The American animated television program Invader Zim was created by Jhonen Vasquez. On March30,2001, Nickelodeon broadcast the program's debut. The story centers on an extraterrestrial named Zim, who was born on the planet Irk, and his never-ending quest to subjugate and obliterate Earth. A young paranormal investigator named Dib, one of the few few persons observant enough to be aware of Zim's existence, and his malfunctioning robot companion GIR frequently work together to thwart his various attempts to control and kill the human race. After its debut season, Invader Zim's ratings started to fall. The show was aimed at kids in their early teens and received positive reviews. Nickelodeon canceled the show before the second season was finished, leaving at least 23 episodes and a planned television movie series finale unfulfilled. With a pilot, 46 episodes that have been shown, and around 17 episodes that were in production at the time the series was cancelled, the show has retained a cult following. The forty-six episodes were all broadcast on television on August19, 2006. 19 of the episodes are divided into two separate storylines, with each lasting roughly twelve minutes. Eight double-length episodes total. Except for the pilot, which was directed by Jordan Reichek, all of the episodes were helmed by Steve Ressel.