Monday, Jan. 29, 2001

Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot Q&A/Episode Guide

By Rob Allstetter/The Comics Continuum

    They're back. After nearly 15 months, Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot return to Fox Kids on Monday. Only six of the 26 original episodes were shown in the fall of 1999, and Fox Kids is now airing Big Guy and Rusty daily at 3:30 p.m. (ET).

    Duane Capizzi is the story editor and producer of Big Guy and Rusty, which is based on the Dark Horse comic-book characters created by Frank Miller and Geof Darrow and was produced at Sony.

    An animation veteran, Capizzi's credits include Men in Black: The Series, Jackie Chan Adventures, Savage Dragon, Extreme Ghostbusters and Roughecks: Starship Trooper Chronicles.

   The Continuum caught up with Capizzi to talk about the show.

    The Continuum: How did you become involved in the series?

    Capizzi: Dark Horse struck a deal with Sony. I'm at the studio. Big Guy had gone in and out of development the last couple of years, and I've always had my eye on the project. I was always disappointed when I saw it was being developed without me.

     And it just so happened that I became free from my duties on Men in Black when it was going back into development, so I was a natural choice for it.

   I'm really glad it happened that way. I love the property and I love the characters. It's been great. I'm every bit as satisfied and proud of the scripts and the series than I have been with Men in Black.

   The Continuum: Have either Frank Miller or Geof Darrow been involved with the show?

    Capizzi: Geof Darrow has to some extent. They're both very busy. I talk to Geof Darrow every once in a while.

    We do have Geof Darrow character designs. He's become sort of our creative designer. Again, as time permits, about half of the monsters/bad robots you'll be seeing in the series have been designed by Geoff Darrow. In many cases, we'll get designs from him and go, "Wow, this guy is really cool!" Then we'll sit down and build a story around the actual design. So, in that sense, his contributions have invaluable.

     The Continuum: Is the first episode an adaptation of the comic books?

     Capizzi: It's a loose adaptation, to be honest. Most of the elements are the same and we've transposed some things because there were so many characters to introduce in the pilot.

    We simplified the monster. It's someone of a similar threat status, but we simplified the monster in the pilot to extreme basics. It's just a monster who falls from the sky in comet form and runs a course of rampant destruction.

    It's about all we had room for with the various character introductions. But the villains beyond show one are definitely more interesting and more three-dimensional.

   The Continuum: What's the relationship between the main characters in the series like?

   Capizzi: It was sort of a fine line that we had to ride. In the comic book, as we leave them in the last panel, Big Guy is sort of a reluctant partner to Rusty. And we wanted to keep some of that, but at the same time over the course of the number of episodes we are doing, we felt that would have gotten a little thin after a while.

   Plus there was the issue of how do you maintain that without making Big Guy too mean spirited? So we opted to sort of slowly develop - and the series is not necessarily chronological and it certainly isn't serialized - from episode to episode you definitely see a growth. And about midpoint of season one, Big Guy finally turns and compliments Rusty for the first time, which is a mind-blower for Rusty. Later in the first 13, there's an episode where Duane Hunter - who is the pilot who operates the Big Guy - realizes that he owes his life to Rusty.

   The irony of it is Rusty will ever know Duane is the pilot. We maintain a secrecy clause. There's an inner circle of individuals who know the truth behind Big Guy - that he's not really a robot, that he's a man inside of an exo-skeleton. We establish early on that if Rusty were ever to find that out, to discover the truth, that his emotion grid would crash.

   The reason is that Rusty thinks Big Guy is the greatest and wants to 'grow up' and be just like him.

   They have to protect Big Guy's secret from Rusty. Now, granted, that's another fine line to play because obviously if humans are in danger, if there's a world-threatening situation, Duane Hunter would have to make a choice and humanity must be saved and the aspect of keeping Rusty from knowing the truth would be less important in that situation.

   So realizing it's a fine line, we tread that very delicately. There are situations where Duane does make a choice. There's a couple of times he's forced to eject from the suit, and he decides not to. He decides to risk it and follow through with the action for fear that Rusty would discover the truth and crash.

   During the course of the series, Duane Hunter does come around to appreciate Rusty. And it's quite poignant, actually. It's not heavy-handed. We do it in small ways that nonetheless I think are very effective.

      The Continuum: Can you say more about the villains and other supporting characters in the series?

    Capizzi: We have sort of a running villain in the series, an organization called the Legion Ex Machina. They provide the evil robot factor constant in the series. They're responsible for maybe a third to a half of the episodes. Generally, whenever we do evil robots, it's a Legion Ex Machina show.

    Otherwise, it's mutants and aliens and other monsters. Some are created for the show and some are implied by the comics.

    We obviously only had two issues and one story to work from. We needed to develop a character that the Big Guy would report to, so we have our General Thornton. We decided that the Big Guy, the particularly massive and intense piece of machinery/technology that he is, would need a pit crew to help with maintenance and keep him up and running. So we supplied the Big Guy with a pit crew that doubles as his confidantes. It's someone for Duane Hunter to talk to when the Big Guy is in shut-down mode. So they play a supporting role in the series.

   Then, perhaps the main departure from the comic book is that Rusty is no longer a Japanese creation. We've transposed that aspect to sort a city of the future, New Tronic City, and Rusty is the product of a corporation. It's the corporation who originally built Big Guy. Now they are under the regime of a new CEO and they are tying to develop the next wave of robot technology. And what they come up with is Rusty the Boy Robot.

    So it gets us to the same place, but we decided not to play the Japanese/American arms race aspect of the series up for a variety of reasons.

    We also personalized the creator in the form of a female scientist, Dr. Erika Slate, and made a character of the CEO of the corporation that invented Rusty and Big Guy. That is Dr. Axel Donovan. We did retain the chimp from the comic book.

    The comic book is a fight-fest with Rusty and Big Guy and there are no other characters to play off of, so we needed to expand the universe of characters who would interact. There's a big cast, but they are mostly supporting roles. It's still the Big Guy and Rusty show.

   The Continuum: Any last words for the fans?

    Capizzi: I think it's going to be a great show. I've got really high hopes for it. The scripts have been really well received.

    I know there are a lot of fans out there who know the book who are looking forward to the show. Those who don't know the book, who were like maybe 1 when the book came out, will like the show, too. They're such great characters, and I think the show's going to cause a stir.

BIG GUY AND RUSTY EPISODES

    Following are plot synopses for the first 11 episodes of Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot. The episodes won't necessarily air in this order.

     CREATURES, GREAT AND SMALL

    The Big Guy is decommissioned in favor of Quark Industries' newest creation, Rusty the Boy Robot. But when an alien Annihilator threatens to destroy New Tronic City, it's clear that Rusty is not quite ready for prime time. The Big Guy is reassembled and joins the fight, with Rusty at his side. When the monster is defeated, General Thorton orders that the temporary alliance to become a permanent partnership.

   OUT OF WHACK

    The Big Guy and Rusty face off against the Legion Ex Machina's evil creation: A.R.G. -12, a.k.a. Argo. When a Nucleo-Protonic blast from Argo triggers a malfunction in Rusty's power core, the boy robot runs away, fearing he'll be disassembled by Donovan for being "out of whack." The Big Guy must bring Rusty back to Quark. Just as Big Guy catches up Rusty, Argo attacks again. The robotic team must work against the clock to defeat the bad guy before Rusty explodes.

   THE INSIDE SCOOP

    A telepathy experiment goes awry and a Quark Scientist, Dr. Neugog, is transformed into a giant brain on spidery legs. Neugog uses his telepathic powers to drain the minds of the world's greatest scientists. Meanwhile, Dr. Slate accidentally uncovers the Big Guy's secret: There's a man inside the suit, namely Dwyane. She decides to keep the secret from Rusty, because the shock could crash his vital Human Emotion Grid. The Big Guy and Rusty are called into to stop Neugog, but Dwayne proves vulnerable to the monster's psychic attack and seeks a little hi-tech help from Slate.

    BIRTHDAY BASH

   Dwayne takes a furlough to attend his nephew, Jeffy's eighth birthday party. Rusty hears about it and decides he wants to see what a birthday party is like. Since you can't go to a party without a present, Rusty grabs a cool-looking gadget from one of the labs in Quark. Unfortunately, this particular gadget turns out to be a piece of stolen alien technology, known as a Dimetrium Agglomerator. When Emek and Naard, the aliens who own the Agglomerator, come to claim it, the party turns into a war zone. The Big Guy and Rusty must stop the aliens before they use the Agglomerator to destroy the Earth.

    THE RELUCTANT ASSASSIN

     Dr. Gilder, the Legion Ex Machina's mole within Quark, has developed a personal grudge against Donovan. Gilder uses his robotic expertise to take control of a prototype and tries to assassinate Donovan. After Big Guy saves the day, Donovan is taken to a secret location (the S.S. Dark Horse) for his own safety. To locate Donovan, Gilder needs a new plan. He happens across Rusty and learns that the boy robot knows Donovan's whereabouts. He also learns that Rusty wants a new, Big-Guy-style weapon. Making nice, Gilder builds him one. But as soon as Rusty fires it, the gun jacks into Rusty's systems, giving Gilder total control. Gilder sends Rusty to destroy Donovan. In the final battle, Big Guy must stop a rampaging Rusty -- without destroying him.

    REALLY BIG GUY

    Dr. Slate, Big Guy and Rusty uncover the Legion Ex Machina's latest fiendish plot: a mysterious "final assembly" taking place in a network of underground tunnels. When Big Guy and Rusty find the tunnels, they derail a robotic train. Inside the massive train's cargo hold is a gigantic hand, that boasts a built-in high-tech cannon. With their plan uncovered, the Legion Ex Machina members decide to activate their latest creation ahead of schedule and missing a hand. The gargantuan Argo 12000 marches Godzilla-style through downtown New Tronic, as Big Guy and Rusty struggle to stop him. Hoping to be a hero, Rusty revs up to super-speed and rams the robot, disappearing completely. While Slate and Dwaybe worry that Rusty is dead, Rusty comes to inside the giant robot. Meanwhile, rather than simply destroying the city, Argo 12000 has stolen the latest Quark patent, the ultra-efficient microfusion generator: a perfect power source for an army of Argo 12000s. Big Guy and Rusty must work together to detach the rest of ARGO 12000s forearm. When connected with the missing hand, it will form the only weapon powerful enough to destroy the giant robot.

    SIBLING MINE

     When Quark's Dr. Kirby disappears from his experimental Quantum Machine, a hostile monster emerges goes on a rampage, apparently having destroyed the doctor. Back at Quark, Rusty discovers a precious "boy robot" prototype. Hoping for a new friend, Rusty reassembles the robot, who he names "Earl." Before Slate can warn him about Earl's aggressive program, Rusty is called to fight the rampaging monster. Facing the beast, Rusty intuits that the creature is really innocent. But after the damage this creature has done, no one believes him, not even Big Guy. Rusty defies Big Guy to protect his new friend. After Rusty's disobedience, the reactivated Earl is assigned to help the Big Guy and Rusty track the creature. Midway through the battle, Rusty is able to convince Big Guy that the creature doesn't mean any harm. But Earl's relentlessly aggressive programming turns him against the heroes when they try to protect the creature. In the final battle, Big Guy and Rusty face off against Earl, as Slate and the Pit Crew try to sent the creature back home.

     MOON MADNESS

    On Quark Industries' recently christened space station, the computer, known as Edie, has gone mad. Holding the heavily armed station hostage, Edie demands delivery of the Ubik Chip. The chip would allow Edie to gain control of all computers on Earth. Edie's strict terms dictate "two humans, no robots," so Slate and Dwayne are sent to deliver the chip. What Edie doesn't know: The Big Guy suit has been disassembled and integrated into the delivery shuttle. Once docked with the station, Dwayne must reassemble the Big Guy while Slate makes the delivery. Upset that he can't be part of the mission, Rusty sneaks onboard the shuttle before lift-off. When Rusty's presence is detected, the mission goes awry. Edie threatens to detonate a bomb on the moon, destroying it. While Rusty struggles to deactivate Edie on-board the station, Big Guy battles Fabio, Edie's robot sentry, on the lunar surface. Our heroes must stop Edie and diffuse the bomb before it's too late.

    THE INSIDE OUT

   Donovan unveils Quark's latest prototype: Nurds, tiny loquid metal robots that repair and even upgrade any technology they come in contact with. When Big Guy becomes infested by the Nurds, they repair Big Guy's original artificial intelligence circuitry, making Big Guy a fully functioning robot, and kicking Dwayne out of the pilot's seat. But shortly after the robot Big Guy successfully completes his first mission, things go awry. As Dr. Slater had suspected, the Nurds needed more testing. Big Guy malfunctions, going on a car-smashing rampage through downtown New Tronic City. When Rusty is unable to bring his hero down, Dwayne takes on a daring repair mission to stop Big Guy and save the citizens he's endangering.

    THE BIG BOY

   Rusty's frustrated. He's been powered up for six months and he hadn't grown an inch: he'll never "grow up" to be like Big Guy at this rate. Taking matters into his own hands, Rusty puts his robot head on the powerful robot body of Quark's T-7000 prototype. The result is 10-foot-tall "Russ," a sleeker and more coordinated version of Rusty. After several outstanding performances, General Thorton decides to split up the team: Russ is ready to work solo. But Russ learns there's more to crime-fighting than just being big when a gang of exosut-wearing chopshoppers (Gage, Big Rig, and Cargo) lure him into an ambush. The Chopshoppers meet their client, the Legion Ex Machine's Number Five. Just as they receive payment for the T-7000, Big Guy shows up to bust them. In the finale, Big Guy is locked in battle with Number Five, while Rusty (on a makeshift, Mack-made robot body) goes after the escaping Chopshoppers.

   WAGES OF FIRE

   A small volcano erupts in New Tronic City. After Big Guy and Rusty contain the flow of lava, a more serious problem is discovered: an enormous pocket of magma had formed beneath the city. If it erupts, it will destroy New Tronic, and cover the Earth in liquid magma. The solution: Big Guy and Rusty must journey underground to the heart of the volcano, and deliver a highly unstable Cobalt Thorium-G Bomb. The chain reaction set off by the bomb will "put out the fire" before it can erupt. Delivering the nitro-glycerin-like bomb is made even bore difficult when they are attacked by magma creatures, who turn out to be the ones engineering the volcano, in an attempt to take over the surface world.