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bro'Town
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bro'Town is a New Zealand adult animated comedy television series and sitcom that ran from 2004 to 2009. It starred David Fane, Mario Gaoa, Shimpal Lelisi and Oscar Kightley.
| bro'Town | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Elizabeth Mitchell Naked Samoans |
| Based on | The performance of the local four-man group The Naked Samoans |
| Developed by | Naked Samoans |
| Written by | Elizabeth Mitchell Naked Samoans Mario Gaoa David Fane Shimpal Lelisi Oscar Kightley |
| Screenplay by | Elizabeth Mitchell Naked Samoans Mario Gaoa David Fane Shimpal Lelisi Oscar Kightley |
| Directed by | Elizabeth Mitchell Ali Ekeroma Cowley Maka Makatoa |
| Creative directors | Ali Ekeroma Cowley Maka Makatoa |
| Presented by | Firehorse Films |
| Starring | Mario Gaoa David Fane Shimpal Lelisi Oscar Kightley |
| Voices of | Mario Gaoa David Fane Shimpal Lelisi Oscar Kightley |
| Theme music composer | Kyan Laslett O'Brien |
| Opening theme | Various music |
| Ending theme | Various music |
| Composers | Nesian Mystik, Matthew Wilson, Christopher James. |
| Country of origin | New Zealand |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 32 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Trevor Haysom |
| Producers | Elizabeth Mitchell James Griffin |
| Production location | Morningside, Auckland, New Zealand |
| Cinematography | Naked Samoans |
| Editors | Dave Armstrong Anthony Farac Steven Sinkovich Emma Papaconstantinou |
| Camera setup | Animated rendition of single-camera |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Production companies | Firehorse Films NZ on Air DQ Entertainment Toon City Animation |
| Original release | |
| Network | TV3 |
| Release | 22 September 2004 – 24 May 2009 |
Overview edit
The main characters in the series are five 14 year old Polynesian New Zealand boys who live in Morningside, Auckland, New Zealand.[1] They attend the local college, St Sylvester's. It was New Zealand's first primetime animated television show and was very popular when it started in 2004 with 33 per cent of the viewing audience during its 8-8.30pm time slot for the first season.[1][2] bro'Town is heavy with popular culture references, and is based on the comedy theatre group The Naked Samoans.[3] The series has faced criticism often for being racist, for example every episode of the first season received complaints.[1] The writers often describe the humour as being 'not PC' (politically correct) and is satire with characters being sent-up. One of the series writers Oscar Kightley says of the humour, "The only reason we get away with that irreverence and edgy stuff is because on the flipside is heart."[4][5]
bro'Town has left a lasting legacy on popular culture in New Zealand driven by its urban Pacific Island culture.[1][2][4][6] It has been critically acclaimed "as hilarious and alarmingly true to life",[7] studied at universities,[8][5] and used for health messages in a cartoon booklet with information about rheumatic fever.[9]
Production edit
Produced by New Zealand company Firehorse Films which was created by Elizabeth Mitchell for bro'Town and funded by New Zealand On Air.[1] The lead designer was Ant Sang who was responsible for character, location and prop designs.[10] bro'Town was made using three animation studios – two in New Zealand and one in India – and involved over 100 staff. The series was done in traditional ink and paint animation.[citation needed] The show satirises the boys' culture, with dialogue in the local vernacular. The series includes references to New Zealand literature, particularly the novels and short stories of Witi Ihimaera. The series has strong religious references, with most episodes starting with events between God, Jesus Christ and other historical figures, which leads to the theme of the episode and the subsequent events between the boys.[citation needed]
Characters edit
The Boys edit
- Vale Pepelo (Oscar Kightley) – Brother of Valea Pepelo. He has a strong social conscience. Contrary to his given name, Vale is considered the intelligent one of the group, frequently seen carrying a literary classic. (Samoan)
- Valea Pepelo (Shimpal Lelisi) (Valea loosely translates to Dumber) – Brother of Vale Pepelo. He is more interested in girls than Vale. Whenever he sees an attractive girl, he does a rendition of the 'schwing!' gesture (peyow peyow!) Valea's name is an apt description. Valea has a description of "the pasher" after noting in a Bro' Town annual his goal in life is to "pash hot chicks" and his dream is for "hot chicks" that like to be "pashed". Although loosely translated to Dumber, Valea is known to be only slightly behind in the National Standards. Jeff da Māori is more likely to fail exams, and, if under correct conditions (getting hit by a bus, for example) Valea is amazingly intelligent. (Samoan)
- Sione Tapili (Mario Gaoa) – From A Tongan Descent, his mother is known as a Sheman and is also Vale and Valea's best friend. Sione is considered the rich and smart one of the group and considers himself as a ladies' man, while he constantly looking for ways to impress the girl of his dreams, sixth former Mila Jizovich. He is also the "bro" likely to have dream sequences e.g. posing as a super hero and starring in famous movies. (Tongan)
- Jeff da Māori (David Fane) – Jeff Da Māori lives with his mother and eight dads in a car shell outside the house. He is considered the clumsy and shy one by the group, He was brought up in the country by his aunt Queenie but then moved to the city for better TV reception and "because the thieving colonialist stole our land". He is often portrayed with a horribly runny nose. He is known for his catchphrase 'Not Even Ow!' (meaning 'that ain't right'). He is also known to call many people his cousin, and claims "everyone's my cousin, except Winston Peters he's a 'dick' ow". He is known to be actual cousins with famous actress Keisha Castle-Hughes and famous actor Cliff Curtis. (Māori)
- Rodney David Damascus McCorkenstein-Taifule aka Mack (David Fane) – Mack rounds out the group as a heavyset boy with an effeminate demeanor and a knack for talking his way out of things. Although he does stand behind his word eventually. Mack is considered the tough guy of the group, claiming to have been raised in the streets. He actually lives in a high class mansion with a loving mother and father. Mack's homosexual tendencies and feminine behaviour are more and more obvious as the show develops, but his friends seem to choose to ignore it. He is also known to be a snob at school, probably excelling at most subjects, and noted to be reading Memoirs of a Geisha. (Tongan/White)
Other characters of Morningside edit
- Pepelo Pepelo (David Fane) – Vale and Valea's dad is a benefit abusing, occasional fork-lift driver with a love of beer, pornography and gambling (aka "The Town Drunk"). His catchphrase is "I'm going to the pub... I may be some time". Pepelo's wife died when the boys were young and they were entrusted to his care. However, his method of child rearing was ignoring them to fend for themselves. The closest he inadvertently gets to parenting is occasionally telling the boys a relevant and touching story from his own life. He is known to discriminate against other ethnic minorities in Morningside, have frequent drunk-driving crashes and blame his dysfunctions on the war in Vietnam.
- Wong (David Fane) – Initially a Chinese exchange student from Hong Kong. After a rocky start he quickly became mates with the boys by sharing his wealth and letting them ride in his car. He once helped the Boys by joining in the St. Sylvester's rugby team in Get Rucked and bet a million dollars on Honky the Wonderhorse. Wong has a brother named White, who exists only to facilitate a racist pun about being unable to tell White from Wong.
- Constable "Bobby" Bababiba (Mario Gaoa) – A cynical and unsympathetic policeman who, being the only police officer to appear on the show, has been involved with many of the boys' mishaps as he tries to restore order in Morningside. His image and name are based on actor Robbie Magasiva.
- Rakeesh Maadkraklikka (Mario Gaoa) – A disgruntled Indo-Fijian dairy store owner. He is eager to shoot and zap any potential troublemaker or thief in his store. Pepelo owes a massive debt to Rakeesh's store due to his indulgence and improper spending. He is married to the beautiful Satisha.
- Satisha Maadkraklikka – Rakeesh's spouse. She is not as brash as her husband, but Satisha is just as tough. However, she shows a sympathetic side as well: on two occasions Satisha helped The Boys with their problems and issues.
- Reverend Minister (Vela Manusaute) – Stereotypical minister who heads a Samoan flock in Morningside. He frequently preaches about the local issues in very vivid and exaggerated ways (as was featured in Sione-rella and Touched by a Teacher). He is also quick to drive his flock on mindless angry mob sprees. As a sideline for his church he also sells 'authentic' holy items at high prices (like holy water and sheep-shaped caps). There seems to be an intimate relationship between him and Agnes. Agnes' youngest child has an uncanny resemblance to the minister, including his hairdo – for that matter, so do most of the very young children of his congregation. He is very similar to the Minister character in the recurring sketch Milburn Place, part of the Skitz comedy series in which several Naked Samoans were involved.
- Mahari Stevens (Vela Manusaute) – A Social worker from CYPFS -Children and Young Person's Family Services (a reference to the NZ CYFS -Children Youth and Family Services). She appeared in the first episode when Pepelo disappeared for four days, responding to a ten-year-old complaint about his terrible parenting, and made the Pepelo brothers "Wards of the State". She also later interrogated Mack and inadvertently manipulated him into accusing Brother Ken of child molestation, and threatened to take him away from his parents when he revealed it was in fact false.
Tapili family edit
- Agnes Esmeralda Beatrice fasi fufuTapili (David Fane) – Sione's mother and the Pepelos' neighbour. She is deeply religious and physically aggressive, especially to Sione (she refuses to show this side of her in public, though). Despite this, she seems to have intimate relations with the local minister. She serves as a caricature of the overbearing Polynesian mother who will not hesitate to humiliate her children. Willing for a husband, she is shown to have phone sex with Pepelo Pepelo, even though she is shown to hate him.
- Sina Tapili – (Teuila Blakely) – Sione's older sister and Mila's friend. Sina views her brother and the boys disdainfully (constantly calling them losers), except for one time when Mack was crying. She attends St Cardinal's College for girls, known to the boys of neighbouring St. Sylvester's as 'Cardinal Knowledge.'
- Timothy "Motorcycle Boy" Tapili – Agnes' eldest son. He is a delinquent who is a regular in the local delinquent centre (which Agnes euphemistically calls a "boarding school") and jail. His real name and nature were exposed in the episode "Go and ask Agnes", where it is revealed that his criminal record is not very impressive and he behaves more like a pretentious bully than the "hardcore" criminal he claims to be. He is shown to be a role model to Sione and Sione states he wants a bike like him.
- Samson – Agnes' youngest son. He is the presumed son of the minister, though Agnes refers to him as "A miracle by Jesus".
School folk and students edit
- Brother Ken (David Fane) – St. Sylvester's Fa’afafine principal. He is a personal childhood friend of many famous New Zealanders, including actress Lucy Lawless and former prime minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark. Brother Ken is a caring and reasonable principal, and once helped a then-young Mack (a nickname created by Brother Ken) to become friends with the boys. Because the concept of Fa’afafine,[11] a person in Samoa, American Samoa and the Samoan diaspora who identifies themselves as having a third gender or non-binary role, which ranges from extravagantly feminine to conventionally masculine,[12] does not readily translate, when the series was broadcast on Adult Swim Latin America, a decision was made not to translate Samoan words and just present them as part of the "cultural journey".[13]
- Rex Ruka – Rex is a typical sort of jock or alpha male in St. Sylvester's. He is regularly seen mocking the boys due to their supposed inferiority with Joost by his side. Rex is Sione's rival for Mila's hand.
- Joost van der Van Van (Oscar Kightley) – A South African immigrant whose father Hansje manages the local zoo. As is expected, he acts as Rex's partner, providing appreciation for his many putdowns (often saying "Hilarious!"). However, it was revealed in "A Chicken Roll at My Table" that Joost's racism was an act and he only did it because he was discouraged by his grandfather from making friends with coloured people. His name is a nonsense parody of Dutch surnames and means 'of the of.' Although unknown, it has been suggested that his name may have been derived from Springbok player Joost van der Westhuizen.
- Mila Jizovich – A Croatian student of St. Cardinal's, best friends with Sina Tapili and Sione’s crush. She is best known for helping Lucy Lawless with the birth control presentation in "Sionerella". Her name appears to be a combination of tribute to the actress Milla Jovovich and a somewhat unsavoury joke.
- Abo (Abercrombie Smith the Third) – An Aboriginal Australian who studies in St. Sylvester's. His nickname is either derived from his ethnicity or his real name, Abercrombie. Abo is known to celebrate every occasion with a (often very long) traditional song or dance. He is often seen riding an emu. Though Abo has made political comments regarding Indigenous native title, the satirical point of this character is unclear as very few Aboriginal Australians live in New Zealand[citation needed]. As such, he is more surreal than satirical.
- Ms. Lynn Grey – A teacher who manages The Boys' class at St. Sylvester's. She seems to have an affection for Māori men (as is shown in "A Māori at my Table"). A parody of well-meaning liberal Anglo-Saxon, she will carefully use Māori vocabulary but immediately follow it with a slightly patronising English explanation. Her name is a reference to the Auckland suburb of Grey Lynn.
Figures in Heaven edit
- God (Mario Gaoa) – As the creator of the universe, God can choose to be anything he wants. Thus he is satirically portrayed as a well-built Pacific Islander in a lavalava. He appears mellow and easy-going, rather than strict and wrathful. God starts each episode in Heaven as if it were a fairy-tale, usually telling it to Jesus Christ and other famous, deceased notable figures.
- Jesus (Shimpal Lelisi) – The Lord's only son. Unlike the past serious and solemn renditions of the Christian divinity, Bro'Town portrays him as young and naive (despite his past mortal life more than 2000 years ago). He generally seems like a somewhat wimpish teenager, who often needs to be gently taught a lesson by his Father.
There are also two female angels Angelina and Angelita.
Occasionally, deceased relatives such as Pepelo's wife (Vale and Valea's mother), or Jeff da Maori's Auntie Queenie are featured, appearing in dreams to communicate with the living.
Guest stars edit
bro'Town frequently features special guests – notable celebrities from politics, art, culture, music, the media, business and sport. The most regular cameos are John Campbell and Carol Hirschfeld, newsreaders from TV3 at the time. Former All Blacks and Manu Samoa player Michael Jones plays the P.E. teacher at St Sylvester's. Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark has appeared in all seasons except the last and rapper Scribe has been a guest on five seasons of bro'Town. A feature of the series are cameos of people playing themselves. This includes Russell Crowe, Rove McManus, Robyn Malcolm, Neil and Tim Finn, Lucy Lawless, Flight of the Conchords, H.R.H. Charles, Prince of Wales, Sir Howard Morrison, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Cliff Curtis and Madeline Sami.[14][15]
Episodes edit
Season 1 (2004) edit
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "The Weakest Link" | N/A | The Naked Samoans, David Fane, & Mario Gaoa | September 22, 2004 | |
| After being run over by a bus, Valea suddenly becomes the brainiest boy in Morningside, and the boys stun the school by making it through to the televised finals of the national quiz show. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Sionerella" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | September 29, 2004 | |
| Sione finally gets the chance to impress the girl of his dreams at the school ball, but his mother Mrs Tapili and his rival Rex Ruka do all they can to ruin his chances. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "The Wong One" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 6, 2004 | |
| Wong from Hong Kong arrives in Morningside and Dad takes him in as a homestay visitor, but a case of mistaken identity sees Vale kidnapped in Wong's place by the legendary Grasshopper...a hot Asian chick with incredible martial arts skills! | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Get Rucked" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 13, 2004 | |
| It's the annual rugby match against the St Sylvester's Old Boys, but when the school 1st XV comes down with food poisoning the boys have to play against a crack multi-code team featuring Joe Rokocoko, Tana Umaga and Stacey Jones! | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "A Maori at My Table" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 20, 2004 | |
| The boys go on a trip to Jeff's marae, which turns out to be a tangi, and the mantle of leadership is suddenly thrust upon an unsuspecting Jeff. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Go Home Stay Home" | Maka Makatoa | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 27, 2004 | |
| When Constable Bababiba discovers that Vale and Valea have been left home alone, he sends Vale to a bad boys home and Valea to a rich, white family in Parnell. But when Dad realises he is no longer eligible for his benefit he launches a bid to bring his boys back home! | ||||||
Season 2 (2005) edit
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1 | "Zeelander" | N/A | The Naked Samoans, Elizabeth Mitchell, & David Fane | September 15, 2005 | |
| It's Morningside Fashion Week, and one of the world's top fashion designers discovers Jeff da Maori and catapults him to international catwalk fame. | ||||||
| 8 | 2 | "Survival Of The Fattest" | Maka Makatoa | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | September 21, 2005 | |
| The class sets out on their annual day trip, but when the boys are taken out of their environment, strange things start to happen! | ||||||
| 9 | 3 | "Honky the Wonderhorse" | Maka Makatoa | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | September 28, 2005 | |
| The boys feel sorry for a racehorse who is about to get killed. They rescue him and arrive home just in time to stop Dad killing him for dinner. A Sea Biscuitesque journey follows... Dad becomes the horse whisperer and keeps whispering threats into Honky's ear. | ||||||
| 10 | 4 | "Touched By A Teacher" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 5, 2005 | |
| When Mack tries to impress his mates by inventing a story about being abused, Brother Ken gets thrown into jail and a witch-hunt ensues. | ||||||
| 11 | 5 | "Half-Cast Away" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 12, 2005 | |
| The boys find a half caste baby and try to bring it up, but find it very difficult catering to its mixed cultural needs and soon decide the baby's better off without them. | ||||||
| 12 | 6 | "A Chicken Roll At My Table" | N/A | The Naked Samoans, Elizabeth Mitchell, & David Fane | October 19, 2005 | |
| Joost's conservation-loving zoo-keeping Dad invites the boys to the van Der Van Van's African-themed Morningside Shore home for a weekend cultural exchange... but an incident with a chicken roll turns the weekend into a weird kind of whodunit. | ||||||
| 13 | 7 | "Morningside Story" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 26, 2005 | |
| An incident of racial abuse inspires St Sylvester's to produce a multi-racial musical love story called MorningSide Story... Vale is director, Jeff's in charge of music, Sione, Sina, Mack and Rex are the stars. But when Mrs Tapili finds out one of her children will be kissing a Maori in the play, she goes all out to stop the show! | ||||||
Season 3 (2006) edit
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | 1 | "In My Mother's Den" | N/A | N/A | September 27, 2006 | |
| The boys wake up to a Canadian at their table, and it turns out to be dad's new girlfriend who has moved in and seems set on being their new Mum! | ||||||
| 15 | 2 | "Know Me Before You Haunt Me" | Ali Cowley | Mario Gaoa, Oscar Kightley, & Shimpal Lelisi | October 4, 2006 | |
| It's Halloween and the boys go trick or treating and end up at a haunted house on the outskirts of Morningside. There they meet the ghost of a young Maori boy who died in the 1800s, but is still stuck between the dead and the living. | ||||||
| 16 | 3 | "Upstairs Brownstairs" | Ali Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 11, 2006 | |
| Dad becomes a member of the prestigious Morningside Club and becomes the club's most regular visitor. But when Valea starts dating the Club President's daughter, the president tries to kick Dad out. | ||||||
| 17 | 4 | "Go Ask Agnes" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 18, 2006 | |
| When the Minister convinces Mrs. Tapili to give more money to the church, she gets hooked on gambling and ends up almost losing everything. | ||||||
| 18 | 5 | "Mack is from Mars, Sione's a Psycho" | Ali Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 25, 2006 | |
| When Mack sees how bad the St Cardinal's netball team is, he decides they need help from an expert. He disguises himself as a Muslim and impresses the girls with his excellent skills! | ||||||
| 19 | 6 | "I Still Call Australia Home... Oh" | Ali Ekeroma Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | November 1, 2006 | |
| With special guests Russell Crowe and Rove McManus, as well as Scribe, Neil Finn and 3's own John Campbell and Carol Hirschfield, the boys are at the annual Polyfest - the secondary schools cultural competition - and are desperate to get into the glamorous Samoan group. However, when that doesn't work out (because Sione almost burnt down the stage the previous year), they decide to try something that no one has ever done - they form New Zealand's first Australian group! | ||||||
| 20 | 7 | "The Summer the Brazilian Came" | Ali Ekeroma Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | November 8, 2006 | |
| The boys head out to Te Hiha surf beach, where Mack 'breaks in' to a very flash beach-house. Vale falls for Victoria, a volleyball player from Brazil, and must overcome his fear of water. The classic Kiwi summer story, full of barbecues, beach scenes and bonfires. | ||||||
Season 4 (2007) edit
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 1 | "Sons for the Return Homo" | N/A | N/A | October 11, 2007 | |
| Morningside's wimpiest criminal, Motorcycle Boy, returns home from 'boarding school' and starts training the boys to be staunch gang members. Until Sione's cajone's get the boys into trouble again. | ||||||
| 22 | 2 | "The Artful Dadger" | N/A | N/A | October 18, 2007 | |
| Valea becomes immersed in the art world, unleashing the tortured artist within! But, bitter rivalry quickly ensues when a jealous Dad busts out his best art skills, impressing the glitterati and stealing his son's limelight and stealing his son's limelight. | ||||||
| 23 | 3 | "A Miracle in Morningside" | Ali Ekeroma Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | October 25, 2007 | |
| When Mack gives up food and water for Lent, he becomes convinced he is a descendant of Jesus Christ and Maria Von Trapp from The Sound of Music. Mack creates the 'Church of the Awesome Show Tunes', and convinces his followers that he is the Chosen One. | ||||||
| 24 | 4 | "Yes Prime Minister!" | Ali Ekeroma Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | November 1, 2007 | |
| The boys travel to the capital city where they are surrounded by fierce opponents and dirty tricks as they become embroiled in the dog eat dog world of politics at Youth Parliament. | ||||||
| 25 | 5 | "An Alien at My Table" | Ali Ekeroma Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | November 8, 2007 | |
| The boys head to Kia Ora Bay for a star studded Matariki concert to celebrate the Maori New Year, but one by one New Zealand's finest musicians disappear and Jeff gets the blame! Can the boys save New Zealand music? Or will this be the day the music died? | ||||||
| 26 | 6 | "I'm Going to Limbo... I May Be Some Time" | Ali Ekeroma Cowley | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | November 15, 2007 | |
| Pepelo Pepelo's hard living lifestyle finally catches up with him, and while the boys maintain a bedside vigil, Dad embarks on a journey of the soul, where he must face the demons of his past. | ||||||
Season 5 (2009) edit
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | 1 | "The Summer of Samson" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | April 19, 2009 | |
| When Sione catches Agnes and the Minister in a compromising position, he discovers that his brother Samson is the spawn of adulterers and, fueled by his new fundamentalist friend, tries to exorcise Samson's demon. | ||||||
| 28 | 2 | "A Vegetarian at My Table" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | April 26, 2009 | |
| The boys embark on a documentary project about their favourite food -but Vale is horrified when he discovers a dead mouse inside his meat pie's pastry. The boys take a vow of vegetarianism and are passionately determined to expose the dodgy innards of the meat industry, but when the powers that be catch wind of their plan, Vale becomes the meat in the sandwich! | ||||||
| 29 | 3 | "To Sam with Love" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | May 3, 2009 | |
| When world famous actor Sam Neill turns up to teach Drama at St Sylvester's, the boys become his biggest fans! Mack is particularly enamored of Sam's charm and charisma, but becomes confused by his overwhelming feelings, and stuns everyone by letting one too many skeletons out of the closet! | ||||||
| 30 | 4 | "Apocalypse Ow" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | May 10, 2009 | |
| Jeff's unhinged Uncle Murray returns from Afghanistan and takes the boys to a 'fun' camp, but before long everyone except Jeff realises that things are not what they seem. Will Jeff turn on his friends once and for all? | ||||||
| 31 | 5 | "Lost in Cyber Space" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | May 17, 2009 | |
| Rakeesh converts his Dairy into a Cyber Café and Valea soon becomes a 'War is Fun' Master. However his obsession with the game starts to take over his life. When the boys also discover that he has been having a secret relationship, they realize it is crisis time. | ||||||
| 32 | 6 | "So You Think You Can Dance Near the Stars?" | N/A | David Fane, Mario Gaoa, & Oscar Kightley | May 24, 2009 | |
| When Pepelo is slipped an Ecstasy tablet he gets all loved up and convinces Agnes to show the world her fancy footwork in a televised Dance competition. Will the pair become more than just dance partners, and will two families become one in this sizzling series final? | ||||||
Awards edit
While it was running the series bro-Town was often nominated at New Zealand film and television awards in a range of categories. It won the following awards:[16]
- 2005 New Zealand Screen Awards – Best Comedy Programme, Best Comedy Script – Television: episode 6, 'The Weakest Link' – Mario Gaoa, David Fane, Mario Gaoa, Oscar Kightley, Shimpal Lelisi and Elizabeth Mitchell
- 2005 Qantas Television Awards – Best Comedy Programme
- 2006 Air New Zealand Screen Awards – Best Comedy Programme, Comedy Script – Television: episode 2.6, 'Touched by a Teacher' – Oscar Kightley, Mario Gaoa, David Fane, Shimpal Lelisi, Elizabeth Mitchell, Production Design: Ant Sang
- 2007 Air New Zealand Screen Awards – Best Comedy Programme: Episode 3.2, 'Know Me Before'
- 2008 Qantas Film and Television Awards – Achievement in Production Design – Television: Ant Sang
Books edit
- Firehorse Films (2005). The bro'Town Annual. Auckland: Random House New Zealand. ISBN 978-1-86941-747-5. OCLC 972704194.
- ——————— (2006). The bro'Town Annual 2. Auckland: Random House New Zealand. ISBN 978-1-86941-841-0. OCLC 156718397.
- ——————— (2007). The bro'Town Annual 3. Auckland: Random House New Zealand. ISBN 978-1-86941-946-2. OCLC 861382922.
DVD Releases edit
| DVD Name | Release Date | Ep # | Additional Content |
|---|---|---|---|
| Series 1 | 7 December 2005 | 6 | |
| Series 2 | 24 October 2006 | 7 | |
| Series 3 | 12 September 2007 | 7 | |
| Series 4 | 1 December 2010 | 6 | |
| Series 5 | 7 December 2010[15] | 7 |
References edit
- ^ a b c d e Barry, Rebecca (26 August 2005). "bro'Town returns as its animation empire expands". NZ Herald. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
- ^ a b McClure, Margaret (1 August 2016). "Auckland's Bro'Town". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu Taonga. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ "Firehorse Films (Firm, NZ) :The bro' Town calendar 2007. As seen on TV3. Firehorse Films; Random House New Zealand [2007]". National Library of New Zealand. 1 January 2007. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ a b Barry, Rebecca (8 April 2009). "Farewell to morningside". NZ Herald. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ a b Bannister, Matthew (2008). "Where's Morningside? Locating bro'Town in the ethnic genealogy of New Zealand/Aotearoa". New Zealand Journal of Media Studies. 11 (1): 1–15. doi:10.11157/medianz-vol11iss1id55. ISSN 1173-0811.
- ^ Gray, Sonia (14 June 2016). "Diversify or die: What New Zealand television can learn from our film industry". The Spinoff. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
- ^ Harker, Caroline (5 September 2013). "Funny-business time – the 21st century". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
- ^ "Bro' town – Institute of Culture Discourse & Communication – AUT". Auckland University of Technology. from the original on 21 December 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
- ^ Sore throats aren't cool!. National Heart Foundation of New Zealand., Firehorse Films. [Auckland, N.Z.]: Heart Foundation. 2011. ISBN 978-1-877571-36-7. OCLC 785394505.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ "bro'Town • Ant Sang". Ant Sang. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
- ^ Schmidt, Johanna (2021) [2011]. "Brother Ken, bro'Town (1st of 3)". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage. from the original on 8 February 2019. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
- ^ Bartlett, N. H.; Vasey, P. L. (2006). "A Retrospective Study of Childhood Gender-Atypical Behavior in Samoan Faʻafafine". Archives of Sexual Behavior. 35 (6): 659–66. doi:10.1007/s10508-006-9055-1. PMID 16909317. S2CID 22812712.
- ^ Johnson, Derek; Kompare, Derek; Santo, Avi (1 August 2014). Making Media Work: Cultures of Management in the Entertainment Industries. NYU Press. pp. 57–59. ISBN 9780814764558. from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "Credits | bro'Town | Series | Television | NZ On Screen". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ a b . dstore.com. Archived from the original on 8 September 2005. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
- ^ "Awards | bro'Town | Series | Television". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
External links edit
- bro'Town at IMDb