Sitting Ducks (TV series)

Infobox Television
show_name = Sitting Ducks


caption =
aka =
genre = Children, Animation
creator = Michael Bedard (lithographs)
writer =
director = Walt Kubiak
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developer =
presenter =
starring = Ian James Corlett
Dave Ward
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country = United Kingdom
language = English
num_seasons = 2
num_episodes = 26
list_episodes = List of Sitting Ducks episodes
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runtime = 30 minutes (each episode split into two stories)
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first_run =
first_aired = September 13, 2001
last_aired = July 5, 2003
preceded_by =
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website =
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imdb_id = 0368543
tv_com_id = 19422

"Sitting Ducks" is a childrens animated television series based on an iconic lithograph and the 1998 childrens book, "Sitting Ducks", created by Michael Bedard. "Sitting Ducks" first appeared in 2001 in Europe, later debuting in North America on the Cartoon Network, Australia on ABC and in Japan. The show lasted for two seasons each comprising of 13 episodes, with the last episode shown on July 5, 2003.

Background

The show focuses in a town called Ducktown, on a duck named Bill, and his best friend Aldo, a huge alligator from the neighboring town of Swampwood. Seeing as how ducks are favorite snacks of the alligators there, Bill and Aldo's friendship is rather unusual. The pair usually end up in varied situations and adventures.

Episodes

Characters

*Bill (Ian James Corlett) - A diminutive duck who waddles to a different beat. A very kind-hearted, good-natured fellow who is always there when needed. One of his dreams is to fly. With the help of his friend Dr. Cecil, he tries again and again to fly, and eventually is told that the reason he can't is because ducks became too terrestrial. Bill's main appearance difference, apart from his smallness, is his bow tie which he changes every year at the Ducktown Picnic. Bill lives in an apartment with his pet parrot, Jerry. He's been called a "gator lover" for his rare efforts to turn alligators into allies of Ducktown.
*Aldo (Dave Ward) - A lumbering, strong alligator from the town of Swampwood. He's Bill's best friend, though he often receives grief from his fellow gators on being a "duck lover". Has a blind Uncle Artie and a baby cousin Andy. Once was the cook at the bowling ball factory, he transferred to the assembly line after he befriended Bill, as he didn't want to cook any more ducks.
*Bev (Kathleen Barr) - Owner of the Decoy Cafe, where many ducks go to eat. She's a sweet duck who also has an alias, Madam Bevousky, as whom she offers fortune telling services to the residents of Ducktown.
*Ed, Oly and Waddle (Louis Chirillo, Jacob McDougal and Jay Brazeau) - Three brothers who live next door to Bill. These three lovable freeloaders tend to scheme their way into things and are usually the ones behind some prank or plot, from which they always try to distance themselves when things go awry.
*Cecil (Ian James Corlett) - Ducktown's only dentist, Cecil speaks with a British accent and is always there to offer advice to Bill or the others. Naturally, Aldo is typically his only customer, being the only person in town who actually has teeth. He also provides beak adjustments for the ducks.
*Fred (Phil Hayes) - a melancholy, but sometimes nervously hyper penguin, who migrated from Antarctica to Ducktown, in which he has a citizenship. He's somewhat of a loner most of the time, always seen surrounding himself with bags of ice or air-conditioning to remain comfortable in the intolerable (to him) heat. Has a duck girlfriend, Dot Cable, and a cousin, Gelata.
*Raoul (Michael Benyaer) - A Hispanic crow who tends to be the freeloading troublemaker in Ducktown, and likes trading insults with Bill.
*Drill Sargeant Duck (Cathy Weseluck) - A tough duck who makes it hard for Aldo to come into Ducktown, as she also is the leader of the "Duck Defense League," an anti-gator organization.
*Other characters that have appeared in the show have been voiced by Dale Wilson, Brian Dobson, Sylvia Zaradic, Chantal Strand, Chiara Zanni, Pauline Newstone, Paul Dobson, Lee Tockar.

Merchandise

"Sitting Ducks" proved to be a big hit with the European children's show market, and as a result toys, clothing and other merchandise were created. The first thirteen episodes are also available on Hulu.com, a free video streaming service

VHS releases

DVD releases

Print

The cartoon itself also spawned a couple of books. "Quacking Up" is a joke book written by Rick Walton featuring the characters from the TV show and "Plucked Duck" a childrens picture book by Danielle Mentzer and Annmarie Harris. Both books were released in 2004, roughly a year after the show had ended.

Video games

In 2003 LSP Games and Asobo Studios picked up the rights from Universal Studios to create games for "Sitting Ducks". Then in 2004 "Sitting Ducks" was released for Microsoft Windows, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation and PlayStation 2. An Xbox version was also planned, but was quietly cancelled.

ee also

*Sitting Ducks, an iconic lithograph created by Michael Bedard in the late 1970s.