Garnet runs a store packed full of potions and lotions that always work, just not like they are supposed to. The store is inside a clock tower across the road from the park. Garnet is wise and patient who teaches Pearlie and Opal about potions. She used to be a Fairy Godmother until she retired.
Laverne
Laverne is a fairy dressed in pink and green with green wings on her back. She is a seasonal fairy in charge of Spring and her magic wand is spring-themed. She appears in some episodes and in one of them, inside Saphira's spa, Laverne and Noel fight each other by using magic which angers Sapphire. She is also shown to have a bit of a hot temper in one episode. As revealed in "The Big Sneeze", she also has a megaphone that looks like a flower.
Oriana
Oriana is a plus sized and sweet summer fairy. She wears a skirted bathing suit and carries summer things. In the beginning of one of the episodes she prepares to leave Jubilee Park because summer is over and fall is about to begin.
Leif
Leif is an autumn fairy has a crush on Pearlie who likes him back. Sapphire has a crush on Leif too, though he does not like her at all due to the fact that he knows she has a negative and snide attitude. Leif's hobby is playing the violin which he is very good at. He is also the new fairy of Fall (his uncle Harvey was the Fall fairy before him).
Noel
Noel is the winter fairy with a white mustache. He wears winter clothes that are mostly blue.
Coral
Coral is Pearlie's mother and Saphira's aunt. She is Agate's younger sister. Coral is exactly like Pearlie: fun, sweet, thoughtful, kind but much more mature than her daughter which is to be expected because she an older fairy with lots of life experience. Coral is soft spoken and not as outspoken and brash in a good way as her elder sister Agate. She is dressed in all pink except her undershirt which is white, has a slight Midwestern accent. She has orange wings unlike her daughter. Coral only appears in "Mother Magic" alongside Agate.
Agate
Agate is Pearlie's aunt, Saphira's mother and Coral's big sister. Agate has a loving and good natured, fashionable, smart and funny, stern personality with a witty sarcasm and slight New Jersey accent. She is best friends with her younger sister Coral. Agate loves her daughter Sapphire immensely but will not take any back sass or rudeness from her daughter at all. She only appears in "Mother Magic".
Twinkle-Twinkle
Twinkle-Twinkle is a vain fairy who is the best singing superstar in Jubilee Park. She does sing her songs. She sings, having a tape play the voice she once had. How she lost her voice is unknown. In one of the episodes, she has been tricked by Saphira whose plan was to make her voice sound terrible, (Opal helped, since it would benefit Pearlie, who's been bossed around by Twinkle-Twinkle throughout the episode). It was the only plan that ever worked for Saphira. Pearlie unknowingly helps by pulling the plug on Twinkle-Twinkle's tape player.
Astrid
Astrid is a fairy with blue eyes and black hair. She works as the head of dream department wearing a black suit and skirt and carrying a red toolbox and an orange-redess ladybug phone. Her design is based on Pearlie creator Wendy Harmer.
The Turquoise Fairy
She is a famous fairy author, of very few, but sterm words. The Turquoise Fairy has turquoise eyes, hair and dress that match.
She is first seen stopping Sapphire's magic wand that shone a bright light that exposed Jasper who was hiding. He became human size from using fairy magic when he wasn't supposed to. The Turquoise Fairy's powerful wand changed Japser back to his normal elf size albeit a little smaller.
The Turquoise Fairy then casts a spell on Sapphire's nose that's exactly to that of Pinocchio for sabotaging Pearlie and Opal's efforts to get him back to normal elf size.
Jingle
Jingle is a Christmas fairy and is shown to be the smallest of the fairies. She is based on the Christmas Angel in the books series, made obvious when she flies to the top of the Christmas tree and poses as an angel. She only appears in the Christmas episode.
The Fairy Queen
This fairy is inspired by Queen Elizabeth I. Her first name is Emerald.
Finn
Finn is a tooth fairy that Pearlie and Saphira fall in love with. He appears in at least two episodes.
Prime Minister Puckle
The head of the Grand Fairy Federation. This character is a parody of Kevin Rudd.
Elves
In this show, elves have bees' wings and they can also fly like fairies.
Jasper
Jasper is a garden elf with dreadlocks and as he likes to call it, "A barefoot toe wiggling elf" who can talk to plants. He is bit lazy and is Pearlie's best friend. Although being an elf, he has wings. Because of this he is often mistaken for a fairy, much to his annoyance. He has a crush on Fern and loves nature. His job is to keep the plants and animals in the park happy by doing random activities with them. Jasper lives in an abandoned mailbox at the park gates. Jasper is always trying to get Pearlie to stop her work and smell the roses. His catchphrases are "jeepers creepers!" and "chill, dude, chill." Jasper has been seen with Pearlie in almost every episode.
Sterling
Sterling is a black-haired elf who is initially nice, but later on a sneaky criminal. He tricks Saphira and Ludwig into going out of her place. He steals a magic spell-binding orb. Only seen twice. He has a fear of spiders.
Bats
Ludwig
Ludwig is Saphira's servant bat and sidekick. He cannot live without Saphira and vice versa. He puts up with her tough love as he is infatuated with her. Ludwig has a twin bat brother Johann who lives in the wild (and despite being as German as Ludwig, he speaks with a Scottish accent, though with stereotypical German mispronunciations such as pronouncing /w/ as [v]. His name is also not said with an anglicized pronunciation, and instead with the original German phonetics, "LOOD-vik"), but Ludwig prefers being a house-bat, waiting on Saphira claw and wing. He sleeps in a broom closet. Ludwig also displays an unusual humorous intellect, (e.g. saying "sublimely devious.")
Johan
Johan is Ludwig's brother who has a Scottish accent, compared to his name. He wants Ludwig to have the freedom he wants.
Others
Gobsmack
Gobsmack is the Regional Fairy Inspector, HQ’s representative in Jubilee Park. Panicky Gobsmack is a stickler for the rules, the first to blab if Pearlie’s making a mess of things. Being not a fairy but a goblin, Gobsmack doesn’t fly and instead has the power of teleportation. He ‘pops’ in at the worst possible moments for Pearlie. Gobsmack is easily manipulated by Saphira. He’s always lured in by a free facial or knee buffing in her spa. He enjoys country music. His catchphrase is "Cheese and peanuts!" Gobsmack is also very effeminate, however has a crush on Saphira and helps her to make Pearlie look bad so she can lose her position.
Gadzook
Gobsmack's boss and head goblin. He fires Gobsmack in one episode because he thought Pearlie had everything in the park under control and Gobsmack was not needed. Gobsmack later gets his job back after Gadzook sees him tell Saphira the rules she broke for unauthorized renovations on her greenhouse.
Mo
Mo is a pixie with a black mustache and beard. His aliases are Monsieur Snip and Manuel. He is a criminal wanted for cutting the heads off flowers. Saphira once made a plan for Mo to cut off all of Pearlie's hair, but it doesn't go according to plan (he tries to cut off Jasper's hair instead, to give himself a wig). He only appears in two episodes.
Norville
Norville is a gnome that once filled in for Jasper while he was on a job swap. He appears in the episode "No Place Like Gnome".
Sugar
Sugar is a possum who plays the Bongo drums with Jasper and other possums. And she wonders if Jasper is ever wearing sandals or not. She married Brush in "Possumbillities".
Scrag and Mr. Flea
Scrag and Mr. Flea are "gangsta" rats who spend their days rooting in park garbage for treats. Though a pair of dirty and smelly nuisances, they are respectful towards Pearlie. But in one episode they make their kingdom, "Ratopia", and even drive Saphira to help Pearlie.
Ned
Ned is Opal's pet from the outback, he is an orange frilled neck lizard. Ludwig thought he was a dragon. In the series, he has only had two appearances.
The Ants
This colony of ants has food to carry and different voices and they have a queen of their own. Her name is Ida. The female worker ant has eyelashes.
The Butterflies
This group of characters are colorful and completely feminine. One of the butterflies is named Heather, another is named Iffy and another Sgwiffy.
The Fleas
These characters are a family of opera-singing fleas who live in the rats named Scrag and Mr. Flea. The father flea Placido is named after the famous tenor Plácido Domingo and the mother flea Carmen is named after the title character in the opera.
The Ladybugs
These characters have womanly hairdos due to their femininity. They also have their babies in "Mother Magic".
The Moths
These characters are almost brown and completely masculine. One of the moths is named Malcom. Malcolm is Ludwig's best friend. They play checkers at night together. Pearlie is the only one that knows of their friendship due to the fact that bats usually eat moths. Ludwig does not. Malcolm also appears to have a crush on Heather (a butterfly) in one episode.
The Flowers
These characters are that Pearlie uses a potion so she can talk to them and persuade them to look good for a photo shoot, but they're agumentative towards Pearlie.
Nancy
A centipede with a red body and a black Asian updo on her head. She works as Saphira's massager.
Splish
Splish is a water sprite and Pearlie's neighbor for a week. She lives at the beach. And is only seen in one episode.
Whizzer
Whizzer is a dragonfly who delivers objects around Jubilee Park for Great Aunt Garnet. He wears a mailman's hat.
Crash
A very tough teal-colored fat dragonfly with a pink heart in an arrow tattoo on his arm. His name comes from the fact that he has been involved in many dangerous crashes.
Buggy Holly and the Crickets
A famous rock band who comes to Jubilee Park to put on a rock concert. They are seen in the episode "Bongo Boy" performing in Jubilee Park at a rock concert. He is the lead singer for his band. But then, if the drummer can't perform, they may have to cancel the concert. However, when the regular drummer returns, Jasper is out of the band. They are based on Buddy Holly and the Crickets.
Cast
- Marieve Herington - Pearlie
- Hélène Joy - Opal
- Nathan Stephenson - Jasper
- Michelle Monteith - Saphira
- Jonathan Wilson - Ludwig
- Fiona Reid - Great Aunt Garnite
- David Berni - Gobsmack
- Christian Potenza - Scrag
- Neil Crone - Mr. Flea
- Stacey DePass - Fern
Episodes
| Episode | Title | Summary 1 | Summary 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hurly Burly / Dude Ranch | A desert fairy called Opal moves to Jubilee Park and Pearlie and her elf buddy Jasper welcome her. | Jasper's tree home is sawn down, and so Pearlie must help him find a new home. Scrag and Mr. Flea then take advantage of the situation by making Jasper live in a sewer. |
| 2 | Mothballs / Snip And Snit | Opal is told to host the Full Moon Ball for moths, but Saphira's plans may spoil the celebration. | Gobsmack supposedly captures a criminal fairy called Moe and disguises him as a barber in Saphira's spa. When Pearlie, Jasper, and Opal visit the spa, they notice there is something odd going on. |
| 3 | Dial A Dilemma / Throwing Down | Opal believes a phone is a mystical being when one is dropped in Jubilee Park. | Pearlie talks Jasper into teaching her to throw her voice so she can be everywhere at once. |
| 4 | Tooth Af-fairy / Trick In The Stick | Pearlie fills in for a handsome male tooth fairy called Finn, but she realizes she has forgotten the most important rule of a tooth fairy. | Pearlie mixes up her wand with a wood sprite called Fern and transforms the park into a ravaging jungle. Eventually, the mix-up is fixed at Saphira's spa. |
| 5 | If The Boot Fits / Peruvian Toadstool | Pearlie discovers there's a boot thief in Jubilee Park, and Saphira blames Opal for the disappearing boots. | Jasper loses his memory after an encounter with a rare Peruvian toadstool. |
| 6 | White Shade Of Pale / Flower Talk | A mistake with a magical snowglobe in Aunt Garnet's shop wreaks wintry havoc on Jubilee Park. | Pearlie uses an elf-only potion to talk to flowers so they can look good for a photo shoot. |
| 7 | Dot Between The Eyes / Ratopia | On the eve of the Fairyland Flutter dance, Pearlie gets a nasty pimple. She then becomes partners with an ogre who everyone thinks is hideous. | Scrag and Mr. Flea cause a flood, which makes Pearlie evict them from Jubilee Park. However, they return with some cockroach friends to build a kingdom of trash called 'Ratopia.' |
| 8 | Dragonball Run / The Bitey Bitedown | There is a dragonfly race in Jubilee Park and Pearlie helps a small dragonfly gain confidence to win. | Pearlie tries to get rid of the rats' fleas. Soon, though, it turns into a war. |
| 9 | The Big Doll / Are You Being Served? | Pearlie and her friends find a doll in Jubilee Park and believe it is a being under a spell. | Saphira kicks Ludwig out of her glass spa. |
| 10 | Ant Misbehavin' / Frilled Neck And Neck | Pearlie tries to teach some ants to relax from their work, which angers the Ant Queen and causes her to side with Saphira. | Opal's frilled lizard friend from the Outback, Ned, escapes and wreaks havoc in Jubilee Park. |
| 11 | Fairytastic Fall / The Fern Turns | Pearlie tries to keep everyone calm when the Fall Fairy does not arrive on time. | Fern the wood sprite returns to Jubilee Park in search of a rare and mysterious bird. |
| 12 | Dream On / No Place Like Gnome | A nightmare escapes in Jubilee Park and Pearlie must catch it. | Jasper changes jobs with a garden gnome. |
| 13 | Rat-Tanic / No Swimming Allowed | Scrag and Mr.Flea set up a cruise ship in an old watermelon, but when the melon gives way, their plans are spoiled. | One of Aunt Garnet's potions wreaks havoc at Pearlie's pool party. |
| 14 | Twinkle Twinkle Diva Star / Secrets And Whispers | Pearlie welcomes star singer Twinkle Twinkle to Jubilee Park until she reveals she is a fraud. | Pearlie plans a surprise party for Opal. |
| 15 | Hide And Go Eek / Dust Busters | Pearlie is turning Saphira's glass house into a haunted house for the Summertime Fairy Fair. | Pearlie spills the last of Garnet's fairy dust. |
| 16 | Roller Fairy / Fairy Factor | The park becomes a no-winged zone for flying creatures so Jasper makes roller skates for everyone. | Saphira is jealous of Pearlie's certificates, so she creates a housekeeping diploma. |
| 17 | Bongo Boys / Prickly Friends | Jasper accepts an offer to play the bongos in a fairy band, until he finds out it isn't what he thought it would be. | A cactus growing causes an argument between Jasper and Opal. |
| 18 | Fairy Godmother Bother / Go Go Gobsmack | Aunt Garnet's magic goes wildly wrong and turns the park into a fairytale land. | Gobsmack loses his job and needs to prove himself worthy to get it back. |
| 19 | Sterling Effort / Elf Prankin' | Pearlie is suspicious of Jasper's new friend. | Jasper is blamed for pranks all over Jubilee Park. |
| 20 | Spriteful / Love Bites | Pearlie's patience is tested with a new neighbor, a fun-loving water sprite who parties all night. | A love bug escapes to Jubilee Park and causes people to fall in love with each other. |
| 21 | Mother Magic / Buckin' Bronco | Pearlie's mother Coral visits Jubilee Park for a celebration. | Opal's star rodeo cockroach disappears. |
| 22 | Ludwig In The Wind / The Big Sneeze | When Ludwig goes missing, Pearlie searches for him. | Pearlie wants to help out with spring chores, but she has a cold. |
| 23 | Socks In the City / Possumbilities | Three fashionistas visit Jubilee Park, but then Pearlie reveals a fraud. | Pearlie's plans for a possum wedding are wrecked by a nervous bride. |
| 24 | Rose Petal Pearlie / Come Fly With Me | Pearlie and Saphira compete for the best rose petal muffins in Jubilee Park. | Jasper steals a child's airplane for a romantic ride with Fern, but Scrag and Mr. Flea try to spoil his plans. |
| 25 | Hideous Halloween / Super Sized Elf | Pearlie and her friends hide in a magical jack-o-lantern on Halloween Night. | Jasper meddles with magic and makes himself giant. |
| 26 | Jingle Bell Park / Starlight Spectacular | Pearlie welcomes Jingle, the new Christmas Fairy, to the park. | Pearlie hosts a display in Jubilee Park. |
References
- ↑ Bodey, Michael: Wendy Harmer's big TV double, The Australian, 7 September 2009.