Dragon's Lair (TV series)

Dragon's Lair is a television animated series by Ruby-Spears Productions based on the 1983 video game of the same name.[1] Thirteen half-hour episodes were produced and aired from September 8, 1984 to April 27, 1985 on ABC.[2]

For other uses, see Dragon's Lair (disambiguation).
Dragon's Lair
GenreFantasy
Animation
Action
Adventure
Sword and sorcery
Based on
Developed byRuby-Spears Productions
Written byMichael Charles Hill
Voices ofBob Sarlatte
Ellen Gerstell
Fred Travalena
Michael Mish
Arthur Burghardt
Peter Cullen
Narrated byClive Revill
Composer(s)John Debney
Country of originUnited States
Original language(s)English
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13
Production
Running time30 minutes (including commercials)
Production company(s)Ruby-Spears Productions
DistributorWorldvision Enterprises
Release
Original networkABC
Original releaseSeptember 8 (1984-09-08) –
December 1, 1984 (1984-12-01)
Chronology
Preceded byDragon's Lair
Followed byDragon's Lair II: Time Warp

Synopsis

The series chronicles the adventures of Dirk the Daring, who is the 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

Additional voices

Crew

Episodes
No.TitleOriginal air date
1"The Tale of the Enchanted Gift"September 8, 1984 (1984-09-08)
Dirk finds a perfect gift for Princess Daphne's birthday.
2"Sir Timothy's Quest"September 15, 1984 (1984-09-15)
Timothy must return the stolen map of gold mines
3"The Tournament of the Phantom Knight"September 22, 1984 (1984-09-22)
Phantom Knight kidnaps the king, Dirk must return hostage
4"The Smithee's Haunted Armor"September 29, 1984 (1984-09-29)
An evil sorcerer cheating Dirk, to get to the Haunted Armor
5"The Pool of Youth"October 6, 1984 (1984-10-06)
Witch terrorizing villagers that they have uncovered the location of the Pool of Youth
6"The Story of Old Alf"October 13, 1984 (1984-10-13)
Daphne's learn a magic of Old Alf
7"The Song of the Chimes"October 20, 1984 (1984-10-20)
8"The Girl from Crow's Wood"October 27, 1984 (1984-10-27)
9"Mirror, Mirror"November 3, 1984 (1984-11-03)
Singe uses a magic mirror to turn himself into a copy of Dirk and discredit him.
10"The Snow Witch"November 10, 1984 (1984-11-10)
11"The Tale of Dirk's New Sword"November 17, 1984 (1984-11-17)
Dirk fights with trolls, protecting the forest people.
12"The Legend of the Giant's Name"November 24, 1984 (1984-11-24)
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 (1984-12-01)
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]

References
  1. Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 165. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  2. Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 287. ISBN 978-1476665993.
  3. Wbshop.com
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