OK, here's a revised version of the FAQ. Please email me with any
comments or suggestions you have about the FAQ (do NOT post to the
list or you'll defeat the purpose of the FAQ!).
I'll most likely be posting the FAQ to the net (specifically
rec.arts.animation and alt.fan.furry), but I would like input as to
its content since I don't want to post wrong info, or info that might
produce too many ripples, especially with Turner Entertainment.
SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron Frequently Asked Questions
===========================================================
_SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron_ is an animated series created in
1993 by two Canadian-French brothers, Christian Tremblay and Yvon
Tremblay. Using their self-taught drawing skills and their own money,
they managed to sell their creation of anthropomorphic felines,
otherwise known as "Kats", to Hanna-Barbera.
H-B produced 23 episodes of the SWAT Kats, 13 for the first season
(1993-94) and 10 for the second season (1994-95). The second season
fell three episodes shy of a full set because, in the middle of
production, Turner Entertainment ordered H-B to cancel production of
the series. The reason that Turner gave at the time was because the
show wasn't moving merchandise -- although the series hardly had any
merchandise to begin with! Therefore, Turner decided to yank the show
even though it had been doing very well in the ratings. Three episodes
were storyboarded and the voice tracks laid down, but are currently
still in limbo (and may very well become the "lost episodes" of the series).
Rumor has it, however, that Turner cancelled the series because of its
violence and not because of the lack of merchandise. In fact, there
should be some merchandise hitting the store shelves this summer; look
for action figures (T-Bone, Razor, Dark Kat and Doctor Viper) produced
by Remco as well as a Super Nintendo game (none for Sega yet), both of
which are due out in June. There's also a poster available at the
K-Mart in Inglewood, CA; other locations may also carry it, but you may
have to hunt for it.
TBS will be carrying the series through at least July 1995; after that,
it may run independently, but most likely the series will be dropped
completely from the air.
The animation studios involved in _Kats_ production are Hanho Heung-Up
and Mook, the former being a Korean studio and the latter a Japanese
studio. Both seasons' episodes show an anime (Japanimation) influence,
especially the second season's episodes, which were animated entirely by
Mook. Christian Tremblay apparently wanted Mook to do all of the
episodes, but found it uneconomical to do so.
What's the proper spelling of 'SWAT Kats'? Most likely it's the way
it's being spelled in the FAQ. The full title is, of course: "SWAT
Kats: The Radical Squadron", but there's been some question as to
whether the word "SWAT Kats" should be written as a single word (i.e.,
"SWATKats"). And yes, it's with a "K", not a "C".
T-Bone's and Razor's ages?
Trivia tidbit: Razor and T-Bone were initially named "Chuck" and
"Yaeger", after the famous test pilot.
Write your local station that carries the SWAT Kats (and/or TBS)! Tell
them how much you like the series! TBS also has an email address, but
snail mail letters are usually taken much more seriously than email.
While we're on the subject of letter writing, you can also write Hanna-
Barbera at:
Hanna-Barbera Cartoons Inc.
3400 Cahuenga Blvd. West
Hollywood, CA 90068
Attn: Fred Seibert
(Note: Don't mention SWAT Kats anywhere on the envelope, and don't use
the 9-digit version of the ZIP code.)
H-B makes 11 copies of every letter it goes and sends a copy to the
creators, Christian and Yvon Tremblay.
FTP addresses for 'Kats stuff:
- Majordomo list server. There are a few files available (I don't know
exactly *what* is available at the moment, however).
- Netcom: ftp.netcom.com, /pub/ra/razor has 'swatkats.jpg' available.
- Someone on the list offered to put up another FTP site, but I don't
know where.
Web page: Yes, the 'Kats have their own web page (not official, but
at least it's there): '
http://venom.st.hmc.edu/~razor/swatkats.html'.
Send email to 'duehara_at_atmos.ucla.edu' for details.
For the die-hard 'Kats fans:
- To join a fan club (currently unofficial): email Walt Koziol
(wkoziol_at_delphi.com).
- A fanzine, KATATONIC, is also in the works and will be available for
a limited run (contact Timothy Fay [fayxx001_at_maroon.tc.unm.edu] for
details).
=======================================================================
FAQ maintained by: Dana Uehara (duehara_at_atmos.ucla.edu)
Acknowledgements/Contributors:
Andy Hill (chance_at_unix.infoserve.net)
Timothy Fay (fayxx001_at_maroon.tc.unm.edu)
--
=================== Dana Uehara (duehara_at_atmos.ucla.edu) ==================
"We are having a *bad* vehicle day, buddy!" -- Razor
Received on Wed May 10 1995 - 17:55:38 PDT