Cybersix

Cybersix as she appears in TMS/NOA's 1999 animated series.

Cybersix is a series of Argentine comics first published in 1992, drawn by Carlos Meglia and written by Carlos Trillo for the Italian comics magazine Skorpio (Eura Editoriale). The series first appeared in Spanish in November 1993. The heroine of the series is the eponymous character, Cybersix (more properly Cyber-6), a leather-clad, genetically-engineered superhero who by day masquerades as a male high school literature teacher, and by night battles the monstrous biological weapons of her creator.

In 1995, the comics were adapted into a live-action television series,^[1] and again in 1999 into a thirteen-episode animated series by TMS/NOA, with positive critical reception from sources like the Pulcinella Awards.^[2]

Plot

The cruel Dr. Von Reichter, a member of the SS and the Nazi party, is an expert in genetic engineering. He initially began his work in concentration camps during World War II, implanting cybernetic organs in the bodies of dead prisoners in an attempt to bring them back to life to serve in the Führer's army. However, the Allied forces intervened to defeat the Nazis, so he fled to South America, where he once again continued his sinister experiments.

From one of his experiments emerged the Cyber Series – artificial humanoids possessing superhuman strength and agility. But something was amiss: The 5000^[3] original Cybers, engineered to be the perfect servants, mimicked human emotions too closely, displaying free will of their own. When they began disobeying their creator, Von Reichter ordered all of the Cyber Series to be destroyed. By this time, Cyber-29 had already died in a playtime accident when he fell from a tree (a cliff in the animated series), but Von Reichter managed to transfer the dead child's brain into the body of a panther to be reborn as Data-7. Cyber-6 was the only true Cyber to survive the massacre, escaping with the help of a black slave who hid her away in a fishing village. When the slave was later interrogated and killed by Von Reichter, Cybersix escaped once again and made her way to the fictitious city of Meridiana, where she adopted the identity of a boy killed in a car wreck, Adrian Seidelman, and now battles her evil creator and his minions.

Like all of Von Reichter's creations, Cybersix depends on a mysterious life-giving fluid called "Sustenance". When her supply ran out, she was forced to prowl the city, hunting other creatures of Von Reichter's creation, such as Frankenstein's-monster-like "Fixed Ideas" or the more human-like "Technos", to murder them and take their Sustenance to survive. Almost by accident, she became a hero by defending the people of her city from Von Reichter's malevolent plans, often carried out by his cloned "son" José. Along the way, she meets the resurrected Data-7, as well as a young boy named Julian, and falls in love with biology teacher/reporter Lucas Amato, while her male alter-ego, Adrian, became the object of affection of one of "his" students.

Production history

Comics

The Cybersix comics were originally published in Italy on the magazine Skorpio in 113 weekly 12-pages installments between May 1992 and July 1994, followed by 45 96-pages comic books between November 1994 and January 1999. Part of this material was later translated in Spanish and published in Argentina (since 1993 by El Globo Editor) and in Spain (since 1995 by Planeta De Agostini).^[4] Collections were released in French, with twelve volumes distributed by Editions Vents d'Ouest between 1994 and 1998.^[5]

Live-action series

The Cybersix live-action series debuted in Argentina on 15 March 1995. It was produced by Luis Gandulfo, Sebastián Parrotta, Fernando Rascovsky, and Andre Ronco, and written by Ricardo Rodríguez, Carlos Meglia, and Carlos Trillo. The series aired on Telefé, but was cancelled after only a few episodes due to low ratings. Cybersix was played by former model and actress Carolina Peleritti, José was played by Rodrigo de la Serna, and Doguyy was played by Mario Moscoso.^[6][7]

Animated series

The Cybersix animated series debuted in Canada and Argentina on 6 September 1999, and was subsequently dubbed for French, Polish, Japanese, Malaysian, and Taiwanese.^[8] It was animated by Tokyo Movie Shinsha and NOA; produced by Herve Bedard, Toshihiko Masuda, and Koji Takeuchi; with storyboards by Atsuko Tanaka, Hiroyuki Aoyama, Nabuo Tomizawa, and Kazuhide Tomonag; and written by Catherine Girczyc, Carlos Meglia, and Carlos Trillo. Original music was composed by Robbi Finkel,^[8][9] and character designs were overseen by Teiichi Takiguchi. The show was aimed at children by toning down the comics' darker themes. Two seasons of 13 episodes were originally supposed to be made but it was cancelled after the first season due to conflicts between production studios.^[10]

The title sequence and closing credits featured music composed by Robbi Finkel and lyrics written by Robert Olivier, which were sung by jazz vocalist Coral Egan.^[8]

On 28 April 2001, Cybersix won "Special Mention for the Best Science Fiction Program" at the Pulcinella Awards in Italy for that year's competition.^[2]

The series was licensed to DVD by Discotek Media on 26 August 2014. The box set features commentary by Cathy Weseluck and Brady Hartel on episodes 1 and 13.^[11]

Voice cast

• Cathy Weseluck as Cybersix
• Michael Dobson as Lucas Amato
• Terry Klassen as Von Reichter
• Andrew Francis as Julian
• Alex Doduk as José
• Janyse Jaud as Lori Anderson
• L. Harvey Gold as Terra

Additional voices were provided by Brian Drummond and Chantal Strand.

Episode list

Differences between media

The method by which Cybersix obtains sustenance is different among the series' incarnations. In the comic book, Cybersix sucks sustenance directly from the neck of those she hunts as if she were a vampire; however, she does not have fangs, instead simply making a wound in the victim's neck with her teeth, then drinking the Sustenance that bleeds from it instead of blood. Conversely, in the animated series, Von Reichter's creations carry glowing vials of Sustenance with them, which Cybersix would open and drink.

Cybersix's outfit of black bodysuit, high heels, hat, cropped gloves, and cape with red lining was taken from a Techno prostitute in the comics, while its origin is never explained in the animated series.

Some of the more mature story elements, such as José engaging in sexual intercourse (despite appearing to be a little boy), Von Reichter's Nazi background, or the specific events of Cybersix's youth, are not openly revealed in the animated series, but some of these elements are suggested through dialogue, flashbacks, or visual clues, such as the military-style Goose-Stepping that both José and Von Reichter engage in, and José's Hitler Youth style of clothing.

Controversy with Dark Angel and lawsuit

Meglia and Trillo filed a lawsuit against James Cameron and Fox Broadcasting Company, claiming that Cameron's 2000 television series Dark Angel plagiarized Cybersix.^[12] Trillo and Meglia accused the show of stealing most of the plot from the comic and its most recognizable elements.^[13] In a 2007 interview, Trillo stated that he and Meglia weren't able to carry on with the lawsuit due to lack of financial resources, so they dropped it, although the issue is still a matter of controversy.^[14]

References

External links

• Cybersix at the Internet Movie Database
• Cybersix (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Telecom's official Cybersix page (English)
• Telecom's official Cybersix page (Japanese)