# Ratz (TV series)

Ratz is a French-Canadian animated comedy adventure television series created by Richard Zielenkiewicz. The show stars two rats, Rapido and Razmo, aboard the S.S. Wanderer, a cheese-filled ship without an actual destination. The focus of the series is on the adventures of the two rats, including guarding the cheese, interacting with other stowaways and various ill-fated encounters with the crew. The rats themselves live in the hull of the ship in a lavish two-bedroom apartment.
The French version features the voices of the comedy duo Éric et Ramzy, while the English version features the voices of Terrence Scammell as Rapido and Rick Jones as Razmo.
The show premiered its first episode, "Cheese Connection" on March 7, 2003, on Teletoon, and the series finale episode, "Tomo the Sumo" aired on November 11, 2003. A previously unaired episode, "The Little Orphan", premiered on January 17, 2004. It can be streamed online since March 25, 2020 on Netflix, released in French first.
Ratz was originally titled Rapido (in an unaired pilot) and featured a chunkier animation style. Also of interest is the pure blend of traditional animation and 3D animation, and the eclectic soundtrack by Hervé Lavandier.

## Plot

Ratz mainly focuses on a duo of the eponymous rats, Rapido and Razmo, whose contrasting personalities often have them butt heads with each other. The only thing they both share is their love of cheese and live on board the S.S. Wanderer for that very reason. As they have occasional encounters with the ship's crewmates, or even get involved, the duo have all sorts of wacky misadventures. Some of the episodes also involve the rats having to deal with new one-shot characters.

## Characters

The series' titular duo are composed of two pitch-black rats, Rapido and Razmo, wearing helmets (with goggles attached) and outfits akin to a modern-day pilot (in red and blue, respectively), with elongated ears, lavender eyemask patterns and long snouts. Razmo is erroneously called "Ratz" on the blurb for the show in Sky program guides.
* Rapido is a jet set-wannabe with a huge ego to maintain. To get over his large self-doubts and low self-esteem, he acts condescendingly and often boasts having personal connections to various celebrities. Rapido is also a hypocrite, scolding Razmo sharply for engaging in an activity, then secretly pursuing the same later on. Rapido only has interest in himself and will not aide Razmo at all, unless the situation adversely affects himself. His interests include ratboard racing, celebrity magazines, fashion, house music, feeling important and wooing women. He is voiced by Terence Scammell, but was voiced by Ron Pardo in the pilot.
* Razmo is the shorter and stouter rat. He is a highly productive genius and mechanic, having invented the ratboard and being responsible for all mechanical and electrical issues. He is also forced to perform all chores as Rapido never lends a hand. This has led Razmo to become depressed, emotionally scarred and obsessive-compulsive. Razmo is also childish, sometimes speaking to a plush toy. His interests include playing stringed bass, jazz, counting the cheese, inventing and making friends. In the original Rapido short, Razmo had a Deep South accent; his voice was changed to have a slight Brooklyn accent. He is voiced by Rick Jones, but in the pilot, he was voiced by Scott McCord.
The rats themselves also have a means of transport (animated using cel-shaded 3D). An integral part of Ratz is the ratboard, a device resembling a mousetrap with a jet engine strapped to the back. The ratboard provides the rats with speedy travel in and around the ship. Rapido is very fond of his ratboard and enjoys challenging Razmo to races, often winning. Ratboards are also used to reach otherwise inaccessible places, provide speedy rescues, move things by tether or simply to impress guests. In spite of the ratboard's peculiar design choice, the rats humorously enough do not recognize an actual mousetrap, as seen in the episode "The Rat Exterminator". It is also seen in another episode that other rats can also ride on their own ratboards.
The crew of the S.S. Wanderer consists of three personnel: Benny the chef, Svetlana the engineer and The Captain. They aren't intended as the villains of the show, though, Benny is the one most enraged by the rats. The crew will usually return to their normal duties after brushing shoulders with Rapido and/or Razmo. Humorously enough, the crew's diet consists mostly of cheese (their cargo), which Svetlana hates and Benny is allergic to (although said allergies are not seen or discussed within the show).
* The Captain is a Scottish seaman and veteran of the seas. He is the only person who knows the final destination of the cheese in the cargo hold. Over the years, he has gone from a rather serious captain to a rather goofy one, often falling into reverie or suggesting absurd courses of action during crises. All of his orders are directed towards the other two crew members. The Captain is voiced by Tony Robinow.
* Svetlana, the Russian engineer. She is responsible for keeping the S.S. Wanderer afloat and is usually found in situations requiring her massive size and strength. Despite her role on the ship, Svetlana attempts to act feminine whenever possible, which isn't very often. She is often talking to or conspiring with Benny. Sveltana is voiced by Sonja Ball.
* Benny, the Japanese chef. Benny is the only one that will give chase to the rats. Despite having five years of culinary arts under his belt, Benny is usually preparing soufflés or sushi for the rest of the crew. He is usually interrupted by Rapido and Razmo when he brings aboard a live animal to be slaughtered. Benny is voiced by Arthur Holden.

## Episodes

| No. | Title | Written by | Storyboarded by | Original release date | Prod. code |
| 1 | "Cheese Connection" | François Boisivon | François Reczulski | September 21, 2003 (2003-09-21) | 101 |
| Benny and Svetlana make a deal with the local mafia: cheese for money. Razmo realizes the disappearance of part of the cheese and discovers the plot that is brewing. Rapido remains indifferent to the problem, thinking that Razmo is completely paranoid, but Razmo is right, sadly... ||||||
| 2 | "Rolling!" "Ça Tourne !" | Jean-Louis Momus and Vincent Paronnaud | François Reczulski | September 22, 2003 (2003-09-22) | 102 |
| Rapido, wanting to implement his "talents" as an actor, gives Razmo a camera for his "birthday". Disappointed at first, Razmo starts becoming a tyrannical upsetting dictator... er, director. ||||||
| 3 | "Screws Loose" "Le Boulon Manquant" | Antoine Le Bos and Eric Lodde | François Reczulski | September 23, 2003 (2003-09-23) | 103 |
| TBA ||||||
| 4 | "Hi Chick!" "Salut Ma Poule !" | Jean-Louis Momus and Vincent Paronnaud | François Reczulski | September 24, 2003 (2003-09-24) | 104 |
| It's finally spring, but Razmo feels depressed. After Rapido tries to cheer him up, the rats see a chicken about to be cooked by Benny. Razmo's not going to let this happen! ||||||
| 5 | "Out of Gas" "Panne Sèche" | François Le Verge | Charles Vaucelle | September 25, 2003 (2003-09-25) | 105 |
| TBA ||||||
| 6 | "Cheese Overboard" "Rat de Marée" | Juan Carlos Medina | François Reczulski | October 22, 2003 (2003-10-22) | 106 |
| TBA ||||||
| 7 | "Loop Da Loop" "Rapido Contre Looping" | Stéphane Melchior and François Reczulski | Charles Vaucelle | October 24, 2003 (2003-10-24) | 107 |
| TBA ||||||
| 8 | "The Night of the Toxic Goudas" "La Nuit du Gouda Toxique" | Jean-Louis Momus and Vincent Paronnaud | François Reczulski | October 29, 2003 (2003-10-29) | 108 |
| It’s Halloween and the ship has bought some toxic waste. It spills on Razmo’s gouda cheese jack o'lanterns, and they cause mayhem. According to Razmo, "they're alive, angry, and vicious!" ||||||
| 9 | "The Thief Who Came in from the Cold" "Un Ami Qui Vous Vent du Bien" | Françis Magnenot | Charles Vaucelle | November 17, 2003 (2003-11-17) | 109 |
| TBA ||||||
| 10 | "Eat as You Can" "Fromage à Gogo" | Hadrien Soulez Lariviere | Luc Vinciguerra | November 28, 2003 (2003-11-28) | 110 |
| The crew has installed a new engine. Rapido and Razmo are satisfied with it until they find out that the cheese is the power source! ||||||
| 11 | "So-Called Christmas Spirit" "Vendetta de Noël" | Jean-Louis Momus and Vincent Paronnaud | François Reczulski | December 23, 2003 (2003-12-23) | 111 |
| TBA ||||||
| 12 | "The Little Orphan" "Le Petit Orphelin" | Alex Donaro | François Reczulski | January 17, 2004 (2004-01-17) | 112 |
| TBA ||||||
| 13 | "The Curse of Rachamac" "La Malédiction de Rachamac" | Grégory Jarry | Sandra Derval | October 1, 2003 (2003-10-01) | 113 |
| TBA ||||||
| 14 | "Ragamuffin" "Monsieur Crapoli" | Nicolas Gallet | Charles Vaucelle | October 5, 2003 (2003-10-05) | 114 |
| TBA ||||||
| 15 | "Pearls Before Ratz" "Une Perle Rare" | Jean-Louis Momus and Vincent Paronnaud | Luc Vinciguerra | October 7, 2003 (2003-10-07) | 115 |
| TBA ||||||
| 16 | "Three to Tango" "Sérénade à Trois" | Pierre Olivier | François Reczulski | October 15, 2003 (2003-10-15) | 116 |
| TBA ||||||
| 17 | "Cheese Dreams" "Un Cauchemar de Fromage" | Nicolas Gallet | Charles Vaucelle | October 3, 2003 (2003-10-03) | 117 |
| After having another nightmare about a giant monster cheese, Razmo decides to make an invention to know why he has these nightmares. When it's hooked up to a piece of cheese, the cheese is seemingly alive! Razmo now protects the cheese with care, but Rapido won't have any of it. ||||||
| 18 | "Stop" | Hadrien Soulez Lariviere | Luc Vinciguerra | September 21, 2003 (2003-09-21) | 118 |
| After a terrible Rat-board accident, Razmo decides to set up signs and new modifications on the Rat-boards to limit risky driving. Rapido detests this, however. ||||||
| 19 | "The Genie" "Le Genie du Fromage" | Hadrien Soulez Lariviere | Charles Vaucelle | September 24, 2003 (2003-09-24) | 119 |
| Rapido discovers a genie who offers them to fulfill three wishes. Razmo wants to be a magnet for cheese and Rapido wants everything he touches to be turned into cheese. Alas, their newfound powers will transform their day into a nightmare. ||||||
| 20 | "Treasure Hunt" "Chasse au Trésor" | Pierre Olivier | François Reczulski | September 28, 2003 (2003-09-28) | 120 |
| TBA ||||||
| 21 | "The Godfathers" "Les Parrains" | Patricia De Figveiredo | Luc Vinciguerra | October 6, 2003 (2003-10-06) | 121 |
| TBA ||||||
| 22 | "The Year of the Rat" "L'Année du Rat" | Jean-Louis Momus | Charles Vaucelle | November 8, 2003 (2003-11-08) | 122 |
| TBA ||||||
| 23 | "The Hitchhiker" "Le Cargo Stoppeur" | Nicolas Gallet | François Reczulski | September 27, 2003 (2003-09-27) | 123 |
| TBA ||||||
| 24 | "Love Thy Neighbors" "Chacun Chez Soi" | Pierre Olivier | Luc Vinciguerra | October 10, 2003 (2003-10-10) | 124 |
| TBA ||||||
| 25 | "Bio Hazard" "Ecolo Mais Pas Trop" | Nicolas Gallet | Charles Vaucelle | October 8, 2003 (2003-10-08) | 125 |
| TBA ||||||
| 26 | "QueenfFor a Day" "La Reine des Tommes" | Thomas Szabo | Charles Vaucelle | October 9, 2003 (2003-10-09) | 126 |
| TBA ||||||
| 27 | "The Rat Exterminator" "Le Dératiseur" | Stéphane Melchior and François Reczulski | François Reczulski | October 17, 2003 (2003-10-17) | 127 |
| TBA ||||||
| 28 | "The Mermaids' Siren" "Le Chant Des Sirènes" | Loo Hui Phang and Françis Magnenot | François Reczulski | November 9, 2003 (2003-11-09) | 128 |
| TBA ||||||
| 29 | "Rabbits Rampage" "Le Coup Du Lapin" | Evelyne Hoffman and Emmanuelle Boutet | Charles Vaucelle | October 26, 2003 (2003-10-26) | 129 |
| TBA ||||||
| 30 | "Panic Mouse" "Panique à Bord" | Alain Vallejo | Luc Vinciguerra | October 2, 2003 (2003-10-02) | 130 |
| TBA ||||||
| 31 | "Canned Tuna" "Thon Heure à Sonné !" | Thomas Szabo | François Reczulski | October 13, 2003 (2003-10-13) | 131 |
| TBA ||||||
| 32 | "Monkey Business" "Drôle d'Oiseau" | Thomas Szabo | Charles Vaucelle | October 25, 2003 (2003-10-25) | 132 |
| TBA ||||||
| 33 | "Benny's Special" "La Recette Provencale De Benny" | Renée Falson | Luc Vinciguerra | October 14, 2003 (2003-10-14) | 133 |
| TBA ||||||
| 34 | "2001, A Cheese Odyssey" "2001, l'Odyssée de l'Emmenthal" | Thomas Szabo | Thomas Szabo | October 18, 2003 (2003-10-18) | 134 |
| TBA ||||||
| 35 | "Raz, Prince of Darkness" "Raz, Prince des Ténébres" | Nicolas Gallet | François Reczulski | October 19, 2003 (2003-10-19) | 135 |
| TBA ||||||
| 36 | "The Ugly Wormling" "Le Ver est Dans la Tomme" | Thomas Szabo | Luc Vinciguerra | October 31, 2003 (2003-10-31) | 136 |
| TBA ||||||
| 37 | "Kung Fu Muenster" "Kung Fu Münster" | Thomas Szabo | Thomas Szabo | October 23, 2003 (2003-10-23) | 137 |
| The freighter is moored in the port of Hong Kong. Razmo raves as he watches a kung fu movie on TV for the tenth time. In order to regain Razmo's interest, Rapido teaches him that he has perfectly mastered Shaolin combat techniques, following his stay in Tibet. ||||||
| 38 | "The Legend of Ratman" "La Légende de Ratman" | Pierre Olivier | Luc Vinciguerra | October 20, 2003 (2003-10-20) | 138 |
| After a terrible blow the head, Razmo wakes up as the freighter drops anchor in the harbor of grim Ratham City. The local boss, a huge masked rat nicknamed "the Docker", has decided to appropriate the cargo of rats, and these two had better not stand in his way. Cowardly, Rapido swears he won't. Razmo, appalled and disgusted by such cowardice, decides to protect the cheese alone, but Ratman comes! Pretentious like Rapido, he tries to compete with Razmo. ||||||
| 39 | "Stuck on You" "Indécrochable" | Jean-Louis Momus | François Reczulski | October 12, 2003 (2003-10-12) | 139 |
| Benny gets a rat hunter sent by his cousin. He is a hedgehog adept at non-violence. His attempts to gently evict him only attract jeers from the two rats. At the end of his patience and arguments, the hedgehog ends up unleashing his secret weapon, a huge chip, on Rapido and Razmo... ||||||
| 40 | "The Motivational Lobster" "Le Complexe de La Langouste" | Olivier Jean-Marie | Charles Vaucelle | October 24, 2003 (2003-10-24) | 140 |
| TBA ||||||
| 41 | "The Rat Who Would Be King" "Le Rat Qui Voulut Etre Roi" | Nicolas Gallet | Luc Vinciguerra | October 21, 2003 (2003-10-21) | 141 |
| TBA ||||||
| 42 | "Mackerel Brothers Blues" "Le Blues du Maquereau" | Olivier Jean-Marie | Luc Vinciguerra | October 22, 2003 (2003-10-22) | 142 |
| TBA ||||||
| 43 | "Sweet Freedom" "Liberté Chérie" | Pierre Olivier | Thomas Szabo | November 5, 2003 (2003-11-05) | 143 |
| TBA ||||||
| 44 | "Best Laid Plans of Ratz and Men" "Les Grandes Manoeuvres" | Jean-Louis Momus and Vincent Paronnaud | François Reczulski | November 10, 2003 (2003-11-10) | 144 |
| TBA ||||||
| 45 | "Friends for Life" "Amis pour la Vie" | Stéphane Piera | Luc Vinciguerra | October 28, 2003 (2003-10-28) | 145 |
| TBA ||||||
| 46 | "The Cheesball Champ" "Tacles et Raclettes" | Alain Vallejo | Fred Mintoff | October 29, 2003 (2003-10-29) | 146 |
| TBA ||||||
| 47 | "The Duel" "Le Duel" | Nicolas Gallet | François Reczulski | November 1, 2003 (2003-11-01) | 147 |
| TBA ||||||
| 48 | "Techno Armadillos" "Tatoo Tech" | Olivier Derynck | Luc Vinciguerra | October 20, 2003 (2003-10-20) | 148 |
| TBA ||||||
| 49 | "Catch a Falling Star" "SOS Météore" | Charles Vaucelle and François Reczulski | François Reczulski | November 2, 2003 (2003-11-02) | 149 |
| TBA ||||||
| 50 | "Razmo's Ark" "Le Cargo du Deluge" | Jean-Louis Momus | Luc Vinciguerra | November 4, 2003 (2003-11-04) | 150 |
| TBA ||||||
| 51 | "For Ernest" "Pour Ernest" | François Reczulski | François Reczulski | November 3, 2003 (2003-11-03) | 151 |
| TBA ||||||
| 52 | "Tomo the Sumo" "Tomo le Sumo" | Jean-Louis Momus and François Reczulski | François Reczulski | October 27, 2003 (2003-10-27) | 152 |
| TBA ||||||

## Reception

The series has no notable reviews and thus holds no Metacritic score.
While being targeted at young children in France, the series has gained a small cult following of older ages in Canada, due to its late-night timeslot. The show is also notable for its positive portrayal of rats, unusual for Western and North American cultures, which often give its fictional rats selfish, antagonizing and evil characteristics. The show is also fondly remembered in France, where it aired on France 3 in 2003, Canal J in 2004, Boing in 2012 and Gulli in 2008.

## Merchandise

* Ratz has Region 2 DVD volumes out in France and Belgium, released by Warner Home Video, containing eight episodes per DVD.
* An album, A fond les bananes !, featuring Éric et Ramzy, has also been released in France. The show's theme song "Pas de panique à bord", the record's opening track, was a minor hit in France.
* In Fall 2004, Smoby Toys released the toy line based on the show such as velvet furred dolls, real working play sets and plushies just like the show of the same name. But as of 2006, Smoby has discontinued the show's toy line.
* Ratz had CGI-animated music videos that were released on the Sparx Animation Studios website, along with Teletoon, with eight songs based from the album of the same name.