Monsters vs. Aliens is an American animated television series based on the 2009 DreamWorks Animation film Monsters vs. Aliens. First announced in 2009, the series premiered on Nickelodeon on March 23, 2013, after the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, then began airing in its regular timeslot on April 6, 2013. A total of 26 episodes consisting of 50 segments were released, with the last episode airing on February 8, 2014. It was the third and final Nicktoon produced by DreamWorks Animation after Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness and The Penguins of Madagascar. Following this, the series was not renewed for a second season.
| Monsters vs. Aliens | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Based on | |
| Developed by | Mark McCorkle Bob Schooley |
| Voices of | |
| Composer | Adam Berry |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 26 (50 segments) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Running time | 11 minutes |
| Production companies | DreamWorks Animation Nickelodeon Animation Studio |
| Original release | |
| Network | Nickelodeon |
| Release | March 23, 2013 – February 8, 2014 |
| Related | |
| Monsters vs. Aliens: Night of the Living Carrots | |
Synopsis
Six months after the events of the film, B.O.B., Link, Dr. Cockroach and Susan/Ginormica learn to adapt to a new world as they work alongside a bizarre group of aliens at Area Fifty-Something, a secret underground base.
Cast
Main
- Riki Lindhome as Susan Murphy / Ginormica
- Eric Edelstein as B.O.B.
- Chris O'Dowd as Dr. Herbert Cockroach
- Robin Atkin Downes as Academic Dr. Cockroach, Party Dr. Cockroach
- Diedrich Bader as the Missing Link
- Kevin Michael Richardson as General Warren Monger
- James Patrick Stuart as President Hathaway
- Jeff Bennett as Coverton
- Haley Tju as Sqweep
- Gillian Jacobs as Sta'abi
Additional voices
- Dee Bradley Baker as Zombie Moon Ape
- Jane Carr as Miss Klangpopper
- Lucas Cruikshank as Smarty
- Will Friedle as Man-Beast
- Josh Gad as Internet
- Nolan North as Derek Dietl
- Joey Richter as Jace Lovins
- Amy Sedaris as Dr. Cutter
- Fred Tatasciore as Vornicarn
- James Urbaniak as Rule-Bot
- Kari Wahlgren as Baby President
Production
In 2009, Jeffrey Katzenberg announced that Nickelodeon had ordered a pilot for a Monsters vs. Aliens cartoon series. Eventually, the series was announced at the 2012 annual Nickelodeon upfront, being green-lit for 26 episodes. The cast features new voice actors for the characters of Dr. Cockroach (Chris O'Dowd), Ginormica (Riki Lindhome), Link (Diedrich Bader), and B.O.B. (Eric Edelstein). The series was partly produced by New Zealand CG animation studio Oktobor Animation, similar to the other DreamWorks-based series The Penguins of Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness. The executive producers of Monsters vs. Aliens (Bob Schooley, Mark McCorkle, and Brett Haaland) all previously worked on Penguins.
Cancellation
In November 2013, executive producer Bob Schooley announced on Twitter that Monsters vs. Aliens would not be renewed for a second season due to low ratings and the network's desire to "get back to the more Nickish shows".
Episodes
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Storyboard by | Original air date | Prod. code | U.S. viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Welcome to Area Fifty-Something" | Jim Schumann and Eddie Trigueros | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Fred Osmond and Christo Stamboliev | March 23, 2013 | 101 | 3.13 |
| All is well at Area Fifty-Something with Team Monster, until a lone alien imprisons the President and makes a permanent home on base. Note: This is a half-hour series premiere. | |||||||
| 2a | "Danger Wears a Diaper" | Matt Engstorm | Kim Duran | Jeremy Bernstein | April 13, 2013 | 102 | 2.74 |
| The president's birthday is here! Dr. Cockroach has made him a gadget that will make him appear younger, but instead blasts him to infanthood. | |||||||
| 2b | "The Toy From Another World" | Sunil Hall | Brandon Sawyer | Brian Morante | April 13, 2013 | 102 | 2.74 |
| The Monsters snoop in Coverton's quarters, where they find his "cuddle bear", which then attacks everyone on B.O.B.'s commands. | |||||||
| 3a | "The Bath Effect" | Eddie Trigueros | Gabriel Garza | Christo Stamboliev | April 20, 2013 | 103 | 2.26 |
| Ginormica makes B.O.B. think that baths cure crankiness. It leads B.O.B. to try to cure everyone at the base of crankiness leaps into action, including Coverton. | |||||||
| 3b | "The Fruit of All Evil" | Matt Engstorm | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Jeremy Bernstein | April 20, 2013 | 103 | 2.26 |
| Link accidentally eats the gelatin that B.O.B. calls his "girlfriend", leading the gang to figure out how to break the news to him. | |||||||
| 4a | "Frenemy Mine" | Matt Engstrom | Gabriel Garza | Sean Kreiner | April 27, 2013 | 104 | 2.20 |
| B.O.B. is determined to have Coverton be his emergency buddy. Instead, Coverton chooses to manipulate B.O.B. to help him steal a death ray. | |||||||
| 4b | "Maximum B.O.B." | Sunil Hall | David Tischman | Tom Bernardo | April 27, 2013 | 104 | 2.20 |
| Impressed with B.O.B.'s indestructibleness, Coverton decides to clone a piece of him. After too many clones, B.O.B. alarmingly begins to diminish little by little. | |||||||
| 5a | "It Came... on a Field Trip" | Sunil Hall | Brandon Sawyer | Brian Morante | May 4, 2013 | 105 | 2.71 |
| The Monsters find an alien called Sqweep in the woods doing an earth studies project, which has a lot of sensitive data that could be used for an invasion. | |||||||
| 5b | "Educational Television" | Jim Schumann and Eddie Trigueros | Brandon Sawyer | Fred Osmond | May 4, 2013 | 105 | 2.71 |
| After losing the cable, Link and B.O.B. use Sqweep's tablet TV. They find out they have to answer academic questions to keep on watching it, but instead start using it as a ray. | |||||||
| 6a | "Flipped Out" | Eddie Trigueros | Brandon Sawyer | Fred Osmond | May 11, 2013 | 106 | 2.062 |
| B.O.B. discovers a secret switch that General Monger tells him not to touch. Will it get rewired before the Big Blue Blob can get to flip it? | |||||||
| 6b | "The Wormhole Has Turned!" | Eddie Trigueros | Brandon Sawyer | Christo Stamboliev | May 11, 2013 | 106 | 2.06 |
| Dr. Cockroach overpromises that he's made a teleportation machine. Instead he's made a short wormhole and tries to pass it off as the real thing. | |||||||
| 7a | "The Two Faces of Dr. Cockroach" | Sunil Hall | Eddie Guzelian | Piero Piluso | May 18, 2013 | 107 | 1.93 |
| 7b | "The Thing with One Brain" | Matt Engstrom | Mark Palmer | Sean Kreiner | June 1, 2013 | 107 | 1.98 |
| After causing runaway missiles because he thought the launch button was a lunch one, Dr. Cockroach builds a brain for B.O.B. Coverton installs an evil switch on it. | |||||||
| 8a | "Night of the Living Dog" | Matt Engstrom | Todd Garfield | Jeremy Bernstein | June 8, 2013 | 108 | 1.79 |
| Sqweep accidentally gives everyone except for B.O.B. the brains of a dog when she wants to do research on puppies. | |||||||
| 8b | "Attack of the Movie Night!" | Jim Schumann | Gabriel Garza | Phillip Allora | June 15, 2013 | 108 | 1.80 |
| Sqweep suffers from nightmares after watching a scary movie, and creates a memory extractor to remove her memories of the film so she won't be afraid anymore. Her device winds up bringing the monster to life. | |||||||
| 9a | "98 Pound Cockroach" | Sunil Hall | Mark Palmer | Brian Morante | June 22, 2013 | 109 | 2.16 |
| To get strong enough to pass an obstacle course, Dr. Cockroach tweaks his 50/50 man/roach genetic makeup so he'll be 40 percent man and 60 percent roach. His roach side keeps increasing at the cost of his human side and its intellect, forcing his teammates to find a way to reverse the process. | |||||||
| 9b | "When Nature Shrieks" | Sunil Hall | John Behnke | Fred Osmond | June 29, 2013 | 109 | 2.01 |
| General Monger takes Ginormica, B.O.B. and Sqweep on a camping trip to the desert. But when a lightning storm destroys their supplies and Monger is injured, Ginormica must take charge to get them back to base. | |||||||
| 10 | "Vornicarn" | Sunil Hall | Brandon Sawyer | Brian Morante and Piero Piluso | September 14, 2013 | 112 | 1.71 |
| When a vicious alien beast known as a Vornicarn hatches on Earth, the alien huntress Sta'abi arrives searching for it. Note: This is a second and final half-hour special. | |||||||
| 11a | "It Got Out of Hand" | Fred Osmond and Jim Schumann | David Tischman | Fred Osmond | September 28, 2013 | 111 | 1.62 |
| It's April Fool's Day, and the other monsters are pranking everyone. But an apparent trip forward in time to the next day leads Ginormica to believe one of their pranks will cause the base's destruction. | |||||||
| 11b | "The Sound of Fear" | Fred Osmond and Jim Schumann | John Behnke | Christo Stamboliev | September 28, 2013 | 111 | 1.62 |
| Dr. C's former teacher reveals a missing music grade in his transcript, which could lead to all his diplomas and doctorates being revoked. Guest star: Jane Carr as Miss Klangpopper | |||||||
| 12a | "The Sorry Syndrome" | Matt Engstrom | Kim Duran | Chris Graham | October 5, 2013 | 113 | 1.67 |
| Ginormica accidentally angers Sta'abi by apologizing to her, which is considered a disgrace by her people that can only be remedied by hunting down the person who did so. | |||||||
| 12b | "Speak Not the Q Word" | Sunil Hall | Brandon Sawyer | Piero Piluso | October 5, 2013 | 113 | 1.67 |
| After hearing Sta'abi utter an alien profanity (which was Jortnurg), the monsters are informed that unlike Earth profanities, uttering alien profanities result in physical consequences, Coverton sees this as an opportunity to cleanse the earth of all human life and gives B.O.B. a list of those words to cause havoc. | |||||||
| 13a | "Screaming Your Calls" | Sunil Hall | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Jeremy Bernstein and Brian Morante | October 12, 2013 | 110 | 2.01 |
| Dr. C brings his smartphone to life which soon imprints on him, until Coverton encourages 'Smarty' to hack into the base's mainframe. Guest star: Lucas Cruikshank as Smarty | |||||||
| 13b | "The Time-Out That Wouldn't End" | Jim Schumann | Gabriel Garza | Philip Allora and Fred Osmond | October 12, 2013 | 110 | 2.01 |
| Monger puts Sqweep in time out for making a mess, but soon the tables are turned when Monger makes his own mess and Sqweep puts him in time out. | |||||||
| 14a | "Curse of the Man-Beast" | Sunil Hall | Brandon Sawyer | Brian Morante | October 19, 2013 | 120 | 2.00 |
| Having hacked into Monger's top secret files and learned about a werewolf he'd previously tried to recruit to Team Monster, the monsters decide to go after the werewolf and recruit him themselves, only to discover there was a good reason he was left alone. | |||||||
| 14b | "It Came from Level Z" | Sunil Hall | John Behnke | Piero Piluso | October 19, 2013 | 120 | 2.00 |
| Ginormica becomes fed up with the other monsters being unsanitary and decides to bunk with Sqweep. When the boys discover "Level Z", where Monger keeps a bunch of frozen zombies he failed to recruit as team monster, they unfreeze one to be their butler, only to unwittingly cause a mass outbreak of the zombies. | |||||||
| 15a | "Number Seven!" | Matt Engstrom | Brandon Sawyer | Chris Graham | October 26, 2013 | 118 | 1.56 |
| Sqweep has to go "number seven", which could destroy Earth's entire waste sanitation system. When her ship is disabled by Coverton to keep her from going back to her own world for this "once every seven years" event, Dr. Cockroach is forced to build a new containment system for her use. | |||||||
| 15b | "The Friend Who Wasn't There" | Matt Engstrom | Kim Duran | Stephen Heneveld | October 26, 2013 | 118 | 1.56 |
| Link spends time with Sqweep to obtain her "Pheromonium" spray, which he believes will make Sta'abi attracted to him. However, it's intended for use by a race of alien mantises, and makes she and any other adult female want to eat him until it wears off. | |||||||
| 16a | "Driven to Madness" | Matt Engstrom | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Sean Kreiner | November 2, 2013 | 115 | 1.83 |
| Link and Sta'abi duel for driving privileges of the new car Sqweep built, and then have to figure out how to stop it when Sqweep takes her own creation for a test run. | |||||||
| 16b | "The Beast from 20,000 Gallons" | Sunil Hall | Bob Schooley & Mark McCorkle | Tom Bernardo | November 2, 2013 | 115 | 1.83 |
| When an asteroid is detected heading for Earth, Team Alien is put in charge of the rocket being sent to destroy it. Meanwhile, Dr. C sends B.O.B. to play hide and seek. He winds up hiding in the fuel being used to power the rocket, and Team Monster must rescue B.O.B. and alter the rocket's trajectory so it'll hit its target. | |||||||
| 17a | "The Sneezing Horror" | Matt Engstrom | Brandon Sawyer | Tom Bernardo | November 9, 2013 | 116 | 2.27 |
| Coverton comes down with an alien flu, but when he sees it can make humans and monsters even sicker, he decides to infect everyone on base and use this time to steal base secrets. | |||||||
| 17b | "Prisoner of the Dark Dimension" | Sunil Hall | John Behnke | Piero Piluso | November 9, 2013 | 116 | 2.27 |
| Vornicarn's bad behavior lands him in the Isolation Zone. When Link, who spent time there in the past, goes to keep him company, he accidentally sets him free, causing him to go on another rampage around the base until Team Alien and Team Monster can figure out how to calm him down. | |||||||
| 18a | "I Predict Horror" | Matt Engstrom | Katherine Butler | Tom Bernardo | November 16, 2013 | 117 | 1.80 |
| B.O.B. eats Dr. Cockroach's probabilitator (a device which can predict the future) and foresees Coverton going into a special room on the base and ending up with a crown and with people bowing before him. Coverton, hearing about this, decides to make it come true. However, he didn't realize the crown was for a broken tooth after he breaks into the room containing General Monger's training robot, which beats him up. | |||||||
| 18b | "Destroy Chickie D!" | Sunil Hall | Mark Drop | Jeremy Bernstein | November 16, 2013 | 117 | 1.80 |
| Sta'abi sees a commercial for Chickie D's, a chicken restaurant, and its mascot brings back memories of the giant bird that attacked her village. Vowing to destroy the creature, she escapes the base to do so, and Team Monster must stop her and bring her back. | |||||||
| 19a | "The Mystery of Dr. Cutter" | Matt Engstrom | Gabriel Garza | Tom Bernardo | November 23, 2013 | 119 | 1.85 |
| Dr. Cutter arrives to update the base's technology, and B.O.B. suspects she's up to something due to her wearing an eyepatch. He investigates with Ginormica's reluctant aid, until they discover she's out to kidnap Coverton and dissect his brain to learn the secrets of his telekinetic powers. | |||||||
| 19b | "The Partymobile That Invaded Earth" | Fred Osmond and Jim Schumann | Brandon Sawyer | Philip Allora | November 23, 2013 | 119 | 1.85 |
| Link and B.O.B. discover and fix up an old spaceship and take it for a joyride, unaware that Coverton has disabled its microphone so they can't communicate with the base. Subsequently, Monger believes they are hostile aliens and orders them shot down, and the two monsters must find a way to solve their communication problems before they get blown up. | |||||||
| 20a | "Ginormicat!" | Matt Engstrom | Gabriel Garza | Chris Graham | November 30, 2013 | 121 | 1.89 |
| Ginormica is struck by lightning while holding a stray kitten she's bringing back to the base, transferring some of her Quantonium to it and causing it to begin growing into a giant. Team Monster must find a way to reverse the transformation before the kitten grows bigger than the planet. | |||||||
| 20b | "My Monster, My Master" | Fred Osmond and Jim Schumann | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Emmanuel Deligiannis | November 30, 2013 | 121 | 1.89 |
| After losing badly to B.O.B. in video games, Sta'abi recruits him to teach her his unique combat style, and must subsequently put her new, unorthodox methods to use against the revived Rule-Bot. Guest star: James Urbaniak as Rule-Bot Note: This episode takes place after the events of "It Ruled With an Iron Fist". | |||||||
| 21a | "It Came from Channel 5" | Jim Schumann | Mark Palmer | Piero Piluso | December 7, 2013 | 114 | 1.88 |
| Derek Dietl, Ginormica's ex-fiancé, tries to sneak into the base and expose the aliens there to the world. Coverton, seeing an opportunity, tries to use this to his advantage, but his plans are ultimately thwarted when Ginormica discovers what Derek is up to. | |||||||
| 21b | "It Ruled with an Iron Fist" | Jim Schumann | Gabriel Garza | Stephen Heneveld | December 7, 2013 | 114 | 1.88 |
| When Monger goes on leave for the weekend, he leaves the Cold War-era Rule-Bot in charge. Its obsessive behavior and incessant pestering over minor rule violations soon unites Team Monster and Team Alien against the robot as they attempt to get rid of it. Guest star: James Urbaniak as Rule-Bot Note: This episode takes place before the events of "My Monster, My Master". | |||||||
| 22a | "This Ball Must Be Dodged" | Fred Osmond | Brandon Sawyer | Philip Allora | January 4, 2014 | 122 | 1.43 |
| Monger gathers everyone for a game of "monsters vs aliens" dodge ball. The aliens take out every other monster but Ginormica first since they consider her a low priority (since Link is the strongest, Dr. C's the smartest, and B.O.B. is unpredictable and the only thing Ginormica can do is change size and become a bigger target). Ginormica uses her new military training and combat knowledge to battle the aliens. | |||||||
| 22b | "It Spoke with Authority" | Matt Engstrom | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Stephen Heneveld | January 4, 2014 | 122 | 1.43 |
| Dr. Cockroach creates a spray to give the president more authority. But B.O.B. gets covered in it while Coverton was trying to steal it and then everyone (except Coverton) does what ever he says until it wears off. | |||||||
| 23a | "Debtor Alive!" | Sunil Hall | Gabriel Garza | Jeremy Bernstein | January 18, 2014 | 123 | 1.91 |
| When the monsters learn that Sqweep is a millionaire on earth, they begin to borrow from her allowance. When her financial planner Pip, who works for Epsilon-11 Allowance Management, comes to Earth to collect payment, they can't come up with money, so when Pip goes nuts and begins to repossess and sell their commodities for sale on the galactic marketplace (such as Link's gravity, Ginormica's focus, Dr. Cockroach's vocabulary, and Coverton's dignity), B.O.B. gives him "B.O.B. Bucks" to set everything right. When Pip accepts the B.O.B. Bucks as actual currency, he concedes all debts to be paid and leaves. | |||||||
| 23b | "The Grade That Wouldn't Pass!" | Fred Osmond | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Emmanuel Deligiannis | January 18, 2014 | 123 | 1.91 |
| After Dr. Cockroach tampers with Sqweep's project for thinking an answer on there is incorrect, the alien receives a Zrob minus (the lowest possible grade in the galaxy). Guilt-ridden, Dr. Cockroach then traverses to the center of Earth to assist her in finding the correct answer in a science test. | |||||||
| 24a | "You Can't Breathe in a Diner in Space!" | Matt Engstrom | Brandon Sawyer | Tom Bernardo | January 25, 2014 | 124 | 1.91 |
| While working on another teleportation experiment, Dr. Cockroach accidentally teleports the diner with B.O.B. and the President inside to the moon. It's a race against time to get B.O.B. and the President back to Earth before their air runs out. | |||||||
| 24b | "Race to the End...Zone!" | Sunil Hall | Gabriel Garza | Brian Morante | January 25, 2014 | 124 | 1.91 |
| Link is disappointed when he can not play in the government football game. | |||||||
| 25a | "When Luck Runs Out" | Sunil Hall | Devin Bunje & Nick Stanton | Tom Bernardo | February 1, 2014 | 126 | 1.91 |
| When a leprechaun becomes a new recruit for Team Monster it becomes angry after crushed by a vending machine. | |||||||
| 25b | "That Which Cannot Be Unseen" | Fred Osmond | Bill Motz & Bob Roth | Emmanuel Deligiannis | February 1, 2014 | 126 | 1.96 |
| After seeing something horrifying Coverton's room, Team Monster submit to memory wipes. When they keep losing hours they try to not submit to memory wipes and find out what it is. They find out Coverton in a cocoon. | |||||||
| 26a | "Bride of the Internet" | Matt Engstrom | Brandon Sawyer | Stephen Heneveld | February 8, 2014 | 125 | 1.88 |
| When an embarrassing video of Ginormica hits the internet, Sqweep gets Internet, who is actually an alien and a friend of her, to remove the video. He gets a crush on Ginormica and goes as far as changing the national anthem to Ginormica's favourite song to get her to like him, but she rejects him so he tries to eliminate her. Guest stars: Joey Richter as Jace Lovins Josh Gad as Internet | |||||||
| 26b | "The Invisible Threat (Also Silent)" | Fred Osmond | Frank Rocco | Angelo Libutti | February 8, 2014 | 125 | 1.88 |
| The president, wanting to find out Monger's 'secret project', ends up in a metal robot he believes a video game and battling the monsters and aliens. | |||||||
Home media
Region 1 DVDs
Despite the show being distributed by Viacom Media Networks (a division of Paramount Global), all the DVDs were distributed solely by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (as the show was also distributed by 20th Century Fox Television). The first two titles were later re-released by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment after NBCUniversal bought DreamWorks Animation in 2016.
| Season | DVD Title | Episode Count | Aspect Ratio | Total running time | Release Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Monsters vs. Aliens: Cloning Around" Episode(s): "Welcome to Area Fifty-Something" – "Attack of the Movie Night!" | 8 | 16:9 | 176 minutes | October 15, 2013 February 1, 2018 (re-release) | |
| "Monsters vs. Aliens: Supersonic Joyride" Episode(s): "98 Pound Cockroach" – "The Time-Out That Wouldn't End" • "Number Seven!" – "Prisoner of the Dark Dimension" • "It Came From Channel 5" / "It Ruled With an Iron Fist" | 9 | 16:9 | 198 minutes | March 19, 2014 February 1, 2018 (re-release) | ||
| Monsters vs. Aliens: Creature Features (Redbox exclusive) Episode(s): "Curse of the Man-Beast" / "It Came From Level Z" • "I Predict Horror" – "My Monster, My Master" • "This Ball Must Be Dodged" / "It Spoke With Authority" | 5 | 16:9 | N/A | September 23, 2014 | ||
Region 2 DVDs
| Season | DVD Title | Episode Count | Aspect Ratio | Total running time | Release Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Monsters vs. Aliens: Cloning Around" Episode(s): "Welcome to Area Fifty-Something" – "Attack of the Movie Night!" | 8 | 16:9 | 173 minutes | April 7, 2014 | |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Children's Animated Program | Bret Haaland, Mark McCorkle, Bob Schooley, Chris Neuhahn, Andrew Huebner, Kellie Smith | Nominated |
| Outstanding Sound Mixing – Animation | Justin Brinsfield, Matt Corey, Fil Brown, Melissa Ellis | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Sound Editing – Animation | Robert Poole, Adam Berry, Michael Petak, Roy Braverma, J Lampinen | Nominated |
References
External links
Wikiquote has quotations related to Monsters vs. Aliens (TV series).