Brak (character)
| Brak | |
|---|---|
.png) | |
| First appearance | "The Lure" (Space Ghost segment) |
| Created by |
Alex Toth William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Voiced by |
Keye Luke (1966-1968) Andy Merrill (1994-present) |
| Information | |
| Full name | Brakley |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Student (in The Brak Show) |
| Family |
Dad (father) Mom (mother) Sisto (deceased brother) |
| Relatives | Poppy (deceased grandfather) |
Brak is a fictional character and supervillain on the 1966 Hanna-Barbera animated series Space Ghost, portrayed as a catlike alien space pirate trying to conquer the galaxy. Brak appeared alongside his twin brother Sisto in such episodes as "The Lure" and "The Looters", and was also a member of the Council of Doom (an organization of Space Ghost villains which originally consisted of Zorak, Moltar, Metallus, Creature King, Black Widow, and himself). In the 1990s the Brak character re-appeared on Cartoon Network's animated talk show Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and then became the main character in its spin-off The Brak Show also on Cartoon Network. The last two incarnations of Brak's character changed from an evil genius supervillain into a childlike simpleton. It was confirmed in Cartoon Planet that Brak is a dunce because he suffered brain damage after being thrown into a swarm of Pirranamyte in the Space Ghost episode "The Lure".
Voice actors
Brak's voice was provided by Keye Luke in the original 1966 animated series and Sisto's voice was provided by Don Messick. In the premiere episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast (in the Beavis and Butt-head parody) Brak and Sisto were both voiced by C. Martin Croker. In all appearances after that episode, Brak has been voiced by Andy Merrill.
Space Ghost (1966)
Brak first appeared along with his brother Sisto as villains on the 1966 Hanna-Barbera cartoon Space Ghost. The two were portrayed as cat-like alien space pirates trying to conquer the galaxy. Brak and Sisto were the main adversaries in the episodes "The Lure" and "The Looters", and the duo were also featured during the six-part Council of Doom storyline (primarily in the episode "The Two Faces of Doom"). Brak was voiced by Keye Luke for all of his original Space Ghost appearances. In the episode "The Lure", Brak and Sisto had cat-like whiskers.
Space Ghost Coast to Coast and Cartoon Planet
Brak and his brother Sisto returned in the premiere episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast in 1994, appearing as a parody of Beavis and Butt-Head. Brak would continue to make frequent appearances on Space Ghost Coast to Coast, often just yelling short phrases like "All hail Brak!!!" or "Hi, my name is Brak!!". His character would develop more of a personality (as well as an expanded vocabulary) on the spin-off program Cartoon Planet, which premiered on TBS in 1995. Brak was voiced by C. Martin Croker in the first episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast, but Andy Merrill took over the role for the series, as well as all of Brak's subsequent Cartoon Network/Adult Swim appearances.
In response to a viewer's letter read on an episode of Cartoon Planet, Brak revealed that his current level of stupidity was the after-effect of being thrown into a space dust cloud by Space Ghost at the end of "The Lure". Cartoon Network's write-up for Brak explained: "This toothy, mask-wearing former pirate made his first TV appearance on Space Ghost. It was during this adventure that Brak was irradiated by Pirranamyte, releasing him from the burden of intelligence. Now armed only with his meager wits and the love of a peppy tune, Brak happily entertains fans and annoys his co-stars with equal aplomb. He will continue to do so as long as he receives a steady diet of pineapple and processed meats."[1]
The Brak Show
In 2000, Brak hosted two hour-long Sonny & Cher-style variety specials entitled Brak Presents The Brak Show Starring Brak. These specials were intended to test the waters for a Brak spin-off show, but they received only a lukewarm reception from viewers and fans.
A pilot for The Brak Show premiered unannounced at a very early hour on December 21, 2000. In this new program, a parody of traditional sitcoms such as Leave It to Beaver, Brak plays a suburban pre-teen living with his parents and brother and hanging out with his friend Zorak. This version of Brak is even more childlike and friendly than any previous depiction of him. The Brak Show was added to the regular Adult Swim line-up on September 2, 2001. In addition to Brak's family and Zorak, new characters such as Brak's robot neighbor Thundercleese were added. The Brak Show would run for two seasons on Adult Swim and a third, shorter season of webisodes on the Adult Swim website.
Cartoon Planet 2012
On March 30, 2012, Cartoon Network launched a new version of Cartoon Planet which focused on showing the network's cartoons from the 1990s and 2000s. Brak and Zorak were brought back as hosts.
Throughout the characters' dialogue, it is revealed that the original Space Ghost show is considered canon, preceding the events of the show.
Other appearances
A crudely drawn version of Brak can be seen at the end of the Sealab 2021 episode "ASHDTV".
See also
References
- ↑ Jacobs, Chick (2000-02-18). "Citizen Brak an inspiration for us all". The Fayetteville Observer Weekender.
External links
- Brak at the Internet Movie Database