Ovide and the Gang

Ovide and the Gang was a 1980s Canadian cartoon. Set in an Fantasy Counterpart Culture of Australia, the show features a platypus named Ovide and his cousin Saphron. Other characters included a kangaroo, three koalas, a lizard, and a python. The plots regularly centralized on Ovide getting an idea from television.

The series was wildly popular in the Netherlands, largely because of its thoroughly Woosleyed Dutch theme song.


 * Aerith and Bob: Most of the names are either somewhat traditional (Matilda, Cy) or reasonable for cartoons (Polo, Groaner, Bobo, Woody). Ovide and Saphron, on the other hand... God knows where those names came from.
 * The Ditz: Bobo
 * Egomaniac Hunter: One two-time antagonist is a fox hunter who hunts partly for profit and partly for the sake of bagging any exotic animals in his way
 * Kangaroos Represent Australia: Her name is Matilda (yes, as in "waltzing").
 * Everythings Better With Platypus: Ovide and his cousin Saphron
 * Expy: A vocal example, Polo sounds a lot like classic actor Jimmy Durante. He even says the "Ha-cha-cha" line once or twice.
 * Fantastic Drug: There was a certain flower that, when sniffed, would make anybody extremely happy and relaxed. As in, very mellow, laid-back, and agreeable. The villain of the show hated the flowers, as he didn't like getting along with others, but many episodes ended with him being forced to take a sniff. So in a nutshell, all the good guys on the show would sniff a flower to get high, and the villain didn't want to but was usually coerced into doing it. On a kid's show.
 * Gang of Critters: Right there in the title.
 * Meaningful Name: Ovide's name is an anagram for "video," referencing the frequent use of television within the show. Also doubles as a Significant Anagram.
 * Saphron is a yellow platypus and Groaner is a toucan prone to making horrible jokes.
 * The Medic: Matilda serves this role with her expansive knowledge of medicine, herbs, and cures. She also has proven to be an effective one-person rescue team and can use boomerangs to great effect if necessary.
 * Misplaced Wildlife: Toucans are found in South America, not Australia. However, this can be Hand Waved by taking place on a fictional island.
 * Monkey Morality Pose: Do, Re and Mi the koalas mimic this.
 * Once an Episode: The roaming TV will appear with the female platypus character adding commentary, relaying plot elements and giving information to Cy.
 * Reptiles Are Abhorrent: Cy, the main villain, is a snake.
 * The Smurfette Principle: Matilda is the only female member of the main cast. In addition to her, there is also the female newscaster who also appears at least once per episode although she remains on the TV screen.
 * Sssssnaketalk: Cy Sly.
 * TV Genius: Ovide, quite literally.