Dungeons & Dragons (TV series)

Dungeons & Dragons is an American animated television series that was a co-production of Marvel Productions 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 the characters contemplated killing their nemesis, Venger. In 1985, the National Coalition on Television Violence claimed it was the most violent show on network television. At least some of the criticism of the show was based not so much on its actual content, as its association with the Dungeons & Dragons franchise which had become highly controversial by the 1980s due to its supposedly occult content.

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 Productions catalog (minus the Hasbro related series), including all the airing rights. Saban later 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. BCI has recently acquired the DVD rights. The series was very successful in Brazil, and was aired during the Xou da Xuxa, the most famous Brazilian children's show. The whole series is currently available on DVD in the United Kingdom and was released in the United States on DVD for the first time ever on December 5, 2006. Currently, a fan of the show is trying to use some of the original characters voice to make the final episode according to the UK DVD set.

Premise
The general premise of the show is that a group of kids are pulled into the "Realm of Dungeons & Dragons" by taking a magical roller coaster trip at a fairground. Invariably, the children just want to get home, but often take detours to help people, or, especially, find that their fates are intertwined with the fate of others.

After arriving in the Realm, the children are a little out of place, but the Dungeon Master (named for the role of the referee in the role-playing game) appears, assuming the role of their mentor, and gives 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. This sequence was kept when the show was reaired by Fox, but was shortened and remixed with different music. Also the ending credit sequence was completely replaced by a generic closing credit sequence common to shows on the Fox network at the time. This is the version currently shown on Jetix (in the U.S.). The U.S. DVD release uses both the original 1st Season opening and original ending for all the episodes, but still includes all the various openings and endings in the special features. A storyboard for the second season's introduction can be viewed here

Main characters
The main characters of the show are the children, trying to find their way home. They are:

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)...

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 weapon-less 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 fulfil 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.

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.
 * 28 - Requiem - The children finally have a chance to return home - but is it worth the risk?
 * 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.

Awards

 * Nominated for the 1986 Young Artist Award in the category of outstanding young actress in an animation/voice-over (Tonya Gayle Smith)

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 Spain, the theme song "Dragones y Mazmorras" ("Dragons and Dungeons") sang by Parchís became very popular.

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.

DVD
The UK got DVDs of the series first in 2004. The US DVDs were released on December 5, 2006.

UK - From the Contender Entertainment Group
 * Dungeons & Dragons — The Complete Animated Series
 * Dungeons & Dragons volume 1
 * Dungeons & Dragons volume 2
 * Dungeons & Dragons volume 3
 * Dungeons & Dragons volume 4

US - From BCI Eclipse
 * Dungeons & Dragons — The Complete Series

Differences with the Pen & Paper Game

 * The "Dungeon Master" appears as a gnome-like character who interacts physically with the characters, acting as a mentor, with wizard or godlike powers. The Dungeon Master could as a result, in some rare instances, also be hurt or threatened in the show.  The DM of a pen & paper game does not have a physical manifestation or character representing him/herself in the game, but instead acts out the parts of Non-Player-Characters & Monsters, and gives descriptions of the player's physical surroundings, while acting as a referee.
 * Most D&D games have characters whose origins are in the world they exist, such as Greyhawk or the Forgotten Realms. In the show, the protagonists were children from Earth who were transported to "The Realm".
 * There are several appearances of creatures true to the game. Purple Worms, and other creatures were often accurately depicted in the show, clearly drawing inspiration from art within such books as the Monster Manual.  At times, however, the monsters differed from their game descriptions.  One case was the Beholder.  In the game, a beholder has different powers for each eye, but during the in-show appearance of "Eye of the Beholder", the beholder used generic energy blasts and "force tentacles".

Trivia

 * An urban legend regarding the show, which gained prominence in the 1990s, was the notion that the writers originally planned on ending the series with the shocking revelation that the main kid characters were actually all dead, having died on the rollercoaster that supposedly brought them into the mystic realm of the series and that the entire series takes place in Purgatory or Hell (depending on the version of the story being told). The show's writers have publicly dismissed this rumor.
 * 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. They also appear as good and evil Non-Player Characters - along with complete gaming statistics - in the Dungeons and Dragons accessory The Shady Dragon Inn, and Warduke has a Miniature.
 * The show was one of the greatest cartoon hits in Brazil, where it was known as Caverna do Dragão ("Dragon's Cave"), exhibited almost daily over 20 years. 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" ("Dungeon letter of the month"), "answered" by the Dungeon Master.
 * In one episode of the Brazillian MTV cartoon Megaliga de VJs Paladinos (translated roughly to Mega League of Paladin VJs), the heroes are lost in another dimension where they find the kids and Venger. When they come back, the kids lose the chance to get back home like the original series.
 * No major character in the show used a sword.
 * According to the series development bible included with the DVD box set of Dungeons & Dragons, Presto's real name was Albert.

Airing history
USA
 * CBS
 * FOX
 * Toon Disney (2006-)

UK
 * BBC
 * The Children's Channel
 * Boomerang (TBA)

Fansites

 * The Realm, by Zakiyah
 * Zakiyah's Links page - has links to many more fan sites.
 * Cavern of Tiamat - a comprehensive episode guide with more details.
 * - "Choices", the first live-action short based on the cartoon

Calabozos y Dragones (serie animada) Le Sourire du dragon Dungeons & Dragons (tekenfilm) Caverna do Dragão