found footage, bill mumy, george takei, jewel staite, peter david, space cases

Beware The Wrath Of Warlord Shank!

This clip shows off everything that was great about Space Cases, the kids-in-space show that ran on Nickelodeon for two seasons. It has George Takei chewing not just the scenery, but the actual walls, as the evil neck-gyrating Warlord Shank, whose ship has been hit with a computer virus by a demented computer. And then it has the super-smart Suzee, easily the best character on the show, projecting herself telepathically into that computer. Warlord Shank is a master of space smack talk!

Space Cases was the brainchild of comics/Star Trek novels/Babylon 5 writer Peter David and Lost In Space star Bill Mumy. You can see the trademark Peter David goofiness in a lot of the humor, but it also has a lot of David's cleverness and willingness to delve into intense shit.

Suzee started out as the imaginary friend of Catalina (Firefly's Jewel Staite), but after Staite left the show Suzee suddenly became real and everyone could see her. Here's a clip of Jewel escaping a space prison using her wits and her Black Canary-esque super-scream:

Suzee's a genius who understands every computer ever, and she has gills on her neck that allow her to breathe in any atmosphere. Plus she can project her mind into other sentients, including the computer in this clip. Plus, her hair rules, way more than Catalina's did. In this episode, the series finale, the lonely and damaged computer wants to keep Suzee prisoner forever. But Suzee teaches the computer that friendship means being willing to let your friends go. And then after Suzee finally leaves, Warlord Shank shows up seeking revenge for that computer virus. The computer tells Shank all about how it's learned the true meaning of friendship. And then Shank says, "Warlord Shank has learned that he doesn't care what you have learned!" And blasts the computer to atoms. Awesome.

1:30 PM on Thu Mar 20 2008
By Charlie Jane Anders
1,464 views
17 comments

Comments

katieb at 01:50 PM on 03/20/08
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Oh man, my friends and I loved space cases when it was on Nickelodeon. I remember one time we were all racing to my house on our bikes to get home in time for a new episode, and someone hit a patch of ice and fell hard. So there she is splayed out on the ground about five feet from her bike and did we help her? Hell no, we were like, "dude, get up, we're missing it!" We still laugh about it to this day, the ability to leave a man behind for a television show.

Oh Nickelodeon, what happened to you? You used to be so awesome.
Grey_Area at 01:50 PM on 03/20/08
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How the heck did I ever miss this show?
Plague at 01:53 PM on 03/20/08
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Despite the pulse-racing, adrenalin-fueled clips presented here, this show was actually damn dull. Even Takei couldn't wake you up as your eyes went all glassy and out of focus before the first commercial break...
Plague at 01:59 PM on 03/20/08
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Oh, and I'll top your Shank with Dr. Gori from Spectreman.

He is TRULY the greatest evil villan of all time.
taffy at 02:02 PM on 03/20/08
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Jesus Christ! I had totally forgotten about this show and I kind of wished it stayed that way...That's my ex-boyfriend playing Shank's stooge!
t3knomanser at 02:12 PM on 03/20/08
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That show was great. I thought I was the only one that remembered it. Interestingly enough, one of the villains in Sir Apropos Of Nothing, by Peter David, was also named "Warlord Shank". Why the name recycling? No idea.

Good book. The rest of the trilogy is drek, but that one is good.
Tiwa Face Kontrol at 03:26 PM on 03/20/08
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Space cases!!!! Holy crap, this and Alex Mack were the building blocks of my formative years. Thanks for that nostalgia trip.
Rusty626 at 03:40 PM on 03/20/08
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I loved that show. I watched it with my kids.
KiddChaos at 04:13 PM on 03/20/08
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@ghanima: They still show Avatar: The Last Airbender… occasionally.

@Tiwa: What, no love for The Adventures of Pete & Pete?
ithidet at 05:06 PM on 03/20/08
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sigh
shows are crap now
Final at 06:31 PM on 03/20/08
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You have got to love Takai's voice.

The only thing I remember about that show is it kid with the really big ears.

Nick had a lot of good scifi for kids; The Tomorrow People, Are You Afraid of the Dark, Alex Mack (I would have forgotten if it wasn't for Tiwa,)Journey of Allen Strange, and i could go on about the cartoons - The Seven /Mysterious Cities of Gold being my favorite.
Sh1fty at 07:06 PM on 03/20/08
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WOW I remember this! and The Tomorrow People... Memory trip...
Steve at 07:27 PM on 03/20/08
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don't forget about bova from uranus, the butt of every joke
Sharpless at 10:36 PM on 03/20/08
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Good grief, I used to be such a huge Space Cases nerd, back in the day. That show was like a watering hole for hot young actresses. (Let's remember, I was their age, at the time. Er, I mean, I'm still their age. Oh, you know what I mean.) I used to have the hots for Jewel so bad (still do, really) and the actress who played Suzee (Rebecca something, I think) was a great replacement, when Jewel left the show. Sigh, I miss those days. Jewel, Rebecca, and Larissa Oleynik -- my blessed trio of hotness.

And George Takei is always insanely enjoyable.
Tiwa Face Kontrol at 10:59 PM on 03/20/08
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@KiddChaos: everything on Nick was solid, except for "News with Linda Ellerbee." blecch.
Balius at 03:43 AM on 03/21/08
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The only thing I remember about this show was the rainbow spot on the bob. I didn't have cable growing up, though, so one of my friends must have had me over to watch the show with him or her.
phoenix at 09:23 PM on 03/21/08
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George Takei? Peter David? The finest wig children's television has ever known? SIGN ME UP.