On August 10, SAMURAI JACK, a new animated action series from Genndy Tartakovsky, slashes its way onto Cartoon Network. Tartakovsky, who created the network's successful original cartoon Dexter's Laboratory, brings the new half-hour series SAMURAI JACK to Cartoon Network on August 10, 2001, at 7 p.m. (ET, PT). The special 90-minute premiere movie will be presented with limited commercial interruptions. New episodes of SAMURAI JACK will debut Mondays at 8 p.m. (ET, PT), starting August 13.

    SAMURAI JACK tells the story of an ancient warrior who is determined to overthrow the evil reign of the shape-shifting wizardAku. In the distant past, a young boy witnesses his society's overthrow at the hands of an evil sorcerer. The boy's father sends him away to study with the world's foremost scholars and to be trained in the martial arts.

    With his mind and body sharply honed, he returns home to vanquish Aku and end his terrible reign. As he is about to strike the coup de grace, the wizard thrusts the warrior through a time portal.

    He lands in a strange and dark future, where he quickly receives a name: Samurai Jack. Jack's only goal is to find a time portal so that he may return home and liberate his people. But the future is a very bleak place,segregated into fantastic tribes and policed by Aku's evil robotwarlords. 

    While seeking a way to return to his home, Samurai Jack encountersexotic civilizations, strange cultures,unusual creatures, and modern urban landscapeswith all their trappings, such as flying cars, huge skyscrapers and even techno music.Through it all, Jack relies upon his training as a warrior, combining intellect, restraint and physical strength, to help him along the way. A man of few words,Jack speaks mostly with his expressive eyes.

    SAMURAI JACK features elements of humor along with innovative action sequences, dazzling artistry and a riveting musical score.

   "Stylistically, this will be unlike any other animated show on television," said Tartakovsky. "I set out to make a show that had enough action to satisfyme, but in addition to incredible action scenes, we're using music, cinematic storytelling, and stylized backgrounds to create mood and atmosphere. The environment will be a major character in SAMURAI JACK." 

    Tartakovsky created Cartoon Network's first original series, Dexter's Laboratory. The show, among Cartoon Network's highest-rated shows since its debuton April 26, 1996, has been nominated for four Emmy Awards and has spawned a successful line of licensed merchandise.To date, 52 episodes of Dexter's Laboratory have been created and an additional 13 are in production and will debut on Cartoon Network starting in November 2001. Tartakovsky also served as producer/director for Cartoon Network's Emmy-winning television series The Powerpuff Girls. He will be animation director on The Powerpuff Girls: TheMovie, which will premiere in Summer 2002.

    Cartoon Network has ordered 26 episodes of SAMURAI JACK, adding to the network's current slate of original animated shows, which currently includes Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken, Johnny Bravo, The PowerpuffGirls, Ed, Edd n Eddy, I Am Weasel, Courage the CowardlyDog, Sheep in the Big City and Mike, Lu & Og.

    TheOfficial Samurai Jack website launched on July 23. Visitors to the sitecan find all kinds of information about Jack and his nemesis, Aku, including clips and a link to the original animation test for the series. The first SAMURAI JACK-themed game called "Path of Destiny"is also featured on the site. Additionally, the Department ofCartoons includes model sheets, backgrounds, storyboards and audio clips from the creator of the show, Genndy Tartakovsky.

Character Descriptions and Voice Actor Biographies:

SAMURAI JACK (voiced by Phil La Marr)
Samurai Jack was born and bred to be a warrior. He was raised in the Bujitsu code, the ancient rules of Samurai life handed down from one generation to the next. As a young man, an evil wizard named Aku conquered his land and Jack was sent away from his family to acquire the skills he would need to free his people. He studied with Greek philosophers, Tibetan monks, and Italian scholars to hone his mind while also learning horsemanship, the way of the sword and martial arts. When Jack is banished to the bleak future, it is his mental and physical training that helps him survive in this strange new world. A man of very few words, Jack has expressive eyes that tell his story better than anything he could say. 

PHIL LA MARR (The Voice of Samurai Jack)
As the voice of Samurai Jack, Phil La Marr brings the wise but wary warrior to life. La Marr is an actor/comedian who spent five years as a member of thecast of Mad TV, where he created characters like Jaq, a hyperactive delivery man, and Desperation Lee, a stuck-in-the-'70s talk show host. La Marr has also lent his voice to characters on Futurama and King of the Hill, and has appeared in such films as Pulp Fiction and Bio-Dome. He is an alumnus of The Groundlings, Los Angeles' well-known sketch and improvisational comedy group. 

AKU (voiced by Mako)
Samurai Jack's chief tormenter is a supernatural beast whose reign of evil has infected mankind into a realm of hate and darkness. Aku takes many forms, shifting shapes but creating a looming malevolent presence at all times. Aku knows that Samurai Jack is the only force that can defeat him and interrupt his rule, so he is obsessed with doing everything he can to thwart the displaced warrior. The wizard dispatches an army of minions, including insect-like robots, whose sole purpose is to find and defeat Samurai Jack.

MAKO (The Voice of Aku) 
Aku is pure evil. Mako endows the shape-shifting wizard with the power and spite that make this character an intriguing villain. Mako, once nominated for a Tony Award, has appeared in a number of television series, films and Broadway plays. His television work has included roles in series that range from action shows like Martial Law and Walker, Texas Ranger to comedies including Frasier. On the big screen, Mako has appeared inTucker, Pacific Heights, 7 Years in Tibet and PearlHarbor. 

About Genndy Tartakovsky (Creator/Producer, Samurai Jack):

    Genndy Tartakovsky created Samurai Jack as his follow-up project to the massive success of Dexter's Laboratory with the desire to create the best action-adventure cartoon ever. With Samurai Jack, Tartakovsky has created an animated action television show that is cinematic in scope and that incorporates action, humor and intricate artistry.

    Named one of Variety's "50 To Watch" as a future leader in the entertainment industry, Genndy Tartakovsky is the creator/writer/director of Dexter's Laboratory and co-creator of "Dial M For Monkey" and "Justice Friends." In addition to being voted Toon of the Year by Cartoon Network viewers in 1996, his first professional cartoon creation Dexter's Laboratory has received four Emmy nominations and an Annie Award. Tartakovsky has been called "one of the industry's rising stars" by People and was tapped as one of the most creative people in entertainment when he was named to Entertainment Weekly's "It List" in 1999.

    Tartakovsky was born and raised in Moscow, Russia, until his family moved to Chicago when he was seven years of age. After high school, Tartakovsky studied film at Chicago's Columbia College before moving to Los Angeles to study animation at Cal Arts. At Cal Arts he wrote, directed, produced and animated two student films. One of his student films, which was selected for the Cal Arts Producers Show, was the basis for Dexter's Laboratory.

History of the Samurai:

    One of the most powerful influences on the history of the Japanese culture has been the long reign of military rule in Japan. Through centuries of military governance, the samurai class emerged as a branch of the aristocracy. In Japan, the samurai was regarded as society's dominant class. 

    For each family, only one son could inherit the full privileges of the father. Sons who did not inherit the estate of their father became warriors or monastics. Established for the protection of the state, they formed the armed guard of the aristocracy and the ancient warriors were originally called samurai or "attendants." Later, when they became an independent class and took the reins of the government, they distanced themselves from the role of attendant and called themselvesbushi, warriors or knights.

    Samurai were warriors trained in archery, horsemanship, swordsmanship, lancing, archery, shooting, sword quick-draw and jujitsu. Their duty was to study, practice, and master these skills. In order to become a master of these skills, each warrior selected an appropriate mentor from whom to receive instruction in the arts of war, gaining detailed understanding of army principles and combat principles.

    Twenty-four hours a day, warriors had to keep the spirit of combat in mind. Their primary concern was to constantly keep death in mind, every day and every night. By keeping the possibility of death in mind at all times, the warrior thereby also fulfilled the ways of loyalty and familial duty.

    For a samurai warrior, three things were considered essential: loyalty, duty and valor. They must work loyally, be faithful to duty, and exhibit strength and courage.

    There were two kinds of warrior principles: ordinary and emergency. Ordinary principles included the principles of knighthood and weaponry. Emergency principles included army and combat principles. A warrior could not be a samurai commander until all of these principles were mastered.

    The samurai warrior caste greatly influenced all of Japanese society through its role as ruler and law-giver as well as through its patronage. It is believed that conventional Japanese culture cannot be understood without recognizing the great influence of the samurai.

Source: Code of theSamurai byThomas Cleary

Production Credits:

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