the astronauts become increasingly involved in the planet's affairs and in defending the humans against an ape invasion. The cast featured characters based on those from the previous films and TV series, including Nova (Nevins again), General Urko (Henry Cordin), Zira (Philippa Harris), Cornelius (Edwin Mills), and Dr. Zaius (Richard Blackburn). NBC broadcast thirteen episodes between September 6 and November 21, 1975. The show did not achieve particularly strong ratings. The network considered producing a second, three-episode season to complete the story, but this never materialized. Broadcasting history Airing on NBC, the series premiered on September 6, 1975 and was broadcast through November 29, 1975 and continuing in reruns until September 4, 1976, although only thirteen episodes were produced. The series aired Saturday mornings at 11:00 AM Eastern/10:00 AM Central. The series was later shown in reruns on the Sci Fi Channel in 1992 as part of Sci Fi Cartoon Quest. In Asia, the series was broadcast on STAR TV in 1994 - 1997. Music for the series was provided by Dean Elliott, recorded in England and conducted by Eric Rogers. Story As with the film and the live-action series, Return to the Planet of the Apes involved a handful of astronauts from Earth who were hurtled into the future and found themselves stuck in a world populated by advanced apes and primitive humans. Over the course of the thirteen episodes the astronauts attempted to keep one step ahead of the apes while at the same time trying to make some sense of what had happened. Additionally, they did their best to safeguard the human population from the apes. Each episode was self-contained to an extent. The story threads did weave in and out, with characters and plots from earlier episodes popping up in later ones. In order for the series to make any sense, the episodes need to be viewed in order. The animated series does chronologically fit with the rest of the Apes universe. It borrows characters and elements from the movies, the TV series and the original novel. General Urko is borrowed from the TV series. Along with Zaius, Zira and Cornelius, Brent (renamed here as Ron Brent) and Nova are from the movie series. Krador and the Underdwellers in the animated series are loosely based on the mutants in Beneath the Planet of the Apes. Unlike the movies, the animated series borrows more from the original