Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

For the uninitiated, this series tells the tale of six kids who, after riding the Dungeons & Dragons rollercoaster, mysteriously get sucked into its fantasy world. There, each of them gains magical talents and abilities, all the better to survive their time in the Realm. The bow-shooting ranger, the acrobat, the thief, the cavalier, the wizard, and the boy-barbarian are soon joined by a baby unicorn, and tutored by the mysterious Dungeon Master. Opposing them is the evil sorcerer Venger, as well as various monsters and entities all intent on keeping the kids from getting back home. This was one of CBS' most popular animated series, airing for 27 episodes from 1983-1986, and again in the '90s on the Fox Kids network as reruns. Created by the legendary Marvel Productions, the series was based on the popular TSR role-playing game created in 1974, which spawned an entire industry. The complete animated series was released on DVD in 2006 by BCI Eclipse and again in 2009 by Mill Creek Entertainment. Since both releases are vastly different, I will try to outline the differences between both. In 2006, Dungeons & Dragons- The Complete Animated Series was released in a re-mastered 5-disc boxed set loaded with extras by BCI Eclipse. The only negative was that certain episodes had some of its original music replaced. This set is now out-of-print and can only be bought from private sellers since BCI closed down in 2008. Here are the special features on this set; *All-new half hour documentary, 'Entering the Realm of Dungeons & Dragons' featuring interviews with the show's production team, writers, animators, and network executives *Two commentary tracks for episodes 'Night of No Tomorrow' & 'The Dragon's Graveyard' with producer Bob Richardson, story editor/ voice director Hank Saroyan, writers Mark Evanier & Michael Reaves, and CBS executives Ted Field II & Judy Price *Radio show-style presentation of the unaired final episode 'Requiem' featuring select original voice cast members *Full length animated storyboard with interactive episode comparison for Episode #16 'The Girl Who Dreamed Of Tomorrow' *'Choose Your Own Adventure' DVD Game & 'Uni's Fun Facts' Trivia *50 characters, creatures & artifacts profiles with bios, images & clips, plus extensive gallery of original model sheets & memorabilia *Short live-action film by fan Sean Kennedy *Alternate and rare footage plus hidden easter eggs *DVD-ROM features including scripts for multiple episodes (including the un-produced series finale script), complete storyboards and the original series bible *Episode guide booklet with show's synopsis, writers and original air dates *Official 'Dungeons & Dragons' hard-cover game supplement created exclusively by Wizards of the Coast featuring 32 pages of character profiles and stat blocks. The adventure is a prelude to the episode 'The Dragon's Graveyard' and is designed to bridge the game and the animated TV series. The characters and world within the animated series are now playable with the traditional RPG game. In 2009, Mill Creek Entertainment released Dungeons & Dragons: The Complete Animated Series as a bare bones 3-disc set with none of the special features. However, the original music for all of the episodes was restored for this release. The BCI release is definitely aimed at the hardcore fans while the Mill Creek release is better suited for the casual, cost conscious fans. Of course, diehard fans will probably want to pick up both complete series releases given they each has pros and cons. As for the show, it is unfortunate that sagging ratings led to its premature cancellation in 1986. But thanks to these DVD releases, fans can relive all these great adventures anytime they want!