Disney's "Monkey Team Hyperforce"- Sounds familiar

Post by **Greg Stephens** » Wed Mar 17, 2004 6:15 pm

Today on Wil Wheaton's blog I see this comment, which just reminds me so much of Monkeytown that ... Well, I don't even know what to say about it. Anyhow, here's the quote:

Wil Wheaton wrote:Today, I get my wish. (Which is a good thing, because all those frozen weasels were getting expensive.)Walt Disney Television Animation came to my voice over agent last week, and requested me for a new show they're doing called -- get this -- 'Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!'

It reads like a crazy anime-styled show for younger kids, and I get to play "Skurg" the evil leader of a Soturix 7, who wears armor of bone.

I'm tempted to say, faceiously, that Scott should have his lawyers call Disney's lawyers, but that way madness lies. So, I'll just point out this wild coincidence and step aside without futher comment.

Kris Lachowski · Post by **Kris Lachowski** » Wed Mar 17, 2004 7:13 pm

Holy shit...
and as far as this goes:

Greg Stephens wrote: I'm tempted to say, faceiously, that Scott should have his lawyers call Disney's lawyers, but that way madness lies. So, I'll just point out this wild coincidence and step aside without futher comment.

I tempted to non-faceiously say it.

zerofoks · Post by **zerofoks** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 4:12 am

Hooray for royalties!

Tim Mallos · Post by **Tim Mallos** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 9:44 am

"Hello? CBLDF?...Yeah, Scott McCloud here....Wanna go half-sies on a huge damages settlement?"

T

Post by **Greg Stephens** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 3:27 pm

Despite the apparent similarity, there's a whole lot that we just don't know. We know next to nothing about the new show, so there's no way we can say how similar it really is to Monkeytown at this point. We also don't know to what degree Scott feels it's worth protecting these M.I. comics, characters and situations (which is a key thing).

Now, if Disney were to demand that Scott remove Monkeytown from his site or demand that he cease and desist selling prints or wallpapers featuring any Monkeytown characters, then there'd be a clear case that Scott was being wronged by Disney.

William G · Post by **William G** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 3:56 pm

Disney is a force for evil, I say we firebomb them just to be on the safe side.

Tim Mallos · Post by **Tim Mallos** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 3:58 pm

Careful talking like that, you're gonna have 7 short guys with picks and shovels jump you in an alley.

Rip Tanion · Post by **Rip Tanion** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 5:50 pm

Indeed, The Mouse is poweful.

I wouldn't be the first time Walt's Evil Empire was accused of ripping someone off.

However, in all fairness, as much as I hate Disney (I always felt that studio gave Donald Duck a raw deal), and as much as I loved Monkey Town (which I think Scott should have given more space to on his Improv poster), the idea of a team of fury macacas acting like people is nothing new. Anybody remember Captain Simian & The Space Monkeys? Yes, even robot monkeys. Remember Mecha King Kong.

Still, I wouldn't be suprised if one of the Mouse's (Mickey, not Stanley)minions was surfing through Scott's site and did indeed get the idea from him. But how can you prove that in a court of law; especially against the team of high priced suit sharks that the Mickster will send out to rend your legal flesh?

The fact is, everybody loves monkeys. They're like furry children who entertain us with their hijinks. Everybody loves robots. They're like happy slaves, with no awareness of their civil rights. Makes sence to put the two together.

A while back, I was flipping through a batch some mid-to-late '60s Marvel comics that my friend had just picked up. In one, I noticed an ad for a live monkey. No, not Sea Monkeys; but a real live primate with a tail. They wanted something like $20 or so (1960s money). I wonder how many kids back then broke their piggy banks and sent away for their own monkey.

Veleno · Post by **Veleno** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 6:45 pm

I read the article and thought this part was interesting:

Drawings attached to the complaint, dating from the early 1960s, pair a small, two-legged eyeball with a large, dull-witted monster character in a "buddy" relationship. The lawsuit claims that Disney and Pixar also appropriated the "buddy" relationship theme from Mouse's work.

Hmm.. a small smart guy **cough** George **cough** paired with a unusually large yet dimwitted character **cough** Lennie **cough** ? I seriously doubt that the guy can really claim credit for that concept.

However, I might point out Lawrence Lessig's talk on free culture which talks about things such as how Disney keeps working on getting the time until copyright expires extended so people can't do things with disney that disney did to the stories of the Brothers Grimm:
http://randomfoo.net/oscon/2002/lessig/

Also here's a random thought: What happens when everything possible in fiction has been done in one way or another. All character archetypes used and paired together. All types of stories used. Completely unable to write something without it beign a cliche?

Rip Tanion · Post by **Rip Tanion** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 6:58 pm

Veleno wrote: Hmm.. a small smart guy **cough** George **cough** paired with a unusually large yet dimwitted character **cough** Lennie **cough**?

"I wish I had a little friend. A little friend to play with."

William G · Post by **William G** » Thu Mar 18, 2004 11:17 pm

So, how did that Lion King is Tezuka's Jungle Taitei thing work out for them?

Connor Moran · Post by **Connor Moran** » Fri Mar 19, 2004 9:48 pm

While MonkeyTown is really Super-Monkey-Great, I would be hesitant to claim that anyone is ripping it off. After all, that sort of goofy anime-esque monkey humor is pretty prevelant in our culture, as is goofy anime-esque team battle humor. Think of Mojo Jojo on the Powerpuff Girls. I think this is most likely a case of convergent evolution.

Even if that were not the case, copyright law does not protect ideas, only creative works. Derivitave hack writing may not be briliant literature, but it is not illegal.

Tim Mallos · Post by **Tim Mallos** » Fri Mar 19, 2004 9:54 pm

I don't think anyone REALLY thinks there is a case here. I think we're all giving vent to a fear shared by all small creators. Namely, something we created will be stolen or co-opted by some huge media entity with really deep pockets and a legion of lawyers.

Tim

Eric F Myers · Post by **Eric F Myers** » Sat Mar 20, 2004 2:07 pm

The only thing that I can find online about the plot is at Animation Insider.

Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go - a futuristic anime-style action/adventure series about a 13-year old boy, Chiro who heads up a band of high-tech monkey warriors as. Produced by from Walt Disney Television Animation. Fall 2004.

Not much to go on. I also found out who the PRODUCTION MANAGER of it was/is, and she looking for a job. I don't think I will post the link to her resume. But she was also the Production Manager of "Kim Possible," "Peter Pan II: Return to Never Land," "Clerks:The Cartoon," "Pepper Ann," "101 Dalmatians: The Series." And a PRODUCER at Icebox.com (Mr. Wong, Naked Guy:Private Eye, Ann Tenna).

I guess that's enough snooping for one day.

William G · Post by **William G** » Sat Mar 20, 2004 4:25 pm

Chiro?

Sheesh, I gotta say this- The only faux anime that's any good is Teen Titians.

Not that a grown man will admit to watching cartoons...

jazon · Post by **jazon** » Sat Mar 20, 2004 4:44 pm

And interestingly enough, Wil Wheaton does the voice of Aqualad on Teen Titans.

At Scott's suggestion I wrote Wil about Monkey Town, and posted a link to the MI in Wil's comments, but haven't heard anything from their side.

Tim Mallos · Post by **Tim Mallos** » Sat Mar 20, 2004 11:00 pm

Love Teen Titans.

Tim

DavidMcG · Post by **DavidMcG** » Sun Mar 21, 2004 5:58 am

All I know is it sounds NOTHING like Monkey Town from Will Wheaton's description.

William G · Post by **William G** » Sun Mar 21, 2004 6:11 pm

Tim Mallos wrote:Love Teen Titans.

Tim

One of Puffy's better songs as well.

Eric F Myers · Post by **Eric F Myers** » Sun Mar 21, 2004 7:22 pm

Back on the trail for more info about this secret project. I found out that Corey Feldman, Luke Skywalker, and Sponge Bob are also part of the Monkey Team.

From CoreyFeldman.com

- Corey has just begun a new Disney animated series called "Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force, Go!" The series will also star Mark Hammil (Star Wars) & Tom McKinney (the voice of Sponge Bob SquarePants). The series will be used to launch a new channel in September created by Fox & Disney, called Jetix!

And here's the story about the new channel, Jetix!

DavidMcG · Post by **DavidMcG** » Sun Mar 21, 2004 9:44 pm

Oh, good! I can still hear new Mark Hammil voice acting even though Time Squad is now cancelled.

Rip Tanion · Post by **Rip Tanion** » Mon Mar 22, 2004 6:05 pm

Corey Feldman? Oy vey! It's Ninja Turtles all over again! Does he still get paid in drugs?

Wil Wheaton? I always wanted to toss Wesley Crusher out of an airlock - or beam him inside a bulkhead!

Mark Hammil. The Force is no longer strong with this one.

It's friggin TMNT meets Stand By Me meets Star Wars meets Planet of the Apes (has Uncle Chuck been cast yet?) meets Westworld meets The Wolfman on a Saturday Night in Brooklyn.

Eric F Myers · Post by **Eric F Myers** » Mon Mar 22, 2004 7:14 pm

Greg Cipes, the voice of Beast Boy on Teen Titans, has also been cast.
A Teen Titans fan site, teentitans.aifandom.com, has quoted Greg:

"I am Currently working on many new cartoons soon to come. I am the lead in Disney's new animated series called SUPER ROBOT MONKEY TEAM ULTRA FORCE GO. It's sure to make a huge splash once released." SUPER ROBOT MONKEY TEAM ULTRA FORCE GO - set to air is September - is "by far the coolest cutting edge Cartoon Disney has done,"

This guy is calling it "Ultra Force" instead of "Hyperforce" or "Hyper Force."

Post by **Greg Stephens** » Tue Mar 23, 2004 3:58 am

Wil's sticking to the "Hyper Force" version, but he could totally be wrong for all I know.

Zwol.org

Disney's "Monkey Team Hyperforce"- Sounds familiar

Disney's "Monkey Team Hyperforce"- Sounds familiar

Re: Disney's "Monkey Team Hyperforce"- Sounds fami

Teen Titans