Monsters vs. Aliens (franchise)
Monsters vs. Aliens is a media franchise made by DreamWorks Animation. The franchise began with the 2009 film Monsters vs. Aliens and has since grown to include two short films, a television special, a television series, and a tie-in video game.
Monsters vs. Aliens
The franchise follows a group of monsters: Susan (also called Ginormica), a woman who was struck by an asteroid on her wedding day and grew to be 50 feet tall; B.O.B., an indestructible gelatinous mass who was created when a dessert topping was crossed with a tomato; The Missing Link, a 20,000-year-old macho fish man, who was thawed out from deep ice by scientists; Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D., a scientist who became a bug guy after his experiment went wrong; and Insectosaurus, a massive bug who was mutated by nuclear radiation. The monsters are assigned by the U.S. Government to defend Earth from alien invasions and supernatural threats.
Short films[edit]
B.O.B.'s Big Break (2009)[edit]
B.O.B.'s Big Break is a 3D animated short prequel film. The short premiered on Nickelodeon in 2D on September 26, 2009, and was released 3 days later in 2D and 3D on the Monsters vs Aliens Blu-ray and the double DVD pack.[10]
Many years before the events of the first film, Dr. Cockroach Ph.D. and The Missing Link are trying to outwit Captain W.R. Monger to escape from Area 52, the government's top-secret holding cell, by disguising their escape plan as celebrating an oblivious B.O.B.'s "birthday". Cockroach's escape attempt by feeding B.O.B. a chemical mixture to turn him into a bomb instead results in B.O.B. temporarily acquiring the ability to read minds, and allowing them to find out about a secret exit from Area 52. Unfortunately, the plan fails when B.O.B. smashes the jet they were using to escape believing it to be a piñata, with the resulting explosion erasing B.O.B.'s new power. Afterwards, Link and Dr. Cockroach are forced to endure their humiliating defeat at B.O.B.'s "birthday party" by being mocked by both Monger and The Invisible Man.
Night of the Living Carrots (2011)[edit]
Night of the Living Carrots is a 2011 13-minute[11] 3D Halloween short film based on Monsters vs. Aliens, and a sequel to Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space. It was directed by Robert Porter. First part of the short premiered on October 13, 2011,[12] and the second part five days later,[13] for a limited time, exclusively on the Nintendo 3DS video service.[14] It was released on August 28, 2012, on DVD[8] and Blu-ray[9] as a part of Shrek's Thrilling Tales (DreamWorks Spooky Stories).
Following the cliffhanger at the end of Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space, the mutated carrot has spawned hundreds of zombie carrots, which can take control of a person's mind after biting them. Dr. Cockroach determines that the only way to defeat the carrots and free their victims is for B.O.B. to eat all of the carrots (specifically because B.O.B. has no brain and, thus, is immune to the carrots' mind control powers). Eventually, albeit reluctantly, B.O.B. agrees. At the end of the short, B.O.B. is turned into a giant zombie carrot, though this is never explained or followed up on.
Video games[edit]
Two video games Monsters vs. Aliens were released on March 24, 2009 on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, and Wii, and one for the Nintendo DS, developed by Amaze Entertainment. The game, developed by Beenox, allows users to play through scenes from the movie as Susan, The Missing Link, and B.O.B., and features drop-in/out co-op. Players can play as Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D. in multiplayer co-op, as well as Insectosaurus in the Nintendo DS game. The music was composed by Jim Dooley, with live brass recorded at the Warner Brothers Eastwood Scoring Stage.[19] The Monsters vs. Aliens video game has garnered a Metacritic score of 63 for the Xbox 360 version of the title.
Another video game titled Madagascar Kartz was released by Activision on October 27, 2009, for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and Nintendo DS.[20] Mainly based on the Madagascar franchise, the game also features B.O.B.[21] and a racetrack based on the spaceship from Monsters vs. Aliens.[20]
Another video game titled Super Star Kartz was released by Activision on November 15, 2011,[22] for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, and Nintendo 3DS. The game features 14 different characters from DreamWorks' films – Monsters vs. Aliens, Madagascar, Shrek, and How to Train Your Dragon.[23]
A free mobile game based on the 2013 TV series, titled B.O.B.'s Super Freaky Job, was developed by Adrenaline and released on October 10, 2013 to iOS and Android. In the game, player must guide B.O.B. through challenges by rotating the world around him, to obtain spare parts for Dr. Cockroach, and earn stars for the Presidential Medal.[24]