Dungeons &
Dragons: The Animated Series + Beginnings (Mill
Creek DVD)
Picture:
D Sound: C+ Extras: D Episodes: A+
NOTE: A separate Beginnings DVD has
also been issued and it simply contains the first nine episodes of this larger
set.
Get ready
for the ride of a lifetime, when 6 young teenagers get stuck in the Dungeons & Dragons realm when they
go for a ride in the amusement park, and now they are trying to get home. Each of them receives enchanted weapons, Hank
the ranger, Eric the chevalier, Diana the acrobat, Sheila the thief, Presto the
Magician, and Bobby the barbarian. Along
with their mentor and guide the Dungeon Master they journey through dangers and
adventures in search of a way home. But they must face the evil sorcerer Venger,
and many other dragons, monsters and creatures; will they ever find a way home?
A blast from the past, a cartoon based on fantasy games of Dungeons and Dragons, in where magic and monsters exist and
anything is possible. This is old school
heroes/heroines, evil sorcerer trying to destroy everything to rule the world. The mysterious Dungeon Master guides and
advises as much as he constantly appears and disappears. Constantly the team faces new monsters and
enemies, but through teamwork and friendship they survive the dangers of
Dungeons and Dragons.
This is an old but amusing series, the six main characters represents the
archetypes of characters of the D&N world. The characters counter balance one
another and need each other to survive as a team. Hank as he is the oldest he becomes the
natural leader, Eric ever the pessimist (and comic relief) but most
realistic of the team, Diana serves as the team glue and keeps their
relationships together, Sheila even though she is a thief, she acts
more like a caretaker of the group, Presto with his magic hat you can
always wonder what he will pull out next and how it oddly get them out of
trouble, and finally Bobby the youngest ironically becomes the teams strongman
with his magic club. The most
interesting character is the Dungeon Master himself, he is not only
a character, but also a narrator moderator, and peanut gallery rolled
into one. Most of the plot ends
up around choosing between getting home or saving a friend, but in who
would really want
them to make it home, otherwise the whole story would end.
---------------------------------------------------------
Episode 1: The Night of No Tomorrow
The group finds Merlin, looking for a magic spell to get home Presto casts a
spell only to release a horde of dragons attacking the nearby village.
Episode 2: Eye of the Beholder
The adventurers meet the cowardly Knight Sir John, but then they learn of a
possible way home but in the dangerous Valley of the Beholder, can he help
them?
Episode 3: The Hall of Bones
When the groups exchanged items start losing their power the journey to the
Hall of Bones to recharge their magic.
Episode 4: Valley of the Unicorns
The team must save the Unicorns from the evil wizard Calec, who wants to use
their horns mystic powers.
Episode 5: In Search of the Dungeon
Master
Usually the group needs Dungeon Master to guide them, but this time it is up to
them to rescue the Dungeon Master when he gets captured.
Episode 6: Beauty and the Bogbeast
Eric gets turned into a Bogbeast when he picks an enchanted flower and must
figure out Dungeon Master's riddle to turn back to normal.
Episode 7: Prison Without Walls
The team must free the Gnome Lokion in order to find a clue to the
way home.
Episode 8: Servants of Evil
Everyone but Bobby gets caught by Venger, it’s up to him to free them from
Venger's fiery prison of agony.
Episode 9: Quest of the Skeleton Warrior
The team goes for the Circle of power in the mystical tower, but first they
must each face their own worst fears.
Episode 10: The Garden of Zinn
Bobby gets sick and the antidote lies in garden of Queen Zinn, but the Queen as
something even more sinister on her mind... marriage with Eric.
Episode 11: The Box
The group finds Zandora's box, but like Pandora's Box there often more trouble
inside.
Episode 12: The Lost Children
The Lost Children tells the team of a ship that can possibly get them home;
unfortunately it's in the hands of Venger.
Episode 13: P-R-E-S-T-O Spells Disaster
Presto's magic really gets a run for his money when his magic causes
everyone to disappear, a giant tower to appear and on top he has to deal with a
giant.
Episode 14: The Girl Who Dreamed Tomorrow
Bobby and the gang find another girl from their world and he falls for
her, can she be the key home?
Episode 15: Treasure of Tardos
Venger is after the secret Treasure of Tardos, Dragonsbane, the thing that
could beat Tiamat the dragon.
Episode 16: City at the Edge of Midnight
A Demon is kidnapping children from both worlds into the City at the Edge of
Midnight; it is up to the team to free them.
Episode 17: The Traitor
After Bobby gets captured he is ransomed by Venger to Hank to betray his
friends, can he ever earn their trust again?
Episode 18: Day of Dungeon Master
Dungeon Master decides to give Eric his powers and let him be the Dungeon
Master for a day.
Episode 19: The Last Illusion
Venger casts illusions to frame Presto and the others, they must free a captive
young sorceress to prove their innocence.
Episode 20: The Dragon's Graveyard
Tired of Venger of constantly stopping them from getting home, the group
decides to have a showdown in the Dragon's graveyard...
Episode 21: Child of the Stargazer
A child of prophecy is part of a legend to bring an evil demon Queen's 1000
year reign to an end, it's up to Diana to help fulfill the legend.
Episode 22: The Dungeon at the Heart of
Dawn
Turns out Venger has his own terrible master and
when he makes back he is worst than anything Venger
ever be, their only chance lies in getting the Dungeon Master to the Heart of
Dawn in the underworld.
Episode 23: Citadel of Shadow
Looking for the ring of power and mind, the group meets a mysterious girl
Corena who turns out to be Venger's sister who just can't get along him, talk
about sibling rivalry.
Episode 24: The Time Lost
Venger attempts to change the past of earth with the chronocrystal and rewrite
history and therefore destroy that was to be.
Episode 25: The Odyssey of the 12th
Talisman
A powerful Talisman exists and is converted by wizards everywhere, but it comes
with a frightful curse.
Episode 26: The Winds of Darkness
An evil Darkling needs his 100th victim to cast his spell to cover the realm in
darkness forever, with Hank gone can the team stop him?
Episode 27: Cave of the Fairy Dragons
The group find a race of Fairy Dragons and helps them escape from a greedy king
and his soldiers.
New
transfers of the 1.33 X 1 animated frame need to be re-struck and the Dolby
Digital 2.0 Mono shows its age.
- Ricky Chiang
