There are a handful of animated series created back in the 1960’s that seem to have an almost impossible staying power. Some of them are even more popular today than when they were first broadcast. “Scooby Doo”, “The Jetsons” and “The Flintstones” come to mind. What really surprises me about most of them is that they initially had very few original episodes, in some cases only one season, but were so popular that they returned year later in updated versions. Unfortunately, in most cases these later versions rarely captured the essence of what made the original shows so good. Ever since I was a kid I watched all the shows I mentioned, but there was one that I somehow missed. I’m not even sure why, since the premise and style certainly would have appealed to me. The series? “Jonny Quest.” Thinking back, I don’t believe I ever saw an episode so I was really looking forward to watching Warner Brothers new DVD release of the 1st season.

Premiering in 1964, “Jonny Quest” followed its young namesake as he traveled the globe with his father, Dr Benton Quest, in search of adventure. Joining them were ‘Race’ Bannon (the government agent assigned to protect them), Hadji (Jonny’s adopted Indian brother), and Bandit (his pet bulldog). The original 26 episodes featured Jonny and the gang in all manner of situations, from facing mummies to squaring off against giant crabs.

Like most of the classic animated series, “Jonny Quest” does seem a bit dated by today’s standards, but this doesn’t make the show any less enjoyable to watch. There have been any number of detractors who were offended by the presence of Hadji, but generally these detractors were bored or unemployed folks who really didn’t have anything better to do. These are the same people who were offended by the fact that in the movie “True Lies”, evil Arab terrorists were portrayed as… uhhh…evil Arab terrorists. They pride themselves on being PC (Politically Correct), while avoiding the fact that they are IC (Intellectually Challenged). Hopefully, the more we ignore them, they’ll go away.

Overall, I really enjoyed the series. Much more than I expected, as a matter of fact. The stories were intelligent and well-written, the bits of humor thrown in were rarely silly, and there were consequences to the characters actions. For example, in the episode “Terror Island”, Jonny starts driving a bicycle rickshaw and gets it going too fast to stop. He ends up going down a steep road and off a bridge, dumping himself, Hadji and the driver in the water. It’s amusing, but later Jonny’s father chastises him for his recklessness. In a way, there are lessons to be learned from the series, but it never gets preachy or talks down to the audience.

This was also part of the show’s sense of realism. Sure, some of the situations were a bit fantastic, but they were based in real world settings. An extra bonus of this was the opportunity to learn a bit about other cultures while being entertained. Of course, there was also a matter of the gadgets, both real and imagined. Most came from the imagination of the writers, but have become a reality in our world today. I can now understand why it’s had such a loyal following for so many years. And I know that loyal following will take pleasure in all the cool extra features that Warner decided to include on this release.

First up for the fans is a replay of the episode “Double Danger” with fun facts and trivia popping up on the screen. This was where I learned why the gadgetry was so real. It seems the “Jonny Quest” production team read up on all of the current science magazines of the time. This is followed up by a 15 minute featurette all about the history of the series. It is full of archival photos and has bits of interviews with some of today’s top animators, including Brad Bird (director of “The Iron Giant”) and Dan Riba (“Justice League”). It’s a great featurette that really needed to be longer. By the way, how shocked do you think I was when I learned that the voice behind Jonny was a young Tim Matheson??

There is also a ‘Video Handbook” that gives new viewers the opportunity to learn about the characters and gadgets used in the series. All you do is pick from the list and you’re shown a video that fills you in all the info. Finally, there is a vintage commercial for P.F. Flyer sneakers featuring Jonny and Dr. Quest. The commercial is great and even has Jonny telling viewers that they can get a free P.F. Flyer magic ring with a secret compartment, a reflective surface for signaling and a decoder.

Now that I’ve seen “Jonny Quest”, I really have to wonder how and why I missed it for all these years. As much as I love to watch so many of the classic animated series from the 60s, I have found this one to be far superior to most of them. I really wish now that I had watched the series as a kid. What I wouldn’t give for one of those rings!!

Episodes:
Mystery of the Lizard Men
Arctic Splashdown
The Curse of Anubis
Pursuit of the Po-Ho
Riddle of the Gold
Treasure of the Temple
Calcutta Adventure
The Robot Spy
Double Danger
Shadow of the Condor
Skull and Double Crossbones
The Dreadful Doll
A Small Matter of Pygmies
Dragons of Ashida
Turu the Terrible
The Fraudulent Volcano
The Werewolf of the Timberland
Pirates from Below
Attack of the Tree People
The Invisible Monster
The Devil’s Tower
The Quetong Missile Mystery
The House of the Seven Gargoyles
Terror Island
Monster in a Monastery
The Sea Haunt

Starring (the voices of): Tim Mathieson, Mike Road, Don Messick, Danny Bravo, John Stephenson
Extras: “Jonny Quest - Adventures in Animation”, Jonny Quest Files - Fun Facts and Trivia, Jonny Quest Video Handbook, Vintage TV Commercial, Trailers
Specifications: Full Screen
Studio: Warner Brothers
Release Date: 5/11/2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give Jonny Quest: Season 1 an A.