''Brats of the Lost Nebula'' is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

television series for kids. It combines puppetry and computer animation. The series follows five orphaned children from different war-torn planets. As they search for their surviving family members, they must also band together to fight an evil invading force known as "The Shock". The series was created by Dan Clark, who was also an executive producer along with

Brian Henson Brian Henson (born November 3, 1963) is an American puppeteer, director, producer, voice actor and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson. Early life Henson was born on November 3, 1963, in Ne ...

and

Margaret Loesch Margaret Ann Loesch () is an American television executive and producer. She is the former President and CEO of Discovery Communications and Hasbro Inc's joint venture television network Hub Network. On June 12, 2014, she announced that she would ...

. The puppet characters mixed both traditional hand puppetry and

animatronic Animatronics refers to mechatronic puppets. They are a modern variant of the automaton and are often used for the portrayal of characters in films and in theme park attractions. It is a multidisciplinary field integrating puppetry, anatomy a ...

s. These puppets were built by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The computer graphics were created by C.O.R.E. Digital Effects. In the United States, the series aired on

The WB The WB Television Network (for Warner Bros., or the "Frog Network", for its former mascot, Michigan J. Frog) was an American television network launched on terrestrial television, broadcast television on January 11, 1995, as a joint venture be ...

(during the

Kids' WB Kids' WB (stylized as Kids' WB!) was an American children's programming service and brand of The WB that aired on the network from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006. The block moved to The CW (a result of the merger of Time Warner's The W ...

block) in October 1998. It was removed from the channel after airing its third episode. The remaining episodes were shown on Canada's YTV channel.

The Brats

The Brats, sometimes referred to as orphans, each have a different set of skills in addition to their otherworldly uniqueness. After the escape of Zadam and Triply from the Shock attack on their home world, the five kids meet on a living planetoid to start their rebellion against The Shock and find their lost parents. * Zadam (voiced by

Kirby Morrow Kirby Robert Morrow (1973 – November 18, 2020) was a Canadian actor, comedian and writer. In animation, he was known as the voice of Miroku from ''InuYasha'', its four movies, and '' Inuyasha: The Final Act'', Van Fanel from the Ocean dub o ...

) – The 14-year-old leader of the Brats and Triply's older brother. He is from the planet Shirud. * Triply (voiced by

Annick Obonsawin Annick Obonsawin (born October 12, 1983) is a First Nations Abenaki Canadian actress. Biography Obonsawin has played roles in many children's shows such as Inez in ''Cyberchase'' and Skunk in '' Franklin''. She also played Slappy the Dummy in ...

) – Zadam's 10-year-old little sister. She is also from Shirud. * Duncan (voiced by Glenn Cross) – A heavy, musclebound male with tinkering skills. He is from the planet Yarlon. * Ryle (voiced by Evan Sabba) – A horned, blue-skinned male who is fiercely competitive. He is from the planet Tranoid. * Lavana (voiced by Deborah Odell) – A winged elf with mystic abilities. She is from the planet Loza. They are aided in their quest by a long-eared animal named Splook, who has a missile-laden suit of armor, and by SMARTS, the smartest computer in the universe. The Brats themselves ride into battle on modified space cruisers.

Episodes

Cast

Puppeteers

Bill Barretta William Paul Barretta (born June 19, 1964) is an American puppeteer, actor, producer, writer, and director, who is best known for providing the puppetry and voice of characters such as Pepe the King Prawn, Johnny Fiama, Big Mean Carl, and Bobo ...

– * Matt Ficner – Mallosha, Zadam * John E. Kennedy – * Trish Leeper – * Sue Morrison – * Ian Petrella – * James Rankin – * Gordon Robertson – * Fred Stinson – * Jeff Sweeney – * Jean-Guy White – * Mak Wilson –

Voices

* Glenn Cross – Duncan *

– Zadam *

– Triply * Deborah Odell – Lavana * Evan Sabba – Ryle * James Rankin – High Commander Vigar * Rob Smith – Blight

Broadcast

In the United States, the series premiered on the

block on October 10, 1998. It was removed from the schedule after airing its third episode on October 24. At the time, a publicist from the WB network said, "We're trying to figure out what works best in our lineup and when. The show has not been cancelled. It should eventually return, we just don't know when and where." In Canada, all thirteen episodes aired on YTV from November 1998 onward. The last episode debuted January 20, 1999. In April 2020, hundreds of hours of Jim Henson Company productions were released on

Roku Roku ( ) is a brand of hardware digital media players manufactured by American company Roku, Inc. They offer access to streaming media content from online services. The first Roku model, developed in collaboration with Netflix, was introduced ...

, including ''Brats of the Lost Nebula''.

Unproduced follow-ups

In early 1999, a '' Playback'' article reported that "another thirteen pisodesare on the way," but these new episodes were never produced. In September 2002, ''

Kidscreen Brunico Communications is a Canadian magazine publishing company."Desktop tabloid publishing firm sports 2 publications and a profit". ''The Globe and Mail'', October 9, 1989. The company specializes primarily in online trade magazines serving medi ...

'' mentioned that the Dan Clark Company was "currently working on a ''Brats of the Lost Nebula'' direct-to-video title with Henson."

References

External links

Brats of the Lost Nebula: Series Creator Dan Clark on YouTube
* *
Brats of the Lost Nebula
at Muppet Wiki {{Kids' WB Kids' WB original shows The WB original programming 1998 American television series debuts 1999 American television series endings 1990s American children's television series American children's action television series American children's adventure television series American children's science fiction television series American television series with live action and animation American television shows featuring puppetry English-language television shows Space adventure television series Television series about orphans Television series by DHX Media Television series by The Jim Henson Company