October 4, 1997 (1997-10-04) – April 25, 1998 (1998-04-25)
The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police is an animated television series, based on the Sam & Max comic series by Steve Purcell. The series follows vigilante private investigators Sam, an anthropomorphic dog, and Max, a lagomorph or "hyperkinetic rabbity-thing", as they investigate strange and bizarre cases and confront the criminals responsible.[1]
The show was first aired in October 1997 on Fox Kids in the U.S. and YTV in Canada, producing 13 episodes (with 24 segments) and winning the 1998 Gemini Award for "Best Animated Series" before it was cancelled in April 1998.[2]
Premise
The series revolves around Sam & Max, the freelance police accepting missions from the mysterious Commissioner, whom they have never seen.[3] The assignments usually lead them into far-off and exotic locales such as the Moon, Mount Olympus, the centre of the Earth or the mutant inhabited waters of Bohunk Lagoon. In between these assignments, the pair also manage to squeeze in fridge-spelunking, time traveling, Bigfoot-hunting and numerous other escapades. There were also holiday-themed episodes, such as visiting a prison on Christmas[4] and delivering an artificial heart on Valentine's Day.
Max (voiced by Robert Tinkler) is an easily excitable 3-foot "hyperkinetic rabbity thing".
The Commissioner (voiced by Dan Hennessey) is Sam & Max's mysterious agent and only known link to any form of official government body.[citation needed]
Darla "The Geek" Gugenheek (voiced by Tracey Moore) is the detectives' personal 12-year-old scientist and laboratory technician, housed in the pair's very own "Sub-Basement of Solitude". She often provides the duo with new gadgets and inventions to aid them on their missions. She is the only main character who does not also appear in the comics.
Lorne, The Friend For Life (voiced by Patrick McKenna) is a clingy and over-exuberant fan of Sam & Max, and self-declared "friend for life", who only ends up annoying the duo and getting in the way of them doing their job.
Episodes
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Original air date
1
"The Thing That Wouldn't Stop It"
Steve Whitehouse
J. D. Smith
October 4, 1997 (1997-10-04)
A strange monster living inside The Geek's fridge is attacking people. Sam & Max must find a way to stop it!
2A
"The Second Show Ever"
Steve Whitehouse
J. D. Smith
October 11, 1997 (1997-10-11)
Sam & Max show up at a school's Career Day and take the class to space, where they meet an alien who is plotting to destroy the Earth. They try to stop him and look good for the kids.
2B
"Max's Big Day"
Steve Whitehouse
J. D. Smith
October 11, 1997 (1997-10-11)
Sam & Max are dropped on an island and the New Guinea Pigs think Max is their 'chosen one'. But Max must say goodbye to Sam... can he really do it?
Lorne, The Friend for Life, accidentally lets 'The Mad Thespian' get away. So, Lorne takes him hostage to try to force Sam & Max to hang out with him at his twisted fun house.
Max obtains a time traveling watch which he and Sam use to alter their own history (back when they were children), causing Sam to have never become a member of the Freelance Police.
6A
"That Darn Gator"
Steve Whitehouse
Jamie Tatham
November 8, 1997 (1997-11-08)
Sam & Max try and raise a baby alligator in their deranged life style.
6B
"We Drop at Dawn"
Steve Whitehouse
Hugh Duffy
November 8, 1997 (1997-11-08)
Sam & Max drop into the jungle (Central Park) to look for the Commissioner's keys.
Sam & Max spend Christmas with Sam's grandma at her maximum security prison on Blood Island. But the criminals attempt a jailbreak and the Freelance Police must round them up.
After their TV goes out, they try to watch a show on the Geek's antique TV and bring a Howdy Doody-like character to life. But while they are gone, Dangly Deever's evil twin attempts to take over the city.
After stopping a meteor from hitting Earth with the Mega Max 3000 robot, it sits and rusts away. So, they send it to Japan, where it battles a giant baby.
8B
"The Glazed McGuffin Affair"
Steve Whitehouse
Bob Ardiel
February 6, 1998 (1998-02-06)
Sam & Max try to get Kent Standit, who has banned the Freelance Police's favorite snack 'Glazed McGuffins', to change his mind, by forcing him to at least try one.
9A
"The Tell Tale Tail"
Steve Whitehouse
Tim Burns
February 13, 1998 (1998-02-13)
A Sam & Max version of Frankenstein. (Max's tail is severed in an accident, and they reanimate it while the doctor also creates a monster! (the tail, that is))
9B
"The Trouble with Gary"
Steve Whitehouse
Tracy Berna
February 13, 1998 (1998-02-13)
Sam & Max help babysit the child who changes things with his mind, who helps the Freelance Police with stopping crime and learns how to have fun (Sam & Max style).
10A
"Tonight We Love"
Steve Whitehouse
Hugh Duffy
February 20, 1998 (1998-02-20)
Sam & Max must deliver an artificial heart to the President on Valentine's Day; but the DeSoto is stolen by a loving couple.
The Freelance Police save a kid sasquatch from being a bus boy and try to send it into the wild with its own kind.
12A
"Fools Die on Friday"
Steve Whitehouse
Jamie Tatham
April 18, 1998 (1998-04-18)
Sam & Max attempt to foil a blimp hijacking aimed to crash into The Statue of Liberty, only to find the demented terrorist is Lorne, the Friend for Life.
12B
"Sam & Max vs. the Uglions"
Steve Whitehouse
Tim Burns & J. D. Smith
April 18, 1998 (1998-04-18)
Aliens open a new restaurant, "The Frying Saucer", that serves people (no really, it's people!). Sam & Max must stop the aliens before the US government start a nuclear holocaust to try to stop the aliens.
13
"The Final Episode"
Steve Whitehouse
J. D. Smith
April 25, 1998 (1998-04-25)
A group of villains from past episodes, led by Mack Salmon try to kill Sam & Max by strapping them to a bomb and dropping them into a volcano. They attempt to get free and subdue the bad guys, all while reliving flashbacks of their early life.
Telecast and media releases
The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police was first aired in October 1997 on Fox Kids in the U.S., but was cancelled in April 1998 and was replaced by The Secret Files of the Spy Dogs. In Canada, it also aired on YTV.
Selected episodes from the show had been released in three separate compilations on VHS by Sullivan Entertainment. The episodes included in the VHS compilations are as follows:
The Y Files
All Creatures Great and Small
Come Fly With Me
"Sam & Max vs. the Uglions"
"The Invaders"
"They Came from Down There"
"The Trouble with Gary"
"The Thing That Wouldn't Stop It"
"The Second Show Ever"
"The Tell Tale Tail"
"Big Trouble at the Earth's Core"
"That Darn Gator"
"Little Bigfoot"
"Max's Big Day"
"Dysfunction of the Gods"
"We Drop at Dawn"
"Bad Day on the Moon"
"Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang"
"Aaiiieee Robot"
In March 2008, the complete series was released by Shout! Factory. Features include original case art by Steve Purcell, three 'educational' shorts, an interview with Purcell, a short featurette about Telltale Games, an art gallery, an "Original Series Bible", a Flash-based cartoon titled 'Our Bewildering Universe' and a playable demo of Ice Station Santa. A sticker of the Sam & Max title card was also included.
GameTap released one episode from the show each week on GameTap TV in October 2006, as a promotion for Telltale Games' Sam & Max: Season One.[5] Their schedule includes a release of every episode, appearing out of order. Up until mid-July 2008 all episodes (except "Fools Die on Friday") were available to watch online at GameTap for free until the GameTap TV section was shut down as part of a site redesign.[6][7]
^Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 707–708. ISBN978-1-4766-6599-3.
^Crump, William D. (2019). Happy Holidays—Animated! A Worldwide Encyclopedia of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year's Cartoons on Television and Film. McFarland & Co. pp. 48–49. ISBN978-1-4766-7293-9.
