BEN 10

'''Ben 10''' is an American animated television series created by "Man of Action" (a group consisting of Duncan Rouleau, Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, and Steven T. Seagle), and produced by Cartoon Network Studios. The pilot episode aired on 2005-12-27, as part of a sneak peek of Cartoon Network's new Saturday morning lineup. The second episode was shown as a special on Cartoon Network's Fridays on 2006-01-13, on which the first and second episodes were shown back-to-back. The theme song for the show was written by Andy Sturmer and sung by Moxy.^[1] The pillows' song "Ladybird Girl" is to be used in the Japanese version as the theme song.
Distribuitor is Warner Bros. due to be produced by Cartoon Network Studios that is part of Turner Entertainment Corporation.

Contents

Plot

Characters

Omnitrix

DVD releases

Movies

Hero Generation

Protector of Earth

References

Plot

Main articles: List of Ben 10 episodes

The show revolves around Ben Tennyson, his cousin Gwen, and his grandfather Max. During the start of their summer camping trip, Ben is nearly hit by an alien pod that fell from space and crashed next to him. When he examines it, he finds a mysterious, watch-like device, called the Omnitrix, stored inside. The device attaches to his wrist and gives him the ability to transform into a variety of alien lifeforms, each with their own unique powers, quite similar to DC's "Dial H for Hero" comic.^[2] Although Ben realizes that he has a responsibility to help others with these new abilities at his disposal, he is not above a little superpowered mischief now and then.
In the first season, the plot mainly focuses on the villain Vilgax, an evil alien warlord who wants to use the Omnitrix to conquer the galaxy. Having been injured at the start of the season, he sends various drones to get the Omnitrix until he is healed. After he was fully healed, he attempts to retrieve it himself, only to be stopped by Ben, Gwen and Max. Furthermore, it is hinted throughout the season that Max knows more about aliens than he lets on, culminating in the revelation that he and Vilgax had fought in the past.^[3]
The second season has a considerably looser plot, mostly following a "villain of the week" format. The few plot-centric episodes focus on Kevin, a super-powered teen with the power to absorb different types of energies, who meets Ben in the first season. Having inadvertently allowed Kevin to absorb the Omnitrix's ability during their first meeting, Kevin serves as an antithesis to Ben. A sociopath, Kevin eventually morphs into a hideous mish-mash of Ben's original ten forms and blames Ben for it. Vilgax also returns in the finale, having teamed up with Kevin in the hopes of succeeding where he failed originally. Again, he fails, and both he and Kevin are trapped in an alternate dimension, the Null Void. Another important event during this season is the destruction of Ghostfreak, one of Ben's original ten forms. Having escaped from the Omnitrix, he planned to possess Ben and use the power of the Omnitrix to begin his own legacy of conquest. However, he was defeated and destroyed by Ben.^[4]
The third season has a similar yet darker plot layout. Its few plot-centric episodes focus around aliens styled on traditional horror monsters that Ben acquires as new forms through their contact with the Omnitrix. Purple-colored lightning, caused by a teleportation device created by the Frankenstein-esque alien Doctor Vicktor, heralds their appearance. Vicktor, in turn, is loyal to Ghostfreak who was resurrected later in the third season. He plotted to shroud the earth in darkness with the use of a corrodium beam projected from a space station and expanded across the earth using a transmitter in New Mexico, thus allowing him to be at full power and rule over the planet. His attempt, however, was thwarted by Ben; he dies once more from direct exposure to the sun, but not before his DNA was restored to the Omnitrix.^[5]

Characters

Main articles: List of characters in Ben 10, List of villains in Ben 10

''Ben 10'' has a wide array of characters and villains, both alien and human, most of whom serve a villain of the week function.

Omnitrix

Main articles: Omnitrix

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The Omnitrix is a watch-like alien device that allows Ben Tennyson to transform into various alien heroes.

DVD releases

Screenshot	Title	Release date	Episodes
	"Season 1"	February 6, 2007	13
	This first set contains the entire first season. Bonus features include commentary on the episode "Secrets", a creator drawing lesson, creator interviews, and a collectible poster.
	"Season 2"	October 9, 2007	13
	This set contains the second season. Bonus features include commentary on the episode "Gwen 10", a creator drawing lesson, and another poster.
	"Season 3"	Christmas, 2007	13
	This set contains the third season. A creator drawing lesson and another poster are also included.

Movies

Two ''Ben 10'' movies are planned to be released at different times during 2007. The first is a regular animated feature called '', in which the Omnitrix is accidentally set to self-destruct and Ben must track down its creator to stop it.^[6] A trailer of the movie was released with the movie '', and it aired August 10, 2007. Michael Ouweleen described the film's villain, which was actually Vilgax, as "like Darth Vader without the sense of humor."^[7] A different version of ''Secret of the Omnitrix'', which introduced a new alien, Eye Guy, aired on September 1, 2007.
The second is a live-action film titled ''.^[8] There are no specific details given about the plot. It is scheduled to premiere on Cartoon Network in November 2007. The film will be directed by Alex Winter.^[9] Winter stated at the 2007 upfront presentation that he wants "this thing to look like X-Men," an epic adventure that will be "more cinematic than cartoony" and appeal to all ages. Production on the film is expected to finish in October. CGI effects and characters have been confirmed, though Winter promises the film will feature "no Jar Jar."

Hero Generation

Cartoon Network has announced that a sequel series of the show with the pending title of ''Ben 10: Hero Generation'' will premiere before spring 2008.^[10] The new series will focus on a 15-year-old Ben and Gwen, who serve as mentors to a younger generation of heroes with powers similar to Ben's Omnitrix-based ones. Though aimed at the same demographic, the series will reportedly address more mature issues than its predecessor.

Protector of Earth

Main articles: Ben 10: Protector of Earth

This is the first Ben 10 video game that will be released in 2007.

References

1. Moxy Music
2.
3.
4.
5.
6. Cartoon Network Upfront — Multi-platform Events
7. Toon Zone article covering Cartoon Network Upfront in New York
8. http://news.toonzone.net/article.php?ID=18361
9. Animation Insider article covering various Cartoon Network Upfront events
10. CN Upfront: "Ben 10: Hero Generation" Announced