In 1995, a new, original sequel to the adventures of Verne's Captain Nemo appeared on American television. SPACE STRIKERS (also known as 20,000 LEAGUES IN OUTER SPACE) is an animated series of 40 half-hour television shows directed by Bruno Bianchi, with Dana Booton in charge of production, and distributed by Saban Entertainment. This multi-national production, made in Europe, the United States, and Korea, combines conventional line drawing with computer animation to achieve a three dimensional effect in selected sequences, labeled "Strikervision 3-D."
SPACE STRIKERS relates the outer space exploits of a descendant of Verne's Captain Nemo. This new Nemo captains a heavily-armed super spacecraft, the Nautilus, which in appearance more closely resembles a submarine than a rocket ship. His two principle mates are Ned Land, a fellow human, and Dakkar, a man from another planet who has been transformed to resemble a wolf. A robot is named Aronnax, and a blonde crew member, Dana, supplies feminine interest for Nemo.
Nemo and his crew battle "the Master Phantom," who believes he is destined to rule the galaxy. Before adopting the identity of "the Master Phantom," he was once human, and a close friend of Nemo's when the two were youths at the space academy. However, "the Master Phantom" believes Nemo deliberately abandoned him on an asteroid during a meteor shower. Wounded, his life was saved by the evil Metallic, who turned him into a Darth Vader-type figure, part-man, part-machine. The consuming ambition of "the Master Phantom" is now to establish dominion in space and to secure his vengeance against Nemo. Nemo, by contrast, is in the forefront of the fight for freedom, as he and "the Master Phantom" engage in the "ultimate battle" across the galaxy.
Each episode depicts an encounter between the two adversaries, on distant planets and abandoned space stations. While "the Master Phantom" has the resources of fleets of spacecraft to hurl at the Nautilus, Nemo must rely on clever tactics to outwit his adversary. He also has the power of "the stone of Solara," a magical talisman which for brief periods can make Nemo almost invincible.
Despite the plot twists and exploits reminiscent of STAR TREK and especially STAR WARS, SPACE STRIKERS is an unexpectedly exciting, imaginative series, well-written and produced. SPACE STRIKERS is worthwhile viewing, and deserves its place among the original media sequels to the adventures of Verne's undersea hero.
SPACE STRIKERS relates the outer space exploits of a descendant of Verne's Captain Nemo. This new Nemo captains a heavily-armed super spacecraft, the Nautilus, which in appearance more closely resembles a submarine than a rocket ship. His two principle mates are Ned Land, a fellow human, and Dakkar, a man from another planet who has been transformed to resemble a wolf. A robot is named Aronnax, and a blonde crew member, Dana, supplies feminine interest for Nemo.
Nemo and his crew battle "the Master Phantom," who believes he is destined to rule the galaxy. Before adopting the identity of "the Master Phantom," he was once human, and a close friend of Nemo's when the two were youths at the space academy. However, "the Master Phantom" believes Nemo deliberately abandoned him on an asteroid during a meteor shower. Wounded, his life was saved by the evil Metallic, who turned him into a Darth Vader-type figure, part-man, part-machine. The consuming ambition of "the Master Phantom" is now to establish dominion in space and to secure his vengeance against Nemo. Nemo, by contrast, is in the forefront of the fight for freedom, as he and "the Master Phantom" engage in the "ultimate battle" across the galaxy.
Each episode depicts an encounter between the two adversaries, on distant planets and abandoned space stations. While "the Master Phantom" has the resources of fleets of spacecraft to hurl at the Nautilus, Nemo must rely on clever tactics to outwit his adversary. He also has the power of "the stone of Solara," a magical talisman which for brief periods can make Nemo almost invincible.
Despite the plot twists and exploits reminiscent of STAR TREK and especially STAR WARS, SPACE STRIKERS is an unexpectedly exciting, imaginative series, well-written and produced. SPACE STRIKERS is worthwhile viewing, and deserves its place among the original media sequels to the adventures of Verne's undersea hero.
