Defenders of the Earth

The 80's were the best time ever for cartoons and Defenders of the Earth was one of many fantastic shows.

For starters, the Defenders consisted of a team of brilliant heroes. There was Flash Gordon, comic book heroes The Phantom and Mandrake the Magician and Lothar. Each of them had a child who helped them battle the truly diabolical Ming the Merciless.

The shows were really good; the music was brilliant and the action was top-notch. Flash Gordon needs no introduction and neither do the other heroes. Each week they pooled their resources to foil Ming's plans.

If you like 80's cartoons then you will love this.

This show had the interesting idea of bringing together the stars of the four greatest adventure strips that were distributed by King Features Syndicate and team them with their children to fight Ming and his son. Too bad it only lasted a short time because I really enjoyed the cross generational concept. This show probably would have succeeded if it had come on perhaps during the late sixties at a time when the strips featuring the principals were still popular and at a time when super hero shows were at their peak.

A good fun cartoon of the mid 1980s. I remember this well from my own childhood, it was one of the few US import shows I watched, and seen today I can remember why I enjoyed it: it's fun, funny, creative and fast-paced.

Defenders of the Earth is an anomaly in superhero entertainment: it was produced during a time when superhero cinema was barely getting started (the Superman films were then still recent blockbuster smashes) and the concept of shared universes remained a strong-point in sci-fi novels rather than in regular movies or television. Defenders is oddly entertaining considering it's a superhero show that ISN'T from either MARVEL (which supplied the animation for this show) or DC Comics; these were superheroes from syndicated newspaper comic strips, not wholly comic-book oriented magazines. It's interesting that Defenders exists at all frankly; the 80s were a great time for Saturday-morning 'toons: Robotech, Transformers, GI Joe, Jem, He-Man, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, ThunderCats, Ghostbusters, Duck Tales, the list goes on from there. So how does a show starring Flash Gordon, The Phantom and Mandrake the Magician compare to all those classics? It's watchable; cheesy admittedly but genuinely watchable nonetheless.

I give this time-capsule of a show 4/5 stars.

This is another under the radar gem, This I though was an awesome idea, even if this might have been years too late. Having the pulp comic heroes from King's Features become a super team; it's kind of a dream come true for those that are fans of the King's Features comics. This also was one of the only super team shows that were out in the 80's as there really weren't all that many.

Really love that theme song which is one of my favorite theme songs of all time, it's actually almost strangely catchy. The animation is solid no doubt up to par, really like the character animation as everyone looks accurate to the King Features heroes we know and love.

Two of my favorites are one "The Phantom" who is awesome and of course was an inspiration to the superheroes "Batman" and "Black Panther". Anyway, I like that they keep the whole generational hero aspect of him intact, he's still mysterious as every as you never see him without his costume and mask throughout the show, but one thing that is different about this Phantom is that he has a superpower. He has this power much like Vixen from the "DC verse" where he summons up the totem that consists of ten tigers, which give him for a moment super strength.

Second is "Mandrake the Magician" whom was the inspiration for "Doctor Strange" and "Zantana". I think he's really cool really like how he looks and sounds almost a bit like actor Timothy Dalton, I can't help but think how it could have been if in the 80's or 90's there was a live action adaption of the comic series and that actor played the role. Anyway, his character is also cool as he not just does perform tricks but also does real magic which is very useful throughout the show.

The action is solid as we see everyone doing their part, even the kids who are useful and can hold their own against danger. I like the fact that each of these heroes have children of their own whom are trainees in game.

The only two that stand out are Rick Gordon who is a sort of the technical officer of the bunch as he is tech savvy and is constantly inventive as he provides most of the gadgets for the team. Another is Jedda Walker whom has mind powers from communicating with animals for help much like "The Beastmaster" and even sometimes moving objects.

It really gives the hero characters a sense of age, humanizes them showing they have lives of their own and don't let their lifestyles define and be their whole lives but also the reality of building a legacy as powerful as comic heroes/superheroes are even they don't live forever. But also shows a reality on training to be a warrior takes time and hard work and doesn't happen overnight, as much as these kids want to and will one day take their presessor's place, they still have a lot to learn.

There are some solid and memorable episodes, yeah, it's true this show has it's share of dud rockets but what show doesn't, but it's the one that launch that really count the most. Three episodes I like are, One: Terror in Time: This one was kind of cool as it was a way to have the Defenders join another character from the King's Features lineup "Prince Valiant".

Second: The God Awake: It's another Mandrake Magician episode as it was one that tackles "India Mythology".

Three: The Deadliest Battle: This one is you can say another of those anti-drug stories but I like it as it's one done right giving the show a sense of reality but also the mortality of the character Rick.

Unfortunately, this show has flown into some space turbulence which holds it back from going further. One turbulence spot is the character named Kshin (I know who the Hell names their kid that) his character is one of those filler characters that are useless (yeah this kid's no Harry Potter) and also he's sort of a stereotypical annoying kid which I can never stand.

There are a few too many villains, the villains the show provides aren't bad but there isn't an established rogue gallery as most of them are just simply your villain/s of the week. The only seasonal rogue we have is Ming the Merciless whom is his good terribly vain power mongering self but he's a bit weak as he's one that talks the talk but doesn't walk the walk.

Last, the show is a little too scattered in direction. I know that a lot of the animated shows and live action shows at the time mainly in randomized format. But the King Features comics were known for consistent storytelling and development, which really could have benefited this show as the show did in some episode provide depth to certain characters along with the world they inhabited.

This show really is an enjoyable watch which is why it's too bad it never went up the stratosphere. As, I said before this was an idea that happened years too late, even though these pulp heroes are fondly remembered they're not as popular as they were before which makes the show a bit of a tough sell. And with the popularity of other comic properties from Marvel and DC along with other animated properties like "Transformers", "G.I. Joe", etc. in the 80's, this show just didn't stand a chance.

It would be awesome if this series got a revival. Either by a continuing sequel to pick up where the 80's animated series left off or make it years latter where we would see the kids grown up and take on their parent's roles, have flashbacks on how they came to be in the roles. Or just simply having an altogether remake, where we keep the core cast however do a better job in storytelling like condensed seasons for the show to keep its eye on the ball to develop the ongoing plot, characters, and relationship like have both Rick and Jedda in an actual one and no bull crap games.

Explore the worlds from each of the pulp heroes, have more depth on the characters, have them fight from each season a different main villain/s like in second season it can be the Drax Organization as their the sworn enemies of "The Phantom" as well as the villains have their own collision to have the Defenders meet their match.

Better yet may 'be a live action TV series as long as it's done right. Though this might not happen as it can be harder to relaunch an old property than launching a new one. Still, it's a thought consider and with certain things being revived and properties finally getting a movie and TV show who really knows.

"Defenders of the Earth" is an under the radar gem worth a trip.

Rating: 3 stars