The Purple Smurfs

"The Purple Smurfs" is the sixteenth episode of The Smurfs season one. It aired on October 31, 1981 on NBC. It was written by Len Janson and Chuck Menville.

A purple fly bites Lazy Smurf and makes him the first victim of an epidemic involving violent, Purple Smurfs. Papa Smurf and the remaining population quickly rush to create a cure in response.

Locations

 * Earth
 * Smurf village

Objects

 * Purple Smurf antidote

Development
"The Purple Smurfs" is adapted from a comic titled "The Black Smurfs" ("Les Schtroumpfs noirs" in French), created by Peyo and published by Dupuis in 1963. The diseased Smurfs are made purple instead of jet black, due to worries of possible racial connotations. Smurfette also appears in this episode, but not existent in the original story.

Music
The music was composed by Hoyt Curtin.

Release
Dates are in order of release:


 * United States: September 12, 1981 on NBC

Behind the scenes

 * According to the website TV Tropes, the original comic of which this episode is based on is described as "the zombie apocalypse". The Black/Purple Smurfs are essentially infectious zombies, nine years before George A. Romero's Night of The Living Dead made it the standard.
 * The original comic served as the origin of Grouchy Smurf's behavior, as he was initially a normal Smurf before becoming the first victim of the viral invasion. The cartoon never explores that detail and instead makes Lazy Smurf the first one to become a Purple Smurf.
 * For similar reasons, the English translation of the original comic carries the Purple Smurf recoloring from the animated cartoon.