VBirds: Perfect (lost Cartoon Network UK interstitial series of British virtual girl group; 2003)

The advertised logo of the program

Status: Lost

The VBirds was a British virtual cartoon band created and released in 2002. They were created by a team of designers, producers, and musicians including UB40 drummer, James Brown that was led by Richard Kilgarriff, the General Manager of Cartoon Network UK. Its story revolved around the characters being exiled from their home (Planet V) by its ruler King He: Lin for refusing to participate in their dance farms. They were thus shrunk down into a dance machine and sent to Earth so humans could play them as long as they wanted.

In terms of coverage, the band only ever released one single: "Virtuality", that reached No. 21 in the UK charts in early 2003 and came with an animated music video. There was also a cartoon made that was split up into five parts and aired in the commercial breaks in 2002, serving as the pilot to the story of the VBirds. And in 2003, a series that is known as VBirds: Perfect aired that, according to IMDb, was "This music and dance related show, separate from the main VBirds show and also lasting only one season on Cartoon Network UK, gave the viewers the opportunity to perform dance routines with the on-screen characters." It's unknown if this was another interstitial airing like the original or if it was aired like a proper TV series, though IMDB lists it as a mini-series. Eyewitness accounts cite it as looking like a Dance Dance Revolution clone (as the idea is present throughout the franchise) and/or indeed, a dance show. In addition, an Animation Magazine article made in 2002 before the original cartoon aired cites potential future series as including karaoke and interactive TV elements that would be announced in the coming year. In terms of production credits, according to IMDB's perhaps questionable listings, its sole directing credit was Dave King while its writing and producing credits include but are not limited to Richard Kilgarriff. Sophie Okonedo is listed as returning to the role of Bling and its production company and distributor was of course, Cartoon Network. Richard Kilgarriff confirmed both the existence of the show and that he produced it on Twitter.

Recordings would later surface of an advert for VBirds: Perfect, potentially dating the show to their recording date of April 2003. Reusing animation from the SMTV Live interview, the ad confirms a DDR-inspired "interactive TV elements" dance show encouraging the audience to dance along to the VBirds' uniquely animated routines. The show was not only an everyday airing, but viewers could vote on which of the band's three tracks the characters would dance to pre-recorded in the program. DDR-style iconography of the input arrows and pad is indeed present as it was in the "Virtuality" music video, and the show was actually fittingly sponsored by Dancing Stage MegaMix, tying into how "Virtuality" was an included song in Dancing Stage Fever. Considering the non-rounded airtime slot it would get, how few songs the VBirds had to work with from their own catalogue at least and how little mileage you'd have for anything too long with this concert, it also seems to have been short-form interstitial content.

The pilot ended on a cliffhanger, but the story never got resolved and the VBirds became inactive from 2004 onward. As for the brand's content, the original cartoon was released slightly cut on certain UK VHS tapes of The Powerpuff Girls Movie and the music video was available on the "Virtuality" CD, but in terms of VBirds: Perfect, not a single episode of it can even be found online anywhere.

Gallery

An SMTV Live interview with the VBirds in 2002-2003.

An advert for VBirds: Perfect (12:00).

External Link

• The IMDb page for VBirds: Perfect. Retrieved 17 Dec '18