Captain Simian & The Space Monkeys

Reruns of "Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys" came on in my area recently, and I found it to be an entertaining show with witty jabs at famous sci-fi plots and characters. However, in one episode, there was a scene where a character was hit by a deadly ray and was reduced to a pool of blood and the character's rib cage. It is a good cartoon, but I would watch out for these rarely-occurring events of violence or gory detail. Also, there may be some humor that kids might not get.

I watched this show every Sunday morning on, I think it was UPN, and loved it, I still love it. Like you said earlier, it was funny, smart (maybe too smart for the younger children) but it was still funny all the way around.

I was curious if anyone knew when (or if) a DVD would be coming out for the entire series? Because I know if a DVD ever came out I would buy it in a heart beat, and watch all 26 episodes.

I loved and still love every minute of that show, especially the opening theme song...brilliant!

Why did it have to leave? I still have the memories...

I can remember watching this thing when it first rain 10 years ago, it was funny, intelligently written, w/ cleary drawn characters, distinct voices, oodles of satire tossed in. You gotta love the Trek refs(holo-boons as Redshirts, Shatner, etc), Worf voicing the baddie, Malcolm McDowell as the Other baddie, awful brain puns, etc. This one just worked on many levels.

Odd that it didn't catch on better-but then again it had a hard time finding a home there on the UPN schedule, it was around the one year-26 eps-then goners.

I'd rec. checking for it on You Tube-most of the shows are there, and they do hold up pretty well.

*** outta ****

Captain Simian is possibly the best cartoon ever aired, without exaggeration. It was funny, clever, well-drawn and well-animated, and had a stellar voice cast.

This series, which tragically lasted a mere 26 episodes, was the sort of cartoon that parents would have loved to watch with their kids. Sadly, neither generation knew the show existed. (In my area, the show bounced around the Saturday morning lineup, briefly moving to Sunday, and even changed networks. I had to search for it again and again.)

The show was funny on multiple levels. It was a cartoon about monkeys -- kids don't need much more than that -- but that was the lowest level of humor this show reached. It also made jokes that *only* the parents would get. There were references to "A Clockwork Orange" (Malcolm McDowell did one of the regular voices), a film noir episode that paid homage to "Maltese Falcon" and "Chinatown" beautifully, even an episode titled "Surf Monkeys Must Dive!" (named after a Troma film that NO child should ever see). The in-jokes went on and on.

On top of that, there was the simple irony that the main adversaries, Captain Simian and Lord Nebula, were voiced by Jerry Doyle and Michael Dorn -- the battle of the primetime Sci-Fi Security Chiefs -- Mister Garibaldi and Lt. Worf in a grudge match for control of the entire universe.

The show died its unfortunate death because the toys weren't selling well. (As I understand it, the toys weren't selling well because they were being dumped directly into the 3/$10 bin at the major chains, rather than being shelved.) If the toys don't sell, the show isn't seen as worthwhile.

It's still around in re-runs, but no one can say for how long. So watch it while you can.

This underrated and overlooked animated series from 1996 is definitely worth trying out for fans of 90s cartoons (like me). While the animation itself is not as expertly made as, say, that of 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' (1987-1996), for example, which must have had a bigger budget, 'Captain Simian & The Space Monkeys' still features well-written dialogue, some outstanding comic relief, and a certain charm which captivates its audience, whether young or old.

This is one of those underrated shows which should definitely get remastered or remade so that a new generation of people will not miss out on its captivating style. Most major studios only remake some of the better known shows but I believe that with some proper investment,' Captain Simian & The Space Monkeys' could be a surprise hit.