Cool Barbie VIII - Plan of the Scourge

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Cool Barbie VIII
Plan of the Scourge

Ken the Elder defends the Land against Wisealise.
Written by HIM Emperor Jonathan I
Original air date 1 September 2014
Runtime 17:06
Production code CB.VIII
Episode chronology
Previous Cool Barbie VII - Secession
Next Moonita minisode

Cool Barbie VIII - Plan of the Scourge, abbreviated as CB.VIII, is the eighth episode of Cool Barbie produced by Austenasian Television Productions, and the longest to be published in a single installment. It was released on 1 September 2014.

Plot

On the Moonbase, the astronauts stationed there detect two thousand spaceships heading for Earth, and warn the planet below. While out in her car, Corporal Barbie receives a message from General White informing her of the situation, and she warns the locals that Earth is under attack. Meanwhile, Xeaphon, Moonita, and Ken the Elder are watching a news bulletin on the invasion when the broadcast gets interrupted. The Uranian General addresses Earth on all human wavelengths, demanding immediate worldwide surrender; however, the President of the UN Security Council refuses the demand, and the General threatens the Earth with devastation.

Xeaphon and Ken fortify the house while Moonita goes to organize protection for the toys. She goes upstairs and meets Corporal Barbie, who has already got the toy population into public shelters. Borrowing the Corporal's radio, Moonita contacts the toy military leaders and helps them to organize the defence of the Land.

The Uranian Fleet enters the atmosphere and bombards the planet. Xeaphon, Moonita, Ken and Corporal Barbie stand by the patio window as explosions sound around them, noting that the Land's forcefield is holding for now. Wisealise - who, as Xeaphon explains to Corporal Barbie, is an old enemy of the family who took over their Land once before - teleports into the Garden and begins to break through the forcefield with blasts of energy from a staff. Moonita suggests that they contact the police or military, but Xeaphon notes that they would be "a bit preoccupied" with the Uranian invasion.

Wisealise breaches the forcefield and forces his way into the house, knocking Moonita and Ken unconscious with a wave of his staff. Xeaphon attempts to shoot him with a laser gun, but Wisealise deflects the shot and knocks Xeaphon out as well; meanwhile, Corporal Barbie is able to hide.

As Wisealise celebrates his victory, Colin and his followers teleport into the Land, whom Wisealise thanks for arranging the "distraction" of the Uranian invasion. Colin explains that the invasion was organised by one of his Trolls, who explains that the Uranians will support Wisealise in return for him freeing Bubbles for them. Xeaphon stirs and is handcuffed to some furniture by Wisealise, who then appoints Colin emperor of "Colin's Land". Colin pulls out a radio and contacts the military, claiming to now be their emperor, and orders them to free Bubbles in order to safeguard the Land from the rest of the Uranians.

Meanwhile, at the Cryogenic Research Prison, most of the soldiers guarding it abandon their posts as they receive a telepathic message from Wisealise announcing his victory. Colin's Trolls fly up to the remaining guards and demand that they let them pass. The soldiers refuse, and one shoots the Troll Leader's hat and hair (revealed to be a wig) off after the latter attempts to invoke his former position as Minister of Defence. An exasperated Wisealise walks into the kitchen and simply blows open the freezer with a blast from his staff, and Bubbles flies out.

Bubbles demands to know why he has been freed, and Wisealise introduces himself to him. A Uranian spaceship blows down the front door of the house and lands in the kitchen, and the Uranian General steps out with a bodyguard. The General welcomes Bubbles back into his service, but suddenly the spaceship rises up into the air. The Uranian General demands to know who has stolen his ship - to which Wisealise professes ignorance - before Corporal Barbie announces herself over the spaceship's loudspeaker. Bubbles flies up to the ship and enters, upon which Corporal Barbie ineffectively shoots him with her electron gun before he activates a beam-out mechanism to teleport them both back to the surface.

The Troll Leader orders the two other Trolls to get after Corporal Barbie, and they chase her out of the kitchen. Wisealise asks the Uranian General for confirmation that his ownership of the Land is now safe, to which the General replies that now Bubbles has been released, they can withdraw. Wisealise responds that they must first crush Spectrum and NATO to ensure that he is not forced to return the Land to Xeaphon's family, but the Uranian General ignores him and orders the Fleet to withdraw from Earth. Colin runs into the kitchen and informs Wisealise that the Uranian Fleet is leaving, to which Wisealise responds to a mystified Colin that he will have "to do this quickly".

Meanwhile, Corporal Barbie is being chased through the living room by the two Trolls. One throws her to the ground with a blast of energy, but as the other prepares to finish her off he is knocked to the floor by an old teddy, who along with several other old soft toys confront the Trolls. They order them to return to the Teddy Territories, but are told that they will not suffer under Wisealise's tyranny again. A shout of "Neither will we!" is heard behind the Trolls, who turn around to see that a group of toy soldiers has arrived and helped Corporal Barbie to her feet. Surrounded, the Trolls teleport away. Corporal Barbie thanks the soldiers and old toys, but they all hide when Wisealise comes into the room and starts searching for something in cupboards and drawers.

Xeaphon - still chained to the wall - asks what Wisealise is looking for. Wisealise states that he is aware that the powerful Thunder Stone is somewhere in Xeaphon's house. Claiming that his staff is the powerful Staff of Forest Elves, Wisealise reveals that he plans to use the Thunder Stone and Staff together to free the Titans imprisoned under the Land's garden, but then defeat them and drain their power to become invincible. He finds the Thunder Stone - a purple crystal - and strides out into the Garden. Thunder rumbles as he attaches the Stone to the Staff.

Meanwhile, one of the old soft toys which had helped Corporal Barbie earlier frees Xeaphon from his handcuffs, and he wakes up Moonita. They run out to the patio to confront Wisealise; Colin's followers attempt to shoot them but their toy bullets bounce right off with no effect.

Wisealise announces that his staff is fully charged, and begins the process of freeing the Titans, shooting a beam of energy from the staff at one of their prison entrances. Corporal Barbie flies out into the garden with her electron gun and places herself in the way of the beam of energy; at the same time, Moonita throws herself at Wisealise to tackle him. A magical explosion occurs, throwing Wisealise, Corporal Barbie, and Moonita all to the ground unconscious. The old teddies and some toy soldiers emerge from the house and surround Colin and his followers, who teleport away, after which Ken the Elder runs out waving his gun around and asking what he's missed.

Wisealise wakes up to see Xeaphon pointing the staff at him. Wisealise reveals that he is of an alien species known as the Scourge, and threatens that others will come to conquer Earth by force before dying.

Moonita wakes up and asks where she is. Upon Xeaphon calling out to her, she simply looks at him blankly. Meanwhile, Ken attempts to stir Corporal Barbie, upon which she tells him that she is Moonita. They each respond to the other's name being called, and Xeaphon realizes that due to the powerful explosion of magic, they have switched bodies. Ken asks if they can be switched back, to which Xeaphon responds that it will be permanent.

Continuity notes

  • It is later revealed in the Xeaphon minisode (2015) that Wisealise's staff was not, as he claimed, the real Staff of Forest Elves. The Scourge who attacks the Land in CB.XI (2016) has a similar staff to Wisealise (indeed, the same prop was used), suggesting that it is no more than a standard-issue (albeit powerful by human standards) Scourge weapon.
  • The leader of Spectrum who alerts Corporal Barbie to the Uranian invasion is General White. This character is based on Colonel White, who led the organisation of the same name in Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, a series from which Cool Barbie has often borrowed various elements.
  • Although the President of the UN Security Council is credited simply as "Security Council President", Jonathan I has stated that Mr. Forty's performance was intended to imitate Sir Mark Lyall Grant, a British diplomat who served as Security Council President during August 2014. This sets the date for CB.VIII, further confirmed in the Xeaphon minisode as having been in late August 2014.
  • The prop used for the Uranian General's spaceship is the same that was used for Bubbles' spaceship in both the original Cool Barbie film (2005) and CB.I (2009). This prop provided the inspiration for the design of the CGI Uranian spaceships.
  • During editing, it was noticed that during the scene in which Wisealise and Xeaphon talk while the former searches for the Thunder Stone, the door between Parliament Hall and Bullmastiff Hall was alternately open and closed, due to the shots of the two characters being filmed at different times. Instead of re-filming one of the characters, dubbed dialogue for Wisealise was added during editing explaining that his staff is so powerful that it "warps reality around it." Another, similar mistake can be seen at the end of the film: while Xeaphon points the staff at Wisealise, it can simultaneously be seen lying next to him on the ground.

Production

CB.VIII was put together over more than a year and a half. The first scenes filmed for CB.VIII were inside the house, comprising most of the toy-only scenes, and were shot between late January and early March 2013; balloons used for the February 2013 launch of the HIMOB Ascension can be seen in the background of some shots. On 1 September 2013, the newsreader scene was filmed in the Choir Vestry of Carshalton Methodist Church, which had previously been used for the background of a scene in CB.V. More scenes were filmed in April 2014, and after the CGI scenes were completed in June, the final scenes - including the majority of those involving human actors - were filmed over August.

The majority of the CGI scene - as well as the opening credits - were produced by Petya d'Égtavie, who is credited on the opening sequence as "PTB-Labs Video Productions". Finishing touches to the CGI scene (namely the explosions) were later added by Karl Friedrich.

A brief "out-take" of Wisealise dancing is inserted after the credits, with a vocal effect by the now Vera Hewitt included.

Cast

The credits included a statement stating: "While the actor who played the role of the newsreader wishes to stay anonymous, ATP expresses its gratitude for his performance."

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