Fanfiction, The Villain Saga

Announcing “The Villain Saga,” a Poptropica fan series (with prologue)

Long, long ago, there were rumors of a Poptropica movie or TV series. Fans speculated on what it could be about, from a whole new story to a Mystery of the Map spinoff. Flash forward to today, and that dream never became a reality.

So in my traditional fashion, I decided to do it myself!

As much as I would like to see an epic, shiny, animated finished product, there’s no way I (and my carpal tunnel) could do all that, so I’ve decided to just release the script in episodic form! Stay tuned for a sneak peek of the first episode!

I’m going to try to update this fairly frequently (perhaps every week), but I won’t make any promises currently. I do have the plot all figured out from beginning to end, and plenty more script to release!

But enough with my rambling! Let’s get to the story!


FADE IN:

EXT. EREWHON PRISON — EVENING

We see the tall prison from a worms-eye view, near the ocean. Even though it is still evening, dark storm clouds surround the sky, shrouding the prison in night. A few windows glow as lights from inside the building are turned on.

A HELICOPTER lands, hovering a bit and billowing clouds of dust on the small landing pad next to the prison. It finally finishes its descent as we get a closer look at the area. Several prison guards are standing nearby, and a bearded man, DR. JUPITER, is waiting to greet whoever is inside the HELICOPTER.

A MAN jumps out from the side door. The darkness hides most of his face from view, along with a WOMAN who jumps out behind him.

MAN

Well, this isnโ€™t quite what I expected!

DR. JUPITER

(chuckles)

Did you expect a luxury hotel?

MAN

No, I just didnโ€™t think the weather would be soโ€ฆ

He looks down at the stormy waves, crashing against jagged rocks.

MAN (CONTโ€™D)

…clichรฉ.

DR. JUPITER

It helps protect us from onlookers, at least!

(He looks at the WOMAN)

And hello, Missโ€ฆ

The WOMAN extends her gloved hand. DR. JUPITER takes the cue and kisses it.

WOMAN

Lesser. Camille Lesser. Iโ€™m his assistant.

DR. JUPITER

You seem awfully dainty for this line of work.

WOMAN

Trust me.

(She grins. Thereโ€™s something a little suspicious about it.)

I have experience with these sort of people.

DR. JUPITER steps back. His friendly smile leaves his face.

DR. JUPITER

I should hope so. Weโ€™ve had many psychologists analyze our prisoners…few were able to help much.

MAN

They should be willing to work with me, if we give them time.

The smile returns to DR. JUPITERโ€™S face. He steps aside, motioning for the newcomers to enter the building.

DR. JUPITER

Well then, letโ€™s get started.

The two enter as the HELICOPTER ascends. DR. JUPITER remains behind with the GUARDS, discussing something with them.

As they cross through the doorway, framed with lightning-bolt decorated pillars, the WOMAN turns to the psychologist.

WOMAN

Well, that was certainly easier than I expected, Mr. D.

They enter a lit area, revealing the faces of notorious criminals DIRECTOR D. and MADEMOISELLE MOREAU. DIRECTOR D. smiles.

DIRECTOR D.

Trust me, miss Moreau, my plans are all very simple.

We look from the outside, as they head deeper into the prison.

FADE OUT.


“Erewhon contains some of the most notorious criminals in all of the world of Poptropicaโ€ฆbut could their abilities be used for someone’s advantage?

Director D., a cunning and charismatic spy, and Madimoiselle Moreau, a sweet yet spiteful Frenchwoman, are both villains who have managed to avoid the long arm of the law. They have teamed up to start their grandest plan yet, but they will need a little help.

Will justice and peace prevail above these many conflicting schemes, or will these villains be consumed by their own ambition and follow a murky path as the world collapses due to a plan they may not even be aware of?”


Castori honorem ~ Maryann/Smart Bubbles

Fan Art Features, Social Media, Store

Art and a more aesthetic store? ๐ŸŽจ

Salutations! Maryann here with a recap of the most recent store update and Poptropica’s Instagram spotlight on fan art!

This latest store update was promoted by the Creators in a blog post, which shared a couple interesting future plans. But first, the costumes! The two newest additions are the return of the Orange Julius and Pretty Tough outfits. It seems as though the Creators are already moving towards spring/summer styles!

Their post also mentions Fairy Tale Island, on which the creators have “been hard at work without any breaks.” From the sound of it, we may be seeing a new island soon! They also mentioned working on some updates to the game, but didn’t elaborate.

Speaking of changes, we got confirmation of a store update! It’s supposed to make the shopping experience “easier and more inclusive.” I’m personally hoping for a better sorting system for items, but what do you think?


Now let’s get to the art! (Thanks Gentle Dolphin for the pics!)

Along with a promotion from Coolmath Games to play Poptropica on their website, the Pop Instagram also shared six pieces of fan art, some of which come from active members of the community and the PHC!

Here’s a closer look at that Poptropica Enneagram. You can take a free Enneagram test online to find out which number you are! The Enneagram post is quite fun and gives me vibes of the PHB’s Poptropican zodiac sign post from a while back.

If you’re an artist and you have social media, don’t be afraid to share your work and tag #Poptropica so the Pop Creators can see! Plus, many of Pop players love seeing creative work from fellow Poptropicans.

Well, I think that’s all. I’ll be off for…actually, you know what? I don’t think I’ll disappear just yet.

Keep your eyes out for a…wicked post soon. ๐Ÿ˜ˆ

Castori honorem ~ Maryann/Smart Bubbles

Ask Poptropica Siri

Ask the Joker #6: Furry fave, freedom, and flying

Ask the Joker is a Q&A segment here on the PHB where you, dear readers, are invited to send in your Poptropica questions to have them answered, with wit, wisdom, and wisecracks, by one Incredible Joker.

I noticed that you have a Dr. Hare costume on your Poptropican, do you like Dr. Hare or are you a fan of someone else? ~Smart Icicle

I don’t really use that costume too much, but I actually also have another account with the same outfit in white. ๐Ÿ™ƒ๐Ÿ‘ I think that Dr. Hare leaves an impression on most players, and I think that’s because he’s usually the first villain people face. (Unless you count the spider from Early Poptropica ๐Ÿ˜‚).

I don’t really have a specific reason that I like him so much, aside from that and his general story. Some villains you just want them to have a (somewhat) happy ending!

Hi my question is what do you love most about being a staff writer on the PHB? ~Dangerous Dragon

Fan art! ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ˜‚ I’ve never had art drawn of me before now. ๐Ÿ˜› But really though, it’s nice to help out with this blog and like I’ve mentioned before, to have the freedom that I do with these posts I make. (In fact, I wrote part of this one while eating lunch at work! ๐Ÿ˜…)

I have a few other ideas for PHB posts in the works, that Slanted Fish has been helping me with ๐Ÿ‘ (and being very patient with me ๐Ÿ˜‚๐Ÿ˜…). I suppose that’s another part of what I enjoy about being here: how much the other PHB staff care about the blog and the game.

What was your favorite Poptropica (Flash) glitch? ~Greedy Shadow

There have been many, many glitches over Poptropica history. Unfortunately many of them are not helpful to the player. ๐Ÿ˜‚๐Ÿ˜… But I suppose my favorite one would have to be the small “flying” glitch.

It might not work now, but back in the Flash days, you could “fly” by using any spacebar-activated item action while walking off a building, and would keep going until animation was done. Here’s a YouTube video that captures it in action:

If done right, the glitch could sometimes help you get to places you weren’t supposed to be at yet. Of course it, like all glitches, it was kind of iffy on working most of the time.


How can you send in your questions to Ask the Joker?

Thatโ€™s a great question! You can use the following methods:

  • ๐Ÿ“ง Send an email to justaskthejoker (at) gmail (dot) com. This way, youโ€™ll get to keep your questions a surprise when they get answered on the blog.
  • ๐Ÿ’ฌ Comment on the latest Ask the Joker post. Your questions will be publicly visible before they appear in a Q&A post, but this allows others to interact with your question if they so choose. If you donโ€™t have an email address, you can enter a fake one in the email field when you post your comment.

See you all next time, and remember: You canโ€™t spell Poptropica without letters.

My Dream Island

Introducing: My Dream Island โ›…๏ธ๐Ÿ

Hey all, Sporty Boa here! As you may know, Poptropica’s Design Your Dream Island Contest has come to a close with the creators announcing the highly-anticipated third and final winning submission a couple days ago. Secret of the Jade Scarab Island took this special spot alongside Fairy Tale & Goofball Island as the winning ideas, but the these were no easy choices. The Poptropica Creators stated that they reviewed all the submissions not once, not twice, but TWELVE TIMES to determine the final winner of the Dream Island Contest!

If it hasn’t already been made apparent, this community is truly brimming with creative ideas and concepts for islands they wish to see in Poptropica. We here at the PHB would love to grant the opportunity for you to share those ideas with our new series: My Dream Island!

Similar to our long running series, My Place in Poptropica, My Dream Island allows for you, the community, to share you own island ideas here on the Poptropica Help Blog. If you are interested in this opportunity, let us know by writing for the PHB!

My Dream Island: Sporty Boa

I’ll go first to kick of things off! Like several PHB authors, I entered Poptropica’s Dream Island contest. Although ours weren’t selected as winners, our island ideas remain dear to us. I for one would love to share my Cretaceous creation: Prehistoric Peril Island!

Story

Millions of years ago, all of Poptropica’s dinosaurs went extinct. Or did they? Adventurer-seeking millionaire Harold Mews has found evidence that begs to differ: A super-secret remote island where dinosaurs continue to roam free! He recruits your Poptropican for the mission of a lifetime: To travel to this mysterious island and obtain sufficient evidence of living dinosaurs! Thankfully you won’t be on your own, a team of Poptropica’s biggest and brightest minds join you on this epic escapade, with high tech gadgets at your disposal. However, no amount of tech or expertise can prepare you and your team for the challenges that lie ahead. On Prehistoric Peril Island, surprises await around every corner as you encounter creatures lost to time, and if you’re not careful, you may become one of them!

Setting

The bulk of the story takes place on the enigmatic Dino Island, where vegetation shrouds this wild world and vibrant life surrounds you. Dino Island hosts various terrains home to various dinosaurs, you must be able to traverse them all in an effort to survive.

Notable Locations

  • Cretaceous Coast – Helicopter landing site
  • Paleozoic Plains – Location of Research Site A and the locus for your team’s Biological and Historical field studies
  • Dino Desert – Location of Research Site B and the locus for your team’s Paleontology and Geological studies
  • Jurassic Jungle – Dense and dangerous rain forest area, home to a mysterious and somewhat familiar face
  • Archaic Caves – These caves reveal secrets of the past… well, present. Time is weird on Dino Island!

Characters

Prehistoric Peril Island marks the return of a handful of classic and beloved characters (marked with *) along with some new faces to add to the ever-expanding world of Poptropica!

  • Herald Mews* – Owner of the Mews Foundation; A kind, adventurous explorer keen on pushing the boundaries of science. Loves cryptids and never-before seen creatures.
  • Dr. Alima – Poptropicaโ€™s top paleontologist and paleobotanist, leader of the expedition team
  • Professor Hammerhead* – 100 year old explorer, expert in ancient civilizations and island survival
  • Shark Guy* –  Professor Hammerheadโ€™s protรฉgรฉ and caretaker
  • Professor Pendulum* – Inventor of Poptropicaโ€™s first (and only) time machine, expert in all things time-related. 
  • Dr. Lange* – Head scientist of the Poptropica Disease Center; Medical professional and expertย 
  • Medicine Man – Native of the mysterious Dino Island, Concoctor of special potions 
Return of the Medicine Man

Antagonists

  • Cave Collector – A long-time castaway and unstable thief/inventor, this cave man is desperate to escape Dino Island by any means necessary
Cave Man
  • Megalodon Man – Shark Guy wants to make a bigger impact on the team so he drinks a potion from the medicine man, transforming him into the monstrous megalodon man!
Want to hear some shark facts?

INSPIRATION

I approached the creation of Prehistoric Peril Island with a relatively blank slate, wishing to create a fun and unique experience for old and new players alike. While much of the story came off the dome, I combined aspects of my personal favorite islands, Cryptids & Shark Tooth, especially when it came to characters. New characters, like Dr. Alima and the Caveman, were also inspired by things close to home, like my verdant villain costume I made for the PHB’s Halloween contest. In a nutshell, Poptropica inspired me, along with my love for prehistoric life and the natural world.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my Dream Island, Prehistoric Peril! If you’re interested in learning more about my island, I plan on posting the full story/walkthrough on the Sporty Boa Blog and my YouTube channel. Its planning and creation has been something I’ve enjoyed and put a lot of thought into, and even though I didn’t win the contest, I am still incredibly pleased with my work.

If you too are inspired to share your island idea, don’t hesitate to whip up a post like this one, highlighting story, settings, characters, and inspiration, and we’ll share them here on the PHB’s My Dream Island series! I hope you all stay safe and stay awesome, this Boa’s gotta bounce!

~SB ๐Ÿ

PHB Specials

PHB Special: Pop the Difference, Round 3 โ€“ Answers & Winners!

Howdy Poptropicans! A couple of weeks ago I posted 5 pairs of Poptropica images to see who could find all of the differences within them โ€” where the quickest two would receive a drawing of their Poptropican by me. Let’s pop right into all of the answer reveals!

1) Inspection of the Imperial Garden

  • Green trees/red trees
  • No bush/bush
  • Flower on bush/missing flower
  • Clear sky/cloud in the sky
  • Yellow flowers/blue flowers

2) Casting about the Carnival

  • Blue pennant/purple pennant
  • Sock & Buskin/lack there of
  • Missing fried dough/fried dough present
  • Green balloon/yellow balloon
  • Blank area in the sky/star in the sky

3) Nanoscopic Pantoscopic

  • Conveyor/missing conveyor
  • Blue speaker dust cap/green speaker dust cap
  • “CLAP” on screen/blank screen
  • Bolt/absent bolt
  • Plain background/silhouette of crab

4) Eatery Exploration

  • Green soda/blue soda
  • Fish burritos on the menu/just burritos
  • Small pendant light/large pendant light
  • Note hanging on the bulletin board/missing note
  • Buttons/missing buttons

5) Scanning the Swarm

  • Skull on Sickly’s top/no skull
  • Poptropica blimp in background/blank space
  • Dr. Harold Langely/Octavian
  • Black dog/brown dog
  • Green balloon/purple ballooon

There were several people who participated in the game, but there were only a couple of participants who managed to catch all of the dissimilarities. Now it’s time to see who won!


The two speedy seekers who took the prize this time were none other than PHC regular, HfEvra, and frequent PHB commenter, Dangerous Dragon! Here are your Poptropican portraits as promised. I hope you like them! ๐Ÿ˜‰

P.S. I’m sorry for the delay in the publishing of this post. There were some technical difficulties, but that’s life I guess. Anyway, thank you for reading and a special shoutout to all of you who tried. There’s always next time. Pop on!

โ€“ LJ ๐Ÿ€