This is the pilot episode that started out as a two hour movie on the Disney Channel. The plot sounds simple enough: A pack of Air Pirates led by Don Karnage steals a treasure box containing something very valuable. However; as Don was about to proclaim victory a young bearcub steals the box from Don and escapes the Iron Vulture. Known as Kit Cloudkicker he relucently finds refuge with a grey bear pilot know as Baloo who is having problems of his own as his own laziness and partying have finally caught up with him when his airplane the SeaDuck is one day away from being reprocessed due to Baloo's inability to pay...and that's just the start of the troubles.
I'm only giving away just a little of this story because this is one of the best stories ever written by the Disney Company...ever. It is surprisingly well done and had a great balance of comedy, adventure and action that pleases me both as a child when I first saw this and now as an adult as for some odd reason it seems to get even better the more I watch it now. The artwork is beautiful as was the series in general; although the first two acts were done by Walt Disney Animation France which made the switch over to Walt Disney Animation Japan's animation in act three a little confusing. The music is great as always from Christopher L. Stone. I did finds some of the songs to be a little inconsistent. I wasn't impressed with "I'm Gone"...and Sally Struthers singing "Home Is Where The Heart Is" although the scene (which is cut from the syndication four episode run of this film by the way) was considered to me the best turning points in the movie. The other song was the "Sky Pirates Theme" and it was the best...and the first act was lacking a bit of the thrill that it was designed for; but it was still good enough to keep me interested until the end.
Overall; Plunder and Lightning is considered one of the best television animation pilots out there and also won and Emmy award for its trouble....It's not hard to understand why as Jymn Magon and Mark Zaslove delievered a fun 1 1/2 hour television film that nearly everyone can enjoy. Plus; it shows at furry animal characters can dance and kick butt at the same time too. **** 3/4 out of *****
I'm only giving away just a little of this story because this is one of the best stories ever written by the Disney Company...ever. It is surprisingly well done and had a great balance of comedy, adventure and action that pleases me both as a child when I first saw this and now as an adult as for some odd reason it seems to get even better the more I watch it now. The artwork is beautiful as was the series in general; although the first two acts were done by Walt Disney Animation France which made the switch over to Walt Disney Animation Japan's animation in act three a little confusing. The music is great as always from Christopher L. Stone. I did finds some of the songs to be a little inconsistent. I wasn't impressed with "I'm Gone"...and Sally Struthers singing "Home Is Where The Heart Is" although the scene (which is cut from the syndication four episode run of this film by the way) was considered to me the best turning points in the movie. The other song was the "Sky Pirates Theme" and it was the best...and the first act was lacking a bit of the thrill that it was designed for; but it was still good enough to keep me interested until the end.
Overall; Plunder and Lightning is considered one of the best television animation pilots out there and also won and Emmy award for its trouble....It's not hard to understand why as Jymn Magon and Mark Zaslove delievered a fun 1 1/2 hour television film that nearly everyone can enjoy. Plus; it shows at furry animal characters can dance and kick butt at the same time too. **** 3/4 out of *****
