"Blood Sucking Fruit Bats of the Lower Amazon"

Season 2 episode 7 (episode 33 overall)

Original broadcast date: 24 October 1989

Writer: Brian Trueman
*Additional voices:

Miss Von Boodles: Ruby Wax - Amazon/Frog(?): Jimmy Hibbert
Joke credit: Chocky Bickies – Wannapannacannpannatanna Biscuit Co.
Travel location: Amazonian Jungle
Castle transport visual used.

* Regular voices
Count Duckula: David Jason

Igor: Jack May

Nanny/Dmitri: Brian Trueman

Dr Von Goosewing/Sviatoslav: Jimmy Hibbert

Narrator: Barry Clayton

NOTE: Duckula and his 2 servants are the only characters to appear in every single episode, unless you count the narrator. For each episode review I will only include additional characters (in order of appearance from the first actor) under ‘additional voices’ , even if they were in several episodes. Characters’ names are used where spoken.

I chose this episode to review first for two reasons. First, it was the first one I can recall recording from its original broadcast on ITV in 1989. We had a VHS tape full of episodes of Count Duckula and The Sooty Show (Duckula was on a Tuesday, Sooty the following day) and this was the first one on the tape. Secondly, it came up in my random number generator. Sometime you just have to trust fate.

It’s a standout episode for a few reasons. One – it marks one of Igor’s most elaborate attempts to try and convert his master into a bloodthirsty maniac. More on that later. Two – it highlights The Count’s affectionate side towards animals. This is interesting to note as the animal in question in this instance is ‘Fluffykins’ the bat (Igor insisting he be called ‘Fang’ of course). Despite the horror ethos of the series, Duckula doesn’t seem to view all bats as evil vampires, which is something a lot of folks in real life could learn from. Three – Ruby Wax is in it. She wasn’t in a lot of episodes, but hearing her often surprisingly straight act against David Jason’s wackier character is an interesting experience to anyone familiar with the larger-than-life persona she carried back in the late 80s.

Some great opening shots as we track the bat’s journey back to the castle.

The use of solid black for most of the turret is quite striking.

The episode starts out with Fang/Fluffykins flying towards a turret of the castle which Igor has made home for him. His idea is to train bat to bite his master and ‘inject (his) vampire venom into the master’s bloodstream’. Unfortunately for Igor, Nanny and Duckula appear to have corrupted the bat by feeding him chocky bickies, meaning all Igor’s work is wasted! The bat has no bloodlust whatsoever now, which becomes all the more relevant towards the end.

What a ferocious creature. That bickie didn’t stand a chance.

That said, despite his sinister goal and schoolmaster-ish ways, it’s endearing to note that Igor still displays a similar degree of affection towards his pet. The opening scene also has some really grisly references from Igor, describing his imagined diet for Fang/Fluffykins to be ‘village maiden-flavoured gibbet-trimmings’, ‘full of immoral fibre’ and ‘7-day old corpses mouldering on the gibbet’. I’m amazed that this sort of dialogue could be allowed on what is ostensibly a kids’ show (something The Count references later in the episode).

“Fighting off indigestion and boredom!” We get a well-lit shot of the library while the Count searches for rhymes.

Note the angles of light coming from the doorway.

Next comes a scene where Igor plays on the Count’s vanity. Failing to convince him to fly the castle to the Amazon (so as to get another bat for training, which naturally he doesn’t tell Duckula about) he bets him (a bundle of fresh asparagus, no less. Love how Igor uses bait that he knows his master will take) that he can’t come up with a rhyming verse for ‘Amazon.’ Naturally Duckula cannot resist a challenge and immediately sets to. It was a recurring theme of the series that in order to make the castle travel, Duckula had to come up with a rhyme whilst standing in his magic coffin. In some episodes they didn’t bother with the rhyming part (simply cutting away to the travel part in order to save time or streamline the story) but here it’s vital we see it so Igor insists his master follow the bet through. Duckula’s pride gets the better of him and he does indeed follow it through, so despite winning the bet, Igor wins his trip to the Amazon! There’s something oddly satisfying about this part even though Igor’s motives are pretty underhanded!

Here’s the opening pan of the first shot of the jungle. Typically, the castle lands in a swamp.

Once in the jungle, the trio get rescued from a swamp by a lady explorer in a helicopter. Igor is interested to learn that she has heard of the ‘Amazonian Blood Fruit Bats’ (Fluffykins came along for the ride) and he tempts fate by hypothesising that the only thing that could ruin a cave of bloodsucking bats is a tribe of Nannies with tonnes of chocky bickies. Guess what happens at the end?

Bit crowded in back! Cute expression on Fluffykins.

During the night they are visited by a tribe of Amazon women who, even in the dark, bear a striking resemblance to Nanny, and the joke about Igor getting his head bitten of (depending which way you look at it) has to be seen to be understood!

Poor Fluffykins can’t take much more of these crazy folks.

After a botched boat ride in the morning, everyone gets captured by the mysterious (and apparently cannibalistic) Amazonians as they introduce their new queen – Nanny of course! In an amusing visual joke, Fluffykins being a bat, is strapped to the ‘clothesline’ the right way up. Duckula mishears Nanny’s voice as Igor’s and asks him if he can ‘do Bugs Bunny as well?’ I like how they didn’t go for the slightly more obvious choice of Daffy Duck.

“ I wish the blood would rush to MY feet!” This animator gives the characters a sharp

angular style, right down to their movements.

Nanny’s faithful people. They even all have the same condition with their arms! Who knows, maybe it’s a religious thing.

Now the Amazons are on Nanny’s side they help everyone to get to the bats’ cave, which only Igor and the scientist really want to see. Igor manages to capture one of them in an impressive display of jumping and skipping with his net and cage. It’s always amusing to see Igor exhibiting signs of life and joy, since he so rarely does it.

“Come here my little beauties! Come here in answer to my infernal prayer!”

Again, it’s all for naught as the tribe of Amazons intervene and ‘turn’ the bats by feeding them chocky bickies, precisely how Fluffykins got ‘ruined’! Someone ought to get the recipe for those things. It would save a lot of unnecessary vets bills.

Interesting to note that not long after Igor cages one of the bats, he and the others get caged BY the bats.

Something else the show excels in is heart. Possibly because it’s generally such a dark and/or cynical affair, but moments of warmth always come off as very impactful and the group’s farewell to Fluffykins as they decide to leave him with his fellow bats is especially touching. Of course Igor describes such a scene as ‘disgustingly sentimental’, but that just adds a dry chuckle to it.

I’m warning you bat, don’t you dare Is that a doctors’ hut behind Igor?

give me a sore throat. Hope I never get sick in the Amazon

Mind you at least they have television. Queen Nanny the 1^st gives her clunky farewell speech.

In the end they all fall out of Miss Von Boodles’ helicopter and land on the castle, narrowly avoiding a frog (and impalement when you think about it) just in time to transport home. Now all they need to worry about is how to climb down off the turrets in time for the next adventure.

Remember Igor, this IS technically your fault this time!

A good solid episode that offers a driving plotline for Igor and a bit of glory for Nanny, when she gets made Queen of the Amazonians. Throughout the adventure, not once does the naïve Duckula suspect what his manservant is really trying to achieve. All the main cast get enough to do and Ruby Wax’s character moves things along briskly. On the other hand, Jimmy Hibbert doesn’t have a great deal to say in this one. The bat motif links in nicely with a later episode Brian Trueman penned for the next season ('The Rest Is History') and I like the idea that Igor has secretly been training a bat to bite his master and turn him into a vampire. While he may be a faithful butler, he does have his own agenda that comes to the fore now and then. This episode highlights his furtive aspect, right down to his admission that he even ‘lied about the asparagus’!

Also Fluffykins is adorable. He provides a nice example that even unconventional pets can be endearing, which mirrors Duckula’s situation pretty nicely. He may technically be a vampire, but he’s a nice guy, much like Fluffykins – sorry I mean Fang.

The music is mainly jungle style flutes, drums and percussion cues. The intro over the title card and opening scene I also heard used on a Monty Python sketch 'The Kon Tiki'. That ponderous and humorous theme that gets a lot of use throughout the series plays while Duckula searches for a rhyme.

'Eccentric Walk' (Roger Roger) plays during the library scene. It's also used in 'Bigfoot Falls' (Danger Mouse), 'Private Ears' and 'Yule Be Sorry' (Victor & Hugo.)

Trivia.

- Episode closes with the trio screaming but does not open with anyone screaming, unless you count Igor calling his pet.

- Fluffykins speech effects would later be used for Hugo’s pet earwig Penelope in ‘Victor & Hugo’.

- Duckula uses his telport ability to go from the library to the cellar. 'I wish I wouldn't keep doing that!' he says. He generally seems only to use this power when he's excited or upset.

- The magic coffin makes an appearance.

- For the verse to make the castle move, Duckula comes up with :

“The Count, who has only pajamas on (I haven’t really but never mind)

Is cold and he stutters and stammers on

Since I haven’t a coat made of llamas on

Take me now to the warmth of the Amazon!”

- The tribe is referred to as the Wannamannapannatannacanna’ or the ‘Moonier Manabracka Amazoniantez’ as Miss Von Boodles prefers to name them.

- Tukkapakkawakka is the name given to the bats’ cave.

- Only instance where we get to see Igor’s underwear. Don’t worry, it’s brief. I mean long-johns.

Just in case you really needed to see it. Now you just know someone on DeviantArt has an

entire gallery dedicated to this brief scene.

- Duckula does his running gag of trying to address Ruby Wax’s character by her first name, only to be refused that familiarity. Generally used in Brian’s scripts, but not always.

- Her 1^st name is apparently Elvira. Which was also the name of the opera star in ‘A Fright at the Opera.’

-Duckula breaks the 4^th wall when he upsets one of the Amazons, causing her to say stuff in made up gibbers. ‘Language please, this is a kids’ show!’

- Igor’s wage is about 14 drachmas a month, but he never gets it, according to Nanny.

-‘Mukkabuckabuck green bucka?’ clearly means money. I used to think it was a reference to Baron Greenback from ‘Danger Mouse’. Maybe it’s a double joke!

- This episode was released on 'The Count Duckula Bumper Special' VHS tape which included 4 other episodes. ('Ghostly Gold', 'Prime Time Duck', 'The Incredible Shrinking Duck' and 'Ducknapped')

Goofs and nitpicks.

- Duckula's bow tie disappears for a frame when he's arguing with Igor in the lounge.

- Brief colour error on Fluffykins’ nose when in the cellar.

- Brief colour error on Igor’s eyebrows just before he enters the cave.

- Duckula incorrectly identifies a stalactite as a stalagmite. To be fair, it’s to facilitate a punny gag and Duckula is not as educated as he thinks.

A few notable background shots. Sometimes this show would treat you to lingering pans or zoom-ins of the intricate background art whereas other times, would tease you with only the briefest of shots. This episode has some really lush jungle scenics.