Popples

Popples were characters in a Saturday morning cartoon by the same name that aired in the United States from 1985 to 1987. They first appeared in a one-time Shelly Duvall special called "It's Popple Time", in which they were puppets and marionettes. more...

The special went over very well, so it was decided to make a cartoon series with the same characters. Popples were created by Those Characters From Cleveland (TCFC), a subsidiary company of American Greetings, and the plush toys were manufactured by Mattel. The cartoon was produced by DiC Entertainment.

Popples resemble brightly colored teddy bears with long tails tipped with pompoms. They have pouches on their backs that can be everted, so they are in the pouches. The name "Popple" is a reference to the popping sound they make when unfolding themselves from such a ball. In the cartoon Popples commonly pull large items from their pouches that couldn't possibly fit inside, which presumably come from hammerspace.

The Popples live with a brother and sister, Billy and Bonnie. Billy and Bonnie think they are the only kids who have Popples until a neighbor family moves in and they have their own Popples, the Rock stars, Pufflings and babies. The Popples tend to come around and mess up whatever the kids are trying to do, such as if they are trying to brush their teeth the Popples end up spilling water, toothpaste and soap all over the bathroom. If the kids are trying to clean their rooms, the Popples come along, mess up the room even worse and then help them get everything back to normal just in the nick of time. The plot revolved around the children's efforts to hide the existence of the Popples from the adults around them.

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