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This article is written from a Real World perspective. |
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| TRON: Uprising | |
| Media Type | Television series |
| Director | Charlie Bean |
| Producers | Edward Kitsis Adam Horowitz |
| Starring | Elijah Wood Bruce Boxleitner Lance Henriksen Mandy Moore Emmanuelle Chriqui Paul Reubens Nate Corddry |
| Distributors | Disney-ABC Domestic Television |
| Release Date | May 18, 2012 (Preview) June 7, 2012 (Premiere) |
| Running Time | 21 minutes approx. |
| Gallery | |
TRON: Uprising is an animated science fiction TV series, part of the TRON series which aired on Disney's television channel Disney XD, in the United States and Canada. The show premiered on June 7, 2012, and was directed by Charlie Bean, who also acted as executive producer alongside producers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. The show was not renewed at the end of the season, but no official cancellation announcement was made by Disney.
- “Hidden away inside a computer, exists another world. Its creator designed it for games, but it became so much more. He called it the Grid, a digital utopia filled with infinite possibilities. He built a digital copy of himself named Clu, to create the perfect system. And he relied on the hero, Tron, to keep it free for all programs who lived there. But in his thirst for power, Clu betrayed his creator. Tron fought back, but Clu was too powerful and left him for dead. Clu dispatched his armies and seized absolute control. Now, in a far off corner of the Grid, a young program decides Clu must be stopped. His name is Beck. Could he be the next Tron?”
Plot[]
Beck is a young program who becomes the skillful leader of a revolution inside the computer world of the Grid. His mission is to free his home and friends from the reign of the villainous Clu and his henchman General Tesler. Beck will be trained by Tron, the greatest warrior the Grid has ever known. Tron will not only teach Beck the fighting and light cycle skills he needs to challenge this brutal military occupation, but he will be a guide and mentor to him as he grows beyond his youthful, impulsive nature into a courageous, powerful, strong leader. Destined to become "the next Tron", Beck adopts Tron's persona and becomes the arch enemy of General Tesler and his oppressive forces.
Design[]
Director Charlie Bean explained the idea was to create a distinct style for the CG show not seen elsewhere on television or in film.[1] He worked closely with art director Alberto Mielgo, character designer Rob Valley (animation artist for the Gorillaz music videos) and lead vehicle designer Daniel Simon, who was previously responsible for many vehicle designs in the Tron: Legacy feature film, including the light cycles.[2] Mielgo won the Primetime Emmy Award for his art direction in 2013.[3]
Episodes[]
Episode
|
U.S. Air Date
|
Plot Summary
|
|---|---|---|
| Episode 1 Beck's Beginning |
May 18, 2012 | Beck doubts his ability to live up to expectations, and passes on becoming the next Tron. |
| Episode 2 The Renegade, Part 1 |
June 7, 2012 | As Tron trains Beck, Beck begins to doubt the skills he is learning will be enough to prevail against Clu. |
| Episode 3 The Renegade, Part 2 |
June 14, 2012 | While Mara works with Zed to get Able's rare light cycle back, Beck must figure out a way to release his friend Cutler from a death sentence. |
| Episode 4 Blackout |
June 21, 2012 | Mysterious blackouts begin to plunge Argon City into darkness. |
| Episode 5 Identity |
June 28, 2012 | Beck loses his identity disc and must recover it before he loses his memory forever. |
| Episode 6 Isolated |
July 5, 2012 | Beck makes a daring theft and must escape; Paige engages him in an aerial dogfight and the two get stranded on a slowly derezzing island. |
| Episode 7 Price of Power |
July 12, 2012 | Beck defies Tron's orders to destroy a secret weapon, but will his new found powers go to his head? |
| Episode 8 The Reward |
October 19, 2012 | Beck's night off with his friends is ruined when the Occupation arrests an innocent program falsely accused of being The Renegade. When Zed and Mara are also caught up in the melee, Beck has to make a daring rescue using a new four-seat "light roadster" that was offered as bounty for The Renegade's capture. |
| Episode 9 Scars, Part 1 |
October 26, 2012 | When a former friend (and now enemy) of Tron's comes to Argon City, Beck must warn Tron that revenge is not the answer. Meanwhile, Tron's behavior becomes increasingly aggressive. |
| Episode 10 Scars, Part 2 |
November 2, 2012 | Tron continues to get his revenge on Dyson. But what will Tron do when he finds his old enemy? |
| Episode 11 Grounded |
December 3, 2012 | The Renegade is challenged to a showdown by Tesler, but is ordered to stay at the Garage to work |
| Episode 12 We Both Know How This Ends |
December 10, 2012 | Mara is in charge of the garage and must prove her leadership skills. |
| Episode 13 The Stranger |
December 17, 2012 | Beck falls into a trap and learns a secret about his role as Tron's apprentice. |
| Episode 14 Tagged |
December 24, 2012 | The Renegade recruits three fearless supporters who have expressed their commitment to the revolution by tagging the grid with the message that "Tron Lives." After inviting them to join in the resistance, he discovers one of them is his best friend Mara and has to convince them that tagging is not the right path and devise a new plan targeting Tesler's ship. |
| Episode 15 State of Mind |
December 31, 2012 | Tesler uses Scientist Keller's mind-control agent originally designed to liberate programs, to build his army. When Mara falls victim to supporting the Occupation and turns against the Renegade, Zed and the Renegade must form an uneasy alliance to help rescue her. |
| Episode 16 Welcome Home |
January 7, 2013 | Beck tries to rescue a fleeing government scientist before Paige and the Occupation finds her; Paige and Beck become passengers on the same runaway train and Beck must save the innocent programs on the train without revealing his identity. |
| Episode 17 Rendezvous |
January 14, 2013 | Beck agrees to go on a date with Paige, but their night is cut short when Paige is betrayed by Pavel and thrown into the Games; Beck thinks he may finally be able to win her over by rescuing her as The Renegade. |
| Episode 18 No Bounds |
January 21, 2013 | When 'The Stranger' returns to Argon City to plot revenge on Beck and Tron, Beck is forced to choose between saving Tron and his friends. |
| Episode 19 Terminal |
January 28, 2013 | Tron tells Beck that he is dying and finds out that the only way to stop his illness is to use the Occupation's new super recognizer. |
Continuity[]
TRON: Uprising is set after the events of TRON: Evolution, but before TRON: Legacy. For the purpose of story and character development, which could branch out but not directly conflict with the events portrayed in the movies, video game, or the graphic novel TRON: Betrayal, the series is set in Argon City, located in a part of the Grid far from Tron City.
In this series' timeline, Clu has already taken over the Grid and is asserting his control over more distant areas, including Argon City. The "ISO Wars" is mentioned as being in the recent past, and Kevin Flynn is said to be in hiding.
Tron's Fate[]
The series builds up on the background story of Tron, particularly his experiences between Evolution and Legacy. An in-game cinematic in Evolution which was shown as a flashback in Legacy shows Tron being overwhelmed by Clu and several Black Guards to give Kevin time to flee. It is implied but never explicitly shown that Tron was subdued and injured, then later reprogrammed to become Rinzler.
The series establishes that Tron was indeed injured in the fight with Clu, but was able to escape relatively intact, although weakened and suffering from grievous wounds. He fled to Argon City, later stumbling upon Beck and thus setting the stage for the show. The series still leaves room for Tron to become Rinzler at a later time, before continuing into the events of Legacy.
While in hiding, Tron reverted to an elaborate white-suit/white-circuit design and color scheme reminiscent of his days in the original Grid. In the series pilot, his look switches between this and the look he adapted in the new Grid: An almost completely black suit with very minimal white circuitry (but without the "T" emblem on his chest seen in Evolution and Legacy). The white suit with white circuitry was bequeathed to Beck when Tron started training him to be "the next Tron". Following this, Tron adapted a black-suit/white-circuitry version of his original suit, and uses this mostly while at rest. During field operations, he uses the black suit with minimal white circuitry (with no "T").
Clu's coup, a scene revisited in Legacy and Evolution, was portrayed in Uprising with two major changes: Tron wore his white suit rather than the black one (which itself has more visible circuits in Evolution version of the scene than in Legacy), Dyson and at least nine Black Guards attacked Tron rather than the usual team of four shown in previous accounts.
TRON: Legacy director Joseph Kosinski has stated that he has had no input on the series.
Cast[]
L-R: Reginald VelJohnson, Nathan Corddry, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Paul Reubens, Elijah Wood, Bruce Boxleitner, Mandy Moore, Tricia Helfer, Lance Henriksen
- Bruce Boxleitner - Tron
- Elijah Wood - Beck
- Emmanuelle Chriqui - Paige
- Fred Tatasciore - Kevin Flynn/Clu 2
- Mandy Moore - Mara
- Paul Reubens - Pavel
- Nate Corddry - Zed
- Lance Henriksen - General Tesler
- Reginald VelJohnson - Able
- Tricia Helfer - The Grid
- Parminder Nagra - Ada
- Paul Scheer - Hopper
- Donald Faison - Bartik
Trailers[]
Production[]
In December 2010, it was announced that Elijah Wood, Bruce Boxleitner, Lance Henriksen, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Mandy Moore, Paul Reubens, Nate Corddry, and Reginald VelJohnson would voice characters in a television series based on the Tron franchise, titled Tron: Uprising. The series features an animation style that mixes 2D animation and CGI animation. The look of the series was inspired by Star Wars: The Clone Wars, ThunderCats, and Aeon Flux.
Possible Cancellation[]
On January 7, 2013, Storyboard artist Eric Canete has confirmed that the show won't be receiving a second season.[4]
Amid rumors of cancellation, on January 14, 2013 producer Edward Kitsis countered the cancel status stating "“I don’t know what the future [of Tron: Uprising] is now. I know at the present, I can say we need more viewers."[5] despite Disney XD rescheduling the show broadcast to Sunday night/Monday AM Midnight with no rebroadcasting, limiting its viewing audience.
On returning from hiatus, Disney XD rescheduled the show for broadcast on Monday nights at 12:00 AM Eastern/11:00 PM Central with no rebroadcasting, and no advertising to indicate the change. Its live viewing audience is limited though DVR performance is strong. Fans have accused Disney of tanking the show on purpose, as a large number of viewers were left unaware that the show had returned due to the lack of advertising and/or unable to watch due to the timeslot.
Such cancellation consideration by Disney is in line with Disney XD stating they are specifically tailoring their broadcasts to the 2 to 14 year old audience, and currently is succeeding in creating and marketing to that specific target demographic of very young children.[6] over their competition such as Nicktoons in this age category.
The show was moved without notice, rebroadcast, or advertising, causing many fans to accuse Disney of forcing the ratings of the show down so it could be cancelled.
After the last episode aired no more episodes of Tron: Uprising have been aired on Disney XD.
As of February 17, 2013, episodes have been broadcast on Sundays at 7pm PST.
While the shows storyboard artist Eric Canete tweeted that the show was ending; this was later countered by Kitisis's statement As of now, no official decision has been announced by Disney, according to several sources, including the TronUprisingFans Twitter feed, which searches every day for news on the show's ultimate fate. On February 24, TronUprisingFan confirmed that no definitive news on the shows cancellation has yet been found.[7]
Despite the rumors of cancellation, no official notice of cancellation has been released.
There was no reference at all to TRON: Uprising by Disney XD at the 2013 D23 Disney Expo.
Appearance on Netflix[]
On May 9, 2013 it was announced that Disney had reached an agreement with Netflix wherein Tron: Uprising would appear on the streaming service along with four other programs. However, it was taken down on May 9, 2014.[8]
Release[]
Critical reception[]
The series premiere earned mostly positive reviews. It also currently holds a 8.3 rating on TV.com,[9] and 8.0 rating from 1,915 users on IMDb.com.[10] "Beck's Beginning" was given a positive review, with IGN ranking it 8 out of 10.[11]
Awards and Nominations[]
| Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40th Annie Awards[12] | Best Animated Special Production (Episode: Beck's Beginning) | Nominated | |
| Character Design in a Television Production (Episode: The Renegade, Part 1) | Robert Valley | Won | |
| Production Design in a Television Production (Episode: The Stranger) | Alberto Mielgo | Won | |
| Storyboarding in a Television Production (Episode: The Reward) | Kalvin Lee & Robert Valley | Nominated | |
| 65th Primetime Emmy Awards[13] | Outstanding Individual Achievement In Animation – Art Direction | Alberto Mielgo | Won |
Music[]
The series was scored by Joseph Trapanese, who arranged Daft Punk's score for Tron: Legacy. A soundtrack album for the score was released digitally on January 8, 2013. By its second day, it had become the ninth bestselling soundtrack album on iTunes and the 20th (print-on-demand CD) and fifth (mp3s) on Amazon.
A music video was released for one of the tracks, Lightbike Battle (3OH!3 and JT Remix). It contains scenes from the final two episodes of the show.
The album includes "Rezolution", a mix by DJ Cole Plante, who appeared at the ElecTRONica event at Disney California Adventure as a guest DJ, in order to promote both Uprising and his own upcoming album on the Disney-owned record label Hollywood Records. Trapanese later digitally released two extended plays for the show featuring additional tracks not heard on the initial product: TRON: Uprising - Hero EP in 2015 and TRON: Uprising - Occupied EP in 2020.
Track list[]
No.
|
Title
|
Artist
|
Length
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Beck's Theme - Lightbike Battle | Joseph Trapanese | 3:57 |
| 2. | Tesler Throwdown | Joseph Trapanese | 4:13 |
| 3. | Paige's Past | Joseph Trapanese | 3:53 |
| 4. | Lux's Sacrifice | Joseph Trapanese | 4:51 |
| 5. | Price Of Power | Joseph Trapanese | 5:01 |
| 6. | Rescuing The Rebellion | Joseph Trapanese | 3:07 |
| 7. | Dyson Drops In (Scars Suite) | Joseph Trapanese | 2:11 |
| 8. | Tron's Promise (Scars Suite) | Joseph Trapanese | 4:42 |
| 9. | Tron's Turn (Scars Suite) | Joseph Trapanese | 2:22 |
| 10. | Beck Betrayed (Scars Suite) | Joseph Trapanese | 1:43 |
| 11. | Torture (Scars Suite) | Joseph Trapanese | 3:33 |
| 12. | Revenge (Scars Suite) | Joseph Trapanese | 2:41 |
| 13. | Redemption (Scars Suite) | Joseph Trapanese | 3:29 |
| 14. | Goodbye Renegade | Joseph Trapanese | 2:24 |
| 15. | Compressed Space | Joseph Trapanese | 5:53 |
| 16. | Renegade's Pledge - End Credits | Joseph Trapanese | 1:52 |
| 17. | Lightbike Battle (3OH!3 and JT Remix) | Joseph Trapanese | 4:43 |
| 18. | Inferno (Opiuo Remix) | Joseph Trapanese | 5:07 |
| 19. | Dyson (David Hiller Remix) | Joseph Trapanese | 5:00 |
| 20. | Rezolution | Cole Plante | 5:00 |
International release[]
Country / Region
|
Channel
|
Preview / Premiere
|
Title in Country
|
Source(s)
|
Airing?
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Australia New Zealand
|
Disney Channel (Australia) | March 5, 2013 | Tron: Uprising | Australian Disney XD TV Listing [14] | Airing |
 Belgium
|
Disney XD Belgium | October 10, 2012 | Tron: Soulèvelment | Disney XD European Tron la révolte Site [15] | Unknown |
 Brazil
|
Disney XD Brazil | 2013 | Tron: A Resistência | Brazilian Disney XD Site [16] | Not Airing |
 Canada
|
Disney XD Canada | June 23, 2012 | Tron: Uprising | Canadian Disney XD Tron Uprising Site [17] | Not Airing |
 France
|
Disney XD France | October 10, 2012 | Tron: révolte | European Disney XD Tron la révolte Site [18] | Airing |
 Germany
|
Disney XD Germany | October 18, 2012 | Tron: Der Aufstand | fernsehserien.de[19] | Airing |
 India
|
Disney XD India | October 14, 2013 | Tron: Vidrōha | Indian Disney XD Site[20] | Airing |
 Ireland United Kingdom
|
Disney XD (UK & Ireland) | July 12, 2012 September 8, 2012 |
Tron: Uprising | United Kingdom Disney XD Tron Uprising Site [21] | Airing |
 Japan
|
Disney XD (Japan) | January 13, 2013 February 15, 2013 |
Tron: Raijingu | Japanese トロン：ライジング - ディズニーＸＤ Site[22] | Airing |
 Kazakhstan
|
Channel 31 (Kazakhstan) | July 8, 2014 | Базар: көтеріле | Not Airing | |
 Malaysia
|
Disney XD Malaysia | November 13, 2012 | Tron: Pemberontakan | "Disney XD Di Malaysia! (Disney XD In Malaysia!)" [23] | Not Airing |
 Mexico
|
Disney XD Latin America | 2013 | Tron: La Resistencia | Mexican Disney XD Tron Uprising Site [24] | Airing |
 Netherlands
|
Disney XD (Netherlands) | February 18, 2013 | Tron: Opstand | Dutch Disney XD Tron Uprising Site[25] | Airing |
 Poland
|
Disney XD Poland | October 20, 2012 | Tron: Rebelia | Polish Disney XD Tron Uprising Site[26] | Not Airing |
 Russia
|
Disney Channel Russia | November 5, 2012 | Трон: Восстание | "Новый мультсериал «Трон: восстание» (The new animated series "Tron: Uprising")" [27] |
Not Airing |
 South Africa
|
Disney XD South Africa | October 6, 2012 | Tron: Opstand | South African Disney XD Tron Uprising Site[28] | Not Airing |
 Spain
|
Disney XD Spain | November 1, 2012 | Tron: Levantamiento | Spanish Disney XD Tron Uprising Site[29] | Airing |
 United States
|
Disney XD | May 18, 2012 June 7, 2012 |
Tron: Uprising | American Disney XD Tron Uprising Site[30] | Not Airing |
References[]
- ↑ Uprising Producers Talk Timelines, Influences & the Grid
- ↑ Uprising’: An early look at Disney’s return to the Grid
- ↑ Wins Come Early for ‘Adventure Time,’ ‘Portlandia,’ ‘Simpsons’
- ↑ UPDATE: TRON: UPRISING Cancelled
- ↑ Tron: Uprising Producer - "We Need More Viewers"
- ↑ Quarter of All Time in Prime and Total Day in Total Viewers
- ↑ "Still No Official Word Yet"
- ↑ Netflix adds Disney Junior and Disney XD shows
- ↑ Tron: Uprising at TV.com
- ↑ Tron: Uprising at IMDb
- ↑ "IGN" Tron: Uprising – "Beck's Beginning" Review
- ↑ Nominations for the 40th Annual Annie Awards Announced
- ↑ Wins Come Early for ‘Adventure Time,’ ‘Portlandia,’ ‘Simpsons’
- ↑ Australian Disney XD TV Listing
- ↑ XD European "Tron la révolte" Site
- ↑ Brazilian Disney XD Site
- ↑ Canadian Disney XD Tron Uprising Site
- ↑ European Disney XD Tron la révolte Site
- ↑ German "TRON: Der Aufstand" page on fernsehserien.de
- ↑ Indian Disney XD Site
- ↑ United Kingdom Disney XD Tron Uprising Site
- ↑ Japanese トロン：ライジング - ディズニーＸＤ Site
- ↑ "Disney XD Di Malaysia! (Disney XD In Malaysia!)"
- ↑ Mexican Disney XD Tron Uprising Site
- ↑ Dutch Disney XD Tron Uprising Site
- ↑ Polish Disney XD Tron Uprising Site
- ↑ "Новый мультсериал «Трон: восстание» (The new animated series "Tron: Uprising")"
- ↑ South African Disney XD Tron Uprising Site
- ↑ Spanish Disney XD Tron Uprising Site
- ↑ American Disney XD Tron Uprising Site