Middlemost Post is Nickelodeon's newest animated series, focusing on an energetic raincloud named Parker J. Cloud (Becky Robinson) and the serious but sweet-hearted Angus (John DiMaggio) operating a postal service for the fantastical realm of Mount Middlemost. Due to the exuberant performances by DiMaggio and Robinson, the bright series has a lot of promise.
Ahead of Middlemost Post's July 9 premiere on Nickelodeon, Robinson and DiMaggio sat down with CBR to discuss recording the show during the COVID-19 pandemic and what it meant to both of them personally to star in such a colorful and energetic world.
For Robinson, the show was rooted in her love of the network and her comedic roots. "Being the star of a Nickelodeon show means everything to me," she said. "I grew up watching Nickelodeon, it was my first network as a kid. Just this past year, we recorded the pilot right before the pandemic hit, and historically I was a stand-up, and that kind of went away when lock-down started. So not only getting to play a Nickelodeon character but Parker J. Cloud, the happiest, buck wild, exhilarating character of all time, who goes from zero to a hundred, from happy to tears, and just leads with the most jam-packed fits of emotion was a really fun way to channel that energy I used in performance into Parker and watch the character come to life.
"The whole team that made the show, it's just so beautifully illustrated and it came to life so colorfully that, I'm so excited. I want to do everything for Parker, I wanted them to be as full of life as the rest of the show... There are times after recording episodes of Middlemost Post and I'm laying on my couch, I can't breathe, I can't move, I gave it my all. You give so much in every episode, you see so much Parker, you see such a spectrum of emotion."
With production taking place remotely during the Pandemic, Robinson embraced the chance to help bring the world of Middlemost Post to life. The sheer energy of the show ended up having a profound effect on Robinson, who said, "Having the world of Middlemost Post as a creative outlet this past year has been everything. I'm so thankful to Nickelodeon, I'm so thankful to [Executive Producers Dave H. Johnson and John Trabbic III] for creating this show, it's just been everything. We get to go to work every day with our pants off -- every week, not only do I get to see this amazing team of people, John DiMaggio, and we're acting together and improvising together, we're getting to work our brains a little bit... that was the best. And then we actually to see some of the first episodes, that was really the cherry on top."
John DiMaggio has played several major animated characters throughout the 21st century -- with his two most notable roles being Futurama's chaotic robot Bender and the perpetually zen-like Jake from Adventure Time. But his new role as Angus is a more straight-and-narrow figure, serving as one of the few sources of stability in the Middlemost Post. Looking at the chance to play a character so different from his iconic roles, DiMaggio shared, "It’s wonderful, it's one of the joys of being an actor. Getting to play such different characters, being trusted to help breathe life into them. It's a privilege, an honor, and with this show, a blast."
It isn't just Angus that caught his attention, however. "The characters are just so great," he said. "Parker, Russell and Angus. I love their relationship. What also caught my attention was how it's absolutely fantastical and somewhat mundane at the same time. Who would think that delivering the mail could be so incredibly adventurous? Well, in this world, it is. And if there's one thing I know, it's about adventures. See what I did there? I did the thing."
As with Robinson, the COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting lockdown ended up forcing DiMaggio to embrace recording remotely. DiMaggio recalled, "We recorded everything from home, over Zoom, during the pandemic, so this was a great thing to do during this really tough time we’ve all had to go through. It was a joyous outlet, that I think we were all lucky to have. Plus recording with Becky, John, and Dave has been just such a blast, I consider myself very fortunate. I really think Nickelodeon has a hit on its hands."
Middlemost Post, created by SpongeBob SquarePants alum John Trabbic III and featuring the vocal talents of Becky Robinson as Parker J. Cloud and John DiMaggio as Angus Roy Shackleton, premieres Friday, Jul. 9 at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT.