"Dinotopia: The Series" on DVD!

[goofystitch]

You may be thinking "Huh? There was a series?" Well, there was. It began on Thanksgiving day of 2002 and only lasted for 6 weeks. It got terrible ratings due to very little advertising on Disney's part. The series had an almost completely new cast than the original mini-series made by Hallmark, which aired on ABC in the Spring of 2002. The series was made by Hallmark and Disney (It said so before each episode). Since Disney dropped the series from it's ABC line-up, they didn't want anything to do with the video rights. Hallmark, on the otherhand, probably realized Disney was to blame for the failure and are releasing it on DVD, since the original movie sold extremely well for them. It's released through Artisan Entertainment, and comes out January 20th. The DVD conatins all 13 episodes filmed, 7 of which have never been aired. Each episode is about 45 minutes long. Special features include 3 featuretts, interviews, and a DVD game. The new cast takes some getting used to, but the storylines of the episodes are clevar.

[Ludwig Von Drake]

I saw the original mini-series, which I thought was not bad at all. I never go around to watching the actual show, so it will be interesting to see it on DVD

[Maerj]

I watched all of them. The mini series was excellent, the tv series was...okay. The effects weren't nearly as good, but how could they be on a series?

I think that the major networks really want to do scifi/fantasy, they should stick with mini series. It allows for a more quality production and it would be better to have shorter series with endings, instead of trying to make an actual tv series then cancelling it without ending it.

[Brink!]

I love this
I must admid though if my favorite actor (erik von detten plays one of the 2 boys) wasn't in it i would never have given it another thought
This was already released on region 2 so i bought it
when you get over the sometimes not so realistic (ahum) dino efects the series isn't half bad

greetings Brink!

[MickeyMousePal]

The mini series was awesome with huge ratings.
But ABC pinned the "Dinotopia: The Series" on Thursday against Friends and Survivor.

What were you thinking ABC?

I might buy Dinotopia on DVD.

[Prince Adam]

I LOVED THIS SHOW!!!!!!! I admit, I never watched it (Friends and Survivor got first priority!), but I would tape it at 8, and then watch it at 9. I e-mailed Hallmark like a year ago, and they said it was supposed to come out in August, so I looked, but never found it. I'm so excited!

I need money! Dinotopia, Sleeping Beauty, Fantasia, Alice in Wonderland...

(I also need to track down Snow White, Beauty and the Beast Enchanted Christmas, and the original Dinotopia Mega-Series)

[Hennie]

In holland 2 dvd set on 20th januari

Bridge Entertainment Group presenteert
de Hallmark Home Entertainment productie

DINOTOPIA: The Outsiders
DINOTOPIA: The Temptation

2 DVD SET - ± 174 minuten
EXTRA’S

• Dinotopia Encyclopedia
• Skybax Pilot Game
• Dinotopia Trivia

Met: Michael Brandon, Jonathan Hyde en Georgina Rylance
Genre: Adventure
Speelduur: ± 174 minuten Taal: Engels Ondertiteling: Nederlands Beeldformaat: 4:3 Regio Code: 2 (pal) Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0

[Prince Adam]

I'm assuming The Outsiders is Episode One in which a group called the Outsiders (which includes the Matriarch's old friend Taurus Le Sage) finds a green pendant which allows them to "tame" the T-Rexes and do their bidding.

But what was The Temptation? Was it Episode Two? It was the only one that aired that I didn't tape.

[Hennie]

I don't know it is from a press release, don't dinotopia at al but i think i will buy the dvd set.

[Disney Guru]

I think that it would be great if Disney would release it on DVD.

[Prince Adam]

Does anyone have a press release for this?

[Disney Guru]

Amazon.com has that information.

[Hennie]

On my site is the dutch press release

[goofystitch]

Disney Guru Wrote:

I think that it would be great if Disney would release it on DVD.

Due to the fact that ratings were terrible (It was up against "Friends" and ABC hardley advertised the series), Disney wanted nothing to do with the home video rights and gave them to Hallmark.

I have no clue where a press release can be obtained. I also suggest looking at Amazon.com's list of features.

[/quote]

[goofystitch]

You can tell that Disney was expecting for the series to do well, because it ends on the third part of what would be a four part storyline. On the top right hand corner of the box, it says "The entire first season including 7 never-before-seen episodes." I found it odd that they would refer to it on the package as "entire first season" instead of entire series, seeing as the show was cancelled. I wonder if Hallmark wants to continue the series on the Hallmark Channel. It would be so great if they did, because all of us "Dinotopia" fans who buy this DVD set are going to want to see how it ends.

What follows is my summary of each episode. Episodes that are unaired are in bold:

1. "Marooned"- This is the first part of a 2 hour story line. The story doesn’t take this long to tell, but they have to introduce you to the outsiders, a group of people who are a counterculture to Dinotopia, and their leader, La Sage (rhymes with corsage), who becomes the main villain for the series. The storyline is that the outsiders stumble upon a crystal that gives them control over the T-rex's. With it, they take over Waterfall City, and it's up to David and Carl Scott to get them out.

2. "Making Good" - A continuation of "Marooned." I don't want to tell you anything about the second half because it will ruin it for you.

3. Handful of Dust" - Stegosauruses are being found dead and missing their spikes. Carl and Marion go out investigating and discover La Sage is behind it. The spikes are used to make a youth formula, but the formula never stops making the person who drinks it younger, and unless a new potion that counteracts it is created, the people who drank it will turn into dust.

4. "La Sage" - A virus is causing all of the dinosaurs to fall ill. When La Sage steals the jinca, (the medicine) Carl and Marion try to negotiate it back. But after Carl realizes how similar the outsiders and his past normal life are, he just might decide to stay with them.

5. "Car Wars" - Frank and Carl create a car, causing people to stop riding the bracheasauruses. This causes many people to become unemployed and start a protest against cars. All of this is happening during the election for mayor, so in an effort to win the vote, the current mayor puts a ban on cars. But when Frank ends up winning the election, it could mean the corruption of Dinotopia.

6. "The Matriarch" - During the celebration of the 10,000th birth of a baby dinosaur like 26, the outsiders replace the egg with that of a T-rex. The matriarch doesn’t believe in invading La Sage's castle, so David and Carl attempt to steal it back themselves. But it turns out that La Sage never stole the egg, so who did?

7. "Night of the Wartosa" - When Carl and Marion have a fight, he storms off and comes into contact with an old man who wants him to kiss his magical and endangered Wartosa frog. He does it to appease the old man, but it sends him back in time to right before he and Marion had their fight. He gets caught in an endless time loop and uses it to his advantage to keep re-living the scene until he gets it right. But the Wartosa had another lesson it wanted Carl to learn and he can't move on with his life until he learns it.

8. "The Big Fight" - Frank brings boxing to Dinotopia, even though it is against most of the peoples beliefs. The fight is between David and an outsider, but what’s worse is that La Sage and Frank may be becoming friends.

9. "Contact" - Carl and David discover a recently abandoned ship on the shores of Dinotopia, and Carl is able to get the radio to work. He was trying to find a way off the island, but instead ends up picking up a signal from stranded people in a life boat. They are headed for Dinotopia and if Carl can't get a hold of another boat to help them, they will suffer his fate.

10. "Lost and Found" - Carl gets himself stranded with a broken leg in uncharted, T-rex infested lands after attempting to upstage David by flying a skybax. What's worse is that the T-rex's make it impossible for the rescue team to find Carl. Frank, in a desperate attempt to find his son, enlists the help of La Sage, which ends up not working out as planned. When Scott and most of the rescue crew are kidnapped by a group of people who don't know that humans and dinosaurs can live together and live behind walls in constant fear, the Dinotopian's must try to convince them that they are good so they can help them.

11. "The Cure: Part 1" - The Scott's are celebrating their 6 month anniversary in Dinotopia, but the party is ruined when Carl passes out due to a bug bite. He has picked up a Disease that Dinotopian's are immune to, and the cure is very hard to find. All skybax's are grounded due to a storm that is approaching, so Frank, David, Zipeau, and La Sage venture out to find the cure. When nothing works, the matriarch informs David of a big secret about Dinotopia that could help to save Carl's life. But La Sage finds out, she can't help but try and use it for her own purposes.

12. "The Cure: Part 2" - If I tell you anything about this episode, it will spoil the secret, and I always hate when people ruin things for me, so I won't do it to you.

13. "Crossroads" - This episode is actually a continuation of "The Cure" two-parter. While Marion is on her way to see Carl, she bumps into La Sage, who is ready to leave the outsiders. After La Sage tells her a secret about her mother's past, Marion begins to trust her and is almost begins to take on La Sage's beliefs. And when La Sage spills the beans about Dinotopia's big secret, many of the character's are left with big decisions that need to be made.

I was a huge fan of the mini-series and I actually prefer the series to it. Mainly because the acting is much better, but the writing is good, as well. Also, when the episodes are played in order, they have flow. Most of the episodes that didn't air are actually better than the ones that did. I hope that if this DVD sells well, Hallmark will continue the series.

[MickeyMousePal]

I just went to Costco they didn't have Dinotopia: The Series.
I'll just get it at Amazon.

[Grunches]

I am going to wait and see if it might go on sale if not I will be getting this very soon!

[Prince Adam]

Is this list in chronological order? Because it's not the order that they were aired.

They sound so good! I'm glad they reveal more about the Matriarch's and Le Sage's past, because in the episode "Contact", it's hinted that they were once friends.
I'd love to hear what happened to them.

"The Cure" and "Crossroads" seem to be the best episodes, but my favourite one that aired is "The Matriarch". I won't reveal any more than what goofystitch did, but it's very sad.

[goofystitch]

Prince Adam Wrote:

Is this list in chronological order? Because it's not the order that they were aired.

Disney hardley ever airs things in order, unless it is a continuing story. The episodes listed are the order in which they where filmed and appear on the DVD. The great thing about seeing them in order is that there are certain elements that flow into the next episode. Watching it on ABC out of order made it difficult to see these.

[Prince Adam]

One more thing:

In "The Matriarch", that woman (I can pronounce her name, not spell it: Arridia?) said that she lost track of her children when the T-Rexes stormed her village. Was this when the Sunstones failed in the original movie, or when the Green Chrystal overpowered the Sunstones in the first episode?