Toonsylvania

Did You Know?

• A Toonsylvania video game was developed by RFX Interactive and released by Light & Shadow Production and Ubi Soft for the Game Boy Color in 2000, utilizing the 'Ubi Key' feature for data sharing via infrared port.
• Toonsylvania action figures and playsets were developed by Pangea Corporation and released by Toy Island, and Burger King distributed toys based on the series in their kids' meals for a short period.

Plot summary

A typical episode of Toonsylvania begins with a cartoon series called 'Frankenstein', a parody of Mary Shelley's novel, following Dr. Vic Frankenstein (voiced by David Warner), his assistant Igor (voiced by Wayne Knight), and their dim-witted monster Phil (voiced by Brad Garrett). In season two, Igor, Dr. Vic Frankenstein, and Phil interact with new characters including a snooping neighbor Seth Tuber (voiced by Jonathan Harris), based on Norman Bates from Psycho, who communicates with his immobile mother by putting his hand over his mouth and talking into it. A Transylvanian angry mob appears as a cheerful group of Beatles-esque hipsters, with most new characters voiced by Paul Rugg, who improvised many lines. Before the second cartoon, an animated vignette shows Igor on the couch with Phil trying to use the remote control, leading to a problem (a running gag similar to The Simpsons' couch gags) before the TV turns on. A segment about a family of zombies includes Fred Deadman (voiced by Billy West), Ashley Deadman (voiced by Kath Soucie), Stiffany Deadman (voiced by Valery Pappas), and Dedgar Deadman (voiced by Matt Frewer in season one, Jess Harnell in season two), created by cartoonist Mike Peters. Sometimes a parody of a B-list horror movie airs instead of a 'Night of the Living Fred' cartoon, featuring Ace Deuce (voiced by Tom Kenny), Professor Man (voiced by Billy West), Professor Man's daughter (voiced by Valery Pappas), Ace's friend Newark (voiced by Billy West), and a general (voiced by Jim Cummings) fighting monstrous threats. A short segment has Igor giving a science lesson that always ends in disaster. When Phil misbehaves, Igor punishes him by reading a horror tale from 'Melissa Screetch's Morbid Morals', about a bratty girl named Melissa Screetch (voiced by Nancy Cartwright) who ignores adult warnings and suffers consequences; after the story, something tied to it happens with Igor and Phil. This segment was created by Chris Otsuki.

Home media releases

A VHS tape of Toonsylvania with chosen episodes came out on August 31, 1999. It included "Darla Doiley, Demon Doll", "Voodoo Vacation", "Baby Human", "Dead Dog Day Afternoon", "Igor's Science Minute" segments, "Melissa Screetch's Morbid Morals" segments, "Phil's Brain", "Football...and Other Body Parts", "Bang!", and "WereGranny". The complete series was available on Netflix in Latin America in 2014.