BattleTech Cartoon | Episode 1 [Remastered]

BattleTech: The Animated Series, also known as the 1st Somerset Strikers after the unit featured therein, was a Saturday morning cartoon created for syndication by Saban Entertainment. It ran for one season of 13 episodes plus a clip show composed mostly of flashback narration (episode 5A: "No Guts, No Galaxy").

Broadcast from September 10th to December 10th 1994 on Fox TV, it was noteworthy for its blending of computer-generated imaging and traditional cel-animation to create a smooth transition between sections.

The series depicts the exploits of the 1st Somerset Strikers, an irregular ad-hoc unit formed from Federated Commonwealth and Draconis Combine elements by Major Adam Steiner in the wake of the Clan Invasion when his home planet Somerset is captured and his brother Andrew Steiner taken prisoner.

The animated series as such is not considered Canon for the BattleTech universe. Instead, the show canonically exists in-universe as a work of fiction: It has been referred to in-universe as a "popular but poorly reviewed holovid series" by Tharkad Broadcast Company, said to be loosely based on the exploits of the "real" 1st Somerset Strikers; it was even known among Clan sibkos on the Clan Homeworlds by the 3070s through Solaris broadcasts. The overall storyline and characters have thus been canonized at least in broad strokes.

Episode 1 | "The Gathering Storm" from BattleTech: The Animated Series by Saban Entertainment

Original Airdate: September 17, 1994

This is a restoration of decades-out-of-print content which has not been released in its entirety on any modern format, presented here for preservation without intention of copyright infringement. In the event of an official rerelease, this upload will be removed.

The story, art and characters therein are the property of either The Topps Company, Inc., Catalyst Game Labs, or The Walt Disney Company (or some combination thereto). These remastered episodes of BattleTech: The Animated Series are 100% unofficial and in no way endorsed by the rights holders. I make no claim of ownership to the source material.

Special thanks to those in the community that have helped preserve these cartoons until now.