Jumanji (TV series)

Jumanji (also known as Jumanji: The Animated Series) is an American animated television series based on the 1995 film, which in turn was based on the 1981 children's picture book of the same name. The series ran for three seasons from September 8, 1996 to March 11, 1999. In 1996, it aired on the UPN Kids block on UPN, but later seasons were syndicated under the Bohbot Kids Network syndicated block.

Jumanji was produced by Adelaide Productions and was the first show they made, with character designs by Everett Peck.

Plot
Judy and Peter Shepherd are two children who find a board game called "Jumanji". Each turn, they are given a "clue" and then transported into the world of the game until they solve it, which allows them to leave. During their adventures, they meet Alan Parrish, another player who became trapped in the game world because he never saw his clue and was unable to solve it to leave, and their main goal becomes freeing him from the game. Later, they free another player who calls himself the Master of Jumanji and who has been trapped for longer than Alan. Unlike Alan, he saw his clue but never solved it, despite trying to get others to solve it for him, but is able to solve it with the help of the kids.

Alan later reveals that there have been other players of the game throughout time, many of whom left their toys in the cave that is part of his home, but not all of them survived the game. In the final episode, using a crystal that shows the past, the kids and Alan find his clue by observing his roll and what the game said, and figure out why he never saw it: right after he rolled, his mom called him to dinner, and as he was leaving, the clue appeared and he was transported into the game. Now that he knows his clue, Alan, with the help of Judy and Peter, solves it and escapes Jumanji. Afterwards, the kids decide to destroy Jumanji so that no one else will suffer from it.

Changes
While the show followed the movie's plot, there were several changes, such as the exclusion of Bonnie Hunt's character Sarah Whittle. In the original film and picture book, the board game's hazards would manifest in the real world, while in the show, the game's participants are transported to a world inside the game itself, an aspect also present in the sequels.

Main

 * Alan Robert John James Parrish III (voiced by Bill Fagerbakke as an adult and Justin Jon Ross as a kid) is Judy and Peter's companion in Jumanji, who has been trapped in the game since he was a boy and can only get out by solving his original clue. According to the Jumanji database, he became trapped in Jumanji on April 3, 1972, but in "Young Alan" he says that it happened in 1965. In "Young Alan", he is shown to have been a ten and a half-year-old boy and the son of the late owner of a shoe factory, who was friends with Officer Bentley. He aims to leave the game and sometimes succeeds, but always ends up back in the game until the final episode, where he solves his clue by pulling a thorn from a lion's paw. "Nothing to Fear" reveals that he considers Peter and Judy to be his family and that his worst fear is that he will die without being freed.
 * Judy Shepherd (voiced by Debi Derryberry) is Peter's older sister, whose intelligence helps the group to solve problems. She is brave, compassionate, and always willing to help those in need; such as in "Air Judy", when she risks her life to save the Jumockis' eggs and village from Professor Ibsen.
 * Peter Shepherd (voiced by Ashley Johnson as a kid and Cam Clarke as an adult) is Judy's younger brother, who is stated in "Eye of the Sea" to be nine years old. Unlike in the film, where he is shy and soft-spoken, he is immature and often argues with his sister, but cares for her. Peter often cheats and transforms into various animals as a punishment, including a monkey and other jungle animals, such as a tortoise, a toucan, a warthog, a frog, a skunk, and a salamander. He can also speak Manji and seems to be friends with them since he saved their leader, Tribal Bob. "Nothing to Fear" reveals that his worst fear is to be seen naked.

Villains
Villains who inhabit the world of Jumanji.
 * Van Pelt (voiced by Sherman Howard) is a big-game hunter who hunts everything, regardless if they are man or beast, without remorse, and hates when players call Jumanji "a game". Peter kills him in one episode, but becomes him as there must always be a hunter in Jumanji; as a result, Alan and Judy bring him back to life. He is also shown to control animals that aid him in hunting, including using the horn of a Juroceros (a fictional relative of the rhino) to summon two black mastiffs.
 * J.H. "Trader" Slick (voiced by Tim Curry) is the merchant of Jumanji, who sells items to those who meet the terms of his transactions. He lives and sells his wares at a trading post located at the heart of the jungle. While he is usually not a threat, he can be when he teams up with other villains.
 * Professor J.S. Ibsen (voiced by William Sanderson) is a mad scientist who refers to himself as a "Master Builder". He is an android who works on behalf of Jumanji and operates from a factory where he builds machines and vehicles and creates monsters such as armored rhinos, acid-tongued frogs, and berbalangs. He also transmits nightly vocal reports to Jumanji itself, broadcasting throughout the jungle. In "The Ultimate Weapon", Ibsen attends J.H. Slick's auction for the Transvector of Jumanji, but decides to steal it rather than bid for it, intending to destroy it because of the threat it poses to Jumanji. In "Robo-Peter", Ibsen initiates a master scheme to replace all young people in the "real world" with androids, trapping humans in the game world. However, Alan, Peter and Judy thwart his plan, resulting in his factory being destroyed. J.S. Ibsen's first and middle name initials are a reference to J.F. Sebastian from Blade Runner. His surname is a reference to Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen and his 1893 stage play The Master Builder, which is also the title of his debut episode "Master Builder".
 * Captain Ishmael Squint (voiced by Charles Napier) is a pirate who sails the Jumanji Sea. In "Eye of the Sea", he is shown to have lost his nose during his battle against the Draken, a sea monster which is a cross between a dragon and a kraken, over 20 years ago. Squint's vengeful pursuit of the Draken is reminiscent of Captain Ahab in Moby Dick, and his name is a reference to its protagonist Ishmael. It eats Squint alive before Alan stabs it in the eye, killing it. In "Return of Squint", Captain Squint returns, now with new shipmates Mr. Shreve (voiced by Xander Berkeley) and Mr. Shatic (voiced by Glenn Shadix) and forces Judy, Peter, and Alan to help him search for treasure underwater using Ibsen's submarine, but he and his shipmates are captured by mermaids. In "The Ultimate Weapon", he attends J.H. Slick's auction and is among the villains who attempt to reclaim it after Alan, Judy, and Peter compete with Professor Ibsen to dispose of it.
 * Stalker (voiced by Richard Allen) is a being similar to the Grim Reaper who is the protector of Jumanji and who other villains fear; he is implied to be the personification of the term "Game Over". He first appears in "No Dice", where he attempts to reclaim the dice that Alan stole from the real world, as if the dice were destroyed, nobody would be able to play Jumanji again. He is apparently destroyed after being crushed by a piston, but is revealed to have survived. In "The Gift", Stalker brings Van Pelt, J.H. Slick, and Professor Ibsen together to kill the kids after a centipede poisons Alan, as Peter threatened to destroy Jumanji if Alan died. He is defeated once more after Alan pushes him down a waterfall, but survives.
 * Ashton Philips (voiced by Dabney Coleman as an adult and Jeannie Elias as a baby) is a greedy adventurer who is overconfident, arrogant, and willing to betray others to achieve his goals. Though he was thought to have died in the Temple of Riddles in "The Palace of Clues", he survived and returns in "An Old Story", where his search for the Golden Goblet of Jumanjicon leads him to encounter Alan, Judy, and Peter in their search for it and reclaim his compass, which Trader Slick swindled him into trading. After drinking from the Goblet, he regains his youth.
 * Ludwig Von Richtor (voiced by Alan Oppenheimer) is a German hunter and Van Pelt's rival. In "Night of The Hunters", he competes with Van Pelt in hunting Alan. In "The Ultimate Weapon", he attends J.H. Slick's auction and is among the villains who attempt to reclaim it after Alan, Judy, and Peter compete with Professor Ibsen to dispose of it.
 * The Judge (voiced by Ed Asner) is an ape-like lawkeeper who presides over Alan's trial in "The Trial" after he is accused of stealing the Singing Orb from a cave. He is unforgiving, as he condemns all without regard to innocence. He is also hypocritically greedy, as shown when he takes an orb from the Fludgels and is sucked into it. His only weapon is "Justice" which is a giant gorilla. In "The Ultimate Weapon", he attends J.H. Slick's auction and threatens to charge him if it is not genuine. He is also among the villains who attempt to reclaim it after Alan, Judy, and Peter compete with Professor Ibsen to dispose of it.
 * Flint (voiced by Charlie Schlatter) is a wizard who Jumanji created to mess with Judy's mind. He turns several people into stone before Judy defeats him by reflecting his attack back at him using a mirror, freeing his victims and turning him to stone.
 * Queen Gina (voiced by Cathy Moriarty) is the leader of the Jamazons. In "Perfect Match", she tries to marry Alan, but Aunt Nora defeats her. In "The Ultimate Weapon", she attends Trader Slick's auction for the Trans-Vector of Jumanji, but is uninterested in owning it and instead wants to reclaim Alan, presumably to try to marry him again.
 * The Jamazons are a tribe of huntresses and warriors ruled by Queen Gina who are similar to the Amazons of Greek mythology. It is unknown if they are part of Jumanji or players who became part of the Jamazon tribe, like the Manjis. Their wedding tradition includes marrying only single males while sacrificing the groom into the volcano. Jamazons are open to challenges, as seen when Nora challenges Queen Gina to free the trio. In "The Ultimate Weapon", some Jamazons and Queen Gina attend Trader Slick's auction for the Trans-Vector of Jumanji, but do not attempt to obtain it.
 * Black Ant Queen (voiced by Jennifer Darling) is the Black Ant leader of Jumanji, who the Black Ant Soldiers fight for. In "The Red and The Black", she fights The Red Ant Queen over the Black Bahoot.
 * Red Ant Queen (voiced by Susan Silo) is the Red Ant leader of Jumanji, who the Red Ant Soldiers fight for. In "The Red and The Black", the Red Ant Queen she fights The Black Ant Queen over the Red Bahoot.
 * Sand King (voiced by Jim Cummings) is a sand monster who is the ruler of Jumanji's Sand Kingdom. In "The Magic Chest", he attempts to get a chest of cursed gold from Judy, Peter and Alan, but Peter defeats him using a squirt gun. In "The Ultimate Weapon", he attends Trader Slick's auction.
 * Ms. Desmona (voiced by Bibi Osterwald) is a brash and self-centered woman. In "Sorceress of Jumanji", she is transported into Jumanji after purchasing the game from Aunt Nora and obtains the Tome of Jumanji, which gives her magical powers and turns her into a sorceress. She wreaks havoc until Judy defeats her by taking the Tome from her, stripping her of her power, and forces her to solve her riddle to send her back to the real world. Alan remembers her from his childhood and that he nicknamed her "Ms. Desmeanie" because of her unpleasant attitude.
 * The Lion is a lion that has been chasing Alan since he first entered Jumanji. In the final episode, "Goodbye Jumanji," it is revealed that it was part of Alan's clue and had been following him because it had a thorn in its paw that was causing it pain. After Alan works up the courage to remove it, his clue is solved and he is able to leave.

Others

 * Aunt Nora Shepherd (voiced by Melanie Chartoff) is Judy and Peter's aunt and legal guardian, who is transported into Jumanji several times, but they convince her is a dream. After Alan is finally freed, there are indications of a possible romantic relationship between the two. Nora is a therapist and does aerobics, which allow her in Jumanji to defeat Gina.
 * The Manji Tribe (voiced by Billy West, Maurice LaMarche, Dee Bradley Baker, Pat Pinney, Danny Mann, and Kevin Schon) are fierce warriors who are hostile towards humans, but are tolerant of Alan, Peter and Judy, and have a primitive way of communicating, as their native language consists of squeaks, clicks, buzzes, whistles, and hand gestures.They are led by Tribal Bob (voiced by Richard Allen). It is implied that a Manji can only change back if they willingly remove the mask, as shown in "Masked Identity", where Peter joins them and over time becomes a Manji himself. It is also implied that the Manjis were once people, possibly children, who decided to stay in Jumanji and leave their lives behind after giving up on solving their clue. Unlike Jumanji's other threats, the Manji are willing to work against Jumanji's interests, as they indirectly give Peter the clues to cure a poisoned Alan and also protect Peter and Judy from Slick, Van Pelt, and Ibsen, who were under orders from Jumanji itself to kill them, and only try to eat one of the children brought into Jumanji after confirming they are not Peter's friend.
 * The Master of Jumanji (voiced by Tony Jay) is a player who became trapper in Jumanji years before Alan did because he could not solve his clue, which was written on the wall in the Palace of Lost Clues. After realizing what his clue meant, he disappears to his own time in St. Claire.
 * Officer Carl Bentley (voiced by Richard Allen) is a police officer who patrols Judy and Peter's neighborhood. When he was younger, he was a friend of Alan and worked at a shoe factory that later shut down.
 * Rock (voiced by Pamela Adlon in season 1 and Jeannie Elias in seasons 2 and 3) is a school bully who picks on Peter. His friends are John, Rob, and Jim.
 * Dorothy "Dottie" McGrail (voiced by Eileen Brennan) is a flying ace who somehow manages to fly into Jumanji in her plane through a hole in the sky. In "Air Judy", she, along with Alan, Peter and Judy, help save the eggs and village of the Jumockis, which were under threat from Professor Ibsen.
 * The "Banana Brains" (voiced by Kevin Schon, Maurice LaMarche, and Billy West) are a trio of monkeys that reside in Jumanji. Fang is a small monkey who resembles the ones from the film, Brutus resembles a gorilla but with a tail, and Dead-Eye, who is the leader of the group, resembles a baboon and has a lazy left eye. They are known for causing mischief and wreaking havoc on those who cross their path or ruin their "fun".

Principal cast

 * Bill Fagerbakke – Alan Parrish
 * Debi Derryberry – Judy Shepherd
 * Ashley Johnson – Peter Shepherd
 * Pamela Adlon – Rock
 * Melanie Chartoff – Aunt Nora Shepherd
 * Tim Curry – Trader Slick
 * Sherman Howard – Van Pelt
 * Richard Allen – Stalker, Officer Bentley, Tribal Bob
 * William Sanderson – Professor Ibsen
 * Kevin Schon – Dead-Eye, Manji, Rock's friend

Additional voices

 * Christy Alvarez – Maria
 * Beverly Archer – Peter's Teacher
 * Edward Asner – The Judge, Repairman
 * René Auberjonois – Professor Alsip
 * Dee Bradley Baker – Mud Boy, Manji
 * Jacqui Bakshy – Rock's friend
 * Bob Bergen – Science Teacher ("Brantford, The Game")
 * Bob Berger – Science Teacher ("Air Judy")
 * Xander Berkeley – Mr. Schreve
 * Christine Cavanaugh – Rock's friend, Unibrowed Boy, Cashier
 * Cam Clarke – Adult Peter Shepherd, Justin Galloway, Car Salesman
 * Dabney Coleman – Ashton Philips
 * Jim Cummings – Sand King, Shocker
 * E.G. Daily – Disco Boy, Spectacled Boy, Flower delivery girl
 * Jennifer Darling – Black Ant Queen
 * Andy Dick – Mr. Olsen
 * Paul Eiding – Black Ant Soldier
 * Jeannie Elias – Sally, Bizarre Aunt Nora, Rock (Seasons 2 and 3), Baby Ashton Philips
 * Peter Iacangelo – Lowlife
 * Tony Jay – Master
 * Bob Joles – Coach Bartlett
 * Maurice LaMarche – The Key, Manji, Brutus
 * Danny Mann – Umpire, Manji
 * Roddy McDowall – Furvish
 * Cathy Moriarty – Queen Gina
 * Pat Musick – Giant chicken
 * Charles Napier – Captain Ishmael Squint
 * Alan Oppenheimer – Ludwig Von Richtor
 * Bibi Osterwald – Ms. Desmona
 * Brian Peck – Red Ant Soldier
 * Pat Pinney – Manji
 * Michael Reisz – Wade Riley (Season 3)
 * Justin Jon Ross – Young Alan Parrish
 * William Schallert – Dr. Cahill
 * Charlie Schlatter – Flint, Wade Riley, B-Bop A, Luna
 * Glenn Shadix – Mr. Shatic
 * Susan Silo – Red Ant Queen
 * Cynthia Songé – Mrs. Hinman
 * Steven Weber – Jack
 * Billy West – Manji, Fang

Crew

 * Susan Blu – Dialogue Director

Broadcast
In 1996, it was carried by the UPN Kids block on UPN, but later seasons were syndicated by BKN. The series was also shown by CITV in the United Kingdom, TRTÉ in the Republic of Ireland and on Russian RTR channel. It has aired in Pakistan on Cartoon Network in English and currently airs on Filmax in Urdu and on Aruj TV in Pushto.

Episodes of the show are available on iTunes and Hulu. The show was rerun on Kabillion on Demand. The show has also been released through YouTube.

Home media
On August 28, 2012, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released Jumanji: The Complete First Season on DVD in region 1. This was a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively in the US and is part of the Sony Pictures Choice Collection in partnership with Warner Bros. online store. It is also available through Amazon.com and their CreateSpace MOD program.

Mill Creek Entertainment re-released season 1 on DVD in Region 1 on February 17, 2015, followed by complete series on DVD in Region 1 in August 2017.