HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA: THE SERIES

 

HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA: THE SERIES
(Disney Channel, Teletoon, Netflix, June 25, 2017-October 29, 2020)
 
Sony Pictures Animation, Corus Entertainment, Nelvana

 

MAIN CAST:
Bryn McAuley – Mavis Dracula
Evany Rosen – Wendy Blob
Gage Munroe – Hank N. Stein
Joseph Motiki – Pedro Moomay
Dan Chameroy – Lydia Dracula, Dr. Julien Gillman III
Richard Binsley – Diane
 

 

Hotel Transylvania is a media franchise created and developed by comedy writer Todd Durham based on his book of the same name. Todd later created a bible outlining several films, a television series, holiday specials, video games, books, merchandising, a hotel chain and theme parks and pitched it to Sony Pictures. Sony bought the concept and set it up at their newly-formed Sony Pictures Animation studio.

Hotel Transylvania centered around the titular hotel opened up by Count Dracula (Adam Sandler) himself as a safe haven for monsters away from the human world. He did this after his wife was killed by an angry human mob shortly after the birth of his daughter, Mavis (Selena Gomez); whom he forbade from ever leaving the hotel out of fear for her safety and went to great lengths to keep her curiosity of the outside world at bay. Frequent residents of the hotel included comedic interpretations of Universal Monsters like Frankenstein (Kevin James) and his wife, Eunice (Fran Drescher); Wayne Werewolf (Steve Buscemi), his wife, Wanda (Molly Shannon), and their massive litter of children; Griffin the Invisible Man (David Spade); and Murray the mummy (CeeLo Green). Comprising the hotel staff were zombies as bellhops, witches as maids, and gargoyles as waiters.

Movie poster featuring Murray, Frank, Wayne, Drac, Mavis, Johnny and two wolf cubs.

Drac’s peace, however, seems to come to an end when a 21-year-old human named Johnny (Andy Samberg) stumbles upon the hotel and meets Mavis, with the two instantly become attracted to each other. Unable to get Johnny away without notice, Drac disguises Johnny as Frank’s cousin “Johnnystein” and claimed he was a party planner for Mavis’ 118^th birthday. Drac found himself having to juggle his lie long enough to get rid of Johnny without incident, but needing to do it without breaking his daughter’s heart and chef Quasimodo (Jon Lovitz) turning Johnny into a meal.

The original trilogy film collection.

The film had a rough production, going through six directors until Genndy Tartakovsky came on board, making his feature directorial debut. Tartakovsky visualized the film as having the energy and exaggeration of traditional 2D animation in order to “push reality” and infused those sensibilities into the CG design. Miley Cyrus was also initially cast to play Mavis, but was replaced by Gomez when she bought and licked an explicit cake meant for her then-partner’s birthday. Dan and Kevin Hageman contributed to the story, and the screenplay was written by Peter Baynham and Robert Smigel. Character designs were handled by Sylvain Deboissy, Carter Goodrich, Carlos Grangel, Luis Grané, Cathy Jones, Craig Kellman, Annette Marnat and Pete Oswald. The film opened on September 28, 2012 and ended up pulling in over $378 million worldwide at the box office against an $85 million budget. The film’s success spawned three sequels; each earning more than the last (with the exception of the fourth, released on Amazon Prime with only a limited theatrical release).

Mavis literally hanging out with Hank, Wendy, Pedro and Diane.

While production was underway for the third film, Sony looked into expanding the series by creating a spin-off television series. Developed by Mark Steinberg, Hotel Transylvania: The Series was actually a prequel set 4 years before the first film. Drac (David Berni, later Ivan Sherry) was called away for business with the Vampire Council, leaving his older sister, Lydia (Dan Chameroy), in charge of the hotel and looking after 114-year-old Mavis (Bryn McAuley). Mavis wanted to prove to her father that she could run the hotel and often attempted to implement her ideas; which clashed with Lydia’s traditional and old-fashioned outlook and desire to maintain order. Of course, her teenaged enthusiasm and curiosity often led Mavis into mischief with her friends Wendy Blob (Evany Rosen), a green blob of goo; Hank N. Stein (Gage Munroe), the son of Frank (Paul Braunstein) and Eunice (Katie Griffin) who tended to fall to pieces; and Pedro (Joseph Motiki), a lazy and gluttonous mummy that liked rap (what else?) music.

Lydia Dracula: no sense of humor.

Other characters included Diane (Richard Binsley), Lydia’s pet chicken that was once human and served as her spy around the hotel; Quasimodo (Christopher Jacot), still the hotel’s curmudgeon of a chef; Gene Dracula (Patrick McKenna), Mavis’ video-game loving uncle who utilized a chariot-like wheelchair; Dr. Gillman (Chameroy), the hotel’s resident physician; Cerberus, the hotel’s three-headed guard dog; Klaus (Carter Hayden), Mavis’ cousin who was always trying to upstage her in everything; Shonda Moomay (Maria Vacratsis, later Masasa Moyo), Pedro’s mother and eventually Wendy’s stepmother who could grow to giant size; Bob Blob (Adrian Truss), Wendy’s father and eventually Pedro’s stepfather who’s the richest monster in the underworld; Baby Blendy, the infant daughter of Shonda and Bob whose wails were enjoyed by residents of the hotel;  Charlotte and Sophie (both Josette Halpert), twin werewolves that were old friends of Mavis from her Ghoul Guide troop; and Donald (Ryan Belleville) and Kitty Cartwright (Linda Kash), a human couple that lived near the hotel. Donald was fun-loving and dim-witted, while Kitty was overprotective of their toddler daughter, dubbed “the nosepicker” by Mavis, and did whatever she could to keep the monsters away from their house. Of course, the presence of the Cartwrights and various other encounters with humans throughout the series directly contradicted the canon of the original film where Mavis wouldn’t encounter any until she turned 118. The characters were designed by Ruggiero Abbruzzese, Paul Baczynski, Alice Lemma and Adan Ye.

Residents of the hotel.

Hotel Transylvania: The Series was first seen on June 9, 2017 in the first of a four weekly shorts that aired on WATCH Disney Channel and on Disney Channel’s YouTube; later airing during commercial breaks on Disney Channel proper. The series made its official debut on Disney Channel on June 25, 2017, although the first episode was made available on WATCH Disney Channel, YouTube and VOD on June 20^th. The series was written by Steinberg, Ben Joseph, Alex Ganetakos, Emer Connon, Alice Prodanou, Andrew Harrison, and Mike D’Ascenzo, with Josh Gal and Shawn Kalb joining in the second season and Dale Schott contributing a short. Steinberg served as story editor with Connon, Ganetakos, Harrison, Joseph, Prodanou, Robert Marianetti and David Wachtenheim as story consultants. The majority of episodes were comprised of two story segments. Unlike the films, the series was animated in 2D. As it was produced by Nelvana and Corus Entertainment—both Canadian companies—the series’ cast was comprised of Canadian talent; which meant none of the franchise’s original actors reprised their roles (although that’s not uncommon for film-to-TV adaptations, anyway). The series’ theme and music were composed by Stephen Skratt and Asher Lenz.

The Cartwrights, bringing a little humanity to the show.

Initially, Disney Channel heavily promoted the series. A week after its debut, they channel hosted a 2 ½ hour marathon of the episodes already aired on July 2^nd and their official Twitter account live-tweeted along with it. The series premiered on Teletoon in Canada on October 2^nd, shortly before a hiatus began in December. The second half of the first season debuted on Teletoon beginning June 24, 2018 and on Netflix in the United States the next day before airing on Disney Channel that October. A second season was announced in September and debuted on October 8, 2019. Unlike with the first season, the second received very little promotion and was moved to a much earlier timeslot. The first 13 episodes were burned through that October, with the 14^th airing in December before another hiatus. The final 12 episodes were also burned through the following October. Ultimately, the series was quietly cancelled by Disney and the crew had moved on to other projects by the time the final episodes aired. Repeats would air on Disney XD.

Who needs Halloween costumes when you're already a monster?

Jazwares was the official licensor for the franchise and produced various figures based on the show. Among them was a Mavis figure of her humanoid and bat form; a pack of figures of Mavis and her friends; three playsets including Mavis’ bedroom, the hotel lobby and the Scream Cheese Café; plush dolls; and blind boxes that contained various characters from the films and show or pieces of Hank to build him, with a few of them being special unlockable items found in the playsets. Simon & Schuster published several chapter books written by Natalie Shaw and Cala Spinner and easy-reader books by Ximena Hastings, Sheila Sweeny Hagginson and Tina Gallo adapting various episodes, and a guide to the hotel written in Mavis’ voice by Delphine Finnegan. The second entry of Papercutz’s Hotel Transylvania trilogy of graphic novels was dedicated to an original story set in the world of the show by Stefan Petrucha, Allen Gladfelter, Zazo, Laurie E. Smith, and Wilson Ramos Jr. In 2018 Crazy Labs released Hotel Transylvania Adventures. It was a mobile platforming game where players used Mavis or one of her unlockable friends to traverse levels to collect coins and accomplish goals to earn 3 stars for each level.

Sibling argument.

During its run, the series was nominated for four ACTRA Awards, winning one; two Canadian Cinema Editors Awards; four Canadian Screen Awards, winning one; a Daytime Emmy Award; and two Writers Guild of Canada Awards, winning one. So far, only the first season has been available to stream on Netflix as well as purchasable on the iTunes store, Prime Video, Vudu and Google Play. The first episode was uploaded to Sony Pictures Animation’s official YouTube channel. Most clips and shorts have since been removed from official channels and are only partially available on international Disney YouTube channels or from user uploads.

  

EPISODE GUIDE:

Season 1:

“Enter the Nosepicker / Hide & Shriek” (6/25/17) – Mavis accidentally lures a human baby to the hotel just before an influential reviewer is due to come by. / Mavis finds the doll she lost 90 years prior, and this time it’s determined to never leave her side again.

 

“Bad Friday / Hoop Screams” (6/26/17) – Mavis’s attempt to achieve the best scare on Bad Friday results in her getting scared by Kitty instead. / Mavis helps Hank’s basketball skills by giving him a deceased basketball player’s hands.

 

“Buggin’ Out / How Do You Solv a Problem Like Medusa” (6/27/17) – While cleaning the hotel, Mavis accidentally infests the bed with truth bugs instead of bedbugs. / Mavis invites Medusa to the hotel when she finds out she’s Lydia’s rival and accidentally turns her to stone with her own wig.

 

“Adventures in Vampiresitting / Phlegm Ball” (6/28/17) – A disguised Mavis ends up babysitting a human child, at least until the actual babysitter shows up and alerts the family about monsters. / Mavis learns her friends have been letting her win at Phlegm Ball just when her cousin challenges her to a game for her father’s lucky fangs.

 

“Wendy Big and Tall / Doppelfanger” (6/29/17) – Wendy’s desire to become taller goes awry when she becomes a giant monster instead. / Mavis barely has time to enjoy her favorite singer coming to the hotel when a cursed mirror unleashes an evil zombie duplicate of her.

 

“Great Eggspectations / Hotel Pennyslvania” (7/9/17) – Mavis tries to prove she can care for a living creature by saving a bad egg. / Mavis and her friends try to find a way to watch their favorite show when Lydia disconnects the cable.

 

“Breakfast at Lydia’s / The Trouble with Wendys” (7/16/17) – Mavis worries about losing her employee of the month title when she causes Quasimodo to quit. / Feeling indebted to Dr. Gillman for getting gum out of her hair, she sticks by him until she can return the favor.

 

“Frankenstunt / What About Blob?” (7/23/17) – Hank fills in for his father for a movie when Frank gets blown apart doing a stunt. / Mavis and Wendy plot to get Lydia and Bob Blob together, but instead it prompts Bob to want to move his family away to the Cramptons.

 

“Curse Club / Casket if you Can” (7/30/17) – Mavis tries to help Pedro’s confidence by running around and making it seem as if his curses are coming true. / Lydia’s coffin gets ejected from the hotel with her in it, and Mavis and her friends must rescue it from a human antique collector.

 

“A Scare to Remember / Hank and the Real Boy” (8/6/17) – The kids accidentally get rid of the ghost author who really writes the books of Lydia’s favorite author when they clean the hotel. / Attempting to keep Hank from falling to pieces results in his becoming a real boy.

 

“The Wrapture / Becoming Klaus” (8/20/17) – Mavis replaces Pedro’s wraps that she got accidentally got rid of, but as they’re a different material Pedro adopts a new identity. / Mavis’ broken fang requires getting a transplant from Klaus.

 

“116 Candles / Stop or my Mummy Will Shout” (10/1/17) – Mavis gives Lydia a de-aging perfume in order to be allowed to go to a concert. / The kids pretend Pedro is in charge of the hotel in order to impress his mother.

 

“The Legend of Pumpkin Guts” (10/8/17) – Sneaking out to learn the secret behind Halloween causes Mavis and her friends to accidentally unleash the monstrous Pumpkin Guts on the monster world.

 

“Fright of Hand / Dude Where’s My Garlic?” (10/15/17) – Mavis plays magician at Diane’s party and accidentally loses her in a strange void. / Quasimodo’s supply of garlic leads Mavis to investigate why its deadly to vampires.

 

“Bat Flap Fever / Thumb and Thumber” (10/22/17) – Mavis is sent an embarrassing gift from her father that she throws away, resulting in it getting stuck to Donald. / When Hank discovers his thumb is from the Dracula bloodline, Lydia begins showing him all the affection she often denies Mavis.

 

“Brain Drain / Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow” (11/4/17) – Lydia takes Pandora’s box from Mavis and gives it to zombie Isaac Newton, just as his brain is swapped with Hank’s. / When someone starts messing with Lydia’s hair, the obvious suspect is Medusa.

 

“Drop the Needle / Really Gross Anatomy” (11/11/17) – Mavis offers to teach Klaus how to become a bat if he’ll show her how to replace the needle she broke on Lydia’s gramophone. / The kids discover Dr. Gillman isn’t an actual doctor and try to teach them everything they know about medicine (which is nothing).

 

“The Fright Before Creepmas” (12/2/17) – Mavis tries to get Krampus to fix a 1,000-year-old mistake so that Lydia will let everyone enjoy a family Creepmas.

 

“Exit Sandman / Roadkill Trip” (6/25/18 N, 10/15/18 DC) – Rebuilding Diane’s chicken coop disturbs the Sandman’s sleep, so he puts the entire hotel to sleep. / Mavis and Uncle Gene decide to go on a road trip to visit a restaurant before it closes, but getting there is proving a challenge.

 

“Top Wing / Fried Mean Tomatoes” (6/25/18 N, 10/16/18 DC) – When Mavis gets a position Wendy wanted, their relationship becomes strained. / Mavis attempts to use magic to expel Quasimodo’s mean streak and make him nicer.

 

“Four Monsters and a Funeral / Rainbow Doom” (6/24/18 TT, 10/17/18 DC) – Mavis must hold a phony funeral for Uncle Gene after telling Death that he died. / When Mavis uses a cursed code to beat a video game, the game comes to life to take over the monster world.

 

“Drac to the Future” (6/25/18 N, 10/18/18 DC) – When Kitty ends up sucked into a self-updating history book, Mavis must go back in time to rescue her.

 

“Gorytelling / A Few Good Monsters” (6/25/18 N, 10/22/18 DC) – Mavis hopes impressing an author writing about the hotel will lead to her becoming a full-time manager. / Lydia puts the kids on trial to determine who broke a priceless Dracula family heirloom.

 

“Mummyfest Destiny / Bandages of Brothers” (6/25/18 N, 10/23/18 DC) – Against warnings, Mavis decides to make use of Pedro’s time-freezing amulet. / A rift grows between Pedro and Hank that begins to affect the entire hotel.

 

“Creepover Party / Frankenstein & Son” (6/25/18 N, 10/24/18 DC) – Mavis’ old Ghoul Guide friends are coming to the hotel, meaning they can finally earn their last merit badge. / Frank wants to try dramatic acting so he can win an award, and decides to cast his next film at the hotel.

 

“Fangceañera” (6/25/18 N, 10/25/18 DC) – Mavis wants to spend her 115^th birthday earning her Dracula cape in the dangerous Fangceañera realm, but Drac’s overprotectiveness spoils her plans.

 

Season 2:

“Welcome to Human Park / Must Scream TV” (10/8/19) – Mavis and her friends set out to get themselves scared silly before Halloween. / When Pedro fixes the TV, Mavis ends up trapped inside.

 

“Married to the Blob” (10/9/19) – Mavis intends to throw the best wedding ever for Pedro’s mother and Wendy’s father.

 

“Portrait of Mavis as a Young Vampire / Goo Crush” (101/10/19) – When the kids attempt to fix Mavis’ ruined portrait, they end up causing a bunch of magical problems. / Mavis encourages Wendy to find a crush, but her missing glasses leads to her making a big mistake.

 

“Frankerheads / For Whom the Smell Tolls” (10/11/19) – Hank asks Mavis to get him a rare collectible, but she ends up losing out on it to Klaus. / Puberty gives Mavis “the vapors”, making her repulsive to all the monsters.

 

“Cries and Dolls / Hypnosferatu” (10/15/19) – Mavis’ clingy doll begins to haunt her dreams. / Mavis new hypnosis power causes Donald to sweep Lydia off her feet.

 

“Best Friends Furever / Fantasy Vamp” (10/16/19) – Mavis uses Lydia’s staff to hang out with both Wendy and werewolves Sophie and Charlotte at the same time. / Mavis wins a trip to a Phlegm Ball fantasy camp where she has to put its leader in his place after he insults her friends.

 

“Stepmonsters / Better Know Your Mavis” (10/17/19) – Marvis convinces Pedro and Wendy to get to know their new stepparents. / Wendy competes against Sophie and Charlotte to see who can better care for a sick Mavis.

 

“The Northern Frights / Don’t Fear the Realtor” (10/18/19) – Mavis tricks Uncle Gene to get him away from his constant gaming. / A realtor sets her sights on selling the hotel.

 

“Holy Babies / Aunt Lydia’s New Clothes” (10/21/19) – Lying about their birthdays to get free ice cream has Death turning Mavis and Pedro into babies to fix his own records. / Mavis accidentally ruins Lydia’s new invisibility poncho.

 

“I Only Have Eyes for Goo / Talk Blobbish to Me” (10/22/19) – Mavis takes advantage of Wendy’s mind-reading glasses to get herself a promotion. / Mavis casts a spell to help Pedro learn Blobbish, but accidentally causes everyone else to only speak it instead.

 

“Wand Ambition / Lost in Transylvation” (10/23/19) – Mavis accidentally throws way Tiffany’s magic wand, which Kitty finds and uses to cast a spell on the hotel. / Mavis accidentally invents a new word that gets added to the Vampire Dictionary.

 

“The Song Remains Asleep / Baby Got Hunchback” (10/24/19) – The song Donald sings in his sleep becomes a big hit when used as the hotel’s elevator music. / Quasimodo gets unwanted attention when the kids market and sell his dirt flame recipe without his knowing.

 

“Afterlifestyles of the Rich and Mavis / The Mavysitters Club” (10/25/19) – Mavis is so focused on plans for the Steins’ AniverScary that she ends up losing Frank’s body. / Lydia puts Klaus in charge of wrangling the out-of-control wolf pups.

 

“A Year Without Creepmas” (12/7/19) – When Mavis accidentally causes Krampus to take a vacation, she must team-up with Santa to save Creepmas.

 

“Casualties of Wart / When the Afterlife Gives You Phlegmonade” (10/3/20) – Mavis is invited into the witches’ clique when they mistake her pimple for a wart. / Mavis convinces Sophie and Charlotte to spend time apart when they have a falling out.

 

“Undead Red / Klaus of the Rising Sun” (10/4/20) – Mavis learns the surprising identity of a being that scares humans when they chant his name three times. / Inadvertently saving Mavis from the sun turns Klaus into a hotel hero.

 

“Say Princess to the Dress / The Naming of the Shrew” (10/10/20) – When Mavis sniffs a flower meant for Kitty she becomes a dainty princess. / Mavis takes away everyone’s fear of Lydia when she reveals her real name during a game.

 

“Death Becomes Him / Purse of the Mummy” (10/11/20) – Pedro steals Death’s robe and ends up stuck with his job. / Mavis loses control of the magic purse Shonda got for Wendy’s birthday.

 

“Cape Boss / Diner of the Dead” (10/17/20) – If Mavis can’t show that her cape is well-trained, she could lose it. / Pedro causes a zombie apocalypse when he feeds the zombie staff human food.

 

“Six Feet Undercover Boss / Ghost Effect” (10/18/20) – Everyone suspects the new janitor may be Lydia in disguise spying on them. / Mavis goes safety-crazy to prevent accidents at the hotel.

 

“World Wide Wendy / Stuck in the Middle with Goo” (10/24/20) – Mavis attempts to bring the hotel into the future by going wireless. Competing stepsiblings Pedro and Wendy find themselves in need of a tiebreaker.

 

“The Shawhank Redemption / Friendship is Tragic” (10/25/20) – Hank’s friends attempt to help him conquer his fears. / Mavis’ friends worry they’re drifting apart when she looks forward to a day without them.

 

“Cursery Rhymes / I Did It All for the Cookie” (10/26/20) – The kids try to restore Baby Blendy’s crying before her giggling annoys the whole hotel.

 

“Fangs for the Memories / Sleepers Creepers” (10/27/20) – Mavis accidentally erases the memories of her favorite vampire singer. / Quasimodo’s jar of misfortune cookies gets raided.

 

“Polterguest / Hair Raiser” (10/28/20) – When the hotel is booked solid, Mavis rents out the Cartwright’s house. / Mavis’ attempts at giving herself a haircut results in disaster.

 

“What Lycidias Beneath” (10/29/20) – Mavis accidentally unleashes her ancestor who’s intent on dominating the monster world and the underworld.

 

Shorts:

“Summer Vacation” (6/9/17) – A clip show.

 

“Drac be Trippin’” (6/11/17) – Mavis helps Drac pack for his trip as he’s a terrible packer.

 

“Who’s the Boss” (6/18/17) – Mavis shows off her accomplishments around the hotel to prove she can be the temporary manager.

 

“Ballad of Mavis” (6/24/17) – Mavis lays the scares down on Bad Friday.

 

“Nothing But Web” (7/15/17) – Mavis is determined to beat Drac at truck-shot basketball.

 

“Mavis Monster P.I.” (1/7/20) – Mavis investigates a claim that the wolf pups will become a pack of humans during the Evil Full Moon.

 

“Monster Fear Factor” (1/8/20) – Hank challenges the others to a duel in which they have to face their greatest fears without freaking out.

 

“Holy Rabies” (1/9/20) – Mavis raps her catch-phrase: “Holy Rabies!”

 

“The Mavis Dracula Show” (1/10/20) – Mavis’ latest podcast to her father manages to capture Lydia breaking her own “no dancing” rule.

 

“What’s Cooking?!” (4/16/20) – Wendy, Pedro and Hank compete to see who’ll be the next cooking champ.

 

“Humie Repellent” (4/17/20) – Mavis wants to show Drac she can take initiative and sends him a video pitch for a new idea.

BENJI, ZAX & THE ALIEN PRINCE

 

BENJI, ZAX & THE ALIEN PRINCE

(CBS, September 17-December 17, 1983)

 

Hanna-Barbera Productions, Mulberry Square Productions

 

 
MAIN CAST:
Chris Burton – Prince Yubi, T.J. Parker
Ric Spiegel – Zax, Circon, Harwell Thompson
Benjean – Benji
Angie Bolling (eps. 1-8) & Anna Holbrook (eps. 9-13) – Darah
Joe Rainer (eps. 1-8) & Dallas Miles (eps. 9-13) – Khyber
Ken Miller – Zanu

 
 
            Joe Camp had some concerns over G-rated films in the United States. He felt that many studios just churned them out with little regard to quality, leading to the overall public feeling of “If it’s G, it can’t be for me.” Camp decided to make his own G-rated film, and to make it a good one. Rustling up $500,000 and inspired by Disney’s Lady and the Tramp, Camp conceived of a film starring a dog: Benji.

            Benji was about the titular dog, a stray who had various human friends around a small town; particularly the Chapman children, Paul (Allen Fiuzat) and Cindy (Cynthia Smith). Unfortunately, their father, Dr. Chapman (Peter Breck), wasn’t fond of dogs and refuted all attempts the children made to adopt Benji. However, when criminals plotting to kidnap the Chapman children ended up taking residence in the abandoned house Benji stayed in, he quickly came to their rescue to foil the sinister plot.

Higgins with Frank Inn.

            Benji was a small mixed-breed dog named Higgins, rescued from the Burbank animal shelter by trainer Frank Inn in 1960. Before becoming the titular canine, he had appeared in most of Petticoat Junction, Green Acres and The Beverly Hillbillies, won a PATSY award in 1966, and was featured on the cover of TV Guide. Inn had called Higgins the smartest dog he ever worked with, who was able to learn new tricks and routines every week and retain them, making him ideal for use in various and complex roles. Higgins also had a very expressive face, able to convey a wide array of emotions. Benji was Higgins’ final role before his death in 1975.

Lobby card for Benji featuring the titular dog and some of his human co-stars.

            Benji opened on October 17, 1974, written, directed and produced by Camp through his production company, Mulberry Square Productions. It ended up pulling in $45 million at the box-office, becoming the 9^th highest-grossing film of the year. Higgins was nominated for another PATSY, although he lost out to Tonto the cat from Harry and Tonto. In 1977, a sequel was released called For the Love of Benji, which embroiled the canine in an international spy thriller. Camp again helmed the film, this time with Ben Vaughn co-producing and co-writing it, and with Higgins’ pup Benjean taking over the role. The following year, Benji headed to television with the Emmy-nominated Benji’s Very Own Christmas Story on ABC, co-written by Dan Witt, with two more following in 1980 and 1981.

The first misstep came with the third Benji film, Oh! Heavenly Dog. Abandoning the lovable stray format, this film, co-written by Rod Browning, saw private investigator Benjamin Browning (Chevy Chase) murdered after he finds the woman he’s hired to bodyguard dead. In the afterlife, Benjamin was told he needed to solve his own murder before moving on and was reincarnated as a dog. The film, the first to be rated PG in the series, was released on July 11, 1980 and only grossed $6 million. Chase, who took the role based on the initial script, was turned off by later rewrites and often considered it his worst film.

Publicity shot of Zax, Yubi, Darah, Benji and Khyber.

Rather than return to form, Camp took the franchise in another new direction; likely inspired by the massive success of Return of the Jedi. Partnering with Hanna-Barbera Productions for one of their rare live-action productions, Camp created a television series that would see Benji befriend an alien prince and his robot caretaker. Developed by Len Janson and Chuck Menville, the series followed young Prince Yubi (Chris Burton) from the planet Antars, exiled to Earth with his droid, Zax (Ric Spiegel), when evil despot Zanu (Ken Miller, who also worked on special effects) conquered the planet. He sent hunters to retrieve the Prince; primarily Khyber (Joe Rainer for the first half, Dallas Miles for the second) and Darah (Angie Bolling for the first half, Anna Holbrook for the second) with their own droid, Zord. Due to the hunters’ own incompetence and Benji’s intelligence, Yubi, Zax and Benji were often able to evade capture (or weren’t captured for very long) before moving on to try and lose their pursuers. Additionally, their paths often crossed with other hunters sent to aid Khyber and Darah, or Antarians who took up residence on the planet before them.

The evil Zanu.

Fellow aliens weren’t the only ones they had to worry about. In their travels, they encountered some equally unethical humans such as a group of delinquent kids called The Vikings, a greedy couple posing as Benji’s owners to rob a wealthy man, and a mischievous thief that resembled the prince. Fortunately, there were just as many, if not more, good humans for the trio to befriend and get occasional help from. Additionally, Yubi had to be protective of his cipher; a bracelet-like device that allowed Antarians to survive on Earth.

Hiding out.

Benji, Zax and the Alien Prince debuted on CBS on September 17, 1983 after being part of The CBS Saturday Morning Preview Special the night before. Like most of the Benji films, the series was shot in and around the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex with interior sets built at Las Colinas studios in Irving, Texas. Along with Janson and Menville, who served as story editors, the series was written by John Bradford, Ray Parker, Gene Ayres, Glenn Leopold and Michael Reaves with music by Benji composer Euel Box. Yubi’s costume was designed by Nike. The series only lasted a single season of 13 episodes, with CBS opting to not renew it for another. Between 2003 and 2004, GoodTimes Entertainment released the show onto DVD in both a complete series set and across four three-episode volumes.

The Benji franchise wasn’t done yet, however. Benjean had one final outing in the 1987 film Benji the Hunted, which finally did away with the grandiose plots and returned to the essence of Benji being an intelligent and helpful stray. It grossed over $22 million as a result. Camp’s final film in the series was Benji: Off the Leash! in 2004, which only managed to gross over $3 million and became considered the weakest entry of the franchise. In 2018, Camp’s son Brandon wrote, directed and produced a revival film for Netflix, which became Blumhouse Productions’ first family film. It garnered mixed reviews. 

 
 
EPISODE GUIDE:
“The Prince and the Bag Lady” (9/17/83) – Zax is damaged when he and Benji are chased by Zanu’s hunters into a junkyard and ends up captured.
 
“U.F.O.” (9/24/83) – Investigating a report of a downed spacecraft leads Yubi to be captured by a hunter from Antars.
 
“The Day of the Hunter” (10/1/83) – The hunters lure Yubi out of hiding by using Benji and leaking the whereabouts of his ship to the authorities.
 
“Goldmine” (10/8/83) – Yubi discovers an old cattleman is actually an Antarian, and the hunters set their sights on capturing him.
 
“Goodbye Earth” (10/15/83) – A birthday message from his mother prompts Yubi to get a job at NASA in the hopes of getting home.
 
“Ghostown” (10/22/83) – Benji, Zax and Yubi end up in an abandoned town where outlaw twins hide, and Zax is convinced they’ll sell out Yubi.
 
“The Locals” (10/29/83) – Benji and Zax must retrieve Yubi’s cipher from a gang of boys.
 
“Puppy Love” (11/5/83) – Yubi falls for a girl that ends up being an Antarian sent by Zanu to trap him.
 
“Double Trouble” (11/12/83) – Yubi and a similar-looking shoplifter are confused for each other by the authorities and the hunters.
 
“Don’t Fence Me In” (11/19/83) – Yubi feels smothered by Zax and moves away.
 
“The Flying Lesson (12/3/83) – Yubi’s gift for a kindly veterinarian may be just what they need to get a wounded horse to a faraway animal hospital.
 
“Benji Call Home” (12/10/83) – A wealthy man gives Benji to a crooked couple who claim to be his owners and then proceed to rob his house.
 
“Decoy Droid” (12/17/83) – The hunters manage to capture Zax and replace him with a duplicate droid on their side.

THE MUMMY: THE ANIMATED SERIES

 

THE MUMMY: THE ANIMATED SERIES / THE MUMMY: SECRETS OF THE MEDJAI

(WB, September 29, 2001-June 7, 2003)

 

Universal Cartoon Studios, Sunwoo Entertainment

 

 

MAIN CAST:

Chris Marquette – Alex O’Connell
John Schneider – Rick O’Connell
Grey DeLisle – Evelyn O’Connell
Tom Kenny – Jonathan Carnahan
Nicholas Guest – Ardeth Bay
Jim Cummings – Imhotep, Sir Arthur Fenwick, opening narration (season 1), various
Michael Reisz – Colin Weasler

 

 

            In 1992, producers James Jacks and Sean Daniel approached Universal Studios about updating the original 1932 Mummy film for the 90s. Universal approved, but wanted the film to be kept to around $10 million. In the following years, the concept went through several ideas and revisions with the likes of Clive Barker and George A. Romero being attached. However, none of the approaches were quite right. In 1997, Stephen Sommers contacted Jacks and Daniel with his desire to make the film. He had grown up liking the original Mummy and wanted to reproduce the parts he liked on a grander scale. He essentially pitched it as Indiana Jones or Jason and the Argonauts vs. the mummy. Around this time, Universal’s management had changed due to the spectacular failure of Babe: Pig in the City and had a renewed interest in revisiting its successful 1930s franchises, so they took to Sommers’ idea and greenlit the movie with an $80 million budget.

            The Mummy, set in 1926, saw British librarian and aspiring Egyptologist Evelyn Carnahan (Rachel Weisz) going on a quest to discover the lost city of Hamunaptra when her brother, Jonathan (John Hannah), came into possession of a map he stole from American adventurer Rick O’Connell (Brendan Fraser). They recruited Rick as their guide and found themselves in competition with a group of American treasure hunters led by his former associate, Beni (Kevin J. O’Connor). The Americans discover the Book of the Dead which Evelyn “borrows” and reads from, inadvertently awakening Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo). Imhotep was a high priest and sorcerer who, in 1290 BC, was having an affair with Anck-su-namun (Patricia Velásquez), the mistress of Pharaoh Seti I (Aharon Ipalé). They killed the Pharaoh and she killed herself to avoid capture by his guards, believing Imhotep could resurrect her. However, he too had been captured and mummified alive. It was up to Rick and Jonathan to stop Imhotep before he sacrificed Evelyn to finally resurrect Anck-su-namum.

            The Mummy opened on May 7, 1999. Despite mixed reviews, it went on to have the highest non-holiday May opening of all time with $43 million. It proceeded to amass $416.4 million worldwide. Naturally, Universal wanted a sequel and got one in the form of 2001’s The Mummy Returns. Set in 1933, Rick and Evelyn are now married and have a son, Alex (Freddie Boath), who possessed equal parts his mother’s intelligence and mischief and his father’s bravery. Alex accidentally got the Bracelet of Anubis locked onto his wrist, which would kill him within two days if he didn’t get it to Ahm Shere as shown in a vision. Also, an Egyptian cult resurrected Imhotep again so that he could confront and defeat the Scorpion King (Dwayne Johnson) and assume command of Anubis’ army to conquer the world. The sequel opened on May 4, 2001 and while garnering even more mixed reviews went on to gain a $435 million box office.

Promotional art showing the Manacle of Osiris in action.

            Looking to keep up the momentum of the franchise and attract a younger audience, Universal commissioned the creation of a cartoon spin-off. Developed by Tom Pugsley and Greg Klein, The Mummy: The Animated Series followed a simplified version of the first movie while incorporating elements from the sequel. For the show, Evelyn (Grey DeLisle) was given a promotion at the British Museum of Antiquities for the recovery of the Book of the Dead (which alternated between being bound tablets as in the movie and a traditional book). She, Rick (John Schneider) and Alex (Chris Marquette) were given a dirigible, The Zephyr, to take them to a dig at Hamunaptra. Jonathan (Tom Kenny) tagged along to escape some unhappy people he cheated. Colin Weasler (Michael Reisz), Evelyn’s co-worker who was due the promotion she got, stole the Book and followed them in order to resurrect and control Imhotep (Jim Cummings) and exact his revenge. Instead, Imhotep subjugated Colin and sought to claim the Manacle of Osiris—the object for which Seti had him mummified for trying to steal (since adultery and murder isn’t really kid-friendly)—that had bonded itself to Alex’s wrist. With the aid of old friend Ardeth Bay (Nicholas Guest), a member of the nomadic Medjai tribe charged with keeping the world safe from Imhotep, they drove the mummy off. Every weekly episode featured an ongoing race between Imhotep and the O’Connells to find the Scrolls of Thebes, which meant control over the Manacle.

The O'Connells: Jonathan, Rick, Evelyn and Alex.

            To avoid paying for actor likenesses, the character models designed by Steven Choi and John Suzuki bore only a passing resemblance to the movie cast with Evelyn and Jonathan being given bright red hair, Rick made blonde, and Alex an orange hue. Imhotep was given hair in his human form, although he spent the majority of the series as a purple semi-decomposed entity reminiscent of the early stages of reforming himself upon resurrection in the films. Imhotep also spoke clear English, whereas while he used it in a few scenes (an audio translation for the audience) he mostly spoke in ancient Egyptian.  Like the films, Alex was given visions via the Manacle that helped warn or guide him on their journeys, but also gained additional powers like energy bursts and telekinesis. Rick’s propensity for firearms and the small armory he carried with him was removed and replaced with a whip or other offensive objects he found on location during fights. Ardeth did maintain his sword, but rarely used it. Colin, while an original character, exhibited squirrely traits similar to that of the Beni character.

Imhotep lives! ...Sort of.

            The Mummy: The Animated Series debuted on The WB on September 29, 2001 as part of the Kids’ WB programming block (its debut was delayed by the 9/11 terrorist attacks). Imhotep and Colin served as the primary villains, but typically Imhotep would summon a monster or mummy soldiers to do his bidding against the O’Connells before dealing with them directly himself. Most of the first season was written by Pugsley and Klein with additional scripts by Tony Schillaci, Nick DuBois, Elaine Zicree, Marc Scott Zicree, Marty Isenberg, Robert N. Skir and Steven Melching. The music was composed by Cory Lerios, John D’Andrea and George Gabriel, with Cummings providing backstory narration over the opening theme. Animation duties were handled by Sunwoo Entertainment. Uniquely, before the intro each episode opened up with the episode’s title over a sepia tone globe showing where in the world the story was taking place at that moment. The globe would return again during the episode to show a change in location.

            The series didn’t quite attain the heights of the films, and a little creative tooling was done for the second season. Given the subtitle The Secrets of the Medjai complete with a new intro, Alex was taken into the Medjai order to receive their training and to learn how to better control the Manacle. Introduced were fellow trainees Fadil (Jeff Bennett) and Yanit (Jeannie Elias), giving Alex people his own age to interact with and friends beyond his mongoose, Tut. After having been previously, Anck-su-namun (Lenore Zann) was introduced as a recurring villain; made a high priestess whose power and ambition could rival even Imhotep’s to the point of betraying him after he resurrected her. This also led to the integration that Evelyn was the reincarnation of Princess Nefertiri, Seti’s daughter. Another recurring villain was Ninzam Toth (Michael T. Weiss), a dark Medjai who betrayed the order. Pugsley and Klein only wrote the first and last episodes of the season, with William Forrest Cluverius and Greg Weisman joining the other writers for an episode apiece.

Dark Medjai Ninzam Toth.

            The Mummy failed to find a significant audience, due in large part to The WB constantly putting it on hiatus from its schedule in favor of other programs and shifting its timeslot several times. It was ultimately cancelled at the conclusion of the second season. However, it was allowed to resolve most of its major plotlines while leaving the possibility open for a return; something very few animated series ever get. It remained on in reruns for the rest of that June until it was removed from the network in July. It then aired on Toon Disney until the channel as rebranded as Disney XD.

Colin Weasler, living up to his name.

In 2002, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment released three episodes edited together as a movie on the DVD Quest for the Lost Scrolls. That year, Ubisoft published a 2D platforming video game for the Game Boy Advance, which allowed a player to switch between the O’Connells for different fighting styles and skills. A 3D action game for the PlayStation 2 was published by Hip Games in 2004, however this time the player could only use Alex. None of the series’ voice actors reprised their roles. As part of the promotion for the third and final film in the main trilogy, Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, the complete series was released across three DVDs in 2008, and later as a single set internationally by Mediumware in 2013. It was made available for streaming on Peacock in 2020.

A fourth Mummy film was planned, but ultimately scrapped in favor of Universal’s attempted Dark Universe reboot in 2017. However, the 90s Mummy franchise continued on until 2018 in the form of the Scorpion King spin-off series centering on that character. It debuted with a theatrical film in 2002 and a prequel and three sequels that went direct-to-video. Like its parent series, Scorpion King had also been announced as getting the reboot treatment.

            

EPISODE GUIDE:

Season 1:

“The Summoning” (9/29/01) – A jealous co-worker resurrects Imhotep to get revenge on Evelyn, while Alex ends up bonded with the Manacle of Osiris that Imhotep wants.

 

“A Candle in the Darkness” (10/6/01) – The O’Connells search for the library at Alexandria where Imhotep seeks Alex’s destruction.

 

“Against the Elements” (10/13/01) – Imhotep summons elemental spirits to attack the O’Connells, while Alex makes a new friend: a mongoose named Tut.

 

“The Deep Blue Sea” (10/20/01) – Alex wonders if he can handle the powers of the Manacle while his family looks for clues in an underwater city.

 

“Eruption” (10/27/01) – While dealing with Imhotep in India, Alex gets visions of a girl named Ishi.

 

“Orb of Aten” (11/3/01) – It’s a race to New York City where Imhotep plans to hold a dangerous ceremony at the Statue of Liberty.

 

“The Black Forest” (11/10/01) – The O’Connells have to rescue Einstein from Imhotep before he solves the mathematical clue that leads to the scrolls.

 

“The Cloud People” (11/17/01) – A vision leads the O’Connells to the mountains of Peru where the scrolls may be, and Imhotep attempts to stop them by causing a cave in.

 

“Fear Itself” (12/1/01) – While searching for the treasure of Genghis Khan, Alex unknowingly releases a fear demon that invades the minds of his family.

 

“The Boy Who Would Be King” (12/8/01) – Alex manages to befriend young Chinese emperor Jin-Wu who takes Alex after the scrolls alone and unwittingly causes the release of a dragon.

 

“Howl” (2/2/02) – While investigating in Ireland, Rick is bitten by a wolf and becomes a werewolf.

  

“The Maze” (2/16/02) – The O’Connells head into the Paris catacombs where they finally find the scrolls—and the Minotaur that guards them.

“The Puzzle” (2/9/02) – The race is on to assemble the puzzle of Horus in order to uncover the final location of the scrolls.

 

Season 2:

“A New Beginning: Part I” (2/15/03) – Imhotep returns and resurrects a threat greater than him: evil high priestess Anuck-su-namun.

 

“A New Beginning: Part II” (2/22/03) – An injured Evelyn is saved, but the method used causes the soul of Princess Nefertiri to begin to take her over.

 

“The Dark Medjai” (3/1/03) – Alex and a fellow trainee head out to rescue Ardeth from the legendary Dark Medjai.

 

“Like Father, Like Son” (3/8/03) – Alex befriends an archaeological mercenary that causes troubles at home.

 

“A Fair to Remember” (3/15/03) – The O’Connells set out to recover the powerful Eye of Shiva that can set skies on fire.

 

“The Enemy of My Enemy” (3/22/03) – Evelyn has to team-up with Imhotep to retrieve the Cloak of Isis before the Aglaphones, who have enthralled the other men, get to it first.

 

“The Cold” (3/29/03) – Colin betrays Imhotep in order to get his hands on the powerful Trident of Voth.

 

“Time Before Time” (4/12/03) – Imhotep uses a mystical time machine to possess the Manacle, leaving Alex the only one to remember the original timeline and restore it.

 

“Spring of Evil” (4/26/03) – Imhotep joins forces with Ninzam Toth to turn Alex into their apprentice and destroy Ardeth.

 

“Trio” (5/10/03) – The Medjai set out to find Imhotep, who has merged with an ancient spider creature.

 

“Old Friends” (5/17/03) – Looking for a missing friend leads the O’Connells to discover Anck-su-namun has drained the life out of her with the Ring of Sukothai.

 

“Just Another Piece of Jewelry” (5/31/03) – Imhotep and Colin discover an ancient Medjai journal that speaks of an artifact more powerful than the Manacle.

 

“The Reckoning” (6/7/03) – The O’Connells journey into the underworld to stop Imhotep from taking over a supernatural army.