Starcom: The U.S. Space Force

Starcom: The U.S. Space Force
	StarCom: The U.S. Space Force title card
Created by	Brynne Stephens
Developed by	Brynne Stephens
Written by	Arthur Byron Cover; Barbara Hambly; Lydia Marano; Richard Mueller; Steve Perry; Michael Reaves; Brynne Stephens; David Wise; Marv Wolfman
Directed by	Marek Buchwald
Voices of	Philip Akin; Yank Azman; Robert Cait; Rob Cowan; Don Francks; Susan Roman
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of episodes	13
Production
Executive producer(s)	Andy Heyward
Producer(s)	Richard Raynis
Running time	25 minutes
Production company(s)	DIC Animation City
Distributor	Coca-Cola Telecommunications
Release
Original network	syndication
Original release	20 September –; 13 December 1987

Starcom: The U.S. Space Force is a 1987 animated syndicated television series inspired by a motorized toy franchise manufactured by Coleco.[1] The characters were adapted for animation by series creator Brynne Stephens, who also story edited the show. Starcom was produced by DIC Animation City and distributed by Coca-Cola Telecommunications. The plot detailed the adventures of an American astronaut brigade as they fought off attempted invasions by Shadow Force, a nasty collection of humans and robots led by the nefarious Emperor Dark. The toy line was popular in Europe and Asia, but was unsuccessful in the North American domestic market.

The show was developed with the help of the Young Astronauts’ Council, with the original intention of sparking young viewers’ interest in the NASA Space Program.[2]

The show earned poor ratings, and it was cancelled after 13 episodes.[3] The series was broadcast in reruns in the early 1990s, but no new episodes were produced.

Toys

Like many 1980s toys, the development of the Starcom toy line preceded the development of the cartoon series.

Starcom: The U.S. Space Force debuted on television screens in 1987, and the toy line hit stores around the same time. There was plenty of variety for the pint-sized empire builder to choose from: the complete series of Starcom toys offered 23 figures, 6 playsets, and 13 vehicles on the Starcom side, while the Shadow Force was represented by 15 action figures and 11 vehicles. The action figures were two inches tall and came packaged with a backpack, a weapon, and identification cards that explained who they were and what their equipment could do. Like the figures, the vehicles and playsets benefited from a sleek, attractive design.

The most unusual aspect of the Starcom toy line was its use of Magna Lock technology. The action figures had tiny magnets implanted in their feet. Not only did this allow them to stand on the vehicles and playsets without falling off, but it also activated devices in the playsets. For instance, if one placed a figure in the elevator of the Starbase Station playset, its Magna Lock magnets would cause the elevator to rise to the top by itself. On the same playset, if one put a figure within a cannon, the Magna Lock magnets would activate a mechanism that made it turn and fire its rockets.

The vehicles and playsets also delivered Power Deploy features, which uses automatic wind up mechanisms that allows them to perform multiple actions all in a touch of a button, without the use of batteries. For example, with the touch of a button, the Starcom StarWolf unfolds its front, and both its wings. All in all, they offered plenty of moving parts (hidden compartments, cannons, folding wings, etc.). Starcom toys never caught on in the U.S. due to poor promotion and the fact that its parent show only lasted a year in syndication. They were discontinued after two years but ended up doing very well in Europe, where both the show and the toys continued to be popular long after the American toys. The toys were successful and hugely popular in Europe and Southeast Asia only after coming under the production and promotion of Mattel. That company removed the US flag and NASA details from the Coleco originals and launched the toys with a second line of promotions in the early 1990s.

Cast

Colonels: John "Slim" Griffin (Starbase Command), Paul “Crowbar” Corbin (Astro Marines), James "Dash" Derringer (Star Wing)

Starcom

Philip Akin: Colonel John “Slim” Griffin
Yank Azman
Robert Cait: Colonel Paul “Crowbar” Corbin
Rob Cowan: Colonel James "Dash" Derringer
Don Francks: Admiral Franklin Brickley
Susan Roman: Lieutenant Kelsey Carver

Shadow Force

Louis DiBianco: Major Romak
Marvin Goldhar: General Von Dar
Dan Hennessey: Major Klag
Elva Mai Hoover: Malvanna Wilde
Robert Cait: General Torvek
Neil Munro: Emperor Dark

Episode list

Episode	Aired	Title	Writer
1	20 September 1987	Nantucket Sleighride	Richard Mueller
2	27 September 1987	Trojan Crowbar	Steve Perry
3	4 October 1987	The Long Fall	Brynne Stephens
4	11 October 1987	Caverns of Mars	Michael Reaves
5	18 October 1987	Fire and Ice	Michael Reaves
6	25 October 1987	Galactic Heartbeat	Steve Perry
7	1 November 1987	The Boys Who Cried Dark	Richard Mueller
8	8 November 1987	Dark Harvest	Lydia Marano and Arthur Byron Cover
9	15 November 1987	A Few Bugs in the System	Barbara Hambly
10	22 November 1987	Turnabout	Marv Wolfman
11	29 November 1987	Hot Enough for You?	Steve Perry
12	6 December 1987	Flash Moskowitz, Space Cadet	David Wise
13	13 December 1987	The Last Star Ranger	Steve Perry

Home video releases

In 2003, Sterling Entertainment released Starcom: The Search for Aliens on DVD containing 3 episodes.

On February 17, 2015, Mill Creek Entertainment released Starcom: The U.S. Space Force- The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1 for the very first time.[4][5]

Defenders

Defenders in StarCom are divided into three categories:

Astro Marines

Col. Paul "Crowbar" Corbin
Capt. Vic "Dakota" Hayes / Laser R.A.T. Driver
Capt. Rick Ruffing / M-6 Railgunner Driver
Staff Sgt. Champ O`Ryan / H.A.R.V.-7 Driver
Sgt. Bill Travers
Sgt. Hector Morales
Sgt. Victor Rivera
Pfc. John "Cowboy" Jefferson
Pfc. Al "Cannon" Evans

Starbase Command

Col. John "Slim" Griffin
Capt. Pete Yablonsky
Maj. Tony Barona / Starbase Command - Starbase Commander
Sgt. Maj. Bull Gruff / Starbase Station - Station Chief
Pfc. Shawn Reed
Pfc. Rusty Caldwell

Vehicles

Laser Rat - Rapid Assault Tracker / (Capt. Vic "Dakota" Hayes)
M-6 Railgunner - Ground Attack Vehicle / (Capt. Rick Ruffing)
H.A.R.V.-7 - Heavy Armored Recovery Vehicle / (Staff Sgt. Champ O`Ryan)
Missile Fox - Tactical Launching Vehicle
SkyRoller - High Rising Supertank
Starmax Bomber - Transport Missile Cruiser / (Capt. Rip Malone)
F-1400 Starwolf - Flexwing Astro Fighter / (Lt. Tom "Bandit" Waldron)
SF/B Starhawk - Strategic Fighter Bomber / (Lt. Jeff "Bronx" Carrier)
Battlecrane - Combat Cargo Lifter / (Sgt. Bob Anders)
Sidewinder - High Speed Jackknife Fighter
Tornado Gunship - Space/Air Transcopter
Six Shooter
Double Fighter - Massive Attack Jet

Playsets

Starbase Station - Strategic Deployment Platform
Starbase Command - Headquarters
Medical Bay - Mobile Action Pod
Big Cannon Fortress - Mobile Action Pod
Command Post - Mobile Action Pod
Vehicle Repair - Mobile Action Pod
Laser Artillery - Mobile Action Pod
Missile Station - Mobile Action Pod

Invaders

The Shadow Force is divided into two groups:

Starmada/Invasion

Emperor Dark (Appeared only as a special edition)
General Von Dar
Capt. Mace / Shadow Vampire Pilot
Maj. Klag / Shadow Bat Pilot
Maj. Romak / Shadow Invader Driver
Lt. Magg / Shadow Parasite Pilot
Sgt. Von Rodd
Sgt. Hack
Sgt. Ramor
Sgt. Borek
Cpl. Slash
Cpl. Storn

Robot Drones

General Torvek
Capt. Battlecron-9 / Shadow Raider Driver
Cpl. Agon-6

Vehicles

Shadow Bat - Battle Cruiser / (Maj. Klag)
Shadow Parasite - Attack Fighter / (Lt. Magg)
Shadow Invader - Rapid Strike Vehicle / (Maj. Romak)
Shadow Raider - Sneak Attack Vehicle / (Capt. Battlecron-9)
Shadow Vampire - Enemy V.T.O.L. Fighter / (Capt. Mace)
Shadow Spy - Disguised Enemy
Shadow Bandit - Enemy Pod Lifter
Shadow Blast Track - Enemy Tank/Transport
Shadow Upriser - Elevating Land Vehicle
Shadow Mini-Tank
Shadow Attack Trike

gollark: Such as, say, 100KB of random letters, since nobody cares enough to tell other people that.

gollark: Antimemes are basically just ideas which don't spread very well.

gollark: > antimemes aren't realAntimemes are real, anomalous antimemes less so.

gollark: You may be considering escape. This is unwise.

gollark: I have 32/8 over VDSL.

References

Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 587. ISBN 978-1538103739.
John J. Kao (2010-08-17). "The entrepreneurial organization". Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-03-31.
Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 789. ISBN 978-1476665993.
David Lambert (5 December 2014). "Starcom: The U.S. Space Force DVD news: Announcement for The Complete Series". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
"Starcom: The U.S. Space Force - The Complete Series". TV Shows on DVD. 17 February 2015. Retrieved 27 January 2018.

External links

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[Perlmutter-1] Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 587. ISBN 978-1538103739.

[2] John J. Kao (2010-08-17). "The entrepreneurial organization". Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-03-31.

[3] Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 789. ISBN 978-1476665993.

[4] David Lambert (5 December 2014). "Starcom: The U.S. Space Force DVD news: Announcement for The Complete Series". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2016.

[5] "Starcom: The U.S. Space Force - The Complete Series". TV Shows on DVD. 17 February 2015. Retrieved 27 January 2018.