The Bluffers
Encyclopedia
The Bluffers is a Dutch children's cartoon series created by Frank Fehmers. It was first screened in 1984. The stories revolved around the inhabitants of the fictitious land of 'Bluffoonia' and their ongoing struggle against the evil tyrant 'Clandestino' and his plans to destroy the forest in which they live.
The series was based on an idea by Gene Deitch
, who also wrote the lyrics. Michael Jupp
, who also created The Dreamstone
, was art director for the series and created the characters.
The show's opening strapline was:
Bluffoonia was once a beautiful land before the crazed maniac Clandestino took over; Clandestino turned that beautiful place into this. Why? Because Clandestino is afraid the Bluffers will get his secret — the secret of getting it all!
His name is based upon Silicone and Silly.
Each episode contains two musical numbers.
videocassettes was released in the United States
and most European countries, each containing one or more episodes; also there was a videocassette of collected musical numbers from the series. As of this writing, all of these are out of print.
The series was based on an idea by Gene Deitch
Gene Deitch
Eugene Merril "Gene" Deitch is an American illustrator, animator and film director. He has been based in Prague, capital of Czechoslovakia and the present-day Czech Republic, since 1959. Since 1968, Deitch has been the leading animation director for the Connecticut organization Weston...
, who also wrote the lyrics. Michael Jupp
Michael Jupp
Michael Jupp is an English cartoonist, designer and illustrator.Jupp studied at the West Sussex College of Art and Design at Worthing, West Sussex gaining qualifications in Art and Animation, plus diplomas in Art and Advertising Design. Jupp started his career in London working for E.F...
, who also created The Dreamstone
The Dreamstone
The Dreamstone is a British animated television series that ran for 4 series of 13 episodes each between 1990 and 1995. The original concept and artwork were created by Michael Jupp. The series was animated by the FilmFair animation studio as a Central production for ITV...
, was art director for the series and created the characters.
The show's opening strapline was:
Bluffoonia was once a beautiful land before the crazed maniac Clandestino took over; Clandestino turned that beautiful place into this. Why? Because Clandestino is afraid the Bluffers will get his secret — the secret of getting it all!
Heroes
- Zok (short for Zocrates), a wise old owlOwlOwls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...
wearing a togaTogaThe toga, a distinctive garment of Ancient Rome, was a cloth of perhaps 20 ft in length which was wrapped around the body and was generally worn over a tunic. The toga was made of wool, and the tunic under it often was made of linen. After the 2nd century BC, the toga was a garment worn...
and a laurel wreathLaurel wreathA laurel wreath is a circular wreath made of interlocking branches and leaves of the bay laurel , an aromatic broadleaf evergreen. In Greek mythology, Apollo is represented wearing a laurel wreath on his head...
. Zock is a fatherly figure and advisor to the Bluffers (i.e., the animal denizens of the last remaining forest in Bluffoonia), and the keeper of the encyclopedic Book of All Knowledge. His name is a take-off of SocratesSocratesSocrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...
(hence his RomanRoman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
EmperorEmperorAn emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...
appearance). - Zip, a fast-running blue squirrelSquirrelSquirrels belong to a large family of small or medium-sized rodents called the Sciuridae. The family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots , flying squirrels, and prairie dogs. Squirrels are indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa and have been introduced to Australia...
with a love of adventure; he's led a number of raids into Clandestino's castle. When Zip is not leading a raid on the castle he is often found in some activity involving nutNut (fruit)A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
s. - Blossom, a pink mouseMouseA mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
with a head of orange hair. She has romantic feelings for Zip but he is reluctant to return them. - Honey Boy, a simple-minded brown bearBearBears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives. Although there are only eight living species of bear, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern...
with a strong passion for anything to do with honeyHoneyHoney is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
, and whose pet beeBeeBees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
s are always flying around his head. - Sharpy, a red, bipedal foxFoxFox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
who likes to outwit others for his own gain. He feels that lying, cheating, and stealing are what "real foxes" do, although he tends not to do these very successfully. - Regal Eagle, an eagleEagleEagles are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just two species can be found in the United States and Canada, nine more in...
(although he looks more like a buzzardBuzzardA buzzard is one of several large birds, but there are a number of meanings as detailed below.-Old World:In the Old World Buzzard can mean:* One of several medium-sized, wide-ranging raptors with a robust body and broad wings....
) who talks and thinks like a soldier. This character is the least featured of the Bluffers and is often only called upon to perform a small task in any plans the animals may have. - Ginseng, a gooseGooseThe word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....
with an OrientalThe OrientThe Orient means "the East." It is a traditional designation for anything that belongs to the Eastern world or the Far East, in relation to Europe. In English it is a metonym that means various parts of Asia.- Derivation :...
appearance about her who specializes in brewing herbal remedies. She is named after the plant ginsengGinsengGinseng is any one of eleven species of slow-growing perennial plants with fleshy roots, belonging to the genus Panax of the family Araliaceae....
. - Prickly Pine, a hyperactive, red-quilled porcupinePorcupinePorcupines are rodents with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that defend or camouflage them from predators. They are indigenous to the Americas, southern Asia, and Africa. Porcupines are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and the beaver. Most porcupines are about long, with...
who is always ready for action and combat. He is able to project his quills with pinpoint accuracy, although this inexhaustible supply of quills often end up in the rump of Sharpy or some other unsuspecting Bluffer. - Psycho, a shy, reclusive snakeSnakeSnakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
with limited psychic powers; e.g., he was once used as a metal detectorMetal detectorA metal detector is a device which responds to metal that may not be readily apparent.The simplest form of a metal detector consists of an oscillator producing an alternating current that passes through a coil producing an alternating magnetic field...
. When speaking he adds an audible "P" to words that contain an "S" sound; "p'sad," "p'certainly," et cetera.
Villains
- Clandestino, a bloated, self-adoring, hunchbacked human; he's the self appointed totalitarian ruler of Bluffoonia. He lives in a fortress-like castleCastleA castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
, the dungeonDungeonA dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period...
of which contains his precious "Secret of Getting It All" which is the source of his power. - Sillycone, Clandestino's robotRobotA robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
butlerButlerA butler is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some also have charge of the entire parlour floor, and housekeepers caring for the entire house and its...
; he is smarter than his master and seems to possess no malice, but he serves Clandestino faithfully.
His name is based upon Silicone and Silly.
Other characters
- Glum, Clandestino's watchdogGuard dogA guard dog, an attack dog or watch dog is a dog used to guard against, and watch for, unwanted or unexpected people or animals. The dog is discriminating so that it does not annoy or attack familiar people.-Barking:...
; his sympathies lie with the Bluffers, but he doesn't dare to openly rebel against his master because he doesn't want to lose his home in the castle. - Song and Dance, two rabbitRabbitRabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
s — one tall and thin, one short and fat — who are often wearing sunglassesSunglassesSunglasses or sun glasses are a form of protective eyewear designed primarily to prevent bright sunlight and high-energy visible light from damaging or discomforting the eyes. They can sometimes also function as a visual aid, as variously termed spectacles or glasses exist, featuring lenses that...
. They are sometimes seen conducting the musical segments, but are not integral to the stories.
Format
Each episode is approximately 25 minutes long. Most of the stories are centered around Clandestino doing or plotting something that will either destroy Bluffoonia's last forest or otherwise disrupt the Bluffers' lives, and the Bluffers' attempts to thwart him. Some of the stories are centered around the Bluffers' plans to steal Clandestino's "Secret of Getting It All" so they can use it to remove him from power. This secret, which plays a major part in most episodes, is never successfully stolen or even revealed throughout the series.Each episode contains two musical numbers.
Availability
In the late 1980s, the series on VHSVHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
videocassettes was released in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and most European countries, each containing one or more episodes; also there was a videocassette of collected musical numbers from the series. As of this writing, all of these are out of print.