SYFY sets cackle-worthy cast for TZGZ’s Magical Girl Friendship Squad

We know you’re up late, so why not laugh a little? SYFY's TZGZ, our namesake network’s weekly block of late-night animation, has just finalized the full cast for Magical Girl Friendship Squad, the upcoming comedy from creator Kelsey Stephanides that follows a pair of women stuck between saving the world and just making ends meet. SYFY announced today (as first reported by Deadline) who’ll be bringing the giggles in the new series’ complete cast — and they sound like a funny bunch.

Playing the lead roles will be Quinta Brunson (A Black Lady Sketch Show) as Alex and Anna Akana (Let it Snow) as Daisy. They’ll be joined by a regular lineup that also includes SNL veteran Ana Gasteyer (Wine Country) and Matteo Lane (The Comedy Lineup).

Rounding things out is a big list of recurring actors, including Manny Jacinto (The Good Place), Christine Baranski (The Good Fight), Helen Hong (Silicon Valley), Eric Bauza (Looney Tunes Cartoons, Muppet Babies), and Sarah “Squirm” Sherman (Three Busy Debras writer). That doesn’t even include a killer lineup of special guest appearances, but before we get to that, what’s up with this show anyway?

Magical Girl Friendship Squad will pop in your TZGZ feed with 15-minute episodes that find Alex and Daisy torn between urban survival (as in keeping the landlord off their backs) and fulfilling their ultimate destiny. Or, as SYFY teases, it’s a “female-driven anime-inspired comedy about two young women who are destined to save the Universe … as soon as they figure out how to pay their rent.”

Talk about a juggling act, eh? Alex is a “matter-of-fact realist with a weakness for ‘mom stuff’" who’s trying to catch an elusive career break, while Daisy’s a “passionate slacker with a love of pop culture and an unwavering belief in herself” who’s determined not to get bogged down “by a day job or a steady relationship.” Gasteyer voices Nut, “a cute, scrappy and impatient little red panda” who — oh, by the way — “also happens to be the creator of our universe and will do whatever it takes to protect it.”

Lane plays Corvin, a human henchman who’s “vain, witty, and not great at the ‘hard work’ part of his job” — being an executive assistant to Verus (Baranski), an “icy and efficient omni-universal being." Jacinto plays the intriguingly named Coffee Dude, an “incredibly average” optimist whom Alex crushes on at (you guessed it) the local coffee shop. Hong and Bauza play Daisy’s mom and dad … and then there’s the pesky landlord Lulu (Sherman), a bitter old jerk who hates millennials — and late rent payments.

Magical Girl Friendship Squad also revealed five guest actors for its first batch of episodes. First there’s Jason Mantzoukas (Brooklyn Nine Nine, John Wick 3, Big Mouth) as The Emptier, “the only being with the power to destroy entire universes.” Paget Brewster (Criminal Minds, DuckTales, Hollywood) will bring life to Gloriana, “Nut’s smug omni-universal goddess sister with a strong desire to one-up everything Nut does.” Vella Lovell (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) stars as the awesomely named CBD Monster, “a dangerously relaxed monster with the ability to drain energy using dark magic and a lot of CBD.” And Robot Chicken writer Jamie Loftus will voice Nightscreamr (who must spend tons of time telling people her name’s not a typo), “the leader of a group of mysterious 1995 teenagers who all have an odd obsession with Nut.”

With additional voices from Stephanie Sheh (Sailor Moon), Taylor Ortega (Kim Possible), and Daisy Hobbs (Broadway’s Aladdin), watch for Magical Girl Friendship Squad to play havoc with your sense of time, space, and silliness at midnight each Saturday on SYFY — and be sure to catch the short-form, four-minute tidbits of Magical Girl Friendship Squad: Origins, which are already peppering your late-night TZGZ block.