View source for Wing Commander Academy

{{for|video game spin-off of [[Wing Commander II: Vengeance of the Kilrathi]]|Wing Commander Academy (video game)}}
{{Infobox television
| image                = Wing Commander Academy title screen.jpg
| caption              = Title screen
| genre                = [[Science fiction]]
| camera               =
| based_on             = {{based on|''[[Wing Commander (franchise)|Wing Commander]]''|Chris Roberts}}
| runtime              = 22 minutes
| creator              = 
| developer            = Michael Edens<br>Mark Edens
| producer             = Larry Latham
| director             = [[Larry Latham (animator)|Larry Latham]]
| executive_producer   = 
| voices               = [[Mark Hamill]]<br />[[Thomas F. Wilson|Tom Wilson]]<br />[[Malcolm McDowell]]<br />[[Dana Delany]]
| narrated             = 
| theme_music_composer = 
| opentheme            = 
| endtheme             = 
| composer             = Alexander van Bubenheim
| country              = United States
| company              = [[Universal Cartoon Studios]]<br />USA Studios
| language             = English
| network              = [[USA Network]]
| first_aired          = {{start date|1996|9|21}}
| last_aired           = {{end date|1996|12|21}}
| num_seasons          = 1
| num_episodes         = 13
| list_episodes        = 
| related              =  
}}'''''Wing Commander Academy''''' is a 1996 [[United States|American]] [[animated television series]] produced by [[Universal Cartoon Studios]], along with a team led by Larry Latham.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Erickson |first1=Hal |title=Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 |date=2005 |edition=2nd |publisher=McFarland & Co |isbn=978-1476665993 |pages=909–910}}</ref> The show was based on the [[Wing Commander (franchise)|Wing Commander franchise]] and loosely served as a prequel to ''[[Wing Commander (video game)|Wing Commander]]''. The show's aired from September 21<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Electronic+Arts+Origin+Inspired+Wing+Commander+Academy+Cartoon+Series...-a018698542|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305162919/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Electronic+Arts+Origin+Inspired+Wing+Commander+Academy+Cartoon+Series...-a018698542|title=Electronic Arts Origin Inspired Wing Commander Academy Cartoon Series Premieres Saturday; Universal Cartoon Studios' Production Debuts on USA Network|website=[[Business Wire]]|date=September 20, 1996|archivedate=March 5, 2016|accessdate=September 3, 2021|via=[[The Free Dictionary]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/159011605/|title=America's Most Wanted Ends Its Run With Special|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=September 21, 1996|page=222|accessdate=September 3, 2021|via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}{{closed access}}{{subscription required|s}}</ref> to December 21, 1996, on the [[USA Network]]'s "[[USA Action Extreme Team]]" block.<ref name=Perlmutter>{{cite book |last1=Perlmutter |first1=David |title=The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows |date=2018 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1538103739 |pages=699–700}}</ref>

==Cast==
===Main cast===
* [[Mark Hamill]] as [[Christopher Blair|Christopher 'Maverick' Blair]]
* [[Thomas F. Wilson]] as Todd 'Maniac' Marshall
* [[Malcolm McDowell]] as Commodore Geoffrey Tolwyn
* [[Dana Delany]] as Gwen 'Archer' Bowman

===Additional voices===
* [[Lauri Hendler]] as Maya McEaddens, Lindsay 'Payback' Price
* [[Kevin Schon]] as Prince Thrakhath nar Kiranka, Hector 'Grunt' Paz
* [[Pat Fraley]] as Dr. Guthrig Andropolos, Gharal nar Hhallas
* [[Ron Perlman]] as Daimon Karnes, Krulan nar Ragitagha
* [[Jeff Bennett]] as Bokh nar Ragitika
* [[Dorian Harewood]] as Jazzman
* [[Jessica Walter]] as Admiral Rhea Bergstrom
* [[Joan Van Ark]] as Dr. Bronwyn Sing
* [[Jim Cummings]] as Emil 'Easy' Zoharian
* [[Tom Kane]] as Kilrathi Pilot
* [[Earl Boen]] as Kilrathi Commander
* [[Jennifer Hale]] as Princess Zukara nar Kiranka
* [[Andrew Prine]] as Vidkun
* [[Michael Dorn]] as the Warrior King

==Spacecraft featured in the series==
The series featured many spacecraft introduced in the ''Wing Commander'' video games. The Scimitar and Broadsword were the primary fighters and bombers flown by the main characters, with the Dralthi and Grikath fulfilling those roles for the Kilrathi. As in ''[[Wing Commander I]]'', the TCS ''Tiger's Claw'' was a ''Bengal'' class strike carrier. Individual episodes also featured cameo appearances from ships introduced in later games such as ''[[Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger|Wing Commander III's]]'' Arrow, Hellcat and Longbow and ''[[Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom|Wing Commander IV's]]'' Avenger. None of these ships are mentioned by name. A number of new capital ships were introduced by the series including the ''Achilles'' class destroyer and the ''Agan Ra Sivar'' class dreadnaught.

==Episode list==
{{Episode table |overall=10 |title=|writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 1
| Title = Red and Blue
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens and Michael Edens
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|9|21}}
| ShortSummary = Blair and Maniac are assigned to the Tiger's Claw for training.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 2
| Title = The Last One Left
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Michael Edens (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|9|28}}
| ShortSummary = Maverick and Maniac are captured by Daimon Karnes, a missing legendary space fighter pilot who became disillusioned with the war and turned to piracy. 
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 3
| Title = The Most Delicate Instrument
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Shari Goodhartz (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|10|5}}
| ShortSummary = Mentally unbalanced from stellar phenomena, four cadets begin to exhibit erratic behavior.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 4
| Title = Word of Honor
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Richard Mueller (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|10|12}}
| ShortSummary = Blair and Grunt crashland on an alien world, but they're not alone...
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 5
| Title = Lords of the Sky
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Matthew Edens (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|10|19}}
| ShortSummary = Blair and Maniac land on an alien world where the local savages worship the dastardly "Lords of the Sky".
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 6
| Title = Chain of Command
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Brooks Wachtel (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|11|2}}
| ShortSummary = Tolwyn meets an old "friend", who just happens to outrank him now.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 7
| Title = Expendable
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Ted Pedersen and Francis Moss (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|11|9}}
| ShortSummary = Blair and Payback scout an unstable jump node.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 8
| Title = Recreation 
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Matthew Edens (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|11|16}}
| ShortSummary = The crew of the Claw discovers a mysterious being in suspended animation aboard a derelict space capsule.

'''Note:''' This episode is the final part of a crossover storyline that spanned the other shows in the [[USA Action Extreme Team]] lineup. The crossover began with episodes of ''[[Street Fighter (TV series)|Street Fighter]]'' ("The Warrior King"), ''[[The Savage Dragon (TV series)|Savage Dragon]]'' ("Endgame"), and ''[[Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm]]'' ("Resurrection").<ref>{{Cite web|date=2017-05-13|title=Warrior King: The Forgotten Street Fighter / Mortal Kombat Crossover|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/games/warrior-king-the-forgotten-street-fighter-mortal-kombat-crossover/|access-date=2020-06-25|website=Den of Geek|language=en-US}}</ref>
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 9
| Title = Walking Wounded
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Ralph Sanchez (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|11|23}}
| ShortSummary = Maniac scores guard duty on a crippled medical ship.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 10
| Title = On Both Your Houses
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Shari Goodhartz (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|11|30}}
| ShortSummary = Blair, Maniac, and Archer pursue Kilrathi fighters to a lush tropical planet where things are not as they seem.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 11
| Title = Invisible Enemy
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Richard Mueller (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|12|7}}
| ShortSummary = The Kilrathi have a new and terrible weapon: the Stealth Fighter.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 12
| Title = Price of Victory
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>[[Steve Cuden]] (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|12|14}}
| ShortSummary = Blair crashes on an ice world, where he meets an unusual Kilrathi who just happens to have an agenda...
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber = 13
| Title = Glory of Sivar
| WrittenBy = Mark Edens (story)<br>Mark Edens and Michael Edens (teleplay)
| OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1996|12|21}}
| ShortSummary = Blair and Grunt land on the planet Dolos, and find themselves surrounded by fur.
}}
}}

==Home media==
In March 2012, [[Visual Entertainment]] released ''Wing Commander Academy - The Complete Series'' on DVD in Region 1 for the first time.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Wing-Commander-Academy-The-Complete-Series/16083 |title=Wing Commander Academy DVD news: Date Change for Wing Commander Academy - the Complete Series &#124; TVShowsOnDVD.com |access-date=2011-10-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111015175948/http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Wing-Commander-Academy-The-Complete-Series/16083 |archive-date=2011-10-15}}</ref> The series became available on the [[Peacock (streaming service)|Peacock]] streaming service in July 2020.

==References==
<References/>

==External links==
* [http://www.wcnews.com/wca/ Wing Commander CIC]
* {{IMDb title|id=0115421}}
* ''[https://archive.today/20130110172443/http://www.bcdb.com/cartoon/47801-Wing_Commander_Academy.html Wing Commander Academy]'' at the [[Big Cartoon DataBase]]
* [http://www.wcnews.com/news/update/6959 ''Wing Commander Academy'' TV episodes]

{{Universal Animation Studios}}
{{Wing Commander series}}
{{USANetwork Shows}}

[[Category:1996 American animated television series debuts]]
[[Category:1996 American television series endings]]
[[Category:1990s American animated television series]]
[[Category:1990s American children's television series]]
[[Category:American children's animated action television series]]
[[Category:American children's animated space adventure television series]]
[[Category:American children's animated science fiction television series]]
[[Category:Animated series based on video games]]
[[Category:Animated television series set on fictional planets]]
[[Category:USA Network original programming]]
[[Category:USA Action Extreme Team]]
[[Category:Military science fiction]]
[[Category:Wing Commander (franchise)|Academy]]
[[Category:Television series by Universal Animation Studios]]