Princess Starshimmer & The Joy Crusaders

REDISCOVER A POP CULTURE CLASSIC

“Princess StarShimmer & The Joy Crusaders”™ was a Saturday morning cartoon series that debuted in the USA in 1986. It was followed by a classic toyline from MeGoPlay in 1987 - comprising a world of talking action figures, vehicles, and the much-coveted Moonstone Maze™ playset.

The cartoon followed the adventures of Princess StarShimmer™ and her tribe of Joy Crusaders™ as they battled to defend The Moonstone Maze™ from the tyrannical space vixen Empress ClawScream ™, and her diabolical bunch of BioniBeasts™.

THE TV SHOW THAT

STARTED IT ALL

Short-lived but fondly remembered, the “Princess StarShimmer & The Joy Crusaders”™ TV show was conceived as a female spin-off to the hugely successful “Etherion & The Galactic Defenders”™ - a cartoon which revolutionized the industry with wave after wave of bestselling toys from MeGoPlay™.
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However, in the decades since its launch, “Princess StarShimmer & The Joy Crusaders”™ has become a pop culture icon in its own right. With the original series out on Bluray - and a live-action reboot rumoured for 2023 - now is the perfect time to rediscover an animated classic!

THE TV SHOW THAT STARTED IT ALL

Every good hero needs a great villain - and the strength of “Princess StarShimmer & The Joy Crusaders”™ lay in its iconic female duo of Princess StarShimmer™ and Empress ClawScream™, forever locked together in the heat of battle.

EMPRESS CLAWSCREAM™

The villainess Empress ClawScream™ - and eternal arch-enemy of Princess StarShimmer™ - had a brand of delicious wit and caustic putdowns that proved she was a villain as watchable as she was diabolical. Alongside her furry henchman DeathJaw™, this dastardly diva reigned over The BioniBeasts™ and plotted the demise of The Joy Crusaders™ from her lair in The Dread Swamps™.
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A sassy Sorceress of dark magic, the unapologetic Empress ClawScream™ was later adopted by the early 90s Riot Grrrl movement as an anti-heroine and poster girl for punk rock feminism.

EMPRESS CLAWSCREAM™

PRINCESS STARSHIMMER™

Princess StarShimmer™ wielded a Celestial Staff™ and was the beautiful long-lost cousin of Etherion™, The Galactic Defender. A mystical goddess for the 1980s, Princess StarShimmer™ was the leader of the Joy Crusaders™ and ruler of The Imaginaria Castle™.
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Later episodes had Princess StarShimmer™ give voice to her passions through song - as she picked up a keytar and formed a pop band with The Joy Crusaders™ ! MegoPlay’s first foray into the music scene was to release Princess StarShimmer & The Joy Crusaders™ signature song “Glitter Heart '' on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1987.