Flash Gordon (1996 TV series)

Flash Gordon
DVD cover of pilot movie.
Developed by	David J. Corbett Garfield Reeves-Stevens Judith Reeves-Stevens
Starring	The voices of Toby Proctor Lexa Doig Paul Shaffer
Country of origin	United States France Canada
No. of episodes	26
Production
Executive producer(s)	Carol Monroe/David J. Corbett
Running time	30 mins
Release
Original network	Syndicated by Hearst Entertainment Productions Channel 4, YTV, TCC
Original release	September, 1996 – 1997
External links
Website

Flash Gordon is a 1996 animated television series based on the science fiction comic strip of the same name. The character, who had been around in the comics pages since Alex Raymond created him in 1934, had already starred in several movie serials, a 1980 feature, and two earlier cartoon series — The New Adventures of Flash Gordon and Defenders of the Earth.

For this series, the dashing blond hero was regressed to his teenage years, and he employed a hoverboard. As in previous versions, he teamed up with Dale Arden (also a teen) and balding, bespectacled scientist Hans Zarkov. Flash's parents were American astronauts who got sucked into a dimensional hole just outside the earth’s atmosphere. The trans-dimensional portal was placed there by Ming the Merciless, emperor of the planet Mongo, who hoped to provide open access for his invading armies. In this series, Ming resembled and showed characteristics of a lizard and seemed to have a wife who was long dead (it was implied in some episodes that she had gone to Earth).

Flash, Dale, and Zarkov followed Flash's parents in their own space vehicle, rescuing them and closing the dimensional hole. Unfortunately, Flash and crew were stuck on the Mongo side. The earthlings discovered other nearby planets with anti-Ming factions and put together a loose coalition, determined to overthrow Mongo’s evil emperor and return, Princess Thundar, Flash, Dale, and Zarkov to their native planet.

A multinational co-production, Flash Gordon came into weekly YTV, syndication and Channel 4 in the fall of 1996. 26 episodes were produced.