# Growing Up Creepie

Growing Up Creepie is an animated television series created by Anthony Gaud, Chris Woods, and Carin Greenberg, and produced by Mike Young Productions. In other countries, the series was simply titled Creepie. The series premiered on September 9, 2006, and ended on June 21, 2008, airing one season of 26 episodes.

## Premise

As told in the opening introduction and in the episode "Creepie Crawling", Creepie was an infant left on the doorstep of the Dweezwold Mansion, which is home to a family of various anthropomorphic insects. The family took her in and raised her as one of their own. She must now adjust to a life surrounded by a society of entomophobic humans as she attends Middlington Middle School and keeps her home life secret in order to protect both herself and her family.

## Characters

* Creepella "Creepie" Creecher (voiced by Athena Karkanis) is the Gothic protagonist, a preteen girl raised by bugs. She was born with multicolored hair. She initially comes off as being sassy, but in reality, she is friendly and warm-hearted. Her catchphrase is "Wicked". She was abandoned on Caroleena and Vinnie's doorstep as a baby. Creepie's biological parents are never seen or mentioned, and no explanation is given for their absence. Her real name is Creepella, but everyone except Dr. Pappas and Vinnie calls her Creepie. If anyone ever finds out that Creepie is being raised by bugs she will have no choice but to live somewhere else, and the Dweezwold Mansion will be fumigated by Mr. Hollyruller. Her favorite color is black, and she is fiercely protective of her family and other insects.
* Caroleena (voiced by Julie Lemieux) is a praying mantis who is Creepie's adoptive mother and Marge's best friend. She is very strict and constantly threatens to eat her children if they don't listen to her. It was her maternal instinct that persuaded her husband to adopt Creepie. She loves cooking.
* Vinnie (voiced by Dwayne Hill) is a mosquito who is Creepie's adoptive father. He is a New Age vegan that has a sinister vampiric appearance. Like his wife, he is loving to his adopted daughter. He loves to paint and meditate.
* Gnat (voiced by Stevie Vallance) is Creepie's younger brother, a gnat. He constantly sneaks in Creepie's backpack and causes havoc at school. Gnat is actually older than Creepie since he and Pauly were the ones that persuaded their family to adopt her.
* Pauly (voiced by David Berni) is Creepie's older brother, a pillbug. He loves to eat and is a wisecracking jokester.
* Budge Bentley (voiced by Richard Yearwood) is Creepie's best friend. He is the only one who knows Creepie's secret. While Budge might look like a bully because of his height and size, in reality, he's a sweet guy who wouldn't hurt a fly. He is friends with Creepie and Chris-Alice. Budge is very smart like his dad and loves yoga. He also loves entomology.
* Chris-Alice Hollyruller (voiced by Leah Cudmore) is Creepie's relentlessly happy friend and neighbor. Her catchphrases are "Soggy Muffins" and "Super Mega Duper". Chris-Alice is on the cheerleading squad, takes karate, and is always signing Creepie up for stuff at school without asking her first. Her favorite color is pink. Her name is a pun on the word chrysalis, a form of immature insect.
* George Hollyruller (voiced by Scott McCord) is Chris-Alice's father, the local exterminator. He is also the football coach at Middlington Middle School.
* Bunny Hollyruller (voiced by Stevie Vallance) is Chris-Alice's mother, a hard-selling real estate agent. Like Chris-Alice, she is bossy and perky.
* Carla Cabrera (voiced by Stephanie Anne Mills) and Melanie Melisma (voiced by Athena Karkanis) are two popular girls who maintain an on/off again friendship with Creepie. They are obsessed with Harry Helby, shopping, fashion, makeup, and their cell phones. Carla is the leader of the duo constantly seen with her cheerleading outfit and has her hair in unbraided pigtails. Melanie is a stereotypical dumb blonde and has problems with pronunciation. Her outfit consists of an orange T-shirt with a yellow cat on the front, green cargo pants, and white/orange sneakers. Also, she really enjoys shiny things and watches horror movies, almost as much as Budge. Melanie's favorite color is blue, and Carla's favorite color is purple. Carla and Melanie just want Creepie to be normal.
* Harry Helby (voiced by Scott McCord) is the resident heartthrob who is obsessed with his hair. Melanie and Carla have a massive crush on him though he usually ignores them and is somewhat more interested in Creepie.
* Ms. Monserrate (voiced by Julie Lemieux) is a firm but fair disciplinarian and principal of Middlington Middle School. Like Dr. Pappas, she's always spying on Creepie and the other students at Middlington Middle School and is a stickler for rules. She's obsessed with cleanliness. Her catchphrase is "Detention!" She will usually hand out a detention slip.
* Dr. Pappas (voiced by Juan Chioran) is Creepie's homeroom and science teacher who is a stickler for rules. Dr. Pappas is always spying on Creepie and the other students at Middlington Middle School. He never cuts anybody a break if they're late turning in a class assignment or homework. His catchphrase is "Miss Creecher!" He refers to the students by their last names. He is probably insecure due to being practically bald and having a big nose. He is afraid of Budge.
* Tarantula Boy (real name: Skipper) (voiced by Dan Petronijevic) is Creepie's love interest – seemingly half-human, half Goliath tarantula – a headliner at the carnival "freaky" show. In the episode "Creepie Meets Tarantula Boy", Creepie later found out he was a normal kid and Tarantula Boy was just a costume and lost interest in him. However, in the episode "Return of Tarantula Boy", he appears in a movie and meets back up with Creepie. He introduces her to his mother, who is a real tarantula. In turn, she introduced him to her family, and it turns out that Creepie's mother knew his mom when they were kids, later on, it is hinted that they would start a romantic relationship from then on, but it never developed.
* Marge (voiced by Leah Cudmore) is a giant tarantula who is Skipper's adoptive mother and Caroleena's best friend. In the episode "Creepie Meets Tarantula Boy", she was revealed to be a giant tarantula who wears hair curlers. She made caramel apples for the carnival and that's how Skipper came to be in the freak show.
* Dr. Lance Pierce (voiced by Patrick McKenna) is a prominent pin-happy entomologist at the Middlington Museum of Natural History and a minor antagonist in the show who only appears in three episodes. His catchphrase is "Oh, no!"

## Episodes
### Series overview

| Season | Episodes | Episodes | Originally released | Originally released |
| Season | Episodes | Episodes | First released | Last released |
| 1 | 26 | 26 | September 9, 2006 (2006-9-9) | June 21, 2008 (2008-6-21) |
| No. | Title | Written by | Storyboard by | Original release date |
| 1 | "The Tell-Tale Poem" | Carin Greenberg | Guy Vasilovich | September 9, 2006 (2006-9-9) |
| 1 | "Creepie Meets Tarantula Boy" | Dennys McCoy and Pamela Hickey | Lane Lueras | September 9, 2006 (2006-9-9) |
| "The Tell-Tale Poem": Creepie's Mother's Day poem piques the curiosity of her principal, who decides to meet her mother. "Creepie Meets Tarantula Boy": Creepie becomes smitten with a sideshow performer known as Tarantula Boy. |||||
| 2 | "The Scared Twitch Project" | Carin Greenberg | Peter Ferk | September 16, 2006 (2006-9-16) |
| 2 | "Frogenstein" | Carin Greenberg | Todd Waterman | September 16, 2006 (2006-9-16) |
| "The Scared Twitch Project": While on a camping trip, Creepie tries to find evidence of "Bugfoot", a massive prehistoric wasp. "Frogenstein": Creepie resurrects the frog she was supposed to dissect for science class. |||||
| 3 | "Bug It On" | Sharon Schatz Rosenthal | Trevor Wall | September 23, 2006 (2006-9-23) |
| 3 | "The Case of the Mysterious Moth" | Heather Mitchell | Lane Lueras | September 23, 2006 (2006-9-23) |
| "Bug It On": Creepie helps her school's cheerleading squad win a competition after a rival steals their routine. "The Case of the Mysterious Moth": Creepie attends a sleepover that seems to be haunted by a ghost moth. |||||
| 4 | "Attack of the Wasp Zombies" | Ken Pontac | Dan Kubat and Anson Jew | October 14, 2006 (2006-10-14) |
| 4 | "Legend of the Locker" | Rick Demott | Ian Freedman and Bert Ring | October 14, 2006 (2006-10-14) |
| "Attack of the Wasp Zombies": While watching old horror films, Creepie dreams that her classmates have been turned into zombies by a wasp. "Legend of the Locker": When a rival tries to frighten Creepie with the story of "Gina Redshoes", she decides to teach him a lesson. |||||
| 5 | "Bite Nite" | Dennys McCoy and Pamela Hickey | Peter Ferk | October 28, 2006 (2006-10-28) |
| 5 | "Night of Fright" | Carin Greenberg | Dan Kubat | October 28, 2006 (2006-10-28) |
| "Bite Nite": Creepie suspects her mosquito cousins are responsible when blood from a blood drive goes missing. "Night of Fright": While Creepie attends a party at Chris-Alice's, a mix-up sends Melanie and Carla to Creepie's house. |||||
| 6 | "Roaché Motel" | Don Gillies | Trevor Wall and Peter Ferk | November 4, 2006 (2006-11-4) |
| 6 | "Little Greenhouse of Horrors" | Don Gillies | Todd Waterman | November 4, 2006 (2006-11-4) |
| "Roaché Motel": While on a road trip with Chris-Alice and her mom, Creepie suspects something is amiss at the roadside motel they stop at. "Little Greenhouse of Horrors": Creepie, Gnat, and Pauly are threatened by massive carnivorous plants and their gardener at the local greenhouse. |||||
| 7 | "Field of Screams" | Douglas Booth | Todd Waterman and Trevor Wall | November 25, 2006 (2006-11-25) |
| 7 | "Mom Under Glass" | Dennys McCoy and Pamela Hickey | Roy Smith and Trevor Wall | November 25, 2006 (2006-11-25) |
| "Field of Screams": Creepie fights to protect an endangered beetle on the school football field from Chris-Alice's exterminator father. "Mom Under Glass": After a small spat with her mom, Creepie must save her from an entomologist determined to add her to his collection. |||||
| 8 | "Goth To Have Better Friends" | Corey Powell | Trevor Wall and Kirk Tingblat | January 13, 2007 (2007-1-13) |
| 8 | "Wax Attacks" | Corey Powell | Peter Ferk | January 13, 2007 (2007-1-13) |
| "Goth To Have Better Friends": Creepie begins to hang out with some new goth friends but begins to neglect Chris-Alice and Budge. "Wax Attacks": Creepie takes Harry to a wax museum where people have disappeared. |||||
| 9 | "Headless Roach Man" | Ruby Ann Bradt Vanderzee and Rowan Cutler | Todd Waterman and Trevor Wall | January 20, 2007 (2007-1-20) |
| 9 | "Invasion of the Locusts" | Bryan Thompson | Peter Ferk and Kevin Pawlak | January 20, 2007 (2007-1-20) |
| "Headless Roach Man": A costume party at school has Creepie mistaking an actual giant headless roach for Budge. "Invasion of the Locusts": When Creepie's locust relatives come for a visit, they begin to devour most of the town. |||||
| 10 | "Creepie's Living Doll" | Corey Powell | Garrett Ho | January 27, 2007 (2007-1-27) |
| 10 | "Operation Monarch Liberation" | Meredith Jennings Offen | Gary Hartle and Todd Waterman | January 27, 2007 (2007-1-27) |
| "Creepie's Living Doll": Creepie receives a belated birthday present: a doll that seems to show up everywhere she goes. "Operation Monarch Liberation": Thinking she is doing the right thing, Creepie releases a swarm of Monarch Butterflies from their sanctuary, unaware they aren't prepared for freedom. |||||
| 11 | "Bait and Switch" | Story by : Rick Demmott Teleplay by : Carin Greenberg | Ian Freedman and Garrett Ho | March 31, 2007 (2007-3-31) |
| 11 | "Shutterbug" | Story by : Laurai Israel and Rachel Ruderman Teleplay by : Carin Greenberg | Todd Waterman | March 31, 2007 (2007-3-31) |
| "Bait and Switch": Creepie joins Chris-Alice and her dad on a fishing trip to a lake rumored to be the home of a giant crab. "Shutterbug": A school assignment on hobbies leads Creepie to discover a love of photography. |||||
| 12 | "Bad Karma Chameleon" | Meredith Jennings Offen | Jon Hooper and Trevor Wall | April 7, 2007 (2007-4-7) |
| 12 | "Home is Where the Haunt Is" | Bryan Thompson | Gary Hartle and Trevor Wall | April 7, 2007 (2007-4-7) |
| "Bad Karma Chameleon": Creepie reluctantly agrees to watch Chris-Alice's pet, only to discover it is a bug-eating Chameleon. "Home is Where the Haunt Is": After her parents decide they need a bigger house, Creepie makes her home appear haunted to scare away potential buyers. |||||
| 13 | "Creepie Friday" | Bryan Thompson | Peter Ferk | April 28, 2007 (2007-4-28) |
| 13 | "The Final Curtain" | Laurai Israel and Rachel Ruderman | Todd Waterman | April 28, 2007 (2007-4-28) |
| "Creepie Friday": Creepie worries for her family's safety after coming home to an empty house. "The Final Curtain": Creepie and her friends must put on their school play in an old abandoned theater where spooky things happen. |||||
| 14 | "Creepie and the Candy Factory" | Story by : Erin Fox Teleplay by : Roger Eschbacher | Enrique May | May 26, 2007 (2007-5-26) |
| 14 | "The Ice Bug Cometh" | Story by : Kati Rocky and Eric Trueheart Teleplay by : Eric Trueheart | Gary Hartle | May 26, 2007 (2007-5-26) |
| "Creepie and the Candy Factory": Creepie and Chris-Alice take a tour of a candy factory. "The Ice Bug Cometh": A frozen prehistoric bug is thawed out, and Creepie invites him to her home. |||||
| 15 | "Are You Afraid of the Moths?" | Laurai Israel and Rachel Ruderman | Trevor Wall | June 9, 2007 (2007-6-9) |
| 15 | "Revenge of the Water Bug" | Mitchell Larson | Trevor Wall and John Perkins | June 9, 2007 (2007-6-9) |
| "Are You Afraid of the Moths?": Creepie tells her scout troop a campfire story about giant moths that abduct campers. "Revenge of the Water Bug": When her principal flushes a water beetle down the toilet and the bug returns seeking revenge, Creepie tries to protect her. |||||
| 16 | "Nightmare on Locust Lane" | Peggy Sarlin | Gary Hartle and Trevor Wall | October 13, 2007 (2007-10-13) |
| 16 | "The Mummy's Curse" | Bryan Thompson | Peter Ferk | October 13, 2007 (2007-10-13) |
| "Nightmare on Locust Lane": Bizarre electrical disturbances at her house convince Chris-Alice that it's haunted, so Creepie tries to find the real culprit. "The Mummy's Curse": A field trip to a new Egyptian tomb exhibit leads Creepie to an ancient mummy's curse and a mysterious dung beetle. |||||
| 17 | "Children of the Pumpkin Patch" | Story by : Ruby Ann Bradt Vanderzee, Rowan Cutler and Bryan Thompson Teleplay by : Bryan Thompson | Todd Waterman | October 27, 2007 (2007-10-27) |
| 17 | "Night of A Thousand Legs" | Bryan Thompson | Guy Vasilovich and Trevor Wall | October 27, 2007 (2007-10-27) |
| "Children of the Pumpkin Patch": While out picking pumpkins, Creepie and her friends spend the day on a farm, where they are menaced by a living scarecrow. "Night of A Thousand Legs": It's Halloween and when her Aunt Rose gets loose, Creepie and Budge have to track her down. |||||
| 18 | "Lice Lice Baby" | Carin Greenberg | Peter Ferk and Mark Maxey | November 10, 2007 (2007-11-10) |
| 18 | "Scorpiophobia" | Ruby Ann Bradt Vanderzee & Rowan Cutler | Peter Ferk | November 10, 2007 (2007-11-10) |
| "Lice Lice Baby": Creepie's lice cousins visit her at school, causing the principal to lock down the school to prevent an outbreak. "Scorpiophobia": Creepie and her friends attend the premiere of the newest blockbuster film, "Scorpiophobia", only to discover the movie theater has been infested by real scorpions. |||||
| 19 | "On Thin Ice" | Laurai Israel & Rachel Ruderman | Mike Manley | November 24, 2007 (2007-11-24) |
| 19 | "Toxic Mutant Millipede" | Laurai Israel & Rachel Ruderman | Enrique May | November 24, 2007 (2007-11-24) |
| "On Thin Ice": A snow day has Creepie and her friends enjoying themselves until a mysterious snowman starts to show up everywhere they go. "Toxic Mutant Millipede": Creepie and Budge must rescue Chris-Alice and Harry from a new arcade game after they get trapped inside. |||||
| 20 | "I Was a Teenage Wolfbug" | Bryan Thompson | Peter Ferk and Todd Waterman | December 8, 2007 (2007-12-8) |
| 20 | "Outta Sight Space Bowl Night" | Ruby Ann Bradt Vanderzee & Rowan Cutler | Enrique May and Todd Waterman | December 8, 2007 (2007-12-8) |
| "I Was a Teenage Wolfbug": Exposure to a growth formula at school causes Gnat to grow to the size of a human kid, and he decides to spend the day as Creepie's classmate, while Budge tries to make an antidote. "Outta Sight Space Bowl Night": A father/student bowling tournament to celebrate an outer space-themed bowling alley's grand opening has Creepie feeling left out since her father isn't really a bowler. |||||
| 21 | "Rockabye Freakie" | Ruby Ann Bradt Vanderzee & Rowan Cutler | Peter Ferk | January 12, 2008 (2008-1-12) |
| 21 | "Creep of the Deep" | Laurai Israel and Rachel Ruderman | Lynell Forstall | January 12, 2008 (2008-1-12) |
| "Rockabye Freakie": Creepie reads the story of "Snow Black" to the baby bugs of Dweezwold. "Creep of the Deep": A day at the beach finds Creepie helping a hermit crab and competing in a surf contest against her friends, but the crab decides to return the favor by sabotaging her competition. |||||
| 22 | "Going For Brogue" | Matt Wayne | Lane Lueras | January 26, 2008 (2008-1-26) |
| 22 | "Yellow Jacket Racket" | Bryan Thompson | Bert Ring and Enrique May | January 26, 2008 (2008-1-26) |
| "Going For Brogue": Creepie joins her goth friend's band as a bagpiper so they can play at the school dance, but Chris-Alice begins to notice her strange interaction with bugs. "Yellow Jacket Racket": Creepie tries to help Gnat learn to defend himself after he has a run-in with some bullying yellow jackets. |||||
| 23 | "The Return of Tarantula Boy" | Dennys McCoy and Pamela Hickey | Todd Waterman | February 9, 2008 (2008-2-9) |
| 23 | "All The President's Pests" | Story by : Laurai Israel and Rachel Ruderman Teleplay by : Eric Trueheart | Lane Lueras and Todd Waterman | February 9, 2008 (2008-2-9) |
| "The Return of Tarantula Boy": Tarantula Boy returns, and Creepie finds they have much more in common than she thought. "All The President's Pests": Chris-Alice is running for class president against school heartthrob Harry, but it's Creepie to the rescue when someone starts sabotaging her campaign. |||||
| 24 | "Creep of the Crop" | Laurai Israel and Rachel Ruderman | Larry Houston | March 1, 2008 (2008-3-1) |
| 24 | "Creepie Cousin" | Laurai Israel and Rachel Ruderman | Trevor Wall and Luther McLaurin | March 1, 2008 (2008-3-1) |
| "Creep of the Crop": Creepie helps Chris-Alice investigate crop circles at a local farm for their school paper while trying to protect her brothers from Mr. Hollyruller. "Creepie Cousin": Creepie babysits Chris-Alice's little cousin, unaware that he likes to squash bugs. |||||
| 25 | "Creepie Crawling" | Ruby Ann Bradt Vanderzee and Rowan Cutler | Jay Olivia | April 12, 2008 (2008-4-12) |
| 25 | "Fashion Victim" | Story by : Roger Eschbacher and Peggy Sarlin Teleplay by : Peggy Sarlin | Mike Manley | April 12, 2008 (2008-4-12) |
| "Creepie Crawling": Creepie tells the story of a baby left on the doorstep of a mansion where bugs live. "Fashion Victim": Trying to rescue her brothers from Carla's lunch bag leads Creepie to get an impromptu makeover and enter a fashion contest. |||||
| 26 | "Wanna Bee" | Bryan Thompson | Todd Waterman | June 21, 2008 (2008-6-21) |
| 26 | "The Haunting of Tiki Lagoon" | Bryan Thompson | Peter Ferk | June 21, 2008 (2008-6-21) |
| "Wanna Bee": After a new girl becomes more popular than Carla, Creepie helps her frenemy try and dethrone the new queen bee. "The Haunting of Tiki Lagoon": Creepie and her friends find a treasure map that takes them to a small island in the town lake that is rumored to be haunted. |||||

## Music

The theme song "Creepie Kids" and other songs featured throughout the series were performed by Samantha Lombardi. They were written by Michael Puskas, Samantha Lombardi, and Clarence Jey, and produced by Michael Puskas and Clarence Jey. "Creepie Kids" and the song "Life Lessons", heard in the episode "Goth To Have Better Friends", were released on Lombardi's 2007 album, Full Stop. The music was featured on a DVD released by Mike Young Productions.
The instrumental score heard throughout the show was composed by Guy Michelmore, who was nominated for an Annie for his music for the series.

## Reception

Pam Gelman of Common Sense Media gave the series 3 out of 5 stars; saying that, "Growing Up Creepie has lots of dark, Tim Burton-esque visuals and scary organ tunes, but older grade-schoolers and tweens will recognize that both are used for dramatic effect and will be able to focus on Creepie's day-to-day challenges."

### Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
| 2007 | Annie Awards | Directing in an Animated Television Production | Guy Vasilovich (for "The Tell-Tale Poem") | Nominated |
| 2007 | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Special Class Animated Program | Growing Up Creepie | Nominated |
| 2008 | Annie Awards | Animation Production Artist | Natasha Liberman (for "Creepie and the Candy Factory") | Nominated |
| 2008 | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation | Peter Ferk | Won |
| 2009 | Annie Awards | Music in an Animated Television Production or Short Form | Guy Michelmore (for "Rockabye Freakie") | Nominated |

## Home media

A DVD of Growing Up Creepie was released for Region 1 from Genius Products on August 28, 2007. The single disc volume is titled Creepie's Creatures Volume 1 and features seven episodes. Bonus features include Creepie's Buggin' Trivia Game and an episode of Jeff Corwin Unleashed entitled "Creepy Creatures". It also had a DVD release in Australia from Madman Entertainment. There were plans for other volumes in Australia but they were never released. The episode "Creep of the Deep" appears as a bonus feature on Kenny the Shark Volume 3: Catch a Wave.
| DVD title | DVD title | Episode count | Release date | Episodes |
| | Creepie Creatures Volume 1 | 7 | August 28, 2007 | 2b ("Frogenstein"), 3b ("The Case of the Mysterious Moth"), 5b ("Night of Fright"), 10a ("Creepie's Living Doll"), 13a ("Creepie Friday"), 15a ("Are You Afraid of the Moths?"), and 16a ("Nightmare on Locust Lane") |