User reviews

It's been years since this pilot has been shown to the public and I'm wondering why this hasn't green lite. It's popular, funny, cute and overall everything animation fan want in a cartoon now a days and I'm sure if there was a kickstarter of some kind it would reach more than it's intended goal. I'm not sure how pilots work but If the original creators did get the rights back it would be a prime series to put on netflix.

I didn't catch this when it originally aired on Nick, so I would do so a few years later online instead. Aside from that one gross-out moment which I won't give away, I still found it enjoyable since that was mercifully kept to a minimum. Both this and Constant Payne seemed like such promising and worthwhile or worthy jumping off points for new Nicktoons, but of those two, I think I like Constant Payne more. But this was/still is good too, in its own right. Haplessly, it too, had a very brief moment in the limelight before getting pushed aside for a string of horse-feathers shows like The Mighty B, Fanboy and Chum Chum, Breadwinners, and Planet Sheen. From the negative reviews I've read about the shows that did get picked up for air on the channel in recent years, the majority of which were/are, again, horse-feathers, that's exactly the problem with the company/channel. That, unfortunately, it's constantly run by dense-donkeys who don't know jack about what shows are great enough to be aired on that channel. I'm not so sure if it's simply that mentality that horse-feathers sells, well maybe, that is, except to kids, at least, anyway. Well, dern what they may find appealing then. But those in charge fail to realize that higher-quality programs can still be appealing enough for and draw in all demographics, which they should've focused mainly on instead of promoting and showcasing so much ridiculously garbage shows. There's been way too much of that featured heavily. And after reading about the reception to many of the Nicktoons that have aired in recent years, this is exactly the reason why I'm not into Nick as much as I used to be. We don't get enough high-quality material to watch.

Anyway, now that I vented and got my rant about how Nick lost its touch to some out the way, more about this pilot. Essentially, the main character and heroine is Agent Xero, who could be described as a mistress of disguise as she goes undercover as her alter-ego, Lacey Shadows, and is a member of the agency, The Modifyers, hence the name/title. She is assisted by her robotic companion, Mole, who also modifies. Their mission is to retrieve an item from the villain, Baron Vain, and have it sent to head of The Modifyers, but things go wrong when Xero loses track of it, and now they must find a way to get out of their jam.

Another reviewer has described the kind or kinds of show this is, but I'll mention the visual of it as well.I'm not sure if the animation is in flash or something similar, but I guess the best way I think I can describe the art style is stylized. That's the look I think it has to it. All the characters are very good, especially the protagonists. The voice acting is fine, the music too. But despite all that, in the end, this is yet another case of those things that deserved a lot more than what they got. I didn't know this was pitched to Cartoon Network and it also passed up this. Someone mentioned Netflix being a good candidate for this. At first, I wasn't so thrilled about original shows premiering and airing on streaming sites or services like that one. But now I see it as another option that might be beneficial to it if it were brought there. This clever cartoon is more valuable of series material than the four aforementioned ones that did get series. There's almost no justice when it comes to this. Why the head honchos are so darned obsessed or fixated with derned, unintelligent shows, I'll never know for sure. Recommended to anyone who is curious enough to check it out, fed up with the tripe that keeps getting pushed these days and not into that so of thing.

The following review is made with sincere condolences to the late great Chris Reccardi. In addition to producing wonderful sci-fi artwork and working on several beloved animated TV shows, he was an all around lovable and rocking individual with so much energy and creativity bursting out of him. May he rest in peace and his widow Lynne Naylor keep his legacy lasting forever.

In 2007, Reccardi and Naylor made their own pilot for a potential cartoon show on Nickelodeon entitled The Modifyers. The plot centers around the special agent spy named Agent Xero, who works for the organization called the Modifyers with her robotic sidekick Mole. The two penetrate the doings of the evil Baron Vain by using a holographic ring to disguise herself as his favorite minion Lucy Shadows, but after clashing with Vain's henchman Rat over the All-Seeing Eye artifact, they have to retrieve the item without getting caught. Despite this short never growing into something bigger, it is well regarded as somewhat of a cult classic amongst the online community. Even I would say that it was a noble effort for the married couple to produce a short with this much world building, characterization and passion displayed in just under 12 minutes.

In terms of a visual aesthetic, the animation looks grotesque yet intriguing given the overall environment. Given that Reccardi's influences are science-fiction, retro and modern art and the cartoons he worked on, the world in the short feels like it came straight out of a Neo sci-fi comic. In addition, the characters have distinctive differences in their designs, with a saturated tone for Xero & Mole, and a much more gritty and dirty palette for Rat and the Baron. Their designs are also reminiscent of classic and modern cartoons like Looney Tunes, Ren & Stimpy and even The Jetsons, complete with exaggerated facial expressions and a lively shape structure. It's also a nice added bonus how all the effects come off as purely two dimensional without looking like out of place CGI, helping to fit the environment much better.

As for the characters, Xero & Mole have perfectly contrasting personalities. Where Xero is a bubbly albeit overtly curious spy, Mole is much more strict about their duties. Given that they need to retract the all seeing eye which Xero wants to test out its infinite possibilities it makes for a potentially fascinating duo. Rat on the other hand is more of a butt monkey who tries to do his best for the Baron only to constantly fail, but his antics are quite humorous in their own regard. The Baron himself is a notable Drakken and Doofenshmirtz wannabe, where he acts threatening yet it still pretty scrawny and juvenile at heart. That being said, he is certainly more menacing than those two, only proving how much he means business towards the modifyers.

Not to mention, the music score was done by Reccardi himself, and it comes mix a good mix of jazzy spy scores reminiscent of the 60s and rock & roll tracks. Depending on the sequence, the music can go from calm and collective to fast paced and energetic throughout. If there's anything negative I do have to say regarding the cartoon, it's that the ending does not fit very well. When you're pitching a pilot to anybody, it's not always a good idea to end off on a cliffhanger because then you're setting yourself up for inevitable failure if your concept gets rejected. That being said though, what he did get is a very enjoyable and upbeat animated short with lots of potential to be its own unique work, and even though it never got greenlit for television, it will still please the internet for many years to come.

Great concept, great pilot... Sadly, it seems abandoned... Lost forever like Half Life 3...

This actually came out in 2007, not 2010. It's a sad shame that both Nickelodeon, and even Cartoon Network, rejected this show. It would've saved either channel!!! This was made by Lynne Naylor and Chris Reccardi, who were known for their work on Tiny Toons, Ren and Stimpy, Powerpuff Girls (original), Samurai Jack, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!, Chowder, and even Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi (if I'm not mistaken). I really love the Modifyers, and I wish Disney Channel picked up this show, since both CN and Nick refused to pick this up. And I'm not joking, Cartoon Network was the only other network besides Nickelodeon that refused to pick this show up. This is why Disney Channel picked up the Modifyers. I just absolutely adore Mae Whitman's performance of Agent Xero. Agent Xero was such an adorable character, and I was so sad that I won't see her adventures with Mole. Since Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon still refused to green light this show, why not Disney Channel? I know this pilot is 10 years out of date, but it would've worked more if this was a TV series.

I am definitely me being biased cause I have an obsession with the show and the parody and the headline is pretty over the top but this is honestly a very good pilot. I am interested in the world of The Modifyers and want to see how it plays out but sadly it never got picked up, I have even read the show bible and tho it is really different from the pilot it is still really fascinating and makes me more sad about the pilot being rejected. The parody is also pretty good, Zone did a good job making a full 7 minute parody with only a 11 minute pilot to go off of. Lacy shadows is also my profile on discord because it's funny, idk I have a weird sense of humor. This show should've been picked up, but even if it did, I feel it would've maybe last one season and be like many other shows where it's fondly remember and a underrated Jem like Making Fiends or El Tigre. In conclusion, this show should've been picked up, also it good :)