Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears
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Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears was an American animated television series that aired in the United States and other countries in the mid-to-late-1980s. The show was created by The Walt Disney Company and premiered on NBC on September 14, 1985, and continued to air on ABC until it ended in December 8, 1990, episodes were later rebroadcast on the syndicated Disney Afternoon block. It was inspired by the gummi bear candies. There was also a line of toys based on the show. There are 94 episodes in 65 shows.
The main characters were seven anthropomorphic bears, although some human characters also featured. The series is set in medieval times in the once populous Gummi Glen; the main Gummies' neighborhood is inhabited only by seven gummies. The world has other gummies. Great Gummies are refugees elsewhere awaiting a signal to return. Other gummies live in Ursalia. Allies of the gummies include the people of Dunwyn (Princess Calla and Cavin), other kind humans, and other Gummi Bears. Their main nemesis is Duke Igthorn, who aims, with the aid of ogres, to rule Dunwyn. The theme song, "Bouncing here and there and everywhere", was written by Michael and Patty Silversher.
The Gummi Bears gained their ability to bounce by drinking Gummiberry Juice. If the juice was consumed by humans, they would (temporarily) gain superhuman strength (however it would only work once a day) and for this reason, the bears kept the recipe secret. A fruit juice drink called Gummiberry juice was for a short while retailed in the United Kingdom, and possibly other places.
Of interesting note, aside from DuckTales and Gargoyles, Gummi Bears was the only show in the Disney Afternoon generation of TV animation that had a series finale. All the other shows lacked a "last episode", and were for the most part ended on open notes.
The Gummi Bears were last seen on Toon Disney on December 28, 2001. There are currently no plans for a DVD release; it is ranked as the [40th most desired unreleased show] on Tvshowsondvd.com.
Contents
Main characters
The seven gummies who live in Gummi Glen are:
- Gruffi (voiced by Bill Scott (Season 1) and Corey Burton) - the no-nonsense, perfectionist and conservative every-job-Gummi. He is the technician of the group, and has a running feud with Grammi.
- Zummi (voiced by Paul Winchell (Seasons 1–5) and Jim Cummings) - The colony's "keeper of Gummi wisdom" turned magician with unreliable skill. Frequently forgets important things, including spells, at the worst possible moment and does spoonerisms when stressed. He is also very helpless when he loses his glasses.
- Grammi (voiced by June Foray) - The matriarch of the Gummi clan, she cooks and cleans and prepares the gummiberry juice. Her cookings - which sometimes are purely experimental - are not always appreciated by the others.
- Tummi (voiced by Lorenzo Music) - the gluttonous teenaged Gummi who is seemingly slow in thinking and action, but is as courageous as the rest. He has a sweet tooth and is a talented planter.
- Sunni (voiced by Katie Leigh) - "token adolescent" of the bunch who often rebels against the clan but learns her lessons eventually. She is quite fond of rather 'radical' fashions.
- Cubbi (voiced by Noelle North) - the youngest Gummi. An aspiring knight, he is always looking for adventure, and often finds it. Because of his youth, he is often not taken seriously by the others, which is just as frequently a huge mistake. When fighting crime at Dunwyn, he uses the masked identity of the Crimson Avenger.
- Gusto (voiced by Rob Paulsen) - (introduced in Season 2) the artistic Gummi and an individualist, he lives away from Gummi Glen with his toucan friend, Arte Deco. Gusto is an artist who is very creative with mercurial moods depending on how well his work is going or being appreciated. He sometimes goes to Gummi Glen to visit the rest of the Gummis. Being a later addition, he appears less often on the show although he is a fan favorite.
Friend/Ally Characters
- Cavin (voiced by Christian Jacobs, Brett Johnson, David Faustino, Jason Marsden, R.J. Williams) - Cavin is the squire of Sir Tuxford, the highest knight in King Gregor's court. Cavin befriends the Gummi Bears in the first episode and shares the same ambition as Cubbi - to become a knight. Cavin also had the medallion, given to him by his grandfather, that opened The Great Book of Gummi, the source of all Gummi Bear wisdom. The young squire also has a secret crush on Princess Calla.
- Princess Calla (voiced by Noelle North) - Princess Calla is the daughter of King Gregor, ruler of Dunwyn. She is an adventurous character and she often drags the dumbstruck Cavin (who she is overly fond of) into story situations. Calla also befriended the Gummi Bears and is close friends with Sunni. She hates the pomp and circumstance that comes with being royalty while wishing to be more involved in the governance and defense of the realm.
- King Gregor (voiced by Michael Rye) - King Gregor is the ruler of Dunwyn. He is a brave figure and protects his people from villains like Duke Igthorn with the help of Sir Tuxford and his knights. Gregor is unaware of the Gummi Bears' existence or involvement in saving his kingdom many times. His pride and joy is his daughter, Calla, which later included considerable respect of her previously hidden fighting prowess.
- Sir Tuxford and knights (voiced by Bill Scott, Roger C. Carmel, Brian Cummings) - Sir Tuxford is the highest ranking knight in King Gregor's court. He is an older, jolly character, always ready for a fight but perhaps past his prime. Sir Tuxford leads the knights of Castle Dunwyn and is the main force that keeps Duke Igthorn and his ogres away.
- Sir Thornberry - an old Gummi Bear, and the last inhabitant and self-appointed keeper of the Gummi Bear city Ursalia. Somewhat absent-minded but brave, and has a very good nose which he used to track scents like a dog.
- Sir Gawain - Cavin's grandfather, who also originally found the Gummi Medaillon which Cavin had been wearing until he gave it to the Gummi Bears. He is highly idealistic and loves to tell tall tales of the Gummi Bears on every suitable occasion. He has met the Bears of Gummi Glen, but he is unaware that Cavin knows them as well.
- the Barbics - a group of more savage Gummi Bears who had been driven out of their home by humans and found refuge in Ursalia. Notable characters are Ursa, their female leader, Gritty, Ursa's one-eyed right hand, and Buddy, their youngster, who becomes friendly with his age-mates Sunni and Cavin.
- the Gummadoon Gummies - the inhabitants of a Gummi Bear city who used magic to vanish it and themselves from a horde of hostile humans. They reappear every 500 years, for one day only. Notable characters are Counselors Wooddale and Berrybowum, and the knights Sir Plucky, Sir Blastus and Sir Gumlittle.
- Sir Victor - a famous paladin in the realm of Dunwyn. He is Duke Igthorn's twin brother, and ashamed of his family's betrayal he has taken the path of justice to atone for their sins. He has become Cavin's idol and friend, but he is unaware of the Gummi Bears' existence. He can take any insult to himself, but NOT to his steed Destiny, and has the ability to make ladies swoon when he kisses their hands. Igthorn blackmailed Victor about his relations into assisting him to in taking Dunwin Castle. However, Cavin found Victor in the attempt and convinced him to undo his betrayal. Victor did so and fought off his brother, then publically confesses his dark secret before Igthorn could betray it. However to his relief, Victor learned that while his kinship to Igthorn is a surprise, no one holds it against him.
- Marie - the daughter of King Jean-Claude, the ruler of a neighbour kingdom of Dunwyn. Originally spoiled and bratty, she considered Calla a rival and picked a fight with her on every occasion. After both their lives were saved by the Gummi Bears, however, she has mellowed considerably and is now one of Calla's best friends.
Enemy Characters
- Duke Igthorn - a former knight of Dunwyn, he was exiled after plotting against King Gregor. He found refuge in Castle Drekmore and formed an army of local ogres. He is a bad-tempered and scheming villain, who constantly seeks the conquest of Dunwyn. After having encountered the Gummi Bears, he has employed their secrets time and again to fulfill his plans, but he always meets only short-lived success at best. He has a BIG - and alas unrequitted - crush on Lady Bane. In the episode, "The White Knight" we discover that he has a brother named Sir Victor, who fights crime, the antithesis of Igthorn. We also discover that Igthorn's first name is Sigmund.
- Toadie (Toadwart) - The smallest ogre on Drekmore, and Igthorn's lackey and second-in-command. As his name suggests, he is a fawning and enduring character who - mostly - bears any bullying and punishment brought upon him by the Duke and his fellow ogres. He is also (by some small margin) the smartest of his kin.
- Lady Bane - The evil witch of the series. She is in possession of a Gummi Medallion much like Zummi's, and craves any power she can get her hands on (including the Gummi Bears') for her bid for power. She is served by her jackal-like Troggles and on occasion by Duke Igthorn, whose crush on her she finds VERY annoying.
- the Ogres - Duke Igthorn's shock troops. Big and strong, but very dumb; they constantly call their master "Iggy" or "Dookie" (much to his annoyance). Only two are ever mentioned by name: Zook (green skin and orange hair) and Gat (purple skin and metal helmet), who are a sort of Igthorn's bodyguards.
- Carpies - a race of vulture-like creatures living on the spire-like Carpy Mountain. They capture Sunni twice - first for her singing talent, then to become their King (or rather, Queen). Their bullying King has been succeeded by Bobo the Dodo.
- Unwin - a knight squire at Dunwyn. A big bully and loud-mouth who constantly picks on Cavin.
Episodes
- A New Beginning
- A Gummi In A Gilded Cage
- Sweet And Sour Gruffi / Little Bears Lost
- A Recipe for Trouble / Gummi in a Strange Land
- A Gummi A Day Keeps The Doctor Away / Duel of the Wizards
- Do Unto Ogres / Loopie Go Home
- Wings Over Dunwyn
- Never Give A Gummi An Even Break / The Sinister Sculptor
- A Gummi By Any Other Name
- The Secret of the Juice
- Night of the Gargoyle / Can I Keep Him
- The Oracle / Someday My Prints Will Come
- Toadie's Wild Ride / The Fence Sitter
- Zummi Makes It Hot / My Kingdom For A Pie
- Light Makes Right
- For a Few Sovereigns More / Over the River and Through the Trolls
- If I Were You / Faster Than a Speeding Tummi
- Up, Up, And Away
- The Crimson Avenger
- My Gummi Lies Over The Ocean
- Color Me Gummi / Gummi Dearest
- You Snooze, You Lose / Good Neighbor Gummi
- Bubble Trouble / Close Encounters of a Gummi Kind
- For Whom The Spell Holds
- A Hard Dazed Knight / Mirthy Me
- The Knights of Gummadoon
- Just a Tad Smarter / Too Many Cooks
- Gummies Just Want To Have Fun / Eye of the Beholder
- Day of the Beevilweevils
- Gummi's at Sea
- Girls Knight Out / Guess Who's Gumming to Dinner
- Music Hath Charms / A Tree Grows in Dunwyn
- The Crimson Avenger Strikes Again / There's No Place Like Home
- Zummi in Slumberland / Tummi's Last Stand
- Ogre Baby Boom / Water Way To Go
- He Who Laughs Last
- Dress for Success / Presto Gummo
- Top Gum
- A Knight to Remember / Snows Your Old Man
- Friar Tum / The White Knight
- The Magnificent Seven Gummies
- Ogre For a Day
- Princess Problems / Boggling The Bears
- The Road to Ursalia
- What You See Is Me / Bridge Over The River Gummi
- A Gummi Is a Gummi's Best Friend / When You Wish Upon a Stone
- Return to Ursalia
- Life of the Party / The World According To Gusto
- Let Sleeping Giants Lie / A-Hunting We Will Go
- Beg, Burrow and Steal
- A Gummi's Work is Never Done
- Tuxford's Turnaround
- Thornberry To The Rescue
- True Gritty
- Patchwork Gummi
- Trading Faces
- May The Best Princess Win
- The Rite Stuff
- Toadie The Conqueror
- Once More, The Crimson Avenger
- Tummi Trouble
- Rocking Chair Bear
- Queen of the Carpies
- King Igthorn (1)
- King Igthorn (2)
Significance
The Adventures of the Gummi Bears was Disney's first foray into television animation. At the time of its first premiere, very few, if any, animated television series were on par with Gummi Bears' production values. It even exceeded the quality of much Japanese animation made for TV at the time. Gummi Bears is often credited by animators and animation historians as having helped jump start the massive boom of television animation in the late 1980s all through the 1990s.Gummi Bears also became the forerunner for Disney's famous Disney Afternoon timeslot, which gave way to classics such as DuckTales, Darkwing Duck, Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, TaleSpin, and Gargoyles. Although shows created in its wake such as the above mentioned exceeded Gummi Bear's budget and length, it is often credited as the sort of prototype to all of the subsequent animation which followed it, while DuckTales really jump started the trend. Nevertheless, it was a gamble which paid off tremendously in the long run.
Title in other languages
- Czech: Gumídci
- Danish: [Bubbi Bjørnene]
- Dutch: [Gummiberen]
- Finnish: Kummikarhut
- French: Les Gummis
- Italian: I Gummies
- German: [Gummibärenbande]
- Hebrew: הגומונים
- Hungarian: Gumimacik
- Norwegian: Bompibjørnene
- Polish: [Gumisie]
- Portuguese: [Os Ursinhos Gummi]
- Russian: [Мишки Гамми](Mishki Gammi)
- Slovak: Gumkáči
- Spanish: Osos Gummi
- Swedish: [Bumbibjörnarna], Gummibjörnarna
- Turkish: Cesur Ayılar, "Brave Bears"
- Chinese: 妙妙熊歷險記"The Adventures of the Wonder Wonder Bears"
External links
- [] at TV.com
- [The Great Site of Gummi] - Large resource of Gummi Bears information.
- [New Gumbrea] - fan site
- [BCDB List of episodes]
- [The Retrokids' Great site of Gummi]
- [Gumisie On-Line]
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