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Summary
The gloomy history ofThe Smurfsoffers some surprisingly off-the-wall and minatory insight into the children ’s amusement ikon . The Smurfs , a Belgian comic franchisecreated in 1958 by the comic artist Pierre Culliford , work under the pen name Peyo , has captivated tiddler and adult since its inception . The long - run franchise includes a risible flight strip , child ' toys , collectibles , television show , unnumberable parodies , and three major movement pictures from Sony Entertainment , not to mention the recreate feature films from the ' 60s and ' seventy . The small downcast woodland inhabitant and their escapade , speech , and scoundrel have permeated popular culture .
With such a long account , it ’s inevitable that there would be some strange stories about the history of the enfranchisement . The Smurfshas never beensome kind of dark comicalong the origin ofSin City , nor has it ever had a sinister underbelly like somekids ' show with terrifying horrors , likeAdventure Time . It ’s a round-eyed , low - stakes enfranchisement that broadly speaking sees the Smurfs get wind something new and going on adventures . However , over the years , The Smurfshas been adjacent to some drear history and feature some bizarrely grim episodes .
The Smurfs are one of the most democratic amusement franchises ever , and the story of how they got their name is Smurf - tastic !
10In Early Comics The Smurfs Partook In Harmful Behaviors
The Smurfs Used To Be More Mature
The earliestThe Smurfscomics from France frequently had the Smurfs drinking alcohol-dependent beverages and smoke , and while that may not have been as gravid an issue in the sixties and ' LXX in Europe , it ’s a little odd now to see the tiny woodland critter behaving like rowdy adult . The European comics feature this plot of land dot more often than their American counterpart , though there are a few American comics that see either a Smurf or Gargamel becoming intoxicated , such as " Smurf & Turf " and " The Clockwork Smurf " .
The 1981 cartoonSmurfscan be streamed on HBO Max .
9Smurfette Has A Messy Gender-Stereotyped History
The Only Female Smurf Had A Strange Role In The Series
Smurfette is the only female Smurf in the cast until years later . She was not even a Smurf to get down with and wasa creation of Gargamel made to sow in discordance among the Smurfs with her " womanly shenanigan " . It ’s not the most forward-looking interpretation of a female reference and the fact she ’s the only woman is even more troubling . At the end of her " nefarious " bow , she ’s magically turned into a substantial Smurf . There ’s an inauspicious implication that the only rationality Smurfette is allowed into the community of interests is that she accepts her situation in the male - dominated society .
8Gargamel Was Nearly Sent To Hell In The Smurfs
The Smurfs Can Be Evil Too
Gargamel may induce the Smurfs a mass of frustration and worry , but one of their acts of retaliation on him went a little too far . In theSmurfscartoon serial , season 2 , episode 8 , " Heavenly Smurfs " , a brushwood with destruction and a legerdemain by the Smurfs win over the evil wizard he must alter his ways , or he will be sent to hell after he dies .
Gargamel ends up make for the Smurfs as a handmaiden to the point his back is thrown out while the Smurfs express mirth and play . It ’s a harsh fate , even for someone like Garagamel , and the Smurfs ' glee at emboss him around feels particularly average - spirited .
7The Smurfs Were Part Of A Frightening UNICEF Campaign
Children Were Not Ready For This Unexpected Ad
One night in Belgium in 2005 , late - night TV audience were cover to an oddly disturbing commercial message . What seemed to be a promo for aSmurfsTV smear , withSmurfs dancing around their homes , suddenly erupt in chaos as bombs dropped all over the hollo blue the great unwashed , leave destruction and a sister Smurf blazon out , all alone . The commercial then transition to a plea from UNICEF for donations to help support the rehabilitation efforts of shaver soldiers in Burundi and the DRC . It ’s an important message , but it ’s a good thing it did n’t ventilate during select kids ' viewing hours .
6Smurf Figurines May Have Contained Lead
Manufactures Have Since Increased Quality And Safety Standards
Smurf figurine are popular toy and collectors ' items , but there was once an urban legend that some turn back lead paint . The UK was the original Godhead of Smurf figurine in the seventies but when demand skyrocketed , they moved operation . However , lower timber measure led tosome customer believing the new Hong Kong figures contained lead paintand children were make sick ( viaBlueBuddies ) . True or not , manufacturer had to react , and they did , with increased quality control standards , indicate by paint dots that are now on every Smurf figurine , with different colouring material corresponding to unlike state .
5An Episode Of The Smurfs Is A Thinly Veiled STD Lesson
The Smurfs Pass Around An Unknown Disease
Another urban caption bear on a specific episode of theSmurfs1981 television show from time of year 4 , " Smurf the Other Cheek " . In the instalment , Papa Smurf adjudge that no Smurf should ever kick another Smurf , but Hefty Smurf comes across a woods witch who pray him to kick her in the behind to remove a red-faced back breaker on her nose . Instead of removing the dot , the kicking only gives him a red Department of Transportation as well .
finally , all the Smurfs finish up giving each other a dot with a thrill in the behind and , advisedly or accidentally , the installment winds up being a strange analogy to having safe sexuality and the dangers of STD . While that may not have been what the showrunners were operate for , it ’s a very specific method of transmittal that does lend itself to some particular equivalence .
4The Smurf Video Game Cost Parents Thousands
Even The Smurfs Couldn’t Avoid The Pay-To-Play Industry
In a narrative that is far too common , The Smurfsmobile game by Capcom , Smurf Village , end upcosting parents and guardians thousands when their fry went on to their account to play the salary - to - profits mobile game(viaForbes ) . The plot feature purchasable in - plot currentness call " Smurfberries " , which can cost anywhere from $ 5 to $ 100 . This happened due to a loophole that iTunes does not require user to input a password for 15 second after using it once , stand for parents download the game , and child hopped on and initiate purchasing with no guardrails .
3The Smurfberry Crunch Cereal Dye Debacle
One Ingredient In The Cereal Left A Lasting Impression
near every children ’s cartoon of the ' 90s and early 2000s had a sugary cereal grass sleeper - in , andTheSmurfswas no different with " Smurf Berry Crunch " . However , unlikeThe Flintstones ' Fruity Pebbles , " Smurf Berry Crunch " did n’t last long . That ’s because of an unfortunate side effect of the blue dyestuff in the berries . It turned unsuspicious consumers ' faecal matter into a shocking shadiness of blue ( viaMashable ) . " Smurf Magic Berries " was rereleased with a new formula , but it was too late , and theSmurfcereal furor was over as cursorily as the Halloween Whopper one from Burger King .
2The Smurfs Had One Of The Original Zombie Stories
A Zombie Attack Was The First Introduction Of The Smurfs
Only twoGeorge Romero zombie movieswere made by the timeThe SmurfsTV show dabbled in the genre . In a 1981 episode ofTheSmurfs , " The Purple Smurfs " , Lazy Smurf gets bitten by a purple fly which turns him into a violet , mindless Smurf , who only wants to prick other Smurfs and turn them purple as well . It ’s one of the original TV depictions of a zombie attack .
What ’s more , the episode is free-base on the very firstSmurfscomic from 1963 , " The Black Smurfs , " which tells the same story as the boob tube show , meaningThe Smurfscan be considered one of the early instance of a zombi attack in any media , turn over the originalNight of the Living Deadpremiered five year later .
1There Are Alarming Parallels Between The Smurfs And Post-War Europe
Many People Have Pointed Out The Political Allegories In The Smurfs
The Smurfsare an invention of post - World War II Europe , and Peyo likely could n’t aid but stick in some ideas about the political and cultural landscape into the show . Some have accusedThe Smurfsof representing Stalinism and Nazism ( viaThe Guardian ) . There are indeed some similarity . All the Smurfs see and playact the same except for some surface - level difference . They eat together in communal surface area , they obey the word of one strong humans ( Papa Smurf ) , and they refuse to leave their community of interests and rarely welcome anyone into it .
Gargamel could be pointed to as an anti-semitic caricature of Nazi Germany and Papa Smurf opt the colour red , much like Stalin ’s Soviet Union . However , even those who have study the issue do so somewhat tongue - in - boldness and do not accuse Peyo of by choice sum these base . Rather , it just drop dead to show how a franchise as long - live asThe Smurfscan extend up a wealth of pedantic insights as well as being an enjoyable series .
The SonySmurfstrilogy is usable to rent or purchase on Amazon Prime Video .
The Smurfs is a multimedia system dealership consisting of multiple movies , TV appearance , TV game , and comedian . The dealership start in October 1958 when Peyo ’s The Smurfs appear in the comic series Johan and Peewit . The Smurfs grow their own repair video show in 1981 and after got several movies including 2017 ’s Smurfs : The Lost Village .
Custom Image by Zach Moser
The Smurfs is a multimedia franchise consisting of multiple movies, TV shows, video games, and comics. The franchise began in October 1958 when Peyo’s The Smurfs appeared in the comic series Johan and Peewit. The Smurfs got their own animated TV show in 1981 and later got several movies including 2017’s Smurfs: The Lost Village.
