Forgotten 1990s Adventure Series Was Killed When The Studio Ran Out Of Money
Posted by Jonathan Klotz | Published
The ’90s were the golden age of syndicated fantasy shows; following behind Hercules: Legendary Journeysthe audience created a beautiful song Xena: Princess Warriorthen a series of similar shows, since The New Adventures of Robin Hood again The Adventures of Sinbad to Jack of Hearts soon followed, as it seems that all the international production companies decided to make their own show. It is lost among its best known moments Tarzan: The Epic Adventuresanother attempt to adapt Edgar Rice Burrough’s famous creation for the small screen, and it was about as low-budget and cheesy as you’d expect, but before Season 2 went into production, the unplanned bankruptcy closed for good.
Extracts from Classic Novels
Tarzan: The Epic Adventures starred Joe Lara as the King of the Monkeys for the second time, reprising his role in the made-for-TV movie Tarzan in Manhattanalthough the two conditions cannot be distinguished. The syndicated series draws heavily from the original novels, including the villain, Count Nicholas Rokoff, and the concept of Pellucidar (Burroughs’ take on the Hollow Earth legend), but does not include Jane. Instead, Tarzan is joined by his old friend Themba, who is trying to find out what is happening to his tribe.
Filmed in Sun City, a popular South African resort that became a hotspot in the 80s, Tarzan: The Epic Adventures it looks like it takes place in the same area of the forest in every episode because it does. Made on a shoestring budget, the show features terrible dialogue, cheap special effects, and a cheap-looking costume show, but that’s also part of the appeal. To the credit of the production team, they seemed to be in on the joke, with no one taking it seriously, and the result was a fun, guilty pleasure that you don’t want anyone to know you’re enjoying.
Involuntary Bankruptcy
Tarzan: The Epic Adventures it may have been made on the cheap, but it wasn’t cheap enough for Seagull Entertainment, the show’s international distributor. Seagull Entertainment was forced into bankruptcy in the summer of 1997, shortly after the series aired its final episode, after failing to pay 50 employees and numerous creditors, more than $500,000 in debts. Season 2 was already in the planning stages at the time, and was set to introduce Jane, but due to forces outside the production’s control, it never happened.
Due to the self-destruction of Seagull Entertainment, Tarzan: The Epic Adventures he never got a second chance. The show’s production company, Keller Entertainment Group, was also trying to develop a Conan the Barbarian animated series. However, that never made it to television, failing like many other attempts at Conan before leaving pre-production.
Surprisingly, Tarzan: The Epic Adventures is one of the most successful adaptations of the classic character since the 1950s, joining Alexander Skarsgard’s. The Legend of Tarzan and Disney’s animated Tarzan. Despite being one of the most popular characters between the 30s and 50s, Tarzan has been played out too much in pop culture to have any appeal to modern audiences, except for those who enjoy everything ironic.
Tarzan: The Epic Adventures is available to stream on Tubi and The Roku Channel.
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