Mark Hamill, the actor formerly known as Luke Skywalker, has forged a career as a voice actor for cartoon series like Justic League and Robot Chicken. But his current gig as Skeleton King on Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! may be his most unusual. Segment producer Mike Shaw succeeded at getting a lengthy interview with Hamill, but we weren't able to use all of it on the show. Thus, here's the bonus expanded interview for your reading pleasure:

What’s your experience with anime-style cartoons?

My father was in the navy and he got transferred to Japan. So I spent the last few years going to high school in Yokahama. What a cultural shock it was because they already had anime big-time. They had Kimba, Speed Racer and Astro Boy. We didn’t watch a lot of television over there. What I am saying is manga and the fact that grown-ups read comics on the subways really made an impact on me. It gave me a different view on how material like that can be presented. There’s still an onus here in the United States. The phrase “comic book” seems to conjure up images of Mickey Mouse, Little Lu-Lu, and Archie, I guess. When people see adult material in graphic form it’s shocking to them. It’s not that way in Europe, either.

What did you think when you were offered something called “Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!"?

You never know what is going to fly. You read the script and you think well this is fun. It goes nowhere. With the monkeys I’m thinking it has got the energy of Ninja Turtles and it’s got the apoplectic bent of a Marvel comic, and Dr. Doom, and all of these elements. There is an episodic nature. Yes, stories are solved within that half-hour but there’s an arcing sort of reach to this thing. Those are always a gamble. A lot of times they prefer them to be more self-contained so you can run them out of order and do whatever you want. I kept my fingers crossed because I had a lot of fun doing it and I love the guys that write it. They’re just a good bunch. Low and behold we got picked up and we are going for a second season.

Who do you play, and what do you like about your character?

I am Skeleton King. It’s funny because you sort of get known as Luke and everyone thinks “Oh, he is this icon of valor.” But you know actors are hams. They want to play scenery chewing lunatics and goof balls. I didn’t want to play you know, scenery chewing lunatics and goof balls. I have been very lucky, at least on-Broadway and in animation, playing a lot of character roles that I love. I realize with animation that you are not going to be seen or get a lot of recognition. It was really good and healthy for me to realize, “who cares?” I mean, if you really enjoy what you are doing and the people you work with and you really enjoy your part of the process, then there is no downside. I don’t know how that happened. I think it was because I did the Joker and that went so well. They see that you can do that well and then they want you to do the same thing over and over again. It’s not easy because I was very protective of Joker. I didn’t want to do variations on that voice. With Skeleton King, that is not a problem.

How are your various cartoon villain characters different from one another?

My kids were all like “Are you going to haul that old tape out and watch yourself on the Flash?” I said no. I mean really it’s not the same continuity and it is a team-up with other villains. I am going to go in and see how Captain Cold sounds and I don’t know who else. There were about four of us in there. If he is doing lots of low tones-you want to work as a unit. It’s a case by case basis. So I don’t know how I got typed as a villain. They are really rich roles. It is fun to be the reason the antagonist can’t succeed and irritate everyone around you. People also forget that you don’t think of yourself as a villain. I mean I certainly don’t think of myself as a villain. As Skeleton King he knows the way the world or the universe should be run and he wants the job. Hey, what is the problem there? Joker, he is a comedic genius. He would get his full recognition if it weren’t for the psycho in the bat suit. You really tend to see the series from your point of view. Remember that these robot-monkeys are these irritating little creatures that stand in your way of world domination.

Which is your favorite animation project?

As a teenager I did a few things: I did a Ralph Bakshi movie, Wizards, and then I did a series at Hanna Barbara. Then for some reason, it was partially my fault for not pursuing it. I really loved animation from the start. But I was so anxious to do so much. I really wanted to do live theatre. I really wanted to do TV. So it kind of slipped by the wayside. It wasn’t until it came back, I think in ’91. I got spoiled. The Batman series was still one of my favorite shows I’ve ever done. It was so well written and really had a nice sense of variety from the dramatic moments to the silliness, satire and all of it.

Do you ever examine how other actors have approached the role of Joker?

Kevin Michael Richardson is now the Joker on the new incarnation and he is in Comic Book: The Movie. He is a friend of mine. He almost was apologetic when he said he was going to be doing Joker. I said, “Good for you.” I mean, it was the longest run I had ever had. It was 13 years. You should be lucky to go that long. Joker is one of those characters that will be reinterpreted like Hamlet. I mean there’s no definitive. I loved Jack Nicholson. I thought Cesar Romero was great. I would have asked him to shave the mustache. But other than that, it’s perfectly legitimate to reinvent it for other generations.

How did you interpret the Joker as a character?

The teeth really reminded me of the blue Meanies from Yellow Submarine. So I wanted to have that feeling like I’m teetering. I always pictured the Joker as a guy who is trying to maintain his sanity at any given moment. And that the danger is that he would go off. It was interesting to me that Frank Gorshin said it was not so much the sound of the Riddler’s laugh, it was what he laughed at that made it creepy. So that was a nice clue. With Joker I just thought he had to be larger than life and very harlequin and theatrical. So I got to use that mid-Atlantic British which theatrical impresarios tended to affect, especially at the turn of the century. Other than that it was usually the writing of Paul Dini and just what was required in the script. People were always nailing me. I would say a line and they would say that is so Bette Davis. Bette Davis? I would ask them how they got that. "Well you just said 'Isn’t that fine,' with that kind of 'What a dump.'” I mean I didn’t mean to do it intentionally. People would point it out to me. I would say to them you know you are right that does sound a little like Howard Cosell there. I don’t consciously model it against everyone. He is such a myriad of personalities that you can kind of shove everybody in there from Jerry Lewis to Charles Laughton.