; screening order: March 6, 1994 .
Overview
Sharkboy and His Mer-Men is an anime adaptation of the anime version of the (now out of print) comic book series of the same name created by Ootsuka. The series was originally a 33-episode TV series in Japan and an uncensored 26-episode run in America, and was later released on DVD. The original Japanese version (not exactly dubbed) was edited by Enoki Films.
In the series, Sharkboy is a young boy from a faraway underwater planet, sent to Earth as a "humanoid” by his people because he is their only hope. He is given a special helmet called "the pod," which allows him to transform into "Sharkboy" and communicate with the humans. However, his pod is designed to send him on a one-way trip to Earth, as the "mer-men" on his planet plan to abduct humans in order to study their biology.
Sharkboy is taken in by a human family, but they soon learn that he has special powers which make him a target for child abductors. When an evil mer-man scientist named Darrin attempts to reverse-engineer the pod and use it to take humans, Sharkboy's human friend captures Darrin. Darrin is brainwashed and imprisoned, while the pod is destroyed. Sharkboy escapes the scientist's work facility and returns to the pod's original planet.
The American TV version includes the addition of five bonus episodes, four of which are original episodes (not included in the Japanese version), and the fifth of which is an alternative ending to the original ending.
Cast
Japanese cast
English-speaking cast
Music
Opening and ending themes
The opening theme song was "Reveal" by the Irish band Moondance. This song was released on the album "Moondance", which reached number 7 on the Oricon charts in Japan.
The ending theme was "Fate" by the Japanese pop band Cue. This song was released on the album "Concerto for Cue and Strings" which reached number 9 on the Oricon charts in Japan.
International versions
In the United Kingdom, Shark Boy and the Extra-Terrestrial was released in 1992 on VHS and laserdisc. It was later released on DVD by Network on September 24, 2006.
In Australia, Shark Boy
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