Ulysses 31
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Ulysses 31 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | Science fiction Fantasy Animation |
| Creator(s) | Jean Chalopin Nina Wolmark inspired by Homer's Odysseus |
| Voices of | Matt Berman Adrian Knight Anick Faris Kelly Ricard Howard Ryshpan |
| Country of origin | France, Japan |
| No. of episodes | 26 (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 24 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Syndication |
| Original run | October 10, 1981 – April 3, 1982 |
Ulysses 31 (宇宙伝説ユリシーズ31, uchuu densetsu yurishiizzu 31; French title "Ulysse 31") is a Franco-Japanese anime series (1981) which updates the Greek and Roman mythology of Odysseus (known as "Ulysses" in Roman Mythology and "Ulysse" in French, hence the name) to the 31st century. The show comprises 26 half-hour episodes and is produced by DiC Entertainment.
The Gods of Olympus are angered when Ulysses, commander of the giant spaceship Odyssey, kills the giant Cyclops to save a group of enslaved children including his son. Zeus sentences Ulysses to travel the universe with his crew frozen until he finds the Kingdom of Hades, at which point his crew will be revived and he will be able to return to Earth. Along the way they encounter numerous other famous figures from Greek mythology given a futuristic twist.
The entire series is available in English in a complete DVD boxset in the UK released by Contender Entertainment. In the US, one DVD entitled Ulysses 31: The Mysteries of Time was released, containing only 4 selected episodes.
Contents |
[edit] Main characters
- Ulysses (fr: Ulysse, es: Ulises) – main character and captain of the Odyssey.
- Telemachus (fr: Télémaque, es: Telémaco) – son of Ulysses and second in command for most of the voyage; Yumi's friend and protector.
- Yumi (fr: Thémis, es: Thais) – a blue-skinned humanoid from the White Planet Zotra, younger sister of Numinor, with telepathic powers.
- No-No (fr: Nono, es: Nonó) – small robot companion of Telemachus, fond of eating nails. He is rather timid but can be relied on in a crisis.
- Shirka – the Odyssey's main computer. Speaks with a deep female voice. Possibly her name is a variant of Circe, who was seen in one episode.
- Numinor (fr: Noumaïos, es: Numaios) – older brother of Yumi. He is in suspended animation along with the rest of the crew, for most of the series.
- Zeus – god of gods, Ulysses' persecutor.
[edit] Episodes
[edit] Trivia
- The series aired in Japan in 1998 as Space Legend Ulysses 31, but was cancelled after only twelve episodes. NHK later broadcast all 26 episodes on their BS-2 satellite channel.
- When the series was originally dubbed into English, the lengthy opening and ending credits (which remained written in French) featured newly-recorded English-language versions of the show's theme. This version of the series was shown on the BBC in the UK twice. When the series was syndicated in the U.S., the opening and ending credits were shortened, and the French text credits were replaced with newly-generated English-language credits. This version is now the only English version available, and is the one released on the complete DVD boxset in the UK.
- The designs of the various spaceships and other technology seen in the show often borrowed heavily from various science-fiction films of the day. For example, Ulysses' ship took several design cues from spacecraft featured in Stanley Kubrick's film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
- Of note a number of Musical cues are altered but clearly taken from other Science Fiction movies; recognised examples (thus far) from Flash Gordon and Star Wars , where samples of Sound Effects have also been taken.
- In this show Ulysses used a lightsaber and round energy shield as weapons. In Marvel comics there was a group called the Pantheon who had a member, Ulysses, with a noticeably similar choice of weapons.
- The series bore a slight similarity with the anime/manga Captain Harlock. Both protagonists are hounded in their travels by ancient mythological gods: Ulysses by Zeus, and Captain Harlock by Wotan, a Norse god (see Harlock Saga: Great Harlock Gotterdamerung manga). Each is on a quest: Ulysses to free his ship's companions from Zeus' spell, and Harlock to fulfil his prophecy by starting the 'Twilight Of The Gods'. Both men endure hardships, overcoming traps, agents/servants working for the Gods, being forced to journey to far-away places in space, and surviving many dangers created by the vengeful gods out to destroy them on their quest.
- For the first repeat run of the series in France on the FR3 channel in 1983, a short one-and-a-half minute clip featuring Nono called "I Make Noise" was made to commemorate the series' return to the air. The title comes from a French novelty record featuring Nono, which is featured as the background music of the clip.
