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The Glo Friends
Glo Friends.png
Genre Animation, Family
Fantasy
Voices of Charlie Adler
Roger C. Carmel
Nancy Cartwright
Pat Fraley
Mona Marshall
Don Messick
Hal Rayle
Susan Silo
Russi Taylor
Frank Welker
Katie Leigh
Composer(s) Robert J. Walsh
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of episodes 26
Production company(s) Hasbro
Sunbow Productions
Marvel Productions
Toei Animation
Distributor Claster Television
Release
Original network Syndication
Original release September 23, 1986 (1986-09-23) – March 17, 1987 (1987-03-17)

The Glo Friends is an American TV show that first aired in 1986. It was part of another popular show called My Little Pony 'n Friends. The show was made by Sunbow Productions, Marvel Productions, and Toei Animation.

There were 26 short episodes of Glo Friends. They were shown along with other cartoons like MoonDreamers and Potato Head Kids. Later, Glo Friends was shown again on the Family Channel from 1989 to 1995.

Before the TV show, there were Glo Friends toys. These were small glow-in-the-dark toys shaped like insects and other tiny creatures. The toys came from the original Glo Worm toy, which Playskool (a part of Hasbro) first made in 1982. There were also books from Ladybird Books that went with each Glo Friend toy.

What is The Glo Friends About?

The story of The Glo Friends is about a group of small, glow-in-the-dark bugs. They live in a magical place called Glo Land, which is in the middle of a forest. Their homes are close to the Glo Pond. From this pond, they collect something special called Moondrops. These Moondrops are what make them glow in the dark!

But life in Glo Land isn't always peaceful. The Moligans, who are like moles, often cause trouble. Their leader is Starnose. The Moligans were kicked out of their own home, Moleslavia, for bad things like digging where they shouldn't, stealing, and cheating. Now, they live underground and want revenge. The Moligans can't see very well. They try to capture the Glo Friends to use them as lights in their dark tunnels. This helps them dig for more gold.

Meet the Characters

The Glo Friends

  • Baby Glo Worm (voiced by Nancy Cartwright) - She is the youngest Glo Friend. She often spends time with Glo Grannybug. Baby Glo Worm is very curious and giggles a lot. She speaks in short sentences. In her first episode, she got lost in the Moligans' tunnels, causing trouble for everyone.
  • Garden Ant - He loves taking care of his plants and flowers. He grows vegetables for all the Glo Friends. He knows a lot about plants. He really hates it when the Moligans eat tree roots. His house is a pumpkin in Glo Land.
    • Bunny Rabbit - A rabbit who is Garden Ant's best friend.
  • Glo Bashfulbug - She is a female Glo Friend who gets shy and doesn't know what to say sometimes. She seems to like Glo Worm. She often says that being brave is hard.
  • Glo Bedbug - She is the laziest Glo Friend. She mostly wants to eat, sing, and sleep. Sometimes, she plays games.
  • Glo Bonnie Beetle - She is a very sweet female Glo Friend. She does not appear in the TV show.
  • Glo Bopbug - He is an eight-legged Glo Friend who wears a top hat and shoes. He uses a cane and loves to dance.
  • Glo Butterfly - She carries a magic wand. She thinks she can do magic tricks, but they are usually just lucky coincidences. The other Glo Friends don't tell her the truth to keep her happy.
  • Glo Bug (voiced by Charlie Adler) - Many think he is the bravest Glo Friend. He is not afraid of danger. For example, he bravely faced Rook and the Red Ant army when they were destroying the forest.
  • Glo Cappy (voiced by Russi Taylor) - He loves exploring the forest on Country Mouse. He acts like a reporter for Glo Land, telling everyone about dangers or important news. He and Country Mouse wear blue caps.
    • Country Mouse - A mouse who is Glo Cappy's best friend.
  • Glo Clutterbug - He is a clumsy insect. He often makes things messy and gets the other Glo Friends into trouble. He falls into traps a lot.
  • Glo Doodlebug (voiced by Will Ryan) - He loves art. He sometimes gets upset if he feels his art isn't liked. He often goes to a cave he uses as his art studio.
  • Glo Grannybug - She is the oldest and wisest Glo Friend. She lives in the biggest treehouse in Glo Land. She tells stories and often looks after Baby Glo Worm. She loves having parties with homemade food on Full Moon Days.
  • Glo Hopper - He is a green grasshopper who rides on Glo Turtle. He jumps high when he is surprised or happy.
    • Glo Turtle - A turtle who is Glo Hopper's best friend.
  • Glo Prayerbug - She is a blue mantis-shaped Glo Friend. She prays when things go wrong. She only appeared a few times in the TV show.
  • Glo Scuttlebug (voiced by Mona Marshall) - He is a pilot who flies on Dragonflyer.
    • Dragonflyer - A dragonfly who is Glo Scuttlebug's best friend. He acts like a plane.
  • Glo Skunkbug - He is a smelly Glo Friend with a purple nose. He is very close friends with Glo Clutterbug.
  • Glo Sluggerbug (voiced by Frank Welker) - He wears a baseball cap and always carries a stick. He is very brave and often has great ideas when fighting enemies with his frog friend.
  • Glo Snail (voiced by Don Messick) -
  • Glo Snugbug - She is a pink caterpillar-shaped Glo Friend. She likes to hug all her friends.
  • Glo Waterbug - He is a sailor insect. He guards the Glo Moondrops Pond with Dipper Duck.
    • Dipper Ducky (voiced by Charlie Adler) - A duck who is Glo Waterbug's best friend. He helps guard the Glo Moondrops Pond.
  • Glo Worm (voiced by Pat Fraley) - He is the first Glo Friend and is like the unofficial leader of the group in the TV show. He is brave and smart. He wears purple pajamas.

The Glo Wees

These are fairies who can glow just like the Glo Friends. They are known for helping nature.

  • Nutcap (voiced by Hal Rayle) - A Glo Wee who carries the Book of Nature. This book helps him talk to nature.
  • Posey (voiced by Nancy Cartwright) -
  • Spruce - A Glo Wee who is very good at juggling.
  • Willow - A Glo Wee who leads the "symphony of nature."

The Villains

  • Moligans - These are the main bad guys in the show. After being kicked out of Moleslavia, they want to dig for gold to buy their way back. They always try to capture the Glo Friends to use them as lights for their dark mines.
    • Starnose (voiced by Roger C. Carmel) - Starnose is the leader of the Moligans. He is strong and can scare anyone who doesn't listen to him.
    • Nails (voiced by Susan Silo) - Nails is a Moligan lady who only cares about herself and how she looks. She loves shiny jewelry. She gets very angry if anyone calls her an "ugly witch." She also cooks for the Moligans.
    • Old Moldy (voiced by Roger C. Carmel) - As his name suggests, Old Moldy is the oldest Moligan. He uses a hammer-shaped cane because he is old. His dream is to melt gold into a huge river.
    • Excavator (voiced by Charlie Adler) - Excavator is the second oldest Moligan. He is a scientist who works in his lab. He invents new digging machines.
    • Brasher (voiced by Hal Rayle) - Brasher is a tall and smart Moligan. He often has the best ideas for getting gold and catching the Glo Friends. But Starnose usually takes his ideas as his own.
    • Smasher (voiced by Charlie Adler) - Smasher is Brasher's brother. He is tall and strong, but he acts silly and not very smart. He likes to "smash" Glo Friends.
    • Scoop (voiced by Nancy Cartwright) - Scoop is the youngest Moligan. She is also the only nice one. She often secretly messes up Starnose's plans. She is friends with the Glo Friends but is scared to leave the Moligans.
    • Tumbler - Tumbler is the shortest Moligan. He is lazy and tries to dig as little as possible. He is also very easily fooled.
  • Rook (voiced by Hal Rayle) - Rook is a crow who used to work for Lord Driver of the Red Ant Army. The Moligans hired him as a spy. He doesn't really like working for the Moligans.
  • The Red Ant Army - This is a group of insects who live in a desert valley. They were Rook's old bosses. They only appeared in "The Quest" episode. They captured both the Moligans and the Glo Friends.
  • Blanche (voiced by Sally Struthers) – She is the Wicked Witch of the North Pole. She wears purple fur and has an icicle wand. In the Christmas special, she kidnapped Santa Claus and his reindeer to stop Christmas.

Episodes of The Glo Friends

# Title Writer U.S. Original airdate
1–10 "The Quest (Episodes 1-10)" George Arthur Bloom September 23 – November 25, 1986 (September 23 – November 25, 1986)
The Glo Moon Drop Pond, which gives the Glo Friends their glow, starts to leak. Glo Worm, Garden Ant, and their friends go on a dangerous journey to find more Moon Drops.
11 "Baby Glo Worm Goes Bye-Bye" Douglas Booth December 2, 1986 (1986-12-02)
Baby Glo Worm runs away when she should be napping. She ends up in the Moligans' hideout. Glo Worm and the others search for her but get caught by the Moligans.
12 "Two of a Kind" Douglas Booth December 9, 1986 (1986-12-09)
Bashful Bug runs off after Glo Worm teases her during a dance. Scoop also runs away after messing up a Moligan tunnel. The two then meet and become friends.
13 "Make No Mistake, It's Magic" Douglas Booth December 16, 1986 (1986-12-16)
Glo Butterfly thinks her wand has magic powers because of some lucky things happening. But Bed Bug, Bop Bug, and Glo Spider know it's not real magic.
14 "The Forest Brigade" Douglas Booth December 23, 1986 (1986-12-23)
The Moligans eat the roots of a tree that Garden Ant planted. Garden Ant tries to save the tree before it dies.
15 "Caverns of Mystery" Douglas Booth December 30, 1986 (1986-12-30)
Glo Cricket runs out of stories to tell. He searches for the legendary Glo Drop Moon Lake. He doesn't find it, but he lies about it when he gets back.
16 "Front Page" Douglas Booth January 6, 1987 (1987-01-06)
The Moligans decide to be interviewed for the Glo Land Times newspaper. They want to make themselves look better, but things don't go as planned.
17 "Bean Ball" Dale Hale January 13, 1987 (1987-01-13)
The Glo Friends play a game of baseball.
18 "The Masterpiece" Diane Duane January 20, 1987 (1987-01-20)
Doodle Bug feels no one understands his art. He goes off to work alone with Snug Bug.
19 "Beware Tales of Gold That Lead to Thorny Trails" Craig Rand January 27, 1987 (1987-01-27)
The Glo Friends learn a lesson about being careful when searching for treasure.
20–23 "Glo Friends Meet the Glo Wees (Episodes 1-4)" George Arthur Bloom February 3–24, 1987 (February 3–24, 1987)
The Moligans' newest plan brings the Glo Friends and the Glo Wees together. They team up to stop the Moligans and a dangerous storm.
24–25 "Easy Money (Episodes 1-2)" Douglas Booth March 3–10, 1987 (March 3–10, 1987)
The Moligans find a magic book that helps them make gold from stone. They need Moondrops and Dewdrops from the Glo Friends and Glo-wees. They succeed and go to Moleslavia.
26 "Wizard of Rook" Douglas Booth March 17, 1987 (1987-03-17)
Rook tries to become a powerful wizard, causing chaos for the Glo Friends and Moligans.

The Glo Friends Save Christmas Special

The TV special The Glo Friends Save Christmas aired in 1985, before the regular series. In this story, the Glo Friends have to rescue Santa Claus and his reindeer. An evil witch named Blanche from the North Pole has kidnapped them! With help from a moose, the Glo Friends save Santa and Christmas.

Voice Actors

Production Team

  • Alan Dinehart - Voice Director
  • Stu Rosen - Voice Director ("The Glo Friends Save Christmas" only)

Other Names for the Show

  • Bulgarian: Светулковците (Svetulkovtzite)
  • Dutch: Twinkel Pinkel
  • Finnish: "Keijukaiset ja mulikaanit"
  • French: Les Luxioles
  • German: Die Glimmerlinge
  • Greek: Φωτεινούληδες (Fotinoulides)
  • Hungarian: Ragyogiék; Villók
  • Italian: Mille luci nel bosco / Gli amici dei sogni
  • Polish: Świetliki
  • Spanish (Spain): Los Gusiluz
  • Swedish: Lyskompisarna och deras vänner
  • Taiwan Mandarin: 發光一族 (Fa Guang I Tzu)
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