TigerSharks
Encyclopedia
TigerSharks is an American animated children's television series
developed by Rankin/Bass
and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures
in 1987. The series involved a team of heroes that could transform into shark
s and other marine
animals and resembled the series ThunderCats
and SilverHawks
, also developed by Rankin/Bass.
The series lasted only one season with 26 episodes and was part of The Comic Strip
show, which consisted of four animated shorts: TigerSharks, Street Frogs, The Mini Monsters, and Karate Kat
.
The animation was provided by Pacific Animation Corporation. Warner Bros. Animation
currently owns the series, as they own the 1974-89 Rankin/Bass library, which was incorporated into the merger of Lorimar-Telepictures and Warner Bros.
and SilverHawks
series with this series about a team of powered up man/marine form hybrids called the "TigerSharks". This third series also featured many of the same voice actors who had worked on ThunderCats
and SilverHawks
including Larry Kenney, Peter Newman, Earl Hammond, Doug Preis and Bob McFadden.
The action took place in the fictional world of Water-O, which was covered almost completely by water. The planet was inhabited by a race of fish men called the Waterians. The TigerSharks arrived there on a research mission and ended up serving as the protectors of the planet against the evil T-Ray, who had arrived there beforehand.
Children's television series
Children's television series, are commercial television programs designed for, and marketed to children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run in the early evening, for the children that go to school...
developed by Rankin/Bass
Rankin/Bass
Rankin/Bass Productions, Inc. , also known as Rankin/Bass Animated Entertainment, was an American production company, known for its seasonal television specials, particularly its work in stop-motion animation. The pre-1974 library is currently owned by Classic Media,while the post-1974 library is...
and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures
Lorimar-Telepictures
Lorimar-Telepictures was a production and television syndication firm established in 1986 with the merger of Lorimar and Telepictures until both TV divisions became separate in 1988...
in 1987. The series involved a team of heroes that could transform into shark
Shark
Sharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
s and other marine
Marine biology
Marine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather...
animals and resembled the series ThunderCats
ThunderCats
ThunderCats is an American animated television series that was produced by Rankin/Bass Productions debuting in 1984, based on the characters created by Tobin "Ted" Wolf. The series follows the adventures of a group of cat-like humanoid aliens...
and SilverHawks
Silverhawks
SilverHawks is an American animated television series developed by Rankin/Bass and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986. The animation was provided by Japanese studio Pacific Animation Corporation. In total, 65 episodes were made...
, also developed by Rankin/Bass.
The series lasted only one season with 26 episodes and was part of The Comic Strip
The Comic Strip (TV series)
The Comic Strip was an American animated series which featured four rotating cartoon segments. The 30-minute series ran in first-run syndication during the 1987-1988 season and was also seen on RPN-9 in the Philippines....
show, which consisted of four animated shorts: TigerSharks, Street Frogs, The Mini Monsters, and Karate Kat
Karate Kat
Karate Kat is an animated children's television series. It was developed by Rankin/Bass and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1987. The show is about Karate Kat, a brown cat who's somehow skilled in Martial arts and uses it against crime. He is usually seen wearing a blue suit with a red tie...
.
The animation was provided by Pacific Animation Corporation. Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation is the animation division of Warner Bros., a subsidiary of Time Warner. The studio is closely associated with the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies characters, among others. The studio is the successor to Warner Bros...
currently owns the series, as they own the 1974-89 Rankin/Bass library, which was incorporated into the merger of Lorimar-Telepictures and Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
Production and development
Rankin/Bass followed up their successful ThunderCatsThunderCats
ThunderCats is an American animated television series that was produced by Rankin/Bass Productions debuting in 1984, based on the characters created by Tobin "Ted" Wolf. The series follows the adventures of a group of cat-like humanoid aliens...
and SilverHawks
Silverhawks
SilverHawks is an American animated television series developed by Rankin/Bass and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986. The animation was provided by Japanese studio Pacific Animation Corporation. In total, 65 episodes were made...
series with this series about a team of powered up man/marine form hybrids called the "TigerSharks". This third series also featured many of the same voice actors who had worked on ThunderCats
ThunderCats
ThunderCats is an American animated television series that was produced by Rankin/Bass Productions debuting in 1984, based on the characters created by Tobin "Ted" Wolf. The series follows the adventures of a group of cat-like humanoid aliens...
and SilverHawks
Silverhawks
SilverHawks is an American animated television series developed by Rankin/Bass and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986. The animation was provided by Japanese studio Pacific Animation Corporation. In total, 65 episodes were made...
including Larry Kenney, Peter Newman, Earl Hammond, Doug Preis and Bob McFadden.
Story
The members of the TigerShark team were humans who had to use a device called the Fish Tank in order to transform into their powered-up marine forms and enter it once again to revert back into their human forms. The TigerSharks' base was a spaceship that could also go underwater. The ship was called the SARK and contained the Fish Tank, along with other research facilities.The action took place in the fictional world of Water-O, which was covered almost completely by water. The planet was inhabited by a race of fish men called the Waterians. The TigerSharks arrived there on a research mission and ended up serving as the protectors of the planet against the evil T-Ray, who had arrived there beforehand.
TigerSharks
Protectors of Water-O, the team members are:- Mako (voiced by Peter NewmanPeter Newman (actor)Peter Newman is famous for his voice work for Rankin/Bass. In ThunderCats he provided the voices of Tygra, Wilykat, Bengali, and Monkian. In SilverHawks he provided the voices of Quicksilver, Mumbo Jumbo, and Timestopper. He also played the evil Duke of Zill & Wack Lizardi in Felix the Cat: The...
): A gifted scuba diver, he is considered the field leader of the TigerSharks. Mako is not only a good mediator, but also an excellent fighter. He transforms into a human/mako sharkShortfin mako sharkThe shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus , is a large mackerel shark. Along with the closely related longfin mako it is commonly referred to as a "mako shark".-Etymology:...
hybrid after jumping into the Fish Tank, which grants him incredible speed underwater. Mako also uses his forearm fins and head fin to slice through metal, which leads us to believe that his shark skin is impenetrable.
- Walro (voiced by Earl HammondEarl HammondEarl Hammond was an American theater, radio, film and television actor, and, in his later years, a voice actor for several animated films and TV series.-Best known roles:...
): The scientific and mechanical genius who created the Fish Tank. He acts as the advisor of the team and is very respected by his comrades; when he talks the others listen. Walro turns into a human/walrusWalrusThe walrus is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the Odobenidae family and Odobenus genus. It is subdivided into three subspecies: the Atlantic...
hybrid when he uses the Fish Tank.
- Dolph (voiced by Larry KenneyLarry KenneyLarry Kenney is an American radio personality and voice actor.In 1963, Kenney began his radio career at the age of 15 as a disc jockey at WIRL in Peoria. After WIRL, he worked at WOWO, Ft...
): Second in command and also an experienced scuba diver. Dolph has a knack for jokes and fooling around, but he knows when to joke and when to work. Dolph turns into a human/dolphinDolphinDolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...
hybrid after jumping into the Fish Tank, which makes him very maneuverable underwater.
- Octavia (voiced by Camille Bonora): Captain of the SARK, communications technician and main strategist; without her tactical skills, the TigerSharks would be much less formidable. Octavia turns into a human/octopusOctopusThe octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms...
hybrid (with tentacles instead of hair) after she uses the Fish Tank.
- Lorca: He’s the team’s mechanic and he often helps Walro to repair or build new machines. He’s also the team’s strongest member. Lorca turns into a human/orca hybrid when he uses the Fish Tank.
- Bronc: A teenager who works as an assistant in the SARK, he is very adventurous and sometimes reckless. He turns into a human/seahorseSeahorseSeahorses compose the fish genus Hippocampus within the family Syngnathidae, in order Syngnathiformes. Syngnathidae also includes the pipefishes. "Hippocampus" comes from the Ancient Greek hippos meaning "horse" and kampos meaning “sea monster”.There are nearly 50 species of seahorse...
hybrid when he uses the Fish Tank.
- Angel: Bronc's sister. She, along with her brother Bronc, is the younger member of the team; this teenage girl also works as an assistant in the SARK and is much more serious and responsible than her brother Bronc. She turns into a human/angelfish hybrid after using the Fish Tank.
- Gupp: TigerSharks' pet Basset HoundBasset HoundThe Basset Hound is a short-legged breed of dog of the hound family. They are scent hounds, bred to hunt rabbits and hare by scent. Their sense of smell for tracking is second only to that of the Bloodhound....
. While his name might imply that he turns into a guppyGuppyThe guppy , also known as the millionfish, is one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish species in the world. It is a small member of the Poeciliidae family [females long, males long] and like all other members of the family, is live-bearing....
, his features, including flipper-shaped legs and pin teeth, are more closely related to a sealPinnipedPinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
or sea lionSea LionSea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear-flaps, long fore-flippers, the ability to walk on all fours, and short thick hair. Together with the fur seal, they comprise the family Otariidae, or eared seals. There are six extant and one extinct species in five genera...
.
Villains
The show featured only two major antagonists. They are:- T-Ray: T-Ray is a human/manta rayManta rayThe manta ray is the largest species of the rays. The largest known specimen was more than across, with a weight of about . It ranges throughout waters of the world, typically around coral reefs...
hybrid-type creature. He and his assistants/henchmen known as the Mantannas arrived on Water-O because their home planet had dried up. In seeking to conquer Water-O, he freed Captain Bizzarly and his crew from their iced prison on Seaberia. He is bent on conquering Waterians and destroying the TigerSharks. He and his assistants cannot survive outside of the water without using water breathing apparatus.
- Mantannas - A group of fish-like creatures that work for T-Ray.
- Wall-Eye (voiced by Peter NewmanPeter Newman (actor)Peter Newman is famous for his voice work for Rankin/Bass. In ThunderCats he provided the voices of Tygra, Wilykat, Bengali, and Monkian. In SilverHawks he provided the voices of Quicksilver, Mumbo Jumbo, and Timestopper. He also played the evil Duke of Zill & Wack Lizardi in Felix the Cat: The...
) - Member of the Mantannas. - Shad - Member of the Mantannas.
- Dredge - Member of the Mantannas.
- Carper - Member of the Mantannas.
- Weakfish - Member of the Mantannas.
- Wall-Eye (voiced by Peter Newman
- Captain Bizzarly: A piratePiracyPiracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
with aquaphobiaAquaphobiaAquaphobia is an abnormal and persistent fear of water. Aquaphobia is a specific phobia that involves a level of fear that is beyond the patient's control or that may interfere with daily life. People suffer aquaphobia in many ways and may experience it even though they realize the water in an...
who controlled all crime-related activities on the vast oceans of Water-O until the Waterians froze him and his crew many years ago. T-Ray freed him and his men expecting them to help him. However, Bizzarly promptly betrayed T-Ray. Bizzarly now constantly tries to get rid of the TigerSharks and regain control of the oceans of Water-O.- Dragonstein - Captain Bizzarly's pet dragonDragonA dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
. - Long John Silverfish - Member of Captain Bizzarly's pirate crew.
- Mankiller - Member of Captain Bizzarly's pirate crew.
- Spike Marlin - Member of Captain Bizzarly's pirate crew.
- Soulmate - Member of Captain Bizzarly's pirate crew.
- Lump - Member of Captain Bizzarly's pirate crew.
- Grunt - Member of Captain Bizzarly's pirate crew.
- Dragonstein - Captain Bizzarly's pet dragon
In other media
- The TigerSharks made a cameo in an episode of the 2011 ThunderCatsThunderCats (2011 TV series)ThunderCats is an American animated television series executive produced by Sam Register, and produced by Ethan Spaulding and Michael Jelenic and is a reboot of the original series by Tobin "Ted" Wolf. It is produced by Warner Bros. Animation with animation provided by the Japanese Studio 4°C.The...
remake called "Legacy." They are among the "Animals" that forcibly worked under Mumm-Ra.