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Defenders of the Earth (TV series)

2008-02-10T07:28:25Z

203.164.108.44:

'''''Defenders of the Earth''''' is an animated television series featuring characters from three comic strips distributed by [[King Features Syndicate]] — Flash Gordon, [[The Phantom]], and Mandrake the Magician — battling the Flash Gordon villain Ming the Merciless in the year 2015. Supporting characters include their children Rick Gordon, Jedda Walker (daughter of The Phantom), Kshin (adopted son of Mandrake), Mandrake's assistant Lothar, and Lothar's son L.J. The show lasted for 65 episodes; there was also a short-lived [[Defenders of the Earth (comic)|comic book series]] published by [[Star Comics]] (an imprint of [[Marvel Comics]]).

==Premise==
The plot begins with Flash Gordon and his son Rick escaping from Ming the Merciless. Ming has exhausted all the natural resources of his home planet Mongo and has set his sights on Earth. Flash's wife (Dale Arden in the Marvel comic) is captured and Ming tries to brainwash her. She resists to the point of death.

==Characters==
===Protagonists===
*Flash Gordon is the legendary space hero and leader of the Defenders of the Earth. He is an ace space fighter pilot and the father of Rick Gordon.

*[[The 27th Phantom|The Phantom]] is the legendary "Ghost Who Walks", and his true name is Kit Walker. According to a note in the end credits, this is the 27th Phantom. This version of the Phantom is different from how he is portrayed in the comics. By chanting "By jungle law, the ghost who walks calls forth the power of ten tigers" he is temporarily given superhuman strength. In the comics, the Phantom does not have any supernatural powers. In the show his horse [[Hero]] and his wolf [[Devil]] also make brief appearances.

*Mandrake the Magician is a cultured man of mystery who has magical powers and knowledge of the occult. He frequently uses illusions both in and out of combat to achieve his goals.

*Lothar is superhumanly strong and a close friend of Mandrake. He is also portrayed as a mechanical wizard and a master tactician.

*Richard "Rick" Gordon is an impulsive computer genius and the son of Flash Gordon. Rick, along with many of the other teenagers of the show, attended Central High located in Central city.

*Kshin is an orphaned Asian boy adopted by Mandrake, who is training him as his apprentice. As the younger of the group, he is always trying to prove he is worthy of being a true hero. His country of origin was never specifically identified in the series. Kshin has a pet alien called Zuffy — an orphaned Zuffoid found by Rick Gordon on the planet Mongo.

*L.J. (Lothar Junior) is the street wise martial arts expert son of Lothar, as well as Rick's best friend.

*Jedda Walker is the daughter of The Phantom and displays telepathic and limited psychic powers. She has a pet black panther named Kisa. Some episodes imply a romantic relationship between her and Rick Gordon.

*Dynak X is the central computer based in the Defenders' Headquarters, formerly Flash's wife and Rick's mother (though she is never referred to by name, it is presumed that she is Flash's longtime love interest Dale Arden). In the first episode, Ming the Merciless kidnaps and attempts to brainwash her to reveal where Flash Gordon is hiding, but the enormous physical and mental anguish ends up killing her. Before she dies, however, her "essence" is saved in a crystal that is eventually used to power the Defenders' computer.

===Antagonists===
*Ming the Merciless has two children Prince Krotan and Princess Aura and is bent on world domination and operates from Ice Station Earth, his hideout located in the Arctic. This version is made more grotesque in appearance than his traditional Asian appearance to avoid racial stereotyping, a similar treatment would be used on The Mandarin in the ''Iron Man'' animated series and on Dr. No in ''James Bond Jr.''; all three characters were given green skin and pointed ears.

*Octon is a metallic octopus like machine which advises Ming the Merciless on how to conquer the Earth or defeat Flash Gordon and Co. The name is taken from Octon, the leader of the mysterious crime syndicate ''8'' in the Mandrake the Magician comic strip.

*Garax is the leader of Ming's soldiers, the Ice warriors

*Mongor is a giant serpent-like pet of Ming the Merciless.

*Kurt Walker, under his alias "N'Dama, the Weather Demon", is the older brother of the Phantom. Kurt is a character specifically created for the series, and has never appeared in a Phantom comic book or comic strip story. Indeed, in the Phantom legend, the firstborn son is in the Walker family is always named "Kit" and becomes the Phantom. However Kurt does appear in [[Defenders of the Earth 3|issue #3]] of the [[Marvel Comics]] [[Defenders of the Earth (comics)|Defenders of the Earth mini-series]].

*[[The Sky Band]] is one of the Phantom's oldest foes. In the series, they are space-pirates, while in the comic strips, they are sky-pirates.

==Episode titles==
# Escape from Mongo
# The Creation of Monitor
# A Demon in His Pocket
# A House Divided
# Bits and Chips
# The Root of Evil
# Cold War
# The Sleeper Awakers
# The Revenge of Astra
# The Hall of Wisdom
# The Mind Warriors, Part I
# The Mind Warriors, Part II
# The Lost Jewels of Tibet
# The Evil of Doctor Dark
# Diamonds Are Ming's Best Friends
# The Men of Frost
# Battleground
# The Panther Peril
# Fury of the Deep
# Family Reunion
# The Defense Never Rests
# Like Father, Like Daughter
# The Would Be Defender
# Doorways into Darkness
# Deal with the Devil
# Terror in Time
# Ming's Household Help
# The Starboy
# The Gods Awake
# The Ghost Walks Again
# The Book of Mysteries
# The Future Comes But Once
# Kshin and the Ghost Ship
# The Carnival of Dr. Kalihari
# The Mystery of the Book
# Flash Times Four
# The Frozen Heart
# Rick Gordon, One Man Army
# The Rites of Zesnan
# Audie the Tweak
# Return of the Sky Band
# Dracula's Potion
# One of the Guys
# 100 Proof Highway
# The Time Freezer
# The Prince Makes His Move
# Prince Triumphant
# The Prince Weds
# The Prince's Royal Hunt
# The Prince Is Dethroned
# Lothar's Homecoming
# Suspended Sabotage
# The Call of the Eternals
# The Return of Doctor Dark
# The Deadliest Battle
# The Necklace of Oros
# Torn Space
# Ming Winter
# The Golden Queen, Part I
# The Golden Queen, Part II
# Flesh and Blood
# Drowning World
# The Adoption of Kshin
# Street Smarts
# Ming's Thunder Lizards

==DVD==
The First episode appears on the BCI Eclipse DVD releases for
* Animated All-Stars collection
* The New Adventures of Flash Gordon: The Complete Series

BCI has also released the first of 2 5-Disc sets that will cover the entire series.
* Defenders of the Earth - Complete Series Volume 1 (5-Discs) 33 Episodes
* Defenders of the Earth - Complete Series Volume 2 (5-Discs) 32 Episodes ([[April 3]], [[2007]])'''

Selected episodes are available in the UK, in compilations including 
Hollywood DVD LTD
* Defenders Of The Earth- The Story Begins
Delta Music PLC
* Defenders of the Earth Movie (3-Discs)
* Defenders of the Earth vol 1
* Defenders of the Earth vol 2
* Defenders of the Earth vol 3
* Defenders of the Earth Movie - Prince Of Kro-Tan
* Defenders of the Earth Movie - Necklace Of Oros
* Defenders of the Earth Movie - The Book Of Mysteries

==Other media==
In addition to the [[Defenders of the Earth (comics)|four-issue Marvel Comics miniseries]], there have been books including ''[[The Creation of Monitor]]'', ''[[A House Divided]]'', ''[[The Sun-Stealers]]'' and ''[[Computer Checkmate]]''.

A line of action figures produced by Galoob included Flash Gordon, Mandrake, Lothar, the Phantom, Ming and Garax.[http://www.virtualtoychest.com/defendersote/defendersote.html]

A PC [[Defenders of the Earth (video game)|video game]] was also made. It featured the various heroes from the series on a quest to defeat Ming.

As a marketing ploy, the [[Sunday stories|Sunday strips]] of Flash Gordon, The Phantom and Mandrake the Magician all mentioned the Defenders of the Earth on the strip of [[The Escaped Convicts|September 28, 1986]]. This is the only appearance of the Phantom and Mandrake in the Flash Gordon newspaper strip, aswell as the only appearance of Flash Gordon in the Phantom and Mandrake newspaper strips. Since the Defenders of the Earth storyline was out of continutiy for all three newspaper strips, this sequence was shown as an alternate reality.

==Trivia==
*Rick Gordon was initially intended to be Kit Walker, the son of the Phantom.
*Jedda Walker was initially intended to be Jedda Gordon, daughter of Flash Gordon.
*A parody, having the same name, is made up of comic strip characters Rex Morgan, Mary Worth, Garfield, and Mark Trail.
*''Robot Chicken'' parodied the series with Flash, Phantom and Mandrake posing as the neighborhood watch.

==Availability==
In Australia the whole 65 episode series has been released in one big collection which you cam
get from [http://www.ezydvd.com.au/item.zml/783060 EzyDVD].

In the UK a DotE movie collection has been released, collecting the three movie ''The Necklace of Oros, The Book Of Mysteries and The
Prince of Kro-Tan''. You can buy this from [http://www.sendit.com/circle/search?words=Defenders+of+the+Earth&f=dvd&x=24&y=6 SendIt].com.

Lastly, American fans are able to buy single disk released that contain a number of episodes from the series available from [http://www.amazon.com/Defenders-Earth-Complete-Vol-2/dp/B000MKYK22/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-1741107-9975859?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1182730044&sr=8-1 Amazon].

==Cast==
* The Phantom....Peter Mark Richman
* Mandrake the Magician....Peter Renaday
* Lothar....Buster Jones
* Flash Gordon....Lou Richards
* Ming the Merciless....William Callaway
* Kshin....Adam Carl
* Rick Gordon....Loren Lester
* Jedda Walker....Sarah Partridge
* Prince Kro-Tan....Hal Rayle

==References==
*[http://www.chroniclechamber.com ChronicleChamber.com] Referance page (no longer on-line)

==External links==
*[http://www.flashgordon.de Flash Gordon and Defenders of the earth Fanpage] Infos, Episodenguide und Forum
*[http://www.toonopedia.com/defearth.htm Don Markstein's Toonopedia: Defenders of the Earth, defenders]
*[http://www.retrojunk.com/details_tvshows/110-defenders-of-the-earth/ Intro to ''Defenders of the Earth''] at Retro Junk
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvpFbruLSis Intro to ''Defenders of the Earth''] at YouTube
*[http://www.chroniclechamber.com ChronicleChamber.com]

[[Category: Adaptations]]
{{Wikipedia|October 11, 2007|Defenders of the Earth}}

Phantom 2040 (TV series)

2008-02-10T07:24:06Z

203.164.108.44:

'''''Phantom 2040''''' is an animated science fiction television series loosely based on the comic strip hero [[The Phantom]], created by [[Lee Falk]]. The central character of the series is said to be [[the 24th Phantom]]. The unusual character designs are the work of Peter Chung, creator of ''Æon Flux''.

The show debuted in 1994 to rave reviews, though it survived only 33 episodes before it was relegated to weekend repeats in 1996. Along with action sequences, stories focused on intelligent plotting and character development, winning the series praise for its subtle teaching of such values as individuality, freedom, and the volatility of humanity. It also spawned [[Phantom 2040 (comic)|comic book tie-ins]] and other merchandise.

Featured voice actors included Scott Valentine, Margot Kidder, Ron Perlman, and Jeff Bennett, while Mark Hamill, Debbie Harry, Rob Paulsen, and Paul Williams had recurring roles.

==Story==
In the year 2040, environmental disasters and the economic Resource Wars of the early 21st century have decimated the fragile ecological balance of an Earth once teeming with life. Everywhere, the privileged and wealthy continue to thrive in expensive real estate developments that tower above the suffering masses. The victims of Earth’s misfortune have been forced to subsist on scavenged refuse from the past on the mangled streets of forlorn city-states.

In Metropia (once known as New York City), the largest and most powerful of the city-states, the powerful robotics manufacturing corporation Maximum Inc. has slowly shaped a cold, steely urban center, consisting of huge, residential towers intertwined with TubeTrain tunnels. Maximum's robotic "biots" ('''Bi'''ological '''O'''ptical '''T'''ransputer '''S'''ystem) have replaced enormous amounts of human labour, and the corporation is illegally producing prohibited combat biots to form Maximum's personal underground army. Maximum has plans to construct the fortress of Cyberville, an immense survival shelter where only the wealthiest and most elite humans will retreat once Earth finally succumbs to its slowly deteriorating state and Maximum's biot armies take control of Metropia.

The only hope for the survival of humanity is the Ghost Jungle — thousands of square miles of mutated vegetation that may be the planet's salvation. This secret source of life is submerged beneath Metropia where no one is aware of it, but fortunately, college student Kit Walker Jr. is chosen by fate to save the world, donning the black mask and purple suit of his people’s savior, the 24th Phantom.

The role of the Phantom has been passed on from father to son since the 1500s, leading the world to believe that the Phantom is a single immortal individual. Kit, the 24th in the line, is young, unsure, and inexperienced, but he finds within him the courage and might to battle the evil that threatens to destroy the Earth.

==Reaction==
Phantom 2040, unlike the Ghost Who Walks previous animated outing ''Defenders of the Earth'', is
well liked by many Phans. Debuting in 1994 the series received rave reviews from critics and
audience member alike. It was praised for its intelligent stories and character development, hight
quality animation (especially in action scenes) and subtle teaching of such values as individuality,
freedom and the volatility of humanity.

The series was something of a large departure from Lee Falk's original comics. As with ''DotE'' this was a sci-fi series, not a pure jungle adventure show. However, with the Ghost Jungle an element of the characters jungle origins was kept. The character designs for the series were the work of Peter Chung, creator of the cult hit anime series ''AEon Flux''. While some Phans liked this stylized design others felt that the
characters, especially that of the Phantom were "too skinny."

The series, while critically successful only lasted for 33 episodes.

==Characters==
*'''Kit Walker, Jr.''' — The 24th Phantom, Kit was not trained for the role like his ancestors were. His father died under mysterious circumstances when he was only a baby, and he grew up not knowing about his heritage. When [[Guran (Phantom 2040)|Guran]] tells him about the Phantom on his eighteenth birthday, he is initially disbelieving, but takes on the role with increasing conviction. His equipment includes optical camouflage for invisibility, a wristband that contains a powerful computer ("analytical"), and another that contains a smart inductance rope. He has several vehicles, including a nimble airborne Hypercycle, a cloaking multi-passenger cruiser and an upgraded 1999 Mustang named "Hero", after the 21st Phantom's [[Hero|horse]]. Voiced by Scott Valentine.
* '''[[Guran (Phantom 2040)|Guran]]''' — Kit's mentor, whose family have been aiding the Phantom for generations. Together with Jack Archer, Guran instructs the Phantom in combat, morality, and life itself, and is frequently seen reciting insightful "[[old jungle sayings]]" to Kit and others. After [[the 23rd Phantom]]'s death, Guran blamed himself, and consumed in his sadness and self-hatred he became the legendary Shadow Panther, until he was freed from his mourning forever by Kit Walker Jr. Voiced by J.D. Hall.
*'''Jack Archer''' — A scientist and professor in biology at Kit's university. After Kit dons the identity of the Phantom, Archer takes only a short time to deduce that they are one and the same, and becomes one of the few who know the Phantom's true identity. Together with Guran, Archer takes on the role of Kit's mentor, particularly in scientific and contemporary parts of his education. Voiced by Alan Oppenheimer.
* '''"Sparks" (Daniel Aguilar)''' — A young, orphaned cyber-surfer who is rescued by Kit after Maximum mistakes Sparks as the Phantom. Sparks is unofficially adopted into the Phantom's lair, and assists in the technological parts of their endeavours. When he was three, his parents, Esteban and María, were kidnapped by Maximum and cruelly used as the mental tissue for the biomechanical "living building" Project Gauntlet, Cyberville's security system. Voiced by Pamela Adlon.
* '''Sagan Cruz''' — A Metropian policewoman or "Enforcer", who is attracted to Kit but was initially unaware of his dual identity, and was skeptical about the Phantom's motives. She later figures out his secret and eventually becomes Kit's love interest and partner. She has a genetically-engineered police dog named D.V.L. (a reference to [[the 21st Phantom]]'s wolf, [[Devil]]) and in combat dons a well-armoured Enforcer suit. Voiced by Leah Remini.
* '''Aunt [[Heloise]]''' — Kit's only living relative, Heloise is the daughter of the 21st Phantom. She kept the truth from Kit, hoping he could lead a normal life, but accepts Kit's choice to become the 24th Phantom and assists him in his plans to stop Maximum Inc. Voiced by Carrie Snodgress.
* '''Rebecca Madison''' — The series villain, chairperson of Maximum Inc. and widow of the 23rd Phantom's killer, Maxwell Madison Sr. Rebecca plans to construct Cyberville, a technological and impenetrable fortress where the select wealthy and elite may seek refuge when the Earth begins to deteriorate (something Rebecca's underground biot army will ensure takes place relatively soon), but her plans of domination are frequently being foiled by the Phantom. Other than Graft and her son, Maxwell Madison Jr., no other humans are employed by Maximum, which has its own biots perform all labour. Voiced by Margot Kidder.
* '''Maxwell Madison Jr.''' — Rebecca's sociopathic son, whose intelligence is belied by his laziness and disinterest in almost everything. When he does have an opinion on something, he presents it as coming from his cat, Baudelaire. He is psychologically disturbed with the disorders being rooted in the loss of his father at such an early age. His cat, perhaps the last remaining symbol of his fathers love for him, is his only and most trusted friend. Voiced by Jeff Bennett.
* '''Hubert Graft''' — Rebecca Madison's Chief of Security and main enforcer, a cyborg who blames the Phantom for his condition. He was formerly an environmentalist who fought against Maximum to protect the Amazonian rainforest, before losing his whole body below the shoulders in combat. Maximum rebuilt Graft's body using biot parts, giving Rebecca Madison complete control over Graft's life. Graft's biot torso can be disconnected at the hip and integrated into other robotic systems over which Graft has complete control, most commonly the Urban Combat Biot Walker, a ten-foot steel exoskeleton armed with lasers and claws. Voiced by Ron Perlman in the first season, and Richard Lynch in the second.
* '''Doctor Jak''' — A cynical TV journalist who reports the Phantom's activities with a flip spin. His arrogance and vanity bring him to believe that rather than being merely a reporter of news, he "is the news". In "Matter Over Mind", it is discovered that after Jak's wife perished in the Grand Central Station crash, he attempted an illegal operation to integrate an analytical computer into his mind, but the operation was interrupted and the analytical program thought lost. Dr. Jak was left part-biot, with sensory implants on his head and a multi-purpose eyepiece which he uses to film his news program, The Dr. Jak Show. His character and the way in which he criminalises the Phantom are comparable to J. Jonah Jameson of ''Spider-Man''. Voiced by Mark Hamill.
* '''Mr. Cairo''' — A mysterious information broker who only appears in holographic transmissions and who deals with both the Phantom and Maximum Inc. Early on, he discovers the Phantom's true identity, but chooses to withhold the information from Rebecca Madison despite the enormous reward being offered. He is later revealed to actually be the sentient analytical program separated from Dr. Jak's consciousness, but he decides not to rejoin Dr. Jak's mind and instead stays on to loyally assist the Phantom. Voiced by Paul Williams.
* '''Sean One''' — The first human born in outer space and founder and leader of the Free Orbital Movement, Sean One seeks independence for his Orbital colonies. An arrogant and abnormally tall man, he resorts to espionage and terrorist attacks in order to achieve his ends and is unable to walk by himself while in the presence of gravity. He is revered among the Orbitals' inhabitants in an almost god-like way, and is extremely apathetic towards whom he calls the "gravity-slaves" of Earth. Voiced by Rob Paulsen.
* '''Gorda''' — A morbidly-obese crime lord and smuggler from Australia who is unable to move by herself and has an army of strong, red-tinted biots under her command. She refers to herself in third-person and has a well-armed robotic kangaroo as her sole companion. Voiced by Paddi Edwards.
* '''Heisenberg''' — A shape-shifting fractal biot built by Max Madison Jr. using nanites grown in space by Sean One, named by Maxwell after the German physicist Werner Heisenberg. Heisenberg is the first stable fractal biot created by Maximum, and is controlled by Maxwell using a separate remote brain which must be carried around in a case. Heisenberg is forced to impersonate the Phantom and succeeds in criminalising him with the help of Dr. Jak, but after a confrontation with the Phantom, Maxwell loses the remote brain and hence control of Heisenberg. Afterwards, the fractal biot gains independence and a form of sentience, dons a cloak and seeks answers for his past, remembering nothing of his creation other than his name. He meets a wise street saxophonist named Betty, and after deciding to take his own path, becomes a "teacher" to biots everywhere, helping them to be free from their human owners and become self-aware. Heisenberg eventually joins the Phantom and becomes a close companion to Pavlova, Dr. Jak's assistant. Voiced by Rob Paulsen.
* '''Pavlova''' - Dr. Jak's personal biot assistant, distinguishable by red symbols on her face. Pavlova sometimes questions the honesty and morality of Jak's news uploads, but always has her memory wiped by Jak afterwards (a task he does somewhat reluctantly). Nicknamed "Pav" by Jak, the reporter treats her as his friend and sometimes even in a joking, romantic way, due to the fact that Pavlova was named after Jak's late wife. Pavlova also befriends Heisenberg, who takes an interest in her. She ultimately tells Jak "I will program myself from now on." At which later Jak laments, "You just had to be your own person, just like her." Referring to Pav' name sake. Voiced by Liz Georges.
* '''Vaingloria''' — A popular starlet singer trained by Maximum Inc. to brainwash the public. It is known that Rebecca Madison found her as a street urchin and offered her food, shelter and fame in exchange for her services for Maximum. Rebecca had her fitted with retractable mirrors which can focus light to such a strength that looking at the mirrors can overload the mind's senses, tricking the public's minds into adoring her and on Maximum's orders using them to completely brainwash certain people (it can be assumed that the mirrors are difficult to control with precision, as Vaingloria once accidentally sent a victim into a coma). Vaingloria reluctantly takes part in several of Maximum's plots and becomes particularly close to Graft, who treats her in a (albeit cold) fatherly way. He ultimately hardwires her mirrors she can use them on her own. Voiced by Deborah Harry.
* '''Betty''' — A wise street saxophonist who becomes Heisenberg's best friend and companion. She is seen to be aware of everything around her and frequently relating life to the blues. Voiced by Iona Morris.
* '''Maxwell Madison Sr.''' — Rebecca's deceased husband, who was killed along with the 23rd Phantom in a toxic train wreck. Rebecca captures his brainwaves and stores them in an enormous computer, and is constantly seeking a stable way to transfer them into a biot or preferably a living body to effectively resurrect Maxwell Madison Sr. He was regarded as a very dangerous and power-hungry man when he was alive and in control of Maximum, Inc, but it is discovered that his plans for the world were very ecologically beneficial and that his ambitious wife Rebecca sabotaged his plans in favour of greedy, selfish world domination. Voiced by Jeff Bennett.

==Episode list==
===Season 1===
#Generation Unto Generation (part 1)
#Generation Unto Generation (part 2) ''Kit Walker Jr. meets Guran, and discovers his true heritage as the Phantom. His first heroic act is to stop Maximum Inc. from using a virtual reality game to brainwash young citizens into rioting.''
#The Sum of the Parts ''Maxwell Madison Jr. creates the first stable "fractal biot", a shape-shifter who is ordered by Maximum to impersonate the Phantom and criminalise him. The real Phantom must stop the fractal biot and stop Maximum from building more. Professor Jack Archer discovers Kit's true identity.''
#Fire and I.C.E. ''The Phantom and Guran find a way to "skate" through a virtual reality projection of Cyberville, Rebecca Madison's planned fortress, but unbeknownst to them, Graft has found a way to track the location of the Skull Lair by tracking their virtual signal. However, an orphaned teenage cyber-surfer nicknamed Sparks also finds a way to penetrate Maximum's defences, and Graft mistakes him for the Phantom.''
#Reflections of Glory ''Maximum's trained starlet singer Vaingloria is using her hypnotic mirrors into brainwashing the city counsellers' children, in a bid by Rebecca Madison to rig the vote on Cyberville. Kit and Enforcer Sagan Cruz are forced to cut their date short as the Phantom takes action against Maximum's plot.''
#Shadows from the Past ''Would-be queen Nia, heir to the throne of Egypt, tracks down the Phantom to seek revenge for the unification of Africa, but Guran is hit by her poisonous darts in the Phantom's place. Delusional and lost in the Ghost Jungle, the Phantom must find and save Guran before Nia finds them, and Guran's babblings reveal more about the Sector Zero train wreck.''
#The Good Mark ''Guran presents Kit with the Phantom's other ring, called the Good Mark, while Graft lures the Phantom into a trap using fake Sector Zero data files. But when Graft discovers that Rebecca is hiding real Sector Zero files, he steals them in a bid to loosen Rebecca's iron grip over him.''
#Ghost in the Machine ''Rebecca succeeds in partially reviving Maxwell Madison Sr. in a biot's body, but unable to remember his death, Maxwell kidnaps his son and goes rampant on a quest to regain his memories. The Phantom follows him to Sector Zero and discovers more about the Sector Zero wreck.''
#Dark Orbit (part 1) ''Sean One is raiding Maximum transport cargo ships to obtain chemicals needed for his Damocles Platform, a deadly orbiting laser cannon he plans to use to force the Earth into declaring the Orbitals a nation. Helping him is Gorda, an Australian smuggler and most powerful pirate in the world.''
#Dark Orbit (part 2) ''The Phantom teams up with Graft and Maxwell Madison Jr. to stop Gorda and Sean One from firing the Damocles Platform at Metropia.''
#The Biot In Red ''Fleeing from the Phantom, Maxwell Jr. hides a vital data file stolen from Sean One, but the now-free fractal biot Heisenberg stumbles across it and seeks the Phantom, discovering more about his self-awareness and human emotions as he does so.''
#The Gauntlet ''Sparks discovers the truth about what happened to his parents, while Guran and the Phantom investigate a dangerous new security system in Cyberville: a shape-shifting, living building called Project Gauntlet.''
#Three Into One ''For seemingly no reason, three civilians become one shared, super-powered psychic consciousness, and the Enforcers have no choice but to ask the Phantom to stop the trio from destroying Metropia. To do so, the Phantom must find out the truth about the experimental Triad project.''
#Life Lessons ''Kit is shocked to discover that humans are masquerading as biots in an attempt to get work, but what's more shocking is the discovery of a hidden reactor in Cyberville, leaking radiation. The Phantom must team up with Heisenberg to stop the reactor before it explodes.''
#The Magician ''Sagan stumbles across a mysterious white-haired man who was friends with the Phantom in the time of Kit's father, and Graft will go to any lengths to find the strange "magician" before the Phantom can.''
#Swifter, Higher, Faster ''Maximum Inc. begins testing cybernetic nanobots to enhance the strength and brainpower of humans, not realising the dangerous side effects the treatment has.''
#Lasers In The Jungle ''Graft leads an armed raid on the Ghost Jungle to find the Phantom's hidden lair, and drags Vaingloria along with him. When Kit's plan to divert Graft from Sector Zero goes awry, the Phantom must improvise to save his friends from the wrath of Maximum's biot army.''
#Down The Line ''The Skull Lair receives a strange message from the future: the Phantom of 2157 pleads with the Phantom to break his pledge and kill Rebecca Madison, for the good of the world.''
#Control Group ''Rebecca Madison decides to test a new brainwave transfer method on Graft, causing the Phantom to stumble upon some of Graft's old memories, of his time as a soldier in the Resource Wars and his defiance against Maximum Inc. in an attempt to protect innocent natives of the Amazon. Now, the Phantom must help Graft remember that he was once a hero, to stop Rebecca from turning Metropia's new war memorial into a lethal plasma cannon.''
#A Boy And His Cat ''Maxwell Madison Jr. ends up trapped in virtual reality after his leisurely stroll through Maximum Inc.'s defences leaves Rebecca fuming, and the Phantom must get him out before he unknowingly destroys Metropia with his indestructible, virtually-controlled army of Legion biots.''

===Season 2===
#Rite Of Passage ''A recap of events in Season One, to bring new viewers up to date.''
#The World Is My Jungle ''The recap of Season One continues.''
#Sanctuary ''Queen Nia returns to the Ghost Jungle and brings with her a dangerous marksman, Gunnar, and together they capture Guran. But when Gunnar finds evidence of the presence of the fabled Shadow Panther, he forces Nia to accompany him on his hunting quest, and the Phantom must intervene before the pair end up destroying the Ghost Jungle. Meanwhile, Rebecca Madison abandons Maxwell's beloved cat in the streets of Metropia in a bid to draw him out of virtual reality.''
#The Ties That Bind ''After Rebecca Madison succeeds in destroying Sean One's main Orbital platform, the Phantom calls a hidden meeting with his scattered friends, but the group is ambushed by Graft's biot army and Dr. Jak.''
#The Woman In The Moon ''The Phantom is intrigued by a batch of cloned human hands being sent to Sean One just in time for the vote for Orbital independence, and he ventures into space as several espionage plots of both Maximum and Sean One clash with dangerous results.''
#Matter Over Mind ''Sparks stumbles upon a formula for the toxic chemicals involved in the Sector Zero wreck, which triggers lost memories within Mr. Cairo. With the Phantom's help, he discovers more about his past, and his connection to Dr. Jak and the Sector Zero crash.''
#The Sins Of The Fathers (part 1) ''Major details about Maxwell Sr.'s past and the Sector Zero crash are revealed, as Kit comes to question his father's actions. Rebecca finally succeeds in reviving Maxwell Madison Sr.''
#The Sins Of The Fathers (part 2) ''The group returns to the Skull Cave in Bengala, Africa, as Kit decides he no longer wishes to be the Phantom, but unbeknownst to them, Rebecca Madison has unleashed her biot army in Metropia as Cyberville approaches its final stages. The Phantom returns to Metropia for a last showdown with Maximum Inc.''
#The Sacrifice (part 1) ''Trapped in Cyberville, the Madison family offers Gorda a portion of Maximum Inc. if she helps them escape, while Kit and Sagan desperately search Maximum's ruins for information on the poison that threatens his father's life.''
#The Sacrifice (part 2) ''Gorda and the Madisons' schemes continue as the prisoners escape Cyberville, leaving the Phantom behind to seek information virtually in Maximum's data banks. Mr. Cairo offers his help, and casts his own existence into danger to save Kit's father.''
#Rogue
#The Second Time Around
#The Furies
#Moments Of Truth
#The Whole Truth

==Video game==
:''See [[Phantom 2040 (video game)]]''

A ''[[Phantom 2040 (video game)|Phantom 2040]]'' video game was produced for [[Sega Genesis]], [[Game Gear]] and [[Super NES]], and like the animated series, it received very positive reviews despite its obscurity. It is possible to play as both the Phantom and, in the Game Gear version, his alter-ego, Kit Walker. The game has over 20 different endings, depending on the choices the player makes while progressing through the story, and revolves around Rebecca Madison's attempts to create a biot army, revive her dead husband and seize control of both Metropia and the world.

==Comic books==
:''See [[Phantom 2040 (comic)]]''
''Phantom 2040'' was adapted into a comic book series by [[Marvel Comics]] in 1995 (cover dated May-Aug. 1995). Only four issues were published, released as a mini-series . The stories were only loosely based on the TV series, and had a different tone than the dark, complicated animated show. The comic book was written by [[Peter Quinones]], pencilled by [[Steve Ditko]], and inked by [[Bill Reinhold]]. Each issue featured a free poster drawn by such artists as [[John Romita Sr]].

==VHS and DVD editions==
Many episodes of the series have been released on VHS and DVD, but a definitive collection is yet to come. A DVD called ''[[Phantom 2040: The Ghost Who Walks]]'' was released in 2004, and includes the first five episodes of the series edited into a "movie". Many other episodes were released on VHS in the late 1990s.

==Trivia==
* The second episode begins with a 'recorded' voiceover that is preceded by a sound effect originally created by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop for the UK radio series ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''. It is the sound the Guide makes before responding to a question.

*The Phantoms multi-purpose vehicle was named H.E.R.O. after the comic strip Phantoms' horse [[Hero]].

*Sagan Cruz, the 24th Phantom's love interest and future police officer works with a cyborg police dog named D.V.L, a reference to the 21st Phantom's wolf [[Devil]].

*In the Phantom 2040 video game the initials J.P can be found spray painted on the walls of the subway which contains the Ghost Jungle, a reference to the [[Jungle Patrol]] from the comic strip.

==Availability==
Four VHS volumes of the series released during the time the show was on the air (each containing only two episodes). These volumes, [http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-2040-Generation-Unto/dp/630354181X/ref=pd_sim_v_3/103-1741107-9975859?ie=UTF8&qid=1182728716&sr=8-3 Generation Unto Generation], [http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-2040-Machine-Scott-Valentine/dp/6303541844/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3/103-1741107-9975859?ie=UTF8&s=video&qid=1182728716&sr=8-3 Ghost In The Machine], [http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-2040-Dark-Orbit-2/dp/6303541836/ref=pd_sim_v_1_img/103-1741107-9975859?ie=UTF8&qid=1182728716&sr=8-3 Dark Orbit] and [http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-2040-Fire-Scott-Valentine/dp/6303541828/ref=pd_sim_v_2/103-1741107-9975859?ie=UTF8&qid=1182728716&sr=8-3 Fire And Ice] are available as used copies at Amazon.com

There was a "movie" released entitled ''Phantom 2040: The Ghost Who Walks'' which edited together the first four episodes of Season One
(''Generation Unto Generation parts One and Two, The Sum of the Parts and Fire and I.C.E.'') into a 97 minuet movie. Originally released on VHS, recently, a DVD version of the The Ghost Who Walks film has been released in the US which you can get [http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-2040-Ghost-Who-Walk/dp/B0002J58J2/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-1741107-9975859?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1182728716&sr=8-1 HERE].

Unfortunately, there has been no series set released of ''Phantom 2040'' and it does not look like there will be one anytime soon. In the mean time however, a number of episodes are available to watch
on [http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_videos&search_query=Phantom%202040&search_sort=video_date_uploaded&search_category=0&search=Search&v= YouTube].

==Cast==
* The Phantom/ Kit Walker....Scott Valentine
* Rebecca Madison....Margrot Kidder
* Guran....J. D. Hall
* Jack Archer....Alan Oppenheimer
* Sagan Cruz....Leah Remini
* Aunt Heloise.... Carrie Snodgress
* Maxwell Madison Jr....Jeff Bennett
* Graft....Ron Perlman (season one)/ Richard Lynch (rest of series)
* Doctor Jack.... Mark Hamill
* Sean One/ Heinsberg.... Rob Paulsen

==References==
*[http://www.chroniclechamber.com ChronicleChamber.com] Referance page (no longer on-line)

==External links==
* [http://www.reeves-stevens.com/phantom.html Official Phantom 2040 website of the main writers of the series]
* [http://www.coldcut.com/video/p2040/ Phantom 2040 - The Ghost Jungle]
* [http://www.chroniclechamber.com ChronicleChamber.com]

[[Category:Adaptations]]

{{Wikipedia|October 11, 2007|Phantom 2040}}

Frew Publications

2008-02-10T07:13:10Z

203.164.108.44:

Frew has been printing ''The Phantom'' longer than any other publisher in the world. From 1948 to today Frew has provided Australians with stories of The Ghost Who Walks for 59 years.

==History==
Created in 1948 by Sydney businessmen Ron Forsyth, Lawford Richardson, Jack Eisner and John Watson they
created the business name Frew by combining the first letter of each surname. Not long after Eisner
and Watson left but the name Frew was retained. Forsyth and Richardson approached Yaffa
Syndicate in Sydney who represented King Features Syndicate in Australia about producing a
Phantom comic book. Yaffa agreed but there were, as always, conditions to which Frew had to
adhere. Frew was instructed that they could not print anything that was currently running in other
publications, nor could they print anything too soon after it has appeared in the Australian Woman’s Mirror. Frew should have commenced with Falk’s first Phantom adventure The Singh Brotherhood but due to the
conditions stated by Yaffa Frew’s first Phantom edition contained the story The Slave Traders. (The book had the message ''Enter the Phantom'' on the cover.) This first edition debuted on the 9th of September, 1948.

During 1949 to 1958 Frew also printed books containing a host of other heroes including ''Popeye, The Phantom Ranger, The Shadow'' (not the American ''Shadow'', this was an Australian creation) and ''Super Yank Comics'' to name but a few. However the growing popularity of television and a sudden flood of imported American titles in 1950 saw Frew reduce their output to a single title – ''The Phantom''.

In November 1978 Frew published its first Swedish created ''Phantom'' adventures in issue #730 which was entitled ''The Ghos''t. Frew received the art and scripts from Egmont and the scripts were (and still are) translated and re-lettered in Frew’s office. (However, it seems they may not be perfect translations. On a number of occasions writers of Egmont’s stories have commented that Frew translations were incorrect.) Although the Egmont stories now make up the bulk of Frew’s output a second Scandinavian created story did not see release until 1983.

In 1987 Jim Richardson passed away and Ron Forsyth went into semi-retirement. Enter Jim Shepherd, the company’s current owner and
publisher. Although Jim himself admits he had little knowledge of the Australian comics industry in the early days it was he that started the
Frew tradition of re-printing Falk stories in their entirety. Jim discovered that, for whatever reason, Frew very rarely published an unedited
Falk story. Stories had been cropped and even re-drawn and re-lettered. As for the Scandinavian stories all of the credits had been removed and the titles altered. With the help of ''Phantom'' historian Barry Stubbersfield as well as fellow enthusiasts Carl Braga, John Hendersonm Garry Veage and Wally Bratasiuk Jim was able to compile data on Lee Falk chronology, official story titles and story start and finish dates. Armed with this information Jim decided to publish Falk stories in their entirety.
The biggest success story to come out of Frew’s re-printing of unedited Falk tales was issue #910A, The Phantom Goes to War, which told of the Phantom leading the Bandar in a battle against invading Japanese during World War II. The issue was a huge sell-out and is now highly sought after by collectors.

In 1990 Frew published the first ever Australian created Phantom adventure, Rumble in the Jungle which
appeared in issue #994A. It was another sell out issues.

In 1991 Frew released its 1000th edition; however the issue number was actually #972. There was much
confusion as to how issue #972 could be the 1000th edition, but the explanation was fairly simple. There had never been an issue #330 due to a printing error. Therefore issues #970 was actually the 969th issue printed.

Add to that the other 29 issues that had been produced either without a number (such as the first and second
issues) or as a special “A” issues (such as #848A) and issue #971 became the 999th issue actually printed
which made issue #972 the 1000th. Because of the confusion the “A” issues were cancelled. The 1000th edition was also the first of the large format editions that is the format now used for the yearly Annuals. The issue was a huge success. 1992 saw the actual issue #1000 released. Again Frew used the larger format for this issue and commissioned a computer generated
wraparound cover from Sydney artist Glenn Ford. This was the first Frew issues to sport a CG cover.

1996 saw the release of the big screen ''The Phantom'' movie. Although Frew did not get the rights to print a magazine detailing the making of the film (this went to another Australian publisher) Frew did celebrate the film’s release by re-printing the Falk classic The Sky Band on which the film is partly based. The issue had a photo cover depicting Billy Zane as the Phantom and Kristy Swanson as Diana Palmer riding Hero through the jungle from a scene from the film. 1996 also saw the 60th anniversary of The Phantom character and Frew celebrated by re- printing in its entirety the story which started it all ''The Singh Brotherhood''.

Frew celebrated 50 years of producing ''The Phantom'' in Australia in 1998. Frew produced a very special issue to celebrate the occasion and excitement rippled through the Phan community. Issue #1209 was Frew’s 50th Anniversary issue. It sported a new CG cover by Glenn Ford inspired by the 1996 film poster. With the issue was included the now invaluable ''Index: The First 50 Years of The Phantom'', a book containing all the information about Frew’s Phantom publishing history. The anniversary issue also saw the first, and to date only tile colour was used in
the interior of a Frew edition.

Sadly, ''Phantom'' creator Lee Falk passed away in 1999. Frew celebrated Lee’s life with a special tribute edition (#1226) which re-printed four of Lee’s classic Phantom stories. The cover of the issue was by Glenn Ford. On the back cover was featured Mandrake the Magician and Lothar, Lee’s other comic creations.

Now, in 2007 Frew is set to celebrate their 1500th issue, a milestone for any comics publisher. Echoes of the 1000th issue ring out and the excitement is building as Frew has promised something very special. Frew has now been producing The Phantom comic book for almost 60 years in Australia. Sales are still high and the character is still the most popular of all comic heroes in Australia. The way things are Frew will be
around for another 60 year to come!

==References==
*[http://www.chroniclechamber.com ChronicleChamber.com] Referance page (no longer on-line)

[[Category: Publishers]]

Egmont

2008-02-10T07:04:00Z

203.164.108.44: New page: ==History== Founded by Egmont Harald Perterson in 1878 Egmont is one of the leading media groups of Scandinavia. In 1948 Egmont began publishing a Donald Duck comic based upon the classic ...

==History==
Founded by Egmont Harald Perterson in 1878 Egmont is one of the leading media groups of Scandinavia. In
1948 Egmont began publishing a Donald Duck comic based upon the classic Disney character.

In 1991 Egmont purchased Fleetway, an arm of IPC Media in the UK and became Britain’s largest comic publisher.

==The Phantom==
As for Egmont’s Phantom output, the company publishers fortnightly Phantom comics in Norway (Fantomet),
Sweden (Fantomen), and Finland (Mustanaamio). The large majority of stories appearing in these comics are original adventures created specifically for the Scandinavian market, the first of these original stories appeared in
1963.

Today a large group of writers and artists such as David Bishop, Tony DePaul, Kari Leppanen, Hans Lindahl, Alex Saviuk and many more make up the creative team behind Egmont’s Phantom books and have been given the nickname Team Fantomen by the Phans.
Recently the Team have been creating more emotional and challenging stories looking more at the man behind the mask. A perfect example
of this is the Year One story arc published in 2004 which was highly controversial among Phantom Phans. While some Phans enjoyed the
series others felt it deviated too far from Falk’s original idea of the character.

==Frew Publications Connection==
n 1978 publisher of the Australian Phantom comic Frew Publications began re-printing Team Fantoman stories translated for an
Australian audience. These re-prints now make up the bulk of Frew’s output.

Egmont continues to produce more original Phantom material than any other publisher in the world.

==References==
*[http://www.chroniclechamber.com ChronicleChamber.com] Referance page (no longer on-line)

Frew Publications

2008-02-10T06:58:07Z

203.164.108.44:

Frew has been printing ''The Phantom'' longer than any other publisher in the world. From 1948 to today Frew has provided Australians with stories of The Ghost Who Walks for 59 years.

==History==
Created in 1948 by Sydney businessmen Ron Forsyth, Lawford Richardson, Jack Eisner and John Watson they
created the business name Frew by combining the first letter of each surname. Not long after Eisner
and Watson left but the name Frew was retained. Forsyth and Richardson approached Yaffa
Syndicate in Sydney who represented King Features Syndicate in Australia about producing a
Phantom comic book. Yaffa agreed but there were, as always, conditions to which Frew had to
adhere. Frew was instructed that they could not print anything that was currently running in other
publications, nor could they print anything too soon after it has appeared in the Australian Woman’s Mirror. Frew should have commenced with Falk’s first Phantom adventure The Singh Brotherhood but due to the
conditions stated by Yaffa Frew’s first Phantom edition contained the story The Slave Traders. (The book had the message ''Enter the Phantom'' on the cover.) This first edition debuted on the 9th of September, 1948.

During 1949 to 1958 Frew also printed books containing a host of other heroes including ''Popeye, The Phantom Ranger, The Shadow'' (not the American ''Shadow'', this was an Australian creation) and ''Super Yank Comics'' to name but a few. However the growing popularity of television and a sudden flood of imported American titles in 1950 saw Frew reduce their output to a single title – ''The Phantom''.

In November 1978 Frew published its first Swedish created ''Phantom'' adventures in issue #730 which was entitled ''The Ghos''t. Frew received the art and scripts from Egmont and the scripts were (and still are) translated and re-lettered in Frew’s office. (However, it seems they may not be perfect translations. On a number of occasions writers of Egmont’s stories have commented that Frew translations were incorrect.) Although the Egmont stories now make up the bulk of Frew’s output a second Scandinavian created story did not see release until 1983.

In 1987 Jim Richardson passed away and Ron Forsyth went into semi-retirement. Enter Jim Shepherd, the company’s current owner and
publisher. Although Jim himself admits he had little knowledge of the Australian comics industry in the early days it was he that started the
Frew tradition of re-printing Falk stories in their entirety. Jim discovered that, for whatever reason, Frew very rarely published an unedited
Falk story. Stories had been cropped and even re-drawn and re-lettered. As for the Scandinavian stories all of the credits had been removed and the titles altered. With the help of ''Phantom'' historian Barry Stubbersfield as well as fellow enthusiasts Carl Braga, John Hendersonm Garry Veage and Wally Bratasiuk Jim was able to compile data on Lee Falk chronology, official story titles and story start and finish dates. Armed with this information Jim decided to publish Falk stories in their entirety.
The biggest success story to come out of Frew’s re-printing of unedited Falk tales was issue #910A, The Phantom Goes to War, which told of the Phantom leading the Bandar in a battle against invading Japanese during World War II. The issue was a huge sell-out and is now highly sought after by collectors.

In 1990 Frew published the first ever Australian created Phantom adventure, Rumble in the Jungle which
appeared in issue #994A. It was another sell out issues.

In 1991 Frew released its 1000th edition; however the issue number was actually #972. There was much
confusion as to how issue #972 could be the 1000th edition, but the explanation was fairly simple. There had never been an issue #330 due to a printing error. Therefore issues #970 was actually the 969th issue printed.

Add to that the other 29 issues that had been produced either without a number (such as the first and second
issues) or as a special “A” issues (such as #848A) and issue #971 became the 999th issue actually printed
which made issue #972 the 1000th. Because of the confusion the “A” issues were cancelled. The 1000th edition was also the first of the large format editions that is the format now used for the yearly Annuals. The issue was a huge success. 1992 saw the actual issue #1000 released. Again Frew used the larger format for this issue and commissioned a computer generated
wraparound cover from Sydney artist Glenn Ford. This was the first Frew issues to sport a CG cover.

1996 saw the release of the big screen ''The Phantom'' movie. Although Frew did not get the rights to print a magazine detailing the making of the film (this went to another Australian publisher) Frew did celebrate the film’s release by re-printing the Falk classic The Sky Band on which the film is partly based. The issue had a photo cover depicting Billy Zane as the Phantom and Kristy Swanson as Diana Palmer riding Hero through the jungle from a scene from the film. 1996 also saw the 60th anniversary of The Phantom character and Frew celebrated by re- printing in its entirety the story which started it all ''The Singh Brotherhood''.

Frew celebrated 50 years of producing ''The Phantom'' in Australia in 1998. Frew produced a very special issue to celebrate the occasion and excitement rippled through the Phan community. Issue #1209 was Frew’s 50th Anniversary issue. It sported a new CG cover by Glenn Ford inspired by the 1996 film poster. With the issue was included the now invaluable ''Index: The First 50 Years of The Phantom'', a book containing all the information about Frew’s Phantom publishing history. The anniversary issue also saw the first, and to date only tile colour was used in
the interior of a Frew edition.

Sadly, ''Phantom'' creator Lee Falk passed away in 1999. Frew celebrated Lee’s life with a special tribute edition (#1226) which re-printed four of Lee’s classic Phantom stories. The cover of the issue was by Glenn Ford. On the back cover was featured Mandrake the Magician and Lothar, Lee’s other comic creations.

Now, in 2007 Frew is set to celebrate their 1500th issue, a milestone for any comics publisher. Echoes of the 1000th issue ring out and the excitement is building as Frew has promised something very special. Frew has now been producing The Phantom comic book for almost 60 years in Australia. Sales are still high and the character is still the most popular of all comic heroes in Australia. The way things are Frew will be
around for another 60 year to come!

==External Links==
[http://www.chroniclechamber.com ChronicleChamber.com] (Information gathered from older version of site)

[[Category: Publishers]]