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RoughnecksRoughnecks: The Starship Trooper Chronicles is a CGI animated cartoon based around Starship Troopers. It follows the exploits of a Mobile Infantry squad; "Razak's Roughnecks", during the SICON-Arachnids war. It is divided into seasons based around the military campaigns the Roughnecks fight in. The campaigns are, in order, Pluto, Hydora, Tophet, Tesca, Zephyr (Ice Asteroid), Klendathu and Homefront (Earth). Below is an outline of each season. Pluto- SICON first battles the Bugs on Pluto. Razak's Roughnecks learn to trust and rely on one another. SICON discovers that the Bugs aren't native to Pluto but come from elsewhere. Hydora- the Roughnecks battle across the oceanic world of Hydora, encountering two new breeds of Bug- Ripplers/Kamikaze Ripplers and Water Tigers- and discover the existence of Brain Bugs. Rico and Brutto bond after a near-disaster. Carl Jenkins uses his mental powers to destroy the Brain Bug, but suffers mental damage. Tophet- the Roughnecks land on the methane-atmosphered desert world of Tophet, discovering an indigenous race which they dub "Skinnies". At first believed to be friendly, the Skinnies are revealed to be allied with the Bugs. Carl and Brutto bond after being captured and then escaping from a Skinny prison. The first of the Cybernetic Humanoid Assault Systems is assigned to the Roughnecks. Dubbed CHAS, he is at first received with hostility but is eventually regarded as a true Roughneck- posthumously, sacrificing himself to save the other Roughnecks (the CHAS units are deemed cost-ineffective, so he is never replaced). It is discovered that the Skinnies are being controlled by mind-enslaving Bugs, Carl is mentally shattered during the event and is quickly spirited away by Intel. The Bugs- Control and otherwise- are driven off. Tesca- in the wake of the Tophet Campaign, the Skinnies are now allies with SICON, but need to sign up as SICON recruits because they lack Faster-Than-Light drives. Colonel T'Phai, the leader of the Skinnies- and indirectly responsible for Carl's loss- is assigned to the Roughnecks, which leads to hostility. He is eventually accepted. Zephyr- a human/Bug crossbreed leads the Roughnecks to Klendathu. Klendathu- the Roughnecks must assualt the Bugs' homeworld and destroy the Queen. Homefront- the Bugs attack earth so the Roughnecks must fight on their home court. Razak is killed and Brutto is crippled. Rico ends up as first as squad Sergeant then as Lieutenant. Brutto's son Max joins the Roughnecks, T'Phai promises his father he will look after him. Characters: Lieutenant Jean Razak: the leader of the Roughnecks, a seasoned veteran who has been decorated 10 times for meritorious service. His left arm is a mechanical prosthetic, the legacy of his first command, where the enite squad was ambushed and only he survived. Dies in the Homefront campaign. Sergeant Francis Brutto: a somewhat ruthless task-master, very outspoken and aggressive. Originally something of an antagonist for the rest of the squad, he eventually becomes easier to get along with. His son Max Brutto is 17 and an All-Star Fullback. Brutto is crippled during the Homefront campaign, his son apparently joined the Mobile Infantry in the aftermath of the Pluto campaign, but he is assigned to the Roughnecks after his father is crippled. Corporal Richard "Doc" LaCroix: the team's medical officer, Doc is laid-back and patient. He is the assigned pilot for the Long-Range Marauder. Corporal Jeff "Goss" Gossard: an ambitions Roughneck who wants a distinguished career. A technological master, adept with any form of machinery. Invented the "TALC Box", which was intended to translate Bug shrieking into human language, but was used to translate for Skinnies instead. Assigned pilot for the Assault Marauder. Private Juan "Johnny" Rico: the main focus of the series, a good soldier but a little distrustful of technology and a bit over-reliant on his instincts. Best friends with the psychic Carl Jenkins and with Isabelle Flores. Carries a torch for a space-pilot- Ibanez- for most of the series but eventually admits he's in love with Flores. Last of the Roughnecks to accept T'Phai. Is promoted first to Sergeant then to Lieutenant during the Homefront campaign. Private Isabelle "Dizzy" Flores: an old friend of Rico's from high school, has a crush on him which is unrequited for most of the series, figures they'll sort out their relationship problems after their tour of duty. Is claustrophobic, but lied about it to be accepted into the Mobile Infantry. Special Ops Carl Jenkins: a psychic friend of Rico's and Flores's from high school, the other Roughnecks avoid him like the plague (his telepathic powers give them the creeps). He destroys the Hydoran Brain Bug with a Mind-Bomb but suffers mental trauma in the process. He grows weaker and his powers become less stable during the Tophet campaign, when T'Phai's Control Bug breaks loose it attempts to attach to Carl. He destroys it with a telekinetic blast, but falls into a coma and is spirited away by Intel. He returns later on in the series, the mental experimentation performed on him by the Intel neuro-surgeons has increased his powers but made him cold and harsh. Private Robert "Paperboy" Higgins: A Fednet reporter assigned to the Roughnecks, Higgins is something of the trademark Outsider. His inexperience and degree of military incompetence makes him something of a liability on occassion. Usually shoots with a camera instead of a gun. He was only able to stay because Rico gave him training. Is the voice-over/narrator for the series. Private "Colonel" T'Phai: the former military leader of the Skinnies, T'Phai was an enemy for most of the Tophet campaign. Was indirectly responisble for Carl's extended medical leave, which didn't help matters when he was assigned to the Roughnecks during the Tesca campaign. Not accepted initially, he receives the acceptance of all Roughnecks bar Rico in the end of the first episode, not receiving Rico's until the end of the second episode. Rank is Private within the Mobile Infantry, often referred to as Colonel by the Roughnecks. Production: Sony contracted Foundation Imaging to do the episodes. It was originally planned that the show be made with 2D animation. Some other companies also helped with the production of certain episodes. Some of these companies include Flat Earth Productions (Eps 1X12 and 1X13), Hyper Image (Eps 1X20 to 1X22), and Rainbow Studios (Eps 1X23 to 1X25).
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