Ark II… the Safe Apocalypse

I’ve often wondered where my fascination with the post apocalyptic genre began. For a longest time I just figured that it must have been Planet of the Apes with a little bit of Ralph Bakshi’s Wizards thrown in. But I’d always had this vague recollection of the Saturday morning 70’s show Ark II. I was pretty young when I saw it, so I didn’t really remember much beyond the helpful characters driving around in a big RV and that civilization had been destroyed some how. Despite my love of the genre, I just couldn’t bring myself to buy the Ark II DVD collection when it was released in November 2006 based solely on foggy memories. You see, a lot of the 1970s kiddy stuff is really cheesy and not cheesy fun but cheesy bad. However after meeting Andy Mangles at the Portland Comic Book Convention, I decided to pick it up as Andy had expressed that the Ark II DVD project was a particular joy for him to work on.


Well, after delving into the DVDs, I’m glad to report that Ark II is cheesy good. This Filmation show is based on the premise that by 25th century pollution has destroyed the fertility of the earth and humans have been reduced to a Dark Ages level of subsistence. To bring hope to this shattered world, the few scientists left have pooled their knowledge into making a mobile laboratory, the RV-like Ark II. Yeah, it’s named after Noah’s Ark. Keeping with the biblical theme, the crew of the Ark II includes: Jonah, the white, bearded commander; Ruth the good-looking Asian; Samuel, the Latino boy-genius; and Adam, the talking chimp (a swipe at creationism no doubt). The multi-ethnic (multi-species) crew travels around on various missions to help primitive communities help themselves or overcome oppression. Additionally, the series also utilized a smaller vehicle called the ark rover and a Jet pack to assist the heroes on their missions. As Ark II is a kid’s show, the crew never uses lethal force and guns don’t appear.

Ark II is an interesting cross between a program crammed with tons of great sci-fi ideas and a kiddy show in which the creative folk are really pressed because of time and money. The visual look of the program is quite good from the spacey suits and vehicles of the Ark II crew to the dirty appearance of the survivors they encounter. The fact that the show was shot in the same place as Planet of the Apes instills the show with some visual apocalyptic validity. But often the dialog is stilted and the plotting is weak. It is a kind of time capsule of 1970s TV filmmaking, so many of the underwhelming aspects of the show are understandable if one looks at Ark II with that perspective. Strangely enough the “message” aspects of the show actually aren’t too heavy-handed. The overarching theme of the show is obviously environmentalism, but there are also lessons of friendship, non-violence, and co-operation. So if you’ve been looking for an apocalypse that is safe for the whole family Ark II is it. Also, its important to note that Andy Mangles’ group has done a superb job with the DVD content, as the documentary, menus and bonus features really multiply the value of the whole package.

Of course I can never be sure if Ark II alone got me interested in the post apocalyptic genre, that’s lost in the mists of the nuclear winter (yuk yuk) but it certainly is a piece of my childhood that I had nearly forgot. For a live action, 1970s kid’s show, Ark II is about the best it gets. It’s not a perfect show, but it really has a great concept that I believe kids would still enjoy especially the talking chimp and that jet pack. Plus, the diversity is a nice bonus, proving somebody was paying attention at Filmation. The mission of the crew of Ark II was to provide hope, something that was much needed in the 1970s and now for that matter, see the parallels? So, if you’re into sci-fi, want a stroll down memory lane or need a show for the kids, check out the DVD set of Ark II.

-Swinebread

Portland Comic Book Show

Always underwhelming but worthwhile if you’re looking for bargains; the Portland Comic Book Show made a brief appearance today as it usually does about twice a year. I don’t often go to these things much anymore except to meet the occasional guest. See the thing is this comic show is always held in the aging Memorial Coliseum where the Trail Blazers used to play eons ago. The place looks like a dingy, dirty dungeon with an off-white asylum paint job. It’s really not a pleasant place to be. Plus there aren’t any events. It’s just kinda’ a flea market stuck in hole. Now I’m sorry for ragging on Second Genesis, I know they work really hard to bring guests and dealers to town, but there is the brand new Oregon Convention Center one bus stop away. Why isn’t this show being held there? It’s nice, clean, has windows, and has proper facilities, like elevators for folks in wheelchairs or with baby carriages. Now it is probably supposed to be an issue of saving money but a nice atmosphere really makes a difference. I always wonder how many guests decided never to come back because the space is so uninviting. The Stumptown Comics Fest has only been around for three years and they managed to move into the convention center last year, so I don’t see why the Portland Comic Book Show can’t either. I think it would attract a lot more people including street traffic.
“Phew” sorry for griping it is just something that has been bugging for a while. But the big reason I went was to meet Andy Mangels. He’s a great, talkative guy who wears many hats. Mostly known for being a writer of Star Trek books, Andy also directs and writes material for DVD projects. Many Saturday morning favorites of yesteryear have been coming out with fantastic bonus material thanks to Andy. I’ve got a few of ‘em like Flash Gordon, Blackstar, the Animated Star Trek, and Dungeons and Dragons.
I asked Andy a few questions and he was really great about providing answers. He had a hard time choosing his favorite DVD project but mentioned Ark II as a real treat to work on, as it had always been a favorite show of his. Additionally Andy said he feels that the Prince Valiant boxed sets are the most underrated because despite being a children’s show they had many adult themes, included faithful elements from the comic strips and interesting twists on the King Arthur mythology. Mr. Mangels felt Dungeons and Dragons had the most bonus features and he was pretty excited about the Lone Ranger, Zorro, Jason of Star Command and Isis sets due this year as well.
When I asked about when Tarzan (one of my favorite cartoons) might come out, he informed me that it looks good but his group has to jump through a few more hoops to get the rights straightened out. But the best news of all: There is a good chance he’ll be doing Thundarr, (my favorite cartoon ever) although it might take some time. Andy said: “I know there is a lot of demand out there!” Boy, is that an understatement. I sure hope he gets to do the Thundarr DVD since his bonus features have been really stellar.

Michael Eury was another guy I was eager to meet. A long time comic writer Eury currently edits Back Issue a comics magazine. It’s quite a wonderful periodical published by Twomorrows which explores different aspects of comic book history using a well thought out departmental approach. I told Mr. Eury that I found Back Issue a rare pleasure because most other comics’ publications are rather boring to read, while his magazine is informative and fun. He really took that to heart and said he and his staff work really hard to find a good balance between history and entertainment.

Here’s a shot of Colleen Cover and Paul Tobin creators of Banana Sunday. I could be wrong but they look like the have a very fulfilling love life.

Here’s David Hahn who was gracious enough to appear in my documentary Portland Comics a few years ago. He had many wonderful pages of art for sale, which I could not afford to buy.


Darren Davis represents Blue Water Productions. They’ll be publishing comics based on undeveloped Ray Harryhausen stories including a sequel to Clash of the Titans titled Wrath of the Titans. Mr. Davis was nice enough to let me look at scanned images of the art. Looks good!


They had some Star Wars reenactors (can’t remember the group’s name). The cool thing was that they only portrayed original trilogy characters and none of those crappy prequel losers. The bad thing was I was using a borrowed camera so I screwed up most of the shots. Got a few of the Stormtroopers though.



It was funny because I ran into a drooling She-Hulk’s Bitch ‘cause he scored a huge stash of She-Hulk comics. I'll have to borrow them some time if the pages aren’t stuck together. (ha ha)

After the show I went with family for Dim Sum to celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year!