Generator Rex

Generator Rex is an American animated television series for Cartoon Network and is created by "Man of Action" (a group consisting of Duncan Rouleau, Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, and Steven T. Seagle). John Fang of Cartoon Network Studios serves as supervising director. It is inspired by the comic M. Rex, published by Image Comics in 1999. It first aired in the United States on April 23, 2010, on Cartoon Network.

International broadcast
The series first aired on Cartoon Network in Asia, not including Korea, on January 9, 2011 and in India and Pakistan on January 16, 2011. The series was announced to premiere on Teletoon in Canada on the same date as its debut in Asia, but was preempted by episodes of Planet Sketch and delayed until January 16, 2011. The Russian premiere was on February 18, 2011. It debutted on Cartoon Network Arabic on July 31, 2011 and in Japan on July 4.

Plot
Five years prior to the series, a massive explosion released high concentrations of nanites into the atmosphere, infecting every living thing on Earth. These nanites may randomly activate inside their hosts, mutating the subject into a monster known as an E.V.O. (or "Exponentially Variegated Organism"). Though some E.V.O.s retain human-level intelligence, most go berserk and cause widespread destruction. An international organization known as Providence exists to combat the E.V.O. threat.

Rex is an amnesiac teenager who is an E.V.O. Unlike most E.V.O.s, he lacks physical deformation. He is also able to control his nanites, allowing him to manifest a variety of bio-mechanical powers. However, Rex is truly unique because he has the ability to deactivate nanites inside other E.V.O.s, effectively curing them. Working for Providence under Agent Six, Rex uses his unique abilities to stop and cure rampant E.V.O.s. His nemesis is Van Kleiss, an E.V.O. who abhors Providence. He believes nanite mutations are a gift and should be utilized accordingly. Van Kleiss is connected not only to the Event which released the nanites, but to Rex himself.

Providence

 * Rex Salazar  (voiced by Daryl Sabara) - The protagonist of the series. Rex is a young amnesiac E.V.O. with the ability to grow various machines out of his body. He can also use his nanites to communicate with and control nearby machines, and to absorb active nanites from some other E.V.O.s, curing them. Control of his powers is linked to his emotional state, and can fail with low self-confidence, agitation or inner conflict. As shown in the episodes 'Plague' and 'Rampage', his powers can also fail when worn-out and tired. Rex experiences frustration in the tightly controlled environment of Providence, which he often vents through elaborate displays of disobedient behavior such as repeatedly breaking out of the base to go on "road trips" with Bobo. Rex sometimes voices fears that he may experience another blackout and forget his current life and friends. The series initially shrouds his past in mystery, slowly revealing it bit-by-bit; a fragmentary reconstruction of it can be assembled from various episodes. In "Mixed Signals," Rex learns that his last name is "Salazar," that his parents were scientists named Rafael and Violetta, and that his older brother is named César. He also learns that he was born in Geneva, Switzerland, during his parent's travels around the world, while his father was from Buenos Aires, Argentina, and his mother was from Mexico City, Mexico. When Rex was about 10, his family were part of the nanite-technology research project in Abysus. Rex was severely injured, with an experimental nanite-related treatment administered by his parents' colleague Dr. Gabriel Rylander his only hope for survival. The cure apparently works; however, as a side effect, Rex begins manifesting E.V.O. powers, in the form of biomechanical machines. The Nanite-Release Event occurs around this point; Rex becomes separated from his family. His parents' fate has not been elaborated upon, but it is implied they were killed in the Event, while his brother César escaped (and was trapped) in a superluminal spacecraft. Rex surfaced as a street-gang leader in Hong Kong, suffering from periodic amnesia-causing blackouts. At some point after that, he was retrieved by Providence after transforming into a rampaging robotic E.V.O.; his present set of memories begin at this point. Rex's powers come in the form of "builds," machine enhancements his nanites can generate seemingly out of thin air. Only one build is ever shown being manifested at a time, with the exception of one brief scene in "Without a Paddle." In the first season, builds include robotic arms/hands (called "Smack Hands" by Rex), robotic legs/feet ("Punk Busters"), a sword/rotary saw ("Big Fat Sword" or BFS), a bazookalike cannon ("Slam Cannon"), a ducted-fan flight-pack ("Boogie Pack") (also capable of working underwater), and a hover-bike ("Rex Ride"). During the second season, Rex gains additional builds after the Omega-1 nanite he had been injected with by Dr. Rylander spontaneously activates. Whereas the first-season builds have a purely mechanical character and a predominantly orange color scheme, the second season builds seem to be energy-based, with a blue color scheme. They include a backpack dynamo with an electrified, extensible whip-like tentacle ("Whip Arm"), a pair of extending fists which can rotate and generate energy shockwaves ("Nunchucks"), and a pair of energy-enhanced hand axes ("Battle Axes"). In 'Written in Sand', Rex learns that the Omega-1 nanite has a nanite self-replicating function, allowing him to make his own nanites. In the episode 'Haunted' it's revealed that he can now cure non-humans, whereas in the first season he could only cure humans.


 * Agent Six (voiced by Wally Kurth) - A senior Providence agent and Rex's handler. He wears a green suit with a black tie and black sunglasses; it is implied he is very particular about his choice of attire, as he owns an entire closetful of identical suits. His overall appearance and demanor bear a resemblance to Agent Smith from the Matrix series. He has a humorless by-the-book personality, following orders above all else. He tends to treat Rex somwhat coolly, but has also shown a soft spot for him. Six is proficient in several forms of martial arts, is in excellent shape, and wields a pair of fold-up katanas that can slice through most materials with ease. These katanas also have magnetic properties when joined together into a shape similar to a tuning fork. In "Divide By Six," it revealed that Six is part of an informal group with five other skilled fighters, and that his name represents his being the sixth most dangerous person in the world. Six also revealed that "One" (the most dangerous person in the world) had taken Six in when he was homeless and trained him.


 * Bobo Haha (voiced by John DiMaggio) - A talking E.V.O. chimp and Rex's sidekick. He wears an eye patch and fez. Aside from the ability to talk, he seems to be a completely normal chimpanzee. He wields a pair of laser pistols in combat. Before the nanite event, he was a therapy chimpanzee trained to entertain children at a hospital. In "Robo Bobo," Bobo created a robot with a "nice" personality, which annoyed Rex. The Robot Bobo was used as a decoy for Providence when the Real Bobo went out "somewhere".


 * Dr. Rebecca Holiday (voiced by Grey DeLisle) - The lead scientist for Providence. She is usually seen wearing a lab coat, an orange top, a skirt, and knee-high boots. She has green eyes and her hair is tied in a formal bun on the top of her head for the most part. She is depicted as the polar opposite of Agent Six, as she is much more in-tune with her emotions, in contrast to Agent Six's stoic nature. She is the one of the few who see Rex as more than a machine. Rex frequently flirts with her to no effect. She seems to have unrequited feelings for Six and repeatedly tries to convince him to try to relate to Rex, as she understands what he goes through with his amnesia and the pressure put on him by Providence. In "Lockdown," it is revealed that she has a sister who is an uncurable spider-like E.V.O. In "Promises, Promises," it was shown that she used to work under Dr. Fell (who was the lead scientist for Providence at the time) in Providence's early days.


 * Noah Nixon (voiced by Fred Savage) - Rex's best friend. He was initially recruited by White Knight and assigned to an undercover post as Rex's friend, as a means of giving Rex an outlet for his anti-authority impulses. He is blond, a good student, and a skilled table-tennis player. and usually wears a green jacket with a chocolate shirt and gray pants with black shoes. While a normal human, he has some combat ability, having taken kick-boxing lessons and also having passed through Providence boot camp. The truth about his association with White Knight is revealed in "Lockdown" in which while furious at first, Rex forgives Noah for the deception. In "Rampage," Noah is briefly turned into an E.V.O. by Van Kleiss, but is cured by Rex. His last name is not mentioned until "Without a Paddle."


 * White Knight (voiced by J.K. Simmons) - The leader of Providence, and the only nanite-free human on the planet. He had been trapped in a molecular-dissection chamber during Providence's early days, though a young Rex deactivated it before it could completely vaporize him; instead, it only destroyed his nanites. As the only person on Earth who cannot go E.V.O., he is also the only one who can be trusted to lead the organization. He is characterized by a grim determination to stop the E.V.O. threat, and will go to any lengths necessary to accomplish this goal, including the destruction of entire cities. He is initially somewhat harsh and distrustful toward Rex, but is willing to use him, and appears to gradually accept him more as the series progresses. White Knight can only leave his rooms at Providence HQ in a hazmat suit, and therefore mostly communicates with his subordinates via viewscreen. He does occasionally venture out in a set of powered armor, but only in serious emergencies. The room that he resides in is equipped with a powerful electromagnet in the floor, to trap stray nanites; it may also be used to restrain E.V.O.s. The electro-magnet is incredibly strong however, and able to restrain E.V.O.s when on low setting. At full power, the magnet is able to rip the nanites from an E.V.O.'s body. It is revealed that before the accident that destroyed his nanites he was partners with Agent Six in Providence.

Villains

 * Van Kleiss (voiced by Troy Baker) - The primary antagonist of the series. Van Kleiss appears to know quite a bit about Rex, and knows what caused the nanite incident. He saw the nanite incident as the dawn of a new age for humanity, and seeks to create a world populated entirely by E.V.O.s.  Like Rex, he is able to control his nanites; unlike Rex however, his mutation is unstable and requires a constant supply of fresh nanites, extracted from other E.V.O.s, who are petrified in the process. With his E.V.O. enforcers, the Pack, he has establishes a domain called Abysus at the original site of the nanite explosion, and has seeded nanites for miles in the area. As a result, he can control everything in his sphere of influence, and even regenerate completely from the ground if his body is destroyed. He has an extensive knowledge of the nanites, having apparently worked on or been familiar with the experiment which released them, and about Rex's past. He is killed in "Dark Passage" while attempting to secure Dr. Gabriel Rylander's nanite laboratory, but is resurrected in "What Lies Beneath" by his followers and Rex, to prevent Abysus from becoming unstable. Rex cures him shortly thereafter. In doing so however, he gives Van Kleiss the means to study his nanites, which Van Kleiss then uses to gain the power to create E.V.O.s by touch, leaving a handprint-mark. E.V.O.s created by Van Kleiss are extremely unstable, meaning that the transformation becomes permanent if not cured within a time limit. Curiously, in the episode 'Payback', when Van Kleiss drained Rex of his active nanites, Rex wasn't petrified; most likely because Van Kleiss wasn't able to absorb the nanite that Rylander had injected into Rex, thus protecting him from becoming petrified like Kleiss' other victims.


 * The Pack: A group of E.V.O.s that serve Van Kleiss. Its members include:
 * Biowulf (voiced by Troy Baker) - A blue-armored, white-haired, werewolf-like E.V.O. with enormous claws. Fiercely loyal to Van Kleiss, whom he calls "master." Due to Van Kleiss' powers being limited to his native soil in early episodes, Biowulf initially acts as the Pack's de-facto leader in the field. He is captured in Payback, but is apparently freed by Breach.
 * Skalamander (voiced by John DiMaggio) - A large humanoid lizard-like E.V.O. with crystal spikes growing out of his body, four short stubby legs and a crystal club growing out of his left arm. His head also appears to be permanently twisted to its side. He can fire spikes out of the club or grow it into a shield. In "Payback," Skalamander took part in Van Kleiss' attack on Providence. He had Dr. Holiday cornered until she unleashed her sister on him. He was presumably captured and later rescued by Breach.
 * Breach (voiced by Hynden Walch) - A disturbed black-haired female E.V.O. with four arms where the higher pair has oversized forearms. She has the ability to create portals of varying shapes and sizes for multiple purposes. Of all the Pack members, she speaks the least and acts on her own whims. She also uses a pocket dimension to hold a city she stole, which she uses to store her "toys" (referring to anything she liked, i.e., art, stolen property, E.V.O., etc.). Breach is obsessed with everything in this dimension being "neat", it being the only way she could maintain her sanity. In "Breach," she attempted to trap Rex, but this backfired when Rex went on a rampage after learning of her obsession with cleanliness. In doing so, he drove Breach mad, causing her to collapse in on herself, allowing him to escape in the chaos. She eventually recovered returning in "What Lies Beneath" to rescue Van Kleiss at the last minute. Breach later took part in Van Kleiss' attack on Providence Base where she planted bombs throughout the base. Though Rex managed to disarm the bombs, Breach got away. Breach later stole a reactor core bound for Providence while Van Kleiss was fighting Rex.
 * ZAG-RS (voiced by Grey DeLisle) - An AI whose goal is to destroy the nanite infestation of Earth. Its origin and motives are initially left mysterious, but it is able to exert control over the nanites at very short ranges. It makes several different attempts to achieve its goal; its methods have in common that they would also destroy everything infected with nanites, including all organic life on Earth, a prospect to which ZAG-RS is apparently indifferent. The AI has no permanent form, being a program capable of uploading itself into computers and autonomous devices. It speaks in a uninflected, synthesized female voice of randomly fluctuating register. In "The Architect," ZAG-RS attempts to transmit a self-destruct command to all nanites on Earth. Rex manages to destroy its broadcast antenna, but the AI escapes by uploading its program to a new location. In "Gravity," ZAG-RS infiltrates a Providence space station in order to secure a strain of nanite-disabling nanites that it had secretly helped develop. Rex and Dr. Holiday are able to deorbit the station, destroying the nanites. In "Written in Sand," Rex and Van Kleiss separately arrive in a desert location to investigate a mysterious sandstorm, and find themselves trapped in a network of nanite-annihilating tunnels created by ZAG-RS. Van Kleiss reveals that ZAG-RS dates to the Nanite Project, having originally been a decontamination program designed by César to contain and eliminate stray nanites. In addition to the tunnels, ZAG-RS had spent the time since its fall from orbit constructing a giant robotic form for itself, which Rex and Van Kleiss fight and defeat. Later, César admits that ZAG-RS had indeed been his creation; he brings its damaged hardware back online so it can be interrogated, but while it recognizes César it appears to have been reformatted, and its memory wiped. It is left unclear whether this was done by César or Van Kleiss. After Rex mocks the AI for its "GPS lady voice," César shocks him by sadly observing that he had modeled ZAG-RS' voice after that of their deceased Mexican mother, Violeta.

Others

 * Circe (voiced by Tara Sands) - Introduced in Beyond the Sea during Rex's trip to Cabo Luna, Circe is a female E.V.O. with black and red hair whose powers only manifest when active like Rex's. When activated, her mouth prolapses into a tube which she can use to project destructive sonic pulses, which also attract some other E.V.O.s to her. She is also skilled in kung fu. She tells Rex she has joined up with the Pack because she feels like too much of an outsider anywhere else, though Rex constantly tries to get her to switch sides. Van Kleiss acknowledges her friendship with Rex and allows her to join the Pack even though Rex had helped her in her initiation of defeating a sea monster E.V.O. He implies that he intends to use her to get to Rex. Rex has feelings for her, and she seems to reciprocate them, as evidenced by when they almost share a kiss, although Rex puts defeating Van Kleiss first over their relationship. Despite that Circe was almost left for dead by Van Kleiss when he bargained Rex to join the Pack or let his closest friends die in "What Lies Beneath," Circe still remains with the Pack. After the events in "Alliance," Circe strikes out on her own after Van Kleiss forbids her from helping Rex against NoFace.


 * Dr. Gabriel Rylander (voiced by Brent Spiner) - A scientist who has some relationship to the nanite event as well as Rex's past, and even claims he gave Rex his name. He only appeared in "Dark Passage," where he released active nanites around the world to other scientists related to the nanite event, which turned them into rampaging E.V.O.s. Providence was dispatched to apprehend and secure his research. Simultaneously, the Pack is en route. After dealing with much of battle between Providence and the Pack as well as Rylander's sentries, Rex enters Rylander's building. When the two meet, the scientist is elated. Rylander tells Rex things about the nanite event and that he has a brother. He then injects an odd large abnormal silver-colored nanite into Rex (which reveals it as a control nanite in Payback and named Omega One in Mixed Signals) and says it is "everything." Rex becomes furious and demands answers to his past. Rylander apologizes, but before he can explain, Van Kleiss pushes him aside, knocking Rylander unconscious. When Rylander comes to his senses, he pushes Van Kleiss into a fusion reactor, disintegrating both him and Van Kleiss. Although Dr. Holiday says their mission was "all for nothing", Rex says that he learned that he has a brother and is closer to knowing his past than ever. Dr. Rylander was later referenced by César Salazar.


 * Claire Bowman (voiced by Danica McKellar) - A girl that Noah likes. Claire is best friends with clumsy girl name Annie. In "Operation: Wingman", Claire agrees to go to the prom with Noah if he can find Annie a date, Noah asks Rex to be his wingman (as he is only person capable of surviving a date with the clumsy Annie. Despite several setbacks (such as the destruction of their limo forcing them to use a Providence armored transport, almost missing the prom, and being attacked by a Rabbit EVO), Claire and Annie enjoy their prom night with Noah and Rex. Claire (along with Annie) returns in the episode, "Haunted".
 * Annie (voiced by Felicia Day) - A girl who is best friends with Claire. Annie is a notorious jinx as she is extremely clumsy and as a result she can't find a date for the prom in "Operation: Wingman" (as her clumsiness always ended up injuring her dates). When Claire was asked out by Noah, she told him she would go with him on the condition that he find Annie a date. Noah picked Rex as he was unaware of Annie's reputation and because Rex was the only person capable of surviving a date with her. Shockingly, Annie's clumsiness proves to be an asset when Rex uses it to blow the rabbit E.V.O. up with a heat seeker missile. After the prom, the girls agree this is the best date they ever had but Rex states that despite Annie being nice and cute, he'll never go on a date with her again. However in "Haunted", Noah once again convinces Rex to go on a date with her, so he can go with Claire.


 * Tuck (voiced by Dante Basco) - A teenage E.V.O. whom Rex had known in the past. Tuck's appearance is mummy-like as he is either covered in or made of bandage-like filaments. He wears a black torn shirt with brown pants, and appears to be hollow inside. He was one of Rex's best friends in the past, possibly knowing him the longest.


 * Sqwydd (voiced by Jason Marsden) - A teenage E.V.O. whom Rex had known in the past. Sqwydd has tentacle-like, prehensile hair and hands, and skin tough enough to be used as a shield or blunt-force weapons. He is also able to shoot an ink-like mist out of his mouth for cover, to escape from tight situations. Sqwydd returned in "Lost Weekend" where he was performing as entertainment along other E.V.O.s at a party in the Sonora Desert.


 * Cricket (voiced by Vyvan Pham) - A teenage E.V.O. whom Rex had known in the past. Her E.V.O. powers are in the form of insect-like superhuman agility and strength, most noticeable in her legs, which are structured like a cricket's, hence her name. She has the awesome ability to jump and leap long distances and violently kick her opponents with surprisingly leg strength. She is a bit shy around Rex, playing with her hair and smiling widely. She was also the first member of the gang to recognize his face. Tuck notes that she had "a crush on" him during his time in Hong Kong, though he "didn't notice it, or chose not to." She later kisses Rex on the cheek as he leaves.


 * Dr. César Salazar (voiced by Freddy Rodriguez) - Rex's older brother, a genius-level scientist once higly placed in the Nanite Project, being the creator of ZAG-RS. While a prodigy, he also appears to be somewhat eccentric, even a bit deranged; when distracted by something he considers interesting, he may fail to recognize even serious dangers. During the Nanite Event, Rex and César's parents were apparently killed, while César escaped in his mobile spacegoing laboratory; some combination of damage from the explosion and the velocity imparted to the laboratory by it caused it to experience time dilation, catapulting it five years into the future while César experienced only 15 minutes of subjective time. Dr. Holiday confirms he is related to Rex through DNA testing, and both appear very happy to be reunited. White Knight considers César a great asset to Providence, while Six has doubts. In "Written in Sand," Van Kleiss hints that César might have been responsible for the Nanite Event, warning Rex that "he's not the man you think he is." This causes Rex to be a little suspicious and wary of Cesar.

Principal cast

 * Troy Baker - Van Kleiss, Biowulf, Weaver
 * Grey DeLisle - Dr. Holiday, ZAG-RS, Girl E.V.O, Co-Pilot, Rhodes
 * John DiMaggio - Bobo Haha, Skalamander, Architect, Jungle Cat E.V.O., Pete Volkov, Robo-Bobo Haha, Two-Headed E.V.O. (Michael)
 * Wally Kurth - Agent Six, Captain Callan
 * Daryl Sabara - Rex Salazar
 * Tara Sands - Circe
 * Fred Savage - Noah Nixon
 * J.K. Simmons - White Knight
 * Hynden Walch - Breach

Additional voices

 * Carlos Alazraqui - DI Hutton, Dos, Lansky
 * Dee Bradley Baker - Stork Evo, Foulmouth, Two-Headed E.V.O. (Gabriel), Principal Roffburger
 * Dante Basco - Tuck
 * Jeff Bennett - Peter Meechum
 * Maria Canals Barrera - Valentina
 * John Cena - Hunter Cain
 * Jim Cummings - Trey
 * Olivia d'Abo - Five
 * Felicia Day - Annie
 * Robin Atkin Downes - Dr. Hodgson
 * Greg Ellis - Gatlocke
 * Mark Hamill - Quarry
 * James Hong - Vendor
 * James Horan - Dr. Fell
 * Tom Kenny - Mr. Buchiner
 * Phil LaMarr - Rombauer
 * Blake Lewis - Thump
 * Matthew Lillard - Surge
 * Jason Marsden - Sqwydd, Lieutenant
 * Danica McKellar - Claire Bowman
 * Daran Norris - Coach, Burly Jock
 * Nolan North - Dr. Brandon Moses, Security Guard
 * Rob Paulsen - Bouvier, Cap-Com, Providence Agent Jackson
 * Khary Payton - Pilot, Beasly
 * Luke Perry - Jacob
 * Vyvan Pham - Cricket
 * Kevin Michael Richardson - E.V.O. Guard, Knuckles, Tripp
 * Freddy Rodriguez - César Salazar
 * Marion Ross - Carmen, Determined Grandma
 * Miguel Sandoval - Oso Maratelo
 * Will Shadley - Caleb
 * Kath Soucie - Mouse
 * Brent Spiner - Dr. Gabriel Rylander
 * Jennifer Stone - Beverly
 * Fred Tatasciore - NoFace, Providence Tech
 * James Arnold Taylor - Video Kid
 * Frank Welker - One, I-V
 * Rutina Wesley - Kenwyn Jones
 * Dave Wittenberg - Instigator

Crew

 * Joe Casey - Creator
 * Joe Kelly - Creator
 * Duncan Rouleau - Creator
 * Steven T. Seagle - Creator
 * Collette Sunderman - Casting and Recording Director

Home media releases

 * Warner Home Video released Volume 1 DVD, a two-disc set that contains first 9 episodes of the series on October 19th, 2010.

Generator Rex/Ben 10 Crossover
On July 11 2011, the schedule for the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con revealed that during Cartoon Network's panel, a crossover special between the Ben 10 and Generator Rex series titled Ben 10/Generator Rex: Heroes United would be discussed. During the conference, show creators "Man of Action" revealed that the crossover would be a special, extended episode of Generator Rex, and will air in Thanksgiving 2011.

Video game
A video game, entitled Generator Rex: Agent of Providence has been announced. The game will be published, and developed by Activision.