Action League Now! (advertised as Action League Now!: The Series when packaged into a half-hour block) is a series of stop motion shorts that aired as part of both All That and KaBlam! on Nickelodeon. It was made using "chuckimation", a combination of stop-frame animation and live-action shots where things are simply thrown ("chucked") or dropped into frame to simulate movement, and wiggled around to simulate talking. The series follows the adventures of a superhero league, composed of various action figures, toys, and dolls. The show was created by Robert Mittenthal, Will McRobb, and Albie Hecht.
Most episodes took place in a house of an unseen resident. Many of the characters were voiced by radio personalities from Pittsburgh.
From 1998 to February 10, 2002, Nickelodeon briefly ran Action League Now! shorts on their own, combined to fill a half-hour timeslot. These standalone edits are available on Paramount+.
Characters
The Flesh (Jim Krenn) "He's super strong and super naked!" A blonde, muscular, dimwitted bodybuilder who never wears clothes. His catchphrases include simple, immature terms such as "Ouchies!", "Oopsies!", and "Yummies!". The Flesh is rather clumsy and usually gets in the way of the other Action Leaguers when they're trying to save the day (by injuring them), but means no harm. His super power is super strength and he has been shown capable of lifting things many times his sizes such as buses and bricks. The figure used for Flesh was a modified Conan the Adventurer action figure.
Thundergirl (Cris Winter) "She flies ... like thunder!" The only female member of the team, as well as the only one with the ability to fly. She usually accompanies her flight with a song similar to the tune of John Williams' Star Wars theme with the lyrics, "Thundergirl flying like thunder," (This was dropped later on in the series). Thundergirl does not appreciate Meltman's crush on her, and usually ignores his professions of love (and sometimes slaps him). She does not seem to think of herself as an equal to the rest of the League, thinking of herself as superior instead. A recurring gag is her statement that she will use her super strength only to realize too late that she does not have super strength. The figure used for Thundergirl was a Sindy doll's head on an unknown superhero figure body. Her image is a combination of Barbie and She-Ra.
Stinky Diver (Jim Krenn) "A former navy commando with an attitude as bad as his odor!" A mustachioed diver who is often seen in or around toilets. He speaks with an Australian-type accent, even though an episode title ("Mad Dogs and Englishmen") suggested him being English. In that episode, it is revealed that he became cold after his mom ratted him out to the enemy during the Gulf War for money. As his name makes obvious, Stinky has a foul odor, but the Action League seems to have gotten used to it and don't mind it most of the time. Owns a beach house (in reality, a life-size portable toilet) and a vast collection of toilet paper, which come in many different colors. He is the most frequent driver of the Action Mobile, the League's official transportation device (a big, red remote-control car). Although he lacks any superpowers he has the ability to pull a spear gun out of thin air and can fire a seemingly endless amount of plastic missiles. Stinky is an altered 1994 G.I. Joe Shipwreck action figure.
Meltman (Scott Paulsen) "With the power to... melt!" Meltman has the "power" to melt and is the smallest and weakest member of the Action League. He has a long-running crush on Thundergirl, who does not reciprocate his feelings for her. As melting is his only ability, Meltman is quite unhelpful and a borderline burden and is considered by the rest of the League to be their personal servant, often fulfilling such chores as getting them sodas, donuts, and other things. For this reason, Meltman is always looking for ways to get the League to appreciate him. In two different episodes, it is revealed that his full name is Barry Meltfarb, although he claims to have changed the surname to his superhero name. As he once stated to a viewer he has never used his power since there is no need for it. The Chief considers him to be "as yellow as a jar of mustard at a jaundice convention." Meltman is a Robin Hood figure that was melted with a blow torch.