The Electric Company (2009 TV series)
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''The Electric Company'' is an American television series produced by
Sesame Workshop Sesame Workshop (SW), originally known as the Children's Television Workshop (CTW), is an American nonprofit organization that has been responsible for the production of several educational children's programs—including its first and best-know ...
and developed by Karen Fowler. It is a reboot of the 1971 series of the same name. The series ran on
PBS Kids Go! PBS Kids Go! was an educational television brand used by PBS for programs aimed at early elementary-age children, in contrast to the younger, preschool target demographic of PBS Kids. Most PBS member stations aired the PBS Kids Go! block on we ...
from January 19, 2009, to April 4, 2011, with reruns continuing on PBS until August 31, 2014. The series aired reruns on
HBO Kids ''HBO Kids'' (formerly ''Jam'') is an American preschool/children's television morning block operated by Home Box Office, Inc. (HBO), a division of Warner Bros. Discovery. The block runs on HBO Family, HBO's sister station that targets children a ...
on
HBO Family Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
from January 1, 2016, until November 1, 2020, as part of HBO's deal with Sesame Workshop. On some services, the series is called ''The New Electric Company'' to distinguish it from the 1971–77 series.


Conception

The new version has similar short animations, sketches, and music videos to those seen in the original show, but each episode also features a story line designed to teach four to five vocabulary words with a mix of hip-hop- or
contemporary R&B Contemporary R&B (or simply R&B) is a popular music genre that combines rhythm and blues with elements of pop, soul, funk, hip hop, and electronic music. The genre features a distinctive record production style, drum machine-backed rhythm ...
-style music. Each story revolves around the Electric Company, a group of tween and teen literacy heroes who battle a group of neighborhood vandals dubbed the Pranksters. The heroes' headquarters is the Electric Diner, where their friend Shock, a
beat-boxing Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum machines (typically a TR-808), using one's mouth, lips, tongue, and voice.
short-order cook who also appears in the short-form segments, resides. In a nod to the original series, each episode's opening has a Company member call on the others to assemble by yelling "Hey, you guys!!"—a line that (as yelled by
Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...
) led off the opening sequence of seasons two, five, and six.
Davis, Michael. “PBS Revives a Show That Shines a Light on Reading.” ''The New York Times'', Vol. CLVII, No. 54,308, p. E2, 5/12/2008. Retrieved from NYTimes.com on May 12, 2008.
In one episode, an actor who plays one of the Pranksters yells the opening line, as her normal character had switched bodies with one of the Electric Company members. Other nods to the original series include appearances by Paul the Gorilla and updated versions of the soft-shoe silhouette segments in which words are sounded out. The revival includes interactive Web elements and is promoted and extended via community-outreach projects. The first season consisted of 28 weekly episodes. An additional season of twelve more episodes began airing in January 2010. A third and final season debuted on February 7, 2011, and ended on April 4, 2011, with new Company member Marcus and new Prankster Gilda. Later episodes omit Jessica saying the five words and went straight to the episode. Later re-airings of "The Flube Whisperer," "He's Not Frozen, He’s Immobile," "Dirty Laundry," "Out to Launch," "Lost and Spaced," "Franscent," "Trouble Afoot," "Gravity Groove," "The Orangachoke," and all airings of the third season were focused on both expressive reading and the five Ws. The season was debuted in late January 2012 and the re-airings were debuted in late 2013.


Characters


Main


The Electric Company

The Electric Company consists of a group of four friends who protect the neighborhood from the Pranksters. They all have the power to throw wordballs, blue magical balls that create words on any surface. Each member has a special skill. * Hector Ruiz (played by
Josh Segarra Josh Segarra (born June 3, 1986) is an American actor. He is known for his roles on the television series ''The Electric Company'', ''Sirens'', and ''Arrow'' as well as for originating the role of Emilio Estefan in the musical ''On Your Feet!''. ...
) is the oldest member and leader of the Electric Company, who has the power to replay any image that he sees, much like a video camera. Hector is very athletic, showing particular skill at basketball. He once had a fear of beetles. In season 3, he becomes the new owner of the Electric Diner. Hector is always the one to go to if there is trouble, and he also has a strong rivalry with Manny due to a limerick contest many years ago, going back to when they were kids. He is friendly with Danny, even though they share a similar rivalry. * Jessica Ruiz (played by Priscilla "Star" Diaz) is Hector's younger sister who is a talented rapper. Jessica has a power similar to her brother's – she can replay any word or phrase that she hears, much like a tape recorder. Jessica is confident, yet occasionally brash, especially when it comes to dealing with the Pranksters, particularly Manny. She loves to rap. She also looks after Marcus, as he is the youngest and newest member of the Electric Company. Jessica became the host of the vocabulary segment at the beginning of each episode starting with "The Limerick Slam". * Keith Watson (played by Ricky Smith) is a member of the Electric Company who can generate images in mid-air, which especially comes in handy when explaining difficult words, and can also magnify images as well. Keith is logical and level-headed and frequently creates solutions for dealing with the Pranksters' tricks. Keith is good at basketball, like Hector. Keith first discovered his power while playing Horse with Hector when saying he wanted an E and threw a wordball at the word. His father was the original owner of the Electric Diner. * Lisa Heffenbacher (played by
Jenni Barber Jenni Barber (born July 22, 1983) is an American actress and singer best known for her performances in musical theatre and for her role as Lisa Heffenbacher on ''The Electric Company'' (2009 - 2011). Early life Barber was born in Mansfield, O ...
) is a well-liked girl who has the power to unscramble any anagram that she finds. Lisa is very smart and excels at science. She has a strong and constant rivalry with Annie, since the latter caused numerous headaches for her. In the season 3 premiere, it is revealed in a hovering TV screen that she is traveling with a science program. However, Hector keeps her posted with what's happening in the neighborhood. She was seemingly written off the show, although Jenni Barber did do a few educational commercials for ''The Electric Company'' during that season. * Marcus Barnes (played by Coy Stewart) is the newest and youngest member of the Electric Company, who made his introduction in season 3. He first discovered his wordball power while playing baseball. He has math skills as his powers and uses them to effectively solve math problems. He likes numbers, has good athletic abilities, and always has a craving for waffles with a love of pickles. Francine suspiciously refers to him as Marty Farms.


Allies

* Shock (played by
Chris "Shockwave" Sullivan Chris "Shockwave" Sullivan is an American actor and vocal percussionist. He is best known as being a regular cast member on the American children's public television show ''The Electric Company'' as Shock. His work on the show includes beatboxi ...
) is a short-order cook at the Electric Diner, where the Company converges when trouble occurs. Shock rarely speaks directly, instead he beatboxes and uses his hands to act out ideas. In later episodes, however, he speaks normally. He appears in some segments with Jessica, particularly the closing segment. * P.J. Watson (played by
Kyle Massey Kyle Orlando Massey (born August 28, 1991), also known mononymously as Massey, is an American actor. He starred in the Disney Channel sitcoms ''That's So Raven'' and its spin-off ''Cory in the House'', in which he played Cory Baxter. Massey st ...
) is Keith's eccentric cousin who appeared in season 2. He starred in Lisa's movie and got help from her to write a paper from back home about an old Western story in a refrigerator. * Leo Watson (played by L. Steven Taylor) is the proprietor of the Electric Diner and Keith's father. In Season 3, he opens up a new restaurant and passes the diner to Hector, who becomes the owner. * The Great Calvero (played by
Jason Antoon Jason Allan Antoon (born November 9, 1971) is an American actor. Personal life Antoon was born in Santa Monica, California. He is of Lebanese descent. Antoon has been married to actress Seana Kofoed since 2010; they have two children. Career S ...
) is the local magician who performs in the park. * Bandini is Calvero's brother, who was trapped in a painting, but the Electric Company got him out of the painting and reunited him with Calvero. * Mario (played by
Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, playwright and filmmaker. He is known for creating the Broadway musicals ''Hamilton'' (2015) and ''In the Heights'' (2005), and the soundtracks for the Disney animate ...
) is Shock's best friend and a hip-hop MC. He makes guest appearances along with Shock in some musical segments. * Sammy Spamboni is Manny's younger brother, who was frozen by Manny many times but gave the Electric Company advice on to how unfreeze Keith. * Paul the Gorilla (played by Steven Freitas) was a recurring character on the original show and was the only character brought back for the new series. In the new incarnation, however, he is far more restrained and less vocal. * Dax (played by James Miles) is a Skeleckian and a good friend of Lisa's who sometimes gets the company tied up in his issues, such as getting shrunk and having a steering wheel stolen, and almost getting some cheese stolen by the Pranksters. * Polly Hashimoto (played by
Ann Harada Ann Harada (born February 3, 1964) is an American actress and singer who was first known for the musical ''Avenue Q'', in which she originated the role of Christmas Eve, the heavily accented Japanese therapist. Early life Harada was born in Ho ...
) is a local author whose books are found in the library. She appears in the episode "One Smart Cookie." * Emily is a friend of Marcus Barnes who dresses as
George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...
during the 4th of July celebration in one episode. * Wiki Wiki Walter is Shock's old friend who appeared in an episode as the titular character. It is revealed that he was the one who taught Shock how to beatbox. However, after Shock beats him in a beatboxing match, he called off their relationship. They eventually reconciled near the end of the episode. * Charles Abercrombie is the head of the Block association who camp to Sigmund's tent for petitions signed by neighbors of to remove the tent permanently because of the welcoming. * Benny is Hector and Jessica's pet dog. * Amy Scrambler is Annie's younger sister who Annie babysat in "He's Not Frozen, He's Immobile". * Jules is Jessica's old friend who moved Minnehaha where they held the Hamster Olympics. She came to visit for Jessica's birthday.


The Heffenbacher Family

The following family members only appear in the second-season episode: * Caroline (played by
Deborah Rush Deborah Rush (born April 10, 1954) is an American actress. She has worked in television, film and on Broadway. In 1984, she was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for Michael Frayn's comedy ''Noises ...
) is Lisa's mother. When asked, she reveals the family tree of the Heffenbachers and then says to her daughter that Cordelia was a traitor. * Mildred is Lisa's aunt. She generously allows her niece and her friends to find out about Cordelia. * Cordelia Heffenbacher (also portrayed by Jenni Barber) is Lisa's great-great-great-great-great-great aunt. She was first mentioned by Annie Scrambler saying that she was a traitor, but Lisa proves that Annie was wrong. Cordelia distracted the British Redcoats by offering them donuts.


The Pranksters

The Pranksters are the Electric Company's enemies. Unlike the Electric Company, only Francine has the ability to throw word balls, and the Pranksters are only occasionally seen all together. * Francine Carruthers (played by
Ashley Austin Morris Ashley Austin Morris (born Ashley Morris, ) is an American comedian, playwright, and stage, television, and film actress. She is best known for her role as Francine Carruthers in the revival of the PBS Kids children's series ''The Electric Co ...
) is the vandalistic leader of the Pranksters. She has the same power as the Electric Company—the ability to generate wordballs, except that hers are
violet Violet may refer to: Common meanings * Violet (color), a spectral color with wavelengths shorter than blue * One of a list of plants known as violet, particularly: ** ''Viola'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants Places United States * Viol ...
. Francine has a very high opinion of her own intelligence. Most of her plots involve making herself look good at the expense of the company. In Season 3, she gets an assistant named Gilda Flip. She usually calls Marcus "Marty Farms" and usually gets 100 to 200 presents for her birthday. * Annie Scrambler (played by Sandie Rosa) is a girl who is frequently envious of the accomplishments of others. She has the power to scramble any word or sentence with a stomp of her foot which results in making new words, but sometimes she scrambles existing words to create nonexistent ones. Annie is often jealous of the Electric Company's good luck and sometimes works with her Uncle Sigmund, who is a noted hypnotist, to get back at her rivals. She will work with the Electric Company if she has to, such as to help her uncle out in "Bananas". * Danny Rebus (played by
William Jackson Harper William Fitzgerald Harper (born February 8, 1980), known professionally as William Jackson Harper, is an American actor and playwright. He is best known for his role as Chidi Anagonye on the NBC comedy ''The Good Place'' (2016–2020), for which ...
) is a suave, sophisticated Prankster. He can turn any sentence into a rebus puzzle. Most of his messages make fun of the Electric Company. Danny is very proud, yet has a touchy personality, being easily offended. He often accuses the Electric Company of making him look bad, promising vengeance. He has helped the Electric Company out on occasion when it benefits him. Despite being a Prankster, he is also the most moral member of the group. He is very loyal to whomever he considers his friend, although he feels he has to have a best friend, saying the Danny Rebus way is all or nothing. He seems to genuinely care about whoever is nice to him, not caring if they're pranksters or not. * Manny Spamboni (played by Dominic Colón) is the loudest of the Pranksters. He is the only member of the group (excluding Gilda) that does not have any powers, but he is quite skilled in the art of
robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be c ...
ics and
mechanic A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars. Duties Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning and r ...
s. Manny is rude and crude, and uses his many gadgets to make trouble for the Electric Company. He is thought the world of by his mother, who says he is her "little angel," although she has put him in his place on occasion, such as chastising him for cheating at a limerick competition. Underneath this tough exterior, Manny does have a soft side. He genuinely cares for whatever he values in his heart, and formed a friendship with Jessica over The Mighty Bright Night for an episode. Due to his selfishness, his and Jessica's friendship appeared to come to an end. * Gilda Flip (played by
Carly Rose Sonenclar Carly Rose Sonenclar (born April 20, 1999), who performs under the name Carly Rose, is an American singer, songwriter and an actress. In December 2012, she became the runner-up on the second season of ''The X Factor''. Early and personal life ...
) is the newest member of the Pranksters and Francine's assistant. Like Manny, she doesn't appear to have any powers, and her only gadget is her Flip Phone. Instead, she has a natural talent for planning as well as a wide variety of other small talents.


Allies

* Sigmund Scrambler (played by
Mark Linn-Baker Mark Linn-Baker (born June 17, 1954) is an American actor and director who played Benjy Stone in the film ''My Favorite Year'' and Larry Appleton in the television sitcom '' Perfect Strangers''. Early life and education Mark Linn-Baker was bor ...
) is Annie's uncle, who works as a hypnotist. He is slightly bumbling, but he helps Annie in her pursuit of bothering the Electric Company. * Sandy Scrambler (played by
Ana Gasteyer Ana Kristina Gasteyer (born May 4, 1967) is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1996 to 2002. She has since starred in such sitcoms as ABC's ''Suburgatory,'' TBS's '' People of Earth'', NBC's ' ...
) is Annie's aunt, who is a hypnotist like Sigmund Scrambler. * Antigone Carruthers (played by Julie Halston) is Francine's mother, who is the CEO of the Antigone Carruthers Corporation. She usually calls the Electric Company the Electricians. Like Francine, she has an inflated opinion of her own importance, and her idea of punishment for Francine's misdeeds are considered incredibly lenient by the Electric Company. * Mrs. Bebe Spamboni (played by
Andréa Burns Andréa Burns (born February 21, 1971) is an American actress and singer best known for her portrayal of the hairdresser Daniela in Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical ''In the Heights'', as Carmen in Douglas Carter Beane's ''The Nance'', and as Mrs. ...
) is Manny's mother. She thinks the world of Manny like any mother would, but does never approve when he cheats. * Sandy Rebus is Danny's dog who gave the Electric Company a note in the episode "Pies for Puppies." * Buster Spamboni are the Spamboni's dog mentioned by Sammy telling his brother he forgot to walk him. * Mrs. Scrambler is Annie and Amy's mother mentioned by Bebe and Amy.


Animated characters


The Adventures of Captain Cluck

* Captain Cluck (voiced by Isabella Palmieri) is a chicken-themed child superhero who has brown hair with high short curled pigtails, and wears a pink outfit with a matching mask and cape and also a star belt. She has the ability to correct things. In the "apostrophe-s" segment, passing ten minutes, she arranges a restaurant for all her chickens with separate plates to show whose corn belongs to. * The Poultry Patrol are the chickens who belong to Captain Cluck. In one of the segments, they all have female names revealed with apostrophes and "s" at the end because they're hens. They are named Amy, Fay, Fran, Gin, Helen, Jan, Jen, Jean, Joan, June and Nan. Only one has not been named. * The Lost Girl is a young black girl who only appears in the comma segment in which she is confused as she looks at her shopping list. * Greg is a boy listening to music in headphones. He has been yelled at by his best friend. * Farmer and Animals - He was confused on gender pronouns of his bull and cow, as well as not getting it right with his ducks, horses, pigs and sheep. * Cheerleaders - The squad of five were very confused about the pronouns they and them. * Baby and Mom - The Mother says the baby had a hard time understanding quotation marks.


Pets Home Alone

* Donny is a yellow canary with green wings and a matching tail. Donny likes to call all of his fur-covered friends, "Fuzzball" and plays with Nuggets' hamster ball to pretend to be an astronaut. * Nuggets is a magenta hamster who appears in some live action backgrounds. * Petunia is a blue bulldog. She wears a pink hairbow. She sits right next to the Green-Skinned Mummy from "Haunted House" in the live-action bench and she does never like taking baths. * Tom is an orange cat. He is very nice and shy and knows how to use a laptop and knows the website "NachosforPets.com" and he put himself in the nachos after Nuggets rushed through the word tomatoes for Tom. He dressed as a pencil dressed as a monster for Halloween.


Haunted House

* Werewolf (voiced by
Leslie Carrara-Rudolph Leslie Carrara, sometimes credited as Leslie Carrara-Rudolph or the misspelling Leslie Carrera-Rudolph, is an American actress, performer, puppeteer, speaker, singer and artist. She is probably best known as a Muppet performer on ''Sesame Street' ...
) is a
werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely or ...
with brown fur. He lives in a haunted house with Bat and Mummy. He has a black kitten named Mr. Sprinkles who Mummy and Bat babysat. *
Bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most ...
(voiced by
Leslie Carrara-Rudolph Leslie Carrara, sometimes credited as Leslie Carrara-Rudolph or the misspelling Leslie Carrera-Rudolph, is an American actress, performer, puppeteer, speaker, singer and artist. She is probably best known as a Muppet performer on ''Sesame Street' ...
) is the only flying monster. He lives in a haunted house with Werewolf and Mummy. Bat was once given a present by a monster which turned out to be a mini-version of the monster. * Mummy (voiced by
Leslie Carrara-Rudolph Leslie Carrara, sometimes credited as Leslie Carrara-Rudolph or the misspelling Leslie Carrera-Rudolph, is an American actress, performer, puppeteer, speaker, singer and artist. She is probably best known as a Muppet performer on ''Sesame Street' ...
) is a green-skinned
mummy A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the recovered body does not decay fu ...
who wears toilet paper. He has an Indian accent. He lives in a haunted house with Bat and Werewolf. Mummy's favorite dessert is pie. * Aunt Hildegard is a green-skinned
witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...
with a turbo
broomstick A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...
. She also has red
goggles Goggles, or safety glasses, are forms of protective eyewear that usually enclose or protect the area surrounding the eye in order to prevent particulates, water or chemicals from striking the eyes. They are used in chemistry laboratories and ...
for her flight.


Others

* The Three Orangutans (voiced by Dominic Colón,
Jenni Barber Jenni Barber (born July 22, 1983) is an American actress and singer best known for her performances in musical theatre and for her role as Lisa Heffenbacher on ''The Electric Company'' (2009 - 2011). Early life Barber was born in Mansfield, O ...
and
Josh Segarra Josh Segarra (born June 3, 1986) is an American actor. He is known for his roles on the television series ''The Electric Company'', ''Sirens'', and ''Arrow'' as well as for originating the role of Emilio Estefan in the musical ''On Your Feet!''. ...
) demonstrate things with words that start with "gr", "fl," or "dr"; have "oo" or "ink"; or end with "mb," "ing," or "ed." * Special Agent Jack Bowser (voiced by
Tyler Bunch Tyler Bunch, also known as H.D. Quinn, is an American puppeteer, puppet designer, director, and actor. Career In addition to his work for the Jim Henson Company, Bunch has created and performed puppets for PBS, Nickelodeon and Disney's Th ...
) is a blue android
dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...
who wears a black
sweater A sweater (North American English) or pullover, also called a jumper (British English and Australian English), ...
with a white horizontal stripe on it and is trapped in the treats/things. As he tells us that something is about to explode, he utters, "I can't crack the code to get out! Help me read this." This sketch is a parody of the TV series '' 24'' and in fact each sketch lasts 24 seconds. * Music Man (played by
Reggie Watts Reginald Lucien Frank Roger Watts (born March 23, 1972) is an American comedian, actor, beatboxer, and musician. His improvised musical sets are created using only his voice, a keyboard, and a looping machine. Watts refers to himself as a "disinf ...
) is a deep-voiced singer who appears in many segments. He is the only character from the first two seasons to appear in the third season since he appeared in "Wordball Games" fully animated in a different style of
Flash animation Adobe Flash animation or Adobe Flash cartoon (formerly Macromedia Flash animation, Macromedia Flash cartoon, FutureSplash animation, and FutureSplash cartoon) is an animation that is created with the Adobe Animate (formerly Flash Professional) p ...
and actually had spoken dialogue for the first time. His new segments involve him doing some chores for his space alien neighbor and his pesky neighbor, Pesky Eddie, or he'd get zapped and lose one life, by saying the subtitled instructions the alien stated. The segments are made in the style of a video game; where at the opening, Music Man loses his first life and only has two lives left. * The Pet Shop Owner is a wacky pet owner who owns many unusual pets, which causes his customers to leave. His customers was a white girl, black boy, Latino boy, and Asian girl. It was also revealed his brick, pickle, and jug are alive and can move. This segment was replaced with "Pets Home Alone." * Josephine is an
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
girl who wants to sell things to the people and the mummy who live in houses. * Felix and Oscar are an animated take-off of ''
The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to: Neil Simon play and its adaptations * ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon ** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play *** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...
'' and appear in many segments. Felix is an elderly man wearing a green shirt who makes comments and Oscar is the dim-witted, lanky, and tall teen-aged boy who lives with Felix and has to live without most of his teeth, socks, or deodorant. Although their names aren't revealed, Felix was referred to as Old Man in one episode. * The Two-Headed Long-Necked
Monster A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...
is completely female and skilled at
skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...
, and has light-green skin. In addition to calling each other dude, they often argue about the jacket they're wearing. One head with red eyes, lips, and
antenna Antenna ( antennas or antennae) may refer to: Science and engineering * Antenna (radio), also known as an aerial, a transducer designed to transmit or receive electromagnetic (e.g., TV or radio) waves * Antennae Galaxies, the name of two collid ...
e wants it zipped while the other head with blue eyes, lips, and antennae wants it unzipped. They both end up down the hill blaming each other and their purple hooded jacket loses its
zipper A zipper, zip, fly, or zip fastener, formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding together two edges of textile, fabric or other flexible material. Used in clothing (e.g. jackets and jeans), luggage and other Bag, ba ...
. * Wrack and Wreck are green and blue
robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be c ...
s who love watching TV and eating bolts as a snack. * Ray and Fay are blue monsters with horns on their heads. Ray tries to offer flowers to Fay who's sitting in a bench. She wears
pigtail A woman with long pigtails and braids. In the context of hairstyles, the usage of the term pigtail (or twin tail or twintail) shows considerable variation. The term may refer to a single braid, but is more frequently used in the plural ("pi ...
s.


Prankster Planet

An animated segment was shown at the end of each episode starting in 2011 and 2012, respectively. Prankster Planet eventually supplanted the live show – actors were no longer employed, but Sesame Workshop continued to have Prankster Planet cartoons made. Jessica and Marcus visit the Pranksters' space base, where the Pranksters have full power to build inventions to damage words. Now without powers, Jessica and Marcus have to use their wits to turn off the inventions. Although they overcome the obstacles, the Pranksters catch up to them and prevent them from reaching the switch. The viewer is then encouraged to play an online game (now no longer available), in which you test your wits as well. The segment focuses more on measurement (in various forms) than the rest of the show. The first series of segments features Manny Spamboni's Wordsuckeruppenator which enables him to access all the words in the world. Multiple Pranksters appear to defend the off buttons. The second series of segments features Francine's Reverse-a-Ball machine, which reverses words. In this series, Francine watches Jessica and Marcus, along with a studio audience of Manny's robots. "Survey Time" is announced so the audience can vote on an obstacle for the duo, which is graphed. In the episodes alongside, three words reverse, which is shown at the end.


Celebrity Cameos

The celebrities who have appeared on the show include
Pete Wentz Peter Lewis Kingston Wentz III (born June 5, 1979) is an American musician best known as the bassist and lyricist for the rock band Fall Out Boy since 2001. Before Fall Out Boy, Wentz was a fixture of the Chicago hardcore scene and was the lea ...
,
Samantha Bee Samantha Anne Bee (born October 25, 1969) is a Canadian-American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actress, and television host. Bee rose to fame as a correspondent on ''The Daily Show with Jon Stewart'', where she became the ...
,
Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...
,
Kelly Ripa Kelly Ripa (; born October 2, 1970) is an American actress and talk show host. Since 2001, she has been the co-host of the syndicated morning talk show '' Live! with Kelly and Ryan'' in various formats. As an actress, Ripa's best known roles ...
,
Mario is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creat ...
,
Sean Kingston Kisean Paul Anderson (born February 3, 1990), better known by his stage name Sean Kingston, is an American-Jamaican singer and rapper. He is known for his hit songs " Beautiful Girls", "Fire Burning", " Take You There", and his collaboration wit ...
,
Marc Ecko Marc Louis Ecko (né Milecofsky; August 29, 1972) is an American fashion designer, entrepreneur, and artist. He is the founder and Chief Creative Officer of fashion company Ecko Unlimited. He also founded ''Complex'' magazine in 2002. Early ...
,
Jack McBrayer Jack McBrayer (; born May 27, 1973) is an American actor and comedian, who gained national exposure for his portrayal of characters on ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' and as Kenneth Parcell in ''30 Rock''. For his role in ''30 Rock'' he was no ...
,
Tiki Barber Atiim Kiambu "Tiki" Barber (; born April 7, 1975) is an American former football running back who played for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons. He played college football for the University of Virginia ...
,
Whoopi Goldberg Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ' ...
,
Kyle Massey Kyle Orlando Massey (born August 28, 1991), also known mononymously as Massey, is an American actor. He starred in the Disney Channel sitcoms ''That's So Raven'' and its spin-off ''Cory in the House'', in which he played Cory Baxter. Massey st ...
,
Common Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally com ...
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Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
,
Good Charlotte Good Charlotte is an American rock band from Waldorf, Maryland that formed in 1996. Since 2005, the band's lineup has consisted of twin brothers Joel Madden (lead vocals) and Benji Madden (guitar and vocals), Paul Thomas (bass), Billy Martin (g ...
,
Jimmy Fallon James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an American comedian, television host, actor, and writer. He is known for his work in television as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' and as the host of the late-night talk show ''The Ton ...
,
Dwight Howard Dwight David Howard II (born December 8, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League. He is an NBA champion, eight-time All-Star, eight-time All-NBA Team honoree, five-time All-Defensive Team m ...
, David Lee,
Christopher Massey Christopher Michael Massey (born January 26, 1990) is an American actor, best known for his role as Michael Barret on the Nickelodeon television series ''Zoey 101'' (2005–2008). Career Massey started his acting career at a young age, appear ...
,
Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...
, and
Doug E. Fresh Doug E. Fresh (born September 17, 1966) is a Barbados-born American rapper, record producer, and beatboxer, also known as the "Human Beat Box". The pioneer of 20th-century American beatboxing, Fresh is able to accurately imitate drum machines an ...
. Besides his brief appearances in season one, Kyle Massey had a recurring role in season two as PJ, Keith's eccentric cousin.
Mark Linn-Baker Mark Linn-Baker (born June 17, 1954) is an American actor and director who played Benjy Stone in the film ''My Favorite Year'' and Larry Appleton in the television sitcom '' Perfect Strangers''. Early life and education Mark Linn-Baker was bor ...
appeared occasionally as Annie's uncle Sigmund. Broadway actor-composer
Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, playwright and filmmaker. He is known for creating the Broadway musicals ''Hamilton'' (2015) and ''In the Heights'' (2005), and the soundtracks for the Disney animate ...
does occasional guest appearances and contributes music to the show. He also appears in a season-two episode as Mario, Shock's friend. Tommy Kail, the director of Miranda's ''
In the Heights ''In the Heights'' is a musical theatre, musical with concept, music, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda and a Book (musical theatre), book by Quiara Alegría Hudes. The story is set over the course of three days, involving characters in the larg ...
'', was one of the musical directors with
Bill Sherman Bill Sherman is an American composer, producer, arranger, and orchestrator. He is known for his work on ''In the Heights'', ''Hamilton'', and ''Sesame Street''. Sherman was born in New York to Susan B. Sherman and Dr. Fredrick T. Sherman. Sherma ...
and the actor-musician Christopher Jackson, a star of the original Broadway production of that show. Members of the hip hop comedy troupe
Freestyle Love Supreme Freestyle Love Supreme is an improvisational hip-hop (also known as freestyle rap) comedy musical group started by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Anthony Veneziale in 2004 and directed by Thomas Kail. In 2022, the group completed a Broadway musical run ...
(of which Miranda, Sherman, Jackson, and Sullivan are members) make sporadic appearances in the musical segments as well.
Karen Olivo Karen Olivo (born August 7, 1976) is an American stage and television actor, theater educator, and singer. In 2008, Olivo originated the role of Vanessa in ''In the Heights'' on Broadway. The following year, they won the 2009 Tony Award for Best ...
, who starred in ''In the Heights'' also appeared in some musical segments.


Episodes


Songs


From season 1

*"We've Got Skills" – Hector, Jessica, and Lisa *"Take the Pledge" – Keith, Hector, Jessica, Lisa *"100% Human" - Hector *"The Nature Lover" – Danny *"Where's and Why's" – Jessica *"Are We Gonna Make It?" - Electric Company, Dax, Francine *"We Are the Merry Prankster Band" – Annie Scrambler and Manny Spamboni (with Francine on the
tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...
) *"The Limerick Slam" – Hector, Jessica, Manny and Mrs. Spamboni *"There's No Right or Wrong In Art" - The Electric Company, Danny, and Bandini *"Sigmund Scrambler's Habit-Breaking Hypnotism Tent Advertisement/The Last Note" – Annie, Lisa, Hector and Sigmund Scrambler (with Keith on the
piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
) *"Keith's Birthday Song for Dad" – Keith and Electric Company *"Follow Through" – Lisa *"One Part You and One Part Me" – Lisa and Francine *"Love" – Manny *"Help Me Clear My Name" – Hector *"The Cheese Song" – Lisa, Dax and Electric Company *"The Danny Rebus Blues" – Danny (with the other Pranksters on backing vocals, the Electric Company on
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...
s (Hector and Keith),
bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
(Lisa), &
harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...
(Jessica), and Shock on
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
)


From season 2

*"Sheriff Frank vs. Negative Apple" – Mario and Danny *"Follow the Clues" – Polly *"Don't Undo Undanny" – Danny and Jessica *"Separate the Truth from the Lies" – Lisa *"The Francine Hotel Jingle" – Francine and Mrs. Carruthers *"Compromise" – Electric Company and Pranksters *"Down with the Skeleckians" – Jessica and Skeleckian crowd *"Observe the Ape" – Sigmund, Natalie McNally, Lisa and Annie *"Hey, Bluefoot (The Friendship Call)" – Manny and Electric Company *"Good Friends Good as Gold" – Jessica, Jules and group *"Great" – Lisa and Cordelia Heffenbacher


From season 3

*"Wordball on His What?" - Hector, Jessica and Marcus Barnes *"Gilda Breaking Records" – Gilda Flip and kids *"Here Come the Animals Dressed As Monsters" – Hector, Jessica, Marcus, Keith and Shock *"Appreciate a Zero" – Danny and Annie *"Little Puppies" – Jessica and puppies *"The Electric Company Doesn't Like You" – Danny and Manny *"Take Back This Return-a-Ball" – Francine, Gilda, Hector, Keith, Jessica, Marcus and chorus *"Beatbox" –
Doug E. Fresh Doug E. Fresh (born September 17, 1966) is a Barbados-born American rapper, record producer, and beatboxer, also known as the "Human Beat Box". The pioneer of 20th-century American beatboxing, Fresh is able to accurately imitate drum machines an ...
and crowd *"I Love My Power" – Manny and his robot *"Add a Chicken" – Rob and chorus *"Junior Assistant" – Francine, Hector and chorus


Critical reception

The show received generally positive reviews from critics, and has a 74/100 score on
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, based on eight reviews. Out of 18 Daytime Emmy nominations, the revival won 10, including three consecutive Outstanding Children's Series trophies. Steven Zeitchik of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' called the story aspects of the show "unnecessarily complicated and off the point," citing that the 1970s series "spent more time teaching, at no cost to entertainment". ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' said "Though the hip ’n’ urban vibe seems overly calculated, did studies show that eight-year-olds respond to beatboxing white dudes? And the cast is aggressively up with people. You gotta love new characters." Monica Hesse of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' praised the new series but stated that she was reminded of ''
Ghostwriter A ghostwriter is hired to write literary or journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are officially credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and political leaders often h ...
'' rather than the 1970s ''Electric Company''. "The original show—low concept, high energy—knew that words didn't have to have literal superpowers in order to be worthwhile and, occasionally, magical." Marc Peyser of ''
Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...
'' wrote "More than lives up to its legacy."
Neil Genzlinger Neil Genzlinger is an American playwright, editor, book reviewer, and theatre and television critic who frequently writes for ''The New York Times''. Family Genzlinger is a grandson of the late ''The Philadelphia Bulletin'' columnist Don Rose. ...
of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' stated that "today’s children will certainly find it watchable and will have better language skills after spending time with it. They just aren’t likely to still be holding it in their hearts 35 years from now."


References


External links

*
Season one press kit

Season two press kit

Season three press kit

Season four press kit



''The Electric Company'' (2009 version) on Hulu.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Electric Company, The 2009 American television series debuts 2011 American television series endings 2000s American children's comedy television series 2010s American children's comedy television series 2000s American musical comedy television series 2010s American musical comedy television series 2000s American satirical television series 2010s American satirical television series 2000s American sketch comedy television series 2010s American sketch comedy television series American children's education television series American children's fantasy television series American children's musical television series American television series with live action and animation Children's sketch comedy English-language education television programming PBS Kids shows PBS original programming Reading and literacy television series Television series reboots Television series by Sesame Workshop Television shows set in New York City