Your continued donations keep Wikipedia running!
Dungeons & Dragons (TV series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dungeons & Dragons is an American animated television series that was a coproduction of Marvel Comics and TSR, and made in the United States during the 1980s. Based on TSR's Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, the show was popular in the US, and ran for three seasons on CBS.
Although aimed at a young audience as many animated series are, the show had distinctive plots, and was unusual in children's television for the amount of ethical awareness and empathy displayed to and encouraged in the viewer. It was not unusual for members of the band to lose hope or break down in tears, only to be comforted by others, or reinvigorated through good works. The level of violence was controversial for children's television at the time, and the script of one episode, "The Dragon's Graveyard", was almost shelved because one of the characters contemplated killing one of their enemies. [1] In 1985, the National Coalition on Television Violence claimed it was the most violent show on television.
In 1987, the series premiered in France, and in the United Kingdom, satellite television channels were showing re-runs at least into the late 1990s. In 1999, Saban Entertainment bought out the Marvel cartoons, including all the airing rights. Saban merged with the Fox Entertainment Group, and for a while (about six months), the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon was aired during the Saturday morning and weekday afternoon FoxKids time block. In August 2002, Disney acquired Fox & Saban and gained the broadcast rights to the cartoon; however, it had not been shown on any affiliated television channel until April 7, 2006, when it was broadcast on Jetix on Toon Disney.
Contents |
[edit]
Premise
The general premise of the show was that a group of kids were pulled into the "Realm of Dungeons & Dragons" by taking a magical rollercoaster trip at a fairground. Invariably, the children just wanted to get home, but would often take detours to help people, or, especially, find that their fates intertwined with the fate of others.
After arriving in the Realm, the children were a little out of place, but the Dungeon Master (named for the role of the referee in the role-playing game) appeared, assuming the role of their mentor, and gave them each clothing and magical paraphernalia to suit their abilities.
The original title sequence is a concise dramatization of the kids' arrival in the realm and the assignment of their respective character classes. The second season version begins with the ride, only to shift to a stylized action sequence with the kids, more accustomed to the demands of the realm, capably doing battle. A storyboard for the second season's introduction can be viewed here
[edit]
Main characters
The main characters of the show were the children, trying to find their way home. They were:
|
Hank (voice: Willie Aames): The oldest of the gang, and a natural leader, he is also the most level-headed, and his orders are (with the usual exception of Eric) not questioned. Hank is a Ranger, with a magical bow that shoots magical arrows of glowing energy. Besides occasional fighting, Hank often uses these glowing arrows to simply light a room, to activate switches out of reach, to span gaps, to create climbing ropes or swings etc. Hank makes a cameo in Baldur's Gate II. |
|
Diana (voice: Tonya Gail Smith): The acrobat, and the token black character in the series. She is good at handling animals, and is a self-assured, confident person, who keeps a cool head in hot situations but is able to connect with each of the group. She is often the one most likely to be able to counter a wisecrack from Eric. These qualities make her the natural leader in the abscence of Hank. Diana has a magical kind of telescopic pole (sometimes called a javelin) that can be used for vaulting, spanning gaps, etc., which complements her natural acrobatic talents. |
|
Sheila (voice: Katie Leigh): The thief. Sheila has a magical cloak that, when the hood is raised over her head, would make her invisible. She is Bobby's older sister and therefore very protective of him. Sheila is usually sensible, kind and friendly, but she is also (perhaps with the exception of Presto) the one character plagued by self-doubt and fear; her greatest fear is to be totally alone, making her invisibility cloak (with which she could be totally ignored even in a crowd) a somewhat ironic accoutrement. However, on occasion she is daring enough to trick her enemies (like driving a band of Venger's lizard men and bullywugs against each other). Her compassion and friendliness have made her several friends in the Realm. It is generally rumored by fans (see fanon) that she is actually in love with Hank, but that is never truly confirmed in the series. |
|
Eric (voice: Don Most): The Cavalier. He is the typical spoiled kid from a rich home. On the surface Eric is the big-mouthed coward whiner of the show, a smart-alec who is always ready with a sarcastic comment or a dry one-liner at the most inopportune moment. However, these lines are the most humorous in the show, and as well as being "cavalier" (in all likelihood a pun given his nature), Eric also fulfills the role of the comic relief character. Despite his egotism, selfish-traits, and snobbery, Eric is potentially also the most realistic character complaining about the dire situations they find themselves in, and voicing concerns which might be common to inhabitants of our world transplanted to the 'Realm'. His greatest fear is ridicule, dovetailing with both his insulting demeanor and his use of a shield. Despite his cowardice and reluctance, Eric has a well-hidden heroic core, and saves his friends from danger with his magical shield, which can project a force field, and sometimes is the one who comes up with a decisive idea. |
|
Presto (voice: Adam Rich): The wizard. Presto is the well-meaning, diligent, but hopeless magician. He is something of a caricature of the stereotypical "nerd" figure prevalent in early 1980s comedies (cf. Anthony Michael Hall): he suffers from low self-confidence and nervousness, which manifests in the use of his magic item; his magical hat allows him to pull all sorts of items from it, but usually either not the ones he needs or them being in a form least expected but useful (a working fire hose against a lava dragon, or a weed-killer sprayer against a Shambling Mound, a plant-like monster). And just like Velma Dinkley in the Scooby Doo series, he's completely helpless without his glasses. |
|
Bobby (voice: Ted Field III): The barbarian. Bobby is the youngest member of the team. He is dressed in fur pants and boots, a horned helmet and a crossbelt harness. He has a magic club so powerful that it can produce earthquakes. He is Sheila's younger brother and (as appropriate for his age) impulsive and ready to run headlong into battle, even against physically superior enemies. He has a close relationship with Uni. Bobby also makes a cameo in Baldur's Gate II. |
|
Uni (voice: Frank Welker): Bobby's baby pet unicorn, which he discovered in the first episode and remains his companion throughout the show. She has the ability to speak, though her words are not quite discernible; she usually takes to echoing Bobby when she agrees to his opinions. Uni is cute and mostly helpless, and becomes the victim in need of rescue from distress in some episodes, although she can also be helpful in some situations, such as when she helped guide Presto when he was separated from the others in "P.R.E.S.T.O. Spells Disaster." In addition, although she is rarely seen using it, Uni has her species' ability to teleport once a day, although this ability was not revealed until the fourth episode. While adult unicorns whinny like horses, Uni bleats like a goat, perhaps because she is still a colt/kid. On those rare occasions when Bobby and the others actually approach returning to Earth, it is presumed that Uni must regrettably be left behind, since it is unclear if she could survive away from the Realm. |
|
Dungeon Master (voice: Sidney Miller): The group's friend and mentor, who provides important advice and help, but often in a cryptic way that would not make sense until the team has completed the quest of each episode. It is Dungeon Master who supplied the companions with their weapons and clues for their numerous opportunities to return home; from apparent and repeated displays of power, it seems possible (even likely) that Dungeon Master could easily return the companions home himself. It is possible that the quests on which Dungeon Master sends the children are in reality ways for him to use them to right injustices "along the way". |
|
Venger (voice: Peter Cullen): The main antagonist and Dungeon Master's son (as revealed in the episode "The Dragon's Graveyard" and again in the lost episode "Requiem"). Venger is an evil force, comparable to the devil. He has one horn, powerful magic, and powerful minions, most notably his personal spy and right-hand 'man', the Shadow Demon. His voice is deep and has an artificial reverberation (reminiscent of Darth Vader's). Importantly, though, he is far from invincible and is often thwarted by the kids. |
|
Tiamat (voice: Frank Welker): Venger's arch-rival, a fearsome dragon with a screeching voice and five heads. Although Venger and the children generally avoid Tiamat, the children make a deal with her in one episode ("The Dragon's Graveyard") to thwart Venger. Tiamat's five heads correspond to the five types of chromatic dragon in the Dungeons & Dragons game, where she originated as a monster. She is named after the Tiamat consort to Bahamut of Babylonian mythology. |
[edit]
Episode & Plot guide
[edit]
Season One: 1983-1984
- 01 - The Night of No Tomorrow - Presto, teased one too many times for his unpredictable magic, decides to enter into an apprenticeship with Merlin while the rest of the gang reluctantly journey to the town of Helix. The only problem...Merlin has been dead for centuries, and Presto's just undone his biggest spell!
- 02 - Eye of the Beholder - The kids are charged with defeating the evil Beholder who guards a portal to Earth, but first their new friend, the cowardly knight Sir John, must overcome his own fears.
- 03 - The Hall of Bones - The weapons are failing, and must be recharged in the Hall of Bones. The kids run into trouble trying to find a guide to get them there, and into more trouble when the guide charges more than they can afford!
- 04 - Valley of the Unicorns - The evil wizard Kelek is making a bid for power by stealing unicorn horns, including Uni's. When the kids find themselves no match for the madman, they have to turn to their enemy for help.
- 05 - In Search of the Dungeon Master - Dungeon Master has been captured by the evil bounty hunter Warduke, who plans to sell the helpless mage to Venger. But before they can rescue him, they must first rescue themselves and their fellow slaves from Venger's slave mines of Barramore.
- 06 - Beauty and the Bogbeast - Eric does not heed Dungeonmaster's warning, "Beware the Beauty that breathes the Beast..." Now he must help a tribe of bogbeasts fight off the evil ogre damming the River that Rains Upside Down to free himself from a curse and help his friends get home.
- 07 - Prison Without Walls - The Heartless Dragon must have a heart before the great conjunction of the four suns in order to send the kids home, and that means the gang must first locate and free the Spellbinder Lukion to save his fellow gnomes from Venger.
- 08 - Servant of Evil - It's Bobby's birthday, but Venger's lizardmen crash his party and kidnap his companions. Now, aided only by Uni and Dungeonmaster's magical amulet, Bobby must befriend the reluctant giant Karox and free his friends from Venger's Prison of Agony.
- 09 - Quest of the Skeleton Warrior - The Circle of Power might help the kids get home as well as free the skeleton warrior Dekion from Venger's curse, but it lies hidden within the deadly Tower of the Celestial Knights that uses one's worst fears against those who dare to enter.
- 10 - The Garden of Zinn - Bobby is bitten by a poisonous beast, and left in the care of the kindly-but-misshapen Sorlars while the gang seek the only known cure in the Garden of Queen Zinn. Zinn will gladly give them the cure-- if Eric will agree to marry her!
- 11 - The Box - The gang must free the good sorceress Zandorra from where Venger imprisoned her, using a magic Box that, when placed in the proper location, will lead to a doorway back to Earth.
- 12 - The Lost Children - While searching for a mysterious ship that will take them home, the kids team up with another gang of lost children to save their elder, Alfour, held prisoner in Venger's castle along with the ship.
- 13 - P-R-E-S-T-O Spells Disaster - Presto bungles yet another spell, and he and Uni must face enormous danger to rescue both their friends and the last of the Golden Dragons from the infamous Giant With the Brooklyn Accent (and his slimebeast, Willy)...
[edit]
Season Two: 1984-1985
- 14 - The Girl Who Dreamed Tomorrow - The Dungeons and Dragons coaster ride drops off another visitor to the Realm, this one a girl named Terry who can dream the future. Using her visions to guide them, the gang must find their way through Venger's Maze of Darkness.
- 15 - The Treasure of Tardos - Venger loses control of his new creation Demodragon, a being that is half demon, half dragon, created to breach the impregnable Tardos Keep. After the beast steals their weapons, the kids must team up with Venger to stop the creature. But trusting Venger isn't always the best alternative...
- 16 - City at the Edge of Midnight - Bobby, along with hundreds of other children from the Realm and Earth, is kidnapped by the hideous Nightwalker. Aided by Rahmud, the caravan merchant whose daughter Ayeesha was also stolen, the gang must find the hidden City at the Edge of Midnight to free them.
- 17 - The Traitor - Bobby and Hank are captured by Venger, and Hank alone escapes....or does he? Sheila proves he's working for Venger, and has returned to capture the gang and their newfound friends, the tree-dwelling Cloud Bears. Now Hank must find a way to both save Bobby and clear his own name.
- 18 - The Last Illusion - Varla, the lovely illusionist, is held prisoner by Venger, who uses her powers against the children. The six kids find themselves weaponless and accused of witchcraft, and must convince Varla's parents to help them free her. Presto has a mysterious bond with the girl that leads them to her, but in the end it's up to Varla to save them.
- 19 - Day of the Dungeon Master - Dungeonmaster decides to take a vacation, leaving Eric to fill his red robes for the day. Aided only by cryptic instructions and Eric's unreliable new knowledge, the gang must find the Golden Grimoire in the city of Darkhaven, which will show Eric how to send them home.
- 20 - Child of the Stargazer - Diana falls in love with Kosar, a young man who is destined to fulfill a prophecy that will both end the reign of the evil Queen Syrith over the city of Tarod, and send the children home.
- 21 - The Dragon's Graveyard - Venger has destroyed one portal too many, and the furious kids work out a plan to defeat him once and for all in Tiamat's home, the Dragon's Graveyard, where their weapons can overpower him.
[edit]
Season Three: 1985-1986
- 22 - The Dungeon at the Heart of Dawn - Eric's curiosity about a seemingly harmless box leads to the return of the most powerful enemy the kids have ever faced, He Whose Name Cannot Be Spoken. With both Dungeonmaster and Venger drained of their magic, the race is on to see who can recharge at the energy spring in the Dungeon at the Heart of Dawn first...before the Nameless One destroys the entire Realm!
- 23 - The Time Lost - Venger's got a new idea for eliminating his annoying young enemies, and pulls both a futuristic plane and a WWII Nazi fighter pilot into the Realm using his Crystal of Chronos. Venger intends to send Josef Mueller, the pilot, back to Earth to win the war for Germany, but after meeting the kids, Josef has other plans.
- 24 - Odyssey of the Twelfth Talisman - A lonely but sharp-witted orphan, Lorne, finds a lost amulet that leads him into big trouble. He and Eric become fast friends through the usual exchange of insults and put-downs, and the gang teams up with him on their search for the Stone of Astra. But the wizard Korlok, who also seeks the Stone, is following them...
- 25 - Citadel of Shadow - Anxious to prove her worth after a botched thieving job, Sheila befriends Kareena, a young woman who is more than she appears to be. Soon the kids are in the middle of a VERY bitter family feud indeed!
- 26 - The Winds of Darkness - The Darkling, a skeletal creature of darkness, kidnaps Hank. The kids have to convince the kindly Martha to help rescue their leader, before the Darkling claims his final victim and his Winds of Darkness destroy all light in the Realm. But Martha has been hurt by the creature one too many times and wants nothing to do with their quest.
- 27 - Cave of the Fairie Dragons - Tasmira, queen of the Faerie Dragons, is held prisoner by the greedy King Varen, who desires the fabulous treasure they guard. Aided by the sassy little dragon Amber, the gang must free her and help her people relocate to a new home.
[edit]
The Lost Episode
- 28 - Requiem - The children finally return home.
- This episode was written by the series original scriptwriter Michael Reaves but was never produced, although he did publish the script on his personal website. Michael's take on the rumors of a lost episode can be found here.
[edit]
The cast
[edit]
Awards
- 1986 Nominated Young Artist Award: Outstanding Young Actress - Animation Voice Over (Tonya Gayle Smith)
[edit]
Theme song
The cartoon ran in the United Kingdom and United States with an instrumental theme song; however, in France it ran with the song "Le Sourire du Dragon" sung by Dorothée. In other countries, it also ran with a local translation of this song. However, in Brazil, due to a change in character roles, the lyrics are altered.
[edit]
Trivia
- The characters Kelek (Valley of the Unicorns), Warduke (Search for Dungeon Master) and Strongheart (Servant of Evil) were part of a Dungeons & Dragons action figure toy line released in the 80s.
- The show was a huge hit in Brazil, where it was known as Caverna do Dragão ("Cave of the Dragon"). Due to many e-mails asking about a film adaptation, the movie magazine Set begun in its mail section a part called "Carta-Caverna do Mês"("Cavern letter of the month"), "answered" by the Dungeon Master.
[edit]
External links
[edit]
See also
- Katie Leigh - fansite for the woman who voiced Sheila, Katie Leigh.
- POVonline - Mark Evanier developed the series and wrote the pilot. He comments the series on his weblog (e.g. [2]) and on his main site ([3], [4]).
- About Katherine Lawrence - Katherine Lawrence has fond memories of D&D (first script she sold).
- Jeffrey Scott's site, www.jeffreyscott.tv - Jeffrey Scott has been working for a long time in animation, including Dragon Tales.
- Michael Reaves' site - Michael Reaves wrote several episodes including the unproduced finale.
[edit]
Fansites
- The Realm, by Zakiyah - possibly the most comprehensive fan site on the internet.
- Zakiyah's Links page - has links to many more fan sites.
- Cavern of Tiamat - a comprehensive episode guide with more details.
