TV Show Review: Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears - Season 2 (1986)

TV Show Review: Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears - Season 2 (1986)

With the initial round [season one] of Gummi Bears, Disney proved that they could produce a cartoon television series that held an underlying narrative. Of course, this was at a time before such series existed, but they managed it, combining classic Disney knowhow with the new medium, which resulted in a show that both educated and entertained. The success of this trial run was rewarded with not one but five subsequent seasons, which ran the course of the show’s intended story arc, making it the longest running Disney series of its kind to date, and deservedly so. It seems rare (especially now) that quality prevails, but fortunately, in season two, it’s clear that Disney knew what it had and that they weren’t going to let it go.

Leaner and meaner, season two has fewer episodes than before, but nearly all of them deal with the primary story arc. It’s not to say that season one had filler episodes, because most of those stand alones provided useful character development. But that was the point of season one, to introduce the series. Season two, on the other hand, can’t just be a holding pattern, it needs to propel the story while offering new challenges, and that is exactly the case here. The technical development is also apparent at the very onset of season two. While season one had a crude yet sufficient animation style, season two feels smoother and more refined. The backgrounds are richer and the colors are warmer. In addition, the character animation is more realized, with improved movement and a greater attention to detail. Even the sound is better! The action scenes are more complex and the storyboards are more intricate, all without losing any of the creativity. In fact, there’s even more creativity, with a higher degree of focus to contain all of the show’s assets. All in all, it’s clear that Disney was throwing more money at the series, and the creators were using it wisely.

If season one dealt with introducing the Gummi Bears to humans (both the audience and the internal characters), then season two deals with the Gummi Bears addressing this exposure. The excitement and optimism previously exhibited by the bears in the first season has now given way to frustration and a greater degree of loneliness. Despite having made friends with a select few human, so much more is at stake as the villain Duke Igthorn is no longer in the dark about the existence of both the bears and their power. Indeed, the frequency and severity of skirmishes between the bears and Igthorn’s forces has increased from before, yet the bears must continue to hide from the humans of Dunwyn as it would only complicate an already complicated situation.

Another interesting aspect of season two is its inward eye. Both the myth of the Gummies and the individual characters are deconstructed and reinforced. If the bears weren’t considered quasi-superheroes before, it’s certainly a possibility now, as their planning, evading, fighting, and magic skills have all significantly developed out of necessity (that and also that there’s more to their lives than simply hiding and surviving). This point becomes all the more relevant when the young male Cubbi channels his longing knighthood ambitions into a hyperbolic superhero alter ego (superego if you will), the Crimson Avenger, which allows Cubbi to fight his way into the hearts and minds of Dunwyn’s residents, with his masked appearance being a more acceptable concept for humans (and the only way Cubbi can roam free in broad daylight). Other interesting circumstances include the villain sidekick Toadie developing a soft spot for the young female Sunni after she cautiously saves his life. Even the character of Duke Igthorn is addressed, where we find out that his childhood home still exists in a condemned state within Dunwyn. Like all good stories, more questions are raised than answered, creating several interesting plotlines for future seasons to resolve.

The most significant and enticing quandary of the season is, not surprisingly, the original one, the Gummies themselves, and the hook for season two is that it’s bookended by the appearance of two new bears. In the season opener “Up, Up, and Away,” we are introduced to Chummi, a solo adventurer traveling by zeppelin in search of the Gummi civilization across the sea. When his airship is attacked by Igthorn, the Gummi Glen Gummies (as the original six are now known by) take him in. Once the airship is repaired, Chummi resumes his journey, unable to physically take all of the Glen Gummies with him. This no doubt sets the tone for the season. In the season finale “My Gummi Lies over the Ocean,” Tummi builds a boat that takes him and Gruffi to an isolated volcanic island where they meet and take home the artistic and slightly crazy Gusto, and his pet toucan Artie Deco. What’s really interesting here is the discovery of other isolated Gummies, and the suggestion of other isolated Gummi collectives, like the Glen Gummies. This, of course, is great fuel for the next season. In the end, season two leaves both the Gummies and the audience with an insatiable hunger to learn the extent of the Gummi mystery, something that only gets better over the next four years.

McS