In the early 1960s, Hanna-Barbera Studios managed to wrest dominance in animation production away from Disney via overproduction of cheap, "limited animation" cartoons for television. They'd first assembled only programs made up of comedy shorts like HUCKLEBERRY HOUND and YOGI BEAR, but really made an impact by producing cartoon sitcoms for network prime time inspired by other TV and radio shows. THE FLINTSTONES, THE JETSONS and TOP CAT were all based on TV star personalities, but their fantasy settings and rich humor made them smash hits. However, for their next prime time venture, H-B produced something really original. Created by comics artist Doug Wildey, JONNY QUEST was a straightforward half-hour adventure series. And making it further unlike other H-B product, QUEST featured artwork in the style of Wildey's adventure comic-books.

The studio's animation staff had trouble adapting to the show's more realistic style, so Wildey brought in fellow comics artists like Alex Toth and Warren Tufts to help with the workload. (Toth would go on to create some fondly remembered superhero series for H-B's Saturday morning lineup.) Though the animation is sometimes a bit too awkward to carry off the style, the imagery in QUEST is sometimes stunning, with fully painted backgrounds and shaded cels. The scripts matched the artwork's more adult tone, with plots resembling those of movie serials and comics like TERRY & THE PIRATES. According to Wildey, he was initially hired to design a cartoon series based on the radio/serial hero JACK ARMSTRONG, but when licensing proved too expensive, H-B had him take a more original tack. Take the more fantastic elements like pteranodons out of the mix, and the series could have been made as a live-action show. Toth and others had previously created animated serials like SPACE ANGEL for syndicated outlets, but when JONNY QUEST debuted it was unlike anything that had ever been seen on network television.

The pilot episode "Mystery of the Lizard Men" gives a thumbnail description of the series format in a brief conversation between two government agents. While browsing through File O-37, we learn that Dr. Benton Quest (voiced by John Stephenson in early episodes, though soon covered by H-B workhorse Don Messick) is not only a member of the Secret Service, but an ingenious scientist valuable to enemy nations. To protect both single father Quest and his son Jonny (Tim Matheson) from assassins and kidnappers, Secret Agent Roger "Race" Bannon (Mike Road) is assigned as both bodyguard and tutor to home-schooled Jonny. As in this initial episode, Quest is most often asked to consult in investigations into Weird Menaces straight out of the pulp magazines. But sometimes Quest's own research gets him into trouble the writers were always careful to stress that his inventions were always intended for peaceful use, but enemy agents are always out to steal them to be used as weapons.

The pilot also establishes that though Quest is brilliant and apparently fabulously wealthy he travels the world in a high-tech private jet, lives on his own Florida key, and is never wanting for any sort of equipment he's not all that interesting. For the most part, he only acts as a plot device in each adventure, only occasionally abandoning is test tubes to get involved in the action.

And though the series bears his name, Jonny is a bit of a whitebread bore himself. In an effort to make him more identifiable to the widest audience, Jonny was made with few distinguishing features except his unshakeable enthusiasm and almost foolhardy courage. It would be left to other characters to add more color.

The real hero of JONNY QUEST is Race Bannon. A former professional race driver (Wildey took the character from his STRETCH BANNON comic strip), Race is a sort of combination Mary Poppins and 007, able to handle himself in any situation, even when watching over children. Any kid watching could be Jonny, but every kid wanted to be Race.

To make sure that things never got too adult in nature, Jonny is always accompanied by a goofy little bulldog named Bandit (Messick), who provides both kid-appeal and most of the comic relief. Unlike other comic H-B animal characters, Bandit is a real dog, even if they sometimes have him do some outlandish things including scuba diving! Apparently, even this wasn't enough for H-B, since many subsequent shows feature total cartoon mutts accompanying the heroes.

Another character joined the cast after the pilot, an Indian boy of Jonny's age (11) named Hadji (Danny Bravo). It isn't until episode 7 ("Calcutta Adventure") that we're told via flashback how little orphan Hadji was found performing magic in the streets. When the boy saved Dr. Quest from a sniper, the scientist took him along and adopted him. Apparently converted to Christianity (one episode shows Jonny and Hadji praying before bedtime), Hadji still wears a turban, is very superstitious, and even practices a bit of real magic at times. Though the series suffers at times from a bit of unenlightened racism (Race refers to primitive people as "savages", and the episode "The Quetong Missile Mystery" has Benton talking about how the Orient is "captivating, but at the same time sinister"), it's touching to note how accepted Hadji is as a family member. Though Bandit clearly started out as Jonny's pet, Hadji shares taking care of the dog and other chores, and is given an equal footing in all matters. Though different, Hadji is always treated as an equal, and such interracial acceptance was rare on TV at the time.

Simple science and geography lessons are part of many episodes, even if the educational content is limited to an explanation that "lasers are concentrated atomic energy" or Hadji's observation that much of Thailand is covered in jungle, "just like my country." The villains ranged from simple smugglers to the continuing menace of Quest's Fu Manchu-like arch enemy Dr. Zin, but each episode required a more fantastic element like Zin's mechanical spider in "The Robot Spy" and the living mummy of "The Curse of Anubis". Though usually a straight action-adventure series, some of the more monstrous menaces were quite frightening for kids, and the technology was sometimes so far advanced as to drift into science fiction. For example, the pilot episode had villains plotting to sabotage the first "Man to the Moon rocket" launch, and used a gimmick where Quest would obtain information from a desktop computer! By the time of "The Invisible Monster", Race and Benton were hunting an energy creature with hovercars and jetpacks. The series has also become known for its technical and continuity flubs over the decades, as when Quest's mustache disappears in some frames, or a remote video shows the camera taping the scene.

One cannot overlook how much Hoyt Curtin's music contributes to these shows. Those monsters aren't all that spooky without Curtin's pounding music building on the soundtrack, and the JONNY QUEST theme is one of the jazziest pieces ever written for TV.

At the time of their first broadcast, television and especially children's TV was beginning to come under scrutiny for violent content. With so many shows aping the successful James Bond movies, the airwaves were full of numerous (but bloodless) fights and murders. In the case of QUEST, the criticism is somewhat justified. Looking back from the 21^st century, there's an alarming amount of shooting and explosions going on just in the opening montage. Episodes show characters getting mashed by falling speedboats, eaten by tigers and crocodiles, falling into vats of acid, and suffering other bad ends. Ten years later, the idea of even showing a firearm in a TV cartoon much less showing children handling them would be completely taboo, but QUEST is a product of its time, and should only be judged as such. The protests did enough damage to make sure Jonny wouldn't be back for ABC's Fall Season in 1965. However, the show wouldn't go away the network brought it back for reruns on Saturday mornings in 1967, and the first season would eventually be seen on all three networks. There have since been a few revival attempts, but these tended to be too outlandish (the Quests battling aliens in outer space) and failed to recapture this series' magic.

Another fine entry in Warner Bros.' "Hanna-Barbera Golden Collection", all 26 episodes have been digitally remastered, and the image is sharp enough to pick out fingerprints on the cels, with only the rare splice showing up in one or two episodes. The four discs are housed in a handsomely designed foldout that slips into a transparent sleeve.

I always enjoy DVD annotation ("pop-up trivia") tracks, so it's a special treat to see one included here over episode 9, "Double Danger" (though as you'll learn right off, this was the first episode produced). This episode is also one of a few that should put to rest any rumors about two men living together or a grown man hanging around with two boys, as Jade (Cathy Lewis), a femme fatale from Race's past, makes one of her rare appearances. Jade confirms that an imposter is posing as Race when the man doesn't measure up as a kisser!

The fourth disc also includes a 15-minute talking head featurette, which mixes clips with interviews with cartoonists and others influenced by the show, a "Video Handbook" of the series' main elements, and one of the P.F. Flyer sneaker cartoons featuring Jonny and Race. In all, a very impressive set for a very worthy series, and the best of Warners' H-B Golden Collections yet released.