EDITORIAL: All Those Failed Spin-offs

Stuffie Studios is notorious for launching (at least) 6 series and only having 2 successful ones. The hoards of one-shot spin-offs are known as disastrous embarrassments, and here Mia Plus will be going through and analyzing each other.

The Bananomanomans

In December 2011, after the success of Judge Mia's premiere in November, Stuffie Studios authorized Furco Films to begin developing a spin-off focusing on Mia's daughter's family. The first season of eight episodes was ordered on December 27, with Bennett Joel as a director, writer, and camera operator. The first episode, "The New Doo," was officially released on January 9, 2012, taking place between the 3rd and 4th seasons of Judge Mia. Despite mixed-to-negative reception, the episode is still considered one of the few "decent" spin-offs. The main series, Judge Mia, even incorporated some plot lines from The Bananomanomans, such as the characters of Mrs. Dotter and Mr. Shinypelt. The second episode, "Bong!", began filming in late January.

On February 6, 2012, Stuffie Studios confirmed that The Bananomanomans was on an indefinite hiatus. Production on the second episode halted. After a slow and painful death, the series was officially cancelled on July 14, 2013. Later that week, Bennett Joel stated: "It lacked momentum and encouragement. The premise became unnecessary now that Matilda and the family are getting more screen time on Judge Mia."

On January 27, 2014, a revival attempted of the series was confirmed, titled The Bananomanomans: Again. With the exact same premise, Stuffie Studios ordered ten episodes. The pilot episode was written, but the series was cancelled on February 19, 2014 before filming began.

Postcards from Buck

Admired for its rare pedigree status, Postcards from Buck is the only Judge Mia spin-off exclusively created by Stuffie Studios, without any third party producers.

However, the idea was first conceived as a temporary replacement of Buck's Lil' World. Showrunner Samuel Anderson announced in April 2012 that the eighth season of Judge Mia would feature "Postcards from Buck" segments at the end of each episode, featuring Buck as he travels around the world. That idea was scrapped a few days later, favoring instead a brand new web series spin-off.

The actual spin-off was confirmed on May 10, 2012, with seven episodes ordered. Buck departed Judge Mia at the end of its seventh season to star in the new series, but Stuffie Studios only planned to produce one season so Buck could eventually return to Judge Mia.

The title, concept, and premise of Postcards from Buck is heavily influenced by Postcards from Buster, a spin-off of the PBS childrens' series, Arthur. Postcards from Buck even goes so far as to use Buster's exact theme song.

The first episode, "Chillin with the Chus," was released on June 28, 2012 to generally positive reviews. It takes place between the 7th and 8th seasons of Judge Mia. It was praised for its humor and utilization of the fan-favorite character, as well as the introduction of his estranged father, Conga. The second and third episodes, "Buck's Brush with Royalty" and "Hangin with the Hags," respectively, who both filmed in July 2012. Unexpectedly, the series went on hiatus on July 18. On September 6, 2012, Stuffie Studios finally cancelled the series.

The second and third episodes of the series were never released, and the footage is lost.

Pinecone & Acorn

On June 20, 2015, Furco Films rebranded itself as Northsouth Productions.

On July 6, 2015, the studio announced the production of a new web series: Pinecone & Acorn, starring two recurring characters from Judge Mia. Despite taking place in the Miaverse, Pinecone & Acorn is not considered a spin-off of either Judge Mia or Monkeytown. Nine episodes were ordered for the first season.

The series had a more ambitious premise than its predecessors, being told in a slightly epistolary style between brothers Pinecone and Acorn. The series was split between two settings: Pinecone at college and Acorn at home.

The now-defunct Facebook page for the series was very active during the production of the series, even releasing a full episode list of the season.

Writing for the first two episodes occurred on July 7, and the first episode, "Schools & Houses," was filmed the following day. Bennett Joel directed, wrote, and filmed the episode. The episode was originally meant to premiere on July 9, 2015, but its release was delayed due to technical difficulties in the editing department. For several weeks, there was no word on the series' status.

On July 22, a bootlegged copy of "Schools & Houses" was posted on YouTube. It is often mistakenly considered to be the official episode, which Furco Films has denied. "I'm glad it is able to be watched, but that isn't the quality I want it to be," said Bennett Joel.

The first episode was praised for its plot and writing, but was criticized for its editing, equality, and voice acting. At the time of its release, it was the longest Miaverse episode.

On September 1, 2015, Pinecone & Acorn was put on hiatus.

Brownfeather, a Judge Mia character and the mother of Pinecone and Acorn, dies sometime prior to the events of "Schools & Houses" in a tragic bulldozer accident. However, Brownfeather was set to appear in an upcoming Monkeytown episode ("Custody Wars: Part 2"). Because of this, Pinecone & Acorn is considered non-canon. However, since the series was never officially released, it can be argued that it was never canon in the first place.

The series was officially cancelled on December 19, 2015.

Lily

A new production company, Windowsill Studios, acquired licensing from Stuffie Studios to create a new web series in July 2015, around the same time as Pinecone & Acorn. Bennett Joel from Northsouth Productions contributed to writing this series.

The series was intended for a younger audience, and was briefly marketed under the label "JMN Jr." The series follows title character Lily Pads, who ventures from her hometown to the big city of Pochester.

On July 21, 2015, a season of six episodes was ordered. The first one, "Goodbye, Mom...Hello, Life!", was released on July 22. Among the rest of the Miaverse, this episode takes place after "The Duel" and before "Custody Wars: Part 1." The second episode, "New Job, New Friends!", was written but never filmed. On July 30, the series was put on hiatus by Windowsill Studios.

The only existing Lily episode was controversial and critically panned. However, it is responsible for introducing the city of Pochester, Elland, a location was later incorporated in Monkeytown and the rest of the Miaverse. Because of this, Lily is considered canon.

As of April 26, 2018, Windowsill Studios has made no announcement about cancelling or continuing Lily, and it remains in production limbo.

Birdena & Friends

Birdena & Friends, also known as The Geezerly Adventures of Birdena Bittlemeier, was a proposed third spin-off of Judge Mia. It was rumored on August 10, 2013, when Stuffie Studios said they were "interested in giving fan-favorite character, Birdena, a show of her own."

Details about the series were slowly released: It was take place at Geezer Groves Retirement Home, following Birdena and her elderly friends, and would also feature the preschooler characters for side-plots.

Hopes for the series ended when the toy used to portray Birdena was accidentally donated to charity, eliminating the chance of Birdena ever appearing in video form again. Even though no official announcement had ever been made, Samuel Anderson said on November 13, 2013: "It just isn't happening. We don't have Birdena."

Mia

On March 24, 2015, Samuel Anderson announced that a revival series of Judge Mia was in pre-production. The series, simply titled Mia, was intended to continue the story of Mia Redford and her friends after the end of Judge Mia in 2013.

On March 27, Anderson confirmed the return of Judge Mia, the Bananomanomans, Turdsley, Buck, Brownfeather, and Humphrey on the new series. He also stated that the first episode of Mia would open at the funeral of Birdena Bittlemeier, who was confirmed to have died in "Judge Mia Forever."

The concept of Mia was eventually scrapped. Instead, it was restructured and eventually become the premise of Monkeytown, which had a considerably longer time jump and placed Buck Snortleson in the protagonist slot.

Ivy

After Rhonda Clark's smash-hit appearance on the series finale of Monkeytown, she became one of the most sensationalized and widely-loved addition to the franchise. Because of this, Stuffie Studios ordered an eight-episode limited-run web series on October 14, 2016 starring Rhonda.

The series, titled Ivy (Rhonda's middle name), was intended to be a prequel, following Rhonda life up to the moment she meets Buck. The main cast included Rhonda, her elderly parents Alfred and Edna, and her deadbeat best friend Susie.

On October 20, promotion for the series began on Bennett Joel's Twitter page. Production was scheduled to begin on December 10, but the series was cancelled on November 12.

The Monkeytown Anthology Series is Returning

Last year, we announced that the Monkeytown Anthology Series was cancelled. However, the series has been back in business since last December. Three stories are currently in development.

Life as Jasmine 2 (a time-jumped sequel to Life as Jasmine) was first announced on December 22, 2017, but scrapped on December 31. It has been back on the drawing board since March, and will be released in August 2018.

Two brand new stories are also in the works. One is a currently-untitled piece starring Gabby Snortleson, daughter of Bradley Snortleson, as a young adult in the 1380s. This political action-thriller story will be released in May 2018.

The third story will be released in summer 2018. We will not disclose plot points or character until closer to the release date.