¡Mucha Lucha!
Encyclopedia
¡Mucha Lucha! was an animated
television series. It premiered on Kids' WB
on August 17, 2002. It was created by Eddie Mort and Lili Chin and produced by Warner Bros. Animation
. It is the first animated television series created with Adobe Flash
, a program often used for Internet cartoons. The show was also seen on Teletoon
in Canada
, CITV
and Kix! in the UK, and Cartoon Network
worldwide (including the US).
The show is set in a town centered around Lucha libre
(nearly everyone in the town has a mask and costume and a signature move
) and is essentially about the adventures of three children, Rikochet, The Flea
and Buena Girl, as they struggle through the Foremost World-Renowned International School of Lucha, where they study.
Note: "Back to School" was originally planned to be the pilot episode and was originally intended to be shown with, "How Rikochet Got His Move Back", but ended up being paired with "Heart of Lucha" (while "Back to School" is shown with "Weight Gaining") for reasons unknown. Several episodes from this season were adaptated into children's storybooks, most of them being given titles different from the episodes themselves.
Video Movie:
Note: The theme song from Chicos de Barrio
was slightly changed this season. The last four episodes of this season were held over and ended up airing during season 3.
in 2003. In this toy line included "Mix-a-Lot" action figures; these had removable body parts that could be placed on the bodies of other action figures in the series. "Signature Move" action figures were also put out, along with a toy wrestling ring. However, the second series of the toy line was cancelled.
During summer of 2003, DC Comics
published a three-issue mini-series of comic books based on ¡Mucha Lucha! All three of the stories featured in these comic books were written by Eddie Mort, and have even been occasionally referenced in the TV series.
The show was licensed for a Game Boy Advance
video game in late 2003 - Mascaritas of the Lost Code, and also a Sony Playstation 2 video game was slated for release but was cancelled around 2004 - Mysterioso Grande.
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
television series. It premiered on Kids' WB
Kids' WB
Kids' WB! was Warner Bros. American childrens programing division brand for The WB Television Network. In September 2006, the block moved to The CW Television Network. The CW is the result of The WB's merger with UPN in 2006...
on August 17, 2002. It was created by Eddie Mort and Lili Chin and produced by Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation is the animation division of Warner Bros., a subsidiary of Time Warner. The studio is closely associated with the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies characters, among others. The studio is the successor to Warner Bros...
. It is the first animated television series created with Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
, a program often used for Internet cartoons. The show was also seen on Teletoon
Télétoon (Canadian TV channel)
Télétoon is a Canadian French language Category A specialty channel that specializes in animation programming. Télétoon is owned by Teletoon Canada Inc; a 50/50 partnership between Astral Media and Corus Entertainment...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, CITV
CITV
CITV is a British television channel from ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It broadcasts content from the CITV archive, as well as commissions and acquisitions. CITV itself is the programming block on the main ITV Network .The CITV channel broadcasts from 06:00 to 18:00...
and Kix! in the UK, and Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network (United States)
Cartoon Network is an American cable television network owned by Turner Broadcasting which primarily airs animated programming. The channel was launched on October 1, 1992 after Turner purchased the animation studio Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1991...
worldwide (including the US).
The show is set in a town centered around Lucha libre
Lucha libre
Lucha libre is a term used in Mexico, and other Spanish-speaking countries, for a form of professional wrestling that has developed within those countries...
(nearly everyone in the town has a mask and costume and a signature move
Signature move
A signature move is a move or ability that is almost analogous to the person or character that uses it. This may infer that the move is usually a staple of the user's repertoire, and on most occasions was invented by the performer.-Usage:...
) and is essentially about the adventures of three children, Rikochet, The Flea
The Flea
The Flea may refer to:*"The Flea" , a 1956 episode of The Goon Show*The Flea , a form of solitaire*The Flea , a character from the TV show ¡Mucha Lucha!*A poem by the metaphysical poet John Donne...
and Buena Girl, as they struggle through the Foremost World-Renowned International School of Lucha, where they study.
Main characters
- Rikochet - The brave wrestler boy and main protagonist.
- The Flea - The filthy and disgusting wrestler
- Buena Girl - The knowledgeable wrestler girl and co-protagonist who always follows the rules.
- El Rey - An action figure which represents Rikochet's conscience. He's carried in a back pack, but can move and talk on his own, as if he were alive. It is stated that this action figure is just part of a large merchandising euphoria related to a supreme undefeated Mexican wrestler with the same name (an allusion to El Santo). Along in the series, several other El Rey toys appear and often causes trouble with Rikochet's.
- Señor Hasbeena - The 1970s loving main trainer in the wrestling school. He once had the chance to become the greatest wrestler of all time, but he lost it due to an unexplainable paranormal event. Later in the show, it is revealed that it was himself traveling in time to prevent his loss that ruined his fight in the first placePredestination paradoxA predestination paradox is a paradox of time travel that is often used as a convention in science fiction. It exists when a time traveller is caught in a loop of events that "predestines" or "predates" them to travel back in time...
. - The Headmistress - The strict leader and director of the Foremost World-Renowned International School of Lucha. She has a picky attitude with tendency to violence. She usually yells all the time, even when not needed.
Season 1: 2002-2003
- Back to School / Weight Gaining
- How Rikochet Got His Move Back / Heart of Lucha (also known as Big Bad Flea)
- Woulda Coulda Hasbeena / The Anger of Cindy Slam (also known as Gerbil George's Masked world of Luchafun & Wrestletainment)
- The Fantastic Backpack / The Naked and the Masked (also known as Got a little bit of obscene)
- The Curse of the Masked ToiletToiletA toilet is a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human excrement, often found in a small room referred to as a toilet/bathroom/lavatory...
/ The MummyMummyA mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...
with the Golden Mask (also known as Buena Girl Gets Kidnapped) - Bring Your Dad to Lucha Day / Our Founder
- Tooth or Dare / Mask MitzvahMitzvahThe primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
- FleaThe FleaThe Flea may refer to:*"The Flea" , a 1956 episode of The Goon Show*The Flea , a form of solitaire*The Flea , a character from the TV show ¡Mucha Lucha!*A poem by the metaphysical poet John Donne...
's Fighting Fish (also known as A Little Fishy) / La Flamencita (also known as Dance Disaster) - Will the Real El Rey Please Stand Up? / The Musica Man
- Pinball Wizard (also known as Pinball Problems) / Not So Buena Girl (also known as The Fortune Donut)
- Honor Thy Lucha (also known as Trading Card Trouble) / Chinche (also known as The Masked Bee)
- Timmy of 1,000 Masks (also known as EXPELED) / All Creatures Masked and Small (also known as Doggone It)
- Mask Away
Note: "Back to School" was originally planned to be the pilot episode and was originally intended to be shown with, "How Rikochet Got His Move Back", but ended up being paired with "Heart of Lucha" (while "Back to School" is shown with "Weight Gaining") for reasons unknown. Several episodes from this season were adaptated into children's storybooks, most of them being given titles different from the episodes themselves.
Season 2: 2003-2004
- Lone Stars / The Littlest Luchadora
- The Man from M.A.S.K. / The Flea's Bueno Twin
- Nightmare on Lucha Street / Revenge of the Masked Toilet
- Calling All Monsters / Pig Out
- Thrills and Skills / Party Animal
- Dancing with Bugs / Chain of Fools
- You Look Radishing (also known as Thief of Radishes) / Lucha, Rinse and Repeat
- War of the Donuts / Show Me the Funny
- French Twisted / Hungry Like Los Lobos (also known as Los Lobos De Lucha)
- Big Buena Sellout / Laying in Ruins
- Getting Ahead / Los Fabulosos
- Meet the Muertos / Mask Maker
- Undercover Flea / Kid Wombat
- Churro Overload / Mini Mercado of Doom
- La Bruja / El Niño Loco
- The Collector
- The Brat in the Hat (also known as Los Pantalones) / ElectionElectionAn election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
Daze - Late Night Lucha / Flea at Last
- Flea's Personal Demons / Virtual Luchadores
- Cinco De PiñataPiñataA piñata is a papier-mâché or other type of container that is decorated, filled with toys and or candy and then broken as part of a ceremony or celebration. Piñatas are most commonly associated with Mexico, but its origins are considered to be in China...
(also known as Day of the Piñata) / Poocha Lucha - Run, Lucha, Run / An Epic Tale Of Heroes And Donuts
- Attack Of The Luchabots
Video Movie:
- ¡Mucha Lucha!: The Return of El Maléfico
Note: The theme song from Chicos de Barrio
Chicos de Barrio
Chicos de Barrio was formed in 1995 in Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico. This musical group is formed from 11 elements, in which the percussion, harmony and swing are predominant. This Mexican eleven member tropical band have burst mainstream throughout our Northern American continent. This musical group...
was slightly changed this season. The last four episodes of this season were held over and ended up airing during season 3.
Season 3: 2004-2005 (¡Mucha Lucha!: Gigante)
- My Hairy Knuckles / Brains Meets Brawn
- Asphalt of Doom / Hot Hot Hot
- I was a Pre-Teenage Chupacabra (also known as I Was a Pre-Teen Chupacarbra) / Carnival of Masked Terror
- Getting His Goat / 10 Rounds of Trouble
- Buena Basura / Shamrock and Roll
- Spider and the Flea / The Incredible Penny Plutonium
- Dare to Lucha / Monkey Business
- Dawn of the… Donuts (also known as Sprinkles) / Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Horchata
- Big Worm / Medico Mayhem
- Banditos de los Muertos / Field of Screams
- Slamazon and On… / Buena on Wheels
- A Whole Lot of El Rey / Doomien
- The Match Before XmasXmas"Xmas" is a common abbreviation of the word "Christmas". It is sometimes pronounced , but it, and variants such as "Xtemass", originated as handwriting abbreviations for the typical pronunciation...
(also known as A ¡Mucha Mucha!: Gigante Lucha ChristmasChristmasChristmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
special or simply The Match Before ChristmasChristmasChristmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
) - The Call of the Mild
- Niko Sushi's Happy Battle Funtime Dome 3000 / Smarticus
- Mars Madness / Fears of a Clown
- The Magnificent 3 (also known as Blue DemonBlue Demon, Jr.Blue Demon, Jr. is a Mexican luchador and professional wrestler. He is the allegedly adopted son of the legendary original Blue Demon and is the first Mexican and the second masked wrestler to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship . Blue Demon, Jr.'s real name is unknown.-Origins and heritage...
)
Spin-off merchandise
A toy line based on the show was released by Jakks PacificJakks Pacific
JAKKS Pacific, Inc. is a designer and marketer of toys and consumer products, with a range of products that feature numerous children's toy licenses...
in 2003. In this toy line included "Mix-a-Lot" action figures; these had removable body parts that could be placed on the bodies of other action figures in the series. "Signature Move" action figures were also put out, along with a toy wrestling ring. However, the second series of the toy line was cancelled.
During summer of 2003, DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
published a three-issue mini-series of comic books based on ¡Mucha Lucha! All three of the stories featured in these comic books were written by Eddie Mort, and have even been occasionally referenced in the TV series.
- El Rey, Come Home!
- It's All Buena!
- Limbo of the Lost Luchadores!
The show was licensed for a Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
video game in late 2003 - Mascaritas of the Lost Code, and also a Sony Playstation 2 video game was slated for release but was cancelled around 2004 - Mysterioso Grande.
See also
- Lucha libre (Mexican wrestling)Lucha libreLucha libre is a term used in Mexico, and other Spanish-speaking countries, for a form of professional wrestling that has developed within those countries...
- El SantoSantoRodolfo Guzmán Huerta , more widely known as El Santo , was a Mexican Luchador enmascarado , film actor, and folk icon....
- Chicos de BarrioChicos de BarrioChicos de Barrio was formed in 1995 in Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico. This musical group is formed from 11 elements, in which the percussion, harmony and swing are predominant. This Mexican eleven member tropical band have burst mainstream throughout our Northern American continent. This musical group...