''The Brothers Flub'' is an

animated television series An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have eith ...

produced by

Sunbow Entertainment Sunbow Entertainment (known as Sunbow Productions until 1995) was an American animation studio and distributor, founded on June 23, 1980, and owned until May 4, 1998, by Griffin-Bacal Advertising in New York City and in the United States. Griffin ...

and co-produced by

jigsaw puzzle A jigsaw puzzle is a tiling puzzle that requires the assembly of often irregularly shaped interlocking and mosaiced pieces, each of which typically has a portion of a picture. When assembled, the puzzle pieces produce a complete picture. In t ...

manufacturer

Ravensburger Ravensburger AG is a German game and toy company, publishing house and market leader in the European jigsaw puzzle market. History The company was founded by Otto Robert Maier in Ravensburg, a town in Upper Swabia in southern Germany. He beg ...

. It aired in the United States on the television network

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

. The show's title characters are a pair of alien brothers named Guapo and Fraz, both of whom work as

courier A courier is a person or organisation that delivers a message, package or letter from one place or person to another place or person. Typically, a courier provides their courier service on a commercial contract basis; however, some couriers are ...

s, who travel throughout their universe to deliver packages to a different planet in each episode of the series. It ran from January 16, 1999 until January 8, 2000.

Summary

''The Brothers Flub'' takes place in

outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...

. The show's title refers to its two central characters: a pair of blue-furred

alien Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...

brothers named Guapo and Fraz Flub. Guapo is shorter and fatter than his brother, and is a lighter shade of blue. Both wear bodysuits, shoes and caps. In the series, they work for a company called RetroGrade Interdimensional Couriers, of which a green-colored female alien named Tarara Boomdeyay is the boss. Other characters at their job include a female alien named Valerina and an older orange, male alien named Squish. The brothers, who are

s, travel through their universe in their spacecraft (called the Hoog) to deliver packages to various planets. Each episode features a different planet with a different characteristic, such as "The Land of Oversized Games", which comprises life-sized game pieces such as a pinball machine, or "Hip City", a planet inhabited by

beatnik Beatniks were members of a social movement in the 1950s that subscribed to an anti-materialistic lifestyle. History In 1948, Jack Kerouac introduced the phrase "Beat Generation", generalizing from his social circle to characterize the under ...

aliens.

History

Cindy Barth of the ''

Orlando Business Journal American City Business Journals, Inc. (ACBJ) is an American newspaper publisher based in Charlotte, North Carolina. ACBJ publishes The Business Journals, which contains local business news for 44 markets in the United States, Hemmings Motor News ...

'' said that "although still an untested property, optimism is high for the Brothers Flub" because of Sunbow's record and staff members.Barth, Cindy.
Nickelodeon's Brothers Flub gets local touch
" ''

''. Friday May 29, 1998.

Production

The creators marketed the series for children ages six through eleven.New Kids on the Shelf: Brothers Flub attracts"transdimensional" promo slate
." Promo Magazine. September 1, 1999. Sunbow contracted with Animatics, an

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

-based company, allowing for Animatics to create the storyline and the storyboard for the series. Laura Sullivan, the senior director of marketing of

Sony Wonder Sony Wonder (founded as Sony Kids’ Music) is the kids and family entertainment label of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and the former record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Despite the similarity in name, Sony Wonder is not directl ...

, said in a 1999 ''Promo'' article that the series attracted equal numbers of male and female children and that it was "very Nickelodeon-looking." The series was delayed for a year from its original scheduled debut.

Episodes

Cast

Main cast

* Guapo Flub: Jerry Sroka * Fraz Flub:

Scott Menville Scott David Menville (born February 12, 1971) is an American actor who is known for his voice work in animated films, television series and video games. Life and career Menville was born on February 12, 1971, to television animator and writer ...

* Tarara Boomdeyay:

Charlotte Rae Charlotte Rae Lubotsky (April 22, 1926 – August 5, 2018) was an American character actress and singer whose career spanned six decades. Rae was known for her portrayal of Edna Garrett in the sitcoms '' Diff'rent Strokes'' and its spin-off, ...

* Squish:

Ron Hale Ron Hale (born January 2, 1946) is an American actor best known for his role as Roger Coleridge on the ABC soap opera ''Ryan's Hope'' for its entire run (1975–1989). He played the recurring role of Mike Corbin, the father of mobster Sonny C ...

* Valerina:

Christine Cavanaugh Christine Josephine Cavanaugh (''née'' Sandberg; August 16, 1963 – December 22, 2014) was an American actress, who had a distinctive speaking style and provided the voice for a large range of cartoon characters. She was the original voice of ...

Additional voices

* Richard Horvitz *

Mariette Hartley Mary Loretta Hartley (born June 21, 1940) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for work with Bill Bixby on ''The Incredible Hulk (1978 TV series), The Incredible Hulk'' (1978) and ''Goodnight, Beantown'' (1983–1984), ...

Joe Lala Joseph Anthony Lala (November 3, 1947 – March 18, 2014) was an American musician and actor. In 1966, he co-founded the rock band Blues Image. Life and career Lala was born in Ybor City, Tampa, Florida, to parents from Contessa Entellina (an ...

* John Kassir * Jerry Sroka *

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

Candi Milo Candyce Anne Rose "Candi" Milo (born January 9, 1961) Timestamps: (00:27:12-00:27:45) Milo states that she is "firmly 51". (00:06:40-00:06:47) Milo states that she was born in Palm Springs. (00:16:23-00:16:25) She says her birthday is in Januar ...

Jeff Bennett Jeffrey Glenn Bennett (born October 2, 1962) is an American voice actor who voiced Johnny Bravo in the eponymous television series, Dexter's Dad in ''Dexter's Laboratory'', Brooklyn in '' Gargoyles'' and Kowalski in the '' Penguins of Madagasca ...

H. Richard Greene H. Richard Greene (sometimes credited as "Richard Greene") is an American film, television, and stage actor, acting coach, and guest professor at UCLA. Career Television Roles He has appeared in TV shows such as '' Matlock'', ''According t ...

* Michael Bell *

Pat Fraley Patrick Howard Fraley (born February 18, 1949) is an American voice actor and voice-over teacher, known as the voice of Krang, Casey Jones, Baxter Stockman and numerous other characters in the 1987 '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' animated te ...

Sally Struthers Sally Anne Struthers (born July 28, 1947) is an American actress and activist. She played Gloria Stivic, the daughter of Archie and Edith Bunker (played by Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton) on ''All in the Family'', for which she won two Emm ...

Roger Rose Roger Rose (born August 15, 1958) is an American actor and former VH1 VJ, known for such films as ''Ski Patrol'' and for voice work in animated films and television series such as ''Happy Feet'', ''Rugrats'', ''Scooby-Doo'', '' The Grim Adventure ...

Kevin Michael Richardson Kevin Michael Richardson (born October 25, 1964) is an American actor. Known for his distinctively deep voice, he has mostly voiced villainous characters in animation and video games. In film, Richardson voiced Goro in ''Mortal Kombat'' (1995) ...

Jennifer Darling Jennifer Darling (born Joan Darling; June 19, 1946, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American voice, film and television actress. Her best-known role on screen was as Peggy Callahan in ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' and its spin-off '' The Bio ...

* Bruce Eckstart * Tom Shell * Gayiel Von *

Nick Bakay Nicholas Bakay (; born October 8, 1959) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer and sports commentator. He is known as the voice of Salem Saberhagen on ABC/The WB's ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'', '' Sabrina: The Animated Series'', and N ...

Tress MacNeille Teressa Claire MacNeille (née Payne; born June 20, 1951) is an American voice actress, whose credits include voicing Dot Warner on the animated television series '' Animaniacs'', Babs Bunny on ''Tiny Toon Adventures'', Chip and Gadget Hackwrenc ...

Harvey Korman Harvey Herschel Korman (February 15, 1927May 29, 2008) was an American actor and comedian who performed in television and film productions. His big break was being a featured performer on CBS' '' The Danny Kaye Show'', but he is best remembered ...

Estelle Harris Estelle Harris (''née'' Nussbaum; April 22, 1928 – April 2, 2022) was an American actress and comedienne, known for her exaggerated shrill, grating voice. She was best known for her role as Estelle Costanza on ''Seinfeld''. Her other roles i ...

Marsha Clark Marsha Clark is an American actress, best known for her roles in soap operas, including the second Hillary Bauer on ''Guiding Light'', the third Tina Lord on ''One Life to Live'' and Judge Karen Fitzpatrick on ''Days of Our Lives''. Clark voice ...

: Judy Hen *

Stuart Pankin Stuart Pankin (born April 8, 1946) is an American actor. He is known for his role as anchor Bob Charles in '' Not Necessarily the News'' and as the voice of Earl Sinclair in ''Dinosaurs''. Stuart is also known for his portrayal of Commander Edward ...

Gregg Berger Gregory Alan Berger (born December 10, 1950) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Jecht from ''Final Fantasy X'' and the ''Dissidia Final Fantasy'' games, Grimlock from '' The Transformers'', Mysterio and Kraven the Hunter from '' ...

* Gary Littman *

Vanessa Marshall Vanessa Marshall (born October 19, 1969 in Los Angeles, California, U.S.) is an American voice and television actress who is most active in films, cartoons and video games. She is the daughter of actress Joan Van Ark and reporter John Marshall. ...

* Peter Ratray *

Dee Bradley Baker Dee Bradley Baker (born August 31, 1962) is an American voice actor. Much of Baker's work features vocalizations of animals and monsters. Baker's roles include animated series such as '' Avatar: The Last Airbender'', '' Codename: Kids Next Door'' ...

* Lori Alan * Jim Ward * Billie Hayes * Michael Horton *

Tom Kenny Thomas James Kenny (born July 13, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for voicing the titular character in ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' and associated media. Kenny has voiced many other characters, including Heffer Wolfe in '' ...

* Tommy Widmer: Bob

Crew

Charlie Adler Charles Michael Adler (born October 2, 1956) is an American voice actor and voice director. He is known for his roles as Buster Bunny on ''Tiny Toon Adventures'', Ed and Bev Bighead on '' Rocko's Modern Life'' and Ickis on '' Aaahh!!! Real Mon ...

- Voice Director

Merchandising

''The Brothers Flub'' was used in several promotional deals for various brands. Fast food chain KFC announced that it would use the characters in a kids' meal, while Carl's Jr. and

Hardee's Hardee's Restaurants LLC is an American fast-food restaurant chain operated by CKE Restaurants Holdings, Inc. ("CKE") with locations primarily in the Southern and Midwestern United States. The company has evolved through several corporate ow ...

branded tray liners and bags with ''The Brothers Flub'' images. GNC planned to include ''The Brothers Flub'' yo-yos in its children's vitamins, while department store chain

Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...

used the characters in their back-to-school advertising flyers.

Skechers Skechers USA, Inc. is an American multinational footwear company. Headquartered in Manhattan Beach, California, it was founded in 1992 and is now the third largest footwear brand in the United States. History Skechers was founded in 1992 by Rob ...

started a sweepstakes that distributed Skechers and ''The Brothers Flub''-branded items.

VHS release

Sony Wonder released two videocassettes of the show in 1999. These were entitled ''Plan C: Panic!'' and ''Doom Wears Funny Tights!''. Each one featured four episodes of the series. Both tapes are now out of print and hard to find. VHS releases were planned for the series by Maverick in the United Kingdom, but in the end, no releases came to fruition.

Reception

''The Brothers Flub'' was panned by critics. Joanne Weintraub of the ''

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently o ...

'' described the show as "a rare clinker with all the noisy hyperactivity of ''

Aaahh!!! Real Monsters ''Aaahh!!! Real Monsters'' is an American animated television series developed by Klasky Csupo for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on three young monsters—Ickis, Oblina, and Krumm—who attend a school for monsters under a city dump and learn to ...

'' and little of the cockeyed charm." ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' called it "a somewhat vacuous effort that lacks the charm and substance of much of Nick's other programming" but added "now and again

he creators He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

hit on some clever high jinks." Writing for the ''

Lakeland Ledger ''The Ledger'' is a daily newspaper serving Lakeland, Florida, and the Polk County area. The paper was founded on August 22, 1924, as the ''Lakeland Evening Ledger''. In 1927, it bought its main competitor, the morning ''Lakeland Star-Telegram ...

'', Evan Levine thought that the show had a promising premise, but thought that its humor was mean-spirited.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brothers Flub 1990s American animated television series 1990s American comic science fiction television series 1999 American television series debuts 1999 American television series endings 1999 German television series debuts 1999 German television series endings American children's animated comic science fiction television series American children's animated space adventure television series German children's animated science fiction television series German children's animated space adventure television series Television series by Sunbow Entertainment Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television series set on fictional planets Animated television series about extraterrestrial life Animated television series about brothers Nickelodeon original programming