Jackie Chan Adventures - The Demon Portals Saga
(Jackie Chan, James Sie, Stacie Chan, Sab Shimono, et al / 3-Disc DVD / TV-Y7 / 2019 / Mill Creek Entertainment)
Overview: 'Jackie Chan Adventures' is an American animated television series starring the adventures of a fictionalized version of action film star Jackie Chan.
DVD Verdict: Jackie Chan, an amateur archeologist, would prefer to quietly do his work for the local university, but fate has dealt him another hand.
When he finds a shield containing a talisman, he runs afoul of The Dark Hand, a criminal organization led by a man called Valmont and guided by the spirit Shendu.
Jackie and his family must cooperate with a secret law enforcement organization, Section 13, to counter the threat, and must face dangers that will demand all of Jackie's daring and skill in martial arts to overcome.
Imagine taking over the movie industry with your breathtaking stunts. What next? How about a cartoon starring, you? That's what Jackie Chan did and it works!
I mean, Jackie Chan has wowed the audience for years in movies and made them laugh at his innovative martial arts which combine comedy and martial arts, before it became a property for children's action movies.
Here in these Demon Portals Saga we are meant to believe that Jackie Chan is an archaeologist who with his Uncle collect rare artifacts until his niece Jade comes along and chaos ensues as an evil organization known as 'Dark Hand' who possess power over shadow ninjas. And so Jackie must fight the forces of evil and be a model uncle to niece Jade.
The show has some unique backgrounds, which is something I loved with the building being brightly colored, but yet those very same colors don't stay between the lines (purposely), if that makes sense.
As for the action, well as expected, it's pure OTT Jackie Chan and its amazing how the fight scenes are transferred onto a cartoon and how it all works so brilliantly.
Next is the comedy which is hilarious especially Jade who is adorable and keeps the laughs coming aplenty.
Aside from their humor, many of the episodes have a few strong key messages, such as the importance of family, friendship, being truthful and so on.
Again, many cartoons lack this element altogether, or fall on the opposite end of the spectrum and are no longer fun to watch. 'Jackie Chan Adventures' somehow gets into this middle ground and this is another thing that really sets it apart from other cartoons.
Of course, this show is not perfect. Some of the jokes got repetitive and the goofy nature of Jackie sometimes put the episode a bit off-balance. I also felt that Season 2 ("Demon Doors") was a bit of a slump for the show as it really did not give each of the demons enough facetime.
Since some of them were quite interesting, having them on-screen for five minutes before they were dragged back to their prison felt a bit lackluster.
Taken together, 'Jackie Chan Adventures' is a great show. It is not only fun to watch as a child, as I still enjoyed watching it as an adult, but now watching it on my own small screen via this new DVD release from Mill Creek Entertainment is one massive flashback thrill!
So, if you are looking for a cartoon for your child to watch this would be a great one. It is diverse, well-conceived and solves the dilemma of making cartoons educational without making them boring. As Uncle would say, "Haaaachaaaaaaaa!".
Disc 1:
Episode 1: Through the Rabbit Hole - Sept. 8, 2001
Episode 2: The Warrior Incarnate - Sept. 15, 2001
Episode 3: Snake Hunt - Sept. 22, 2001
Episode 4: Mother of All Battles - Sept. 24, 2001
Episode 5: The Stronger Evil - Sept. 29, 2001
Episode 6: The J-Team - Oct. 6, 2001
Episode 7: Jade Times Jade - Oct. 13, 2001
Episode 8: The Curse of El Chupacabra - Oct. 15, 2001
Episode 9: Rumble in the Big House - Oct. 20, 2001
Episode 10: Lost City of the Muntabs - Oct. 22, 2001
Episode 11: And He Does His Own Stunts - Oct. 27, 2001
Episode 12: Showdown in the Old West - Oct. 29, 2001
Episode 13: Queen of the Shadowkhan - Nov. 3, 2001
Disc 2:
Episode 14: Origami - Nov. 5, 2001
Episode 15: Shanghai Moon - Nov. 10, 2001
Episode 16: The Lotus Temple - Nov. 12, 2001
Episode 17: Armor of the Gods - Nov. 17, 2001
Episode 18: Agent Tag - Nov. 19, 2001
Episode 19: Tale of the Demon Tail - Nov. 24, 2001
Episode 20: The Return of the Pussycat - Dec. 1, 2001
Episode 21: Scouts Honor - Dec. 8, 2001
Episode 22: Danger in the Deep Freeze - Dec. 15, 2001
Episode 23: Into the Mouth of Evil - Jan. 19, 2002
Episode 24: The King and Jade - Jan. 26, 2002
Episode 25: The New Atlantis - Feb. 2, 2002
Episode 26: The Eighth Door - Feb. 9, 2002
Disc 3:
Episode 27: Demon World: Part 1 - Feb. 16, 2002
Episode 28: Demon World: Part 2 - Feb. 23, 2002
Episode 29: Enter the Cat - March 2, 2002
Episode 30: Pleasure Cruise - March 9, 2002
Episode 31: Tough Luck - March 16, 2002
Episode 32: The Chosen One - March 23, 2002
Episode 33: Glove Story - March 30, 2002
Episode 34: The Chan Who Knew Too Much - April 27, 2002
Episode 35: Chi of the Vampire - May 4, 2002
Episode 36: The Good, the Bad, the Blind, the Deaf and the Mute - May 18, 2002
Episode 37: Shrink Rap - August 17, 2002
Episode 38: I'll Be a Monkey's Puppet - August 24, 2002
Episode 39: The Amazing T-Girl - Sept. 7, 2002
This is a Full Screen Presentation (1.33:1) enhanced for 16x9 TVs.
'Jackie Chan Adventures - The Demon Portals Saga' [3-Disc DVD] is out June 4th, 2019 via Mill Creek Entertainment.
www.MillCreekEnt.com