Review by C.J. Bunce
In this year’s eagerly awaited fantasy movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, the marketing leaned on one of the movie’s best Easter eggs, knowing full well a legion of D&D gamers from the 1980s would love it. The stars of the 1980s animated Dungeons & Dragons series appear in the colosseum gladiator survival scene, which made it into the first previews. Their story didn’t matter all that much in the movie’s plot, but it sure was a great hook. IDW Publishing released a limited comic book series this year featuring those characters and it’s available now in a collected edition here at Amazon. Dungeons & Dragons Saturday Morning Adventures adds more fun to this big year for D&D, with the animated series enjoying its own 40-year anniversary.
So get ready for a new look at the noble ranger Hank, the intrepid acrobat Diana, the quiet thief Sheila, the impulsive barbarian Bobby, the cavalier Eric, and the hesitant magician Presto, joined by their unicorn friend Uni–who didn’t make it into the movie, presumably because they didn’t let animals compete in the arena, or the production ran out of money to create a CGI unicorn.
If you watched the short-lived animated series, you know it all begins when a group of kids head to the amusement park, where a ride transports them to the D&D Forgotten Realms. Starting in 1983 the series would last three years, featuring 27 half-hour episodes. The new comic book takes place just after those adventures, when some of the kids decide it’s time to go home. So the story has beats we’ve seen in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and Jumanji: The Next Level.
Before readers learn whether the kids get home at the end, they have four comic book-length chapters of adventure, where they encounter a new girl who joins their quest, but not before an imposter threatens the roving band.
A gelatinous cube. A trip through a magical portal. A beholder. A dragon. An army of skeleton soldiers. And a return of the villain called Venger.
And somehow it all begins with a Dungeon Master taking a snack break. French fries, anyone?
David M. Booher and Sam Maggs wrote the story, with artwork by George Kambadais. The artwork doesn’t exactly have the same Don Bluth/Dragon’s Lair-inspired cartoony artwork–it’s a little modernized, but not all that much. The end result will still appeal to fans of the cartoons.
It would make a fun gift for your favorite D&D fan. While you’re at it, don’t miss out on the action figures released this year based on the series. The Cartoon Classics series looks great (including dice!). Find more photos and order those here: Hank, Sheila, Presto, Diana, Eric, Bobby & Uni, and the Venger and Dungeon Master set. There’s also the Super 7 line of ReAction Vintage D&D classic Kenner style 3 3/4 figures featuring Sorceress, Efreeti, and Githyanki, which aren’t from the cartoon, but sure look like they should have been.
Just out in paperback from IDW Publishing, order your copy of Dungeons & Dragons Saturday Morning Adventures now at Elite Comics, your local comic shop, or here at Amazon.
