Once again, we take another visit to the "Under the Radar Video" series where this video store holds all the hidden visual treasures yet to be seen and discovered. This show was the ball that got fumbled, as it unfortunately was a victim of bad timing as this show came on the twilight years of "Fox Kids" which became a ground for a lot of overlooked gems. However, the show was reshown in its full season on ABC Family's Jetix and has become a sleeper cult gem.
The animation style is fantastic, it was no doubt ahead of it's time. I really like that it's a post-apocalyptic sci-fi which at the time was a sub-genre rarely tackled in animation and TV in general. Reminds me a little of the post-apocalyptic world the movie "Hardware" despite the ruin there is technology that still works and even looks ahead of our own.
It was one of the first shows that combined both 2D and 3D animation. I really like the design of the ships which are CGI animated but done the right way as their well detailed and unique. However, one feature of them I lie is how dirty, gritty, they look which is a look I always like because it gives the feel of time and grounded reality as their machinery that has clearly seen better days. The story is very good, it's true it's obviously inspired and takes its cues from "Star Wars" and the "King Arthur Legend" But I don't mind which makes the show sort of a wheel greaser, as long as it makes the wheel run smoother, which makes my enjoyment smoother I'm fine.
Action is solid as it's well choreographed and smooth, from the arial action to the ground. Like the use of the Xyber 9 device which is the main characters skeleton key port as it can hook up power up and access just about every to any technological machine built. It really cool because it just gives you unlimited freedom to access any machine you want and need without having to go though a training course. But can also save you in case any of the machines stop working.
There are some good well-rounded characters that have some depth which was something you didn't see much in animated TV at the time. I even like the story structure as it's a ongoing storyline format which makes the show predate "Once Upon a Time", "The Last of Us", and many others that use this format those shows came years after this show. There is even a few ongoing mysteries that go on in the show, from the hidden depth of the characters, but also about the war as there are certain things we still don't know, but most of all the world itself. From what was lost but also whether it's another planet or Earth.
The voice cast for the character is one of the best as it has a lot of verian well known voice actors like Tim Curry and Tony Jay who play the main villains. Both do a great job as it's both personal favorite voice actors together, and despite the typical archetypal villains and dynamic you see both make them good because of course both give the best performances. And that's great because I wouldn't want any less.
Jack is voiced well by Jason Marsden who is an honorable mention in favorite voice actors of mine. He just fits like a glove for this role as he's always got the heroic vocals. Jack is sort of you can say the young Luke Skywalker like hero. We see his character isn't perfect which I like as it makes him human. He has the ambition to be a hero or at least something more but doesn't quite have the drive, that is until he gets the tool, he needs which is the Xyber key. He's optimistic, determined, but also cocky and impatient; from these kinds of character traits, he's on the right track but clearly still has a lot to learn.
My favorite character is Anaconda (Anna for short ), she looks and reminds me a little of the character Eep from "The Croods" movies. Her character is a female Tarzan as she can communicate and work with some of the animal life on the planet. Though also a female Nightcrawler as she had teleportation ability.
Really like her chemistry with Jack which is sweet, it's a bit uncannily similar with Guy and Eep from "The Croods". As we see there is that bronze and brains like dynamic, but also the two different world dynamic see both teach and are fascinated by each other from what they know and simply how they feel about each other.
It's too bad this show didn't to the distance, there could have been at least two more seasons from there so much more could have been explored, developed, and done. From the plot and story line to even the relationship between Jack and Anna. Only in the realm of fanfiction can these things happen.
"Xyber 9" is a key to adventure worth a turn.
Rating: 3 stars.
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