Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales

Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales
Genre	Miniseries
Created by	John Lasseter
Developed by	Disney·Pixar
Directed by	John Lasseter Rob Gibbs Victor Navone
Starring	Larry the Cable Guy Keith Ferguson George Carlin (archive footage) Tony Shalhoub Guido Quaroni Michael Wallis
Theme music composer	Mark Mothersbaugh
Opening theme	Cars Toon Theme Song
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	10
Production
Executive producer(s)	Lee Unkrich
Producer(s)	Kori Rae
Editor(s)	Roy E. Disney (Season 1 and first episode of Season 2 only)
Running time	2-3 mins (except "Tokyo Mater": 7 mins and "Air Mater": 5 mins)
Production company(s)	Pixar
Broadcast
Original channel	Toon Disney (2008) Disney Channel (2008-2011) ABC Family (2008-2009) Disney Junior (2011-present)
Picture format	480i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV)
Audio format	Dolby Digital 5.1
First shown in	United States
Original run	October 27, 2008 (2008-10-27) – present
External links
Website
Production website

Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales (Cars Toons for short) is an American animated short television series by Pixar. It features Mater and Lightning McQueen from Cars. The series' first broadcast was on October 27, 2008 on Toon Disney, Disney Channel, and ABC Family. It was then moved to Disney Junior in February 13, 2011.

Not exclusive to television, the episodes have also premiered as theatrical shorts, such as with Bolt. On November 2, 2010, the show was released on DVD and Blu-ray featuring 2 brand new episodes. So far have been released 10 episodes; 3 in season 1; 6 in season 2; and "Air Mater", as the first in season 3, was released on Blu-ray and DVD packaged with Cars 2.

Synopsis

All of the Cars Toons follow the same tall tale formula: Mater tells a story of something he has done in the past. The action shifts to his story. At some point in certain stories, Mater finds himself in an inescapable predicament. When Lightning questions Mater over whether the events in the story actually occurred (or, in some episodes, asks him what he did next), Mater responds, "Don't you remember? You was there, too!" (in half of the episodes, he says something different, but similar to it), and continues the story including McQueen's sudden (and usually unwilling) participation. The cartoons end with Mater leaving the scene, often followed by characters or references to the story that was being told, suggesting the story might be real. Each story includes Mater, Lightning McQueen, Mia and Tia (the two red cars that adore Mater) and various pit crew forklifts.

Characters

Main article: List of Cars characters

• Mater (voiced by Larry the Cable Guy), the titular protagonist. He always tells Lightning stories of what he used to be in the past, which are probably just tall tales.
• Lightning McQueen (voiced by Keith Ferguson), the deuteragonist. Mater always tells Lightning stories (tall tales) of what he used to be, which he doesn't really believe.

Production

After the success of Cars, production of Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales began in 2006.

"Tokyo Mater" premiered in theaters in the US with Bolt on December 12, 2008. The short is the first Disney·Pixar production presented in Disney Digital 3-D. Sulley and Mike from Monsters, Inc. (who were also seen at the end of Cars) made cameo appearances in "Tokyo Mater."

Merchandising

It was announced^{[citation needed]} that Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales was to be released as part of the Disney·Pixar Cars Die-Cast Line in mid-2009. In October 2009, they released several diecasts. They released all of the "Rescue Squad Mater" and "Mater the Greater" diecasts, and they are currently working on "El Materdor" diecasts and reverse.

Video game

A video game based on the show was released on October 19, 2010 for the Wii. A PC version was also released outside the United States.^{[citation needed]}

Broadcast history

United States:

• • Toon Disney (October 27, 2008 - February 13, 2009)
  • Disney Channel (November 1, 2008 – present 1)
  • ABC Family (December 23, 2008 - 2009)
  • ABC 1 (2010 - August 31, 2011)
  • Disney Junior (March 23, 2012)
  • Disney XD (February 13, 2009 - present)

Canada:

• • Family (2008–present)
  • Playhouse Disney (November 2010 - May 6, 2011)
  • Disney Junior (May 6, 2011 – present)
  • Treehouse TV (2009–2010)

United Kingdom:

• • Disney Channel UK (2008–present)
  • Disney Cinemagic (2008–present)
  • Channel 5 (2011)

Russia:

• • Disney Channel (2010–present)
  • Jetix (2009–2010)

1 = as part of the ABC Kids block

Episodes

Seasons		Episodes	First airdate	Last airdate
	1	3	October 27, 2008	October 29, 2008
	2	6	March 12, 2009	November 2, 2010
	3	TBA	November 1, 2011	TBA

Season 1: 2008

#	Title	Original air date	Production Code
1	"Rescue Squad Mater"	October 27, 2008 (2008-10-27)	101
Mater is working as a fire truck and has to rescue Lightning McQueen from a burning building. After he saves McQueen, he rushes the racecar to the hospital where the tow truck reveals that he is also a doctor (with an MD, PhD, STP and GTO). Pilot Episode Role: Firetruck (and Doctor, briefly)
2	"Mater The Greater"	October 28, 2008 (2008-10-28)	102
Mater is a daredevil and dresses in a style resembling that of Evel Knievel. In a stadium, Mater attempts to jump a long line of cars, but instead merely tiptoes over them. He performs other stunts, and later claims Lightning McQueen failed to jump over Carburetor Canyon while strapped to a rocket. Note: Larry the Cable Guy's catchphrase "Git-R-Done!" was mentioned in this episode. Role: Daredevil
3	"El Materdor"	October 29, 2008 (2008-10-29)	103
Mater is a matador fighting a herd of bulldozers in Spain. When Lightning McQueen enters the story, the bulldozers chase after him due to his red paint job. Role: Matador

Season 2: 2009–2010

• All episodes aired on Disney Channel, except "Moon Mater" and "Mater Private Eye" (both of them premiered on DVD).

#	Title	Original air date	Production Code
4	"(U.F.M.) Unidentified Flying Mater"	November 20, 2009 (2009-11-20)	201
Mater finds a small UFO called Mator and they have a night out. Later, when Mator is captured by the military forces, Mater sneaks up and saves him with the help of Lightning McQueen and the UFO's mother. This might just be a reference to the film E.T.. Role: UFO
5	"Tokyo Mater"	March 12, 2010 (2010-03-12)	104
Mater offers to tow home a stranded Japanese car (named Ito-San), but ends up in Tokyo, Japan after hauling him all the way across the Pacific Ocean. He is subsequently challenged to a race by the Drift King Kabuto (a car resembling Boost, the leader of The Delinquent Road Hazards) with the winner being crowned "King of All Drifters" and the loser being stripped of all custom modifications to become a "stock" car. "Lightning Dragon McQueen" shows up to help Mater fend off an attack by Kabuto's ninjas and then help Mater catch up with Kabuto. Note: Originally premiered theatrically with Bolt on December 12, 2008 (2008-12-12). Also when Mater drifts the first building, when he exits you can see in the corner the Mike and Sulley Cars. This episode was originally called Import Mater. The score was composed by BT. Role: Drift King Guest stars: Robert Ito as Ito San, Mach Tony Kobayashi as Kabuto
6	"Monster Truck Mater"	July 30, 2010 (2010-07-30)	202
Mater is a professional (Monster Truck) Wrestler who works his way up the ranks from amateur to World Champion Monster Truck Wrestler, wrestling all kinds of characters along the way. These trucks include the I-Screamer, Captain Collision, The Rasta Carian, Dr. Feel Bad, and Paddy O'Concrete. When faced with his biggest opponent yet -the Monster of Dr. Frankenwagon-, Mater tags in his "tag team partner," Frightening McMean (Lightning McQueen). Note: When Lightning asks Mater what he did he answered, "Don't you remember nothin'?! We was a tag team!" instead of saying, "Well don't you remember?! We was there, too!" Role: Monster Truck Wrestler
7	"Heavy Metal Mater"	October 15, 2010 (2010-10-15)	203
Mater is a rock star in a heavy metal band. He starts out in a garage band and rises to the top with his hit song, "Dad Gum" (which bears a heavy-metal style by accident when the drummer goes crazy trying to kill a fly on the drum while recording an album), a song based on the line Mater is famous for. Lightning McQueen joins him on stage in the middle of a huge concert and they rock into history. Note: This episode premiered on Disney.com outside the U.S. before on Disney Channel and on Disney XD. Also in this episode when Lightning asks Mater, "YOU were Heavy Metal Mater?", he answered, "No. WE was Heavy Metal Mater!" instead of saying, "Well don't you remember?! You was there too!" Role: Heavy Metal Rock Star
8	"Moon Mater"	November 2, 2010	204
Mater is the first Tow Truck on the moon. His mission: Rescue the Impala XIII by giving him a tow and bringing him back to Earth. Lightning McQueen joins Mater and they are met with a hero's welcome. Note: When Lightning disbelieves Mater's claim that he went 17,000 MPH, the tow truck answered, "But that was nothin' compared to you!" instead of saying, "Well don't you remember?! You was there, too!". Also it was released on DVD, November 2, 2010. Role: Astronaut
9	"Mater Private Eye"	November 2, 2010	205
Mater is a private investigator working on a case of counterfeit tires when Tia rolls back into his life. She hires Mater to find her sister, Mia, who's been car-napped. Mater searches for clues and closes in on a major crime scene. Lieutenant Lightning McQueen arrives just in time to help bring the criminals to justice. Note: In this episode when Lightning asks Mater what he did he answered, "Like you don't know, Lt. Lightning McQueen!" instead of saying, "Well don't you remember?! You was there, too!". Also it was released on DVD, November 2, 2010. This episode also explains how Mater lost his left headlight. It was pried off for him "bein' too nosy," a reference to a scene in the noir film Chinatown in which the private eye has his nose cut. Role: Private Investigator

Season 3: 2011–present

Season 3 started on November 1, 2011 with the episode "Air Mater" (as a DVD release).

• Larry the Cable Guy reprised his role as Mater.
• Once again, Keith Ferguson voices Lightning McQueen instead of Owen Wilson.

#	Title	Original air date	Production Code
10	"Air Mater"	November 1, 2011 (2011-11-01)	301
A tow service leads Mater to Propwash Junction, a town of planes. Amazed by all these flying machines, Mater gets interested to learn to fly when he sees Skipper's Flight School, which has a sign that says they could teach anyone. After learning how to fly, he learns himself to fly backwards and amazes a group of stunt planes known as the Falcon Hawks. Since one of them has sprained their wing during practice for a stunt show, they ask Mater to take place of the injured plane. He accepts and becomes the stunt planes' new member. Lightning McQueen, also a stunt plane, helps Mater at one point when he is in trouble. The short ends with Mater reminding us of the upcoming movie Planes. Notes: When Lightning asks Mater what he did, he answered, "Oh, you remember, Lightning McQueen Hawk!" instead of saying, "Well don't you remember?! You was there, too!". Also, "Air Mater" is the first project from Pixar Canada. Role: Stunt Airplane Guest stars: Stacey Keach as Skipper, Jonathan Adams as Judge Davis

External links

• Official website
• Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales at the Internet Movie Database
• Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales at the Big Cartoon DataBase
• Mater's Tall Tales at the Internet Movie Cars Database