The Herculoids
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| The Herculoids | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Animated series |
| Running time | 9 minutes per episode |
| Creator(s) | Alex Toth |
| Starring | Mike Road Virginia Gregg Ted Eccles Don Messick |
| Country of origin | USA |
| Original channel | CBS |
| Original run | 1967–1969 |
| No. of episodes | 36 (1967) 11 (1981) |
The Herculoids was a Saturday morning animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The show debuted on September 9, 1967, and aired on CBS until September 6, 1969. Eleven new episodes were created in 1981 as part of the Space-Stars show. The plotlines were rooted in science fiction, and had story direction and content similar to Jonny Quest and Space Ghost.
This series takes place on a far-away planet named Quasar in the land of Amzot. It has had a cast of eight characters:
- Zandor (voiced by Mike Road), humanoid protector of the planet Amzot/Quasar
- his wife, Tara (voiced by Virginia Gregg)
- their son, Dorno (voiced by Ted Eccles, then by Sparky Marcus in 1981)
- Five creatures of the planet, known as The Herculoids, who are the following:
- Zok the flying dragon (voiced by Mike Road), who emits energy blasts from his eyes and tail. His eyes also produce a "nega-beam" that can neutralize certain energy attacks. Zok can survive in space unaided, is capable of interstellar travel, and can breathe fire.
- Igoo the rock gorilla (voiced by Mike Road), who has extremely dense skin and is nearly invulnerable to harm.
- Tundro the ten-legged rhino-triceratops (voiced by Mike Road), who shoots energy rocks from his cannon-horn (Zandor and Dorno also occasionally shoot similar rocks using slingshots). His natural armor-plating is exceptionally strong and is almost as invunerable as Igoo's rock skin. His legs also have the ability to extend, and retract, allowing him to utilize them as stilts when necessary.
- Two protoplastic creatures named Gloop and Gleep (both voiced by Don Messick), who can assume any shape or form that they choose.
There was also a sixth creature in close association with the Herculoids: Saju, an enormous Godzilla-like creature whose size was only matched by her enormous strength. She was not however, considered a member of the group in canon, and did not travel with them on their various remote adventures.
Together, the Herculoids and the humanoids battle to defend their planet from several menaces from outer space. All of the Herculoids displayed human-level intelligence and could clearly understand human speech.
[edit] The Herculoids in other languages
- Brazilian Portuguese: Os Herculóides
- Spanish: Los Defensores Intergalácticos or Los Herculóides
- Hungarian: A Herkuloidák
