Before we get started: Raya and the Last Dragon trailer! I am so here for it - looks amazing.
Another voiceover appearance for a kids’ show, one I’ve never heard of before but probably would’ve loved if it had been around when I was a kid. It’s corny but cute.
The eponymous Vampirina is a young vampire who’s moved with her parents “from Transylvania to Pennsylvania.” There, she learns about human ways and in turn introduces her human friends to different aspects of monster culture. Like a number of kids’ shows, this one splits the episode into two separate stories. In the first, “The Plant Predicament,” hijinks ensue when Vampirina’s mom tries to help a neighbor with her garden and accidentally winds up planting some of her own snapping-monster plants. “Mummy Mayhem,” meanwhile, finds Vampirina and friends meeting an old (literally) buddy of her parents – the mummy of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh – on a museum field trip.
It’s very kiddish, with somewhat slapdash just-go-with-it plots and more goofy monster puns than I could count. While there are a few cleverer jokes and references, I can’t imagine it’s a show that appeals much to adults. That said, it seems like a perfectly-serviceable kids’ show, and I read enough Bailey School Kids books when I was young that I’m sure I would’ve been all over it.
Andrew Rannells is in the mummy portion of the episode, playing the mummy himself. King Peppy was hot stuff back in ancient Egypt, but now that he’s a museum exhibit, he keeps getting passed over for dinosaur fossils. Vampirina, feeling sorry for the pharaoh, takes it upon himself to make King Peppy feel appreciated. Rannells is well-suited to voice-acting and plays the part well. There’s something different in his voice here, a lofty quality he’s giving it to play the nice but full-of-himself king.
The best part of the episode is definitely the song King Peppy sings, lamenting the boring, unlauded life of a museum exhibit. It’s better than the majority of the songs I’ve encountered that were written for a TV show Rannells appears in – the melody is simple but decently catchy, and some of the rhymes are pretty clever (probably the best writing in the episode.) And Rannells himself sounds great. Again, this is some of the best singing I’ve heard from him in a non-Broadway role, mainly because the song gives him room to show off a little (fitting for a self-impressed pharaoh.) Elijah’s audition piece on Girls probably has the edge, but this one is quite a bit longer.
Recommend?
In General – Not for adults, but I’m sure kids will like it.
Andrew Rannells – Possibly, if only for that fun song.
Warnings
Maybe a few scary moments for kids in the first story.
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