Pirates of Dark Water - Not a bad jitatin show

The Pirates of Dark Water was a short lived action/adventure cartoon that premiered back in 1991. Despite its excellent mythology and interesting characters the show was plagued by delays, high costs and poor toy sales. Eventually it was cancelled after just 21 episodes. I remember watching the series when it was originally aired in the early 1990s, it wasn't my favorite cartoon but I thought it was creatively unique and tuned in often. Being a Hanna-Barbera production the show eventually re-aired on Cartoon Network and its spin off channel Boomerang in the mid 1990s. Though ultimately a bust, the Pirates of Dark Water did have its fans and eventually became a miniature cult hit as reruns aired regularly. Despite the best efforts of this loyal - but small - fan base however, the show has never been given a proper ending.

The story for Pirates of Dark Water takes place on the alien world of Mer. Besides its two moons, the most distinguishing characteristic of Mer would be the twenty different seas that comprise it. Scattered throughout these bodies of water are small islands where various intelligent life has developed. With so much water - and so little land - nautical travel is naturally the largest means of transportation. Unfortunately the planets oceans are being devoured by dark water. Dark water is a black, oil like substance that aggressively attacks anything it comes into contact with, including boats. Spreading like a cancer throughout the planet, its only a matter of time before all of Mer becomes enveloped in this deadly liquid. The worlds one hope lies in Ren, prince of Octopon. Together with his unlikely, but loyal crew of misfits, Ren must track down the 13 treasures of Rule. Only with their power can the Dark Dweller (the source of Dark Water) be destroyed and balance restored.

One of the Pirates of Dark Water's greatest strengths is the premise described above. Though not groundbreaking it is very well conceived and completely engaging, especially for an older action/adventure show. As for the writing itself, the series has its ups and downs, mostly due to shifts in tone. While some of the stories featured nefarious threats and a good balance of action and humor, other episodes were just so childish and immature they didn't even feel like they were a part of the same show. One particularly bad instance of this can be found in the episode "Little Leviathan". In the story Ren and his crew help a baby leviathan (who sounds just like Uni from Dungeons and Dragons) that has been caught in dark water. Once rescued the creature becomes smitten with its saviors and begins to follow them, comedic hijinks then ensue. Compare this to an episode like "The Dark Disciples" which featured a dark - almost "Thundarr the Barbarian" like story - and you'll see just how uneven the viewing experience was at times. Shifts in tone weren't isolated to just the stories either. Visually speaking, episodes like "The Little Leviathan" portrayed creatures as wide-eyed cartoonish scamps, like something out of a My Little Pony cartoon and nothing like the rest of the show (I'll have more to say about his later). I can't say for sure, but I believe the reason this happened was because the show fell into a bit of a middle world timing wise. Taking place after the horrendously tame 80's action/adventure cartoons but before Batman the Animated series, Pirates of Dark Water appears to have been pulled in two different directions. One was dumbed down and child friendly, the other darker and more serious. Still I really like the show's core story which was conceptually excellent and populated with great characters. Pirates of Dark Water had all the right ingredients, it just didn't always use them correctly.

Having just mentioned that Pirates of Dark Water features great characters, now seems like a good time to talk about the shows cast. Starting with the good guys we have Ren, Ioz, Tula and Niddler. Ren is the show's central character and he readily fits the "young hero on a quest to save the world" archetype. Though perhaps a little cliché, Ren does work nicely as both the voice of reason necessary to keep his crew together, as well as the driving force needed to keep them on task. But while I thought Ren was merely manageable, I found Ioz to be loads of fun. Gruff, pragmatic, treasure obsessed and an absolute chauvinist, Ioz can always be counted on to make greedy and inappropriate comments. Though these characteristics may seem negative, Ioz's failings provide a nice counterbalance to the noble nature of Ren and his quest, plus he's unflappably loyal. Tula is the lone female crew member and she is kind of a cross between Ioz and Ren. While she shares many of the core values of Ren she is more than willing to steal or even "betray" a couple comrades for her own purposes. There are only two actual betrayals by Tula - one at the beginning of the series and one at the end - and both times it's made very clear that Tula is either pretending to betray her crew mates or heavily conflicted about it. Still the fact that Tula's allegiance is so questionable makes her a very interesting character to watch. Tula does have a couple other roles in the show as well. One of these happens early in the series when Tula discovers that she is an ecomancer, a person capable of communing with nature and bending certain aspects of it to her will (kind of like a hippy wizard). The other is that she is a quasi love interest for Ren. Though the show never really gets too romantic (thankfully) it is clear that Ren and Tula are meant to play out the standard action/adventure romance seen so often in the genre. Niddler is the shows comedic relief. Unlike the rest of the crew Niddler is not human but instead a Monkeybird (basically a cross between and monkey and an bird, duh). When he's not flying people around from place to place, Niddler spends most his time complaining about how hungry he is or gorging on mengamellons, a monkeybirds favorite fruit. While I don't really care for Niddler I will admit that he makes a far better sidekick than your average action/adventure animal, plus he actually feels like a part of the team. Besides, he's not half as annoying as Snarf from the Thundercats.

From a villainous perspective, there are numerous antagonists in Pirates of Dark Water. That said, the only regulars worth mentioning are the Pirate Lord Bloth and his most persistent crony Conk. Conk is a very small man who excels at the art of surviving. No matter how dire the circumstance Conk always finds a way out, a good skill to have when you work for a ruthless pirate like Bloth. As for Bloth himself, he would be the physical antithesis of Conk. A massive man both in stature and girth (the guy is probably a foot taller than anyone else in the show) Bloth is as strong as an ox and has a very intimidating presence. Once again I like how the Pirates of Dark Water cast balances itself out. With Conk you have a very unimpressive and comical villain whose limited vocabulary is only matched by his limited intelligence. With Bloth however, you get a much more physically menacing and frighting opponent who speaks with an intelligent - almost british - accent, thus he appears more sophisticated than his lackeys. I have to say that while both Bloth and Conk may not be overly original, they still manage to be very interesting, something your average villain from the time period wasn't. It's this kind of depth that really sets Pirates of Dark Waters characters apart. The cast not only plays well off of one another they all have history, a past that you want to see explored. Too bad the show ended before we ever got to see it.

I mentioned earlier that Pirates of Dark Water never got a proper ending. I say this because - unlike other action/adventure shows of the time period - Pirates of Dark Water had a very finite goal built into its premise, finding the 13 treasures of Rule. Unfortunately only 8 of these treasures were found before the show's premature cancellation, therefore any viewer who invested interest into seeing Ren's quest completed left the show feeling unfulfilled. This is very unfortunate because the show clearly squandered numerous episodes with filler, episodes that could have been put to better use had the producers known that the series would only finish with twenty-one installments. Though frustrating, you can't really blame the studio or producers for this negative outcome. After all if the show had been successful, filler would have been needed to maximize its earning potential. As it stands though we are left hanging with no resolution whatsoever. A far too common occurrence in entertainment.

Visually the Pirates of Dark Water is both excellent and flawed in its execution. What I mean is that while the show has fantastic production design, on model characters and occasionally good animation, it also sports inconsistent creature design, poor choreography and awkward movement. Let's start with the production design. The world of Mer looks great. The warm color pallet - consisting mostly of reds and oranges - has a very unique and exotic feel about it. Characters also look nice, whether it's the beautiful gypsy-like appearance of Tula or the grotesque - almost fish-like - visage of Bloth, the design work for each character is spot on. But while the the world of Mer - and its inhabitants - feature a mature and appropriately alien appearance, the show would sometimes stray into "caricature land". On more than one occasion - the most obvious being the aforementioned "Little Leviathan" episode - Pirates of Dark Water would create silly, and/or childlike creatures with really big eyes and overly expressive mouths. This was in stark contrast to the more realistic and often fearsome looking creatures that inhabited the world of Mer, thus these one-off characters didn't feel like they belonged. Sadly, this inconsistent creature design mars otherwise excellent art direction and makes for an inconsistent viewing experience. Doubly frustrating is the fact that visual representations like this are exactly the kind of things that make people roll their eyes and spout off nonsense like "cartoons are just for kids". Pirates of Dark Water is the kind of show that's supposed to debunk that kind of talk, not reinforce it.

As for the animation itself, Pirates of Dark Water varies between mediocre and good. The first five episodes look solid (probably the best in the series) with a couple of scenes standing out as excellent (please keep in mind that I'm grading on a curve, this show does not come close to today's action/adventure standards). After that the animation became more mundane and awkward. Most of the fight choreography was stiff and unconvincing, things like running always looked awkward and a lot of the staging suffered from a lack of creativity. On the positive side the show maintained a consistent appearance. Even great shows like Batman the Animated series bore shifts in character models and animation styles depending on the studios that worked on them. Luckily Pirates of Dark Water was able to avoid this (for the most part anyway). Though I would have to rank Pirates of Dark Water as one of the better looking shows from its time period, most of the success stems from its design and not its animation (which really isn't that much better than other 80s action/adventure shows). If I had to choose a phrase to sum up my feelings about the show's visuals it would be "average execution of beautiful concepts".

In regards to voice acting Pirates of Dark Water had to navigate some tricky water. Rooted heavily in pirate culture, the show could have easily fell into various pirate clichés. I can just imagine heavily accented "aarrrs" and "iiiieee" being thrown around haphazardly - like some Scooby-Doo villain - while Bloth tells Ren to walk the plank (shudder). Thankfully none of these things happen, instead Pirates of Dark Water nails its voice casting perfectly and provides the actors with unique dialog designed exclusively for the show. I'll start with the actors. Just about all the main characters in Pirates of Dark Water feature superb voice work. George Newbern nails the youthful determination of Ren with ease. Jodi Benson sounds exactly how Tula appears, headstrong and sexy. Ioz was voiced by two different actors, Hector Elizondo in season one and Jim Cummings in season two. Surprisingly enough I didn't even notice the difference with both actors gruff portrayal of Ioz being spot on. Best of all would have to be Brock Peters work on Bloth though. With a maniacally twisted accent Peters really digs into his dialog with gusto and creates a villain that can be both scary or funny depending on what the situation calls for. Personally I think this is one of the best sounding action/adventure shows done prior to 1993.

Complementing the superb voice acting is some surprisingly creative dialog. Though not brilliantly written, the dialog from Pirates of Dark Water does feature some original expressions created specifically for the show. My favorites would have be the oft used "Noy Jitat" and its shorted version "Jitatin", I also liked "Jongo-longo". Besides just sounding cool these phrases serve as a subtle reminder that the world we're watching is an alien one, that and they allowed the characters to curse (after all they are pirates). This clever replacement of swear words is a trick used often in science fiction/fantasy shows, after all censors can't tell you something is vulgar if the word isn't even real.

The Pirates of Dark Water is one of those shows that possess great foundational elements, but not so great execution. While the core story, characters, production design and voice acting all shine brightly - even after 20 years - the animation and writing feel tarnished and dated. Couple this with the dissatisfaction born from an incomplete story and you can't help but feel frustrated. Yet what I truly want isn't a proper ending to this show, I want an entirely new series. With so many 80's cartoons getting rebooted as of late (upcoming GI Joe, Thundercats and Voltron) I would love to see Pirates of Dark Water get a fresh start. Something a little darker (but not too dark) with a more focused narrative and far less compromise. Now that Johnny Depp has made pirates popular again - and higher action/adventure standards are the norm - I feel that Pirates of Dark Water would stand a real chance of making a comeback, that or it could get cancelled prematurely again and piss-off a whole new generation of fans. Anyway if you would like to watch Pirates of Dark Water (and you should), you can pick up the 4-disc, manufacture on demand, set from the Warner Archive here. It contains all 21 episodes, but no special features or picture restoration. Still, this is - most likely - the best copy of the series currently in existence, so fans of the show should not hesitate to purchase.

The Maxx - more 1990s MTV goodness

I've mentioned this before, but for the sake of those who don't know I'll do so again. I love MTV's off the wall animation from the 1990s. Much like Cartoon Network's Adult Swim imprint, MTV produced some really fantastic, mature and experimental animation back in the day. The Maxx is one such experiment. Based on Sam Keith's popular comic book, The Maxx is perhaps the most direct adaption of comic book source material ever, both in terms of visuals and story.

Sam Keith first published The Maxx in 1992 under the upstart banner of Image Comics. Image came about when superstar artists Jim Lee, Todd McFarlane, Rob Liefield, Marc Silvestri, Eric Larson and Jim Viatelo bolted from Marvel Comics in 1991. Once established they reached out to other popular creators and offered them the chance to publish their own books, Sam Keith was one such artist. Keith was probably best known for having drawn Wolverine in Marvel Comics Presents. Both celebrated and criticized for his unique art style - which led to off model renditions of popular characters - Keith was finally free to "cut loose" with The Maxx. Unlike most superhero comics, The Maxx delved deep into psychological and metaphysical subject matter, thus making it a perfect match for MTV's late night cartoon show "MTVs Oddities".

The premise of the Maxx goes something like this. Most of us inhabit two worlds, the real world where we are at the mercy of circumstance, and the world within, the unconscious safe place where we can escape. The Maxx shifts between these two worlds against his will. Here (the real world) he lives in a box inside of an alley. The only person who cares for him is a freelance social worker by the name of Julie Winters. But in the other world - Pangea - he rules the outback and is the protector of Julie, his jungle queen. Sounds pretty crazy huh? Well it is, but in a good way.

As you can probably discern from the description above, the writing of The Maxx is very ... unusual. Though The Maxx dresses up like a superhero the story isn't really about that, it's about the psychological condition of the show's characters. Not just the mental state of Maxx mind you, but Julie Winters and The Maxx (you could also include the teenage girl Sarah as well). This is some pretty intense subject matter when you get right down to it, issues like suicide, rape, guilt and repression are all major themes in the show's narrative. Though calling the series "dark" would be an oversimplification, it would certainly not be without merit. To put it bluntly, the show can really mess with your head.

Magnificently brooding and complex the series does suffer from one big problem however, it ended before the story had a chance to finish. Despite being only 13 episodes in length the show actually caught up to the comic books rather quickly, thus it was only able to cover the first eleven issues (the story arc would later finish in issue twenty). The hope was that they could get a second season and finish the story then, but ultimately MTV decided not to renew the series (apparently MTV made this choice before the first episode even aired). The result is that the final episode of the series really doesn't leave the viewers with enough concrete answers and many of the foreshadowed hints sprinkled throughout the show go unfulfilled. Though incredibly frustrating this is not an uncommon occurrence in TV, fortunately you can still buy the source material and read how the story ends.

A cartoon like The Maxx is not for everyone (certainly not children). While the writing is excellent the subject matter may rub some people the wrong way. Being based on a comic book others may even find the lack of traditional superhero storytelling disappointing. Personally I felt the story was both original and refreshing, even if it was a little morose. Compared to the other Image comics that made their way into animation (Spawn, Savage Dragon and Wild CATS) it certainly proves to be a far more honest adaptation. Spawn was okay but the HBO cartoon was actually more adult than the comic. Both the Savage Dragon and Wild CATS went in the opposite extreme and tried to be toned down, "kid" friendly versions of themselves. Only The Maxx sought to be exactly what it always was, a psychologically twisted story about very flawed, three dimensional characters with problems.

Visually The Maxx is an amazing mix of various medias. The show uses actual artwork from the comic book, animation, CGI (some of the earliest you'll see on TV) and even live action very effectively. With so many styles at play one would expect a very visually inconsistent series, this is not the case however. Truth be told The Maxx looks very unified and polished despite its limited budget, even by today's standards it still looks good. A lot of the credit has to go to the youthful exuberance found in the shows creators. While many veteran animators scoff at the idea of using someone else's art or layout, The Maxx's creative staff was so young and inexperienced they didn't care about such egotistical nonsense, they just loved the source material and wanted to make a great cartoon. This naive passion made for a very fearless show, one that wasn't afraid to experiment with things like digital coloring and digital ink, it also allowed the series to overcome its budgetary limitations by making the project a labor of love.

In many ways The Maxx reminds me of today's motion comics. A relatively new media, motion comics take the actual artwork from a comic book, cut it up digitally and add music and voice overs. The Maxx does a lot of these things as well, but far better than any motion comic ever has, or ever will. While a motion comic is strongly bound by the layout and artwork found in its source material, The Maxx was not afraid to expand on - or even break outside of - its predecessors original structure. Vice versa, a full fledged animated show won't use any real comic style layouts, instead opting for the more traditional storytelling found in most cartoons. So it's like you're getting the best of both worlds, a faithful comic book adaptation, but with genuine animation.

The show did have visual hiccups however, occasionally the animation didn't quite match up with the original art styles for example, or a comic book image would not animate well. Still The Maxx's look and feel was - by and large - a huge success. The use of minimal animation was masterful, CGI was surprisingly effective and tasteful, original art was integrated flawlessly and the translation of Sam Keith's layout was near perfect. Given Rough Draft Studios appreciation of the source material - as well as Keith's own involvement - this was definitely a project of personal importance to those involved, and it shows.

Normally I don't spend a lot of time talking about a show's voice acting unless the performances are exceptionally good, or exceptionally bad. Fortunately in the case of The Maxx it's the former that holds true. Featuring the voices of Michael Haley, Glynnis Talken, Amy Danles and Barry Stigler, The Maxx is a very well acted show. Michael Haley probably had the most difficult job being that he was the voice of the Maxx. Since the character needed to be both a tough guy and a simpleton Haley had to really work the dialog carefully, luckily he was up to the challenge and pulls off the roll admirably. Glynnis Talken strikes a spot-on balance of determination, world weariness and emotional damage when voicing the social worker Julie Winters. Amy Danles uses a great melancholy sound to bring jaded teenager Sarah to life. Finally Barry Stigler gives a pitch perfect performance as the know-it-all, arrogant and just a little angry Mr. Gone. I am not exaggerating when I say that the core characters from The Maxx could not have been cast any better.

Musically The Maxx hits all the right notes as well (Hah!). From the jazzy, beatnik opening to the aborigine sounding outback music, The Maxx always sets the right tone. Haunting, irreverent, or just plain silly the music from this show has flavor, a distinct taste that is unmistakably "Maxx" (insert smelly homeless joke here).

Obviously I'm recommending this series to anyone who likes "off the wall" storytelling, or is just a fan of the original comic book (keeping in mind this is not a show for children). It's unfortunate that the story was never really completed in animation, had the series been able to finish with the original story arc I think it would have been an instant classic. Regardless, The Maxx is a very worthwhile purchase. Though it's a manufacture on demand DVD the price is very reasonable and the extras include a short interview with the shows creators and commentary on all (count them all) 13 episodes.