Two very different cartoon series are debuting on U.S. cable networks in the next few days, but both series could be important to specialty retailers.  First up is the American-created Invader ZIM, a clever tale of a hapless space invader written by Jhonen Vasquez, the creator of SQUEE! and Johnny the Homicidal Maniac.  Invader ZIM debuts Friday, March 30 at 9pm (ET/PT) on the Nickelodeon Network (see 'Johnny the Homicidal Space Invader?').  ZIM is a total screw-up who thinks he is in the forefront of a galactic invasion of Earth. The concept of a space invader who goes undercover at an elementary school and nearly dies from a steady diet of lunchroom swill should appeal to both kids and older folks who will enjoy the satire.  With his comics and collected volumes having attracted a substantial cult audience, Vasquez is a talent to watch, particularly if this first foray into mainstream media is a big hit. 

 

Nickelodeon has managed to field a very successful package of cartoons that eschew the violence that anime, and even the classic Looney Tunes exhibit.  While Nickelodeon's cartoon audience generally skews younger than the Cartoon Network's, Invader ZIM has a chance to appeal an older audience because of the cleverness of the story and its many satirical elements.  The scheduling of the show, in a slot that is filled by Nick at Night shows Diff'rent Strokes and Alf on other days, also fits this targeting of an older audience, similar to the group that shops at pop culture stores.  Putting out a small display of Slave Labor's Johnny and Squee with a header 'by the creator of Invader Zim' is a way to make the connection explicit in the retail environment. 

 

The other cartoon making a debut on American TV is considerably darker and more violent.  The anime import The Big O (see 'The Big O's Debut Set') starts on the Cartoon Network next Monday, April 2 at 6pm (ET/PT).  The dark, noirish look of The Big O is clearly influenced by the Batman Animated series, as is the plot which features gentleman crime fighter Roger Smith, who just happens to have a droll English butler.  But there are other elements as well including a giant robot (the Big O himself), a beautiful female robot whose looks hearken back to Fritz Lang's movie Metropolis, and a plot involving a collective memory lost that has affected everyone in Paradigm City.

 

While The Big O doesn't have any immediate merchandising opportunities, it has the potential to be driving product sales as early as this summer if the show generates any heat.  Bandai is including The Big O in its Anime Collectors Sets (see 'Bandai to Produce Anime Sets for the U.S. Market'), which will be out this summer and include a three-figure Big O set (Roger, Dorothy, and a big poseable Big O robot) that will retail for $14.99.  Also due out this summer are two DVD collections of Big O episodes from Bandai.  Each DVD will include four episodes and retail for $24.95.