''The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers'', commonly called ''The LXD'', is a 2010–2011 American

web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single in ...

that premiered on

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...

. The series follows two groups of rival dancers: The Alliance of the Dark, who are the villains, and The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers, the heroes, who discover they have superpowers referred to as "the Ra" through their dance abilities. The entire story takes place over hundreds of years, beginning in the 1920s, up to the year 3000. The series was created, directed, and produced by

Jon M. Chu Jonathan Murray Chu (born November 2, 1979) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is best known as the director of 2018's ''Crazy Rich Asians'', the first film by a major Hollywood studio to feature a majority cast of Asi ...

, who says he was inspired to create it by

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the " King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over ...

's "

Thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...

" and " Smooth Criminal"

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

s and by the dancers he met while filming the movie '' Step Up 2: The Streets''.Chu also directed ''

Step Up 3D ''Step Up 3D'' (also known as ''Step Up 3'') is a 2010 American 3D dance film directed by Jon M. Chu and written by Amy Andelson and Emily Meyer. It serves as a sequel to 2008's '' Step Up 2: The Streets'' and the third installment in the ''St ...

''. The series was choreographed by Christopher Scott and Harry Shum, Jr., with assistant choreography by

Galen Hooks Galen Hooks is an American dancer, choreographer, creative director, producer, singer/songwriter and actress. Work Hooks is an MTV VMA-nominated choreographer and dancer who has worked with over 60 artists, such as Janet Jackson, Justin Bieber, ...

. Members had a wide variety of specialties, including hip-hop,

krumping Krumping is a style of street dance popularized in the United States, described as Afro-diasporic dance, characterized by free, expressive, exaggerated, and highly energetic movement. Dancers who started krumping saw the dance as a means for th ...

, contemporary, tricking, popping,

b-boying Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, tap, and

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form ...

. All of the choreography and stunts were real. There were no

special effects Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual wo ...

or wire work, and the entire series was shot on location without the use of

green screens Chroma key compositing, or chroma keying, is a visual-effects and post-production technique for compositing (layering) two images or video streams together based on colour hues ( chroma range). The technique has been used in many fields to r ...

. 50% of the sales of the official LXD T-shirt went to support the work of the nonprofit organization

Invisible Children, Inc. Invisible Children, Inc., founded in 2004, is an organization to increase awareness of the activities of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Central Africa, and its leader, Joseph Kony. Specifically, the group seeks to put an end to the practices ...

Puma was the lead sponsor for ''The LXD''. As of 2010, an official soundtrack was in production. The first LXD theatrical release was presented as a 3D short film, screening before the director's fan cut of '' Justin Bieber: Never Say Never''.

Members and cast

Sources: * Roger Aaron Brown as The Narrator *Jaime "Venum" Burgos, Ivan "Flipz" Velez,
and Josh "Milky" Ayers as The Observers *Wilbur "Wilpower" Urbina as Joe Drift *Luis "Luigi" Rosado as Trevor Drift *Carly Lang as Alice Wondershaw * Daniel "Cloud" Campos as The Illister *Jeremy Marinas as Justin Starr *Travis Wong as Jimmy Angel a.k.a. Shado *

Nicholas Braun Nicholas Joseph Braun (born May 1, 1988) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Greg Hirsch in the HBO series ''Succession'' (2018–present), for which he has received two nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supp ...

as Cole Waters *Chadd "Madd Chadd" Smith as Sp3cimen *John "J Rock" Nelson as Jasper James a.k.a. The Dark Doctor * Marie "Pandora" Medina as Autumn * Shelby Rabara as The Dark Nurse *Richard "Steelo" Vazquez as Spex *

Vivian Bang Vivian may refer to: *Vivian (name), a given name and also a surname Toponyms * Vivian, Louisiana, U.S. * Vivian, South Dakota, U.S. * Vivian, West Virginia, U.S. * Vivian Island, Nunavut, Canada * Ballantrae, Ontario, a hamlet in Stouffville, ...

as Miss Harlow *Oscar Orosco as Tendo *Aaron "Duece" Cooke as Dante * Christopher "Lil' C" Toler as Z *

as Ninjato * William Wingfield as Katana * Harry Shum Jr. as Elliot Hoo *Aja George as Stereo *Terence Dickson as Minijack *Straphanio "Shonnie" Solomon as PhonoShonnie's uncle is Samuel "Boogaloo Sam" Solomon, the man who invented the popping style of dance. *Christa Lewis as Parvine *Sean "Fresh" Redding as Polo *

Diva Zappa Diva Muffin Zappa (born July 30, 1979) is an American artist and actress who has also recorded a one-off comedy single. She is the youngest child of musician Frank Zappa and wife Gail Zappa. Personal life Diva Zappa was born in Los Angeles. She ...

as Ruth *Nick Demoura as Murray *Robert Rich as Gus *Charlie "VZion" Schmidt as The Prophet (season one) and The Ringmaster (season three) * Christopher Scott as Copeland *David "Kid David" Shreibman as Karen a.k.a. The Kidd *

Stephen "tWitch" Boss Stephen Laurel "tWitch" Boss (September 29, 1982December 13, 2022) was an American freestyle hip hop dancer, choreographer, actor, television producer, and television personality. In 2008, he finished in second place on the American version of ...

as Dr. E *Harmony Costa, Antwan Davis, and Khalid Freeman as Beat Bullies *

Caity Lotz Caitlin Marie Lotz (born December 30, 1986) is an American actress, dancer and singer. She has portrayed Stephanie Horton in '' Mad Men'', Officer Kirsten Landry in the MTV mockumentary series ''Death Valley'' (2011), Annie in '' The Pact'' (201 ...

as Taylor Jensen *Adedamola "Nugget" Orisagbemi, Nicholas "Slick" Stewart, and Marc "Marvelous" Inniss as The Eaters *Jesse "Casper" Brown as Peetie a.k.a. Fangz *Anis Cheurfa as AchillesAnis Cheurfa plays the role of Rinzler in the 2010 film '' Tron: Legacy''. * Carey Ysais as KareyCarey Ysais is the co-creator of The Carnival: Choreographer’s Ball. *Ricardo "Boogie Frantick" Rodriguez as The Wave *Josue "Beastmode" Figueroa as Stakka *Danni "Danni G" Gutierrez as Dreads *Cuong "Tony Styles" Ly as Waru * Marie "Maryss from Paris" Courchinoux as ScalesMaryss from Paris and Rino are both members of

Beat Freaks Beat Freaks is an all-female breaking dance crew from Los Angeles, California. Each of its ten members have achieved individual success dancing before taking part of the group, which was created in 2003. The Beat Freaks were featured on MTV ...

. *

Rino Nakasone is a Japanese dancer, choreographer, artistic director and actor. Nakasone and her dance crew, Beat Freaks, participated in the third season of ''America's Best Dance Crew'', where they finished in second place. Nakasone has worked as a choreogr ...

as Teethe *Maya Chino as Gills *Chanel Malvar as Finns *Brandon Philips as Umbra *Bryan Tanaka as Umbra *Dondraico 'Draico' Johnson as Umbra *Giovanni Watson as Umbra *JD McElroy as Umbra *Mykal Bean as Umbra *Brandon Shaw as Umbra *Cassidy Noblett as Umbra *Johnny Erasme as Umbra *Beau "Casper" Smart as Ox *Luke Broadlick as Ox *Ryan "McLovin" Houchin as Ox *

Tara Macken Tara Macken (born August 17, 1990) is an American stunt woman and actress. Life and career Early life She was born in a car in Kuwait in 1990. Her father is Irish and her mother is Filipino. 2006-2012: Career beginnings She has done stunt work ...

as Ox *

Cameron Boyce Cameron Mica Boyce (May 28, 1999 – July 6, 2019) was an American actor. He began his career as a child actor, appearing in the 2008 films '' Mirrors'' and '' Eagle Eye'', along with the comedy film '' Grown Ups'' (2010) and its 2013 sequel. ...

as oungJasper James a.k.a. The Dark Doctor *

Ele Keats Ele Keats (born Elemy Georgescu; August 24, 1973) is an American television, film and stage actress, model, and jewelry designer. Keats's most notable roles were in the Disney musical drama film ''Newsies'', Garry Marshall's '' Frankie and Johnn ...

as Diane James *Johnathan "Johnny 5" Malstrom as Experiment 2A2 *Peter "Smurf" Quintanilla as Experiment 4K8 *Jefferey "Machine" McCann as Experiment 9S2 *Lorenzo "Devious" Chapman as Experiment J4E *Patrick "Pakelika 10" Wesley as The Exterminator *Terrance Harrison as Gimpspark *Ron "Tempo" Evans Jr., and Soh "Tetris" Tanaka as Rabids *Adrian "Lobo" Miramontes, Joshua "ACE" Ventura, Mike Song, and Anthony "Anflowny" Lee as Shadows *Nancy "Asia One" Yu as LXD Elder: The Countess *Rueben Lucky "Flat Top" Hall as LXD Elder: Groove Guardian *Andre "Boppin Dre" Diamond as LXD Elder: Black Diamond *Jerry "Flo Master" Randolph as LXD Elder *Roger "Orko" Romero as LXD Elder *Ceasare "Tight Eyez" Willis as LXD Elder: Style Ripper *Kendall Glover as Lil Rina *Angelo "Lil Demon" Baligad as Dark Nurse's son

Series history

The first two seasons of ''The LXD'' were released in 2010 and the third premiered in August 2011. Shooting first began for the series in February 2009. It took 18 months to complete filming for the first two seasons.

The Uprising Begins

Season one focuses on the back story of the Legion of Extraordinary Dancers, the "good guys". Each episode introduces each of the characters and their specific dance ability. The season premiered July 7, 2010 on

. The first two

webisode A webisode (portmanteau of "web" and "episode") is an episode of a series that is distributed as part of a web series or on streaming television. It is available as either for download or in streaming, as opposed to first airing on broadcast or c ...

s (''Chapters'' in the series), "The Tale of Trevor Drift" and "AntiGravity Heroes", were both released July 7. The remaining eight were released every Wednesday afterward.

Secrets of the Ra

Season two tells the back story of the villains of The LXD which consist of Organization X—called The Ox—and The Umbras. The second season also premiered with two ''chapters'', "The Legion" and "Lessons", which were released October 26, 2010. The remaining webisodes were released every Wednesday after with the exception of Wednesday, November 24 due to the

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden ...

holiday.

Super Ballet

There is episode titled "Super Ballet" that was supposed to be presented as part of the series narrative. It was left out of season two because Chu felt it didn't fit into the storyline. He eventually released it in 2012 when ''The LXD'' became available on YouTube. The dancing performed in the episode is a mix of ballet and tricking.

Rise of the Drifts

Season three tells the back story of how the LXD was formed and what led to the Ox and the Umbras uniting to become the Alliance of the Dark. I.aM.mE, a dance crew from Houston, TX who won season six of ''

America's Best Dance Crew ''America's Best Dance Crew'', often abbreviated as ''ABDC'', was an American competitive dance reality television series that features both national and international dance crews. The show was produced by singer, record producer, and former ''Am ...

'', makes an appearance in season three as the Reanimators. Ceasare "Tight Eyez" Willis, the creator of the dance style

, also appears in season three as the character of Style Ripper, one of the LXD Elders. Season three premiered on August 11, 2011, with two ''chapters'': "The Extraordinary 7" and "Ashes". With the exception of September 1, the rest of the chapters in the season were released weekly on Thursdays.

Reception

''The LXD'' is the most viewed original web series on Hulu. AdvertisingAge.com gave the series a favorable review stating "...each episode of 'LXD' packs a wealth of narrative sophistication into its eight or nine minutes. Combine this with the theater-worthy production values and a cast that exerts itself to an ungodly extent, and the end result is—pun time!—extraordinary." Mashable.com called the series "...a game-changer in the way that web series—and the arts—are presented online. Oh yeah, and it’s stunning." In its review of season one, PentacleBlogs.org praised the dancing but felt the acting was weak: "At best this Hollywood narrative approach makes ''The LXD'' series seem a bit clunky and cheesy, and at worse it detracts from the enjoyment of truly great dancing." After their performance at TED 2010, ''The LXD'' received the longest standing ovation in TED history. In November 2010, ''The LXD'' won a Media Vanguard Award for "Best Original Web Series." In January 2011, the series won a Digital Luminary Award in the "Original Web Content" category. In February 2011, it was announced that Jon Chu would win the Pioneer Award at the International Digital Emmy Awards for the series. At the announcement,

IATAS The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (IATAS) is an American nonprofit membership organization, based in New York City, composed of leading media and entertainment executives across all sectors of the television industry, from ov ...

President and CEO, Bruce Paisner remarked "Jon M. Chu is one of the most up & coming directing talents of our time and we look forward to honoring him for his innovative contributions to the field of digital entertainment with our Pioneer Prize."

Live performances

''The LXD'' has performed live for

YouTube Live YouTube Live was a 2008 event streamed live on the Internet from San Francisco and Tokyo. It was launched November 22–23, 2008. It was hosted by a variety of YouTube celebrities, including The Black Eyed Peas rapper will.i.am, Tom Dickson of ...

'08 and for the TBS

Ellen DeGeneres Ellen Lee DeGeneres ( ; born January 26, 1958) is an American comedian, television host, actress, writer, and producer. She starred in the sitcom ''Ellen'' from 1994 to 1998, which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award for " The Puppy Episode". Sh ...

special ''Ellen's Even Bigger Really Big Show'' at

Caesar's Palace Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks. Caesar ...

. In May 2010, they were the opening act for the '' Glee Live!'' tour. They performed by invitation on season six of ''

So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and ha ...

'', the 2010

TED conference TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sa ...

, and the

82nd Academy Awards The 82nd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2009 and took place on March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p. ...

. In October 2010, the LXD performed at YouTube Play in New York. In December 2010, they performed on the '' Conan'' show. In 2011, they joined the cast of ''Glee'' again on their second international tour.

Footnotes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Legion Of Extraordinary Dancers 2010 web series debuts 2011 web series endings Dance companies in the United States Dance in arts Hip hop dance