VeggieTales: Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Samson's Hairbrush (2005) (V)

Director:

Tim Hodge

Writers:

Tim Hodge (writer)
Robert G. Lee (writer)

Release Date:

25 June 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Short | Family

Plot:

Larry the Cucumber stars as Minnesota Cuke, adventurer extraordinary. Follow Cuke around the world as he searches for the legendary Hairbrush of Samson on a race to keep it from his arch nemeses, Professor Rattan! |

Plot Keywords:

Veggietales | Character Name In Title

Cast

Mike Nawrocki	...	Minnesota Cuke, Jerry Gourd, Jean Claude, Li'l Pea (voice)
Phil Vischer	...	Marten (Bob, Voice) / Rattan (Lunt, Voice) / Scallion / Percy Pea / Coach Nezzer / Jimmy Gourd / Phillipe / Announcer (voice)
Lisa Vischer	...	Junior Asparagus (voice)
Kristin Blegen	...	Laura Carrot (voice)
Brian Roberts	...	Gourdon (voice)
Dan Anderson	...	Dad Asparagus (voice)
Cydney Trent	...	Julia (Petunia, Voice) (voice)
Tim Hodge	...	Figaro, Scooter (voice)
Joe Spadaford	...	Leo (voice)
Kurt Heinecke	...	(voice)
Gretchen Heinecke	...	(voice)
Rachael Pitts	...	(voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ally Nawrocki	...	Annie (voice)

Runtime:

USA:44 min | USA:43 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:G | Canada:G (video rating)

Company:

Big Idea Productions

Trivia:

Minnesota Cuke's ring tone is the tune from the Silly Song, "Oh, Where is my Hairbrush?"

Goofs:

Continuity: When Minnesota (Larry) and Marten (Bob) are looking at the map of Niagara Falls, the map is at first facing towards them and away from the audience. A few shots later, the map is facing away from them (towards the audience), then it switches back again.

Quotes:

Percy Pea: Have you ever been pounded?
Li'l Pea: My cousin has. He's soup now.

Movie Connections:

References VeggieTales: Very Silly Songs (1997) (V)

one of the best episodes yet... extremely funny!!!

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Big Idea has done it again, and it's a very welcome thing after the last few episodes. "Sumo of the Opera" was a letdown, even though it had some cute moments. I'm still wondering why they used the sock puppet character Lutfi, instead of his alter-ego, Khalil. "Princess and the Great Pie War" was just lame, making me think the creators have a difficulty making a strong lead female character funny ("Esther" took itself way too seriously). But hold on to your hat, the fun is back! (wait, it's a Fedora....) As the cover clearly shows, this is a good-hearted parody of "Raiders of the Lost Ark". As a dedicated Spielberg-Lucas fan, every detail that matched the "Indy" movies had me giggling. Really did their homework on this one. Of course, the myriad Monty Python-like asides, running gags, and inside jokes were terrific, right down to the ringtones on Larry's cell phone, and Larry's mugging toward the audience at odd camera angles. And Bob gets a substantial role in this episode, that doesn't happen very often. Check the closing credits for a nod to the "3-2-1 Penguins!" series. And of course, the Big Idea in this episode is tolerance, patience and forgiveness toward bullies. I highly recommend this episode, especially to skeptics who don't know anything about VeggieTales, and dismiss it as just kiddie-religious programming. This is high quality entertainment that just happens to have a decent message attached to it, as are all the VeggieTales ( yes, even "Sumo" and "Princess" ).

One last note: the animation in this episode is the most awesome they have ever done. The computer-generated characters and backgrounds have beautiful, rich texture, very close to 3-D without the goofy glasses. Remember how good the animation was in "Larry Boy and the Rumor Weed" and "Jonah"? The graphics here are way better than either of those. See it for yourself, there's lots to love in this episode!