Bionic Six
Encyclopedia
Bionic Six is an American/Japanese animated television series from 1987, produced by TMS
Entertainment and distributed by MCA TV
(now NBCUniversal Television Distribution). Renowned Japanese animation director Osamu Dezaki
was involved as chief supervising director, whose distinctive style (Golgo 13
, Cobra) is evident throughout.
The cartoon originally aired in North American syndication, in later years reappearing (edited for time and content) on the Sci-Fi Channel
.
The title characters of the series are a family of machine-enhanced
human beings possessing unique powers after being augmented with bionic technology, much like The Six Million Dollar Man
and The Bionic Woman
. After a skiing vacation accident involving an alien radiation source renders Bennett family members comatose, Professor Amadeus Sharp deduces that bionic augmentation would nullify the effects of the radioactivity. Each family member is thereafter given a specific bionic power, and thus they form a superhero team named Bionic Six.
The primary antagonist of the series is a mad scientist known as Doctor Scarab, along with his gang of henchmen — Glove, Madam-O, Chopper, Mechanic, and Klunk — accompanied by Scarab's legion of drone robots called Cyphrons. Perhaps ironically, Scarab is Professor Sharp’s brother. Obsessed with obtaining immortality and ruling the world, Scarab believes that the key to both goals lies in the secret bionic technology invented by his brother, ever plotting to possess it.
Scarab's second in command is Glove, a snide bruiser who wears a blaster glove and longs to assume Scarab’s leadership position, yet lacking similar genius. Madame-O is an alluring female who wears a concealing face-mask and uses a harp weapon that emits powerful sonic blasts; though constantly flattering Scarab, her true desires are money and power. Chopper is a muscled goon with a motorcycle-like sputtering speech habit, wielding a long chain as a whip or lasso weapon. Mechanic is a dim-witted brute with an aptitude for engineering, adopting assorted hand tools in combat as makeshift weapons. Klunk is a monstrous creature apparently composed of a glue-like slime, and possessing tremendous physical strength.
The Bennett family includes Jack, Helen, Eric, Meg, J.D., and Bunji. They live in a secluded oceanfront home in the fictional city of Cypress Cove, in northern California
. Each member wears a special ring and a "wristcomp
" (a mini-computer hardwired into the wrist), which they use to activate their bionic powers. The Bionic Six can also combine their powers by joining hands, creating a "Bionic Link" to amplify their abilities.
The primary antagonist of the series is Dr. Scarab — real name Dr. Wilmer Sharp, who is Amadeus Sharp's brother. Scarab is a hefty, egotistically brilliant and occasionally comical man who yearns for the secret to eternal life and world domination. His right eye has been modified with a monocle that has a low-powered scanner that can detect individuals with bionics, even when they are disguised, and a destructive, high-powered beam. In rare instances throughout the series, he seemingly demonstrates superhuman, bionic strength of his own (on at least one occasion, he picked up Mother-One effortlessly and threw her around; in another instance, he was seen carrying as much solid gold out of Fort Knox as his other bionic minions -several hundred pounds' worth.)He was voiced by Jim MacGeorge
.
Dr. Scarab has assembled a motley team of henchmen (described below), imbued with an apparently lesser form of the same bionic powers employed by the Bionic Six (another one of Scarab's goals in the series to try and figure out the secrets behind his brother's superior bionics knowledge).
Dr. Scarab has tried to create additional minions with limited success, usually due to envying interference from his existing henchmen. Some of these include:
Where covert action is called for, Scarab and his gang go disguised via their "Bionic Masking Units". To disengage these electronically imparted disguises, they slam their fists to their chest insignias and exclaim, "Hail Scarab!" (Scarab, however, vainly exclaims, "Hail me!"). Doing so serves a secondary purpose — the activation of a temporary strength enhancement.
In addition to his henchmen, Scarab also uses robot
s of his own design, called Cyphrons, in battles against the Bionic Six. The Cyphrons are, like the rest of his minions, generally incompetent but dangerous in large numbers. Attempts by Scarab to create more advanced Cyphron units are shown to backfire.
The second season continues on from the first seamlessly. Old supporting characters like Perceptor and Dr. Fish return, and new characters, such as the Bandroids are brought aboard. The second season includes a two-part episode "I, Scarab," wherein Professor Sharp assembles a second Bionic Six group to rescue the original team. This second team is made up of supporting characters from prior episodes — Kaleidoscope, Perceptor, and the Bandroids.
The series finale finds several of the members from the Bionic Six trapped for a time in a dimension where the "cartoon characters" of their favorite TV shows exist; after I.Q., Rock-One and Karate-One escape, I.Q notes that in the cartoon dimension, the characters were unaware that they were imaginary characters; he then wonders if it is at all possible that he and everyone else in the "real" world are cartoon characters themselves. His family dismisses his thoughts as meaningless babble -as a bunch of characters from the cartoon dimension walk outside the Bennett family's residence and break the fourth wall
as the episode fades out.
in 1986, the line consisted of 13 figures (Jack, Helen, J.D., Eric, Meg, Bunji, F.L.U.F.F.I., Doctor Scarab, Glove, Mechanic, Madame-O, Chopper, and Klunk), five vehicles and one playset. These figures and vehicles were made up of plastic and die-cast metal with some of the figures having transparent limbs. The 13 figures were designed and copyrighted by Paul Samulski on behalf of LJN.
F.L.U.F.F.I. the robot ape was difficult to find early in the series' release, but became easier to come by later as the line lost popularity. Today, the line remains moderately collectible with the playset and vehicles being the hardest to come across.
Publishing produced the Bionic Six Super Picture Book, a collection of color and black & white pin-ups of the Bionic Six, Dr. Sharp, F.L.U.F.F.I., and Scarab's team. The books art was supplied by Vince Perez and Lisa Santangelo.
A Bionic Six comic book (illustration credited to "Espinoza & Hooper"[sic] ) advertised mid-1988 for forthcoming release by independent publisher New Comics Group never materialized.
Alan Oppenheimer, the actor who provided the voice for Professor Sharp, was the first (of two) to play Dr. Rudy Wells in The Six Million Dollar Man
TV series.
Jennifer Darling (Madame O's voice) played Peggy Callahan (Mr. Goldman
's assistant) in The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman
TV series.
Carol Bilger (Helen Bennett / Mother-1) also provided the voice of Professor Sharp's computer.
Bobbi Block (Meg Bennett / Rock-1) also played the voice of Roxy in the animated series Jem
.
Tokyo Movie Shinsha
, formerly known as , is a Japanese animation studio, founded on October 1946. One of the oldest and most prominent anime studios in Japan, it has also produced numerous animated series airing in other countries such as France, the United States, and Italy. The company currently uses "TMS...
Entertainment and distributed by MCA TV
Music Corporation of America
MCA, Inc. was an American talent agency. Initially starting in the music business, they would next become a dominant force in the film business, and later expanded into the television business...
(now NBCUniversal Television Distribution). Renowned Japanese animation director Osamu Dezaki
Osamu Dezaki
, also known as , , or , was a Japanese director of anime born on November 18, 1943, in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan. His older brother, Satoshi Dezaki, is also an anime director....
was involved as chief supervising director, whose distinctive style (Golgo 13
Golgo 13
is a manga series written and illustrated by Takao Saito, published in Shogakukan's Big Comic magazine since January 1969. In 1976, the manga won the 21st Shogakukan Manga Award for general manga...
, Cobra) is evident throughout.
The cartoon originally aired in North American syndication, in later years reappearing (edited for time and content) on the Sci-Fi Channel
Syfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
.
The title characters of the series are a family of machine-enhanced
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
human beings possessing unique powers after being augmented with bionic technology, much like The Six Million Dollar Man
The Six Million Dollar Man
The Six Million Dollar Man is an American television series about a former astronaut with bionic implants working for the OSI...
and The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman is an American television series starring Lindsay Wagner that aired for three seasons between 1976 and 1978 as a spin off from The Six Million Dollar Man. Wagner stars as tennis pro Jaime Sommers who is nearly killed in a skydiving accident. Sommers' life is saved by Oscar Goldman ...
. After a skiing vacation accident involving an alien radiation source renders Bennett family members comatose, Professor Amadeus Sharp deduces that bionic augmentation would nullify the effects of the radioactivity. Each family member is thereafter given a specific bionic power, and thus they form a superhero team named Bionic Six.
Plot
In the near future (some unspecified decades after 1999), Professor Sharp, head of the Special Projects Labs (SPL), creates a new form of technology to augment humans through bionics. His first subject was Jack Bennett, a test pilot who secretly acted as Sharp’s field agent, Bionic-1. On a family ski vacation in the Himalayas, an alien spacecraft triggers an avalanche that buries the entire family, exposing them to the unusual radiation of a mysterious buried object. Jack frees himself but discovers his family in a comatose state. Theorizing that Jack’s bionics protected him from the radiation, Professor Sharp implants bionic technology in the others, awakening them. Afterward, the family operates incognito as a publicly lauded team of adventuring superheroes, the Bionic Six.The primary antagonist of the series is a mad scientist known as Doctor Scarab, along with his gang of henchmen — Glove, Madam-O, Chopper, Mechanic, and Klunk — accompanied by Scarab's legion of drone robots called Cyphrons. Perhaps ironically, Scarab is Professor Sharp’s brother. Obsessed with obtaining immortality and ruling the world, Scarab believes that the key to both goals lies in the secret bionic technology invented by his brother, ever plotting to possess it.
Scarab's second in command is Glove, a snide bruiser who wears a blaster glove and longs to assume Scarab’s leadership position, yet lacking similar genius. Madame-O is an alluring female who wears a concealing face-mask and uses a harp weapon that emits powerful sonic blasts; though constantly flattering Scarab, her true desires are money and power. Chopper is a muscled goon with a motorcycle-like sputtering speech habit, wielding a long chain as a whip or lasso weapon. Mechanic is a dim-witted brute with an aptitude for engineering, adopting assorted hand tools in combat as makeshift weapons. Klunk is a monstrous creature apparently composed of a glue-like slime, and possessing tremendous physical strength.
Heroes
- Professor Amadeus Sharp is the genius scientist who infused the Bionic Six team with bionics. All of his research is supported by the government, and Sharp's technology must be periodically reviewed by government agency Q10. He lives alone in his private museum, which houses his secret Special Projects Lab, the hidden base of the Bionic Six. Amadeus is also Scarab's brother. Sharp excels in the fields of aeronauticsAeronauticsAeronautics is the science involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of airflight-capable machines, or the techniques of operating aircraft and rocketry within the atmosphere...
, animatronicsAnimatronicsAnimatronics is the use of mechatronics to create machines which seem animate rather than robotic. Animatronic creations include animals , plants and even mythical creatures...
, archaeologyArchaeologyArchaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
, bionics, and neurologyNeurologyNeurology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. Specifically, it deals with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of disease involving the central, peripheral, and autonomic nervous systems, including their coverings, blood vessels, and all effector tissue,...
. He was voiced by Alan OppenheimerAlan OppenheimerAlan Oppenheimer is an American character actor and voice actor. He has performed numerous roles on live-action television since the 1960s, and has had an active career doing voice work in cartoons since the 1970s.-Early life:...
.
The Bennett family includes Jack, Helen, Eric, Meg, J.D., and Bunji. They live in a secluded oceanfront home in the fictional city of Cypress Cove, in northern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Each member wears a special ring and a "wristcomp
Wristwatch computer
A wristwatch computer is a wearable computer that fits like a wristwatch. It may offer features similar to a PDA, palmtop or tablet computer. Similar terms which refer to the same concept are wrist computer, computer watch, wrist-top, wrist PDA and Wrist Worn PC .Such devices may include features...
" (a mini-computer hardwired into the wrist), which they use to activate their bionic powers. The Bionic Six can also combine their powers by joining hands, creating a "Bionic Link" to amplify their abilities.
- Jack Bennett, aka Bionic-1 is an engineer, expert test pilot, and the secret agent known to the world only as 'Bionic-One.' He enjoys gourmet cooking, even participating in the Paris Food Conference. Bionic-1's powers are mostly related to his bionic eyes (including "x-ray vision," telescopic sight, energy blasts, and low-powered beams that temporarily cause electronic devices to malfunction or even turn against their users), and enhanced hearing (this last capability beyond even the powers of the other team members, who each possess superhuman levels of hearing in their own right). His family was initially unaware of his secret bionic identity until bestowed with powers of their own. Bionic-1 was voiced by John StephensonJohn StephensonJohn Stephenson may refer to:*John Stephenson , American voice actor*John Stephenson , American baseball catcher*John Stephenson , 19th century Irish-American coachbuilder who created the street railway...
.
- Helen Bennett, aka Mother-1, is Jack's wife. She is an oceanographer and an accomplished marine biologist. Mother-1 possesses various ESP powers that allow her to occasionally see glimpses of the future, telepathically communicate with other sentient and non-sentient beings, determine the function and operation of mechanical devices by mentally 'tracing' their internal workings, and can mentally project hologram-like optical illusions. She was voiced by Carol Bilger.
- Eric Bennett, aka Sport-1 is Jack and Helen's blond, athletic son. At local Albert Einstein High School, Eric is a shortstop on the baseball team, the Einstein Atoms. He routinely employs baseball vernacular in his dialogue. As Sport-1, he affects electromagnetic powers to attract or repel metallic objects with tremendous force, meld them together, or even rip them apart. This force is directional and — by varying the configuration of his hands, or by using one or both arms — Sport-1 can adjust the strength of attraction/repulsion. He can also use objects as he would a baseball bat, including steel beams, lampposts and other objects (including baseball bats) to redirect incoming objects and energy blasts; infused by the same field that comes from his arms, he can use those ordinarily fragile objects to hit and deflect things they normally could not (in one instance, he used a steel beam to hit an incoming asteroid). He was voiced by Hal RayleHal RayleHal Rayle is an American voice actor. He has done many roles for both animated series and live action movies.-Career:Rayle has had a number of voice acting jobs over his career. Rayle's animated series roles include Lieutenant Commander Steele in SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron, Pipes, Snarl and...
.
- Meg Bennett, aka Rock-1 is Jack and Helen's daughter and is Eric's younger sister. Meg is an excitable and somewhat ditzy teen who loves music. She is prone to habitual use of the future-slang phrase "So-LAR!" (comparable to "awesome"), as well as the prefixes "Mega-!" (as befitting her first name) and "Ultra-!" At Albert Einstein High School, Meg is a member of the debate team and in a number of episodes is seen dating a classmate named Bim. As Rock-1, she can emit sonic beams from blaster units mounted on her shoulders — the blaster units are only visible when she assumes "bionic mode." She can also run at blinding speeds, faster than other members of the team (who can all run at superhuman speeds in their own right). Meg and Eric are Jack and Helen's sole biological offspring. Meg was voiced by Bobbi Block.
- J.D. Bennett, aka IQ, is Jack and Helen's remarkably intelligent, adopted African-American son. He enjoys amateur boxing, although he is not particularly skilled at it. As IQ, he has both super-strength (he is even stronger than the other, superhumanly-strong members of the team) and super-intelligence. J.D. was the only team member whose bionic codename did not include the number "1" as a suffix. He was voiced by Norman Bernard.
- Bunjiro "Bunji" Bennett, aka Karate-1, is Jack and Helen's Japanese foster son. He was placed under their guardianship after his own father disappeared 10 years earlier somewhere in the East. Bunji is an avid karate enthusiast. As Karate-1, he has enhanced martial arts skills, made more formidable when applying his bionics. He was voiced by Brian TochiBrian TochiBrian Keith Tochihara , better known as Brian Tochi, is a U.S. actor, screen-writer, movie director and producer. He was widely recognized as the most popular East Asian child actor working in U.S. television during the late 1960s through much of the 1970s having appeared in various T.V. series and...
.
- F.L.U.F.F.I. is a gorilla-like robot who lives as a housekeeper with the Bennetts. He regularly demonstrates a comical craving for aluminum cans that extends to casually devouring the Bennetts' cookware, vehicles, or other metal objects. Despite his bumbling behavior, he nonetheless proves helpful around the Bennett home, or assisting the Bionic Six with physical tasks in the field. F.L.U.F.F.I. was voiced by Neil RossNeil RossTheodoric Neilson "Neil" Ross is an English voice actor and announcer, born in London, England and now resident and working in Los Angeles, in the United States. He has provided voices for in many American cartoons, particularly those based on Hasbro products and Marvel Comics, and numerous...
.
Villains
Jim MacGeorge
Jim MacGeorge is an actor and voice actor.He is probably best known for his voice roles as Beany Boy, Crowy and Uncle Captain Horatio K. Huffenpuff in Beany and Cecil, Oliver Hardy in the Laurel and Hardy cartoon series, Crazy Claws in The Kwicky Koala Show, Bort in The Mighty Orbots, Wimper in...
.
Dr. Scarab has assembled a motley team of henchmen (described below), imbued with an apparently lesser form of the same bionic powers employed by the Bionic Six (another one of Scarab's goals in the series to try and figure out the secrets behind his brother's superior bionics knowledge).
- Glove is a purple-skinned villain named for his left-handed blaster glove which is capable of firing both beams and projectiles. He serves as the field leader in Scarab's evil plans (hence made a frequent target for punishment for failures) and constantly vies to replace Dr. Scarab as leader. Although cunning and vicious, he tends to retreat at the first sign of defeat. His strength varies, as in some instances, he seems to be the equal of Bionic-1, while in another, he was able to physically overpower both Bionic-1 and Karate-1 at the same time. He was voiced by Frank WelkerFrank WelkerFranklin Wendell "Frank" Welker is an American actor who specializes in voice acting and has contributed character voices and other vocal effects to American television and motion pictures.-Acting career:...
.
- Madame-O is an enigmatic blue-skinned femme fatale who wears a full face mask and uses a harp-like weapon to fire sonic blasts. She has a verbal tick of ending many of her statements with the word "...darling." While possessing super strength, she is not as strong as many of the other characters; Mother-1 was able to defeat her in physical struggles in various occasions. Before her transformation, she actually appeared to be an elderly woman. She was voiced by Jennifer DarlingJennifer DarlingJennifer Darling is an American actress and voice actress. While her body of work as a voiceover artist greatly eclipses that of her on-stage career, she is, perhaps, nevertheless known best to most people as Peggy Callahan, the secretary to Oscar Goldman in the television series The Six Million...
.
- Mechanic is a dim-witted, childish brute who employs various mechanical tools as weapons — nail or rivet guns, throwing circular saw blades, using a large wrench as a bludgeon. Despite his a short-tempered nature, he has a soft spot for animals and an engrossing fondness for (in-universe) children's television cartoons. He was voiced by Frank WelkerFrank WelkerFranklin Wendell "Frank" Welker is an American actor who specializes in voice acting and has contributed character voices and other vocal effects to American television and motion pictures.-Acting career:...
.
- Chopper is a chain-wielding thug who articulates sounds mimicking a revving motorcycle. He is sometimes depicted riding a three-wheeled motorcycle vehicle. He was voiced by Frank WelkerFrank WelkerFranklin Wendell "Frank" Welker is an American actor who specializes in voice acting and has contributed character voices and other vocal effects to American television and motion pictures.-Acting career:...
. (Perhaps by intentional design, Frank Welker voiced another character by the name of Chopper, with exactly the same voice and 'vocal mannerisms,' in a 1970s -era cartoon entitled "Wheelie And the Chopper Bunch"Wheelie and the Chopper BunchWheelie and the Chopper Bunch is a 30-minute cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera which aired for one season on NBC from September 7, 1974 to August 30, 1975...
.)
- Klunk is a patchwork monstrosity who appears to be made of living glue, and who rarely speaks coherently. Immediately after his creation, Scarab noted to himself to "use a little less power next time." While relatively unintelligent, he is considered one of the most dangerous opponents to engage in battle due to his unparalleled strength (he appears to be even stronger than I.Q), high resistance to physical attacks and his gooey body's ability to engulf his opponent -even Dr. Scarab fears him to some extent. Unlike the other minions of Dr. Scarab, he is (understandably) horrified by his own transformation and longs to be human again. He was voiced by John StephensonJohn StephensonJohn Stephenson may refer to:*John Stephenson , American voice actor*John Stephenson , American baseball catcher*John Stephenson , 19th century Irish-American coachbuilder who created the street railway...
.
Dr. Scarab has tried to create additional minions with limited success, usually due to envying interference from his existing henchmen. Some of these include:
- Mrs. Scarab, aka Scarabina — Dr. Scarab's attempt at cloning a perfect mate for himself: a woman possessing his own intelligence added to Mother-1's beauty and ESP powers. Madame-O tampered with the lab equipment during her creation, resulting in an obnoxious female version of Dr. Scarab who was utterly devoted to him. Scarab, though repulsed by her, attempted to use her to his advantage. She eventually caught on to his manipulation and left him. She returned in a subsequent episode, trying to win his affection by creating opposite-sex versions of his own henchmen to overcome the Bionic Six through sheer numbers.
- Shadow Boxer — Rescuing a down-on-his-luck former boxing champion from arrest and trying to give him powers, Dr. Scarab instead accidentally creates Shadow Boxer due to Glove's interference. Rather than becoming merely another super strong minion, Shadow Boxer acquired the ability to solidify his shadow and to act through it at will. He apparently lost this ability when Bionic-1 exposed his shadow to an intense light and it faded away.
Where covert action is called for, Scarab and his gang go disguised via their "Bionic Masking Units". To disengage these electronically imparted disguises, they slam their fists to their chest insignias and exclaim, "Hail Scarab!" (Scarab, however, vainly exclaims, "Hail me!"). Doing so serves a secondary purpose — the activation of a temporary strength enhancement.
In addition to his henchmen, Scarab also uses robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
s of his own design, called Cyphrons, in battles against the Bionic Six. The Cyphrons are, like the rest of his minions, generally incompetent but dangerous in large numbers. Attempts by Scarab to create more advanced Cyphron units are shown to backfire.
Supporting characters
Bionic Six episodes also featured a number of recurring, supporting characters.- Bunji's Father Bunji's (unnamed) father, who taught him his martial arts skills but suddenly and mysteriously vanished over 10 years ago (causing Bunji to be adopted by the Bennetts in the first place), shows up in several episodes of the series during its run. He assists his son in instances where his son's life is in danger and there is no other apparent way to save him. It is implied that he has ascended to some unknown, higher plane of existence through his martial arts training, and has become a quasi-immortal being. His efforts at saving his son are usually orchestrated in ways that are unseen and unnoticed by everyone, including his son, and his son doesn't even know for sure that his father is alive or what has become of him until much later into the series. He first appeared in episode #2, "Enter the Bunji." He was voiced by Shuko Akune.
- Perceptor — Peter Wilcox was one of the finest bionic researchers under Professor Sharp. Due to impatience, Wilcox tested their bionic experiment on himself. The experiment bestowed on Wilcox bionic abilities, but at the cost of his own sight. Blaming technology for his blindness, Wilcox became the anti-technology vigilante known as the Perceptor. However, after a confrontation with Sharp and the Bionic Six, Wilcox renounces his terrorist activities to become a hero. Perceptor was voiced by Neil RossNeil RossTheodoric Neilson "Neil" Ross is an English voice actor and announcer, born in London, England and now resident and working in Los Angeles, in the United States. He has provided voices for in many American cartoons, particularly those based on Hasbro products and Marvel Comics, and numerous...
.
- Dr. Hugo Fish — An eccentric scientist inventor and colleague to Professor Sharp. Dr. Fish consistently creates devices with unusual functions, including foodstuff that grants enhanced intelligence, a device that gives people the ability to recreate famous works of art, an animatronic theme park, and a device capable of generating giant mushrooms. These quirky inventions often put him in crossfire between the Bionic Six and Scarab's group. Dr. Fish was voiced by Howard MorrisHoward MorrisHoward Morris was an American comic actor and director who was best known for his role as Ernest T. Bass on The Andy Griffith Show.- Life and career :...
.
- The Bandroids — Created by Dr. Bruce "Bad Brains" Huxter, the Bandroids are androids designed to perform as a musical band. The Bandroids are: guitarist Rivet Rick, keyboardist Techno Tex, bassist Metalhand, and drummer Bob. Each Bandroid has their musical instrument designed into their chassis and showcases some special ability: Rivet Rick can generate force fields, Techno Tex is equipped with two six-shooters, Metalhand can grow in size and has a jet pack, and Bob can generate electrical blasts from his drumsticks. The Bandroids perform in concert and are reported to have had four consecutive number one hits.
- Kaleidoscope — Harlan Nails was a brilliant scientist who worked alongside Prof. Sharp in the field of Bionics. During that time, he invented a device that could temporarily rearrange an item's atomic structure. After being snubbed by Sharp, Dr. Nails continued to experiment independently, soon partnering with Dr. Scarab. Nails created an outfit from his invention to become a master of disguise, calling himself Kaleidoscope. He became Scarab's partner in crime, until Scarab betrayed him. Kaleidoscope was the true inventor of much of Scarab's technology, including his Bionic Masking Units and the first-generation Cyphrons. After spending 20 years in jail, Nails is released into the custody of the Bionic Six to help track down Scarab. However, the newly escaped Kaleidoscope has only one thing on his mind: revenge on both Dr. Scarab and Prof. Sharp. Kaleidoscope's suit is one-of-a-kind, and attuned so that only he can use it. Unlike the Bionic Masking Units employed by Scarab's minions, Kaleidoscope's suit can not only create illusions, but can also temporarily reconfigure matter; in one instance, he once transformed his body into a large metal plate of armor, shielding the Bionic Six from a massive energy beam intended to kill them all.
Bionic Six Vehicles
- Sky Dancer — is The Bionic Six's Jet for long range missions. The Sky Dancer can carry the Bionic six and all their support vehicles. It is housed on the Bionic base and enters via an underwater runway.
- M.U.L.E.S. Van — (Mobile. Utility. Energizing. Station.)is a support vechile that can fly, carry the team on short range missions and carry their motorcycles and Quad ATVs. At one time the Van was outfitted with crab armor.
Episode list
The first season of Bionic Six introduces viewers to the Bennett family, and to Scarab and his goons. Karate-1's origin is explored, and the mystery of his missing father is introduced. The origin of both the Bionic Six and of Scarab and his lackeys is revealed early on in the 22-episode run. The supporting characters of Dr. Fish and Perceptor are also introduced.The second season continues on from the first seamlessly. Old supporting characters like Perceptor and Dr. Fish return, and new characters, such as the Bandroids are brought aboard. The second season includes a two-part episode "I, Scarab," wherein Professor Sharp assembles a second Bionic Six group to rescue the original team. This second team is made up of supporting characters from prior episodes — Kaleidoscope, Perceptor, and the Bandroids.
The series finale finds several of the members from the Bionic Six trapped for a time in a dimension where the "cartoon characters" of their favorite TV shows exist; after I.Q., Rock-One and Karate-One escape, I.Q notes that in the cartoon dimension, the characters were unaware that they were imaginary characters; he then wonders if it is at all possible that he and everyone else in the "real" world are cartoon characters themselves. His family dismisses his thoughts as meaningless babble -as a bunch of characters from the cartoon dimension walk outside the Bennett family's residence and break the fourth wall
Fourth wall
The fourth wall is the imaginary "wall" at the front of the stage in a traditional three-walled box set in a proscenium theatre, through which the audience sees the action in the world of the play...
as the episode fades out.
Action Figures
Produced by LJNLJN
LJN was an American toy company and video game publisher. It created toy lines and video games based on movies, television shows, and celebrities. It was headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, and later in Lyndhurst, New Jersey.-Founding:...
in 1986, the line consisted of 13 figures (Jack, Helen, J.D., Eric, Meg, Bunji, F.L.U.F.F.I., Doctor Scarab, Glove, Mechanic, Madame-O, Chopper, and Klunk), five vehicles and one playset. These figures and vehicles were made up of plastic and die-cast metal with some of the figures having transparent limbs. The 13 figures were designed and copyrighted by Paul Samulski on behalf of LJN.
F.L.U.F.F.I. the robot ape was difficult to find early in the series' release, but became easier to come by later as the line lost popularity. Today, the line remains moderately collectible with the playset and vehicles being the hardest to come across.
Books
Grosset & DunlapGrosset & Dunlap
Grosset & Dunlap is a United States book publisher founded in 1898.The company was purchased by G. P. Putnam's Sons in 1982 and today is part of the British publishing conglomerate, Pearson PLC through its American subsidiary Penguin Group....
Publishing produced the Bionic Six Super Picture Book, a collection of color and black & white pin-ups of the Bionic Six, Dr. Sharp, F.L.U.F.F.I., and Scarab's team. The books art was supplied by Vince Perez and Lisa Santangelo.
A Bionic Six comic book (illustration credited to "Espinoza & Hooper"
Additional information
In Germany, most of the family's codenames were changed. Mother-1 became Bionic-2, Rock-1 became Rocky, Sport-1 became Baseball and Karate-1 became Kamikaze. Bionic-1 and I.Q. remained the same.Alan Oppenheimer, the actor who provided the voice for Professor Sharp, was the first (of two) to play Dr. Rudy Wells in The Six Million Dollar Man
The Six Million Dollar Man
The Six Million Dollar Man is an American television series about a former astronaut with bionic implants working for the OSI...
TV series.
Jennifer Darling (Madame O's voice) played Peggy Callahan (Mr. Goldman
Oscar Goldman
Oscar Goldman is a fictional character created by Martin Caidin and introduced in his 1972 novel Cyborg. In the 1970s, he was portrayed by Richard Anderson in both The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman television series which were based upon Cyborg...
's assistant) in The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman is an American television series starring Lindsay Wagner that aired for three seasons between 1976 and 1978 as a spin off from The Six Million Dollar Man. Wagner stars as tennis pro Jaime Sommers who is nearly killed in a skydiving accident. Sommers' life is saved by Oscar Goldman ...
TV series.
Carol Bilger (Helen Bennett / Mother-1) also provided the voice of Professor Sharp's computer.
Bobbi Block (Meg Bennett / Rock-1) also played the voice of Roxy in the animated series Jem
Jem (TV series)
Jem, also known as Jem and the Holograms, is an American animated television series that ran from 1985 to 1988 in U.S. first-run syndication...
.