X-Men 1983 Network Pitch

Nearly a decade before a full animated series would arrive on Saturday Morning, Marvel Productions attempted to pitch an X-Men series for the 1983 network season, featuring the same team lineup that would appear in Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends episode "The X-Men Adventure", along with Francis Byte a.k.a Videoman, from the episode "The Education of a Superhero".

Written by Jeffrey Scott, the main presentation document for the ultimately unsuccessful pitch is available to read at Marvel Superheroes

Transformers: Flint Dille's Character Binder

The last major Transformers-related item uncovered from the storage of former Sunbow producer Flint Dille in 2020 has been released.  Flint's character binder, which received its last update on December 3rd, 1986.  Nearly all of the 1987 toy lineup is represented within its 333 pages, as well a copy of Bob Budiansky's 11-page treatment for the Marvel Comics' Headmasters miniseries.

Due to its size, the binder has been split up into three galleries, which can be viewed at: Briefing/Reference Binder Gallery Index

G.I Joe: The Movie: Duke's death scene restored (VIDEO)

This past weekend, at Transformers convention TFNation 2024, the Mapes brother held a panel showcasing audio from various dialogue recording sessions for Transformers and GI Joe.  At this panel, they debuted the original audio track for Duke's death scene in G.I Joe: The Movie, famously overdubbed for the movie's release, as a reaction to the backlash over Optimus Prime's death in The Transformers: The Movie.

Video of the restored scene, as well as audio from a scripted, but ultimately unproduced funeral scene, is available to view below.  Accompanied by an introduction from movie writer Buzz Dixon.

If the YouTube video is restricted in your region, follow the link to view directly on TFNation's website. 

To read the full G.I Joe: The Movie script, head to G.I Joe, Part 2

Transformers: The Secret of Omega Supreme storyboards

Thanks to Larry Houston for saving them from likely destruction back in the 1980s and thanks to Rich Helscher for making them available, the Archive now hosts the tenth full Transformers storyboard set: The Secret of Omega Supreme.

View galleries for all ten sets, as well as partial storyboards for ten more episodes at the Storyboard Viewing Gallery Index

My Little Pony: new storyboard galleries

 New galleries are up for the following My Little Pony N Friends storyboard sets:

• Revolt of Paradise Estate, Part 2
• Partial episode storyboards: Baby, It's Cold Outside and Would-Be Dragonslayer

View all of the My Little Pony storyboards at: Storyboard Viewing Gallery Index

Transformers: the resurrection of Skyfire/Jetfire

With thanks to Rich Helscher, the Archive now hosts an earlier version of Transformers script Fire on the Mountain.  Accompanying the script are memos from story editor Bryce Malek notifying producer Nelson Shin of rewritten pages to accompany the 2nd July 1984 revision, the earlier first draft having already gone forward to storyboards (as was common during the series run):

The impetus for these revisions was to insert a scene where Wheeljack and Sideswipe rescue Skyfire from the Arctic ice, where he was buried at the end of concurrently-written episode Fire in the Sky

Insert pages 13 and 13A, as mentioned in the above memos

The original pages 12 and 13 from the first draft are included with this copy of the revised script, and show Doug Booth writing Skyfire as simply being an established part of the Autobot roster. Setting out from Autobot Headquarters with Brawn and Windcharger to investigate the destruction of their Sky Spy satellite by Megatron's new weapon.

These pages were replaced by the new inserts and the script handed over to Ron Friedman for his dialogue changes.

Both scripts can be read at The Transformers, Part 1

Transformers: Blaster Blues storyboard and 150 model sheets

Thanks to Ryan King, the Archive now hosts material found by Marvel Productions storyboard artist/producer/director Larry Houston.

Firstly, the full storyboard set for Transformers episode Blaster Blues. To view the boards, head to the Blaster Blues storyboard gallery

Next are two model sheet books: one covering the main 1984 cast and the other incidental models from the 13 main episodes of Season 1. Including designs that did not make it to air, such as Dr. Lynn Hyashi, whose role in War of the Dinobots was given to Chip Chase in script revisions.

To view, head to the Briefing/Reference Binder Gallery Index

(VIDEO) The Young Astronauts: more dialogue audio

Thanks to yanchagraffiti for use of the digital audio files.

More dialogue audio from The Young Astronauts is now available on the Archive's YouTube channel. One of the main cast members is Retro, a maintenance droid who inadvertently received radio messages from alien life. Now he is tasked with guiding young Mikey Hampton (Stephen Dorff), who is destined to one day be the first human to meet these aliens in person. Below is Retro's pickup dialogue for the episode Ghost Ship.

Next are samples taken from an hour-long auditions reel. First, Rob Paulsen tries out for the character of Rick Hampton, Mikey's older brother.  Ultimately, the role was given to Townsend Coleman.

Next up, Charlie Adler's successful audition for the character of Harvey Flynn. Reading a scene from Ghost Ship, Flynn is pompous, buffoonish officer aboard the mothership Courageous, whose lecture on safety and protocol is cut off when he is abducted by service droids gone haywire.

Finally, James Avery's successful audition for the character of Dr. Sam Turrell.  As heard in the dialogue, he is close with the ship's Commander Kelly Hampton and is afforded a greater level of informality than most of the crew...well, most of the time.

(VIDEO) My Little Pony: audition audio

With thanks to yanchagraffiti, two more dialogue audio reels for My Little Pony: The Movie have now been added to the Archive YouTube channel.

First up is six minutes of rapid-fire auditions for the Bushwoolies - the bouncy furballs who constantly agree with everything they're told.  With takes from:

Marilyn Lightstone Jodi Carlisle Terry McGovern Peter Cullen Joey Camen Pat Fraley Hal Rayle Greg Berg Frank Welker

Next up are auditions for three of the Unicorns: Buttons, Galaxy and Ribbon.  

Takes and time indexes:

Auditions held 26th November 1985 0:00-6:05 Buttons 6:14-11:15 Galaxy 11:23-16:38 Ribbon Takes by: Nancy Cartwright BJ Ward Jeannie Elias Sherry Lynn Ellen Gerstell Jodi Carlisle Katie Leigh Susan Blu Mona Marshall Susan Silo Jill Wayne Russi Taylor Sarah Partridge

My Little Pony: Revolt of Paradise Estate storyboard

The Archive now hosts the full storyboard set for David Wise' My Little Pony episode Revolt of Paradise Estate, Part 2.  Where, thanks to a can of magic paint sold to naïve pony Paradise by evil wizard Beezen, the furniture of Paradise Estate has come to life and driven the ponies out of their home.

To view the storyboards, head to My Little Pony N' Friends

G.I Joe: Over 500 model sheets

With thanks to Aquantis Trading Center, the Archive now hosts over 500 model sheets for G.I Joe. Covering most episodes of the series, as well as some of the post-cartoon 1987 characters.

To view M.A.S.S Device, Revenge of Cobra and Season 1 models, head to G.I. Joe, Part 1

For Season 2 and 1987 models, head to G.I. Joe, Part 2

Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends: A Firestar Is Born storyboards

With thanks to Webhead at http://spider-friends.com, the Archive now hosts the storyboards for Act II of the 1982 Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends episode A Firestar Is Born.

Drawn by Larry Houston, see what happens as Angelica Jones recounts the trials and tribulations of growing up with superpowers, then joins with Spidey, Iceman and the X-Men to defeat their unwanted house guest Juggernaut.

View the storyboards and more material from Amazing Friends, The Incredible Hulk and Pryde of the X-Men at: Marvel Superheroes 1981-1989

2023 Year in Review

2023 was an interesting year for the Sunbow Marvel Archive. Thanks to the various contributors, material from a wider variety of shows is now available and also helped in demystifying a series that has previously been considered "lost media."

In terms of general organisation, the website has been streamlined to collect the material for 24 shows on 6 pages.

For Transformers, the march towards series completion continued with full or partial storyboards for another 10 episodes, over 100 audition sheets from voice director Wally Burr's collection, plus various model sheets, backgrounds and the script for The Killing Jar.

The biggest Transformers-related item saw release in August. Three years since it was found by Flint Dille and scanned by Jim Sorenson, the very first script for The Transformers: The Movie is available to the public.

G.I Joe saw its first newly-revealed scripts in over a decade, with Flint Dille's Skeletons In The Closet and Doug Booth's My Favorite Things

An unexpected surprise came in the form of over a dozen My Little Pony storyboard sets, sold from the estate of artist Wendell Washer. Including the first special Rescue At Midnight Castle and a selection of episodes from the main series, spanning from the first episode Ghost Of Paradise Estate to the final one The Prince And The Ponies.

Beyond paper material, a selection of dialogue reels from various Marvel Productions' series came to light. Among them was audio from The Young Astronauts, Marvel's ill-fated series about space exploration that was cancelled in mid-production due to the Challenger shuttle explosion. The reels covered dialogue for the episode Ghost Ship, as well as auditions for the series narrator, featuring a who's who of 1980s voice actors.

 

With 2024 marking the 40th anniversaries of Transformers, Muppet Babies and My Little Pony making their television debuts, who knows what untold stories will be uncovered in the year ahead.

My Little Pony N Friends: Storyboards for 13 episodes, model sheets and more

Thanks to yanchagraffiti, the Sunbow Marvel Archive now hosts a large collection of storyboards and other material from My Little Pony N Friends.  

All of the material was formerly owned and mostly drawn by artist Wendell Washer, who sadly passed away in 2022.  Here is what is available so far:

• 4012 Rescue At Midnight Castle: Sunbow press pack, 2x partial Act II storyboard, full Act III storyboard
• 185 page model sheet pack, broken down into Attitudes, Turnarounds, Mouth Guides and Construction Model sections.
• 01 Ghost Of Paradise Estate, Part 1: full storyboard
• 22 The Return Of Tambelon, Part 4: full storyboard
• 23 Baby, It's Cold Outside, Part 1: storyboard samples
• 29 Would-Be Dragonslayer: partial storyboard
• 38-47 The End Of Flutter Valley: Part 2 song sequence, Part 3 full storyboard, Part 4 full storyboard, Part 9 full storyboard
• 54 Quest Of The Princess Ponies, Part 1: full storyboard
• 58-59 Somnambula: Part 1 full storyboard, Part 2 partial storyboard and sketches
• 61 The Prince And The Ponies: full storyboard

View them all in PDF form at My Little Pony N Friends or in viewing gallery form at the Storyboard viewing gallery index

As a taster, the Witches from the Volcano of Gloom are cooking a Dark and Dirty tune below:

(VIDEO) The Young Astronauts: Wendy Hampton auditions

With thanks to yanchagraffiti for providing the files, linked below are auditions for the character of Wendy Hampton, on the Marvel Productions' series The Young Astronauts.

These are specific excerpts from an hour-long reel.

Susan Blu

Nancy Cartwright

Jeannie Elias

(VIDEO) Transformers dialogue recording audio: The Revenge Of Bruticus

Thanks to the winner of a recent audio reel auction, who has supplied digital files, I can now present the full dialogue recording audio for Transformers episode The Revenge Of Bruticus.

54 minutes in total, the recording is effectively split in half, with one group of actors doing pickup sessions, and then the main ensemble from beginning to end.

For those wanting to follow along with the available written material, links are provided below

Dialogue script
Full Script (final)

Timecodes:

0:00 Bruticus 
3:08 Kickback and Shrapnel 
05:00 Tracks
05:45 Walla (people screaming in terror) 
06:40 Inferno 
07:07 Shrapnel, Kickback and Ramjet (underground parking lot) 
07:53 Walla (refugees), Woman on rooftop (Morgan Lofting) 
09:21 Bruticus (final fight) 
11:01 Insecticon voracious eating 
13:35 Red Alert 
13:57 Ensemble recording (start to finish)
54:13 End

(VIDEO) The Young Astronauts: full episode dialogue and series narrator auditions

With thanks to yanchagraffiti, the Sunbow Marvel Archive presents audio from Marvel Productions ill-fated series The Young Astronauts.

First is the full episode dialogue from MP 800-04 Ghost Ship.  Main session recorded 10th October 1985.  Pickup audio for Rick and Wendy Hampton recorded 3rd December 1985

(Thanks to Townsend Coleman for cast info)

Cast:
Commander Hampton: ?
Rick Hampton: Townsend Coleman
Wendy Hampton: Nancy Cartwright
Mikey Hampton: Stephen Dorff
Retro: ?
Mr. Flynn: Charlie Adler
Sam Turrell: James Avery
The Starseeker: ?

(If anyone can help with identifying the remaining voice cast, please get in touch)

Video runtime: 21:22

Next are the auditions for series narrator, with takes from the following actors:

Peter Cullen
Irv Immerman
Larry Marshall (3 takes)
Ed Gilbert
Aron Kincaid
Ron Gans
Bill Ratner
Norman Alden
Chris Stevens
Danny Dark
Gene Moss
Jack Angel
Bernard Erhardt
John Stevenson (2 takes)
Ron Feinberg
Joe Leahy

Video runtime: 13:38

The Young Astronauts: more information

Thanks to dialogue audio reels being sold on ebay, there is now more information on Marvel Productions ill-fated 1985/86 animated series The Young Astronauts.

First up is a full show reel for episode MP 800-04 Ghost Ship, recorded during November 1985 and re-recorded with revised dialogue the following month. The reel confirms Townsend Coleman and Nancy Cartwright among the main voice cast.

The next reel contains auditions for the series narrator.  Recorded at Wally Burr Studios, the actors confirmed to have read for the role are

• Peter Cullen
• Erv Immerman
• Larry Marshall
• Ed Gilbert
• Aron Kincaid
• Ron Gans
• Bill Ratner
• Norm Alden
• Chris Stevens
• Danny Dark

If any more reels that can shed light on this series become available, they will be showcased here.