The New Adventures of Flash Gordon
Encyclopedia
The New Adventures of Flash Gordon, also known as The Adventures of Flash Gordon, is an animated television series. The series is actually called Flash Gordon, but the expanded title is used in official records to distinguish it from previous versions
.
Filmation
produced the series in 1979, partly as a reaction to the mammoth success of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
in 1977. The series was an homage to the original Flash Gordon
comic strip
and featured most of the original characters, including Flash's girlfriend Dale Arden
, and the scientist Hans Zarkov
. The series is still regarded to be not only one of the most faithful adaptations, but also one of Filmation's finest overall efforts to this day.
Flash and company had traveled to Mongo
, where they were forced into battle by its ruler, Ming the Merciless
, his daughter Princess Aura
, and his army of Metal Men
. To help their cause the heroes lead the formation of an alliance beginning with King Thun, leader of the Lion People; Prince Barin, ruler of Arboria; and King Vultan, leader of the Hawkmen.
The original project was produced as a made-for-television feature film
. When NBC saw the finished work, it was decided to turn the work into an animated TV series. The change in format resulted in the story being significantly expanded with a subplot of Ming secretly giving military technology to Hitler
being dropped, as well as being set in the present day rather during World War II. After the series was canceled, the original footage was reassembled with the original soundtrack, including the final role of Ted Cassidy
, and aired in prime time in 1982 as a TV movie, Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All
.
The show not only marked the first animated Flash Gordon series, but it also incidentally chronologically marks the second appearance of Flash Gordon in animated form, following from his first in Popeye Meets the Man Who Hated Laughter
.
after being attacked during the final approach to the planet.
In the opening scenes, after being captured by Ming's Gill Men, Gordon, Arden, and Zarkov meet King Thun the Lion-man and Prince Barin of the forest-kingdom of Arboria. This coincidence (meeting reigning royalty of two different realms by apparent chance) sets much of the tone of the series, in which it must be concluded either that logic is irrelevant, or that Destiny is at work in the arrival of Flash Gordon on Mongo. It is later revealed that an earlier king of all Mongo, more powerful than Ming, was named Gor-dan, and that he strongly resembled Flash. When he asks Zarkov why this is, Zarkov simply replies that there are some things even science can't explain.
The remainder of the first season consists of the adventures of Gordon and company across the face of Mongo, in traditional pulp style passing from one near-death situation to another with a cheery disregard for probability or logic, and a definite sense of fun. The protagonists meet Emperor Ming almost immediately, and Ming is revealed as being the classic archetype of the Evil Overlord. Flash later gains the aid of King Vultan, ruler of the Hawkmen as a friend and ally, and also gains the attention of many of Mongo's female monarchs, such as the adventurous Queen Undina of Coralia, the kindly, smoky-voiced Queen Fria of Frigia, Azura, the powerful but delusional Witch-Queen of Syk, former lover of King Gor-dan who believes Flash is his reincarnation, and the strong-willed Queen Desira of Tropica. But the most notable of these admirers was, of course, Princess Aura
. Violence is somewhat limited. Flash carries a ray pistol after the fifth episode, but uses it only twice, once to set a stump aflame and attract attention, and once to blast through a wall. Prince Barin and his men are armed with "ice arrows" that freeze whatever they hit. King Vultan's Hawk Men and the desert tribesmen of Tropica are armed with conventional ray weapons that disintegrate whatever they hit, as are Ming's forces, mainly composed of robots. Ship to ship combat does result in the shooting down of several fighters on both sides.
s, ranging from the polar ice of Frigia, the domain of Queen Fria, to the lush jungle and hot desert of Tropica, Queen Desira's demesne. Vast forests give Prince Barin's realm of Arboria its name, and there are deep and shallow oceans inhabited by many life forms. The most notable of these are the people of Coralia, ruled by Queen Undina and the Mer-Men, who work for Ming as enforcers. Temperature and weather extremes are quite comparable to those of Earth, and the biology of Mongo appears to be based on the same biochemistry as that of Earth. Certainly Flash, Dale, and Hans ingest food from Mongo with no ill effects.
Mongo's surface gravity appears to be a bit less than that of Earth, or at least there are comments on occasion that Terrans are stronger on Mongo than they are on Earth. The difference in surface gravity can not be too great, however, because Mongo is so Earth-like, and Terrans on Mongo are by no means superhuman.
Mongo's crust is host to highly extensive underground tunnels and chambers, more so than Earth (as far as is known), including an entire underground realm, Syk, the "witch-kingdom".
This huge variety of humanoid life seems an improbable result of purely Darwinian evolution. At the very least, it is known that the people of Coralia adapted themselves artificially to underwater existence, and in fact retain the technology to transform air breathers such as Flash and Dale and Hans into water-breathers, and back again. They do appear to be unable to create beings able to operate in both media, however, one is either an air or a water breather. This is however, discarded in the final episode when Undina and a troop of Coralian sea warriors arrive to participate in the final battle and advance onto land to take the fortress guarding Ming's capital.
It would seem likely, though of course unconfirmed, that many of the various races of Mongo are the result of genetic manipulation, eugenic projects, and other artificial means of inducing change, over the course of Mongo's vast history. Probably H. sapiens is the base stock for most if not all Mongo's living intelligent races, but the points of divergence would likely date very far back in the past.
His personal race is unclear, his ears are pointed, his teeth seem fanged, his frame oddly thin yet very strong...and he claims to be immortal, with some supporting evidence. He also appears to have some Asian features, a stark contrast to that of his daughter, Princess Aura.
His sexual tastes seem varied, to judge by the various types of female we see in glimpses of his harem, but he seems to find Dale Arden particularly attractive, and his daughter Aura seems to be a Homo sapiens, so presumably Ming is not very alien. His origin may tie in to the nature of Syk, the Witch-Kingdom, as the series reveals a legend of a one-time King Gor-dan of Syk, to whom Ming served as High Priest.
His resources are immense, with armies of robots, armies of humans and other species, a fleet of armed rocket ships and spacecraft...and access to even more impressive technologies. However, he does seem to fear the possibility of a united rebellion on Mongo, because he seems to work to keep the races at each other's throats.
The program was later shown in reruns on the Sci Fi Channel
as part of Sci Fi Cartoon Quest
.
) released The New Adventures of Flash Gordon: The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1 on July 18, 2006. The 4 disc set includes many special features.
As of 2009, this release has been discontinued and is out of print as BCI Eclipse ceased operations.
heroes The Phantom, Mandrake the Magician
, and Lothar, as well as all of their children, in the cartoon series Defenders of the Earth
. In 1996, the character of Flash Gordon returned to television again in a short-lived updated series featuring him using a Hoverboard
, and in 2007, the character was revived in a live-action series
on SciFi Channel
.
Flash Gordon
Flash Gordon is the hero of a science fiction adventure comic strip originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by and created to compete with the already established Buck Rogers adventure strip. Also inspired by these series were comics such as Dash...
.
Filmation
Filmation
Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1963...
produced the series in 1979, partly as a reaction to the mammoth success of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, originally released as Star Wars, is a 1977 American epic space opera film, written and directed by George Lucas. It is the first of six films released in the Star Wars saga: two subsequent films complete the original trilogy, while a prequel trilogy completes the...
in 1977. The series was an homage to the original Flash Gordon
Flash Gordon
Flash Gordon is the hero of a science fiction adventure comic strip originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by and created to compete with the already established Buck Rogers adventure strip. Also inspired by these series were comics such as Dash...
comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
and featured most of the original characters, including Flash's girlfriend Dale Arden
Dale Arden
Dale Arden is a fictional character, the fellow-adventurer and love interest of Flash Gordon and a prototypic heroine for later female characters, including Princess Leia Organa and Padme Amidala in Star Wars. Flash, Dale and Dr...
, and the scientist Hans Zarkov
Hans Zarkov
Dr. Hans Zarkov is a fictional character appearing in the Flash Gordon comic strip. Zarkov is a brilliant scientist who creates a rocket and forces Flash and Dale Arden to come with him to the planet Mongo, and fight against Ming the Merciless...
. The series is still regarded to be not only one of the most faithful adaptations, but also one of Filmation's finest overall efforts to this day.
Flash and company had traveled to Mongo
Mongo (planet)
Mongo is a fictional planet where the comic strip of Flash Gordon take place. It is ruled by a usurper named Ming the Merciless, who governs with an iron hand....
, where they were forced into battle by its ruler, Ming the Merciless
Ming the Merciless
Ming the Merciless is a fictional character who first appeared in the Flash Gordon comic strip in 1934. He has since been the main villain of the strip and its related movie serials, TV shows and film adaptation.- First appearance :...
, his daughter Princess Aura
Princess Aura
Princess Aura is a fictional character in the Flash Gordon comic strips and serials. She is the daughter of the series' villain, Ming the Merciless, and the lover of Prince Barin, the rightful heir to the throne of Mongo, and is banished with him to the forest world of Arboria.In 1936, Princess...
, and his army of Metal Men
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
. To help their cause the heroes lead the formation of an alliance beginning with King Thun, leader of the Lion People; Prince Barin, ruler of Arboria; and King Vultan, leader of the Hawkmen.
The original project was produced as a made-for-television feature film
Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All
Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All is a 1982 animated television film produced by Filmation and written by Samuel A. Peeples, whose credits included the original Star Trek series.- Plot :...
. When NBC saw the finished work, it was decided to turn the work into an animated TV series. The change in format resulted in the story being significantly expanded with a subplot of Ming secretly giving military technology to Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
being dropped, as well as being set in the present day rather during World War II. After the series was canceled, the original footage was reassembled with the original soundtrack, including the final role of Ted Cassidy
Ted Cassidy
Theodore Crawford Cassidy , known as Ted Cassidy, was an American actor who performed in television and films. At 6 ft 9 in in height, he tended to play unusual characters in offbeat or science-fiction series such as Star Trek and I Dream of Jeannie...
, and aired in prime time in 1982 as a TV movie, Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All
Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All
Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All is a 1982 animated television film produced by Filmation and written by Samuel A. Peeples, whose credits included the original Star Trek series.- Plot :...
.
The show not only marked the first animated Flash Gordon series, but it also incidentally chronologically marks the second appearance of Flash Gordon in animated form, following from his first in Popeye Meets the Man Who Hated Laughter
Popeye Meets the Man Who Hated Laughter
Popeye Meets the Man Who Hated Laughter, also known as The Man Who Hated Laughter, is a 1972 American animated one-hour television movie that was part of The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie...
.
Description
The animated series first season follows, more or less, the traditional Flash Gordon mythos, opening with the launch of the rocketship carrying Flash, Dale Arden, and Dr. Zarkov from somewhere in the Eastern Hemisphere (or at least the opening scene shows the ship clearing Earth's atmosphere above Europe and the Middle East). The series actually opens with the crash of the Terran ship into an ocean on MongoMongo
-Geographic:* Mongo, Chad, a city* Mongo, Sierra Leone, a chiefdom* Mongo, Indiana, a small town in the United States* Mongo , the fictional setting for the adventures of Flash Gordon-People:...
after being attacked during the final approach to the planet.
In the opening scenes, after being captured by Ming's Gill Men, Gordon, Arden, and Zarkov meet King Thun the Lion-man and Prince Barin of the forest-kingdom of Arboria. This coincidence (meeting reigning royalty of two different realms by apparent chance) sets much of the tone of the series, in which it must be concluded either that logic is irrelevant, or that Destiny is at work in the arrival of Flash Gordon on Mongo. It is later revealed that an earlier king of all Mongo, more powerful than Ming, was named Gor-dan, and that he strongly resembled Flash. When he asks Zarkov why this is, Zarkov simply replies that there are some things even science can't explain.
The remainder of the first season consists of the adventures of Gordon and company across the face of Mongo, in traditional pulp style passing from one near-death situation to another with a cheery disregard for probability or logic, and a definite sense of fun. The protagonists meet Emperor Ming almost immediately, and Ming is revealed as being the classic archetype of the Evil Overlord. Flash later gains the aid of King Vultan, ruler of the Hawkmen as a friend and ally, and also gains the attention of many of Mongo's female monarchs, such as the adventurous Queen Undina of Coralia, the kindly, smoky-voiced Queen Fria of Frigia, Azura, the powerful but delusional Witch-Queen of Syk, former lover of King Gor-dan who believes Flash is his reincarnation, and the strong-willed Queen Desira of Tropica. But the most notable of these admirers was, of course, Princess Aura
Princess Aura
Princess Aura is a fictional character in the Flash Gordon comic strips and serials. She is the daughter of the series' villain, Ming the Merciless, and the lover of Prince Barin, the rightful heir to the throne of Mongo, and is banished with him to the forest world of Arboria.In 1936, Princess...
. Violence is somewhat limited. Flash carries a ray pistol after the fifth episode, but uses it only twice, once to set a stump aflame and attract attention, and once to blast through a wall. Prince Barin and his men are armed with "ice arrows" that freeze whatever they hit. King Vultan's Hawk Men and the desert tribesmen of Tropica are armed with conventional ray weapons that disintegrate whatever they hit, as are Ming's forces, mainly composed of robots. Ship to ship combat does result in the shooting down of several fighters on both sides.
Mongo the Planet
Mongo is Earth-like, and is portrayed as boasting a rich variety of biomeBiome
Biomes are climatically and geographically defined as similar climatic conditions on the Earth, such as communities of plants, animals, and soil organisms, and are often referred to as ecosystems. Some parts of the earth have more or less the same kind of abiotic and biotic factors spread over a...
s, ranging from the polar ice of Frigia, the domain of Queen Fria, to the lush jungle and hot desert of Tropica, Queen Desira's demesne. Vast forests give Prince Barin's realm of Arboria its name, and there are deep and shallow oceans inhabited by many life forms. The most notable of these are the people of Coralia, ruled by Queen Undina and the Mer-Men, who work for Ming as enforcers. Temperature and weather extremes are quite comparable to those of Earth, and the biology of Mongo appears to be based on the same biochemistry as that of Earth. Certainly Flash, Dale, and Hans ingest food from Mongo with no ill effects.
Mongo's surface gravity appears to be a bit less than that of Earth, or at least there are comments on occasion that Terrans are stronger on Mongo than they are on Earth. The difference in surface gravity can not be too great, however, because Mongo is so Earth-like, and Terrans on Mongo are by no means superhuman.
Mongo's crust is host to highly extensive underground tunnels and chambers, more so than Earth (as far as is known), including an entire underground realm, Syk, the "witch-kingdom".
Peoples of Mongo
Mongo is home to a variety of races of sapient life, though the most common breed appears, at least on the surface, to be classic Homo sapiens. Along with the humans of Mongo, though, are the Lion-men, a race of humanoid cat-creatures, the Hawk-men, who have angel-like wings on their backs and are skilled aerial fliers, the undersea people of Coralia, a race of waterbreathers who are apparently descended from air-breathing Humans, a race of giants found (at least) in Frigia, Ming's infamous Lizard-men and Lizard-women, reptilian, tailed humanoids apparently dedicated to Ming, and the Beast-men, a race of primitive humanoids kept artificially primitive by Ming. Additionally, Ming rules a race of 'Gill-men' who breathe water and who are separate from (and enemies to) the water-breathing Humans of Coralia. The "witch-men" of Syk appear to be other than human, as they are gray-skinned and have fewer than five fingers on each hand, but their voluminous robes conceal all else.This huge variety of humanoid life seems an improbable result of purely Darwinian evolution. At the very least, it is known that the people of Coralia adapted themselves artificially to underwater existence, and in fact retain the technology to transform air breathers such as Flash and Dale and Hans into water-breathers, and back again. They do appear to be unable to create beings able to operate in both media, however, one is either an air or a water breather. This is however, discarded in the final episode when Undina and a troop of Coralian sea warriors arrive to participate in the final battle and advance onto land to take the fortress guarding Ming's capital.
It would seem likely, though of course unconfirmed, that many of the various races of Mongo are the result of genetic manipulation, eugenic projects, and other artificial means of inducing change, over the course of Mongo's vast history. Probably H. sapiens is the base stock for most if not all Mongo's living intelligent races, but the points of divergence would likely date very far back in the past.
Ming the Merciless
The chief villain of the series is Ming the Merciless, archetype of the Evil Overlord. Cruel, cold, arrogant, avaricious, ruthless, and Machiavellian, Ming is the epitome of the tyrant. Yet he is brilliant, referred to by some as the greatest scientist in the universe, and politically and diplomatically capable. He is skilled in personal combat, but feels no compulsion to engage in it when misdirection will work as well.His personal race is unclear, his ears are pointed, his teeth seem fanged, his frame oddly thin yet very strong...and he claims to be immortal, with some supporting evidence. He also appears to have some Asian features, a stark contrast to that of his daughter, Princess Aura.
His sexual tastes seem varied, to judge by the various types of female we see in glimpses of his harem, but he seems to find Dale Arden particularly attractive, and his daughter Aura seems to be a Homo sapiens, so presumably Ming is not very alien. His origin may tie in to the nature of Syk, the Witch-Kingdom, as the series reveals a legend of a one-time King Gor-dan of Syk, to whom Ming served as High Priest.
His resources are immense, with armies of robots, armies of humans and other species, a fleet of armed rocket ships and spacecraft...and access to even more impressive technologies. However, he does seem to fear the possibility of a united rebellion on Mongo, because he seems to work to keep the races at each other's throats.
Season 2
When a second season of episodes was ordered for fall 1982, NBC insisted that the serial format be dropped and that the stories be more episodic. This resulted in the addition of the pet dragon Gremlin, an artist in mouth-blown smoke. This second season of episodes was not well received (and was not seen in some markets, due to being scheduled at 12:30 PM Eastern/11:30 AM Central and thus often being pre-empted for sports coverage). The program was canceled after completion of the second season run.The program was later shown in reruns on the Sci Fi Channel
Syfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
as part of Sci Fi Cartoon Quest
Cartoon Quest
Cartoon Quest was the name of a block of animated television shows that aired on the Sci Fi Channel starting in 1992. Similar to USA's Cartoon Express, it featured newly picked-up shows and dropped off alternatively with each season...
.
Season 1
- A Planet in Peril
- The Monsters of Mongo
- Vultan - King of the Hawkmen
- To Save Earth
- The Beast Men's Prey
- Into the Water World
- Adventure in Arboria
- The Frozen World
- Monster of the Glacier
- Blue Magic
- King Flash
- Tournament of Death
- Castaways in Tropica
- The Desert Hawk
- Revolt of the Power Men
- Ming's Last Battle
Season 2
- Gremlin the Dragon
- Royal Wedding
- Sir Gremlin
- Deadly Double
- The Game
- The Seed
- Witch Woman
- Micro Menace
- Flash Back
- The Warrior
- The Freedom Balloon
- Sacrifice of the Volcano Men
- Beware of Gifts
- The Memory Bank of Ming
- Survival Game
- Gremlin's Finest Hour
DVD release
BCI Eclipse LLC (Under license from Entertainment RightsEntertainment Rights
Entertainment Rights Plc was a global media company. Its main role was in children and family television programming.The group was established in 1989 as Sleepykids. In 1999 it become entertainment rights and was focused on the creation and exploitation of major children's characters and brands...
) released The New Adventures of Flash Gordon: The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1 on July 18, 2006. The 4 disc set includes many special features.
As of 2009, this release has been discontinued and is out of print as BCI Eclipse ceased operations.
Voice acting credits
- Flash Gordon, Prince Barin: Robert RidgelyRobert RidgelyRobert Ridgely was an American actor and vocal artist, known for both on-camera roles and extensive voice-over work.-Career:...
- Dale Arden, Queen Undina, Queen Fria, Queen Azura, Queen Desira: Diane PershingDiane PershingDiane Pershing, born and raised in Queens, New York, is a romance novelist, television writer and voice actor.She wrote episodes for the television series The Love Boat and What's Happening Now!!...
- Dr. Hans Zarkov, Gundar the Desert Hawk, Ming the Merciless: Alan OppenheimerAlan OppenheimerAlan Oppenheimer is an American character actor and voice actor. He has performed numerous roles on live-action television since the 1960s, and has had an active career doing voice work in cartoons since the 1970s.-Early life:...
- Thun the Lion Man, King Vultan: Alan Melvin
- Princess Aura: Melendy BrittMelendy BrittMelendy Britt is an American actress active in television and voice acting since the 1970s. Her most notable animated work is for Filmation, voicing characters such as She-Ra, Princess Adora, and the second animated Batgirl...
- Narrator: Lou ScheimerLou ScheimerLouis Scheimer is an Emmy and Grammy Award–winning American producer, one of the original founders of Filmation, an animation company, and also an executive producer of many of its cartoons .-Career:Early in Filmation's history, Scheimer also contributed...
Later incarnations
In 1986, Flash appeared with fellow King FeaturesKing Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate, a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation, distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games to nearly 5000 newspapers worldwide...
heroes The Phantom, Mandrake the Magician
Mandrake the Magician
Mandrake the Magician is a syndicated newspaper comic strip, created by Lee Falk , which began June 11, 1934. Phil Davis soon took over as the strip's illustrator, while Falk continued to script. The strip was distributed by King Features Syndicate.Davis worked on the strip until his death in 1964,...
, and Lothar, as well as all of their children, in the cartoon series Defenders of the Earth
Defenders of the Earth
Defenders of the Earth is an animated television series produced in 1986, narrated by Corey Burton and featuring characters from three comic strips distributed by King Features Syndicate—Flash Gordon, the Phantom, and Mandrake the Magician—battling the Flash Gordon villain Ming the Merciless in the...
. In 1996, the character of Flash Gordon returned to television again in a short-lived updated series featuring him using a Hoverboard
Hoverboard
A Hoverboard is a fictional hovering board used for personal transportation in the films Back to the Future Part II and Back to the Future Part III. Hoverboards resemble a skateboard without wheels. Through special effects the filmmakers depicted the boards hovering above the ground...
, and in 2007, the character was revived in a live-action series
Flash Gordon (2007 TV series)
Flash Gordon is an American science fiction television series that debuted on Sci Fi in the United States on August 10, 2007 and continued airing new episodes through February 8, 2008. It has also appeared on the United Kingdom Sci Fi Channel and SPACE in Canada...
on SciFi Channel
Syfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
.