When it comes to movies, there many people involved with the production. There are writers, directors, prop people, contractors and, the most important people, stuntmen. The stuntman’s job is to make the actor look good and make the character they are playing look better. It is not an easy job. Jumping through windows, falling from buildings, driving crazy car chases. Stuntmen have it rough. But one has to wonder what they do in their spare time. Why they solve the occasional mystery, of course! And luckily, there was such a cartoon that portrayed this. Head to the makeup room and get your props, it’s time for a C.C.L.A.S.D.!! (That’s Cheesy Cartoons look at Stunt Dawgs!)
Stunt Dawgs is a comedic adventure series that followed a team of stunt performers as they heroically solve problems. In a classic good versus evil, the series featured two stunt teams, the heroic Stunt Dawgs and the devious Stunt Scabs. Needham leads the Stunt Dawgs. He is the atypical hero of type character who even has his own theme which is played in the end credits is some episodes. His team is comprised of other stuntmen and woman who bring their own uniqueness to the team. Splat is the rich, laid-back financer of the Stunt Dawgs. Sizzle is a red-haired stuntwoman who is just as fiery as her name. Skidd brings the crazy and Crash is an African-American stunt driver who, just as his name implies, is known for getting into accidents. The Stunt Dawgs mascot is Human, a bulldog who at times seems more intelligent than his owner Needham. Their rivals, the Stunt Scabs, is made of an assortment of the most unfriendly (and unkept) bunch anyone will ever meet. Egomaniacal director Richard P. Fungus leads the Scabs in the pursuit of money and the Stunt Dawgs’ destruction. Second-in-command Airball (whom Fungus calls Hairball) puts up with his “mon capitan” antics and has a “Napoleonic” air about him, speaking with a pseudo French accent. Badyear is a sleazy, large construction worker who is beyond cheap. Barely human Half-A-Mind has the lowest intelligence of the group and is known for falling apart. Lucky is a bushy-browed man on the wrong end of a leprechaun’s shillelagh and Whizz Vid is exactly what you’d expect, an overzealous inventor.
CHEESE FACTOR!! The antics on Stunt Dawgs tend to get out of control, being more ridiculous rather than humorous. This took the comedy factor to low brow territory. Because it is a comedy, there was slap stick aplenty albeit a bit outdated even for its era of broadcasting. Another mainstay of the series is word play and literal expressions. An example is Lucky’s optimism about his bad luck. When things for him go awry, he keeps a stiff upper lip and says, “It could have been worse.” This always leads to exactly that. Needham’s nephew Needhigh came to visit him to which Needham began sweating literal bullets. Puns also played a big part in the series humor but even these were sometimes just downright lame.
WHY WE WATCHED!! See above. I mean, what cartoon didn’t have this brand of humor and cheesy one-liners. It is because of the show’s bad humor that also made it funny. Throw in some good action scenes and you got a well-remembered series.
But the fun didn’t last for Stunt Dawgs ran for only 11 episodes in 1992. Still, the Dawgs took us along for an action, comedy ride that is still remembered to this day.
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- Stunt Scabs (L to R): Airball, Badyear, Fungus, Half-a-Mind, Lucky, Whizz Vid
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- In one episode, the Stunt Dawgs eat cookies specially made by Fungus that causes them to gain weight
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- Stunt Dawgs (L to R): Needham, Skidds, Sizzle, Splat, Crash
