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scans_dailyFor the longest time between a toy/game marketing franchise aimed at kids and them actually getting a comic to go with it.
The Dungeons and Dragons cartoon was an oddity of a show. It lasted three seasons from 1983 to 1985), but that's still only 27 episodes in total (13 for Season 1, 8 for Season 2 and 6 for Season 3, as well as a planned finale (Which left some elements open for a fourth season had they wanted one), which was scripted but never filmed (But there's a top notch fanfilm created from it)
It was thematically, if loosely, based on the titular RPG, but the characters used were not playing the game as a framing device, rather they were six ordinary kids summoned to a magical realm (via a fairground "Dungeons & Dragons" themed ride) to defend it from evil. I think it would count as "isekai" in current manga/anime terminology.
There were no toys or brand marketing using the cartoon characters, aside from some PVC's figures which were hardly widespread.
And yet, it has remained a very fondly remembered cartoon of it's era. The character designs and effects were great (Sheila the Thief and her cloak of invisibilty always being a favourite), the animation was adequate for it's era and likely cost and the characters, whilst not the deepest, are engaging, with some interesting conflicts (Mostly from Eric the Cavalier who whilst a bit spoiled and self centred, was never less than laser like in his critiquing of the kind of cryptic BS Dungeon Master threw at them each episode)
So it is perhaps a little surprising that, as far as I can tell, there has never been any sort of a tie in comic using these characters. There have been D&D based comics aplenty (I believe one of them sort of gave a nod to the cartoon, by featuring a couple of characters who MIGHT be sort of the original cartoon crew many years later, but it's not acknowledged as such)
They may have lost Transformers and GI Joe, but they know how to expand on a fairly unpromising license, and are starting wiht a four issue miniseries, written by David M. Booher (Canto), and Sam Maggs (Rick and Morty Ever After), and with art from George Kambadais (John Carter of Mars)!
The Dungeons and Dragons cartoon was an oddity of a show. It lasted three seasons from 1983 to 1985), but that's still only 27 episodes in total (13 for Season 1, 8 for Season 2 and 6 for Season 3, as well as a planned finale (Which left some elements open for a fourth season had they wanted one), which was scripted but never filmed (But there's a top notch fanfilm created from it)
It was thematically, if loosely, based on the titular RPG, but the characters used were not playing the game as a framing device, rather they were six ordinary kids summoned to a magical realm (via a fairground "Dungeons & Dragons" themed ride) to defend it from evil. I think it would count as "isekai" in current manga/anime terminology.
There were no toys or brand marketing using the cartoon characters, aside from some PVC's figures which were hardly widespread.
And yet, it has remained a very fondly remembered cartoon of it's era. The character designs and effects were great (Sheila the Thief and her cloak of invisibilty always being a favourite), the animation was adequate for it's era and likely cost and the characters, whilst not the deepest, are engaging, with some interesting conflicts (Mostly from Eric the Cavalier who whilst a bit spoiled and self centred, was never less than laser like in his critiquing of the kind of cryptic BS Dungeon Master threw at them each episode)
So it is perhaps a little surprising that, as far as I can tell, there has never been any sort of a tie in comic using these characters. There have been D&D based comics aplenty (I believe one of them sort of gave a nod to the cartoon, by featuring a couple of characters who MIGHT be sort of the original cartoon crew many years later, but it's not acknowledged as such)
They may have lost Transformers and GI Joe, but they know how to expand on a fairly unpromising license, and are starting wiht a four issue miniseries, written by David M. Booher (Canto), and Sam Maggs (Rick and Morty Ever After), and with art from George Kambadais (John Carter of Mars)!
