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Wanted to do something sorta special for my 10th anniversary on here, and since one of my faves Crash Bandicoot is also celebrating 25 years in 2021, I figured why not come up wih a way to celebrate both? And (feeling sorta inspired by my recent riffing of Break A Leg) since my very first work was made in the tv.com style, I decided I'll post this with a similar style in mind. I know that probably sounds disappointing, but that style just feels a bit more reasonable for me right now for a variety of reasons. I've been sitting on this particular idea for a couple years, even posted about it in the Writers Lounge last year, so it's better to get it out of my system in some fashion. I'll post a more official update on my writing slate going forward in a future Announcements thread post. Plot: Deep in the Pacific, on an uncharted archipelago, multi-million dollar conglomerate, Cortex Power, has set up base as a means of conducting "revolutionary research that will make strides in bettering the world". However, something far more sinister lies underneath the facade. Endemic animals are being forcefully wrangled from their natural habitats, invasive species are being smuggled onto the island in loads, toxic waste is being outputted into the ocean, people are going missing, sacred sites are being razed and the indigenous tribes seem to have turned a blind eye to it all. At the heart of all this is the fortress of iron, Cortex Castle, where Cortex Power's founder hazardously pushes the boundaries between science and nature. But something has managed to fly the coop and compromise his operations. Now, the good doctor will go to insane lengths to seek or destroy the crown jewel of all his achievements. And his crown jewel is willing to go even farther to put an end to his terror. A reimagining of the original 1996 video game, inspired by Android Kikaida. Characters (to be updated as the story goes along) Team Bandicoot Crash Bandicoot: Once highly regarded by Cortex as his greatest creation and pegged to be the future general of his army, this orange marsupial has somehow managed to defy his creator, even after a trip into the Cortex Vortex. With the lives of all those he cares about at stake, he must become a one-mutant army and liberate the Wumpa Archipelago one island at a time. Tawna Bandicoot: Another genetically enhanced bandicoot, who is Crash's mate from their old lives together as regular critters. She possesses the same abilities as Crash, but appears to be more blessed up there. In the head, being gifted with intelligence that allows her to match wits with her captors. When Crash proves to be his most disappointing failure yet, Cortex deems her to be the next general of his Cortex Commandos. Nekky Kyosha: A world renowned wildlife biologist and mother to Aiko and Ota. She was initially brought on board Cortex Power as a "consultant", though unbeknownst to her at the time, she was actually helping Cortex to scout out suitable species to serve as potential commandos in his army. Being an admirer of Neo Cortex for years, she was heartbroken at the deceit and horrified at the true nature of his experiments. She attempted to escape the island in order to alert the proper authorities, however, Cortex was already a couple steps ahead. Aiko Kyosha: A young woman who is being held captive by Cortex, used as leverage to force their mother into cooperation. She helped care for the animals before they would be subjected to the Evolvo-Ray. She bonded with the marsupials the most. Ota Kyosha: Aiko's younger brother who is also being held captive by Cortex. He was tasked with working in the assembly line while in captivity, having some firsthand experience in constructing Cortex's many mechanized menaces, even receiving some crash courses from the madman himself. The N. Circle Dr. Neo Cortex: A former member of a traveling circus family who has since gone on to become a scientist of universal renown. Founding Cortex Power on the pillars of worldwide betterment, he has amassed himself a huge fortune with his many contributions not just to the field of science, but to the world. But underneath all his perceived good intentions and good will, lies a terrible darkness that seeks to control the entire world by any means necessary. He specializes in mechanics and machinery, capable of crafting androids that blend into the crowd almost seamlessly, but he has since dabbled in experimenting with live subjects, augmenting their physical and mental capabilities in ways that defies nature itself. He is the inventor of the Evolvo-Ray and Cortex Vortex, both instrumental in creating his commandos, but the Cortex Vortex proves detrimental to their overall mental development. Dr. Nitrus Brio: Cortex's right hand man who perfected the design of Cortex's Evolvo-Ray, modifying it to the point where use of the Cortex Vortex would be rendered null if Cortex wasn't so stubborn about its "effectiveness". Brio grew up a child prodigy, born and raised by parents who were prodigies themselves. This all went to his head while growing up, viewing his so-called "peers" as being well beneath him. He would carry this air of arrogance with him for years until encountering his future superior, Neo Cortex, in high school. Meeting Cortex and constantly being bested by him humbled Brio to the point of subservience. And the subservience would soon go to unhealthy extremes, leading Brio to implant screws into his own skull, twisting them tighter each time he failed his superior, even when he had nothing to do with said failures. Years of being Cortex's whipping boy has led to him losing his sense of self. Dr. Noxious Plant: A well-studied botanist who recently defected from the circle to pursue her own ambitions. She was also the only member to have been a trusted colleague of both Cortex and Brio dating back years, even before the official founding of Cortex Power. She experiments tirelessly with both endemic and invasive plant life. The fruits of her labor can be seen all across the island chain, coming in many dangerous forms. She despises the fact that Neo chose Brio's animal-based research over her plant-based findings. Now, she's out in the wilderness attempting to establish her own army with which she'll use to stomp out Cortex Dr. Naivan Digenous: An expert on indigenous people's and their customs, brought into the fold in order to personally deal with the natives of N. Sanity Island. Like Dr. Kyosha, he is more or less being held against his will to do Cortex's bidding. While his efforts have quelled the native response to Cortex's invasion of their islands, he now has to deal with a dark rising movement that proves to further endanger his own well being. Dr. Nathan Dever: An archaeologist and adventurer who was brought under the Cortex Power umbrella with the purpose of unearthing natural raw power sources that Cortex can use to fuel his evil endeavors. He's not fully in league with Cortex, but the doctor does pay well for his services and the always looming presence of Cortex's Commandos is enough to keep his priorities in check. He is, however, a close family friend of the Kyosha's. Dr. Naught Abel: A psychologist, and youngest member of the circle, who is tasked with evaluating the mental states of the Cortex Commandos as they're released back into the field to serve their new master. He attempted to alert the proper authorities to Cortex Power's activities, though that attempt got shut down real quick by Brio. After being subjected to excruciating experiments as punishment for his actions, Abel is left being a fractured shell of his former self. He now merely enables the mutants to follow through with their primal desires and dark thoughts rather than actually improving them. Chairwoman Nixon Dustrial: Chairwoman of Cortex Power's board of directors. She helps oversee the day-to-day operations on Industrial Island in Cortex's stead and is seen as fourth-in-command of the entire organization. She's practically the only member of the N. Circle who loves her position and the power it grants her. She tends to be over ambitious, which causes much of her undoing. She much rather prefers the use of machines over mutants, which has made her an unpopular figure amongst Cortex's commandos. Cortex Commandos (Mammal Branch) Ripper Roo: The product of Cortex's first foray into genetic engineering, and a miserably failed one at that. Once a simple kangaroo, a trip into Brio's improved version of the Evolvo-Ray seemed to be all the modifying that he needed, but a trial session under the untested Cortex Vortex not only undid a lot of the mental augmentation, it unraveled it even further. Roo came out from the Vortex an unstable mess of psychopathy and insanity. Deemed far too dangerous to be kept alive, Cortex attempted to have his first mutant terminated, but every possible execution attempt served to only fuel Ripper's madness. Cortex had no choice but to lock him away in a secluded location on Wumpa Island, where he has remained in isolation ever since. Koala Kong: Brought into being not long after Ripper Roo, Cortex evolved him with raw power in mind but he also made sure to keep his sanity levels in check, or else he'd have something even worse than Ripper Roo on his hands. In order to help balance out his state of mind, Cortex added a marathon of the Rocky movies into the Cortex Vortex for Kong's mental consumption. What came out was a hulking behemoth with a slur, who lived by the motto of "it's not about how hard you can hit, it's about how hard you can get hit and get back up". A minor improvement from Ripper Roo, but not enough to feel confident about in Cortex's eyes. He's been stationed on Wumpa Island, tasked with overseeing Cortex Power's excavations of sacred site in hopes of discovering new power sources for his master. Pinstripe Potoroo: One of Cortex's more recent products of the Evolvo-Ray and Cortex Vortex, Pinstripe was Cortex's first attempt at evolving a mammal in quite some time, having previously shifted his attention towards reptiles. Cortex wanted an ideal soldier who can do the necessary dirty work that needed being done, while also having a defined sense of loyalty that was always severely lacking in the reptile subjects. All that Neo could find that fit the bill was mafia movies, so he subjected the potoroo to hours of those. What came out was a pinstripe suit-wearing, slicked back hair sporting, tommy gun toting wise guy who quickly became a made man in Cortex Power. Known as "The Cleaner" to most in the organization, Pinstripe made a name for himself by working tirelessly to enforce Cortex's rule in any way he could, including tying up any loose ends. Be it the natives, the reptiles or any other failed experiments and perceived threats to Cortex, Pinstripe has put many out to pasture with the help of his Potoroo Mob. His contributions to the organization has even earned him a promotion, becoming the new CEO of Cortex Power after helping to "fire" the old one. The island's energy division has flourished under his leadership, all while still keeping a firm hand on the mammal branch of Cortex's commandos. News of Crash being groomed to be THE general that Cortex always wanted hit Pinstripe hard, but he nevertheless works towards making his boss' dreams of world conquest a reality. "(Pilot) General Disturbance: Prelude to N. Sanity" In a last ditch effort to save herself and her family, Dr. Nekky Kyosha attempts to throw a monkey wrench into her boss' design by exposing Cortex's latest candidate for general of his commandos, Bandicoot 1.0 aka Crash, to a special force of life energy known only as mojo. Before she can do the same to his female mate, Bandicoot 1.5 aka Tawna, a couple of Lab Assistants arrive to collect them for their official "enlistment ceremony". Nekky's daughter, Aiko, has her doubts about relying on mere superstition, but her mother is confident that their efforts to smuggle the mojo into Cortex Castle will pay off when the unstable power of the Cortex Vortex more than meets its match. Dr. Neo Cortex's right hand man, Dr. Nitrus Brio, expresses his concerns about the Vortex's penchant for producing failures, but Neo remains stubbornly adamant about the potential of his machine and orders for Crash to undergo it at once. Cortex has the Vortex tuned with the Star Wars trilogy in mind. He desires a Darth Vader to his Emperor Palpatine, a general who can enforce his rule with scary precision. However, the Vortex suddenly rejects Bandicoot 1.0 and melts down completely due to kickback from the latent mojo that Nekky had Crash absorb into his body. The resulting explosion of mojo and electricity is enough to not only free Crash from his bonds, but also to free the other failed test subjects from their cages. With his laboratory compromised, Cortex orders Brio and his Lab Assistants to capture Crash and the other escapees. However, Brio manages to disappear by smashing two beakers full of unknown chemicals onto the ground below him. The Lab Assistants find themselves overwhelmed by Crash and the lab rats. One of the lab rats, going by the name of Chithila, takes charge of his fellow rats and rallies them against Crash in a deluded attempt to prove to Cortex that he's the general he's been searching for day and night. Cortex pays close attention to the fight that's about to break out between his creations, one of them being his crown jewel. The chaos that's been brought upon by Crash serves as a good enough distraction for Nekky and Aiko to stage their escape from Cortex Castle. They navigate the castle in search of Ota, eventually finding him in the castle's generator room. He explains that he's there trying to restore power so that he can reactivate the experimental teleporter he's been helping Cortex to develop. Seeing that as a somewhat more viable option than their original escape plan, Nekky and Aiko assist him in fixing the generator, but they're interrupted by Brio, who offers them an even easier escape route by letting them use his chemicals. Back in the lab, Crash puts up a valiant effort against the lab rats, taking a wave down singlehandedly, but the effects of the mojo and Cortex Vortex colliding within him begins to take a toll on both his mind and body. Tawna arrives to help even the odds, taking out another wave of rats herself. Tawna's intervention gives Crash the opportunity to confront Chithila personally. Their brawl leads to them both sending each other crashing out of the castle's window and plunging down into the darkness of night below. Tawna takes out the last of the rats right as Brio pops back into the lab with the Kyosha family in tow. He sells them out to Cortex, revealing that Nekky was the one behind Bandicoot 1.0's failure. A disappointed Cortex, still reeling from the apparent loss of prized bandicoot, orders for the Kyoshas to be locked away in the castle's dungeon until he's ready to deal with the situation. Reinforcements finally arrive in the form of better equipped Lab Assistants, but with the lab rats already neutralized, Cortex commands them to subdue Tawna instead; now settling on the female bandicoot to become his new general in Crash's stead. She fights them off for an admirable amount of time before eventually succumbing to their large numbers and debilitating weaponry. Night eventually gives way to day, and Crash soon awakens that morning to find himself washed up on a beach. He stares out into the horizon, seeing the vague silhouette of Cortex Castle off in the distance on Industrial Island amidst all the air pollution surrounding it. He has some ways to go before even stepping foot back there again. An assortment of enlarged crabs begin to emerge from the sand and surround Crash. The road back begins here. Notes & Trivia - Character/Faction debuts: Crash, Tawna, Nekky, Aiko, Ota, Cortex, Brio, Chithila, Lab Assistants, Lab Rats, Crabs - The events of this pilot is a reimagining of the intro cutscene of Crash Bandicoot 1 - It's revealed that the Kyosha kids gave many of the animal subjects their names, including Crash and Tawna. Aiko gave Crash his name due to her mother's intention of having him crash the Cortex Vortex with the mojo she infused him with. - The concept of mojo used here is adapted from the "Titans" series of Crash games. Nekky was able to extract the mojo for Crash from a sacred idol, which were also collectible items in those games. - The idol was smuggled into the castle by being hidden inside of a wooden crate containing Wumpa Fruit, a staple of the Crash series as a whole. - The lab rats were based on the Ratnicians, common enemies who also originated in the Titans series of games. - Chithila and the other lab rats are of the lesser bandicoot rat species which, despite the name, are not related to true bandicoots as they are not marsupials. This creative decision was made to further push Chithila's inferiority complex.