Lazer Tag Academy
GenreAnimation
Developed byDan DiStefano
Directed byJohn Kimball
Rudy Larriva
Voices of
Narrated byDon LaFontaine (Opening narration)
Country of originUSA
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
Running time30 minutes
Production companies
DistributorClaster Television
Release
Original networkNBC
Picture formatColor
Audio formatStereo
Original releaseSeptember 13 (1986-09-13) –
December 6, 1986 (1986-12-06)

Lazer Tag Academy is an animated television series inspired by Worlds of Wonder's Lazer Tag (their branded version of the pursuit game referred to generically as "laser tag") that was created by Ruby-Spears Productions.[1] Original episodes aired on NBC from September 13 to December 6, 1986, with reruns lasting until August 22, 1987.[2]

It was later shown in reruns under the new title Lazer Patrol on the Sci Fi Channel as part of Sci Fi Cartoon Quest.[3]

Another laser tag related series, DIC Entertainment's live-action Photon series aired the same year in syndication.

Synopsis

Jamie Jaren, the Lazer Tag Champion of 3010, travels back in time to the year 1987 to help her ancestors, teenagers Tom and Beth and toddler Nicky.[4] Jamie protects the kids from Draxon Drear, a master criminal from the year 2061 who was unwittingly revived from suspended animation by Jamie's teacher Professor Olanga after he ended up in that state following a spaceship hijacking accident. Draxon's spaceship crashed into the Atlantic Ocean and was kept in suspended animation until he was revived.

Draxon has traveled back in time to destroy Beth because she would eventually create the Starlyte gun and Starsensor (two real-life Lazer Tag products) worn by Jamie. These machines enabled Jamie to compete in the Lazer Tag tournaments of her time period, but in the hands of certain individuals, a Starlyte is capable of producing effects that enable the wielder to manipulate matter and energy on a molecular scale and with the aid of the Starsensor, travel through time.

Draxon leads a group of genetically enhanced humans called Skuggs, who were originally created to serve humanity before they ended up in Draxon's thrall. One of the Skuggs accidentally sets off the suspended animation gas on Draxon's spaceship, which reawakens Draxon several centuries in the past.

Beth and Tom's parents, Andrew and Genna Jaren, were mostly ignorant to the battles with Draxon Drear and the Skuggs and believed Jamie was a foreign exchange student. In addition, Tom and Beth's schoolmate Charles Ferguson is suspicious of Jamie, and repeatedly tries to learn her secret.

Episodes

  1. The Beginning (September 13, 1986)
  2. Skugg Duggery (September 20, 1986)
  3. Yamoto's Curse (September 27, 1986)
  4. Pay Dirt (October 4, 1986)
  5. Charles' Science Project (October 11, 1986)
  6. The Witch Switch (October 18, 1986)
  7. The Olanga Story (October 25, 1986)
  8. Battle Hymn of Jaren's (November 1, 1986)
  9. Sir Tom Of Jaren (November 8, 1986)
  10. Redbeard's Treasure (November 15, 1986)
  11. Drear's Doll (November 22, 1986)
  12. StarLyte on the Orient Express (November 29, 1986)
  13. Jamie and the Spitfires (December 6, 1986)

Cast

Additional voices

Crew

UK VHS release

VHS Title Release Date Episodes
Lazer Tag Academy (VC1088) 1987 "The Beginning", "Skugg Duggery"

Home video and syndication

Three VHS tapes were released by Celebrity Home Entertainment:

  1. Laser Tag Academy: The Movie was released in 1989 (95 minutes)
  2. Lazer Tag Academy: Champion's Biggest Challenge was released March 21, 1989 (110 minutes)
  3. The third tape was released on June 19, 1991, with a single episode, The Battle Hymn of the Jarens.

Lazer Tag Academy was later rerun in syndication under the name Laser Patrol. This version was also shown briefly on the Sci-Fi Channel.

References

  1. ^ "Saturday Morning: Good And Bad". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-10-15.
  2. ^ Hyatt, Wesley (1997). The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television. Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 258. ISBN 978-0823083152. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  3. ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 352–353. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  4. ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 490. ISBN 978-1476665993.

External links

Children's programming on NBC in the 1980s
Categories