Animation Domination: Dungeons and Dragons 1983-1985

Six young teenagers, well five teenagers and one preteen, go on a Dungeons & Dragons amusement park roller coaster and while on the ride are transported to another realm where they are given magical weapons and roles that suit their personality.  They are guided by the Dungeon Master (Sidney Miller) who gives them tasks to complete as they search for a way to get home and along the way learn lessons and discover things about themselves.  The team is lead by Hank (Willie Aames) who is given the role of Ranger.  He is brave and noble, and his weapon is a bow that shoots glowing bolts of energy.  Eric, the Cavalier (Donny Most) was a spoiled rich kid back in reality and is often mouthing off adding comic relief.  His weapon is a shield that can project a magical barrier.  Diana (Tonia Gayle Smith) is an athletic acrobat who is often a positive inspiration for the team.  She is given a quarterstaff that can change size depending on the need and can reconstruct itself if broken.  Presto is a magician (Adam Rich) who is assigned the role of Wizard who can’t always control his magic.  He is given a hat that allows him to produce magical objects from it. Sheila (Katie Leigh) is a shy girl who fears being alone in the realm, she plays the part of the thief and wears a cloak that allows her to become invisible.  Bobby, Shiela’s younger brother, (Ted Field III) is the Barbarian, impulsive, rough and fearless.  He carries a club / cudgel that packs a mighty wallop.  Bobby has a bond with Uni (Frank Welker) a young unicorn that is being chased by their frequent foe, Venger (Peter Cullen), when they first arrive and has the ability to teleport once per day, as all unicorns can. Also chasing them through the realm is Tiamat (also voiced by Frank Welker), a five headed dragon with each one producing a different type of magical breath, fire, ice, gas, lightning, and acid. Venger pursues the kids throughout the series, wanting the weapons of power which would grant him the strength he needs to overcome Dungeon Master and take command of the realm.  Venger’s origin has some twists to it. A frequent theme within the show is the difficult choice one makes between what you want and what is right.  There are many times the children find their way back home, but in doing so, would leave the realm in peril and they must make the hard choice to remain.

Dungeons & Dragons is an animated television series on CBS based on the role-playing game by TSR of the same name.  It ran on Saturday mornings for two full seasons being cancelled halfway through the third with a total of 27 episodes. The third season finale which could possibly have served as a series finale was written by frequent series writer Micheal Reaves but never officially produced.  Michael has discussed what his plans were and how he reimagined the series if it were to have been renewed. He released the script and an audio drama of it was produced and included on the BCI Eclipse Region 1 DVD release.  A fan made animated version of the finale appeared online in 2020 (I am just finding this out so I am going to have to track this down and watch it ASAP).  The characters have appeared twice in live action productions.  First, in 2019, a Brazilian commercial for Renault featured the children using their weapons, fighting Venger and hopping into the commercials object, a car, finally getting home in a Renault Kwid Outsider.  Then, in 2023, the film Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves saw the kids a few times within the background of the action.  I, like many other fans, hold out hope that we may one day see a well-done live action version that stays honest and true to the series.

If there is one show from my childhood that defines me, this is it.  Not only do I fondly remember it, but it feels like it is a deep part of my soul.  The storylines were so good and the character actors so well cast.  The animation isn’t amazing, but the artwork is colorful and represents the worlds of the Dungeons and Dragons games wonderfully.  Monsters, like Tiamat, who were main foes within the game are well conceived and portrayed. The show was well received by critics but was not without controversy.  It was apparently thought to be too violent for a children’s show.  One episode was almost pulled due to the children contemplating killing Venger. I can only speak for myself, but these kind of themes and depth of character added to the heroics and did not detract or negatively influence any sense of violence within me. In fact, in rewatching episodes for this article, a wave of nostalgia washed over me, and, like the children, I was transported to another world.  A happy world that was simpler than the one we are currently in.  There are few Saturday morning cartoons that had this type of effect on their audiences, but this one definitely did, and I know I am not the only one that feels this.