''The Magician'' ( French: ''Le Magicien'') is a French animated television series created by Florian Ferrier, Gilles Adrien, and Savin Yeatman-Eiffel, the last of whom also served as the series' story editor. It was produced by Gaumont Multimedia (however, it is currently owned by

Xilam Xilam is a French production company that specializes in animated television series and feature films. Marc du Pontavice and his wife Alix founded it in 1999 as a replacement for the animation division of Gaumont Multimédia; though Gaumont ...

) in 1997. It aired on

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

in 1999, one of the few European shows to air in the US at the time.

Synopsis

A series of scientific discoveries and radical advances in technology have re-organized society during the third millennium. Taking advantage of widespread hope and optimism in Electro City, the crime syndicates (chiefly under the mobster "Black Jack" Malone) have discreetly taken control of all important positions. They are repeatedly defeated by protagonist Ace Cooper and his magic assistant Cosmo.

Characters

Main characters

* Ace Cooper (voiced by

Michael Donovan Michael Donovan is a Canadian voice actor and director known for his roles as Suikotsu in ''Inuyasha'' and Zoken Mato in ''Fate/stay night''. He has also directed many animated series and feature films. Roles Animation * ''3-2-1 Penguins!''K ...

) - The main protagonist of the series. He is a famous

stage magician Magic, which encompasses the subgenres of illusion, stage magic, and close up magic, among others, is a performing art in which audiences are entertained by tricks, effects, or illusions of seemingly impossible feats, using natural means. It ...

and

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

, who co-operates with the police against criminals. In an earlier life, Ace used to be the former assistant of Jack "Black Jack" Malone until an accident he was involved in caused Ace to leave Jack's services. Since then, he managed to become a magic-based superhero that fights "Black Jack" Malone. ** Zina (vocal effects provided by

Kath Soucie Kath or KATH may refer to: * Kath (city), the historical capital of Khwarezm * Kath (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname * KATH-TV, the NBC TV station in Juneau, Alaska * KATH (AM) KATH (910 kHz) is an ...

) - Ace Cooper's pet

black panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...

. * Cosmo (voiced by

Rob Paulsen Robert Frederick Paulsen III (born March 11, 1956) is an American voice actor, known for his roles in numerous animated television series and films. He received a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program and three Anni ...

) - Ace Cooper's magic assistant and sidekick. He was taken in by Ace after his careless father abandoned him. * Lt. Derek Vega (voiced by Charles Napier) - A police lieutenant for the Electro City Police Department who helps Ace and Cosmos in their investigations. * Angel (voiced by

) - The CPU of Ace Cooper's Magic Express.

Villains

* Jack "Black Jack" Malone (voiced by Charles Napier) - The primary antagonist of the series, the principal

crime boss A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, Don, gang lord, gang boss, mob boss, kingpin, godfather, crime mentor or criminal mastermind, is a person in charge of a criminal organization. Description A crime boss typically has absolute or nearl ...

in Electro City, and the proprietor of the "Croesus Palace" casino. Following an accident involving Ace who used to work for him, "Black Jack" Malone is confined to a hovering chair. Despite the criminal activities he has committed, he has never been convicted of anything due to various loopholes and having high-level connections. ** Diamond (voiced by

) - "Black Jack" Malone's intelligent henchman. ** Spade (voiced by

) - "Black Jack" Malone's strong henchman. ** Clockwise (voiced by

Billy West William Richard Werstine (born April 16, 1952), known professionally as Billy West, is an American voice actor. His voice roles include Bugs Bunny in the 1996 film ''Space Jam'' and several subsequent projects, the title characters of '' Doug'' ...

) - "Black Jack" Malone's

strategist A strategist is a person with responsibility for the formulation and implementation of a strategy. Strategy generally involves setting goals, determining actions to achieve the goals, and mobilizing resources to execute the actions. A strategy ...

accountant An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certifi ...

, and

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

who often assists "Black Jack" Malone in using methods to keep him from getting indicted. * "Sonny Boy" Serge (voiced by

) - A millionaire mobster, owner of the 'Sunset' casino, and the son of engineer Jonathan Serge. He tends to be at odds with "Black Jack" Malone and periodically, with the elder Serge as well. * Faceless (voiced by

) - A full-costumed female assassin and sneak-thief hired by "Black Jack" Malone to kill the Magician. Faceless' gloves have retractable claws. Captain Friedrich refuses to believe she even exists despite what Ace, Cosmo, and Vega keep telling him. * Yago (voiced by

) - A magician who is a rival of Ace Cooper. * Dr. Blaun (voiced by

) - A

mad scientist The mad scientist (also mad doctor or mad professor) is a stock character of a scientist who is perceived as " mad, bad and dangerous to know" or "insane" owing to a combination of unusual or unsettling personality traits and the unabashedly amb ...

. * Gus Morland (voiced by

) - A former friend of Ace Cooper who is revived from his cryonic state as a cryonic mutant. He planned revenge on "Black Jack" Malone until Ace stopped him and restored him to normal. * Aldus Teron (voiced by

) - The head of a company that wanted to place his mind in a specially-bred child. * Glam (voiced by

) - A pirate who targeted the ''Nova'' celebrity cruise ship. * Count Hebron (voiced by

) - A hunter.

Other characters

* Captain Friedrich (voiced by

) - The police captain of the Electro City Police Department who distrusts Ace Cooper. * Mona Malone (voiced by

) - The daughter of "Black Jack" Malone and Ace Cooper's childhood beloved. She often works with Ace to keep her father's plans from going too far. * Duc Paparazzo (voiced by

) - A reporter who covers the various activities in Electro City. * DJ Mikkus (voiced by

) - A musical composer that is friends with Ace Cooper. * Skip Ramsdale - A Flipball player for the Electro City Strikers who is a friend of Ace Cooper. * Senator Dobbs (voiced by

) - The senator of Electro City who screens "Black Jack" Malone from prosecution as "Black Jack" Malone is close friends with him.

Episodes

Crew

* Jim Gomez - Voice Director

References

External links

''The Magician''
at the official website of

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Magician (French TV series), The 1990s French animated television series 1997 French television series debuts 1999 French television series endings French children's animated action television series French children's animated adventure television series French children's animated superhero television series Xilam French-language television shows Fox Kids Fox Broadcasting Company original programming Television series by 20th Century Fox Television France Télévisions children's television series