"Fear not Ranger, Barbarian, Magician, Thief, Cavalier, and Acrobat. I am Dungeon Master, your guide in the realm of Dungeons & Dragons." - Dungeon Master to his new pupils in the opening credits
Dungeons & Dragons: The Complete Animated Series DVD Review
By Jude Clement
Ah, amusement parts. Cotton candy. Ferris Wheels. Corndogs. Tilt-a-Whirls. Portals to magical lands filled with dragons, beasts, and strange creatures. Yep, it can only be Dungeons & Dragons, CBS' animated Saturday morning hit adapted from the popular role-playing game. Premiering on September 17, 1983, the series follows a group of youngsters - Hank (voiced by Willie Aames, Eight is Enough), Eric (Donny Most, Happy Days), Diana (Tony Gayle Smith), Presto (Adam Rich, Eight is Enough), Sheila (Katie Leigh), and Sheila's kid brother Bobby (Ted Field III) - who take a fateful spin on a Dungeons & Dragons ride. The monsters they encounter on the ride seem all too real, and when the car they are riding in breaks apart, it soon becomes apparent that they have been transported into the realm of Dungeons & Dragons.
The kids don't know how to get home, but at least they have a guide to this strange new world - they are to become pupils of the mysterious Dungeon Master (Sidney Miller). He gives each an enchanted weapon that will help them to simultaneously find their way home and fight evil in the realm. Hank, the eldest and the group's unspoken leader, becomes the Ranger when he receives a bow that shoots energy arrows. Presto's hat allows him to become the Magician, although an inept one. Diana, the Acrobat, is given a javelin staff that she can use to propel herself through the air. Sheila becomes the Thief, using her special cloak to become invisible. Eric, a snooty complainer, is the Cavalier whose Griffon shield can create a barrier between the pupils and their attackers. Bobby, who is only eight, becomes the Barbarian, using his thunder club to whack objects and enemies alike. With the aid of their weapons and Uni the unicorn (Frank Welker), the gang wanders around the realm at Dungeon Master's behest, helping to protect its residents and searching for a way home.
Of course, this being an otherworldly place, their tasks are never easy. Dungeon Master's instructions are often cryptic at best. New monsters wait around every corner - giant scorpions, wolves, bogbeasts, skeletons, dragons, shadow demons. Plus they have to stay one step ahead of Venger (Peter Cullen), a force of pure wickedness who hopes to capture their magic weapons and take over the entire realm in the name of evil.
Each episode features an action-packed adventure that doesn't shy away from scariness and mild violence. Venger, streaking across the sky on his black steed, is something out of every kid's nightmares. In one episode ("Quest of the Skeleton Warrior"), we even see Hank's skin melting off of his face. Nothing is so horrifying that it will scar children for life, but the series is refreshingly, unapologetically spooky.
Not so spooky is Dungeon Master, whose Yoda-esque platitudes and riddles would probably frustrate real life teens a little more than those depicted here. He sends his "pupils" on so many wild goose chases that almost results in their getting home that the show threatens to become Gilligan's Island. Really, it's no wonder that Eric is so disdainful of Dungeon Master. Who can blame him?
The series benefits from its superior vocal talent. Rather than using "cartoony" voices, the characters mostly speak in realistic tones and cadences. Donny Most is best as the cavalier Cavalier, somehow making the spoiled complainer likeable by putting a fresh spin on his snarky dialogue.
Dungeons & Dragons was quite successful for a Saturday morning cartoon. In an industry where shows are often produced for only one season and then rerun ad nauseam, new episodes of D & D were commissioned for three seasons. CBS aired reruns of the series as late as 1990. One possible reason for its success is its tremendous kid appeal. Not only does it deal with a common childhood fear - being trapped far from home - but it shows young people dealing with problems on their own in a realistic way. Well, as realistic as one can get in a series that features a five-headed dragon named Tiamat.
The twenty-seven episodes that make up Dungeons & Dragons: The Complete Animated Series are divided onto four discs. A fifth disc holds bonus features. Each disc is features images of the pupils: Hank on disc one, Diana on disc two, Eric on disc three, Presto on disc four, and Bobby and Sheila on disc five. The discs are housed in a foldout case. The five discs attach to three panels - two of which hold two discs, one on top of the other, in a figure eight pattern. The foldout case features images related to the series, including a map of the Realm, an original promotional poster from 1983, and more. The case is housed in a box that resembles a "Dungeons & Dragons" game box.
The menus are easy to navigate. Viewers can play all episodes or choose them individually. The episodes are divided into chapter stops.
Video and Audio
As with many animated series, Dungeons & Dragons often exhibits tiny pops, white specks, bits of dust, and other minor flaws. Some of the scenes have a white, over-exposed look. Still, for the most part the series looks pretty good.
Even though the discs I reviewed do not appear to have scratches, two separate DVD players had difficulty playing several episodes without the images breaking up.
Extras
A detailed episode guide includes names, numbers, original airdates, writers, and plot synopses for each episode. The guide doesn't quite match the DVDs - "The Girl Who Dreamed Tomorrow" is on disc two rather than disc three - but this still serves as an invaluable source of information for viewers.
Want to play a round of Dungeons & Dragons? Then the "Animated Series Handbook" is just what you need. The copy on the rear of the handbook describes it as "official character profiles with full stats, magic items, and a brand new adventure. The adventure is a prelude to the episode The Dragon's Graveyard and is designed to bridge the gap between the game and the animated television series." Non D&D players will find this useless, but it is admittedly a neat extra.
The chapter stops menu for each episode includes "Uni's Fun Facts," bits of trivia about episode inconsistencies, the use of music and sound effects from other Marvel cartoons, and more.
Producer Bob Richardson, story editor/voice director Hank Saroyan, writers Mark Evanier and Michael Reaves, and former CBS children's programming executives Ted Field II and Judy Price participate in commentary tracks on two episodes: "The Night of No Tomorrow" and "The Dragon's Graveyard." Moderated by special features producer Andy Mangels, these discussions are lively and well worth a listen, even if some of the information is also covered in the "Enter the Realm" featurette (see below).
The remaining extras are found on disc five. "Enter the Realm of Dungeons & Dragons" (33:04) is a featurette that takes a look behind-the-scenes of the series' creation. Included are interviews with former CBS Director of Children's Programming Ted Field II, story editor/voice director Hank Saroyan, producer Bob Richardson, writer Mark Evanier, writer Buzz Dixon, writer Michael Reaves, designer/storyboard artist Bob Kline, and storyboard artist Michael Swanigan. This well-produced featurette is packed with information. Learn how the team behind the series had to hammer out a concept that remained true to the game but stood on its own. The characters couldn't simply be role-playing - they needed to be in real danger or the stakes wouldn't be high enough. Mark Evanier reveals that he wrote the show's "bible" on a Tuesday, the pilot script on a Wednesday, and the show got picked up by CBS the following day. Be sure to watch the closing credits for a funny story on Willie Aames recording some of his lines in a Grand Central Station phone booth. Then stick around for a reel of Dungeon Master's platitudes.
During the series' third season, CBS decided that the season should end with an episode that would either serve as the series' coda or as the jumping off point for a new series. Consequently, Michael Reaves wrote "Requiem," but the episode was never produced. "Requiem Radio Show" presents a reading of the script featuring original voiceover actor Katie Leigh as Sheila with Daniel Roebuck (Lost), Wally Wingert (Family Guy), Laura Leigh, Buster Roebuck, and Neil Kaplan in supporting roles. The show is performed by the actors while the script appears on the screen, allowing viewers to follow along. The actors do a good job of recreating the original voices, and the use of sound effects and music from the series is quite impressive. There's no denying, however, that Dungeons & Dragons is more effective in its animated form rather than as an audio-only presentation. Still, this is a neat extra that is sure to please hardcore fans.
"Character Profiles" presents short written descriptions of the series' characters, artifacts, and creatures. Each is accompanied by a brief clip. This feature will help newcomers to the series get their bearings and will also allow fans to become reacquainted with the characters.
The "Alternate Openings/Credits & Rare Footage" contains "found footage" that is rarely seen. The "Remastered Introduction" (1:00) was originally featured as the opening sequence in all season three episodes. When the series was remastered several years ago, it was mistakenly attached to all of the series' episodes. "Introduction #01" (1:00) was used in the first season. "Introduction #02" (1:00) was used for the remastered introduction, but employs different sound effects. "Introduction #03" (:57), created for season two, focuses on the skills of Dungeon Master's pupils. While the "Remastered End Credits" (:28) were actually the fourth produced, they were again mistakenly attached to all twenty-seven episodes when they were originally remastered. "End Credits #01" (:28), "End Credits #02" (:27), and "End Credits #03" (:27) show other incarnations of the closing credits. For both the opening and closing credits, written explanations are included to help differentiate between the versions. Also included in this section are "The Lost Children Episode Teaser" (:28) and "The Hall of Bones Episode Teaser" (:25), examples of the short previews that preceded each episode. The picture and sound quality of the clips included here are poor, but they will surely be a treat for completists.
In the "Animated Storyboard: Episode 14" feature, viewers may use the "angle" key on their remotes to compare the original storyboard for "The Girl Who Dreamed Tomorrow" with the finished episode. There are three options: one with the storyboard taking up most of the screen and the episode playing in a smaller window, one with the episode taking up most of the screen and the storyboard on display in a smaller window, and one with both playing side-by-side. This is a terrific extra, offering great insight into how and episode is translated from script to storyboard to animation. Don't miss it.
The text-based "Dungeons & Dragons Interactive Adventure: Kelek's Crystal" is a Choose Your Own Adventure-style game which can be played using your remote control. It is awfully text-heavy, but fans of the show (and of Choose Your Own Adventures) may want to give it a shot.
Fan Sean Kennedy created the "Live-Action Dungeons & Dragons Fan Film: Choices" (4:27). It's hokey, goofy, and indifferently acted, but has surprisingly good special effects and is infused with the enthusiasm of true fans. Plus it's short, so you don't really have to commit much time to it.
Two "Galleries" contain navigable slideshows of Dungeons & Dragons over sixty model sheets and over twenty images of memorabilia. The model sheets were used by animators in order to maintain consistency of characters. The memorabilia includes covers of Dungeons & Dragons comic books and copies of TV Guide ads for the series.
Viewers with access to a DVD-Rom drive can pop disc five into their computer to view several more extras - scripts for fifteen episodes, a script for the never-produced series ender "Requiem," a copy of the Dungeons & Dragons series bible, CBS notes and audience scores, and storyboards for three episodes. These are in the .pdf format which requires Adobe Reader (available as a free download from adobe.com). These extras are quite fascinating and will provide fans of the series with hours of entertainment.
Also included are previews for other DVD releases from the Ink & Paint label, including Groovie Goolies, Journey Back to Oz, Space Academy, Ark II, and Jason of Star Command. With DVDs like these, you can create your own perfect Saturday morning TV schedule!
Summary
If you have fond memories of Dungeons & Dragons, then The Complete Animated Series is what you've been waiting for - every episode of the series accompanied by a wealth of extras. Plus the show is almost as good as it was when you were twelve. This is a realm you'll definitely want to visit.
12/3/06
