Dragon's Lair (TV series)
| Dragon's Lair | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy Animation Action Adventure Sword and sorcery |
| Based on | Dragon's Lair by Rick Dyer and Don Bluth |
| Developed by | Ruby-Spears Productions |
| Written by | Michael Charles Hill |
| Voices of | Bob Sarlatte Ellen Gerstell Fred Travalena Michael Mish Arthur Burghardt Peter Cullen |
| Narrated by | Clive Revill |
| Composer | John Debney |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes (including commercials) |
| Production company | Ruby-Spears Productions |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | September 8, 1984 – April 27, 1985 |
Dragon's Lair is a television cartoon series by Ruby-Spears Productions based on the 1983 video game of the same name. Thirteen half-hour episodes were produced from 1984[1]–1985,[2] airing on ABC. Between the late 1980s and the early 1990s, the show was rerun on the USA Cartoon Express, and has also aired on Boomerang.
Synopsis
The series chronicles the adventures of Dirk the Daring, who is best knight in the kingdom of King Ethelred. Dirk performs all sorts of great deeds while protecting the kingdom and his love Princess Daphne from the forces of the evil dragon Singe. In his adventures there are several original characters like his stallion Bertram, his squire Timothy, and arrogant knight Sir Hubert Blunt who is Dirk the Daring's rival.
Before each commercial break, Dirk the Daring faces a cliffhanger, and, in keeping with the spirit of the game, the storyteller narrates Dirk's options and asks the viewer "What would you do?". After the commercial break, the outcomes of the various choices were shown before Dirk acts on the correct idea (with the occasional exception) to advance the story.
Several enemies from the original game also make their appearance as adversaries: the Lizard King, the Phantom Knight, the Giddy Goons, and the Mudmen. In the episode "The Legend of the Giant's Name", an Ardu giant awakened by Singe forces Dirk to find his way out of an enchanted cave, which gradually transforms him into a skeleton, much like the death animations of the game.
Voice cast
- Bob Sarlatte – Dirk the Daring
- Ellen Gerstell – Princess Daphne
- Fred Travalena – King Ethelred
- Michael Mish – Timothy
- Arthur Burghardt – Singe the Dragon
- Peter Cullen – Bertram the Horse, Sir Hubert Blunt
- Clive Revill – Storyteller
Additional voices
- Marilyn Schreffler
- Michael Sheehan
Crew
- Alan Dinehart - Voice Director
- Howard Morris - Voice Director
Episodes
| No. | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Tale of the Enchanted Gift" | September 8, 1984 | |
|
Dirk finds a perfect gift for Princess Daphne's birthday. | |||
| 2 | "Sir Timothy's Quest" | September 15, 1984 | |
|
Timothy must return the stolen map of gold mines | |||
| 3 | "The Tournament of the Phantom Knight" | September 22, 1984 | |
|
Phantom Knight kidnaps the king, Dirk must return hostage | |||
| 4 | "The Smithee's Haunted Armor" | September 29, 1984 | |
|
An evil sorcerer cheating Dirk, to get to the Haunted Armor | |||
| 5 | "The Pool of Youth" | October 6, 1984 | |
|
Witch terrorizing villagers that they have uncovered the location of the Pool of Youth | |||
| 6 | "The Story of Old Alf" | October 13, 1984 | |
|
Daphne's learn a magic of Old Alf | |||
| 7 | "The Song of the Chimes" | October 20, 1984 | |
| 8 | "The Girl from Crow's Wood" | October 27, 1984 | |
| 9 | "Mirror, Mirror" | November 3, 1984 | |
|
Singe uses a magic mirror to turn himself into a copy of Dirk and discredit him. | |||
| 10 | "The Snow Witch" | November 10, 1984 | |
| 11 | "The Tale of Dirk's New Sword" | November 17, 1984 | |
|
Dirk fights with trolls, protecting the forest people. | |||
| 12 | "The Legend of the Giant's Name" | November 24, 1984 | |
|
In his latest plot against King Ethelred's kingdom, Singe awakens the last of the Ardu Giants by saying his real name. | |||
| 13 | "The Mist of Wishes" | December 1, 1984 | |
|
Singe wants to create magic mist, but his plans are disrupted Dirk and Blunt | |||
Home release
On September 20, 2011, Warner Bros. released Dragon's Lair: The Complete Series on DVD in region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection. This is a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and only in the US.[3]