from earth to mars

How a puppet show, a rocket launch and one slightly chaotic Martian became a movement for kids who think differently.

Where It All Began

Hello, 1998!

Before SpaceX, before Wi-Fi, back when the internet screamed every time you tried to connect, Roseline Meunier was running a small printing company and developing strong opinions about aliens.

Mainly that they were ugly.

Everywhere she looked — T-shirts, posters, lunchboxes — aliens were slimy, mean-looking, and deeply unflattering to the extraterrestrial community. So, Roseline did what creative rebels do best: she made her own.

With a few quick lines of ink, she drew a curious little Martian with kind eyes, a big smile, and a spark of wonder. He was friendly, a little awkward, and completely different from every “take-me-to-your-leader” creature out there.

That doodle ended up on T-shirts for her kids, and soon, the ripple effect began. At school, other kids started asking, “Who’s that alien?” They wanted one too.

Roseline realized she might be onto something. So she did what any parent with a spark of madness and a surplus of imagination would do: she wrote a book.

The story followed a Martian named Marsus, who came to Earth to learn how humans lived — a funny, heart-filled adventure for children aged four to seven.

The book was published by a local house, and soon, Marsus jumped off the page and into the real world — as a live puppet show. Roseline, her daughter Julie, and a small team of actors, puppeteers, and sound wizards took the show on tour across Canada, spreading laughter and curiosity wherever they landed.

And it worked.
Marsus was a hit.

But then, everything changed.

Cancer arrived like a storm no one saw coming. Roseline was forced to step away from her dream, trading stage lights for hospital lights. For two long years, she fought — and she won — but by then, the costs had grounded the mission.

Marsus returned to his planet.
The show stopped.
The laughter faded.

For decades, he waited quietly in the background of their lives — a small green spark of unfinished magic.

A person in a large green puppet costume with exaggerated facial features, red hair, and a yellow shirt, standing next to a woman with blonde hair, wearing a white shirt and denim shorts, at a festive event with a sign that reads "Aventures de Marsus" in the background.
A woman and two puppets are on a bus. One puppet is large, green, and dressed like a superhero with a yellow shirt and red shorts. The woman is smiling and kneeling, dressed in colorful clothing. The other puppet is sitting on a bus seat, with a red shirt and black hair, smiling.

The Great Martian Throwback

  • Cartoon depiction of the planet Mars with a whimsical green alien, smiling and making an OK gesture, with stars, planets, a UFO, and a red-orange sun in the background, and the word 'MARSUS' written at the bottom.

    The first Marsus

    Created by Roseline in 1998 using CorelDRAW (ancient software by today’s standards), this was the very first version of Marsus. Clean lines, big eyes, and a spark of mischief, he was designed to stand out from every “scary alien” trend of the ’90s. Long before rockets or rovers, this little Martian was already ahead of his time.

  • A puppet of a green Skeksi character from the movie 'The Dark Crystal', wearing a yellow shirt with a red logo, with pink hair and large googly eyes, sitting in a paper spaceship decorated with stars and multicolored lights, under a spotlight against a dark background.

    the spaceship

    Built by the team with nothing but foam, lights, and a heroic amount of determination, this was Marsus’s original ride. Part spacecraft, part stage magic, and 100% fueled by imagination (and lots of velcro). It may not have actually flown, but under those stage lights, it sure felt like it did.

  • Stage with robotic and puppet characters, including a humanoid robot with antennae on the left and a green puppet with red hair wearing a yellow tank top and red shorts on the right, with a cutout paper landscape scenery in the background.

    The Live Show

    Roseline took Marsus from page to stage, a full-on interplanetary spectacle complete with a giant green mascot, puppets, robots, a 2D animation, music, and enough stage lights to signal the ISS. The kids went absolutely bonkers (in the best way). For a generation of young dreamers, Marsus wasn’t just a character, he was real.

  • A person in a yellow t-shirt and denim shorts standing next to a large green cartoonish mascot with exaggerated eyeballs, a big smile, and wild red hair. They are posing at a nighttime event with a sign in the background that reads "Aventures de Marsus."

    marsus & his creator

    Roseline and her favorite Martian, side by side, bringing laughter and wonder wherever they went. Every appearance turned into an event; waves of kids (and moms) would rush toward them, squealing, cheering, and trying to hug Marsus all at once. For a little green alien from another planet, he sure knew how to cause a commotion on Earth.

  • Person dressed in colorful costume resembling a child's cartoon character, standing in a room with a collage of photos and decorations on the wall.

    julie & the mascot

    A 14-year-old Julie bravely stepped into the brand-new Marsus mascot suit and instantly learned two things: it was heavy, and it was very sweaty. After one heroic performance, she decided professional mascot life DEFINITELY wasn’t her calling.

  • A young girl and a puppet character on a bus, smiling for the camera.

    the OJ crew!

    The original Marsus crew: Marsus, Jake, and Lily, brought to life as puppets. Julie played Lily this time, and judging by that grin on her face, she was much happier in this role than inside a 30-pound Martian suit. The chemistry was real, the laughter contagious, and the crew was officially born.

  • A group of people, including a woman with blonde hair clapping, gathered indoors with balloons and children present.

    the creator, producer and everything else

    Ahhh…here she is! The writer, creator, producer, and part-time crew babysitter (because someone had to keep the actors in line). Roseline did it all: wrote the original Marsus books, designed the visuals, produced the live puppet show, and somehow survived the chaos with a smile. Unstoppable then, unstoppable now. She remains the heart of this universe, the spark that inspired it all… and the reason Julie believes anything is possible.

  • Book cover featuring a cartoon alien with pink hair and glasses piloting a green spaceship decorated with colorful lights, flying through outer space with stars and a red planet in the background; title in French: 'Marsus sur la Terre' and author's name Roseline Meunier.

    The first book

    The original Marsus book series, written in French for kids aged 4 to 7, marked the official launch of the Marsus adventures. The stories captured hearts, sparked imaginations, and turned Roseline into an award-winning published author. Not bad for a little green alien who started as a CorelDRAW experiment.

  • A woman with shoulder-length blonde hair smiling at the camera. Behind her, there is colorful artwork featuring a cartoonish alien and the word "MARS". The headline reads "Marsus vient visiter la Terre", indicating that Marsus is visiting Earth.

    in the news

    At the height of the Marsus phenomenon, Roseline became a full-blown media sensation across Eastern Canada appearing in newspapers, on TV, and in the hearts of kids everywhere. The little Martian who started as a family project had officially gone interplanetary.

  • A person in a large, colorful lizard costume with big eyes, a green body, purple spiky crest, and wearing a yellow shirt and red shorts, dancing or posing indoors at an event.

    the green weirdo

    Ah yes! The original Marsus in all his retro glory. Equal parts charm and chaos, with that unmistakable “I probably shouldn’t have touched that” energy. He’s been making people laugh since the ’90s, proving that weirdness is the kind of magic stuff that changes the world.

Decades passed. The world got Wi-Fi, rockets started landing themselves (what’s up Space X 👀), and Marsus well, he stayed quiet. His story sat tucked away in boxes, memories, and the occasional family photo where his big green head peeked from behind a curtain.

And then, one night, something extraordinary happened.

Julie, Roseline’s daughter, the same kid who once toured the country with a puppet and a dream, stood outside her home, eyes tilted toward the stars. Above her, a Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX thundered into the sky, cutting through the dark like a promise on fire.

It wasn’t just a rocket launch into orbit. It was a memory igniting.

In that moment, Julie felt it, the same spark her mom carried, the same pulse of wonder that had once filled theaters and classrooms with joy.

Only now, it was louder.
Bigger.
And impossible to ignore.

She realized something simple but enormous: Marsus wasn’t finished. He’d just been waiting for the world to catch up.

Because when Roseline dreamed of a little Martian who wanted to understand humanity, humans hadn’t even figured out how to reach Mars. But now? Now we have rockets, rovers, and a generation of kids dreaming in red dust and star maps.

Julie knew what she had to do.

Bring Marsus back. Not as a puppet this time—but as a brand new universe. Reimagined for today’s world.

A universe designed for the kids who think differently, who question everything, and who see possibilities where others see problems. A universe that says weird isn’t wrong or dumb, it’s the kind of thing that moves humanity forward.

And just like that, Marsus was back! (Well…almost…took almost two years to write the book!)

the revival

Time Travel To 2024

Night sky over a cityscape with palm trees, a bright streak of light extending downward from a glowing object in the sky, resembling a spotlight beam.
A woman with glasses and long hair sitting at a wooden table working on a laptop. The table has a smartphone, a mouse, a notebook, a pencil, a glass of orange juice, and a vase with pink flowers.

the new mission

Today, Rise of the Explorers is more than a story — it’s a mission. A mission to remind every kid who doesn’t fit in that they’re often the ones who will end up changing everything.

Marsus is back — green skin, wild hair, and all — leading a new generation of explorers. Through his adventures, kids discover that thinking differently isn’t strange… it’s essential. That emotions are data, failure is fuel, and every “what if” is the start of something incredible.

Behind the chaos and laughter, Marsus carries something far bigger than gears, gadgets, or rockets. He carries hope — and the belief that imagination is humanity’s most powerful tool.

This time, the mission doesn’t end in a classroom or a theater. It stretches all the way to Mars — and beyond.

Because maybe, just maybe, the next great explorers aren’t at NASA or Space X just yet. Perhaps they’re still in middle school, dreaming about the day they’ll be the first human to set foot on Mars.

Animated green alien with purple hair, wearing an orange spacesuit, standing on red desert terrain, with a futuristic spaceship in the background under a starry sky.

Meet the Human Behind the Martian

Hey, I’m Julie.

I basically grew up orbiting Marsus. I was that kid running around backstage, helping my mom build sets, practicing lines, and bringing a curious little green Martian to life. For me, Marsus wasn’t just a story — he was family. He taught me that imagination isn’t make-believe. It’s the engine that gets you places.

There are three reasons I’m doing this.

First — to continue my mom’s legacy. She created Marsus in the ’90s, long before the world was ready for him. I just get the honor of carrying her dream forward — and this time, straight to Mars.

Second — to (very humbly) help fuel the mission of Elon Musk and the SpaceX team. They’re building the rockets to make us multi-planetary. I’m just writing the story that gets the next generation excited to go. (Also, if I ever touched an actual rocket, it would probably explode — so this feels like a safer contribution.)

And third — for the kids like me. The ones who never quite fit in. The thinkers, dreamers, and over-analyzers with minds running on a different operating system — the ones who feel out of sync with the world but perfectly in tune with the vision they have for it.

Because being weird isn’t something to fix. It’s a superpower — the kind that’s currently getting humanity back to the stars.

Marsus may be from another planet, but his story is for all of us — the explorers, the oddballs, the ones who see the future long before anyone else does.

And if you’ve read this far, well… guess this makes you part of the crew. So, WELCOME! 🚀

A woman in an orange dress jumping against a red background, smiling and looking at the camera.
Meet the crew
Book cover titled "Rise of the Explorers: A Weirdo's Guide to Terraforming Mars" with the Amazon logo above and "Available Now" at the top.
Cover art for the book titled "Rise of the Explorers" by Julie St-Louis. The cover features cartoon characters, including a green-skinned alien with purple hair, a girl in a spacesuit, a small robot, and a male astronaut, set against a colorful Mars landscape with volcanoes, clouds, and cosmic elements in the background.
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