Bionic Six, The (Syndicated 1987-1989, John Stephenson, Carol Bilger)

Imagine your typical family sitcom—Dad, Mom, couple of kids, maybe some adoptees, lots of wisecracks. Now add bionically-enhanced superpowers. Suddenly makes that family much cooler, doesn’t it? That was just the idea behind The Bionic Six.

Jack Bennett wasn’t just a good husband and father, he was also one heck of a crimefighter. Having been loaded down with bionics by a certain Professor Sharpe, Jack battled evil as “Bionic One,” all without the knowledge of his family or anyone else (save Professor Sharpe, of course). But when the crash landing of an alien ship buried his family under a ski resort avalanche, Bionic One’s secret identity went kaput.

Jack rescued the fam, but not without a fight against major baddie Dr. Scarab. Plus, the rest of the Bennett family came out of their little close encounter with an unhealthy dose of alien radiation. To get them out of their coma, Jack and Professor Sharpe gave the bionic treatment to the Bennetts. They recovered quickly, plus they all got their share of super-powered bionics as a bonus. Now united in both bionics and in the fight against evil, the Bennetts took on Dr. Scarab and his cronies as the Bionic Six.

Bionic One was still the man of the house, but Mom One (Helen) was no slouch. The rest of the family included Rock One (Meg), Sport One (Eric), adopted kid I.Q. (J.D.), and Karate One (Bunji), who was placed under the guardianship of the Bennetts after his real father disappeared. The Bennetts kept up all the appearances of a typical suburban family, but at the first sign of trouble, a serious bionic butt-kicking was on the way.

The Bionic Six was co-created by LJN Toys, who hoped to replicate the success of their ThunderCats toy line from a few years earlier. Sadly, the Bennett family failed to find the same audience as Lion-O and company, leaving the airwaves only two years after their premiere. But even in the end, the producers still had a sense of humor, titling the final episode “That’s All, Folks.”

production details
USA / Syndicated – TMS Entertainment / x20 minutes / Broadcast 1987 – 1989 syndicated

cast
John Stephenson as Jack Bennett / Bionic One, Klunk
Carol Bilger as Helen Bennett / Mother One
Bobbi Block as Meg Bennett / Rock One
Norman Bercard as J.D. Bennett / I.Q.*
Hal Rayle as Eric Benett / Sport One, Bob, Joe Kapoola / Shadow Boxer
Brian Tochi as Bunjiro “Bunji” Bennett / Karate One, Rivet Rick
Alan Oppenheimer as Prof. Sharpe, Metalhead
Jim MacGeorge as Dr. Scarab (Willmer Sharpe)
Frank Welker as Chopper, Glove, Mechanic
Neil Ross as F.L.U.F.F.I.*, Kaleidoscope, Perceptor
Jennifer Darling as Madame O
Shuko Akune as Momo Yashima
Howard Morris as Professor Hugo Fish, Techno Tex