FALL SATURDAY MORNING SCHEDULES

The fall is here, and that typically meant: NEW TV SCHEDULES! These are the Saturday morning schedules that kicked off the new season across the decades:

LOONATICS UNLEASHED

LOONATICS UNLEASHED

(WB/CW, September 17, 2005-May 5, 2007)

Warner Bros. Animation

MAIN CAST:

Charlie Schlatter – Ace Bunny, Toby the Pizza Boy

Jessica DiCicco – Lexi Bunny

Jason Marsden – Danger Duck, Rupes Oberon, Robo-Amigo, Pilot

Kevin Michael Richardson – Slam Tasmanian, Tech E. Coyote, Queen Grannicus (disguised voice), Trick Daley

Rob Paulsen – Rev Runner, Mr. Leghorn (2^nd time), Gorlop, Man at Zoo, Pizza Chef, Construction Worker

Candi Milo – Zadavia, Harriet Runner, Misty Breeze, Queen Grannicus, Stomper’s mother

For the history of Looney Tunes, check out the post here.

            With the failure of 2003’s Looney Tunes: Back in Action, Warner Bros. felt it was time to look into revitalizing the franchise, try something new. Enter Adam Trevor Grant and Joseph Louis Grant who introduced Loonatics Unleashed.

Zadavia with the Royal Tweetums.

            The show was set in the 28^th Century, where the descendants of the original Looney Tunes lived on the city-planet of Acmetropolis. In the year 2772, a meteor struck Acmetropolis and gave a number of the population superpowers. To protect Acmetropolis, a mysterious and powerful alien woman named Zadavia (originally named Maxima, voiced by Candi Milo) assembled six of the affected residents to form a superteam: The Loonatics.

The Loonatics: Lexi, Rev, Tech E., Ace, Danger and Slam.

            The team was comprised of team leader Ace Bunny (originally named Buzz until it was discovered that name had been copyrighted by Dutch designer Metin Seven, voiced by Charlie Schlatter), a former stunt rabbit who gained laser vision and was trained in martial arts and swordsmanship; Lexi Bunny (Jessica DiCicco), a student and aspiring cheerleader who gained super hearing, a psychic energy bolt and the ability to manipulate plants, and brought her incredible agility to the team; Danger Duck (originally named Duck, voiced by Jason Marsden), a former pool boy that could generate spheres of energy called “eggs” that produce random effects or allow him to control water, as well as a Quantum Quack that let him teleport; Slam Tasmanian (originally named Spaz, voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson), a former professional wrestler who gained super strength and a tornado form that allowed him to fire tornado blasts with or without an electric jolt; Tech E. Coyote (originally named Slick, also voiced by Richardson), a student at Acme Tech University with super genius that gained magnetic manipulation and could regenerate his body from a molecular level; and Rev Runner (originally named Roadster, voiced by Rob Paulsen), a former delivery boy with a brilliant mind that gained super speed. Each member of the team wore a full body black uniform distinguishable by the different colored accents, and utilized various new gadgets whipped up by Tech E. in their battles.

Syth Vester.

            Other Looney Tunes descendants featured were Mr. Leghorn (Bill Farmer & Paulsen), a big name in the world of professional sports; The Royal Tweetums (Joe Alaskey), ruler of the planet Blanc (named for Mel Blanc); Ophiuchus Sam (Maurice LaMarche), a short-tempered thief who often forgot his name and what he was saying as he was saying it; Pierre Le Pew (also LaMarche), runner of illegal fights and wearer of stinky cologne; Gorlop (Paulsen), a professional wrestler; Queen Grannicus (Milo & Richardson), the evil caretaker of Tweetums who wanted his throne for herself; Sylth Vester (a parody of Darth Vader and the Sith, voiced by Alaskey), a mercenary who wore cyborg body armor to cover injuries from his various encounter with Tweetums; Sagittarius Stomper (Billy West), a thief who utilized robotic arms and legs made by his mother (Milo); Electro J. Fudd (also West), a hunter with a wide variety of weapons; Melvin the Martian (Alaskey), general of the Martian army; Sergeant Sirius (named for the dog star), Melvin’s dog; Pinkster Pig (Bob Bergen), an orphan and former friend of Danger who seemed to be on the side of law and order but used it as a cover for his criminal enterprises; and Stoney (Alaskey) and Bugsy (James Arnold Taylor), employees of Pinkster who went on a crime wave of stealing weapons and the mineral Curium that could steal super powers.

General Deuce teaming-up with Optimatus.

            Original characters included Gunnar the Conqueror (Tom Kenny), leader of robotic Vikings that sought to freeze the planet; Professor Zane (Jeff Bennett), a mad scientist who wanted to conquer the world with his monstrous Fuz-Zs (Steven Blum); Black Velvet (Vivica A. Fox), a woman whose eyes were damaged by the meteor and was forced to remain in darkness; Weathervane (Kaley Cuoco), a wannabe weathergirl who gained weather manipulation powers; Dr. Dare (Simon Templeman), a mad scientist who learned to control earthquakes; Ringmaster (Tim Curry), the evil leader of a circus who combined different creatures together to make his attractions; Otto the Odd (Dee Bradley Baker), the Ringmaster’s boss who hid behind the guise of being a mere clown; Massive (Michael Clarke Duncan), a large criminal with gravity manipulation powers; Drake Sypher (Phil LaMarr), who could absorb the powers from others with a touch; Time Skip (David Faustino), who was able to manipulate time; Mallory “Mastermind” Casey (Florence Henderson), Tech E.’s former classmate who attempted to steal the brainpower of the university staff; Optimatus (Charlie Adler), Zadavia’s evil brother who possessed similar abilities; General Deuce (Khary Payton), former general of Zadavia’s home planet of Freleng (named for Friz Freleng) who sought to conquer the galaxy; Adolpho (Mark Hamill), a mutated dolphin who sought revenge on the surface for polluting the oceans; Queen Athena (Serena Williams), leader of the Apocazons (based on the mythological Amazons) who wanted to eliminate the men of Acmetropolis; and Rupes Oberon (Marsden), a musician who tricked Tech E. into building a cosmic guitar to steal Zadavia’s powers and allow him to control the universe.

            Lunatics Unleashed debuted on September 17, 2005 on the Kids’ WB! programming block on The WB; which became The CW during the show’s second season. It was designed to be an action-comedy that blended the classic Looney Tunes’ comedy stylings with modern action animated series. The characters were designed by Christian Tremblay and Yvon Tremblay and initially had a more menacing look to them. A teaser promo for the series, originally called simply The Loonatics, aired on The WB before the show’s debut. It used limited animation, comic book-like panels, and the character’s original names to try and build up hype for the show. It had an intentionally anime-inspired approach to appeal to the children who grew up on the genre and to fit into the Kids’ WB! schedule.

The original character designs.

Unfortunately for Warner Bros. Animation, the promo had the opposite effect. Audiences complained about the new character models while critics accused the studio of pandering to a demographic while disrespecting the source material. An internet petition against them was even started by 11-year-old fan, Thomas Adams. Despite president Sander Schwartz’s assurances that the classic characters were just “sharing DNA” with these new ones and it was merely an extension of the franchise, the designs were redone and softened with Walter Gatus serving as the lead character designer.

Danger with Electro J. Fudd.

The series was written by Chris Brown, Brian Swenlin, Mark Hoffmeier, Vinny Montello, Christopher Painter, Jack Monaco, Len Uhley, Steven Kriozere, Wendell Morris, Steve Cuden, Stephen Sustarsic, Gordon Bressack, Charles M. Howell IV, Alexx Van Dyne, Mark Zaslove and Kevin Hopps with music by Thomas Chase Jones. Bootsy Collins composed the series’ theme, as well as voiced a character in the show. It was animated by DongWoo Animation Co., Ltd., MOI Animation, and DR Movie.

The first season premiered to mixed reviews, prompting the studio to make some changes for the second season. The stories were much lighter and more comedic with a new intro to match. Zadavia was also more physically present, rather than communicating through a hologram as he had during the first season. The series ended after the planned 26 episodes had aired. It would be the last Looney Tunes television show until 2011’s The Looney Tunes Show. During the show’s run, two Flash games were run on the Kids’ WB! website: Acmetropolis Obstacle Course, where players had to guide Lexi around various obstacles, and Slam’s Snowboarding Slolom [sic], where players guided Slam down a hill while performing tricks in the air for extra points. Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s released 4 toys in their Cool Kids Combo meals based on the show in early 2006. In 2007, Warner Home Video released the complete series to DVD across two sets.

EPISODE GUIDE:

Season 1:

“Loonatics on Ice” (9/17/05) – The Loonatics have to save the planet from a sudden and permanent cold snap.

“Attack of the Fuzz Balls” (9/24/05) – The latest pet craze turns sour when Fur-Zs become giant monsters upon eating chocolate.

“The Cloak of Black Velvet” (10/1/05) – After having her eyesight damaged by the meteor strike, Black Velvet seeks to plunge the entire world in darkness.

“Weathering Heights” (10/8/05) – A weather girl gets struck by lightning and gains the ability to control the weather.

“Going Underground” (10/29/05) – The Loonatics have to stop Dr. Dare from using earthquakes to submerge the entire planet’s surface.

“The Comet Cometh” (11/5/05) – As the Loonatics celebrate the anniversary of their powers, a larger meteor is found to be headed towards Acmetropolis.

“The World is My Circus” (11/12/05) – A traveling circus abducts humans and splices them together with animal DNA to perform in the show.

“Stop the World, I Want to Get Off” (11/19/05) – Gravity-manipulating Massive plots to steal the basherball championship trophy.

“Sypher” (11/26/05) – Sypher decides he wants the glory of being a superhero and uses his own abilities to steal those of the Loonatics.

“Time After Time” (2/11/06) – Trying to stop a time-manipulating thief causes the Loonatics to enter a time loop.

“The Menace of Mastermind” (2/18/06) – A former classmate of Tech’s breaks out of prison and plans to get revenge on him for putting her there.

“Acmegeddon Part I” (5/6/06) – Optimatus breaks the Loonatics’ foes out of prison to unite them against the heroes.

“Acmegeddon Part II” (5/13/06) – Zadavia explains her connection to Optimatus as he betrays his allies and seeks to suck the planet into a wormhole.

Season 2:

“Secrets of the Guardian Strike Sword” (9/23/06) – The mysterious Deuce saves Ace’s life as he attempted to stop Ophichus Sam from robbing an inter-dimensional train.

“A Creep in the Deep” (9/30/06) – A telepathic dolphin brainwashes sea creatures into attacking manmade objects in the sea.

“I Am Slamacus” (10/7/06) – Pierre convinces Slam to enter a fighting tournament, however he fails to mention the final match is a death match.

“The Heir Up There” (11/4/06) – The Loonatics have to get the Royal Tweetums to his home planet while evading the evil Sylth Vester.

“The Family Business” (11/11/06) – Rev’s family come to visit, and Rip’s jealousy towards his brother allows him to be possessed by a Bio-Tech Brain Parasite.

“Cape Duck” (11/18/06) – Tech’s device malfunctions and allows Duck to defeat the Sagittarius Stomper and cause him to become a sensation with the public.

“The Hunter” (2/3/07) – The Loonatics try to deal with Massive while Electro J. Fudd hunts Ace.

“It Came From Outer Space” (2/10/07) – Rev and Lexi mistake Tech’s weapon system for a video game, accidentally shooting Melvin the Martian and bringing his wrath on the city.

“Apocalypso” (2/17/07) – The Loonatics land on a planet of powerful warrior women and their queen invites Lexi to join them.

“In the Pinkster” (2/24/07) – After Duck’s old friend helps them against some gangster, things begin going bad for the team.

“The Music Villain” (3/3/07) – A band uses rock music to terrorize the city and capture Zadavia.

“Planet Blanc: The Fall of Blanc (Part I)” (4/28/07) – Optimatus, Deuce and Rupes Oberon conquer planet Blanc and plan to use the wormhole generator to take over the universe.

“Planet Blanc: The Fall of Blanc (Part II” (5/5/07) – The Loonatics search for Tweetums with Sylth Vester’s help while Decue betrays Optimatus to join the heroes.

THE SYLVESTER & TWEETY MYSTERIES

THE SYLVESTER & TWEETY MYSTERIES

(WB, Cartoon Network, September 9, 1995-December 13, 2002)

Warner Bros. Animation

MAIN CAST:

Joe Alaskey – Sylvester, Tweety, Daffy Duck, Beaky Buzzard, Charlie Dog, Mugsy, Marvin the Martian, Michigan J. Frog, Cool Cat, Colonel Rimfire, various

June Foray – Granny, Witch Hazel

Frank Welker – Hector, Spooky, Catsello, Cecil Turtle, various

For the history of Looney Tunes, check out the post here.

            Created by Tom Minton and James T. Walker, and developed by Fay Whitemountain, The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries followed Granny (June Foray) as she traveled around the world solving various mysteries. Keeping her company and sometimes aiding her were her pets, Sylvester and Tweety (both Joe Alaskey). Only sometimes because Sylvester spent most of the time trying to eat Tweety. Fortunately, he was thwarted by Tweety’s resourcefulness and Granny’s other pet, bulldog Hector (who was redesigned to look more like Marc Antony, voiced by Frank Welker). Hector would often beat Sylvester up for his attempts, typically off-camera or behind a screen.

Granny, Sylvester, Tweety and Hector in a pickle...barrel.

            Along their adventures, the cast frequently encountered various other Looney Tunes characters (sometimes playing a different role in the story). Amongst them were Daffy Duck, Beaky Buzzard, Charlie Dog, Marvin the Martian, Michigan J. Frog (all Alaskey), Yosemite Sam, Taz, Gossamer, Sam Sheepdog, The Crusher, Hugo the Abominable Snowman, Nasty Canasta (all Jim Cummings), Elmer Fudd, Foghorn Leghorn, Pepe Le Pew (all Greg Burson), Babbit (Corey Burton) and Catsello (Welker), Hubie (Cummings) and Bertie (Jeff Bennett), Witch Hazel (Foray), Rocky (Cummings) and Mugsy (Alaskey), Hippety Hopper, Count Blood Count (Burton), Cecil Turtle (Welker), Pete Puma (Stan Freberg), and the Goofy Gophers (Bennett  & Burton). There was even an appearance by Tweety’s original incarnation of Orson.

There's always time for a golden snack.

Three other more obscure characters also made appearances from the period of Warner Bros. Animation’s first return. After three years of outsourcing their cartoon productions when they closed their in-house studio upon completion of The Bugs Bunny Show, Warner Bros. decided to reform the studio in 1967. Because Warner Bros. was bought by Seven Arts Associates shortly after, it was known as Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Animation (aka W-7). During this time, a new character was introduced: Cool Cat (Larry Storch). He was a hep tiger who wore a beret and spoke in beatnik slang. His primary antagonist was Colonel Rimfire (also Storch), a big game hunter. Cool Cat’s series only ran for five short films when the studio closed again in 1969. Cool Cat (now Alaskey) was featured in every episode in some form or other (background, picture, brief speaking role, etc.). Colonel Rimfire (also Alaskey) and another Cool Cat character, a ghost named Spooky (Welker), made appearances. They were the only characters from the W-7 era to make any other major appearances in a Warner Bros. production.

Following the clues no matter where they lead.

            The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries debuted on the WB as part of the Kids’ WB programming block on September 9, 1995. It was the pair’s first starring vehicle since the 1976 anthology series Sylvester and Tweety. The series was an homage to Warner Bros. Animation’s theatrical shorts glory days and the long-running TV series Murder She Wrote (which also starred an elderly amateur sleuth character). The series was written by Minton with Tim Cahill, Julie McNally Cahill, Alicia Marie Schudt, Robert Schechter, John P. McCann, Chris Otsuki, Carolyn Gair-Taylor, Karl Toerge, John Behnke, Rob Humphrey, Jim Peterson, Frank Santopadre, Rick Rodgers, Jim McLean, Brian B. Chin and Dave Cunningham. Behnke, Humphrey and Peterson were also sometimes credited as The Trio on episodes they wrote together. The series’ theme was composed by Richard Stone, who also did the rest of the music with J. Eric Schmidt, Gordon Goodwin, Cameron Patrick and Steve Bernstein. Animation duties fell to Tokyo Movie Shinsha, KoKo Enterprises, and Dongyang Animation.

Meeting important people.

            The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries ran for five seasons and was later integrated as part of the omnibus program, The Cat & Bridie Warneroonie Pinky Brainie Big Cartoonie Show. For the first season, each episode was a single half-hour mystery. It was also dedicated to the memory of Sylvester and Tweety creator Friz Freleng, who had died months prior from natural causes at the age of 88. Starting with season two and lasting until the show’s end, each episode was split into two mysteries. The final episode, “The Tail End / This is the End”, never aired on Kids’ WB after the series’ cancellation. It was finally aired during the show’s run on Cartoon Network two years later on December 13, 2002.

Ad for the DVD.

            During the show’s run, it was nominated for several Daytime Emmy and Annie Awards, with June Foray winning two consecutive Annies for her portrayal of Granny. For years, the only release of the show on home media were two VHS tapes in Germany.  In 2008, exactly 13 years after the first episode’s debut, Warner Home Video released the complete first season to DVD. No further releases have been planned or announced, however five episodes were later released in the 2016 compilation Sylvester and Friends vol. 1.

EPISODE GUIDE:

Season 1:

“The Cat Who Knew Too Much” (9/9/95) – In New Orleans for a canary crooning contest, Tweety ends up birdnapped by Rocky and Mugsy.

“Platinum Wheel of Fortune” (9/16/95) – Clearing Granny of a theft becomes difficult when Sylvester ends up pursued by Pepe’s cousin, Pitu Le Pew.

“Double Take” (9/23/95) – Sylvester and Tweety hunt down the culprit of a crimewave in Denmark to clear Granny’s name.

“A Chip Off the Old Castle” (9/30/95) – Granny investigates the theft of Ireland’s Blarney Stone.

“Something Fishy Around Here” (10/7/95) – Investigating the theft of the world’s largest tuna in Japan has Sylvester and Tweety run across some Triad assassins.

“B2 or Not B2” (11/4/95) – Granny investigates who’s targeting Bingo winners on her cruise.

“Bull Running on Empty” (11/11/95) – Granny heads to Spain to investigate the theft of the Pamplona Periscope.

“A Ticket to Crime” (11/18/95) – Granny tries to solve the death of the host of a gathering of detectives.

“The Maltese Canary” (11/25/95) – While Granny runs Sam Spade’s office in San Francisco, a cast of characters believe Tweety is the Maltese Canary.

“It Happened One Night Before Christmas” (12/16/95) – Granny tries to figure out what happened to the $8000 from her brother’s company.

“Outback Down Under” (1/27/96) – Granny investigates the disappearances of Australian sheep.

“It’s a Plaid, Plaid, Plaid, Plaid World” (2/3/96) – Granny investigates the theft of a family tartan in Scotland.

“Go Fig” (2/17/96) – Granny investigates the theft of a rancher’s fig crops.

Season 2:

“Spaced Out / Autumn’s Leaving” (9/7/96) – Granny uncovers an alien invasion. / Granny and company encounter Witch Hazel in a New England forest.

“Catch as Catch Cannes / Yodel Recall” (9/14/96) – Granny investigate the theft of film prizes while Sylvester disguises himself as a film producer to pursue Tweety. / Granny investigates the kidnapping of the Von Trump singers as Sylvester meets the Abominable Snowman.

“Don’t Polka Me / The Granny Vanishes” (9/28/96) – Someone replaces accordion reeds with duck calls at a dance festival while two other cats try to get Tweety. / Granny disappears on the Orient Express.

“The Scare Up There / If It’s Wednesday, This Must Be Holland!” (11/2/96) – Sylvester is plagued by gnomes on a plane. / Granny pursues a smuggler who stole rare flowers from Holland.

“Curse of De Nile / Hawaii 33 1/3” (11/9/96) – Granny investigates the disappearance of an archaeologist in Egypt. / Granny investigates the disappearance of Hawaiian Tiki statues.

“Keep Your Pantheon / London Broiled” (11/16/96) – Sylvester chases Tweety into Pandora’s Box and ends up back in time. / The Shropshire Slasher makes Granny his next target while exposure to a formula causes Tweety to change repeatedly into a monster.

“They Call Me Mr. Lincoln / Froggone It” (2/15/97) – Accidentally using Abraham Lincoln’s toothpick gets Sylvester kicked out of the state. / Granny investigates the kidnapping of Michigan J. Frog.

“One Froggy Throat / Mush Ado About Nothing” (2/22/97) – Sylvester can’t get away from Michigan J. Frog. / Hector and Sylvester become Granny’s sled dogs.

Season 3:

“The Star of Bombay / Happy Pranksgiving” (9/13/97) – Granny investigates a missing Indian film star. / Granny is on the hunt for the Squeegee the Clown parade balloon.

“Is Paris Stinking? / Fangs for the Memories” (9/20/97) – French authorities task Granny with discovering the origin of a foul smell in the city. / Granny and the pets are forced to take shelter in a spooky castle belonging to a vampire.

“Moscow Side Story / Fair’s Fair” (10/11/97) – Granny is hired to find the Borscht Belt that turns its wearer into a comedian. / As the others try to win a pie eating contest, Tweety investigates suspicious activity in the bake-off.

“El Dia de Los Pussygatos / 3 Days & 2 Nights of the Condor” (11/1/97) – Granny has to help rescue a Mexican mayor being held for ransom. / Sylvester finds competition with Beaky Buzzard for Tweety.

“Yelp / Jeepers Creepers” (11/15/97) – Granny enters Hector into a dog show to find a stolen diamond collar. / Granny investigates missing jewels at a party while Sylvester’s former partner appears to cause trouble.

“Fleas Release Me / Niagara’s Fallen” (2/7/98) – Granny investigates the disappearance of the performers of a flea circus. / Granny investigates the diversion of the water at Niagara Falls.

“Spooker of the House / Furgo” (2/14/98) – Sylvester is haunted by Howard Taft at the White House. / The pets try to get Granny’s Nash back from Rocky and Mugsy.

“The Fountain of Funk / Yes, We Have No Canaries” (2/21/98) – A technology nerd didn’t pay attention to the 70s growing up and wants Granny to find it for him. / Granny is hired to find stolen canaries from Kanary Island.

“The Shell Game / Rasslin’ Rhapsody” (2/28/98) – Sylvester and Tweety end up stranded in the Galapagos Islands and meet Cecil Turtle. / A night of wrestling gets interrupted when someone steals the championship belt.

“Ice Cat-Pades / To Catch a Puddy” (4/25/98) – Granny solves an ice hockey mystery with Babbit and Catsello. / Sylvester is believed to be a cat burglar.

“Family Circles / Sea You Later” (5/2/98) – Granny investigates crop circles while chasing Tweety leads Sylvester to encounter Foghorn Leghorn. / Manatees rampage against Lake Placid sea creatures.

“A Case of Red Herring / Roswell that Ends Well” (5/9/98) – Granny helps a famous Swedish lawyer. / Granny searches for a missing alien in the New Mexico desert.

“A Good Nephew is Hard to Find / Mirage Sale” (5/16/98) – Granny visits her nephew in Tokyo. / Granny investigates a playboy who was drafted into the Foreign Legion and vanished.

Season 4:

“The Stilted Perch / A Game of Cat and Monster!” (9/19/98) – A criminal magician Granny put away turns up at the bed and breakfast they stay at. / Granny and the pets head to the Black Forest to rescue Colonel Rimfire.

“You’re Thor?! / I Gopher You” (9/26/98) – Granny is hired to find the golden statue of Thor. / Granny searches for a cattle rustler.

“Hold the Lyin’ King, Please / Suite Mystery of Wife – At Last I Found You…” (10/3/98) – Sylvester trades places with a lion. / Granny believes a mild-mannered scientist may have bumped off his nagging wife.

“The San Francisco Beat / The Triangle of Terror” (10/10/98) – Granny investigates the disappearance of a Beatnik’s magic flute. / While searching for a musical triangle for a conductor, Sylvester ends up lost at sea.

“Casino Evil / Happy Bathday to You” (11/7/98) – Sylvester replaces an albino monkey in Vegas while Granny searches for it. / Granny and the pets explore a bath factory in England while Tweety celebrates his birthday.

“The Rotha-Khan / Good Bird Hunting” (11/21/98) – Sylvester accidentally breaks the cement footprints of a town founder and Granny is put in jail as a result. / Sylvester finds an idol Granny searches for and it makes him all-powerful.

“Feather Christmas / A Fist Full of Lutefisk” (12/12/98) – Granny helps a little girl retrieve the bird her parents got rid of. / Granny investigates a giant’s theft of a Norway town’s lutefisk.

“Venice, Anyone? / The Fifty Karat Furball” (1/16/99) – Granny investigates the disappearance of the water in Venice. / Sylvester accidentally swallows the I of Istanbul, which Rocky and Mugsy planned to steal.

“Son of Roswell That Ends Well / A Mynah Problem” (1/30/99) – Granny and the pets go to space to retrieve a general. / Granny investigates a missing Mynah Bird which Sylvester plans to eat.

“Whatever Happened to Shorty Twang / A Big Knight Out” (2/13/99) – Granny investigates the disappearance of a country singer. / Granny attends a medieval festival where someone stole King Arthur’s stone and sword.

“Brussels Sprouts / The Golden Bird of Shangri-Claw” (2/27/99) – Granny disguises Hector as Napoleon to retrieve a statue of him. / Granny tries to find out why Mt. Everest isn’t the tallest in the world anymore while Sylvester and Tweety end up in Shangri-Claw.

“When Granny Ruled the Earth / Dutch Tweet” (3/27/99) – Granny and the pets watch a documentary about their ancestors. / Granny goes to Amsterdam to bid on a figurine two thieves have their sights on.

“Bayou on the Half Shell / Seeing Double” (5/1/99) – Hector and Sylvester are in obedience school while Granny and Tweety look to stop a giant crawdad. / While exploring Happy Pet Village, Tweety meets his double and they drive Sylvester crazy.

Season 5:

“This is the Kitty / Eye for an Aye Aye” (9/18/99) – Granny volunteers at the zoo. / Granny finds Captain Kidd’s missing treasure map and goes treasure hunting.

“When Harry Met Salleri / The Early Woim Gets the Boid” (9/25/99) – Granny investigates ghosts stealing the sound of music in Austria. / Granny investigates the disappearance of silk worms from a silk factory in Korea.

“Blackboard Jumble / What’s the Frequency, Kitty?” (11/20/99) – Sylvester and Hector battle with blackboards. / Sylvester flees from a friendly ghost.

“Dial V for Veterinarian / California’s Crusty Bronze” (2/5/00) – It’s vet time for the pets. / Granny tries to save a restaurant’s reputation.

“The Tail End? / This is the End” (12/13/02) – Everyone thinks Sylvester took the Manx mouse and wants his tail in payback. / Sylvester finally eats Tweety and ends up in jail for 100 days while beset upon by an angry mob.

THE BATMAN

THE BATMAN

(WB/CW, September 11, 2004-March 8, 2008)

Warner Bros. Animation, DC Entertainment

MAIN CAST:

Rino Romano – Batman/Bruce Wayne

Alastair Duncan – Alfred Pennyworth

Steve Harris – Detective Ethan Bennett/Clayface (season 1, recurring after)

Ming-Na Wen – Detective Ellen Yin (season 1-2)

Edward James Olmos (1 episode) & Jesse Corti – Chief Angel Rojas (season 1-2)

Danielle Judovits – Batgirl/Barbara Gordon (season 3-5)

Mitch Pileggi – Commissioner James Gordon (season 3-5, recurring previously)

Evan Sabara – Robin/Dick Grayson (season 4-5)

For the history of Batman, check out the post here.

            With the DC Animated Universe (DCAU) having migrated to Cartoon Network, The WB Network needed a new show to help turn around its sinking ratings. It was decided to go back to the beginning with a new Batman series, but since Batman (Kevin Conroy) was starring in Justice League it would be a new take on Batman.

THE Batman.

            Called simply The Batman, the series focused on a much younger Bruce Wayne (Rino Romano) who was only into his third year as Batman. His existence was largely an urban myth when the series began, until he gradually worked his way into the spotlight as Gotham City’s defender. While his Batsuit resembled a modified version of the original one seen in Batman: The Animated Series (with shorter ears to make him resemble a boxer, and talons on his gloves), the show had no connection to the previous one or the DCAU. The series was largely inspired by Batman comics from the Golden Age, although it did take elements from the various incarnations over the years; particularly the 1960s live-action Batman series as evidenced by the shape of the bat-symbol and the casting of Adam West as Mayor Marion Grange (changed from a woman in the comics). 

GCPD's finest: Ethan Bennett, Angel Rojas and Ellen Yin.

            Batman went up against two types of antagonists. The first were the GCPD, headed by Chief Angel Rojas (Edward James Olmos for one episode, Jesse Corti for the remainder). Rojas viewed Batman as dangerous as any criminal and assigned two officers to bring him down: Detective Ethan Bennett (whose appearance was based on his actor, Steve Harris) and his partner, Metropolis-transplant Detective Ellen Yin (Ming-Na Wen). Bennett largely regarded Batman as necessary to preserve the peace in Gotham, while Yin took some time to come around to the idea. 

Riddler, Bane, Poison Ivy, a Riddleman, Black Mask, Man-Bat, Mr. Freeze, Temblor, Spellbinder, Firefly, Ragdoll, Killer Croc, Joker, Harley Quinn, a henchman, Penguin, the Kabuki Twins and Cluemaster.

            The other type was the standard assortment of villains. Character designer Jeff Matsuda took a great many liberties with the appearance of the classic villains, and many of their stories were heavily revamped for the series. Of the ones featured in the previous Batman series was mobster Rupert Thorne (Victor Brandt), depicted as younger and sporting 1970s-style clothing; Joker (Kevin Michael Richardson), who was more physical and almost ape-like, sporting dreadlocks and a straightjacket with bare feet initially before adopting something closer to his traditional purple suit; Penguin (Tom Kenny), depicted as more athletic and capable fighter (inspired by heavyset characters in martial arts movies), and often accompanied by his silent bodyguards, the Kabuki Twins; Catwoman (Gina Gershon), given a more exaggerated version of the costume appearing at the comics at that time; Mr. Freeze (Clancy Brown), reimagined as a diamond thief who got trapped in a cryonic freezer that gave him a freezing touch; Firefly (Jason Marsden), a professional arsonist who transforms into the unrelated villain Phosphorus after overexposure to the isotope; Ventriloquist and Scarface (Dan Castellaneta), with the murderous puppet redesigned with an outfit reminiscent of Al Pacino in Scarface; Man-Bat (Peter MacNicol), who developed his formula because of an obsession to want to be like Batman; Bane (Joaquim de Almeida, Ron Perlman & Brown), a South American mercenary whose usage of Venom for extra strength not only increased his muscle mass, but also turned his skin red; Riddler (Robert Englund), a disgraced inventor who turned to crime, adopting an almost goth-like visage; Killer Croc (Perlman), given a Cajun accent, he was designed to look like a humanoid crocodile in a vest; Spellbinder (Michael Massee), a mystic who achieved the power of the “third eye” allowing him to create illusions and hypnotize; Hugo Strange (Frank Gorshin until his death, then Richard Green), the head of Arkham Asylum who was more interested in learning how the criminal mind worked than curing them; Poison Ivy (Piera Coppola), a teenaged eco-rights activist who ended up exposed to a powerful plant growth compound, giving her powers; Maxie Zeus (Phil LaMarr), an eccentric billionaire obsessed with Greek mythology who sought revenge against Gotham in a specialized suit of armor after losing the mayoral election; Tony Zucco (Mark Hamill), upgraded from a thug to a Mafia don and former circus performer that accidentally killed his own father; Killer Moth (Bennett), Penguin’s gofer that ended up transformed into a moth creature; Harley Quinn (Hynden Walch), a disgraced television psychologist whom the Joker takes a liking to; The Wrath (Christopher Gorham) and Scorn (Daryl Sabara), an anti-Batman and Robin who wanted to make sure hard-working criminals could stay free; and the Terrible Trio (David Faustino, Grey DeLisle and Googy Gress), university students who get ahold of Langstrom’s formula and become aspects of their namesakes. Because Christopher Nolan had begun development what would become his Dark Knight Trilogy, the characters of Scarecrow, Two-Face and Ra’s al Ghul were prohibited for use on the series (Bane escaped this restriction since his film was not yet in consideration). Joker was only allowed due to his strong connection to the franchise.

Cluemaster, the biggest thing on TV.

            Newly adapted for animation was Cluemaster (Glenn Shadix, Kath Soucie as a kid), changed from a failed game show host to an overweight former contestant on a child’s game show who believed he was cheated out of a victory; the triple-jointed Ragdoll (Bennett), who could bend himself to fit into impossible spaces; Gearhead (Will Friedle), a crook who could hijack any vehicle via cybernetic implants in his arms; and Black Mask (James Remar), the ruthless head of a criminal organization whose face was always covered by (what else?) a black skull-like mask (Back Mask was set to make an appearance on the revival version of the previous show but was never worked into a story).

The Toymaker.

            Villains newly created for the show included Toymaker (Patton Oswalt), the former CEO of a toy manufacturer whose dangerous toys led Bruce Wayne to campaign for their closure; Prank (Michael Reisz), a university student who became the Joker’s sidekick; Temblor (Jim Cummings), a mercenary that used shockwave-generating gauntlets; D.A.V.E. (Digitally Advanced Villain Emulator, voiced by Bennett), an AI created by Hugo Strange whose storage of a combination of insane intellects led him to believe he was a human trapped in a machine (based on H.A.R.D.A.C. from the previous series); Rumor (Perlman), a former bodyguard who decided to kill all of Gotham’s criminals after he failed to protect his client from the Joker; and Everywhere Man (Brandon Routh), a wealthy scientist that accidentally created an evil duplicate of himself.

I'm melting! Meeeeeelting! Bennett becomes Clayface.

            Straddling the line between new and classic villain was their interpretation of Clayface. Initially, Clayface was Bennett after he had been captured and tortured by the Joker, and exposure to the fumes from Joker’s “putty” gave him the ability to reshape himself; similar to the Silver Age Matt Hagen version. As Clayface, he did take the form of the powerful zombie Solomon Grundy (Kevin Grevioux) for the episode “Grundy’s Night”. He was eventually cured in order to make room for the Basil Karlo version (Wallace Langham & Lex Lang). Karlo was still a poorly-reviewed actor, but this time he stole a formula from Waynetech that was designed to cure Bennett in order to give himself the right look to get the work he wanted. After Bennett’s change, Yin’s new partner became Cash Tankinson (Patrick Warburton).

            The Batman debuted as part of Kids’ WB on September 11, 2004, running for five seasons through the network’s change to The CW. The series was developed by Michael Goguen and Duane Capizzi and was produced by Alan Burnett, Glen Murakami, Linda M. Steiner, Goguen and Matsuda. For the first two seasons, the show opened with a moody theme composed by U2’s The Edge. For the remainder of the show, the theme was switched to a lighter, ‘60’s-inspired theme by Andy Sturmer. Thomas Chase Jones served as the series’ main composer. Writers for the series included Capizzi, Burnett Steven Melching, Adam Beechen, Thomas Pugsley, Greg Klein, Greg Weisman, Christopher Yost, J.D. Murray, Robert Goodman, Joseph Kuhr, Michael Jelenic, Alexx Van Dyne, David Slack, Paul Giacoppo, Stan Berkowitz, Paul Dini, Douglas Petrie, Jane Espenson, Steve Cuden, Brian Swenlin, and Len Uhley.

            During the third season, a direct-to-TV film was shown on Cartoon Network called The Batman vs. Dracula. Written by Capizzi, the film involved Batman going up against the real Dracula (Peter Stormare) after he’s accidentally resurrected by Joker and Penguin as they escaped Arkham. While it may seem an odd pairing, Batman has gone up against several vampires—including Dracula—in comics, both in canon (such as Detective Comics #455, 1976) and in alternate tales (Batman & Dracula: Red Rain). The film also introduced The Batman’s version of reporter Vicki Vale (Tara Strong). 

            The series departed from the established mythos further by introducing Batgirl (Danielle Judovits) before Robin (Evan Sabara). Robin was unavailable until the fourth season due to his being used on Teen Titans, so a younger Batgirl was brought in the third season along with her father, Commissioner James Gordon (Mitch Pileggi), who became a series regular after two previous appearances. Batman, however, was reluctant to take her on and resisted formally making her a sidekick until Robin’s debut. The younger heroes developed a sibling-like rivalry between them. Robin’s origin remained mostly unchanged, with former Joker Mark Hamill voicing Tony Zucco, the man who killed his parents during a trapeze act at the circus, and former Batman Kevin Conroy voicing his father. Batgirl’s costume utilized the original 1960s coloring scheme but looked like a long dress. Robin’s design remained relatively close to his Titans appearance, however with the colors of his “R” symbol reversed like in The New Adventures of Batman. Season four would end up being Matsuda’s last, but before he left, he redesigned Batman to be more angular; increasing his resemblance to the previous show’s incarnation.

            The fifth and final season of the show shifted focus away from Batgirl and onto Batman and Robin; relegating both her and Commissioner Gordon to cameos with the explanation that Batgirl now attended and was busy with college. They spent the season teaming up with various members of the Justice League, including Superman (George Newbern, reprising his role from Justice League), Martian Manhunter (Dorian Harewood), Green Arrow (Chris Hardwick), Flash (Charlie Schlatter, reprising his role from Superman: The Animated Series), Green Lantern (Dermot Mulroney), and Hawkman (Robert Patrick). With them came their villains: Lex Luthor (Brown, reprising his role from Superman), Mercy Graves (Gwendoline Yeo), Metallo (Green), Count Vertigo (Greg Ellis), Toyman (Green), the Shadow Thief (Diedrich Bader); Sinestro (Miguel Ferrer), and Mirror Master (John Larroquette). The final episode was a 40-minute movie featuring all the heroes joining forces to fend off an invasion of Earth. Dana Delany also reprised her role of Lois Lane, while Jack DeSena took on the role of Jimmy Olsen. Other characters, like Wonder Woman, were planned but never appeared.

            Despite the show’s long run, it never quite caught on with diehard fans and was criticized with being designed just to sell toys. The toyetic nature of the series was evident in how many of the variants in the action figure line by Mattel appeared on the show, and how some of the figures could interact with the Batwave; the computer system Batman used to detect criminal activity and control a lot of his gear. The show did manage to win its fair share of awards and nominations. It was nominated for three Annie Awards between 2005 and 2006, though it didn’t win any of them. It was nominated for 12 Daytime Emmy Awards, of which it won 6. It was also nominated for three Golden Reel Awards, winning one in 2008.

The Batman Strikes! #1.

            DC Comics published a comic based on the show under its Johnny DC young-readers imprint, which primarily published comics based on cartoons from Kids’ WB and Cartoon Network. The Batman Strikes! ran for 50 issues between 2004 and 2008. It introduced characters not seen on the show—such as Perry White, Bruno Manheim, Cat Grant and Etrigan—as well as expanded on the ones that had been. Three collected editions were released; the first two in 2005, with the third delayed until 2007, collecting the first 18 issues (excluding #15). A fourth was planned but never published. The first issue was reprinted in 2004 as a Burger King giveaway and in 2005 for Free Comic Book Day. In 2006, Post released a limited-edition chocolate and marshmallow cereal to promote the show.

The Batman complete series on DVD.

Warner Home Video released the complete series across five volumes between 2007 and 2008. Two editions of the film were released: one in 2005 with collectible figurines, and a standard edition in 2007. The Batman would make a brief return to television in Darwyn Cooke’s Batman Beyond Short in 2014 for Batman’s 75^th Anniversary celebration.

EPISODE GUIDE:

Season 1:

“The Bat in the Belfry” (9/11/04) – Detectives Ethan Bennett and Ellen Yin are tasked with capturing the Batman, who is on the trail of the Joker after he freed inmates from Arkham.

“Call of the Cobblepot” (9/18/04) – A series of thefts involving birds leads the Batman to the Penguin, who takes Alfred as a hostage to avoid capture.

“Traction” (9/25/04) – Three mob bosses hire Bane to deal with the Batman, leaving him critically injured after their confrontation and Bane free to terrorize the city.

“The Man Who Would Be Bat” (10/2/04) – Kirk Langstrom claims to be working on a cure for the deaf, but secretly works on a project to make himself a true Batman.

“The Big Chill” (10/30/04) – Batman realizes a cold-seeking jewel thief named Mr. Freeze is a crook he chased into a cryogenic chamber some time ago.

“The Cat and the Bat” (11/6/04) – Catwoman gets the upper hand on Batman when she steals his utility belt to use a batarang for a theft.

“The Big Heat” (11/13/04) – Batman discovers a connection between his competition for the children’s hospital and Firefly’s rash of break-ins at various tech firms.

“Q&A” (11/20/04) – Cluemaster abducts two people who once humiliated him on a quiz show in order to enact his revenge.

“The Big Dummy” (11/27/04) – Scarface and the Ventriloquist plot to rob the gold reserves from Gotham Bank while Alfred uses online dating to find a girl for Bruce.

“Topsy Turvy” (2/5/05) – After Joke escapes Arkham Asylum, he goes after all the people who locked him away.

“Bird of Prey” (2/12/05) – Unable to get revenge on Batman, Penguin decides to rob Bruce Wayne and takes Alfred hostage in the process.

“The Rubberface of Comedy (Part 1)” (4/30/05) – Joker returns with a putty that can morph anything into a springing substance and captures Ethan.

“The Clayface of Tragedy (Part 2)” (5/7/05) – Joker’s putty turns Ethan into Clayface bringing Yin and Batman together to try and stop him from going after Rojas.

Season 2:

“The Cat, the Bat and the Very Ugly” (5/14/05) – Penguin and Catwoman join forces for a robbery, but a double-cross forces Catwoman to work with Batman to stop Penguin.

“Riddled” (5/21/05) – Riddler terrorizes the city by combining his puzzles with bombs in various locations around the city.

“Fire & Ice” (5/28/05) – Firefly and Mr. Freeze join forces to steal all the parts Freeze needs to permanently freeze the city.

“The Laughing Bat” (6/4/05) – Joker decides to become Batman and injects the real one with a Joker Venom to make him his arch-rival.

“Swamped” (6/11/05) – Killer Croc steals what he needs to flood the city’s lower districts in order to have free reign to plunder them.

“Pets” (6/18/05) – Penguin steals a device in order to control a rare bird but ends up attracting Man-Bat instead.

“Meltdown” (6/25/05) – Clayface’s probation is put in jeopardy when the urge to get revenge on the Joker becomes irresistible.

“JTV” (7/9/05) – Joker launches a pirate TV channel and takes the Mayor and Yin’s new partner hostage, but it’s all part of a much larger plan.

“Ragdolls to Riches” (7/16/05) – Ragdoll moves in on Gotham City, stealing Catwoman’s targets before her and giving Batman a new headache to face.

“The Butler Did It” (8/20/05) – Spellbinder hypnotizes the wealthy’s butlers into stealing for him, but plans to use their masters for a much larger score.

“Grundy’s Night” (8/27/05) – Solomon Grundy is resurrected on Halloween and goes after the descendants of the city’s founders.

“Strange Minds” (9/4/05) – Batman enters Joker’s mind in order to learn the whereabouts of the kidnapped Yin.

“Night and the City” (9/10/05) – Joker, Penguin and Riddler decide to compete in capturing Batman while Yin’s support of him is discovered by Rojas.

Season 3:

“Batgirl Begins, Part One” (9/17/05) – Barbara Gordon and Pamela Isley become endangered when Temblor seeks payment for attacks against polluting companies organized by Pamela.

“Batgirl Begins, Part Two” (9/24/05) – Pamela is mutated into Poison Ivy and forces Barbara to become Batgirl when she captures Batman and Commissioner Gordon.

“A Dark Knight to Remember” (10/1/05) – Bruce loses his memory, and when Batgirl tries to stop Penguin’s crime spree herself she ends up captured.

“A Fistful of Felt” (10/8/05) – Hugo Strange separates Scarface from Ventriloquist allowing him to be freed from Arkham in service of Strange’s larger plans for him.

“RPM” (11/5/05) – Gearhead steals the prize for a charity race and destroys the Batmobile, inspiring Batman to build a better one to take the villain down.

“Brawn” (11/12/05) – Joker steals Bane’s Venom and uses it to become a major threat.

“The Laughing Cats” (11/19/05) – Batman, Batgirl and Catwoman investigate the theft of a rare leopard only to be lured into a death maze by Joker.

“Fleurs du Mal” (11/26/05) – With the passing and enforcement of bizarre new laws causes Batman and Batgirl to investigate, they learn Poison Ivy replaced city officials with plant clones.

“Cash for Toys” (2/4/06) – A disgruntled toymaker decides to get revenge on Bruce Wayne with his dangerous toys, leading to Detective Cash being assigned as his bodyguard.

“Thunder” (2/18/06) – On the verge of losing the mayoral race, Maximillian Zeus decides to take over the city by force.

“The Apprentice” (2/11/06) – After Batman takes on Batgirl as his sidekick, Joker decides to get one of his own and turns Barbara’s classmate into Prank.

“The Icy Depths” (5/6/06) – Alfred’s old friend visits and invites him on a treasure hunt, unaware that Penguin and Mr. Freeze are after the same treasure.

“Gotham’s Ultimate Criminal Mastermind” (5/13/06) – Strange programs an AI called DAVE with the minds of Gotham’s greatest criminals and lets it free to commit crimes.

Season 4:

“A Matter of Family” (9/23/06) – Bruce adopts an orphaned Dick Grayson and brings his family’s killer to justice.

“Team Penguin” (9/30/06) – Penguin forms a team of villains to take Batman down while Batman reveals his identity to Batgirl and they learn how to work together with Robin.

“Clayfaces” (10/7/06) – Ethan tries to prove himself to Batman by foiling Joker’s plans, but washed-up actor Basil Karlo steals some of Joker’s putty and becomes the new Clayface.

“The Everywhere Man” (11/4/06) – When the replicating Everywhere Man frames one of Bruce’s friends, Batman tries to prove his innocence.

“The Breakout” (11/11/06) – Black Mask is freed from prison and captures Batman, leaving Batgirl and Robin to thwart his plans alone.

“Strange New World” (11/18/06) – Batman and Robin have to save the city from Strange’s virus that turns them into zombies.

“Artifacts” (2/3/07) – A thousand years in the future, the citizenry of Gotham have to learn about Batman’s history in order to stop the new Mr. Freeze.

“Seconds” (2/10/07) – Batman and his partners go up against a foe that seems to know their every move.

“Riddler’s Revenge” (2/17/07) – When Riddler and Batman are sealed in a crate and sunken into the harbor, Riddler reveals his origin.

“Two of a Kind” (2/24/07) – Joker decides to make disgraced TV host Harleen Quinzell into his new partner.

“Rumors” (3/3/07) – Batman and Robin have to save the city’s villains from the mysterious Rumor before he executes them.

“The Joining, Part One” (4/28/07) – Bruce learns that Wayne Industries has been distributing alien technology around the world and an alien race is coming to conquer Earth.

“The Joining, Part Two” (5/5/07) – Batman and Martian Manhunter attempt to use Wayne Industries satellites to stop The Joining.

Season 5:

“The Batman/Superman Story, Part One” (9/22/07) – Lex Luthor opens up shop in Gotham and recruits its villains in his efforts to destroy Superman.

“The Batman/Superman Story, Part Two” (9/29/07) – Batman and Robin take on a Lex-controlled Superman while Lex plots to use robots to take over the world’s armies.

“Vertigo” (10/6/07) – Batman teams-up with Green Arrow to take down Count Vertigo.

“White Heat” (10/13/07) – Trying to upgrade himself leads Firefly to becoming the even more dangerous Phosphorus.

“A Mirror Darkly” (11/3/07) – Mirror Master plans to trap everyone in their own image, but Batman, Robin and Flash set out to stop him.

“Joker Express” (11/10/07) – Joker makes it so that the citizens of Gotham hysterically dump stolen loot into the river.

“Ring Toss” (12/8/07) – Green Lantern seeks Batman’s help to find Sinestro, but the encounter leaves Penguin with a power ring.

“The Metal Face of Comedy” (12/15/07) – Joker has a hacker put his mind into WayneTech nanobots that build him an improved body in his quest to destroy Batman.

“Attack of the Terrible Trio” (2/2/08) – A group of college misfits use Langstrom’s formula to turn themselves into animals to get revenge on those that have wronged them.

“The End of the Batman” (2/9/08) – Wrath and Scorn aid the villains of Gotham City.

“What Goes Up…” (2/16/08) – Black Mask hires the Shadow Thief to break him out of prison, leading to Batman teaming-up with Hawkman.

“Lost Heroes, Part One” (3/8/08) – Batman and Green Arrow investigate the disappearance of the rest of the Justice League.

“Lost Heroes, Part Two” (3/8/08) – The Joining plans a new attack on Earth while the Justice League fight robotic counterparts to get their powers back.

Movie:

“The Batman vs. Dracula” (10/18/05) – Batman has to deal with Joker and Penguin, as well as keep Dracula from turning the city into vampires.