ALL SCI-FI

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Starlog Magazine.

Hypernauts was born out of creator Ron Thornton's frustration with existing juvenile productions, which he calls "pabulum" (oversimplified, tasteless writing and ideas). "You've either got cartoons or people dancing around in spandex, kicking the crap out of each other. And that's not the sort of show I used to like to watch when I was young. Kids are much smarter than people seem to think. So, I wanted to come up with something more intelligently written, with decent stories and decent characters, and more of the heart of Star Wars."

Sidebar: Ron did indeed achieve a much more elevated science fiction television series with his Hypernauts compared to the ghastly Saturday morning TV shows airing in 1996 when Hypernauts first debuted. The production values were equal to any other SF shows on in primetime. The visual effects were breathtaking. The scripting was definitely smarter than what was available on Saturday mornings; the cast engaging.

Ron Thornton continued to serve as visual FX designer for Babylon 5 while working on Hypernauts.

Sidebar: How was Ron able to manage doing both shows simultaneously? Talk about a full plate!

A host of Babylon 5 personnel have lent their talents to Thornton's creation, including producer Kevin Cremin, co-executive producer Doug Netter and supporting producer John Copeland, as well as Christopher Franke, who provides the music, and John Vulich of Optic Nerve, who devises the alien makeups.

Vulich also had a hand in creating the "Gloose," a three-legged creature that's "part giraffe, part dinosaur and a little bit dog," says Thornton. "It's picked up by the Hypernauts as a mascot. It's mischievous, a kleptomaniac. They want to train it, but that's useless."

Despite the abundance of B5 talent behind the scenes, Hypernauts is not a child's version of Babylon 5, Thornton asserts. "This is a different type of show. Babylon 5 is very wordy and story-oriented; they like the big, epic story. Hypernauts is smaller, much more personal. It's colorful and light-hearted with a Thunderbirds sensibility, but the technology and FX are pretty hot. We're also trying to keep it fairly rock-and-roll, too."

Production designer Steve Berg, who has worked as a production illustrator on such visually stunning films as Terminator 2, The Abyss and Waterworld, earns special praise from Thornton. "They throw that 'production designer' title around a lot these days, giving it to people who flip through magazines and then go buy props and stick them in places. Steve is a true designer. He designs virtually everything in this show, from the spaceships to the props, matte paintings and sets."

Thornton admits that the FX, consisting mostly of computer-generated imagery, are a large and important part of the show. "We do about 30 CGI shots per episode of Babylon 5. For Hypernauts, we've done as many as 78 shots per episode, and it's a half-hour show!"

But he's quick to exalt the scripts and overall production values as key elements separating Hypernauts from other shows. "I don't want the FX to be a crutch for this series," he says. "And they aren't, because the show is more about the Hypernauts themselves. This show is and isn't SF --- it depends on your definition of science fiction. My definition is ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, and that's how we've played this. The characters are kids; they have their weak points and strong points, and you get to know them and like them. They're in the middle of these incredible places and situations, and we try to keep a variety in the types of worlds they go to and in the creatures they meet."

"Primarily, we have to hit our target audience, kids from six to 12 years of age. But we've written the stories to work on all levels. We're not shoveling pabulum. People won't expect to see what they're going to see."

As for the budget, Thornton hints at a figure of more than $300,00 per episode, but says that's "about the same as an ordinary animated TV show."

According to Thornton, Hypernauts is as short on violence as it is long on intelligent scripts and dazzling FX. "I would rather stay clear of physical violence in the show." Conflict, he maintains, is still there. "Drama comes from placing the characters in peril. I don't have a problem with robots blowing each other up, and neither do the ABC censors, not much anyway. Now, of course, this might be the absolute worst course I could have taken," he laughs. "It might mean that people won't be interested in it. But I'm gambling that's not the case."

Scriptwriters contributing to the show include comic book scribe Len Wein, former Babylon 5 story editor Larry DiTillo and Star Trek veteran D. C. Fontana. Christy Marx, executive story editor, has written several scripts.

Sidebar: What a shame that once Disney purchased the ABC network, they ended a series that had such a dedicated cast and crew. If Hypernauts had been a Disney series from the get-go it might well have had a future with a deservedly longer run for fans.

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Hypernauts had an intriguing take on the AI situation that is now in the news every day. The villains of this series, The Triad, feared intelligent machines. So while their technology was fantastic, it was limited & could only operate strictly under Triad control. This is a creative way to give the protagonists, few in number compared to the massive forces of the Triad, an advantage, while giving the Triad an Achilles Heel.