It was supposed to be a three-minute parody of Hollywood action movies. But when MTV aired Æon Flux in 1991, the cartoon – and its scantily clad superheroine – captured the attention of sci-fi fans worldwide and spawned a short-lived animated TV show. “I thought the character and the series were dead when the show was discontinued 10 years ago,” says creator Peter Chung. They’re not. Æon Flux (starring Charlize Theron) returns as a live-action, full-length feature on December 2. “I’m thrilled to death,” Chung says, but since MTV owns the franchise, “I feel a little helpless in that the film was out of my hands.” Chung did get a sneak peek at the Hollywood version of his bizarre sci-fi world and its inhabitants. He provided Wired with a quick review.

What cartoon creator Peter Chung would have done differently …

THE SETTING

“One thing I disagreed with – and asked them to change, although they didn’t – is that it’s set on a particular date in the future. There’s a backstory, the majority of Earth’s population has been wiped out, and the survivors are restricted to this walled city ruled by Trevor. I tried to leave that open so viewers could project their own world upon the work.”

THE STYLE

“I think the filmmakers may have erred in trying to reproduce the style of my version. It’s a different medium. I’d have done things that were more, well, live-action, rather than reproduce the clean, graphic look of the animation.”

THE FASHION

“They’ve taken the characters of Æon and Trevor in a different direction. I designed Trevor to contrast visually with Æon, but in the movie he looks very similar to her. I do like the way the live-action film reinterpreted Æon’s hair. Her costume? I’m kind of ambivalent about that.”