The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack was an American animated television series for Cartoon Network that premiered on June 6, 2008. The show was created by cartoonist Mark "Thurop" Van Orman, who has worked as a writer and storyboard artist on other shows such as Camp Lazlo and The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy.
Premise
As a child, Van Orman spent three years living near a bayou, where he was forbidden to socialize with a local fisherman. Disobeying his parents, Van Orman would visit the fisherman, who would tell tales of the sea. When he was 13, his family moved to Utah, but he was able to convince his parents to allow him to go back to Florida and stay with some family friends. During this time, Van Orman found a boat, and took it out in the middle of the night. Eventually getting lost, it took him three days to finally return. When he related these stories to his friends, they were more interested in the disasters and "misadventures" than if everything had gone as planned.[1]
Van Orman also was fascinated by Dairy Queen commercials, which depicts landscapes made of ice-cream. He wanted to explore those fantasy lands, not so much to eat the ice-cream, but just for sheer exploration.[2]
The backgrounds were chosen to be reminiscent of the 1800s. The three main protagonist, Flapjack, K'nuckles and Bubbie are drawn in a more "cartoony" style than the rest of the world, who are drawn in a more realistic manner. This lends contrast between the world of Flapjack and the real world of Stormalong Harbor. K'nuckles is developed as a good for nothing, with Bubbie being more sincere, also lending character contrast between the main characters of the show.[3] To add more contrast, the tough guys of the show are depicted as hunting candy, which is the real treasure.[2]
The humor is considered "uncomfortable", building an awkwardness and deliberately misleading the appearance of the situation, before delivering the punchline.[4]
Characters
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Flapjack | Flapjack is an excitable, adventure-loving boy who was raised by Bubbie, a talking whale. Despite her warnings, Flapjack is spellbound by K'nuckles' stories and has set his sights on becoming a real adventurer. He seems to admire K'nuckles very much and considers him a good friend, even though K'nuckles tends to deceive him.Voiced by Thurop Van Orman. |
| Captain K'nuckles | Captain K'nuckles is a washed-up, old sailor who claims to be the greatest adventurer the world has ever known. He is always telling outrageous tales of his adventures and getting Flapjack wrapped up in his high seas hijinks, though he is also fond of Flapjack. His name is pronounced as it's spelled (the initial /K/ is not silent). Voiced by Brian Doyle-Murray. |
| Bubbie | Bubbie is a talking whale who acts like an over-protective mother to Flapjack. She prefers the safety of Stormalong to the dangers of the open seas, but Bubbie is always there for Flapjack, no matter what kind of trouble K'nuckles gets him into. Voiced by Roz Ryan. |
| Peppermint Larry | Peppermint Larry is the overly-friendly owner of the Candy Barrel who supplies candy to Flapjack and K'nuckles. When they don't have money for candy, Larry feeds them unreliable clues to help them find Candied Island. Larry is married to his beloved candy-wife, who is a source of his frequent bouts of paranoia and psychosis. On numerous occasions, he's made it clear that he hates pickles. Voiced by Jeff Bennett. |
| Doctor Barber | Doctor Barber is the local doctor, surgeon, and barber in Stormalong Harbor. It was later revealed that he also performs surgery. |
Episodes
Main article: The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack/Episodes
References
- ↑ "Mark "Thurop" Van Orman Interview: Part One" (video). Cartoon Network. http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/video/dlink/index.html?episodeID=8a25c39219b852e00119b96628770014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Mark "Thurop" Van Orman Interview: Part Four" (video). Cartoon Network. http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/video/dlink/index.html?episodeID=8a25c3921a29a567011a2a93940f0003.
- ↑ "Mark "Thurop" Van Orman Interview: Part Two" (video). Cartoon Network. http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/video/dlink/index.html?episodeID=8a25c39219bd7cc00119be8257e50034.
- ↑ "Mark "Thurop" Van Orman Interview: Part Three" (video). Cartoon Network. http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/video/dlink/index.html?episodeID=8a25c3921a29a567011a2a93940f0003.
External links
- Official Website
- Promotional Page
- CN Upfront (Go to "New Shows", then click show's logo)
- Interview with creator Mark "Thurop" Van Orman
- Review of 'The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack' at AnimationInsider.net
- Cartoon Network Pressroom: Oh Buoy! Cartoon Network Swabs its Decks to Premiere The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack