Darkstalkers (TV series)
A children's cartoon loosely based on a Capcom fighting game.
DarkStalkers: The Animated Series, a children's cartoon, was produced by Graz Entertainment and ran for a single 13-episode season in syndication from September to December 1995. It was loosely adapted from Capcom's fighting game Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Fantasy
- Adventure
- Comedy
- Creator
- Erik Kuska
- Developer
- Richard Mueller
- Writer
- Richard Mueller
- Christy Marx
- Douglas Booth
- Kat Likkel
- Brooks Wachtel
- Katherine Lawrence
- Director
- Dora Case
- J.K. Kim
- Sue Peters
- Voices
- Saffron Henderson
- Based on
- Darkstalkers; by Capcom
- End theme
- "Trouble Man" by Eikichi Yazawa
Facts from the source article.
Plot
The television series toned down the violence and sexual content of the games and adopted a standard good-vs.-evil plot instead of the games' complex backstory. Morrigan Aensland became a villain descended from Morgan le Fay, serving alongside Demitri Maximoff under Pyron's command. The main protagonist is an ordinary human boy named Harry Grimoire, a descendant of Merlin created exclusively for the show, who forms a partnership with Felicia.
Production
The series was co-produced by Capcom USA and Graz Entertainment. A June 1995 news article in GamePro stated the show would star a kid who befriends the game's supernatural cast and sets out to prevent an alien invasion. Capcom's director of licensing, Jun Aida, expressed confidence that the show would be a big hit with kids, calling it this decade's answer to the Ghostbusters sensation of the 80s.
Reception
The series was received negatively both as an adaptation and as an animated series, mainly among fans who compared it to the production values of the original games. Topless Robot included Harry Grimoire on their 2010 list of the 10 worst cartoon kid sidekicks. Rachel Jagielski of VentureBeat commented that the plot is bad and the animation is shoddy. Ryan Winterhalter of GamesRadar, in 2014, blamed the network in his negative review, stating the show takes characters that fighting gamers know and love and throws them out the window. Henry Gilbert of GamesRadar commented that those who watched the horrendous Darkstalkers cartoon have his sympathies. Vincent Chiucchi of 411Mania rated it first in his 2008 list of the top five most shameful video game cartoons, lambasting it as the worst video game cartoon in history, adding that everything about it is horrible.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who created Darkstalkers (TV series)?
Darkstalkers was created by Erik Kuska.
When did Darkstalkers (TV series) first air?
Darkstalkers first aired on 30 September 1995.
When did Darkstalkers (TV series) end?
Darkstalkers last aired on 30 December 1995.
More in Japanese Children's Animated Fantasy Television Series
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