Alpha Team vs. The Black Cat is a short film that pits Alpha Team agent Flex against a giant cat. It was included with the DVD release for Kilroy Was Here!, but was blocked from re-release under the From the Vaults banner.
Plot Summary
The film starts with a giant cat rising out of the ocean and terrorizing the Legotown Marina, scaring the civilians. The Black Cat eats a few people, destroys the airport, and stomps the town before one civilian says that only Alpha Team can save the day.
At Alpha Team HQ, leader Dash briefs agent Flex on the threat and orders him to take to the skies and stop the beast. Flex accepts the mission and takes to the sky in the IC-2 Helicopter.
In the town, Flex assesses the threat of the Black Cat, which has now sat down in the local amusement park. Calling in for reinforcements, Dash arrives in a speedy car, which transforms into a cannon. Firing a concussion missile, Dash drives the Black Cat back out to sea. He congratulates Flex on a job well done and they head home.
Production History
One day in 2005, this film was created with no script, no pre-planning, and no specific idea of where to go. Essentially, the film was conceived as a Alpha Team-based film that pitted the team against an enemy other than Ogel. All of the film's footage was filmed in one day.
This film was the reluctant screen debut of Lawrence "Gato" Bermudez, who found the job requirements of running around a miniature city, being called a monster, and being hit by a blunt missile less than appealing. While food was used to direct him to where he needed to go next, he still found the experience unpleasant. Regardless, he was able to cooperate enough to get the footage shot.
For almost a year, this footage sat collecting dust until mid-August 2006, when it was retrieved for the bonus features disc for Kilroy Was Here!. It debuted with the film's DVD release on August 26, 2006.
Audience Reception
This is one of those rare films that received no approval, not even by director Andrew Bermudez. He has since called the film abysmal and has blocked it from being re-released in any form under the From the Vaults banner. Regardless, Alpha Team has been revisited with Alpha Team: Mission Deep Jungle.
Characters
- Black Cat (Lawrence "Gato" Bermudez)
- Man (Andrew Bermudez)
- Dash Justice (Andrew Bermudez)
- Flex (Andrew Bermudez)
Credits
- Andrew Bermudez - Director, Producer, Cameraman, Set Designer, Editor, Voice Actor
- Lawrence "Gato" Bermudez - Actor
Tropes
Alpha Team vs. The Black Cat contains examples of the following tropes.
- Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: The film's antagonist is a giant cat.
- Cats Are Superior: Played with. The Black Cat is a superior force in this film, but simply for the fact that it's gigantic.
- Cats Hate Water: Oddly averted. In the film, The Black Cat emerges from, and returns to, the sea.
- Island Base: Alpha Team HQ is depicted this way, sort of.
- Just for the Heli of It: To get to the city, Flex turns the Ice Blade into the IC-2 Helicopter.
- Mission Briefing: Dash holds this session right before Flex heads out of Alpha Team HQ.
- Non-Malicious Monster: The Black Cat is just running around after coming ashore, but is stopped because of the damage that it inflicts.
- Sea Monster: The film implies that The Black Cat is not an actual cat, but a sea monster that looks like a cat.
Trivia
- This was the screen debut for Lawrence "Gato" Bermudez.
- Since this film has been blocked from any future re-releases, its plot has been ret-conned and the Black Cat is no longer a canon character.
- At the beginning of the never-released film Ghost Pictures, this film is mentioned in passing.
- Interestingly, this film was adapted into a short story, which is cataloged with several other short stories by Andrew Bermudez dating from the early 2000's.