Synopsis
A premise of the series is that Shaun the sheep exhibits human
intelligence, creativity, and behaviour in a farm setting, which usually
provides a
situational comedy
conflict which Shaun must resolve before the end of each episode.
Recurring themes include the characters evading the sheepdog Bitzer
(though he is sometimes with the sheep in their escapades) and avoiding
discovery by the Farmer.
Episodes are very much a combination of
slapstick and classic
silent comedy
in Aardman’s recognizable animation style. There is no spoken dialogue,
even by human characters. In this way it is reminiscent of silent
comedy films and even
Pingu and the animated version of
Mr. Bean. However, simple grunts, bleats, and sighs are all used to add subtle expression to each character's moods and feelings.
Theme Song
Based on the theme song, a longer, compact disc version was released under the title "Life's a Treat", performed by
Vic Reeves.
Shaun's First Appearance
Shaun the Sheep made his first "official" appearance in
Wallace & Gromit's third short feature, the
Academy Award winning
A Close Shave
as the youngest member of a flock of sheep Wallace and Gromit work to
save from an evil mechanical dog that wants to turn them all into dog
food for profit. Shaun does show a hint of intelligence, though he
proves to be a big factor in saving the day. Shaun and the entire herd
are also seen living with the inventive duo (much to Wallace's annoyance
since they eat
everything in sight, including furniture and
clothes as well as his beloved cheese), though none of this seems to be
part of this series' canon, or it can be surmised Wallace simply sold
off the flock to The Farmer where Shaun and his friends now reside.
Shaun also made a brief cameo appearance with the duo in one of the episodes (entitled "
Shopper 13") of Wallace & Gromit's "
Cracking Contraptions" web series of shorts.
Characters
Richard Goleszowski at Canterbury's Anifest 2008 with models of one of the sheep in the flock, Bitzer, Timmy, and Shaun.
Major characters
- Shaun is the main protagonist of the series and the leader of the flock. He is a clever sheep and keeps his head. He has a good friendship with Bitzer.
- Bitzer is the farmer's long-suffering sheepdog and a good friend to Shaun. Bitzer does his best to keep Shaun's pals out of trouble.
- Shirley can be described as an eating machine. She's so big
that she often gets stuck and needs the other sheep to push, pull or
even sling-shot her out of trouble, even using heavy equipment at times.
- Timmy is Shaun's cousin. He may be the baby of the flock, but
is often at the center of things. Luckily his mum is always there to
keep him safe. He also appears as the main star in the spinoff Timmy Time.
- Timmy's Mother wears curlers in her hair, and is a bit
careless about maternal duties, even using Timmy once as some sort of a
paint brush. But when her offspring goes astray, she is inconsolable
until he is safely back in her care. She is also Shaun's aunt.
- The Flock are the one big happy, if slightly dopey, family:
The sheep like to play and create mischief together, though it's usually
Shaun and Bitzer who sort out the resulting mess.
- The Farmer is a drum and bass-loving Welshman
(voiced by John Sparkes) who runs the farm with Bitzer at his side. He
is completely oblivious to the human-like intelligence (or even the
stupidity) of his flock. His disastrous attempts at dating are an
ongoing joke of the series.
- The Pigs are the main antagonists
of the series. They're always trying to antagonize the Sheep and get
them into trouble. They are, however, scared of Bitzer, who puts them in
line. They are bullies to Shaun and his flock, and they got told off in
"Pig Trouble" (Series 2) by the farmer.
- Pidsley is the cat, he's minor character in season 1 and
major character in season 2 and desires to be the sole recipient of the
Farmer's attention. He is jealous of Bitzer's relationship with the
farmer and dislikes the sheep, thinking of them as stupid and beneath
him.
Minor characters
Animals
- The Rooster appears at the start of the opening credits. He also kicked out one of the sheep that intruded in the coop in "Sheepwalking".
- The Mother Hen left her clutch of four eggs for a walk, only
to find the nest empty (only eggshells were left). She then went out to
look for them, posting "missing" signs everywhere, even forgetting her
fear as she asked The Bull for her chicks' whereabouts, and looked for
them at night. She appears in "Who’s the Mummy?" and "In the Doghouse",
where the flock throw her a party in the chicken coop.
- Baby Chicks are chicks that easily annoy Shaun. They always follow wherever Shaun goes (because Shaun was the first thing they saw upon hatching),
and in order to make them accept Mother Hen as their real mother, the
flock turned Shaun's fleece into clothing for her (because they like
Shaun's fleece). They appear in "Who's the Mummy?" and one makes a cameo
appearance in "The Farmer's Niece".
- The Duck In the first series, the duck suffers collateral damage due to Shaun’s exploits in "Off the Baa!",
"Tidy Up", and "Bath Time". Sometimes he is seen with his ladyfriends.
In series two there are two ducks that act as more of a double act. In
series two, the ducks have been replaced with a pure white duck.
- Mower Mouth the Goat is an unstoppable eating machine: While
not an unfriendly character, all his considerable energy is focused on
his next meal. He appears in an episode named after him, and also on
"Saturday Night Shaun". He was also routinely causing trouble for Shaun
and the flock in Shaun the Farmer.
- The Bull is belligerent, powerful, and easily provoked by
Shaun’s antics and the colour red. He appears in "The Bull", "Saturday
Night Shaun", "Who's the Mummy?" and "Heavy Metal Shaun". When Shaun
orders a red bed sheet, he stops chasing the other sheep (painted red)
around the farm. He was an unexpected guest at the barn-turned-disco in
"Saturday Night Shaun".
- The Birds make occasional appearances.
- She-Shaun/Lola is a special guest sheep in "Two's Company".
She is a ewe and Shaun's interest. She became part of the flock after
she is mistaken to be sent to her real home.
- She-Bitzer is a special guest sheepdog in "Fetching". She is a
Bitzer interest. She is leaving the farm because she's one of the
unnamed family
- The Other Flock are minor sheep in "Foxy Laddie". They are in appearance different than the flock and they become adopted as part of the flock
Humans
- Pizza Delivery Boy is a young man who rides a moped and works in the local pizzeria. Also moonlights as a postman in "Saturday Night Shaun".
- The Farmer’s Niece is a young girl whose over-enthusiastic love of animals spells trouble for Bitzer and the Flock.
- Bus Driver takes the sheep to and from the fair in "Sheep on the Loose" and "Takeaway".
- The Granny is a short-tempered, short-sighted old lady,
appears in "Takeaway" and "Save the Tree". She also appears in "Two's
Company", holding a cart and "The Big Chase", forcing the pigs to give
her a lift in their car.
- The Farmer's Girlfriend appears for the first time in Series 2.
Aliens
- The Alien Family appears in "Shaun Encounters", consisting of
2 adults and 2 youngsters. They exhibit human-like behaviour and
generally jovial personalities. They are green and have one large eye on
the top of the head. The mother wears a granny dress while her husband
wore a metal shirt. The mother is seen constantly giving the father a
hard time for not watching the kids who, at the beginning of the
episode, fly around in a small ship that is very much akin to a small
go-kart.
- The Lone Alien appears in "The Visitor". He is similar to the
members of the Alien Family but his shirt is similar to the bad
children's father and flies a spaceship with a design and style that is
more akin to a high-performance sports car. He appears not to originate
from Earth, as Shaun has to point out to him on a picture of the solar
system which planet he is currently on. He also has a handheld device
that can analyze the characteristics of an animal including what it
likes in life, can synthesize objects apparently from thin air and can
cause objects to levitate.
- The Alien Scientists Abduct Shaun and Pidsley in "Cat Got Your Brain" (series 2).
Episodes
DVDs
Region 2 (Europe)
- Off the Baa! (12 November 2007): Timmy in a Tizzy /
Buzz Off Bees / Things That Go Bump / Mower Mouth / Fleeced / Shaun
Shoots the Sheep / Mountains out of Molehills
- Shape Up with Shaun (17 November 2007): Shape Up with
Shaun / Bathtime / Fetching / Take Away / Still Life / Scrumping /
Little Sheep of Horrors / The Kite
- Shaun the Sheep Box Set (12 November 2007): Off the
Baa! / Timmy in a Tizzy / Buzz Off Bees / Things That Go Bump / Mower
Mouth / Fleeced / Shaun Shoots the Sheep / Mountains out of Molehills /
Shape Up with Shaun / Bathtime / Fetching / Take Away / Still Life /
Scrumping / Little Sheep of Horrors / The Kite
- Saturday Night Shaun (10 March 2008): Saturday Night
Shaun / Stick with Me / Shaun the Farmer / Sheep on the Loose / Tidy Up /
Snore-Worn Shaun / Camping Chaos / If You Can’t Stand the Heat
- Abracadabra (20 October 2008): Abracadabra / The Bull /
Who's the Mummy? / Hiccups / Heavy Metal Shaun / Troublesome Tractor /
Sheepwalking / Save the Tree
- Wash Day (17 November 2008): Wash Day / Tooth Fairy /
The Farmer's Niece / The Visitor / Helping Hound / Big Top Timmy /
Bitzer Puts His Foot in It / Shaun Encounters
- Shaun the Sheep – The Complete First Series (17 November 2008) (Letterbox/Widescreen)
- Spring Lamb (29 March 2010): Spring Lamb / Sheepless
Nights / Bagpipe Buddy / Party Animals / Strictly No Dancing / Draw the
Line / Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow / Who’s the Caddy? / Cheetah Cheater /
Everything Must Go
- We Wish Ewe A Merry Christmas (3 October 2011): We
Wish Ewe A Merry Christmas / Snowed In / Whistleblower / Pig Swill Fly /
Shirley Whirley / Foxy Laddie / Shaun Goes Potty / Fireside Favourite
Region 1 (U.S. and Canada)
- Party Animals (September 7, 2010): Double Trouble /
Strictly No Dancing / Party Animals / Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow / Pig
Swill Fly / Shaun Goes Potty / Operation Pidsley
- One Giant Leap for Lambkind (2010): Shaun Encounters / The Bull / Hiccups / Bitzer Puts His Foot In It / Save The Tree / The Visitor
- Shaun the Sheep: Season 1 (October 19, 2010) (Full Screen)[1]
- Shaun the Sheep: Season 2 (November 15, 2011) (Full Screen)[2]
Reception
Reviews of the series were consistently positive. Harry Venning of
"The Stage" found "characterisation charming and the animation superb.
All this before even a mention of how funny and splendidly slapstick the
script is."
[3] The Guardian noted that the series "hits the four-to-seven-year-old age group smack in the eye."
[4] Charles Arthur wrote "classic Aardman style that leaves me laughing out loud."
[5] On forums, the show has received rave reviews, with Shaun becoming a favourite among adults as well as children.
[6]
References to popular culture
- Shirley's training in the episode "Shape Up with Shaun" is based on the film Rocky.
- The paintings parodied in "Still Life" include the Mona Lisa and Constable's The Hay Wain.
- In "Buzz Off Bees", the Farmer appears in his hooded beekeepers outfit, with accompanying Darth Vader-style heavy breathing.
- The infamous shower scene from Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho is spoofed in the episode "The Little Sheep of Horrors", whose name is based on the 1960 film The Little Shop of Horrors and its 1986 remake.
- In "Hiccups", Shaun turns his guitar amplifier up to 11 in a reference to a scene in This Is Spinal Tap.
- In "Fleeced", the Farmer drags one of the sheep away for shearing,
slamming a large metal sliding door closed behind him. This is
particularly reminiscent of the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
- In "Supersize Timmy", when Timmy ate a tomato he becomes big like King Kong. This is similar to the 1933 film King Kong and its 1976 and 2005 remakes.
- In "The Visitor", the alien thrashes his car with a tree branch in the same way as Basil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers.
- Also in "The Visitor", the alien's space ship can use sheep dung as fuel, which resemble Nibbler's faeces in Futurama.
- In "Mountains out of Molehills" a sheep is reading a magazine called "Bleat", a spoof of celebrity gossip magazine "Heat".
- Near the end of "Off the Baa", the well-known Nessun Dorma theme from Puccini's opera Turandot is used, which was the musical theme of the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
- At the end of "Mower Mouth" the shrubs are clearly reminiscent of those in Edward Scissorhands.
- In "Saturday Night Shaun" Shaun rips off his coat and tosses it away
as he is dancing, only to have tossed back. This is reminiscent of the
scene in the 1980 movie Airplane!, where Robert Hays tosses his white sportcoat away, only to have it tossed back in his face.
- In "Mountains out of Molehills" Shaun tries to catch the mole with a
fishing rod and line. When the first "bite" is shown, the first two
notes of the Jaws theme are played.
- in "Party Animals", one of the guests is dressed as a crude version of a Dalek trying to get up some stairs but failing because of the suit.
- in "Zebra Ducks of the Serengeti", the Farmer's signpost over the gate falls over Bitzer - à la Buster Keaton in Steamboat Bill Jr.
Adaptations
Film
A feature film is being developed for 2013/2014 release.
[7]
Theatre show
On March 9, 2011, Shaun the Sheep made its theatre début in live
Shaun's Big Show.
[8] This 1 hour and 40 minutes long musical/dance show features all favourite characters, including Bitzer, Shirley and Timmy.
Video games
On 16 June 2008,
D3 Publisher of America, which published a game based on Aardman's 2006 film
Flushed Away, announced that it would also release a video game based on the television series. The
Shaun the Sheep game was developed by
Art Co., Ltd exclusively for
Nintendo DS, and was released in autumn 2008.
[9] The
Shaun the Sheep website also ran a contest which offered five packages containing a Nintendo DS and a copy of the game as a prize.
The Shaun the Sheep web site is also home to several Flash-based games, including Home Sheep Home,
[10] which is also available at the iOS App Store for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.
[11]
Spin-off
References
