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| EPISODE GUIDE CHARACTERS • MORE | |
| Premiere | October 10, 1998 |
| Finale | January 20, 1999 |
| Network | The WB (US) YTV (Canada) |
| Seasons | 1 |
| Episodes | 13 |
Brats of the Lost Nebula was a science fiction Saturday morning series created by Dan Clark featuring Creature Shop puppets and CG effects. The series premiered on the WB Network on October 10, 1998.
The show takes place in a mysterious galaxy known as the Lost Nebula. An evil alien army known as the Shock is systematically annihilating entire worlds, led by High Commander Hextar Vigar and his mad scientist associate Doctor Faboo. Five orphans, Zadam, Triply, Duncan, Lavana, and Ryle were separated from their families from different planets by the Shock and are sent to a strange planetoid. Using it as their headquarters, the five orphans band together to fight against the invading armies of the Shock.
Although thirteen episodes were produced, WB canceled the show after the third episode. The remaining episodes premiered on Canada's YTV channel, with the last airing on January 20, 1999. The remaining episodes wouldn't be released in the United States until April 2020 on Roku.[1]
Ironically, Brats of the Lost Nebula was selected by TV Guide as one of the Top Ten children's series of the year the week WB canceled the series.
Episodes[]
- Episode 101: What Mom Said
- Episode 102: Total Bratification
- Episode 103: Brain Dead
- Episode 104: A Lozian Necessity
- Episode 105: Heart Hunters
- Episode 106: Punk Chip
- Episode 107: The Runaways
- Episode 108: Mutant Freak
- Episode 109: Blite For a Day
- Episode 110: The Acceptors
- Episode 111: Faith
- Episode 112: Mom & Dad
- Episode 113: Papa's Got a Brand New Bag
Characters[]
Production[]
The series was created by Dan Clark, who also served as an executive producer along with Brian Henson and Margaret Loesch. The show was originally announced and developed under the title "Brats of the Dark Nebula."[2] According to Clark, influences for the show included Thunderbirds, Sting Ray, Captain Scarlet and all of the Andersons' action puppet projects along with The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth and The Storyteller.[3]
Production and principal filming took place from May 1998 to January 1999 in Toronto, Canada.[4]
The puppet characters were a mix of both traditional hand puppets and animatronics built by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The computer graphics were created by C.O.R.E. Digital Effects. Several puppets from The Jim Henson Hour, CityKids, Dinosaurs and Aliens in the Family were recycled on the show, while others (such as an alien) went on to be reused in later Muppet productions. Several puppets from the series (including Zadam, Lavana and Doctor Faboo) were displayed as part of "The Jim Henson Co. Prop/Puppet Museum" at MuppetFest in 2001.
Puppeteers on the series included Bill Barretta, Stephen Brathwaite, Matt Ficner, John E. Kennedy, Trish Leeper, Sue Morrison, Ian Petrella, James Rankin, Gordon Robertson, Fred Stinson, Jeff Sweeney, Jean-Guy White, Mak Wilson, and Yolanda Yott.[5]
The voice cast included Glenn Cross (Duncan), Kirby Morrow (Zadam), Annick Obonsawin (Triply), Deborah Odell (Lavana), and Evan Sabba (Ryle). James Rankin (who also puppeteered), Rob Smith, and Len Carlson were credited regularly as additional voices, which on select episodes also included Tony Daniels, Catherine Disher, and Jane Luk.
Unproduced Follow-ups[]
In early 1999, a Playback article reported that "another thirteen [episodes] are on the way,"[6] however a second season of episodes was never produced.
Dan Clark mentioned that ideas for the second season included introducing Duncan's grandfather (teased in the season one finale) who was going to be a mechanic on Captain Malusha's ship. Other story ideas for season 2 included: Ryle rejecting the Tranoids after they sell him out yet again, the group meeting another group of Brats who were a more wild and bad-natured group of orphans, flashbacks to all the kids lives on their home planets, Hextar Vigar's backstory of him being a Brat himself, and further exploration of who the Hosts were. Clark was adamant that Zadam and Triply would never actually find their parents, stating: "Zadam and Tripoli don't get their parents - that was the plan."[7]
In September 2002, Kidscreen mentioned that the Dan Clark Company was "currently working on a Brats of the Lost Nebula direct-to-video title with Henson."[8] This project never materialized.
Credits[]
- Creator: Dan Clark
- Executive Producer: Brian Henson, Dan Clark, Steven DeNure
- Co-Executive Producer: Margaret Loesch
- Supervising Producer: Betty Orr
- Executive story editors: Billy Brown, Dan Angel
- Story editor: Lane Raichert
- Conceptual & character design: Nathan Cabrera with Dave Pressler, Duke Cullen
- Animatronic characters by Jim Henson's Creature Shop: Marian Keating, Enrique Bilsland, Jean-Guy White, Joan Parkinson, Ian Hubbard, Frank Langley, Mike Scanlan, Peter Brooke, David Barrington-Holt, Robin Dufay, Karin Hanson, Phil Jackson, Ralph Cordero, Robyn Simms, Dana Klaren, Harvey Dickson, Jill Thraves, Tristan Maduro, Jim Edson, Brian Dooley, Larry Addison Bortolott, Patrick Gerrety
- For The Jim Henson Company: Ritamarie Peruggi, Halle Stanford-Grossman, Matt J. Britton, Bill Barretta
Gallery[]
Videos[]
Sources[]
- ↑ Hundreds of Hours of Jim Henson Content Hits Roku
- ↑ Variety. Kids’ WB adds four skeins February 8, 1999
- ↑ Muppet Central Dan Clark gives fans a "sneak peak" at "Brats" August 31, 1998
- ↑ Muppet Central "Brats" undergoes name change August 15, 1998
- ↑ NY TIMES: BRATS of the Lost Nebula Full Credits
- ↑ Playback. On set with Brats of the Lost Nebula February 8, 1999
- ↑ Cartoon Universe. Interview with Brats Of The Lost Nebula Creator Dan Clark. September 1 2020.
- ↑ Kidscreen. Idea incubation…the Dan Clark way September 1, 2002