| This article is about the direct-to-video movie. You may be looking for home video. |
| “ | An epic battle between good and evil. The fate of the world hangs in balance. Will evil succeed? Will good triumph? | ” |
— Narrator
| ||
The Return of El Maléfico is an animated direct-to-video movie based on the animated series ¡Mucha Lucha!
The movie was first released on July 25, 2004 at San Diego Comic-Con.[2] Then, it was released on DVD and VHS exclusively at Walmart on October 5, 2004 and other retail stores on January 4, 2005. Later, it premiered on Cartoon Network on March 4, 2005.[3][4]
Synopsis[]
The world of Lucha Libre is threatened when a dark force named El Maléfico is accidentally released. Our three Mascaritas, Rikochet, Buena Girl, and The Flea must rise to the challenge and send this evil back from whence it came. Their battle with El Maléfico will decide the fate of the universe![5]
Plot[]
Work in Progress!
Characters[]
Major Characters[]
- The Three Mascaritas
- El Maléfico (debut)
- Jenny Perkins (debut)
- Slurf (debut)
Supporting Characters[]
- El Rey
- Mama Maniaca
- Lonestar
- Abuelito
- Buena Mom
- Buena Dad
- Mr. Flea
- Mrs. Flea
- Penn & Teller (debut)
- Pulgita (non-speaking)
- Masked Dog
- El Silver Mask Jr. (debut)
Minor Characters[]
- Electricity (non-speaking)
- El Haystack Grande
- El Perrito (non-speaking)
- Pierre Del Fuego (non-speaking)
- Tic Tac Toe (non-speaking)
- Megawatt
- La Piñata (non-speaking)
- Zero Kelvin (non-speaking)
- Snow Pea
- Penny Plutonium (non-speaking)
- El Pacifico (non-speaking)
- Ensalada De Frutas (non-speaking)
- Dragonfly (non-speaking)
- French Twist (non-speaking)
- Minotoro (non-speaking)
- La Flamencita
- Botas Del Fuego
- Zebrita Twins (non-speaking)
- Private Reinhardt (non-speaking)
- Francisco of the Forest (non-speaking)
- Double Ninja Ninja (non-speaking)
- Protozoa (non-speaking)
- El Loco Mosquito
- El Oscuro Invasor (non-speaking)
- El Gundamo (non-speaking)
- Cindy Slam (non-speaking)
- Lucha Cop (non-speaking)
- Kid Upandcoming (non-speaking)
- El Evil Cheese Grande
- Coco Demento (non-speaking)
- Tibor the Terrible
- Sonic Sumo (non-speaking)
- Potato Patata Jr. (non-speaking)
- Vegas Bride and Groom (debut)
- Taxi Cab Driver (debut)
- Hula Hattie (non-speaking)
- Heavyweight (non-speaking)
- Headmistress
- Sr. Hasbeena
- Mr. Midcarda
- Captain Ahab (non-speaking)
- Don Reyes (debut)
- Big Dog
- Vegas Tourists (debut)
- Celine (debut)
- Wayne N. (debut)
- Beautiful Woman (cameo)
- El Portero
- Queen Voladora
- Duchess of La Madres Loca (debut)
- Don Cerebro (debut)
- Masked Savages (debut)
- Elvez (debut)
- Monkeyman (non-speaking)
- El Pared (non-speaking)
- Sr. Estupido (non-speaking)
- El Cientifico (non-speaking)
- French Twist's Father (non-speaking)
- Viking Jim (non-speaking)
- Potato Patata Sr. (non-speaking)
- Lady Legume (non-speaking)
- Beauty Doll (cameo; mentioned)
Cameos[]
- Futboloco
- Big Dipper
- Masked Toilet
- El Evil Dentista of Doom
- Mariachi Band
- El Toro Amarillo
- El Dolor De Kurtz
- Mariposa
- Mr. Fishy Fish
Production[]
In January 2003, ¡Mucha Lucha! was renewed for the second season and a direct-to-video movie was planned along with other spin-off merchandise. Due to the high popularity of ¡Mucha Lucha!, Warner Bros. was considering the show to expand the franchise from different platforms that will produce different merchandise, direct-to-video movies, and a feature film. [6]
On May 17, 2003, Mort and Chin including some WB Animation staffs went on a trip to Las Vegas for fun research. They have explored famous hotels, casinos and shows including tigers and lions, showgirls, and much more. They thought about the idea that there might be a ¡Mucha Lucha! story taking place in Las Vegas.
On August 5, 2003, the production of "The Return of El Maléfico" started production. However, the movie might be produced as the same time as Season 2 and Season 3's production. They confirmed several new storyboard artists and background designers. Ron Hughart have also joined the crew as a creative director and a producer of the movie, while Miles Thompson (of Koochee-Koo) and Sandra Equihua (of Mexopolis), Jorge R. Gutierrez's husband are joined as character designers. On October 1, 2003, the voice recording session has been started with Freddy Rodriguez, the voice of El Silver Mask Jr. Two weeks later, another voice recording session was held with Tim Curry, the voice of El Maléfico.
On November 22, 2003, an animatic of the movie was complete and the crew watched an animatic before starting an animation process from Bardel Entertainment. It took 6 months to complete animation and tweaked every frame of the movie. On April 30, 2004, an in-house screening was held at Warner Bros. Animation. In the same day, it was announced that "The Return of El Maléfico" movie will have a first public screening taking place at San Diego Comic-Con. It was originally set for Friday, July 23rd, 2004, at 3:00pm to 4:30pm, but it was officially confirmed to take place Sunday, July 25, 2004, at 12:00pm to 1:30pm.
On July 25, 2004, "The Return of El Maléfico" was officially premiered at San Diego Comic-Con in public. Before the screening, Mort, Chin, and Kuwahara talked about the inspiration of ¡Mucha Lucha!, introduced the movie and answer the questions about the series. The Q & A session originally took place after the screening but was changed in the last minute for an unknown reason.
In September 2004, it was announced that "The Return of El Maléfico" movie will be premiering on Cartoon Network possibly in January or February 2005. After the last episode aired on Kids' WB, it is officially confirmed that the movie was going to premiere on Cartoon Network on March 4, 2005, at 8:00pm during CN Fridays.
Home Video[]
"The Return of El Maléfico" movie was originally going to be released on home video in August 2004, but it was officially released on October 5, 2004, for most Walmart retailers. Other retailers have released the movie on home video on January 4, 2005, which was 3 months later after the official release as Walmart exclusive.
Transcript[]
Click here to view the script.
Gallery[]
Click here to visit The Return of El Maléfico's Gallery!
Trivia[]
- During the production, the movie was also known as "The Code of Evil".
- The production started from August 2003 to April 2004 with the same production time as Season 2 and 3.
- After Bugs Bunny eats his carrot next to the WB Shield, The Flea appears in his place, eating a donut.
- The magicians, Penn and Teller appeared as special guest stars.
- Most characters from the first and second season make an appearance as a minor character of the movie such as Queen Voladora, El Potrero, El Toro Amarillo, El Evil Dentista of Doom, El Pared, El Kolor de Kurtz, and more.
- Bugs Bunny appears as a cameo during Rikochet's Caliente Fiesta Party.
- Mariachi Band from the episode, "The Musica Man" can be seen in the party at Las Vegas.
- The movie reveals that The Code of Masked Wrestling can teach masked wrestlers to know how to wrestle and tell jokes.
- One of Rikochet's uncles, Big Dipper can be spotted at the entrance of Gerbil Jorge's Happy Masked Magic World of Wrestle-Tainment along with Mariposa and other minor characters from the series.
- In the next shot, some soccer players including Futboloco from "Thrills and Skills" are waiting in the line to ride.
- An angry groom is actually revealed to be the director of the movie, Ron Hughart.
- Fred Flinstone's clothes are seen in Abuelito's closet.
- Inside the Photograph Album of Familia, there are photos that reveals to be the flashback of Rikochet, Mama, and Lonestar before the series took place.
- One of the audience threw Buena Girl's teddy bear, Mr. Snuggles in the ring.
- By the garbage alley at Puerto Rico, Masked Toilet can be hidden in the trash.
- The Flea's pet fish, Mr. Fishy Fish is seen when Rikochet falls into a river.
- One of the showgirls at Las Vegas resembles Wilma Flintstone.
- When Rikochet reads a sentence from The Code of Masked Wrestling backwards, Dragonfly ironically has The Return of El Maléfico (DVD).
- During the final battle with El Maléfico, Tricia is seen flying in his strongest attack.
- This movie marks the last time Rikochet's voice would be done by Carlos Alazraqui before being replaced by Jason Marsden for the third season due to the production of Reno 911!.
- In the trailer, most of the scenes are from the beginning of the movie and some from the second act.
- Some of the scenes from the trailer are different from the actual movie:
- When Rikochet reads The Code of Masked Wrestling backwards, the shot is different and the background was blank comparing it to the full background from the movie.
- In the beginning of the trailer, an extreme close-up of El Maléfico are similar to the beginning of the movie, but the only difference from the movie is his appearance isn't seen until near the end of the beginning of the movie. Instead, an extreme close-can be seen in shadow with the same fire background from the trailer.
- At the end of the trailer, when The Three Mascaritas came back to Rikochet's House, it is daytime, but in the movie, it is nighttime.
- When Rikochet unmasked El Maléfico, it's based on the "unmasking the criminals" scenes from the "Scooby-Doo" franchise.
- This is also the second time Rikochet unmasked someone, the first time was "Timmy of a Thousand Masks".
- There are a total of 5 licensed songs that were credited in the movie, but only 4 songs were played: Recuerdo y Lluvia by El Gran Silencio, Venadito Calejero, also by El Gran Silencio, Azucar (Dance Mix) and Boom Boom (Menudo Mix) by Los Kumbia Kings.
- It is unknown why the song, Me Protejo by SNZ was not played in the movie.
Reading Code Backwards Decoded[]
- "When wrestling, never forget to lace up your boots, lest you trip and fall."
Goofs[]
- When they arrive in Las Vegas, the sidecar has switched sides.
Videos[]
External Links[]
- ¡Mucha Lucha!: The Return of El Maléfico at Prime Video
- ¡Mucha Lucha!: The Return of El Maléfico at Internet Movie Database
References[]