Hypercattle Overdrive

Hypercattle Overdrive is an episode of Sparks Nevada, Marshal on Mars.

Audio[]

Patreon exclusive.

Cast[]

WorkJuice Players[]

Guest Stars[]

"Cookie" / Pembroke Cartwright - Andy Richter
Alex Cartwright - Shannon Woodward
Highwayman Dan - Mark McConville

Detailed Description[]

Without a badge, a girlfriend or a faithful Martian companion, Sparks joins forces with the Barkeep as a companion.

Sparks and the Barkeep have taken a job escorting the Cartwrights and their hypercattle on a cattle drive. The Barkeep admits that in his younger days, he did a good bit of adventuring and he sometimes misses it. Sparks declares that he can still do good on Mars without a badge, like Red and Jim.

Pembroke Cartwright, their greenhorn employer, asks Sparks not to call him Cookie, but Sparks insists as he is the cook on the cattle drive. Cookie was once a famous quantum gastronomy chef on Earth, where he still runs several restaurants. He then says he has settled on his cowboy name "The Earth Kid", which Sparks dislikes, as being from Earth is his thing. Pembroke also mentions that Rebecca Rose Rushmore's novel about Sparks Nevada has come out and he's been reading it to his daughter.

Pembroke then introduces Sparks to his daughter, Alex, who is very excited to meet him. Sparks allows Alex to try his robot fists on, and to hold his laser six shooters. She accidentally almost shoots the Barkeep, who gets pumped up with adrenaline. Cookie then tries on the robot fists and six shooters, and he nearly shoots the barkeep several more times. The Barkeep and Cookie get into a small fight.

Alex asks Sparks Nevada to be her dad, since she's embarrassed by her real dad, and Sparks is a hero. He turns her down just as Highwayman Dan shows up to rob them with his knife, Stabby LaRoux Deux. Dan stabs Sparks' guns, breaking them, and then stabs the Barkeep non-fatally. Sparks encourages Pembroke to punch Dan, as he still has the robot fists on and powered up. Pembroke is reluctant to engage in violence.

Sparks, instead, bluffs Highwayman Dan, telling Dan how Pembroke is the Earth Kid and is really very tough. Pembroke resists, but when Alex laments that her dad is a chef, not a hero, Pembroke finds the heroism in himself and punches Dan out, then declares his new Cowboy name to be The Dad Kid.

Notes[]

This is the first instance of the Sparks Nevada theme song sung as a duet when Sparks has a new or different companion. Joshua Malina joins Sparks in the theme in this and the next episode.
Sparks Nevada explains in the intro: "I'm not currently the Marshal, but I'm still bringing hope and fear to good guys and bad guys because I'm from Earth!"
The Barkeep says he don't want no trouble in his place in the intro, and Sparks reminds him he has no place to have trouble in.
The Barkeep says he is also from Earth after the first time Sparks says he's from Earth during the song.

Continuity[]

This is the 74th episode of The Thrilling Adventure Hour.
The previous episode was The Cross-Time Adventures of Colonel Tick-Tock - The Wilde Party.
The next episode is War of Two Worlds - How Boring is Baseball? (Part Four).
The previous episode in Sparks Nevada canon is #70, The Piano has Been Thinking.
The next episode in Sparks Nevada canon is #78, Mortified on Mars.

Production[]

This episode was recorded at Largo on January 7, 2012 and released June 4, 2012.

Writers: Ben Acker and Ben Blacker
Director: Aaron Ginsburg
Music: Andy Paley & the Andy Paley Orchestra
Sparks Nevada theme: Eban Schletter