Chuck Norris: Karate Kommandos



Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos was an animated 5 episode mini-series that ran in 1986 and produced by Ruby-Spears. Chuck Norris is a government agent that works with a team of operatives which consist of Pepper,a female Gadgeteer Genius; Reed Smith, Chuck's apprentice; Pepper's brother, a Tagalong Kid named Too Much; Kimo, a samurai; and Tabe, a sumo champion and The Big Guy. They fight the evil forces of The Claw and Super Ninja.

The series was released on DVD in April 2011.

"the Claw: Blah, blah, McGuffin, blah, blah, Chuck Norris, blah-- Super Ninja: NNOOORRIISSS!!!"
 * Adaptation Dye Job: The comic books based on the show depicted Chuck as a blonde.
 * The Apprentice: Reed Smith.
 * And Knowing Is Half the Battle: It is an 80's cartoon, after all...
 * Artificial Limbs: The Claw's metal pincer.
 * Ascended Meme: The "This is an emergency... I'M CHUCK NORRIS." was actually an edited out-of-context bit from a YouTube "Best Of" video. Years later, Warner Bros would use that exact same edit in their trailer for the DVD...
 * As Himself: Yes, Chuck voiced himself in the cartoon.
 * Badass Mustache: Several characters have one.
 * Bald of Evil: The Claw.
 * Big Bad: The Claw.
 * Big Eater: Tabe.
 * Boisterous Bruiser: Tabe.
 * Captain Ersatz: Too Much is very similar to Short Round from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
 * Catch Phrase: Too Much's catch phrase is his own name.
 * Comic Book Adaptation: By Steve Ditko.
 * Conservation of Ninjitsu
 * Cool Bike: The Kommandos' Samurai Cycle and the evil Ninjas' Ninja Banzai Cycle.
 * Also, "That's my bike!" "This is an emergency... I'M CHUCK NORRIS."
 * Cool Car: The Kommandos' Karate Corvette.
 * Cool Plane: The Kommandos' helicopter, the--wait for it--Karate Chopper.
 * Cross-Dressing Voices: Mona Marshall as Too Much.
 * The Dragon: Super Ninja.
 * Episode Title Card
 * "Everybody Laughs" Ending
 * Evil Albino: A spy working with the Claw in "Terror Train". Chuck defeats him by shining a flashlight in his eyes.
 * Expy: Arguably, Super Ninja for Cobra Commander
 * Five-Man Band
 * The Hero: Chuck
 * The Lancer: Reed
 * The Big Guy: Tabe
 * The Smart Guy: Kimo
 * The Chick: Pepper
 * Tagalong Kid: Too Much
 * Foe Yay: Super Ninja's sole motive for being a bad guy seems to be so that he can grapple with Norris on a regular basis. His scenes with the Big Bad usually go like this:

"Narrator: Chuck Norris is, Chuck Norris in, Chuck Norris: Karate Kommandos."
 * Gadgeteer Genius: Pepper.
 * Heroic Dolphin: Dolphins help to catch Devilfish in "Deadly Dolphin".
 * Hero Stole My Bike: "Sorry kids, this is an emergency. I'm Chuck Norris!"
 * Incredibly Lame Pun: So many of them.
 * Ink Suit Actor
 * Master of Disguise: The assassin who hunts Chuck in "Target: Chuck Norris" is supposed to be one of these--but see Paper-Thin Disguise below.
 * McNinja: Kimo, though Super Ninja and the ninja army led by Claw would apply.
 * Meaningful Name/Bilingual Bonus: "Tabe" means "to eat" in Japanese.
 * Merchandise-Driven
 * Mighty Whitey: Guess who.
 * Mook Lieutenant
 * Name Drop: The infamous opening makes damn sure you know who the star is.


 * Opening Narration
 * Overly Long Gag: In one episode, Too Much gets kidnapped by one of the Claw's henchmen, resulting in a chase scene that goes on for three and a half minutes. They start on a boat, get on jetskis, switch to a car chase (the origin of the "This is an emergency! I'm Chuck Norris" line), and then Chuck jumps off of his stolen motorcycle to board a plane the henchman had hijacked. You'd think it'd be over after this, but ohhhh no. The henchman steals a truck with an attached parachute and drives out of the plane, prompting Chuck to jump after them. Finally, the henchman puts on a personal parachute, grabs the kid, and cuts the truck's parachute, prompting Norris to just grab the henchman, untie Too Much with one hand, and then interrogate the guy. Lampshaded towards the end with the henchman and Chuck saying "I don't believe this guy!" and "Here We Go Again!", respectively. Watch it here.
 * Paper-Thin Disguise: A Master of Disguise assassin/MookLieutenant Imposter hired by the Claw in "Target - Chuck Norris" sports several of these and Chuck sees through them every time after their first meeting. He doesn't even attempt to conceal his face or distinct accent!
 * Porn Stache: Chuck.
 * Psycho for Hire: The Claw employs several of them to eliminate Norris. It never goes well.
 * The Smurfette Principle: Pepper is the only regular female character, and even she doesn't get much to do.
 * Sssssnaketalk
 * Walking Shirtless Scene: Tabe probably doesn't even own a shirt.
 * Wave Motion Gun: The Claw's forces hijack a space shuttle so they can use one to threaten Earth in "Menace from Space".
 * What Do You Mean It's Not Awesome?: An alligator crashing into a building by parachute and fighting Chuck Norris.
 * White-Haired Pretty Girl: The evil Devilfish from "Deadly Dolphin".
 * Xtreme Kool Letterz
 * Zombie Apocalypse: "Island of the Walking Dead" features the wimpiest use of this trope ever.