It’s Only A Paper World is the 14th overall episode of the Pinky and the Brain spin-off series and the first episode of season 2.
It's Only A Paper World[]
Animation by Rough Draft Studios, Inc.
Plot[]
Using the Papier-mâché technique, Pinky and the Brain attempt to take over the world by creating a planet near indistinguishable from Earth with newspapers, flour, and some special seeds. They somehow manage to make one, what is essentially Chia World, and drive all humans to that duplicate planet, but ultimately find little enjoyment in ruling over an empty Earth.
Crew[]
- Written by Brett Baer and David Finkel
- Directed by Liz Holzman and Alan Zegler
Songs[]
- "King Vitamin"
- "Yea"
Trivia[]
- This is the first episode to be animated by Rough Draft.
- The title of this episode parodies the 1933 song It's Only A Paper Moon.
- This episode's leitmotif comes from the first, second and fourth movements of Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 in E minor, "From the New World" – more popularly known as the "New World Symphony."
- Near the beginning of the episode, Pinky learns oil painting from a TV programme, which showcases a happy painter. The show resembles The Joy of Painting starring Bob Ross.
- Brain threatens to loan Pinky to a tobacco company again, an action which Pinky laments. The topic of smoking would be treated more seriously in the episode "Inherit the Wheeze."
- Various TV programmes casually mention a meteor that will destroy the Earth, foreshadowing what leads to the mice's inevitable downfall.
- When buying flour, Pinky is distracted by the audiobook, I'm Only One Man!, written and read by Regis Philbin.
- A Variety newspaper Pinky puts together contains the headline "A Boffo Smash Makes Warner Cash." This is a reference to "Variety Speak" from Animaniacs, which also briefly plays in the background.
- The "trademark?" bit was previously used in a bumper from the Animaniacs VHS "You WILL Buy This Video!"; a VHS compilation of Pinky and the Brain cartoons from the prior series.
- In the planet-building process, Pinky creates alternate versions of Earth's landmarks, including a Sphinx that resembles comic strip character Garfield, and an alternate Mount Rushmore showing the faces of "beloved tunesmith Neil Sedaka, actor's actor Nick Nolte, TV funny man Abe Vigoda, and of course, Abe Lincoln."
- Modest Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition - Promenade 1 - Gnomus" plays when Brain visits Pinky's replica of the Sistine Chapel, much like how it played in scenes of the Animaniacs cartoon "Hooked on a Ceiling" (which was set in the actual chapel).
- The flag of Brainus is identical to the Brainania flag from the episode of the same name (although the Brainus flag has a red background and not a blue one).
Gallery[]
Brain works his way towards an alternate Earth, starting with a duplicate Acme Labs.
Cast[]
| Voice Actors: | Character(s): |
| Rob Paulsen | Pinky |
| Maurice LaMarche | Brain |
| Tress MacNeille | Marna Strutt |
| Frank Welker | Mr. President |
| Roger Rose | David L. |