Dungeons & Dragons

Nostalgia for cartoons for me will have to be the Hanna Barbera, Ruby and Spears, Sid and Marty Krofft period and Bugs Bunny, so to have this one tagged on is pretty rare for this child of the seventies, but its there.

It was different and unique. The voices were phenomenal, just now learned Adam Rich (Nicholas of 'Eight is Enough') was Presto and not Bobby as I always believed. Donny Most (Ralph Malph on 'Happy Days') and Willie Aames (Tommy on 'Eight is Enough') did the best thing for their careers by doing this cartoon. I managed to get about half or more than half of the cartoons on tape before Fox stopped showing them. Didn't get some I wouldhave liked to have, but I do have some treasures. None of htem ever really bothered me as being bad or less than average. Hands down, the direction in music and sound is what makes this fellow rare among eighties cartoons and cartoons in general, as well as the art and animation. Scooby Doo has a steady run of music with no pauses for effect or reflection, but D & D would get silent when Vengar entered or spoke or one of the kids was unhappy. the music would get gentle during thoughtful moments as well. The show strived to use all six kids evenly and not be dominated by Eric and Presto (Most and Rich) and did a good job doing this while keeping the shows upbeat and entertaining. The concept of a token will always bother me, but Diana did get a boyfriend in one episode and befriended a WW II German pilot in another. LIke Valerie in Josie and the Pussycats, she did often get stuck with the more interesting kids like Eric and Presto. Uni, too, had his moments and met his family of Unicorns. One that will always stand out to me from this show was when the kids decided they had enough of Vengar and wanted Dungeonmaster to tell them how to stop Vengar instead of telling them how they could get home. They meant business, and when DM told them what to do to stop Vengar, it was quiet, and he said "May I go now?" with such humility the likes of which I had never heard and have yet to hear again in a cartoon. Won't spoil how the showdown with Vengar went either. This show was a jewel.

I just caught an episode of Dungeons and Dragons after viewing a preview of the cgi series Action Man on the Fox network. I was a bit surprised to see this show listed since I remember it from almost 20 years ago! Shadowdemon was my favourite character.

At first the crude animation seemed a bit jarring, but after the first ten minutes I was hooked(again). Its a wonderfully imaginative and memorable series.

In addition to the comments already made by others I have to highlight the fantastic musical score by Robert J Walsh and Johnny Douglas. I remember their rousing music for Gi Joe and the Transformers. I had forgotten their work on D & D and now wish i could get in on tape!

Those shows from the 80s were so much better in story and execution than the sterile cgi shows pushed on saturday mornings these days.

when younger i never missed an episode the cast behind the scenes worked well with each other

the story lines behind each episode were well thought out(if sometimes a bit corny)(sometimes prophetic)tugging at heart strings on the odd occasion(when Dianne fell in love with the prince before he "saved" his people and transported to another dimension)(when "presto" helped save the village girl from venger,uttering the line in the swamp "don't leave i need you" enter dungeon master with some advice.

for some good old-fashioned entertainment good guys VS. bad guys watch these cartoons you won't be disappointed.

This show stood out head and shoulders over all the other cartoons - and it always puzzled me as to why...until I recently saw them on DVD. This show has something 90% of other shows, both for kids and adults, do not. Great characters. Really great characters. Characters you remember all your life. I don't know of any other kids' show before or since that had such emotional realism. These kids really react the way a bunch of teenagers would if placed in the D&D world. They run the gamut of emotions: scared, selfish, cowardly, brave, helpful, sarcastic, amused, mean, arrogant, humble. The story lines are fast paced and even a little intense by other shows' standards. But that's part of what makes it so great. It has a moral message without being too preachy. My only problem was that Eric was the butt of a joke so often, but I believe that had more to do with the influence of self-appointed "parent groups" than the scriptwriters. Both as a kid myself and as an adult, I still love this show. Modern TV could learn a lot from this.

Dungeons and Dragons ranks as one of the best cartoons ever, it makes me glad I grew up when I did as there were so many fantastic shows. Fantastic animation, great stories, plenty of adventure, and some phenomenal vocal acting from all cast members. I can remember being miffed as a youngster to discover the show never had a concluding episode, I was surprised to learn it only spanned three series, I would have thought it had a huge following. So many wonderful characters and great episodes, the best for me being The Dragon's Graveyard, which is brilliant.

Now in my thirties, and not usually into animation, I'm stunned by how much I've really enjoyed watching the show from start to finish, great viewing for all ages. 9/10