Freakazoid!

This article is about the animated series. For other uses, see Freakazoid (disambiguation).

Freakazoid!
Also known asSteven Spielberg Presents Freakazoid!
Created by
Developed byTom Ruegger
Voices of
Narrated byJoe Leahy
Theme music composerRichard Stone
Composers
  • Richard Stone
  • Steven Bernstein
  • Julie Bernstein
  • Gordon Goodwin
  • Tim Kell
  • Carl Johnson
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes24 (49 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerSteven Spielberg
Producers
  • Mitch Schauer
  • Paul Rugg
  • Rich Arons
  • John P. MacCann
Running time22 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkKids' WB
ReleaseSeptember 9, 1995 (1995-09-09) –
June 1, 1997 (1997-06-01)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

Freakazoid! is an American superhero comedy animated television series created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini and developed by Tom Ruegger for the Kids' WB programming block of The WB. The series chronicles the adventures of the title character, Freakazoid, a crazy teenage superhero who fights crime in Washington, D.C.[1] It also features mini-episodes about the adventures of other superheroes. The series was produced by Warner Bros. Television Animation and Amblin Entertainment, being the third animated series produced through the collaboration of Steven Spielberg and Warner Bros. Animation after Tiny Toon Adventures and Animaniacs.

Bruce Timm, best known as a producer of the DC Animated Universe, originally intended for the series to be a straightforward superhero action-adventure cartoon with comic overtones, but executive producer Steven Spielberg requested it to be a flat-out comedy.[2] The show is similar to fellow Ruegger-led programs such as Animaniacs, having a unique style of humor that includes slapstick, fourth wall breaking, parody, surreal humour, and pop culture references.

The series debuted on Kids' WB on September 9, 1995, alongside Animaniacs, The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries, and Pinky and the Brain. The series lasted for two seasons across 24 episodes, with the final episode being broadcast on June 1, 1997. Although the series originally struggled in ratings, reruns on Cartoon Network and a fan following elevated it to become a cult hit.[3] Warner Bros. considered renewing the series for a third season, but deemed it to be too expensive. The show also ranked #53 on IGN's Top 100 Animated Series list.[4]

  1. ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 220–221. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  2. ^ Lenburg, p. 638
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference dvdint1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "53. Freakazoid". IGN. Retrieved December 13, 2011.