Saturday Supercade - The 2600 Cartoon Show

[pocketmego]

When it aired it was the first of its kind, long before The Super Mario Brothers Super Show, The Legend of Zelda, Megaman, Sonic the Hedgehog, and even Pac-Man.

 

It was a cartoon based on the popular pre-crash games of the early 80's. It featured continuing storylines of all the popular icons of the era, even if they were in some rather "odd" setting.

 

I am of course talking about Saturday Supercade the 2600 Cartoon.

 

Mario was not only depicted a bumbling moron, but as a dick as well. He played the villain in this, thus giving more credence to his role in DKjr. Frogger, eesh, was newspaper reporter, and Q-Bert was some kind of bizare 1950's era Beach Party hero.

 

But, what kept this from being NOTHING more than a showcase of arcade games at the time and fully cemented it as a Home Console series was my favorite (even as a child) segment of the show...PITFALL!

 

In fact the show would gain a certain amount of immortality, because David Crane would include Quick Claw and Rhonda from the series in Pitfall II. Also, it should be noted that no arcade games that were not on the 2600 were animated for this show.

 

Here is something that should bring back some great memories...

 

 

-Ray

[elviticus]

Awesome! Thanks for posting that..... Somehow I missed Saturday Supercade. I remember a bunch of video game related cartoons - but I never really saw that before.

[ATARIPITBULL]

I remember as a kid, at 7:00 AM I was up and seated infront of the TV waiting for my cartoons to come on and at that time Atari already ruled my world, so when the Saturday Supercade came on it was like heaven, of course my homework did not think so.

 

[Inky]

Actually, there was only one 2600 game featured on the show.. Pitfall!

 

 

Of course you could make the argument that the rest of the games featured were ported to the 2600 (except Space Ace)

[8th lutz]

I remembered watching it as a kid. I was watching this before I played first video games.

[+HatNJ]

WOW havent thought of Saturday Supercade in years What memories of a simpler less hectic time!

 

Nice clip are there full episodes online somewhere?

[HP Atari King of Michigan]

I USED TO WATCH THAT EVERY SATURDAY! Great post, gentlemen!!

[Foxsolo2000]

I remember seeing it advertised in DC and Marvel comics in the early 80s but sadly it never made it to the UK. The only arcades cartoons to reach these shores was Pole Position and Dungeons and Dragons. Was a video or dvd ever released of the Supercade?

[HP Atari King of Michigan]

I remember seeing it advertised in DC and Marvel comics in the early 80s but sadly it never made it to the UK. The only arcades cartoons to reach these shores was Pole Position and Dungeons and Dragons. Was a video or dvd ever released of the Supercade?

 

No DVD set as of yet. Keep your fingers crossed. Hopefully G4 will re-air it in the mere future!

[pocketmego]

WOW havent thought of Saturday Supercade in years What memories of a simpler less hectic time!

 

Nice clip are there full episodes online somewhere?

 

 

I wish!!

 

I searched high and low for anywhere I might be able to download them and found nothing.

 

-Ray

[+Random Terrain]

I don't remember seeing that or knowing it was on. I did watch a few Pac-Man and Dragon's Lair episodes later on, but I was crazy about video games and anything to do with video games, so I don't know why I didn't see those other cartoons at least once or twice.

[pocketmego]

The crazy thing is that this show lasted 2 years. That is not overly impressive for a Cartoon show, because they usually have only 2 year life cycles. But, what is crazy is that those years were 1983-1985.

 

This means Saturday Supercade lasted at least 1 entire year following the Crash. I can only assume Space Ace probably helped it to do this, since those Laser Disc games seemed to make MEGA BUCKS despite the crash.

 

-Ray

[Lord Helmet]

How many episodes were there? I remember watching this every Saturday. I also watched the Pac-Man cartoon. Lot's of memories

[Foxsolo2000]

Yeah Pacland was a huge hit over here in the Uk. I remember it being aired during the Roland Rat - Rat on the Road summer tv show (people in the UK would remember that) and I was one of the many fans who stayed in to watch it every morning. Those were the days

[pocketmego]

Yeah Pacland was a huge hit over here in the Uk. I remember it being aired during the Roland Rat - Rat on the Road summer tv show (people in the UK would remember that) and I was one of the many fans who stayed in to watch it every morning. Those were the days

 

 

Now was it called Pacland there or Pac-Man like it was here. I remember a little about that show. I recall they introduced Super Pac-Man in the second season and he really was a super hero with a mask and cape. Not just a Giant Pac-Man.

 

 

-Ray

[Feralstorm]

I do believe the Pac-Man cartoon predated Saturday Supercade.

 

The thing I found funny about the Saturday Supercade shows (and most video-game-based toons in general) was the tendency to throw in a quick sequence that mirrored the play of the game itself - like Q*bert jumps around on trash cans or something with Coily (who had ARMS!) after him, and the tops changed color for no apparent reason.

 

The best of that kind of thing would have to be Dragon's Lair, which gave the viewer a choice for what Dirk should do before the commercial break, and showing the consequences after. Most cartoons at that time had a heavy aversion to characters dying, but Dirk got to die two or three times a show!

[pocketmego]

I do believe the Pac-Man cartoon predated Saturday Supercade.

 

The thing I found funny about the Saturday Supercade shows (and most video-game-based toons in general) was the tendency to throw in a quick sequence that mirrored the play of the game itself - like Q*bert jumps around on trash cans or something with Coily (who had ARMS!) after him, and the tops changed color for no apparent reason.

 

The best of that kind of thing would have to be Dragon's Lair, which gave the viewer a choice for what Dirk should do before the commercial break, and showing the consequences after. Most cartoons at that time had a heavy aversion to characters dying, but Dirk got to die two or three times a show!

 

Because when Dirk died it was ALWAYS funny.

 

 

I think you are right too, either Pac-man predated Supercade or came on the same year. I don't know why I was thinking it came on after. Both were made by ruby Spears, so I think maybe they both aired the same year.

 

-Ray

[NE146]

WOW havent thought of Saturday Supercade in years What memories of a simpler less hectic time!

 

Nice clip are there full episodes online somewhere?

 

 

I wish!!

 

I searched high and low for anywhere I might be able to download them and found nothing.

 

-Ray

 

 

That youtube clip is from a three hour saturday morning video that's sometimes uploaded on Usenet. It has the entire supercade episodes and others (like Peanuts and Dungeons and Dragons I think) as well as all the commercials in them. Pretty neat. I think it was discussed on these forums a couple years back. I'm pretty sure a couple of people here have it.. I got it somewhere as well.

[Jess Ragan]

Yeah, I've got it too. Those cartoons are just awful, but they sure bring back memories! Fun fact... Paul Dini, the lead writer of Batman: The Animated Series and a contributor to the ABC hit Lost, first got his start on the Saturday Supercade show Frogger.

 

JR

[bcprs1]

Wow, I remember watching that show. I think the best part was always the intro song. The actual cartoons themselves are pretty bad.