Animorphs (TV series)

This article is written from a Real World point of view.

 Animorphs is a television series based on the book series of the same name. It was broadcast from September 1998 to March 2000 on Nickelodeon in the United States. It aired a total of 26 episodes.

Cast

• Shawn Ashmore as Jake
• Brooke Nevin as Rachel
• Boris Cabrera as Marco
• Nadia-Leigh Nascimento as Cassie
• Christopher Ralph as Tobias
• Paulo Costanzo as Aximili
• Eugene Lipinski as Visser Three
• Richard Sali as Principal Chapman
• Terra Vanessa Kowalyk as Melissa Chapman
• Joshua Peace as Tom

Plot 

My Name is Jake pt 2

The story revolves around five humans, Jake, Marco, Cassie, Rachel, and Tobias, and one alien, Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill (nicknamed Ax), who obtain the ability to transform into any animal they touch. Naming themselves "Animorphs" (a portmanteau of "animal morphers"), they use their ability to battle a secret alien infiltration of Earth by a parasitic race of aliens resembling large slugs, called Yeerks, that take humans as a host by entering and merging with their brain through the ear canal. The Animorphs fight as a guerrilla force against the Yeerks, led by Visser Three.

The Animorphs carefully protect their identities; the Yeerks assume that they're a strike force sent by the Andalites, the alien race that created the transformation technology. To protect themselves and their families from Yeerk reprisals, the Animorphs keep up the facade. Over the run of the series, the pretense becomes harder to maintain; the Yeerks grow more cautious and dedicate more time and resources to capturing the 'Andalite bandits'.

Though the Animorphs can assume the form of any animal they touch, there are several limitations to the ability: they can only stay in animal form for two hours, or they will be unable to return to human form. Also, the process requires some level of concentration to prevent the animal's natural instincts from overwhelming the human intellect.

Reception

'Watch TV' logo placed on book covers and merchandise to promote the show.

Due to being made with medium-budgets that mainly limits its special effect and the excessive limitation on the violence and action for the film, the series suffered severe backlash from fans of the Animorphs book series and also from the authors, which resulted in the show's cancellation. Despite this, in 2013, the show's reruns began airing on Qubo.

VHS Releases

(full article: Animorphs VHS Releases )

• Part 1:The Invasion Begins ("My Name is Jake" parts 1 and 2, and "Underground ")Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (when they were known as Columbia TriStar Home Video) had released twelve episodes in four VHS volumes known as The Invasion Series, collecting episodes from the series. The first 12 episodes are only released on VHS and not re-released on DVD.
• Part 2: Nowhere to Run ("Between Friends", "The Message" and "The Reaction")
• Part 3: The Enemy Among Us ("The Stranger", "The Leader" parts 1 and 2)
• Part 4: The Legacy Survives ("The Capture" parts 1 and 2, and "Not My Problem")

Seven volumes spanning the first 20 episodes (only the first of which was identical to its U.S. counterpart) were released in Australia. The episodes were placed in chronological order. Each volume had three episodes apart from Volume 7, which had two ("Face Off", parts 1 and 2). VHS tapes were also released in (at least) French and Swedish, and in the UK.

All 26 episodes are currently available on iTunes, Vudu and Amazon Video spread across three volumes.

Animorphs VHS Collection Promo

Promo for the Animorphs VHS collection, consisting of 4 tapes.

Gallery

Screenshot and Promo Image Gallery

Rachel morphing lion (TV show promo image)

Tobias morphing hawk (TV show promo image)

On The Run

Jake, Rachel, Tobias, Cassie, and Marco from the show

Cassie, Jake, Ax, Rachel, and Tobias

Rachel, Jake, Tobias, Cassie, and Marco

Visser 3

Ax and Tobias

Ax

Rachel and Tobias

Cassie, Rachel, and Tobias

Marco and Jake

Not My Problem

The Front

Rachel and Tobias

Controllers

Dracon Beam

The Blue box

Rachel/Lion promo image

Tobias morphing hawk promo image

Erek King in the show

Crazy Fran

Jake eating a snail in The Capture

Rachel and Tobias

Tom and a few Controllers

Eva/Visser 1

Rachel

The Ellimist

Ax, Cassie, and Marco

Marco and Rachel

Tobias being held back by controllers

Cassie in The Reaction

Homer

Chapman

Jake and Cassie

Tobias, Rachel, and Cassie in line to the Yeerk Pool

Ax and Tobias

Jake and Marco

Rachel, Cassie, and Marco

Jake creeping around

Meet the Stars of Animorphs

The book Meet the Stars of Animorphs was released to promote the show. It included information about the actors and a sixteen-page picture insert.

Meet the Stars of Animorphs front cover

Meet the Stars of Animorphs back cover

Shawn Ashmore as Jake (from Meet the Stars of Animorphs)

Brooke Nevin as Rachel (from Meet the Stars of Animorphs)

Christopher Ralph as Tobias (from Meet the Stars of Animorphs)

Nadia Nascimento as Cassie (from Meet the Stars of Animorphs)

Boris Cabrera as Marco (from Meet the Stars of Animorphs)

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 1st page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 9th page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 10th page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 11th page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 12th page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 13th page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 14th page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 15th page

Meet the Stars of Animorphs photo insert 16th page

Article Gallery

Mighty Morphin Teens -article from Disney Adventures Magazine, Winter 1999

Mighty Morphin Teens -article from Disney Adventures Magazine, Winter 1999

Mighty Morphin Teens -article from Disney Adventures Magazine, Winter 1999

Sci-Fi Teen Magazine article, November 1998

Sci-Fi Teen Magazine article, November 1998

Sci-Fi Teen Magazine article, November 1998

Nickelodeon Magazine, September 1998

Nickelodeon Magazine, September 1998

Animorphs Alliance newsletter #2 featured a focus on the making of the TV show

Animorphs TV show featured in Disney Adventures Magazine, October 1998

Disney Adventures Magazine, March 1999

Advertising

VHS part 1 advertised in a comic book

Animorphamania postcard ad for the premiere of the second half of the first season

Watch Animorphs on TV ad from book 33

VHS part 1 ad from book 28

VHS part 2 ad from book 31

Ad for all four VHS parts, from book 34

Ad from inside book 19

Sticker on the outside of the Animorphs 1999 Calendar advertising the TV show

Sticker on the front cover of book 26, advertising the show's new time slot

Watch Animorphs on TV Nickelodeon logo on the covers of books 21-24

Watch Animorphs on TV logo on the covers of books 30-53, and the back cover of book 54

Canadian watch tv logo

UK postcard advertising the TV show on Nickelodeon

Thai flyer for the first VHS tape (front)

Thai flyer for the first VHS tape (back). This looks the same as the back of the Australian VHS tape, but in black and white.

Videos

Animorphs Theme Song

This was the Theme Song

Animorphs Commercial

This was an ad for AniTV

File:Animorphs (1998) - Pre, "Coming Soon"

This was a preview to the series

See Also

• List of Animorphs episodes
• Listen to the theme song - Ogg file.

External Links

• Episode Summaries on scholastic.com/animorphs
• Promo pics on Nick.com
• Episode Summaries on Nick.com (These are slightly different than the scholastic.com/animorphs episode summaries).
• Animorphs VHS Part 1 advertised on scholastic.com/animorphs
• Behind the Scenes videos on scholastic.com/animorphs
• Click on 'TV show Cast interviews' to see interviews with each of the six main actors