################################ #############|█|################ #############|█|/▞/############# ##▟███▙##|█|#|█▙▞/##|█|###|█|### #|█(#)█|#|█|#|█▛▚\##|█|##|███|## #|████▛##|█|#|█|\▚\#|█|###|█|### #|█|############################ #|█|##▟███▙###▟█▙##|█|########## #|█|#|█(#)█|#|█#█|#|█|/▞/####### #####|████▛###▜█▛##|█▙▞/###▟█▙## #####|█|###########|█▛▚\##|█#█|# #####|█|###########|█|\▚\##▜█▛## #####|█|######################## ################################
...The Smolnet Piki and Poko Fancapsule...
In 2000, one of the first web cartoons went live, a surreal San Francisco East Bay parody of “magical girl” anime called Piki and Poko: Adventures in Starland. With a glam/femme æsthetic and a distrobution on the LGBT website PlanetOut by short flash and RealMedia files, Piki and Poko was far ahead of its time for its queer resonance, anticipating streaming cartoons like She Ra and Steven Universe. The show quickly gained a small but dedicated following. But this wasn’t enough to prevent its cancellation by MondoMedia well ahead of the anticipated end of its plot line. Little remembered today, Piki and Poko occupied a pivotal moment in online animation history.
Piki Matsumoto - Teenage cheerleader extraordinaire.
Poko Shizunitsu - Nerdy teenage outcast.
Clarence - Acolyte of the Taurus Temple, a highly sapient robot snow globe.
DJ Aries - Astral being embodying the fresh grooves of his relevant Zodiac sign.
DJ Taurus - Astral being embodying the smooth beats of Taurus.
Fertilidad - Gender fluid and ever fabulous inhabitant of Starland.
Gender Vendor - Sentient vending machine which dispenses the most fashionable genders.
Shaper - Diabolical alembic filled with body parts and digestive acids.
The Homemaker - Arch television guru and commander of evil candy cane hordes.
Totemo - A floating sky squid.
Picture of the daring duo. (jpg)
They are so cute!
Archive of episodes 1 through 29. (Zip-27Mb)
SWF Flash files. Use VLC or such to play.
Apparently, episodes 30-33 were also filmed. To my knowledge none of these were released, at least in any form in which now survives online. They may have been broadcast on the LOGO cable tv network. Further episodes were scripted, but I’ve not found any trace of them online. By all accounts, a good deal of the continuing story was outlined when P&P was cancelled.
Piki and Poko theme song. (Mp3)
By Amy X Neuburg. Low bitrate.
Piki and Poko (Episodes 1-29 on Youtube via invidious)
Some good soul converted and uploaded the series to Youtube.
Piki And Poko official site (web-archive)
The archives of the official site from the early aughts still contain the episode swf files.
Piki & Poko Fan Site (web-archive)
An Angelfire fan site from long ago, this is a trove of P&P memorabilia and access to most of the extant, released episodes. The forums are sadly ablated into the æther, but were once a depot for news about the series.
Piki and Poko: Adventures in Starland (web-CW:Facebook)
Added for completeness, as this Faceborg group contains a bit of nice old memorabilia from some of the cast who worked on the series.
The voice of Piki went on to develop a ranging career as a voice actor in both shows and video games. She often posts about P&P, proclaiming her deep affection for the show.
East Bay composer and electronica musician Amy X Neuburg crafted the iconic Piki and Poko theme song.
Piki and Poko have been kept on development ice for two decades now. As far as I can tell, the series is still copyright (sigh) Mondomedia. But the deal seems to be along the lines of “keep circulating the tapes” amongst the fans and cast members who recollect P&P with affection. The series has been posted on several fora for many years with no takedowns. So I’m providing the above in the interest of history and fan support.
-EOF-
.
