Mega Man (TV series)

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Mega Man
Format Animated series
Created by Keiji Inafune (characters)
Country of origin Flag of the United States United States
Flag of Japan Japan
No. of episodes 27
Production
Running time 22 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel Flag of the United States first-run syndication
Flag of Japan TV Tokyo
Original run September 11, 1994 – December 10, 1995

Mega Man was an animated television series co-produced between Japan & United States and is based loosely on the game series of the same name. It was created by Ruby-Spears Productions and both animated and written in Japan by Capcom themselves. The series began in 1994 and ended in December 10, 1995 (the series was released in both Japan and America simultaneously), and was aired on many syndicated stations at the time. Two seasons were produced with a third planned but never realized.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Dr. Light and Dr. Wily were brilliant scientists in the field of robotics, who worked together in a laboratory trying to advance the science. One day, they finished an extremely advanced prototype, but shortly after being activated, it started destroying the laboratory. Dr. Light immediately believed that the prototype's guidance system, which Dr. Wily had personally programmed, was the source of the problem and concluded they would start over again. Angered, Dr. Wily attempted to steal the plans later that night, but Dr. Light catches him. Wily is able to steal the plans after knocking Dr. Light down, and goes off to what is apparently an abandoned area, and modifies the old robot prototype into Proto Man.

Later, Dr. Light builds Rock and Roll, advanced robots with personalities, along with Ice Man, Guts Man, and Cut Man. Dr. Wily and Proto Man go and steal the robots, reprogramming the later three robots as henchmen. Dr. Wily attempts to reprogram Rock and Roll at his lab later, but Rock decides to trick Dr. Wily. He tells Dr. Wily that Dr. Light also built "super warrior robots", and that if Rock and Roll are let go, he'll tell him how to defeat the robots. Rock uses this lie (Dr. Wily believing robots can't lie) to cause a distraction and escape with Roll. Dr. Light decides to reprogram and reoutfit Rock into Mega Man, who from then on keeps the world safe. This tale is told in Episode 1, "The Beginning".

Throughout the episodes, Mega Man thwarts Wily's various schemes, in a similar fashion to that of the "Super Friends", usually ending with Rush acting like Scooby Doo, a character in another television show.

[edit] History

Mega Man starred in a Saturday-morning style cartoon that premiered in 1995. The show was made by animating company Ruby-Spears, which redesigned the characters from the Mega Man video games to varying degrees. At the time the show was undergoing its early development, anime had not yet achieved a "mainstream" acceptance, plus the producers felt the look skewed too young for the retro-80's-style action-adventure cartoon they had in mind. The final look of the characters was among many different interpretations proposed and was the most well-received by test audiences (it is worth noting that characters who appeared for the first time in season two were considerably more faithful to the original models, only given slightly different proportions and the occasional nose). The series was targeted towards the late preteen boy audience, though Roll's expanded and much more active role in the series was calculated to try and draw in more girl viewers as well (producer Joe Ruby joked "Also, it showed we're not male chauvinistic pigs as our wives think"). X, along with Vile, Spark Mandrill, and "Cigma" (Sygma) made a guest appearance late in the second season, and was planned to make more appearances in later shows, with the potential for his own spinoff cartoon as well.

Despite consistent high ratings and being a series producers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears really enjoyed working on, the show was canceled after two seasons. A single post-season-two episode was created to complete Ruby-Spears' contractual obligations; no true "season three" plans had been put into motion at the time of the cancellation. The decision to end the cartoon was handed down from Capcom, most likely due to merchandising pressures from toy-partner Bandai, which cut several other popular toy lines at the time short due to not meeting sales expectations (including The Tick, Sailor Moon, and Dragon Ball).

[edit] Promotional show and change in design

Prior to the show's premiere a short animated promo was released which utilized a graphic-style more similar with the graphic design of the games. When the show was being produced, the designs of characters were changed, most likely to better appeal to American audiences. Most characters gained more masculine or realistic looks, and usually somewhat different appearances in powers. Mega Man was given an edgier and more realistic look compared to his original anime design. Also, Mega Man's persona changed from boyish into a teen with an attitude. The design also changed as Mega Man and Proto Man became taller and more muscular. Often, Protoman and Mega Man would use their fists or wrestle instead of using their in game abilities.

[edit] Trivia

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.
  • The Beginning, while considered to be the pilot episode, was aired after Electric Nightmare in some parts of the U.S.
  • Proto Man, Roll, Mega Man, Cut Man and Guts Man were the only robot masters that appeared in every episode.
  • In the video games, Mega Man had to obtain and install a weapon chip to obtain a robot master's powers; this did not require Mega Man to destroy the robot master, as made evident by Cut Man giving Mega Man his weapon chip in a cutscene in Super Adventure Rockman. In the TV Show, he had to touch a robot with his hand (which utilized the weapon-copying technology). The assimilated weapons could only be used for a short time, though exactly how long they lasted varied greatly.
  • Contrary to his role in the games, Proto Man becomes a recurring villain for the cartoon. It is notable, given the show began airing a year before the release of Mega Man 7 that Proto Man portrays a role similar to Bass. Dark Man, the robot used to frame him in Mega Man 5, also appears in "Brain Bots" and "The Day the Moon Fell," even though he is not considered a true Robot Master.
  • Other Characters that did not appear in the series:
    • Classic Mega Man Characters - Auto, Bass (replaced by Protoman), Beat, Bio-Devil, Dr. Cossack, Duo (not conceived yet), Kalinka, Mega Man Killers, Quint, Tango, and Treble.
    • Characters from Mega Man X - Dr. Cain (however, Dr. Cain was briefly seen in the computer's monitor in Dr. Light's Lab in Mega X. Dr. Cain's look in the computer monitor resembles Dr. Cossack's look).
  • Robot Masters that did not appear in the series:
    • Mega Man 1 - All were present
    • Mega Man 2 - Bubble Man and Flash Man (curiously, Bubble Man appeared in Captain N: The Game Master, resembling Aqua Man from Mega Man 8)
    • Mega Man 3 - All were present
    • Mega Man 4 - Skull Man (it is worth noting that in the game, the Robot Masters were built by Dr. Cossack, not Dr. Wily)
    • Mega Man 5 - Charge Man (replaced by Dark Man) and Napalm Man (however, Napalm Man is briefly seen in the opening)
    • Mega Man 6 - None were present
  • Reploids and Mavericks that did not appear in the series:
    • Mega Man X - Launch Octopus, Chill Penguin, Boomer Kuwanger, Flame Mammoth, Sting Chameleon, Storm Eagle, Armored Armadillo, and Zero
  • There were two episodes centering around time-travel.
    • In Future Shock - Mega Man ends up 30 years into the future.
    • In Mega X - Mega Man X, Vile and Spark Mandrill come back through time to Mega Man's age.
Both episodes contradict the timeline of the games where the X-series actually takes place 100 years (originally speculated as 30 years) into the future of the original (Classic series). A remark by Vile indicates that in the show's timeline, X's time period occurs centuries into the future.
  • Ian James Corlett, who voiced Mega Man (and a few Robot Masters) was the voice of Dr. Wily on Captain N: The Game Master. Incidentally, Gary Chalk, the voice of Guts Man, was the voice of King Hippo on the same show. Both actors also had roles in the late-90's Sonic Underground.
  • The music from the show was later used as replacement-music for the English dubbed version of Dragon Ball Z (Ocean Group dub, not the early Ocean Group/Funimation dub of the Saiyan (Vegeta) or Namek sagas or the later dub by Funimation). Ian James Corlett is also one of the voices of Son Goku, on the Ocean Group/Funimation dub of the first two sagas. Similarly, music from this show was also used as replacement music in the English dub of the Monster Rancher anime.
  • Throughout the series, Snake Man's hands tend to alternate between being gloved and being not gloved. This happens several times in the episode "Campus Commandos".
  • The Robot Armor design in the episode "Bad Day at Peril Park" is similar to Mega Man's design on the American box art for Mega Man.
  • Ian James Corlett (voice of Mega Man), Gary Chalk (voice of Guts Man) and Scott McNeil (voice of Protoman) were also all voice actors in Beast Wars. They played Cheetor, Optimus Primal, and Rattrap, respectively.

[edit] Episodes

[edit] Season 1

Episode Airdate Title
1x01 September 11, 1994 "The Beginning" The first episode of Mega Man. Wily attacks an airport and Mega Man is defeated. While being repaired, Dr. Light tells Roll of their beginning.
1x02 September 18, 1994 "Electric Nightmare" Dr. Wily takes over the power grid with a device that allows him to control machines through electricity. He then proceeds to attempt to take over the city with things like rampaging soda machines and runaway monorail cars and only Mega Man can stop his plans.
1x03 September 25, 1994 "Mega-Pinocchio" Dr. Wily cons Mega Man into trying to become human, which he then uses to his advantage to reprogram the blue robot.
1x04 October 2, 1994 "The Big Shake" Dr. Wily has found a way to create earthquakes and demands the city surrender or be destroyed. Megaman must go out in search of his new machine, while Dr. Light tries attempts to find a way to counteract Dr. Wily's earthquakes.
1x05 October 9, 1994 "Robosaur Park" A de-evolution serum that only has an effect on robots is released. Now Dr. Light has to find an antidote so he can change back Mega Man and the other robots, before they destroy the city.
1x06 October 16, 1994 "Mega Man in the Moon" Dr. Wily plots to gain control of a giant laser on the moon. Mega Man follows him up into space to stop him. But Mega Man has to first deal with Dr. Wily's robots and with time running out can he get the giant laser in time to stop Dr. Wily?
1x07 October 23, 1994 "20,000 Leaks under the Sea" Dr. Wily attacks an underwater mining operation, then tries to get rid of Dr. Light and Mega Man with a fake laboratory that turns out to be a mobile prison.
1x08 October 30, 1994 "The Incredible Shrinking Megaman" Dr. Wily steals three gems from a museum and uses them to shrink major cities and Mega Man!
1x09 November 6, 1994 "Bot Transfer" Dr. Light, Mega Man, Roll, and Rush fly to a conference and encounter Dr. Wily’s robots on the airplane along the way. Turns out Wily has built transport chambers capable of somehow transferring circuits from one robot to another. Mega Man gets swapped into Snake Man’s body and has to save the world in that form.
1x10 November 13, 1994 "Ice Age" Dr. Wily steals a super freeze technology from Zero Refrigeration Company to create a giant glacier and freeze cities, drive out their leaders, and replace them with his robots (and that’s in his words). Ice Man, however, decides he’s being replaced by Air Man and double-crosses the evil scientist.
1x11 November 20, 1994 "Cold Steel" Dr. Wily's robots disguise themselves like a rock band to unleash a mind controlling music. Only Mega Man, Roll and a young deaf girl remain unaffected.
1x12 November 27, 1994 "Future Shock" Mega Man is accidentally booted to the future by Dr. Light’s new time machine, where he discovers that because he wasn’t in the past to stop Dr. Wily, the evil scientist has taken over the planet. Mega Man must find his way back to his own time so that he can reverse this horrible future.
1x13 December 4, 1994 "The Strange Island of Dr. Wily" Due to a malfunction in Dr. Wily’s newest invention, the scientist and his bots get stranded on an island with none other than Dr. Light, Mega Man, and Roll. With no other alternative, the good guys and the bad guys team up in an attempt to get off the island alive. Of course, Dr. Wily is using the truce as a way to get his invention back.

[edit] Season 2

Episode Airdate Title
2x14 September 10, 1995 "Showdown at Red Gultch" Dr. Wily finds a meteor with crystals that can super-power robots. However, the crystals also have a nasty side effect of overloading the circuits of the robots using them after a random period of time.
2x15 September 17, 1995 "Terror of the Seven Seas" Dr. Wily labors to create a sea fort, stealing ships for parts. His plan works for a while but when Mega Man comes to investigate he soon learns of Dr. Wily's plot and puts a stop to it.
2x16 September 24, 1995 "Mega Dreams" After seeing his new device can hypnotize humans in their sleep, Dr. Wily plots to use it to take control of the planet. Yet unknown to him, the machine has hynotized everyone around him and now he can't get anything done.
2x17 October 1, 1995 "Robo-Spider" Dr. Light creates a supercomputer that can defend military bases. Dr. Wily wants to destroy the supercomputer and take over the military bases. He uses a robot spider to drain the city of energy. Can Mega Man stop this madness?
2x18 October 8, 1995 "Master of Disaster" Dr. Wily frees a genie, trying to use his magic for world domination. Mega Man goes after Wily and tries to steal the magic lamp. Eventually, he tricks Dr. Wily into wishing he never found the lamp.
2x19 October 15, 1995 "Night of the Living Monster Bots" Dr. Wily unleashes horror movie monster robots, which attack everything in sight. However, when he begins to lose control and has to shut them down before they come destroy his lab, he sets up Mega Man to do his dirty work for him. This was the only episode in which no Robot Masters appear alongside Dr. Wily, Cut Man, Guts Man, and Proto Man.
2x20 October 22, 1995 "Curse of the Lion Men" Dr. Wily's robots discover humanoid lion creatures, which use their strange power to turn people into lions. Both Dr. Light and Dr. Wily get turned into lions and now Mega Man must join forces with his enemies in order to change them back.
2x21 October 29, 1995 "The Day the Moon Fell" Dr. Wily has pulled the moon closer to Earth, creating widespread disasters. Dr. Light now has to figure out a way to put the moon back into orbit, while Mega Man must destroy Dr. Wily's device.
2x22 November 5, 1995 "Campus Commandos" Light creates a college to school robots in various subjects, not the least of which is how to build his newest invention: an anti-gravity device. Dr. Wily on the other hand decides he wants the device for himself and attacks the school to get it, reprogramming many of the students to help him accomplish this task.
2x23 November 12, 1995 "Brain Bot" Mega Man must prevent Dr. Wily from stealing Dr. Light's new robot, Brain Bot. He is too late and Dr. Wily gets his hands on the robot, but thanks to Mega Man he doesn't have time to make any adjustments and the robot ends up helping Mega Man.
2x24 November 19, 1995 "Bro Bots" Proto Man supposedly switches sides and Dr. Wily plots to replace city officials with robots. Mega Man is wary of Proto Man and has him watched at all times. He then overhears Proto Man talking to Dr. Wily about his plot and stops the whole thing.
2x25 November 26, 1995 "Bad Day at Peril Park" Dr. Wily's amusement park, Fun World, is really a front to hypnotize the visitors. He even manages to hypnotize Mega Man and now it's up to his friends to save the day.
2x26 December 3, 1995 "Mega X" The evil Mavericks Vile and Spark Mandrill have arrived from the future, and the two of them quickly prove far too powerful even for Mega Man, but he is saved by Mega Man X who's in hot pursuit of the two Mavericks. Mega Man doesn't know what to make of everything but helps X anyway. In the end, Mega Man realizes what his potential future could be and vows to keep it from happening.
2x28 December 10, 1995 "Crime of the Century" Dr. Wily reprograms a bunch of dolls and other toys to perform robberies all over the city. However, it's all just a diversion so Wily can get his hands on something much more valuable: a giant black pearl. Mega Man has to figure out his plan and stop Wily's final plot, once and for all.

(Note: This is episode number 28. There is believed to have been an episode "27" that was planned to air before this, but it never aired.)

[edit] See also