In this article, I’ll talk a bit about SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron, an incredible well-made and fun cartoon from the ’90s, real blast which marked an era due to its stylish visuals, frenetic action and surprisingly sophisticated plot.
The text is based on a video about the show from Coleção em Ação Show, a cool Brazilian channel dedicated to pop culture nostalgia, and also on the article I originally wrote for it in Portuguese. I’m adapting it here in English, even though it’s not my primary language, so thanks for bearing with me.
Anyway, SWAT Kats is a fantastic animated series, a product that fit perfectly well in that decade, where everything had to be “radical”, irreverent and rebellious. It also stands out for having been the last cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera, but its style and quality are far above most of the other cartoons from this studio, especially the older, more rigid and formulaic ones.
But was SWAT Kats really that successful? Did it have toys, games (it did)? How were its ratings? And why was it canceled so soon? That’s what I’ll try to bring here, along with plenty of trivia, interesting facts and, of course, nostalgia.
What is SWAT Kats?
Released on September 11, 1993, in the United States, SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron was an animated series originally aired on the TBS channel. The word “Radical” in the title wasn’t there by chance: the show had a striking aesthetic, a soundtrack full of hard rock, and polished animation — extremely fluid and vibrant — standing out even among the biggest hits of the ’90s.
The SWAT Kats are Jake Clawson and Chance Furlong, better known by their code names Razor and T-Bone. Former pilots of Mega Cat City’s futuristic defense force, they were unfairly discharged after an incident involving the villain Dark Kat and sentenced to work in a junkyard. But instead of simply accepting their fate, they used their mechanical genius to build the powerful Turbokat jet and became the city’s vigilantes, fighting the various villains that threatened its peace.
The series also features iconic characters, such as:
- Deputy Mayor Callie Briggs – A major ally of the SWAT Kats.
- Commander Ulysses Feral – Head of the city’s defense force and the heroes’ eternal rival.
- Lieutenant Felina Feral – Ulysses’ niece, who sympathizes with the duo and assists them in battles.
- Reporter Ann Gora – Always covering the actions of heroes and villains alike.
Just check one of it’s intros of what to expect of SWAT Kats:
The villains of Mega Cat City
Every great hero needs enemies worthy of their skills, and SWAT Kats didn’t disappoint in this regard. Some of the most memorable antagonists include:
- Dark Kat – The duo’s main enemy, probably inspired by Skeletor from He-Man. His plan? To build Dark Kat City in place of Mega Cat City.
- Dr. Viper – A mutant scientist obsessed with turning all the city’s inhabitants into cat-reptile hybrids.
- Mutilator and Molly Mange (Metallicats) – A criminal couple who, after death, were rebuilt as indestructible robots.
- Pastmaster – A wizard resurrected from a fantasy rendering of the Middle Ages, capable of summoning dragons and other mythical creatures.
- Hard Drive – A hacker with electrical powers, one of the most dangerous villains in the series.
Vehicles and equipment
Besides a wide array of ground combat equipment and the iconic Turbokat Fighter — a sleek, powerful fighter jet based on the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, upgraded to a next-gen level — the SWAT Kats also had an impressive arsenal:
- Cyclotron – A superbike for high-speed chases.
- Thunder Truck – A monster truck for ground operations.
- Hoverkat – A flying vehicle for urban missions.
- Subterranean Turbo Mole – Used for underground infiltrations.
All this technology was consistently integrated into the show, combining vibrant visuals with explosive battles. It’s all just really cool.
Success and early cancellation
Even though it was one of the most-watched cartoons of 1993 and 1994, surpassing even the excellent X-Men: The Animated Series and Batman: The Animated Series, SWAT Kats came to an abrupt end. The show was canceled before the full production of the second season, leaving seven episodes unfinished.
The main culprit? Ted Turner, the media mogul and owner of Turner Broadcasting (which bought Hanna-Barbera in 1991), who was notorious for criticizing the “excessive violence” in cartoons of the time. Turner even said he preferred shows like The Flintstones, The Smurfs, or the overly preachy Captain Planet, which ultimately led to the show’s cancellation. Ironically, SWAT Kats wasn’t violent at all — Razor and T-Bone were vigilantes, but nothing on the level of The Punisher or similar antiheroes. There’s also the fact that Ted Turner is a neo-Malthusian lunatic, and the choice to promote Captain Planet, with all its environmentalist gibberish, over SWAT Kats may have been biased for that reason, but that’s a topic for another time.
In short, this shortsighted, cretin and absurd decision, combined with a lack of merchandising support, also contributed to the series’ demise. For example, the Remco Toys line released in 1994, while successful in Italy, flopped in the U.S. market.
SWAT Kats in Brazil
In Brazil, the show premiered in 1994 on Cartoon Network and later made its way to free-to-air TV with considerable prominence. It was also broadcast by CNT/Gazeta, Globo, and SBT, becoming a ratings success.
Interestingly, on September 11, 2001, when the attacks on the Twin Towers occurred, SBT chose to continue airing SWAT Kats instead of interrupting the programming to cover the news — a fact that made headlines at the time. So, while the story about Dragon Ball Z being on when Globo interrupted for the special report — made up by some moron and now a false memory — is just a Mandela Effect, SWAT Kats really was on the air in that occasion.
Another highlight was the Brazilian dubbing, produced by the legendary Álamo studio, featuring the voices of Elcio Sodré, Paulo Celestino, Letícia Ramos, and Jonas Mello. I remember the Brazilian voice acting was top-notch, comparable to the quality of Manchete cartoons. But back then, our voice acting was really Penske material in general.
Gaming
As mentioned earlier, this animated series also made its way into the world of video games. As far as I know, there’s only one official game with the same name: SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron, a 2D platformer developed by AIM and released in 1995. It combines action, shooting, Metroidvania elements, RPG features, and even a 3D flying segment where you control the Turbokat in third-person. In the game, Razor and T-Bone battle iconic villains in levels inspired by the series, each with unique bosses, including the infamous Dark Kat, the show’s main antagonist.
I’m not aware of any fan games inspired by SWAT Kats, but I hope that bringing content from this excellent animation here might inspire some homebrew developers to create something. Out if it, we could make first-person shooters, flight simulators, beat ’em ups, strategy games, RPGs…creativity is the limit!
Legacy and return
Even after its cancellation, SWAT Kats continued to win fans over the years. In 2015, brothers Christian and Yvon Tremblay, the creators of the series, regained the rights to the franchise and announced SWAT Kats Revolution, a new project that promises to bring the show back.
Whether it will be a success or not remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: SWAT Kats left its mark on a generation and remains one of the most fantastic cartoons of the past decades. It’s one of those shows you can still watch today without feeling dated, and it delivers a solid dose of radical (still kids-safe) action that feels like a fresh breath of air in our full of wussiness modern times.
Okay. I did my best.
Now, all that’s left is for you to share your thoughts about the show, the video, and the future of the series in the comments.
Cheers!
More info and animations
Overview
- Channel(s): Gaming Room
- Categories: Animated series, Articles
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