Well, that was a quick turnaround. We've had a year and a half with only the vaguest of information about this in-the-making show, and in one day, it's all over the internet. Why? Because Teletoon Canada has issued an official announcement and press release about the upcoming Inspector Gadget TV series, as well as two press pictures which have been circulating online along with that announcement. (Click on the pictures to see Gadget in super-large size!)
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The second picture is, of course, the full version of the low-res image that I found on DHX Media's site on May 9, confirming that it was indeed from the new series (in fact, the low-res version is still viewable through DHX's image url). But let's get on to the new information - first of all, Teletoon's announcement and full press release! It can be found on a ton of news sites online, but I thought I might as well link to Teletoon Media's official site, which is probably where it originated. First, the formal announcement...
Inspector Gadget Reboot Tops Off TELETOON Canada’s Latest Original Production Slate
TELETOON Canada announces two new original series, Inspector Gadget and Pirate Express, as well as the renewal of four others
June 09, 2013 - (...)
TELETOON Canada Inc. today announced its latest original production slate, featuring a brand new CGI version of the beloved Canadian animated series Inspector Gadget and swashbuckling new series Pirate Express, as well as the renewals of Rocket Monkeys (Season 2), Endangered Species (Season 2), Total Drama (Season 6) and Johnny Test (Season 7). This announcement was made from the Banff World Media Festival, where TELETOON is a proud sponsor of the Kids and Animation program for the fourth consecutive year. (...)...and then - the most interesting part - the actual info about the new series:
Inspector Gadget
DHX Media • 26 x 11 minutes
Premiere Date TBC on TELETOON
MAD Agents, look out! Criminals, beware! Bystanders … take cover! Inspector Gadget is back to battle Dr. Claw with all-new gadgets – and all-new gadget-related chaos. But the loveable, bumbling, accidentally-destructive Inspector is not alone in the fight to take down MAD. His ever trusty police-dog, Brain, is still by his side and he's getting extra crime-fighting help from his new partner, Inspector-in-training Penny. With MAD more powerful than ever and with the arrival of Dr. Claw's evil-genius (and totally crush-worthy) nephew, Penny and Brain will need to use every ounce of their training to keep the world safe from Dr. Claw … and Gadget.
So, the new show's episodes will be 11 minutes in lenght rather than 22, Dr Claw has an evil-genius (and totally crush-worthy?!?) nephew, Penny is Inspector Gadget's official partner... There are a lot of changes to the original concept here which I honestly hadn't been expecting. In fact, pretty much the only thing from the press releases that I had been expecting was that the new series would be CGI-animated. At least that prediction turned out to be correct.
The following article from The Canadian Press (here via Yahoo! Canada) goes a bit in-depth about the development of the new show, as described by Alan Gregg, Teletoon's director of original content:
Teletoon Canada plans to air 'Inspector Gadget' reboot
By: Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
Tuesday, Jun. 11, 2013 at 5:56 PM
BANFF, Alta. - Go-Go-Gadget reboot.
The clueless cyborg police inspector along with his catchy theme song, niece Penny and dog Brain are being dusted off and brought back to TV by Teletoon Canada and DHX Media (TSX:DHX).
The original "Inspector Gadget" was introduced to audiences from 1983-86 and used the vocal talents of Don Adams, who is best-known as secret agent Maxwell Smart on the '60s sitcom "Get Smart."
The series also spawned a 1999 movie of the same name starring Matthew Broderick.
The network said the longstanding popularity of the franchise, which has run for years in reruns, serves a dual purpose.
"We had been speaking with the programming department about finding brands that already resonated well ... particularly with adults," said Alan Gregg, Teletoon's director of original content, at the Banff World Media Festival on Tuesday.
"It's a challenge because parents tend to not watch so much animation but we thought there's an opportunity with Inspector Gadget to sort of trade on the nostalgia factor — all the people who loved Inspector Gadget 30 years ago now have kids of the age who are watching our network."
The reboot will stay true to its roots, said Gregg, but the latest version will be in CGI and the storyline and the characters will be updated just a bit.
"The theme song is a huge part of Gadget and everyone loves the theme. I was just searching the other day and realized it is actually based on a classical piece by a Norwegian composer (Edvard Grieg) in 'In the Hall of the Mountain King,'" he chuckled.
"We would like to get a major Canadian composer or songwriter to do a reboot of that theme song which would be true to the original but contemporarize it a little bit."
The character of Penny will be a few years older and the bad guy will be the nephew of Gadget's original nemesis, Dr. Claw.
It's too early to say who will do the voice but it won't be Adams, who died in 2005.
Gregg said the show will be weekly and divided into two mini 11-minute segments. It could be ready to hit the airwaves in late 2014.
Although Teletoon Canada is primarily thought of as a children's channel, Gregg said there are plenty of adult viewers — especially later in the evening. The new Gadget will likely run later in the family viewing timeframe as a lead-in to the more adult programming.
"We're an animation channel first and foremost and a great deal of our programming is for kids but post 9 o'clock, we go to adult content like 'Robot Chicken,' 'Futurama,' 'Archer,' and 'American Dad,'" Gregg said.
"All the key components are there. Anyone who looks at the new Gadget will be happy that we didn't throw the baby out with the bathwater. The show will be more contemporary and the stories more compelling."
For a moment, while reading the part with "...the bad guy will be the nephew of Gadget's original nemesis, Dr. Claw", I was wondering if Dr Claw himself would not be in this new series at all - he is, after all, only described as Gadget's original nemesis. However, a shorter write-up from The Canadian Press (via News1130) seems to confirm Dr Claw as a character in the new show:
‘Inspector Gadget’ making a return
No premiere date yet for new CGI version
The Canadian Press June 11, 2013 9:29 am
TORONTO (NEWS1130) – Go-Go-Gadget reboot!
Teletoon Canada says it plans to air a new CGI version of the 1980s Canadian children’s animated series “Inspector Gadget” from DHX Media.
The show features a bumbling cyborg detective who launches bionic gadgets in his body with the command “Go-Go-Gadget.”
The cartoon sleuth originally debuted in 1983.
Teletoon Canada says the new incarnation, which doesn’t have a premiere date yet, will also include original characters Dr. Claw, Brain the dog, and sidekick Penny.
As you've probably noticed, Teletoon Canada is the one who's making pretty much all the announcements at the moment. On DHX Media's side, there's only been a short news article so far. It doesn't tell us anything that we didn't already know from the Teletoon quotes, but it's nice to hear the news from DHX as well, so here it is:
DHX to produce new Inspector Gadget, Johnny Test
2013-06-11 10:41 ET - News Release
Mr. David Regan reports
DHX MEDIA COMMISSIONED TO PRODUCE NEW INSPECTOR GADGET SERIES AND 7TH SEASON OF JOHNNY TEST SERIES
DHX Media Ltd. has received an order from Teletoon Canada Inc. for a new CGI (computer-generated imagery) series of the classic kids cartoon, Inspector Gadget, and a seventh season of the hit children's series, Johnny Test. In addition, Teletoon Canada will be premiering Johnny Test, season 6, fall 2013.
I'll be posting my own thoughts about all of this shortly (hopefully later today or tomorrow)... but for now, what do you think about all the new announcements?
I knew it!! That thumbnail you discovered in the last post couldnt just be a coincidence.
ReplyDelete..but anayway..right now I might be a little worried with that "and totally crush-worthy" thing about Claw's nephew...
its curious...because...we had already seen claw's nephew character in one episode of the Gadgetinis series, but he isnt actually a bad guy in that one.
About Gadget's new design: I kinda like that stopmotion look on him.
And its a nice thing that they went to the original series for inspiration. I also noticed that this design has cut a bit of his trenchcoat at the bottom...(the original trechcoat went down till about his knees)and they had already done that in that 3D direct to dvd "Inspector gadget: the case of the flying lizard"...so I figured..(since I'm now studying 3Dmodeling/animation)..it was probably a pratical decision that had to do with cloth simulation. Shrinking the trenchcoat at the bottom saves precious rendering time since the program doesnt have to calculate the collision simulation. That usually consumes a lot of time.
But I guess I dont mind..the overall image isnt bad.
I sure hope they get the storyline right.
By the way...I only noticed a few weeks ago that you tried to contact me on "my" animation blog. That blog was done by my animation teachers to get in contact with students...it was later on passed over to me...but no one has used it ever since.
So, here's my contact: gadget04@hotmail.com
PS: I took on a project of building a Gagdet Puppet (à lá Muppets)..I modeled it in 3d and printed the cut outs onto some foam..I'm only lacking the hair and the cloths to cover it up.
I thought you might like to see it.
Thats all for now,
bye
Do you have a pic posted anywhere of your Gadget Puppet? I'm also a huge Muppet fan and have been considering making my own Gadget doll. Curious how yours turned out. gravewriter71@gmail.com if you'd like to correspond, anyone...
DeleteYeah, it's nice to know I was right about the thumbnail. Pretty fun to have been able to present Gadget's new look on my blog a whole month before Teletoon released the high-res images. :)
DeleteI'm also a bit sceptical towards the "crush-worthy" part. Personally, though, I'm thinking/hoping the Gadgetinis continuity will be ignored for this new series. I didn't care for all the changes Gadgetinis made to the original show's characterisations and storylines, and in my eyes, it's not canon to the 1983 show anyway (there are too many changes to the characters' personalities in "Gadgetinis" for them to exist in the same universe as the original series, I think). This new nephew character might be inspired, to a degree, by Claw having a nephew in Gadgetinis (a nephew that Penny had a crush on, no less), but I doubt that the character will have any real connection to William from Gadgetinis.
I was actually thinking about stop-motion myself when seeing the full pictures of Gadget's new look. :) The design has a simple, retro feel to it, which I like. And of course I love seeing Gadget back in his classic trenchcoat! I do think the bottom part of the coat looks a bit too short, especially in the picture where we see him standing (notice how the coat actually seems a bit longer in the pic with Gadget flying, as if they're still working out how long the coat will be in the finished series). Interesting to hear your theory about it from a CGI student's perspective. I was wondering myself if the shorter coat had something to do with budgets and time-saving, and your comment about the rendering time for cloth simulation sounds like it makes a lot of sense, especially since this will be produced on television budgets and within television deadlines. I can probably live with it, but I hope they end up making the coat at least as long as it looks in the flying picture. If it's too short, it sort of loses some of the similarities to the classic detective trenchcoat.
The Muppet Gadget sounds interesting. ;)
"...it loses some of the similarities to the classic detective trenchcoat."
DeleteYou know, Rorschach's trenchcoat in "Watchmen" is about as long as CG!Gadget's.
It's also as long as the coat worn by the original, way-cool 12" doll from Galoob!
Oh HELL YES! *happydance, swoon, fangirl squeeing*
ReplyDeleteI really hope there's a way to see the series in the US, at least online. The complete original series dvd release is great news too! (Even though I wish Capeman had been edited out...)
William as a bad guy? Penny's mutual crush from Gadgetinis? Interesting. Sounds like they're grabbing elements from both series to make a new one. Oh I hope I hope I hope Maurice La Marche and Brian Drummond are on board!
Thanks for the update! *flails away in utter joy, gadgets amok*
BRIAN DRUMMOND? How about HELL NO! Frank Welker, please.
DeleteI'll have to take Sslaxx's side on this one. ;) Kris, just wondering: If you could choose between Frank Welker and Brian Drummond for the role of Dr Claw, who would you choose? I'm getting curious why you seem to love Drummond's Dr Claw so much. In my ears, Frank Welker is a thousand times better.
DeleteAlso, I doubt the nephew character in this upcoming series will have anything to with William from Gadgetinis. The Gadgetinis series was never really canon to the the 1983 original anyway.
DeleteI'll stick my neck onto the chopping block and say: Neither Frank Welker nor Brian Drummond, but...Nick Briggs.
DeleteWell, now we just have to see if the new series is actually any good...
ReplyDeleteThat's definitely the biggest question! ;) I'm surpriced that the series might not be ready for airing until "late 2014", according to that interview with Alan Gregg. It's already been in development since at least the start of 2012. But I guess what this announcement means is that the series has finally been greenlit to enter full production... guess that's why it might still take some time until it's ready to be released.
DeleteI'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping they took a darker spin on it, the teaser art from the canceled 2009 reboot seemed really promising. Considering they're trying to get a periphery demographic of older viewers as well, hopefully they worked the things fans always wanted to see in, instead of just adult references or what have you in an attempt to pull in older viewers.
At 11 minutes an episode, I doubt they'll be going down a more dramatic route. Personally I think this'll be a pure comedy series, I just hope it's GOOD comedy.
Delete"stories more compelling" Let me guess, all the "compelling stories" will be on Penny's end and Gadget will continue to be a one-note, two-dimensional slapstick comedy device like he was in Season 2 and Gadgetinis? Pass.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't mind compelling stories about Penny myself. The way I see it, she's always been the most 'compelling' character in the IG universe, and her character suffered in season 2 because she was a lot less involved in the stories and crime-fighting (both the character writing and the voice felt off)... so I wouldn't mind seeing her get some compelling, dramatic action in this new series. Although, I really hope you're not right about Gadget being like he was in season 2 (completely brain-dead) or in Gadgetinis (more Goofy than Gadget, if you ask me... and yes, I'm talking about Disney's Goofy). I wouldn't mind seeing Gadget grow just a little as a character, and be more than *just* a slapstick device (even though he'll remain bumbling). In my eyes, they should build on the charm of Gadget like he was in the first season and take it from there. It would be nice if Gadget, too, is a character we can care about.
DeleteGadget's my favorite character, I watch the show to see him, so how he's treated is make it or break it for me. Penny's side of the story could be the greatest kid detective show ever, and I still wouldn't watch it if Gadget didn't get decent characterization. Obviously Penny should be involved like she was in season 1, and if she's Gadget's partner I don't think that'll be a problem (maybe they'll get to share screentime instead of running parallel stories, like they did in "Haunted Castle"?), but she shouldn't be the main character or hog all the "best" writing. At the end of the day, the franchise is still called "Inspector Gadget", not "Penny the Kid Detective".
DeleteIf *I* were writing the show, I'd make the point that, while Penny may get better results, she relies way too heavily on her tech.
DeleteThere's a contrast between the two of them: Where Penny investigates with GPS, bugs, infrared cameras, hacking, etc., Gadget has a more old-fashioned tactic: he goes in and asks!
As for Gadget, I'd say that he's a pretty good detective, and fairly intelligent, but he's easily sidetracked and tightly-wound.
I would like to know what about PSAs which was included in original series. Except that I don't agree with opinion that season 2 is very bad. Personally I think that Penny in season 2 was better developed. She was involved in crime stories equally but it was behind screen, and I agree it was a bad idea. About "brain-dead" Gadget in season 2, I don't say anything, it's hard to express my opinion, because He was unpredictable, sometimes smarter (if we can say that) sometimes like Mesterius said "brain-dead".
ReplyDeleteI do hope at least they have good voice casting. If Maurice LaMarche will voice Gadget, that'd be great (I think he actually filled in for Don Adams a few times in Season 2 of the original series), or if not, I've heard Billy West do a good Don Adams imitation. I would also like to hear Frank Welker as Brain and Dr. Claw again. If he can still voice Fred Jones of Scooby-Doo fame, why not apply the same to Gadget? He also currently is the voice of Scooby-Doo as well, using an identical voice he used for Brain, so that shows he could still do the Brain voice well, and he did a good Dr. Claw voice on Robot Chicken as well.
ReplyDeleteI very much agree, I'd love to hear Frank Welker play Dr Claw and Brain again (and Madcat too, for that matter). Like you, I think Frank could still do his Claw and Brain voices flawlessly (the Robot Chicken spot proves that as far as Claw goes, and I think he actually voiced Brain and Madcat there as well). Maurice LaMarche seems the likeliest choice for Gadget and will probably be fine in that role. (Curious about Billy West's Don Adams impression, though.) For my own part, aside from Dr Claw, I'm most curious/concerned with who they will get to play Penny. I really hope they'll find someone better than... well, better than ANYONE who voiced Penny after Cree Summers' wonderful performance in the first season. All of Penny's voice actors since have simply been lackluster in comparison.
DeleteYep, Frank Welker was also Brain in the Robot Chicken parody as well (it was fun hearing his Brain saying "Roh, crap!" at one point.)
DeleteEven if her voice had changed, Cree Summer also did a good job voicing Penny in the parody segment as well. I even remember at times in the show's first season I could hear a little bit of her Susie Carmichael from "Rugrats" in her Penny voice. I think she would still be a good idea to reprise the role of Penny again, though I think (not trying to sound racist) it's been a while since she voiced a white female (the only other one I know she voiced was Elmyra, and she was perfect with the role!)
Personally I think that Holly Berger, whose voiced Penny in season 2, was the best. I know not many people liked Her but it's my opinion. New show is created in Canada, so maybe they choose Cree Summer. She was changed after Nelvana stopped doing the show under DIC Audiovisuel. To voicing Gadget they probably choose Maurice LaMarche. He can voicing Quimby too, like in season 2.
DeleteHolly Berger? Ugh. I actually found her performance pretty terrible compared to that of Cree Summer... but everyone to her/his taste, I guess. Also, I never really liked Maurice LaMarche's version of Chief Quimby (at least not the way LaMarche's Quimby evolved through the second season). I much prefer Dan Hennessey.
DeleteI have a question about original language of Inspector Gadget (of course from 1983). I know that english version was prepared first, but in which language the script was written? Were Jean Chalopin and Bruno Bianchi involved in creation french translation of this cartoon?
DeleteAs far as I know, the scripts were always written in English. The series was conceived as an attempt by DiC to break into the American market, so it feels logical. When the pilot episode was written (by Jean Chalopin and Andy Heyward), DiC was still a French company first and foremost; but it still feels very likely that the pilot script was written in English from the beginning, because DiC wanted to attract American buyers. Also, it feels likely because the English-language voices for the pilot were recorded first (and the English-language recording put through various audience tests, with DiC considering both Jesse White and Gary Owens for the role of Gadget before settling on Don Adams).
DeleteAs for the regular-series episodes, I'm positive that they were written in English from the start - first in Toronto, Canada at the Nelvana studio (season 1) and then at DiC's own Los Angeles studio (season 2). Nelvana employee Peter Sauder was the head writer for the season 1 scripts, whereas season 2 had four credited writers: Eleanor-Burian-Mohr, Mike O'Mahoney, Glen Egbert and Jack Hanrahan. I think it's safe to say that they all wrote their scripts in English, especially when considering that the voices were recorded in English in the same studios which produced the scripts.
I have no idea though if Chalopin and/or Bianchi were involved with the French translations of the episodes. (As a general rule of thumb, I'd guess not... they probably had their hands full handling the creative side of things.)
In season 2 story was written by Eleanor-Burian-Mohr, Mike O'Mahoney, Glen Egbert and Jack Hanrahan, but story was edited by Jean Chalopin, what as shown in credits from season 2, in french version four writers aren't even mentioned, and Jean Chalopin is shown as script writer. About season 1, I don't know what to say, because French and English credits are different about that.
DeleteI think that Jean Chalopin can take part in creating translation in his country, maybe not directly, but He can understand how translations had been developed.
DeletePeter Sauder WAS the head writer for the season 1 scripts, and the other four writers DID write the season 2 scripts. I'm certain that the French end credits are wrong about this and that the English end credits are correct. (I've noticed the differences myself.) To me, it actually feels logical that it was decided to eliminate the American writers' credits from the French end titles. Remember, Jean Chalopin was already a famous name in France thanks to the success of Ulysses 31 and The Mysterious Cities of Gold, where he participated more directly in the scriptwriting. So I can imagine it made sense to the French broadcasters to focus on Chalopin as the man responsible for the stories... even though that's not the whole truth. Also, I'm guessing that the French broadcasters (or whoever made the decision to modify the credits) wanted Inspector Gadget to come off as a wholly French cartoon. Which is not true, of course. Inspector Gadget was a French-American cartoon... and personally, I think the emphasis should be placed on the American side, because a) the scripts were written in English, b) the voices were recorded in English first, and the animation/lipsync was done to them, and c) the series started airing in the United States before it aired anywhere else in the world. Not to mention that, after the regular series went into full production, all pre-production work was done in America as far as I know. (Of course, the show did start airing in France only a month after its U.S. premiere, so obviously they also had a deal with a French broadcaster, but still...)
DeleteYes, Jean Chalopin was the story editor for season 2 -- and I'm sure he also worked closely with Peter Sauder on the season 1 stories... but he did not *write* the scripts. That task was handled by the American writers. If you still want more proof, I'd recommend checking out the French-published book "Les séries de notre enfance" by Maroin Eluasti and Nordine Zemrak, which chronicles DiC's history in the 70s and 80s. In it, all the American writers that I mention are credited.
By the way... do you have the original, 1983 French end credits for season 1? If so, I'd love to see them uploaded online! :) They seem pretty much impossible to find these days.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRBDggETkG0 - Here is whole episode in french language with opening and credits.
Delete"Yes, Jean Chalopin was the story editor for season 2" - Do I understand correctly that season 2 was more French than season 1?
DeleteWell, maybe stories were written by americans, but character designers were mostly Frenchmen: Bruno Bianchi, Edouard David, Jean Barbaud, Christian Choquet, Stephan Martiniere, Francois Allot, Charles Bonifacio, Brian Lemay. I don't know what thinks about lip-sync. Is it adjusted to script or script is adjusted to lip-sync.
DeleteReplies to all three comments in order:
DeleteActually, the credits in that link are not the original 1983 French credits. They are the updated credits seen on the modern DVD edition from IDP video, and based more closely on the American season 1 credits than the original French credits. (Notice that it actually says, "Responsable d'ecriture: Peter Sauder").
No. As I already said, all pre-production for season 2 was done in DiC's studio in Los Angeles (i. e. in the U.S.).
It's true that all the initial character designs were done by Frenchmen - in other words, the designs of Gadget, Penny, Brain, Dr Claw and Quimby. (In fact, I think all the initial model sheets were done in DiC's French studio). However, when the first season started production, the American Brian Lemay (a Nelvana employee) was responsible for designing all the supporting characters appearing in the episodes, like all the M.A.D. agents. He has many of his Gadget designs online... check out my link section to find his site.
Also, I already told you that, from what I know, English voices were recorded first and the animation was done afterwards to match the voice recordings. Don't you read my answers?...
Mesterius, what you said about voice before animation isn't true... Also you've got a lot of facts about Gadget wrong..
ReplyDeleteTraditonally, in animation, the script is produced and then it is animated. Afterwards the voice over artist stands behind a boothe and performs the voice as the animation is reeled. This is done as a test to see if the script matches the synced animation (Witnessed it first hand so I know what I'm talking about). If not the animation is reproduced and the process begins all over again.
Secondly, Inspector Gadget is French Canadian, not American Canadian.
Thirdly Brian Lemay is Canadian and was born (according to his IMDb prodile) June 10, 1960 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Peter Sauder is also Canadian. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Sauder)
Lastly Andy Heward had Inspector Gadget as an idea. With the help of Bianchi/Chalopin formated the show and helped develop the story and Characters.
So apart from a couple of writers the American influence in the show is very little. I think the reason why it was aired in America first is because like Canadians, Americans share the English language.. So it would make sense to air it in America first.
Just thought I'd clear the confusion!
Samantha, I'm sorry to have to say this, but I believe YOU are wrong about a number of things. (Not everything, mind you, but...)
Delete"Traditonally, in animation, the script is produced and then it is animated. Afterwards the voice over artist stands behind a boothe and performs the voice as the animation is reeled."
Traditionally, in animation produced in the United States -- or Canada, or most other Western countries for that matter -- the voices are recorded first, and the animation is then done to match them. This has been common at least since the early 1930s in American cartoons, and it's still the standard way of doing animation here in the West. Inspector Gadget, being a French-Canadian-American production intended for U.S. broadcasting, was also produced this way: Voices first, then animation. Unless you have documented proof that it happened the other way around, I can't really believe it. I have seen Don Adams state that he never saw the Inspector Gadget series at all when he voiced it. The only exception was when he auditioned and voiced the pilot episode. That one time, he actually did it to the animation on screen; but that was because he was the third actor to try out in the role of Gadget (after Jesse White and Gary Owens), and the animation for the pilot episode had already been done after the recording of the first actor who auditioned for the role.
I have heard, though, that it's common to do it the way you described for Japanese animated films and series: script first, then animation, then voice recording synced to the animation. But the Western tradition has pretty much always been script first, then voice recording, then animation synced to the voice recording. Could it be that you assumed Inspector Gadget was made in the 'Japanese' manner because most of its episodes were animated in Japan? Well, the difference is that Gadget was not a Japanese *production*... it was a French-Canadian (second season, French-American) series which outsourced its animation to Japan (as well as Taiwan for some episodes). But its dialogue had been recorded before the animation work started in Asia.
By the way, you say that "witnessed it first hand" (with regard to your statements about voice recording). Could you be more specific? Where/how did you witness it? In which production?
About the Canadian/American thing... I'm well aware that both Peter Sauder and Brian Lemay are Canadian, actually. But I see now that I made a mistake with the wording in my previous comments, thanks to my ignorance towards geographical details. You see, for some reason I actually believed that 'America' (and 'American') is a term that includes both the United States and Canada. So when I said, for example, "the American Brian Lemay", I thought being 'American' included being 'Canadian'. But I just checked the word and it does not. So thanks for the correction regarding that detail, and sorry about the confusion. A number of the times I say 'American' in previous comments, it should really have read 'Canadian'...
Anyway, considering that the the second season did have all its pre-production done in America (i. e. the U.S.), I don't think French-American is completely wrong from a production perspective. (Plus, I'm pretty certain that the pilot episode was recorded in Los Angeles.) I'd say Inspector Gadget is a French-Canadian-American series.
I'm also aware that Andy Heyward had the initial idea for the series, and that it was developed further by both Chalopin and Bianchi. (The season 1 credits say "Developed by Jean Chalopin" for a reason.) Please note that I'm not trying to undermine the French contributions to the series. I think they're very important. I'm convinced that Jean Chalopin, for instance, helped develop the series into something far better than it promised to be in the original pilot episode. Also, the fact that Bianchi and the other character designers responsible for the main characters were French made the look of the show very European, and ultimately more unique, I think. Overall, I LIKE the fact that the Inspector Gadget series doesn't feel too American.
DeleteOh, and...
"I think the reason why it was aired in America first is because like Canadians, Americans share the English language.. So it would make sense to air it in America first."
This argument makes no sense. You make it sound like the series just happened to air in the United States first by pure coincidence. That's not the case at all, however. Why do you think DiC - up until that point a wholly French company - decided to have the Inspector Gadget series produced in English in the first place? Because they had a deal in place with a U.S. broadcaster before the series went into production.
That FR3 (French public television) was involved in season 2 production like in season 1?
DeleteIs It known that Andy Heyward and Jean Chalopin will be involved in creating this series?
ReplyDelete