One of the coolest Jonny Quest episodes, 21 December 2008
The Quests pay a visit to Dr. Ashida, an old friend of Dr. Benton Quest's. Dr. Ashida has been doing research with the Tobura lizard. As a result of his research, he has been able to grow the lizards into 14' man-eating dragons. And if Dr. Ashida and his dragons weren't enough, the Quest Team will have to deal with a mountain of a man known as Sumi.
Thinking back to my childhood, there are three episodes of Jonny Quest that really standout. The Robot Spy, The House of Seven Gargoyles, and this one, The Dragons of Ashida, are a big part of the reason that Jonny Quest has such a special place in my memories. It's just so cool! The Dragons of Ashida has a lot going for it. Dr. Ashida is a madman of the first order. He's quite capable of doing anything (which results in his ultimate downfall). And the way he's drawn – he even looks evil. The dragons themselves scared me at one time. Today I look at them and marvel at their detail, especially in the final chase scene. Last, there's Sumi. Just he sight of an overpowering, one-eyed, bald Sumo wrestler was (and still is) amazing. With danger around every corner, two of the most vicious baddies the Quests ever faced, and the threat of ending up dragon food makes The Dragons of Ashida a winner.
10/10
A "new" episode for me, 20 December 2008
Race, Jonny, and Hadji are forced to land their plane in the middle of the jungle. Once on the ground, they discover an angry tribe of pygmies who seem to only want to see them dead.
Wow – I thought I had seen every episode of Jonny Quest. For whatever reason, I never watched A Small Matter of Pygmies as a kid and I must have skipped over it back when I first went through the DVD set. It's pretty cool to make this "discovery".
As for the episode, it's not bad at all. I enjoyed it much more than the previous two. The pygmies present a real threat to Jonny and the gang. There's a sense of danger about them as they trap Race, Jonny, and Hadji on top of the mountain and begin making their advance like a single, mindless killing machine. Even though I knew the guys would somehow escape, I got caught up in the story and found it worked for me. One thing that troubled me was the malfunctioning aircraft plot device. How many times do they use that in Jonny Quest? To be as smart and resourceful as the Quest Team is, they're terrible when it comes to regular aircraft maintenance.
7/10
A case of voodoo, 20 December 2008
As in the previous episode, The Dreadful Doll begins with Dr. Quest doing some underwater research. His research is, however, put on hold when he is summoned to the bedside of a girl under a voodoo spell. Dr. Quest soon discovers that the girl has actually been poisoned. Meanwhile, Jonny and Hadji spot a mysterious submarine. Could the voodoo and the submarine be related?
In some ways, this episode of Jonny Quest reminds me of later Scooby Doo episodes in the way it's structured. You know, bad guys up to no good who use a local legend to scare off anyone who gets too close. The Dreadful Doll came first, so I'll give it a little credit on this front. And even though the main bad guy isn't all that memorable, Korbay, the voodoo practitioner, is a creepy enough foil for the Quest's. Weaknesses in the episode include too much time and focus spent on Bandit and the boys doing nothing remarkable (I guess this is a problem I have with many of the Jonny Quest episodes). Another big problem I have with The Dreadful Doll is the quick announcement from Dr. Quest that it's not voodoo, but a drug that's affecting the little girl. Kind of took all the mystery out of things way too early.
6/10
Don't judge the series by this episode, 19 December 2008
While Dr. Quest is busy doing some underwater research, Jonny and Hadji (and Bandit) take the opportunity get in some swimming and general relaxation. On his way back to the boat, Jonny discovers an old gold doubloon on the ocean's floor. His discovery, however, is noted by a band of pirates looking for the same treasure Jonny stumbled on. To what lengths will this band of criminals go to get Jonny's secret?
Skull and Double Crossbones is what I would call a very weak episode of Jonny Quest. I've got several issues with it. First, there's way too much padding. While every episode of Jonny Quest has a certain amount of "down time", Skull and Double Crossbones takes it to the extreme. Half the episode is made up of Jonny and Hadji swimming, Dr. Quest examining ridiculously large fish, and Bandit's comic relief. That brings me to my second problem – Bandit. That crazy dog has always been my biggest problem with the series, but here he's more annoying than usual. Swimming into a fish's mouth, riding a dolphin, or going for help – it takes out any drama that the episode might have had going for it. Finally, the bad guys in Skull and Double Crossbones don't really do much for me. Other than being overt stereotypes, their not overly memorable. End the end, a 4/10 is about the best I can do for this one.
4/10
Nice introduction to the series, 11 December 2008
"The Case of the Cunningham Heritage" is a nice introduction to the 1954 series creatively titled Sherlock Holmes. Ronald Howard plays Holmes and Howard Marion-Crawford is Watson. Both are more than adequate in their roles and present a nice change of pace for viewers more familiar with either the Rathbone films or the Brett television series. Howard gives Holmes a bit more humanity (for lack of a better word) than I've seen elsewhere. As for Crawford, fortunately he doesn't play Watson as the bumbling fool as Nigel Bruce often did. The pair is very capably joined by Archie Duncan as Inspector Lastrade. The Lastrade role is much larger than what's often found, but the character makes a nice foil for Holmes.
Being the first episode, "The Case of the Cunningham Heritage" is more concerned with character development than anything else. There's a murder, but it's hardly worth going into. The murder and its solution are ancillary to the viewer getting a feel for the characters. I, for one, appreciated this aspect of the episode. It sets a solid foundation for future installments. And, at less than 30 minutes in length, there's not much time for an overly involved mystery anyway.
Overall, not a bad way to get things started. I think a 6/10 is about right for this episode. I'm looking forward to watching the rest of the series.
6/10
"I have a job too; I'm a tool.", 11 December 2008
I've just about reached my limit. I've watched more than my share of bad movies in the past few months. Sure, as is the case with Future War, I've watched many of these movies courtesy of and with the assistance of Mystery Science Theater 3000 - but I've watched them just the same. Future War may be the last for a while. It's so bad I'm ready to swear off bad movies all together.
The plot is a completely ridiculous mish-mash of incomprehensible ideas that never made a lick of sense to me. Something about a traveler from the future with cyborgs and their dinosaur "trackers" hot on his heels. The only person he's got to turn to for help is a former druggy/prostitute turned nun facing a crisis of faith. Like I said, none of it makes sense.
I've said this so many times that I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but Future War is bad in every way a movie can be bad. The acting is beyond pitiful. Neither of the movies' two leads, Daniel Bernhardt or Travis Brooke Stewart, seem capable of acting their way onto a community theater stage, let alone a sound-stage. Most surprising to me is that Bernhardt went on to have a fairly successful career, because in Future War, he comes across as nothing more than a Jean-Claude Van Damme wannabe without any of Van Damme's talent. (Did I just insinuate that Van Damme has talent?) Beyond the acting, the special effects are of particular note. The dinosaurs are about the most Gawd awful things I've seen in a movie. I could film something about as realistic with the plastic dinosaurs my son has in his room. Wait a minute - I think that might be what they used! Finally (and believe me, I could go on forever), the editing in Future War is atrocious. Some scenes are edited so poorly that it's all but impossible to follow the action.
Overall, Future War is about as bad as a movie can get. I can't really come up with an inspired description, so I'll end this by saying, "It sux!"
1/10
Baron Heinrich Von Freulich - What a name!, 11 December 2008
Engine trouble forces Race to set the Quest plane down on an unusual runway high in the Andean mountains. The runway belongs to the eccentric Baron Heinrich Von Freulich, a former WWI flying ace. He agrees to let Race borrow one of his vintage planes to get parts for the jet. However, Von Freulich has other plans. He intends to use Race as an opponent in one last dog fight.
Shadow of the Condor is another very solid episode. Baron Heinrich Von Freulich makes for a wonderful foe for Team Quest. In fact, Von Freulich might just be the most interesting character to appear in Jonny Quest. From the moment he appears on screen, taking pot-shots at giant condors, you get a sense that this man is capable of most anything. Also, from the moment the Quest plane touches down, there's a sense of mystery and menace surrounding the castle high in the Andes that you usually don't find in a cartoon. And the ending - inspired and ironic are two words that come to mind.
One thing I haven't mentioned yet in my comments on the Jonny Quest episodes is the subject of characters dying. In other cartoons, characters would get shot, burnt, and stabbed. They fell off buildings, got hit by cars, and had pianos fall on their heads. All that and they walk away as if nothing happened to them. That's not the case in Jonny Quest. Characters like Von Freulich crash a plane in the side of a mountain and they don't come back. I appreciate the realism. And I appreciate the fact that it taught me that there are consequences to actions. I don't' think the character deaths in Jonny Quest scarred me as a kid and I've got no problem with my son watching them today. There's too much sheltering of children in the world today anyway.
7/10
