Stone Protectors facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Stone Protectors |
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Stone Protectors "Forged in Fire" British VHS
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| Written by | Marty Isenberg Robert Skir |
| Directed by | Dorie Rich Susan Blu (voice director) |
| Starring | Don Brown Jim Byrnes |
| Composer(s) | Steve Zuckerman |
| Country of origin | United States United Kingdom France |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Stephanie Graziano |
| Producer(s) | Michael Hack |
| Running time | 30 Minutes |
| Production company(s) | Graz Entertainment Sachs TV Entertainment Hanho Studios |
| Distributor | Sachs TV Entertainment |
| Release | |
| Original network | Syndication |
| Original release | 1993 |
Stone Protectors was a fun series from 1993. It started as a line of action figures and also became a cartoon show. There was even a video game for the Super NES and Sega Genesis. It tried to join the popular troll doll craze of the 1990s. While it wasn't as big as some other shows, it was similar to popular ones like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
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Meet the Stone Protectors
The story of the Stone Protectors begins in a crystal kingdom far away. This kingdom was attacked by evil, lizard-like creatures called Saurians. Their leader, Zok, wanted the powerful crystals that the Empress protected. Zok broke into the castle and tried to grab the crystals. But instead, they exploded into many pieces and flew all the way to Earth!
Meanwhile, on Earth, a not-so-good rock band called the Rock Detectors was having a tough time. After being kicked out of a club in New York City, they found five magical stones. When they touched the stones, they changed! They gained troll-like looks and special powers. They also started playing really good music! This made them enemies with Zok and his helper, Zink, who hated music. Together, the band became known as The Protectors.
Here are the members of the Stone Protectors:
- Cornelius: He is the leader of the group. He has the green stone and became a samurai. He uses cool weapons like a katana (a Japanese sword) and nunchaku made from microphones. Cornelius is the band's lead singer and plays the guitar.
- Chester: He holds the red stone. Chester became a super strong wrestler. He plays the bass guitar and saxophone.
- Clifford "Cliff": With the blue stone, Cliff became an amazing rock climber. He is the band's drummer.
- Angus: He has the yellow stone and became a skilled soldier. Angus can turn everyday objects into weapons! He plays the keyboard. Angus also built the Protectors' wild vehicles from things like barbecues and lawnmowers.
- Maxwell: He holds the orange stone. Maxwell became a super-fast "accelerator" who wears in-line skates. He also plays the guitar.
The Animated Series Adventures
A cartoon show about the Stone Protectors started in 1993. In the show, Empress Opal of Mythrandir broke a huge crystal into six pieces. She did this to keep it safe from Zok. Zok got one piece, but the other five pieces bonded with the future Stone Protectors. This sent the band to Mythrandir to help Opal stop Zok. They also used their music to spread peace and freedom.
The cartoon only lasted for one season. Some episodes were released on VHS tapes in 1994. Later, a company called Comix.tv got the rights to Stone Proteators. In 2021, a Kickstarter campaign was launched to release all 13 episodes on DVD. The campaign reached its goal!
It's interesting that the toy ads tried to link the Stone Protectors to the troll doll trend. But the cartoon tried to avoid that comparison. For example, the theme song in the commercials said "trolls on a roll," but the cartoon changed it to "Don't you know?"
The show was also shown in other countries, including England, Brunei, Malaysia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, the United Arab Emirates, and New Zealand.
Episode List
Here are the names of the 13 episodes:
- 1. Forged in Fire
- 2. Stranded in Mythrandir
- 3. Levity
- 4. Return of Blackheart
- 5. Weaponogs
- 6. Fan or Foe
- 7. Island Hopping
- 8. Digging In
- 9. Between Zok and the Deep Blue Sea
- 10. The Test
- 11. The Crystal Vampire (this episode was not shown on TV)
- 12. The Wall of Sound (this episode was not shown on TV)
- 13. Going Home (this episode was not shown on TV)
Action Figures and Toys
The Stone Protectors action figures were made by the Ace Novelty Toy Company. The figures were about 5 inches tall. They had moving parts at their neck, shoulders, and elbows, and ball joints at their hips. Their heads were soft and rubbery, with tall, spiky hair. If you rotated a figure's right arm, a flint inside its chest would spark. This made a quick, bright flash through a clear emblem on its chest.
A second set of sports-themed figures was also released. Princess Opal, a character from the cartoon, was never made into a figure. The same goes for the regular Saurian Guards.
Many people thought the toys and cartoon were not as good as the popular Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toys and cartoon. Because of this, they were often overlooked.
| Series 1 | Series 2: Sports Heroes/Villains | Vehicles |
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| Angus the Soldier | Angus the Prince of Punch | Anti-Aircraft Barbeque |
| Chester the Wrestler | Chester the Gridiron Giant | Hang Glider Bomber |
| Clifford the Rock Climber | Clifford the Jumpin' Jammer | Mortar Launching Golf Cart |
| Cornelius the Samurai | Cornelius the Grandslam Guru | Mow 'N' Surf Attack Scooter |
| Maxwell the Accelerator | Maxwell the Slapshot | |
| Zok the Evil Leader | Suckerpuncher | |
| Zink the Horrible Hatchetman | Tackle Jackal |
The Stone Protectors Video Game
| Stone Protectors | |
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| Developer(s) | Eurocom |
| Publisher(s) | Kemco Piko Interactive |
| Programmer(s) | Ian Denny Tim Rogers Ashley Finley |
| Artist(s) | Mat Sneap Colin Garratt Matt Dixon Nigel Quine-Bentley Andy Bee |
| Composer(s) | Steve Duckworth |
| Platform(s) | Super NES, Sega Genesis |
| Release date(s) | SNES November 1994 Mega Drive/Genesis March 2022 |
| Genre(s) | Side-scrolling beat 'em up |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, two-player Co-op |
A video game based on the Stone Protectors was released for the Super NES in November 1994. It was made by Kemco. A version for the Sega Genesis was also made, but it wasn't released at the time. This Genesis version was finally found by the public in 2010. It then got an official release in March 2022 by Piko Interactive, along with a re-release of the SNES game.
The Stone Protectors game has 10 levels. In the game, the heroes – Clifford, Cornelius, Chester, Maxwell, and Angus – fight Zok's bad guys. Their mission is to get Zok's crystal and bring all the crystals back to the kingdom. Players can also find weapons, but only certain characters can use them. The game's ending music changes depending on how hard you set the game. In the ending, the Stone Protectors are seen playing as a band.
Some video game reviewers didn't like the game much. GamePro magazine said the graphics were good, but the way characters moved was not. They also said the controls made it hard to do special moves. They thought the game was "frustrating."
Other Cool Stuff
Besides the toys and video game, there was other Stone Protectors merchandise.
- Pressman Toy Corp. released a Stone Protectors board game.
- In late 1993, Harvey Comics released a Stone Protectors comic book. It started with a "Premiere Issue" (like issue #0), and then had issues #1, #2, and #3.
