Z-Squad
Z-Squad (Korean: 크리스탈요정 지스쿼드, The Fairies of Crystals Z-Squad) is a computer-animated television series created by Enemes and Nelvana.[1]
| Z-Squad | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Adventure Action |
| Written by | Jin Choi Chan Kim |
| Story by | Jin Choi |
| Directed by | Jin Choi |
| Voices of |
|
| Country of origin | South Korea Canada |
| Original languages | Korean English |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Jin Choi Scott Dyer Doug Murphy |
| Producers | Sean V. Jeffrey Marlene Sharp Gina Shim |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | Enemes CJ Entertainment Nelvana |
| Budget | $7,000,000 |
| Release | |
| Original network | SBS DVD |
| Original release | December 4, 2006 – June 4, 2007 |
Plot
Z-Squad chronicles the adventures of three ordinary school girls turned super heroines and their newfound, cuddly alien counterparts, the Zoots, as they search for enchanted crystals to save the Earth and Z-Nation from a cast of bumbling baddies. It is aimed at kids aged 6 to 9 and there are 26 x 24-minute episodes available. Girls will cheer the competitive-spirited heroines; boys will back the sarcastic schoolboys called the Drop Dead Gorgeous Three (the DDG3), as well as the powerful Prince Aramis and the wise King Woolaf.
Characters
Main characters
- Chaney (Korean: 채니; voiced by Chung Misook (정미숙) in the Korean version, and Alyson Court in the English version) is the first member of the Z-Squad with red hair with yellow, pink, and orange streaks that is tied up with two pigtails, white sun visor hat with a yellow trim and a pink star, and red eyes (yellow in the pilot).
Her theme colors are red and yellow. She is represented by stars with her alien counterpart, Zora, the red Zoot of Courage.
- Haemi (Korean: 혜미; voiced by Eun Yeong Seon (은영선) in the Korean version, and Sunday Muse in the English version) is the second member of the Z-Squad with short rose hair that is tied up in a blue headband with a ribbon, and rose eyes.
Her theme colors are pink and blue. She is represented by hearts with her alien counterpart, Zef, the pink Zoot of Love.
- Jeanie (Korean: 지니; voiced by Park Youngnam (박영남) in the Korean version, and Ashley Botting in the English version) is the third and final member of the Z-Squad with green hair that is clipped up in a yellow hair clip, and turquoise blue eyes (formerly green in the pilot) with rose round glasses (red in the pilot).
Her theme colors are green and yellow. She is represented by four-leaf clovers with her alien counterpart, Zuma, the green Zoot of Hope.
Minor characters
- Jinu (Korean: 지누; voiced by Kang Soo-jin (강수진) in the Korean version, and Zachary Bennett in the English version)
- Cal (Korean: 민; voiced by Kim Youngsun (김영선) in the Korean version, and Tyrone Savage in the English version)
- Tae-o (Korean: 태오; voiced by Son Jeong Ah (손정아) in the Korean version, and Lyon Smith in the English version)
- Bernice (Korean: 뚱녀; voiced by Choi Moon-ja (최문자) in the Korean version, and Emilie-Claire Barlow in the English version)
- Aramis (Korean: 에르메스; voiced by Son Jeong-ah (손정아) in the Korean version, and Noah Cappe in the English version)
- Woolaf (Korean: 울라프; voiced by Yoo Dong-kyun (유동균) in the Korean version, and Dwayne Hill in the English version)
- Bakoo (Korean: 벌룬; voiced by Noh Min (노민) in the Korean version, and Martin Roach in the English version)
- Grindel (Korean: 그린들; voiced by Choi Moon-ja (최문자) in the Korean version, and Melissa Altro in the English version)
Production
The series' unique blend of traditional 2D anime design with 3D cel shading has earned many awards, including the prestigious Grand Prix Award at KOCCA's Star Project Competition in South Korea.
Episodes
| Series # | English title | Korean airdate[2] |
| 1 | "Super Trio" | December 4, 2006 |
| 2 | "Z-Squad" | December 18, 2006 |
| 3 | "First Mission" | January 8, 2007 |
| 4 | "Power Belt - Part 1" | January 15, 2007 |
| 5 | "Power Belt - Part 2" | January 22, 2007 |
| 6 | "Blind Love" | January 29, 2007 |
| 7 | "The Riddle of the Pandora Zoot" | February 12, 2007 |
| 8 | "Shaking the Foundation" | February 26, 2007 |
| 9 | "Unfair Match" | March 5, 2007 |
| 10 | "Luther's Revenge" | March 12, 2007 |
| 11 | "Pollution Zoot" | March 19, 2007 |
| 12 | "Endangered Love Zoot" | March 26, 2007 |
| 13 | "Teamwork - Part 1" | April 9, 2007 |
| 14 | "Teamwork - Part 2" | April 16, 2007 |
| 15 | "The Zoot of Greed - Part 1" | April 17, 2007 |
| 16 | "The Zoot of Greed - Part 2" | April 23, 2007 |
| 17 | "The Zoo" | April 24, 2007 |
| 18 | "The Sorrow of Bernice" | April 30, 2007 |
| 19 | "Rules of the Road - Part 1" | May 1, 2007 |
| 20 | "Rules of the Road - Part 2" | May 8, 2007 |
| 21 | "My Favourite Dog - Part 1" | May 14, 2007 |
| 22 | "My Favourite Dog - Part 2" | May 15, 2007 |
| 23 | "Communication Breakdown" | May 21, 2007 |
| 24 | "Game Over" | May 22, 2007 |
| 25 | "Thanks for the Memories - Part 1" | May 28, 2007 |
| 26 | "Thanks for the Memories - Part 2" | June 4, 2007 |
Broadcast
Z-Squad first aired in South Korea on SBS between December 2006 and June 2007.[3] The series was later broadcast on Champ, Cartoon Network, Anione, Nickelodeon, and KT IPTV.[4]
The show had its English-language debut on Pop Girl in the United Kingdom and then on Cartoon Network, Boomerang, and Nickelodeon in Australia in late 2008. It also had its French-language debut on Télétoon in France in early 2009. Along with Di-Gata Defenders, Z-Squad was introduced as part of the Syfy Kids block on the multi-national KidsCo network in June 2013.[5] It was also one of the shows included when NBC ported Syfy Kids to Asia the following month.[6] It was aimed at ages 6–10.[7]
Initial plans for a North American broadcast reportedly included YTV and Teletoon in Canada, with Disney Channel on board in the United States.[3] However, the show would never air on linear television in either market, instead being limited to video-on-demand platforms. In Canada, the series was included as part of the Kids Suite service for Rogers Cable customers in 2014.[8] In the United States, Z-Squad is available to purchase on Amazon Video and is available to stream on Tubi TV.[9][10]
References
- Kuzmyk, Jenn (2006-02-09). "Northern lights". C21 Media. Archived from the original on 2018-06-27. Retrieved 2018-10-24. “Its newest project, Z-Squad (26×30′), is being produced with Korean studio Enemes and is slated to begin delivery in summer 2006.”
- "크리스탈요정 지스쿼드". SBS. Archived from the original on 2018-06-27. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
- "'Crystal Fairy Z-Squad' wins at Asian TV Awards". Han Cinema. 2007-12-05. Archived from the original on 2018-06-27. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
- "Schoolgirl Super Heroines Of The Z-Squad Poised For Action At MIPCOM". Nelvana Limited (Press release). 2007-09-26. Archived from the original on 2018-06-27. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
- Vlessing, Etan (2013-03-27). "KidsCo to Launch Syfy Kids Genre Block In June". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2018-10-24. “The joint venture between NBCUniversal International and Canada’s Corus Entertainment has acquired a slew of kids titles for the Syfy Kids offering, including a first-run exclusive of Zuzu & the Supernuffs from Matchbox Pictures, and Nelvana Enterprises’ Di-Gata Defenders and Z-Squad series.”
- Ng-See-Quan, Danielle (2013-04-16). "KidsCo sends new Syfy block to Asia". KidScreen. Archived from the original on 2018-10-10. Retrieved 2018-10-24. “The Syfy Kids block will launch with a first-run exclusive of its original production Zuzu & the Supernuffs from Matchbox Pictures. It will also feature the CG-animated Matt Hatter Chronicles, produced by Platinum Films and Toronto’s Dream Mill, with animation by Arc Productions; Z-Squad, from Corus’ Nelvana Enterprises and Enemes, and the Back to the Future animated series.”
- Rusak, Gary (2013-08-20). "KidsCo acquires Sendokai Champions". KidScreen. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2018-10-24. “The fully dubbed block airs at peak viewing times and targets a kids aged 6-10. demo Key titles on the block include: Matt Hatter Chronicles, ZuZu & the Supernuffs, Z-Squad, The Future is Wild, Back to the Future and The Mummy.”
- "Z-Squad". RogersOnDemand.Com. Archived from the original on July 10, 2014. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
- "Amazon.com: Z-Squad". Amazon. Archived from the original on 2016-03-24. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
- "Watch Z-Squad Online for Free". Tubi TV. Archived from the original on 2018-06-27. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
External links
- Official Korean website at the Wayback Machine (archived February 12, 2007)
- Z-Squad at Nelvana.com
- Z-Squad at IMDb