Dungeons & Dragons - The Complete Animated Series
by Karl Geurs, John Gibbs (II), Bob Richardson
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DVD details
Actor: Bob Holt, Diane Pershing, Georgi Irene, Maia Mattisse, Russi TaylorDirector: Bob Richardson, John Gibbs (II), Karl Geurs
Brand: BCI ECLIPSE LLC
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Animated, Box set, Collector's Edition, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 594 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-12-05
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: BCI - A Navarre Corporation Company
DVD Reviews of Dungeons & Dragons - The Complete Animated Series
DVD Review: Dungeons and Dragons animated DVD
Summary: 4 Stars
I am very happy with the purchase. The product is in excellent condition and the delivery was prompt. My family enjoys watching the old cartoons.DVD Review: larry
Summary: 5 Stars
Waited a long time for these to come out on dvd. Episode 1 through til the end. Last episode was never animated. But they have a good narration of what the last episode so you at least know what happened. Worth every cent. Truly.
DVD Review: Dungeons and Dragons
Summary: 5 Stars
These cartoons are just as good as I remember them. I was so glad to see these on DVD. I used to have most of these episodes on VHS tape. I loved these when I was in high school and now my 3 boys are enjoying them too. DVD Review: Great Show/ Great DVD Set
Summary: 4 Stars
Fact: I was a bit apprehensive about taking on the assignment of reviewing BCI's Complete Dungeons & Dragons DVD box set. And the reason may surprise you. D&D was one of those cartoons that I watched as a kid back in the early 1980s nearly every week without fail that was unique in two areas: First, it was one of few shows that I was engrossed in that wasn't toy-driven. In other words, unlike He-Man and most other animated programs I consider myself a fan of, I never had a D&D toy with which to continue my own version of the excitement once the show faded to black. Secondly, despite my youth at the time of its original CBS broadcast, this one managed to stick with me even after all these years. Somehow I still recalled quotes from episodes that I hadn't had any contact with for 25 years. Not bad considering I have difficulty recalling quotes that my boss bestowed upon me just yesterday.
So what's the problem with jumping back in to a series that I regard so highly you ask? I feared that perhaps I remembered it too fondly! So often in revisiting landmarks of our own youth, we're sadly disappointed in how unimpressive the experience actually is. We all have a tendency of making things more grandiose over time. I figured maybe Dungeons & Dragons was best left to the blissful halls of memory where it was, in my opinion, nothing short of classic.
That said, I reluctantly slipped the first of this five-disc compilation into the player in the hopes that I hadn't disturbed a childhood memory. Boy was I in for a surprise! Rather than disappointing me with a lesson in the limitations of early 1980s animation or the realities of standards and practices when it comes to children's television, I was instead immediately reminded of why I loved the show so much back then. Let me begin this review by saying that truly Dungeons & Dragons was ahead of its time on many levels.
The saga begins with an episode that aired on September 17, 1983 in the form of a pilot written by the then overworked Mark Evanier. And while old Mark would contribute only this single episode to the 27 total, he deserves praise for kicking things off on the right foot. Perhaps the show's greatest strength lies in the rich development of the main characters. So often in animation of the time we had heroes who were basically interchangeable in their lines. All of the good guys were essentially the same guy differentiated only by their appearance while all of the bad guys existed only to destroy the good guys. D&D laid this archetype to rest with six protagonists who had personalities all their own. Not only that but the characters played off each other to perfection. Somehow the show's writers managed to capture the subtle (yet often over the top) dynamic that a fairly large group of children would possess in their interaction. Not only that but these were children who wanted, more than anything else, to simply return home. As a result the writers were presented with many interesting dynamics of individual frustrations and the group's resulting resourcefulness.
To aid them on their journey was the enigmatic Dungeon Master, who appeared and disappeared at will but not before dispensing a clue (riddle) that would point our heroes into the right direction. Their ultimate goal was to simply leave the realm of D&D behind and return home to their families. While that sounds simplistic enough from afar, the show was quite unique in that there were no shortage of opportunities for them to do so along the way. More often than not, their staying in the realm was the result of a decision they consciously made to do what was morally right over what they desired most. While it is said that the proverbial "dangling of the carrot" keeps the show moving, the creative team behind D&D was wise to keep that carrot in the foreground of the action on a nearly weekly basis. While we all secretly wished the kids could just go back home, it was their failures that kept us tuning in week after week.
This time around I was far more aware of the show's pop culture inspirations. While the series was modeled after the popular role playing game of the same name, it obviously drew more inspiration from Star Wars than it did rolling dice and earning points. In fact not subtle are the similarities between Hank (the ranger) and Luke Skywalker, Dungeon Master and Yoda, and I won't even bother getting too deeply into the Cloud Bears (let's just say the Ewok village doesn't exist only on the forest moon of Endor but in the Realm of D&D as well). These uncanny similarities are quite forgivable however, as they don't simply rip off the blockbuster franchise but rather "borrow" from some of the energy that made it so popular even after all of these years. Much in the way George Lucas is credited for taking pieces and bits of classic film elements to give Star Wars its timeless appeal, so too does D&D implement these charms.
The other element of D&D that makes the show remarkable nearly three decades after the fact are the environments and backgrounds. Here is a program that finally delivers upon the potential that is so often flaunted in fantasy shows but so seldom realized. Somehow the Realm just feels spooky. Be it the result of excellently painted skies with many suns and moons or perhaps the fact that rarely are our heroes situated in the same place twice, or maybe it's just the interesting creatures they encounter lurking around nearly every corner. Whatever the case (probably a combination of all of the elements mentioned above) it just plain works. This type of attention to detail is present everywhere in this series and as a result, the show holds up even against today's best fantasy efforts.
As far as the packaging and presentation itself, this is BCI here people need I say more? In the event that you've been living under a rock, BCI are the people responsible for bringing such franchises as all three iterations of He-Man, She-Ra, and The Legend of Prince Valiant to DVD. Their beautiful box artwork, disc art, color booklets, and thorough behind the scenes bonus features are without rival in the industry and D&D is no exception. This time around the powers that be managed to track down many of the show's writers, producers, and even network executives to offer up two full length episode audio commentaries and a 32 minute documentary entitled "Entering the Realm of Dungeons and Dragons". Like most of BCI/ Ink & Paint productions, this compilation is rife with scripts, storyboards, character profiles, model sheets, art, and memorabilia but most impressive here are the inclusion of a live action fan film and a radio presentation of the show's final (previously unproduced) episode, Requiem. That's right folks, the script written by Michael Reaves back in 1985 to conclude the show is not only here but acted out to provide a sense of closure to the series as a whole. Did I mention attention to detail?
In conclusion, BCI has managed to up the ante once again by releasing a collection of animation that oozes with the type of quality that a true collector would expect. The show itself is absolutely wonderful; tapping into the timeless ideals and morals that make most fantasy/ fairy tales endure and BCI's thorough touch is simply the icing on the cake.
DVD Review: Welcome
Summary: 5 Stars
I used to love this cartoon when it was on Saturday mornings. My brother was more of a Dungeon and Dragons fanatic than me. He liked the actual game, I liked the cartoon.
The cartoon is basically about a few kids who are together at a carnival. They go on this ride and are transported to another realm, This realm is inhabited with many mythical creatures such as unicorns, 3 headed dragons, and a evil sorcerer named Venger. The kids, led by Dungeon Master who appears out of nowhere, says a riddle for the kids to complete a quest, journey or a way to get home. The kids: an acrobat, cavalier, ranger (with the best energy bolt arrows), a young barbarian, and a magician are given special weapons and/or equipment. Venger, the evil sorcerer wants the special weapons and equipment. So the kids have to watch out for Venger as well as the 3-headed dragon named Teamac who can't stand Venger as well as the kids.
The stories are nicely developed and if you are into fantasy and mythical creatures, you will like this. The box comes with all of the episodes in the short animated series that use to be on Saturday mornings. There are a lot of goodies within the box. Mine came with a metal dragon. For the price, with all of its goodies, as well as all of the episodes, is a great deal especially since there are a lot of DVD's that hardly have any extras or the ones that do, charge an enormous price. A small book explaining the animated series, behind the scenes material, and a lot more is included on the DVD's. The one disappointing thing is the fact that the last episode (the series finale) is not even a cartoon, it's a sound-bite like something you'd hear on the radio. It's been a while since I actually saw the series on TV so I'm guessing that the show was canceled before the final episode was completed. If not, it would of been nice for the series finale episode to be included. The cartoons look great after 20 years.
If you had any interest in Dungeons and Dragons the game and/or genres about fantasy and mythical creatures, this is a must have for your collection because I've haven't even seen it on T.V. in well over 10 years. Someone told me (if you live in the New York metropolitan area) that it's been seen on the Boomerang channel (carried by the Monopoly; Cablevision) but it depends in your location. I'm about 40 minutes away from NYC and I don't have the channel yet the next town over from me does. Enjoy the cartoons and the extra goodies.
Description of Dungeons & Dragons - The Complete Animated Series
Dungeons & Dragons was one of CBS' most popular animated series airing from 1983 - 1986 and later on FoxKids. Created by legendary Marvel Productions the series was base on the popular TSR role-playing game created in 1974 - which spawned an entire industry! Now in a set bursting with magical Special Features fans can roll the dice to see the entire Dungeons & Dragons series in a beautiful five-disc set. Come back to the realm of action adventure and enchantment with...Dungeons & Dragons - The Complete Animated Series!Features:"Entering the Realm of Dungeons and Dragons" DocumentaryAlternate & rare footageEaster EggsINK & PAINT TrailersExtensive Gallery of Original Model Sheets and MemorabilliaFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre:?TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating:?NR UPC:?787364753093General DVDs
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