Space Cases facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Space Cases
Created by	Peter David Bill Mumy
Starring	Walter Emanuel Jones Jewel Staite Rebecca Herbst Kristian Ayre Rahi Azizi Paige Christina Anik Matern Cary Lawrence Paul Boretski
Country of origin	Canada
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	27 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Micheline Charest Ronald A. Weinberg Ted Jessup
Running time	22 minutes
Production company(s)	CINAR Films Nickelodeon Productions
Distributor	Cinar
Release
Original network	Nickelodeon
Original release	March 2, 1996 (1996-03-02) – January 27, 1997 (1997-01-27)

Space Cases is an exciting Canadian science fiction TV show that aired on Nickelodeon for two seasons. It was created by Peter David and Bill Mumy. The show first aired on March 2, 1996, and finished on January 27, 1997. You could also watch reruns until 1998.

Space Cases was shown on Nickelodeon's Saturday night block called SNICK. It also aired on Nickelodeon UK and later on Family and TVOntario in Canada. In the US, TeenNick showed episodes as part of its The '90s Are All That block. The show even returned on January 1, 2016, during The Splat programming block on TeenNick.

The story is about a group of students who don't quite fit in, along with two adults. They get lost far from home on an alien spaceship. Their journey back is full of dangerous and exciting adventures!

The series was filmed in Montreal, Quebec. To save money, the show used props from other Nickelodeon programs like Are You Afraid of the Dark?. For example, in one episode, the character Suzee sits in a chair decorated with CDs! In the first season, electronic games like Lights Out were even used as control panels on the walls.

The theme song for Season One was orchestral, with a voice-over introduction. A song telling the story of the Space Cases was used at the end of the show. For Season Two, this song became the opening theme and was re-recorded. This new version included Suzee and changed how the characters were shown. After the series ended, Nickelodeon re-recorded the song again, bringing Catalina back and removing Suzee for the Season One episodes.

Many famous guest stars appeared on the show, including George Takei, Mark Hamill, Bill Mumy, Katey Sagal, Michelle Trachtenberg, Danny Tamberelli, and Robin Leach.

Meet the Space Cases Crew

This section introduces the main characters of the show.

• Theresa James "T.J." Davenport (played by Cary Lawrence) is the students' vice principal. She acts as their teacher on the Christa ship. Miss Davenport takes everything very seriously. She sometimes faints when danger appears. But she also shows great bravery, even if she's just pretending to be tough! In one episode, she accidentally downloads herself into the ship's computers. Her changing moods caused problems with the ship's navigation until she was saved.

• Commander Seth Goddard (played by Paul Boretski) is a former "Stardog" who fought in the Spung War. He was lowered in rank from Captain and now has to teach the "Space Cases." Goddard is strict and tries to make the kids disciplined. But his strictness sometimes makes the kids play jokes on him and Miss Davenport. He has a long rivalry with a space pirate named Reaver. We learn that Goddard was lowered in rank for "almost starting a war" with Reaver.

• Harlan Band (Walter Emanuel Jones) is a human from Earth. He wants to become a Stardog like his father, who was killed by an Andromedan. Because of this, Harlan often doesn't get along with Radu, especially in Season One. Harlan is confident and sees himself as the leader of the students. He is the pilot on the ship's bridge. However, he can be too confident, which sometimes puts the crew in danger. Harlan is skilled in martial arts and gymnastics. Walter Emanuel Jones also helped with stunts on the show.

• Catalina (Jewel Staite) is a ship's engineer from Titan, a moon of Saturn. She has rainbow-colored hair. People from Saturn have special voices that let them make powerful sonic screams. Catalina's screams can disable missiles and knock down attackers. But she thinks her powers are small compared to other Saturnians who can shatter buildings with their voices! At first, Catalina talks to Suzee, an invisible friend no one else can see. In the Season 1 finale, "On the Road to Find Out," Suzee is shown to be a real person, played by Rebecca Herbst. Suzee lives in another dimension on a planet called Yensid. In Season One, Catalina could see and talk to Suzee as if she were there. In Season Two, Catalina and Suzee switch places, and Catalina lives at Suzee's home.

• Radu (Kristian Ayre) is from a planet called Andromeda. He doesn't have a family because Andromedans hatch from eggs. Radu has super-sensitive hearing and superhuman strength, like all Andromedans. This is why the Spungs enslaved them and started the Andromedan War. Radu often feels like he's not good enough and tries hard to make people like him. Andromedans usually think and act the same, so Radu wanting a family and to be himself is unusual. Radu is great at finding directions, making him the ship's navigator. This means he has to work with Harlan, his rival. Radu is also more patient and logical than the rest of the crew.

• Bova (Rahi Azizi) is from Uranus. People from his planet have a small antenna on their forehead that can create strong electricity blasts. Bova has a very fast metabolism, which gives him lots of energy and makes him always hungry. He will eat almost anything! Since he's from Uranus, he often hears jokes about his home. He is always pessimistic, which is a cultural trait of Uranians. Bova is in charge of the Christa's shields. In the Season Two episode "Long Distance Calls," Bova's father, Benn, calls him. This is a nod to science fiction writer Ben Bova.

• Rosie Ianni (Paige Christina) is from Mercury. She can make a lot of heat whenever she wants. At the start of the show, she wears a helmet to control this power. Later, she doesn't use it, showing her naturally bald head, which is common for Mercurians. Because Mercury is so close to the Sun, Mercurians tend to be very positive. Rosie is like a caring mother figure to the crew, always trying to make sure everyone is happy. She works as a doctor/scientist and also handles communications on the bridge. She often adopts cute creatures that end up causing trouble for the crew.

• Thelma (Techno Human EmuLating MAchine) (Anik Matern) is a mysterious robot who lives on the ship. She often has problems because her memory chip, a small gem in her forehead, is cracked. She tends to take things very literally and sometimes misses obvious things. In Season 2, her look changes after the Christa crashes on a planet. Her color changes from copper to silver, and her gem changes from amber to sapphire.

• Suzee (Rebecca Herbst) is Catalina's best friend. The crew thought she was imaginary during Season One. After Catalina's apparent disappearance at the end of Season One, Suzee joins the crew. Suzee's hair is similar to Catalina's, with colored streaks. She is very smart and has two sets of gills under her clavicle. These gills let her breathe in any atmosphere, but not in the vacuum of space. Suzee can be a bit overconfident. She is also a telepath, meaning she can read minds and even take control of other people's bodies. This power even works on smart computers, like Pezu in the final episode. Suzee often competes with Harlan. Rosie once accidentally said that Suzee likes Radu.

• Elmira (Katie Emme McIninch) often helps the Christa crew. She is a Spung oracle, so the crew didn't trust her at first, especially Radu. Spung society doesn't think highly of their women, so Elmira ran away from home years ago. Despite her background, she is kind and pleasant, though she keeps secrets. Even though Radu initially dislikes her because she's Spung, they become close. It's revealed in the Season One finale that she is Warlord Shank's daughter. She hints at Catalina's later disappearance, saying someone new will come.

• Warlord Shank (George Takei) is a Spung commander and a dangerous space pirate. He has elite Spung officers working for him. He first appears in his Killcruiser, threatening to destroy the Christa when he finds out his daughter, Elmira, might be on board. Shank becomes a major villain throughout the series.

More Cast Members

• Mark Hamill as Pel
• Bill Mumy as Jin
• Serge Houde as Neinstein
• Daisy Eagan as Sofiana Mrtz
• Mark Camacho as Warden Opus
• Jim Bradford as Dram
• Zachary Ouimet as Kirge
• Peter David as Benn
• Chip Chiupka as Reaver
• Alexander Chapman as Ubi
• Robin Leach as Utz
• David Schramm as Yee Haw Jones
• Marcel Jeannin as Jesse
• Ted Jessup as Gunter Ianni

The Story of Space Cases

In the very first episode, a small group of students who don't follow rules are left behind from a Space Academy field trip. Nearby, a strange bird-like alien ship appears. Harlan Band decides to sneak onto it, and the other students, who are younger and less troublesome, follow him. As they explore the ship, it connects with each student when they touch a wall.

Miss Davenport, their teacher, and Commander Seth Goddard go after them. But they get separated inside the ship. One of the students accidentally starts the engines, sending the ship flying into a spatial rift. By the time everyone realizes that only the children who bonded with the ship can control it, the ship is many light years away from the Academy. They begin a trip back home that would take them at least seven years, four months, and twenty-two days at top speed!

Episodes Guide

Season 1 (1996)

Season 2 (1996–97)