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Spellbinder: Land of the Dragon Lord

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Spellbinder: Land of the Dragon Lord
GenreTeen drama / sci-fi
Created byMark Shirrefs
& John Thomson
Directed byNoel Price
StarringLauren Hewett
Anthony Wong
Ryan Kwanten
Leonard Fung
Heather Mitchell
Music byIan Davidson
Country of originAustralia / Poland / China
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes26
Production
CinematographyDanny Batteham
Running time24 minutes
Original release
NetworkNine Network
Release1 September 1997 –

24 October 1997

Spellbinder: Land of the Dragon Lord (1997) is a teen, preteen and children's television series, and a sequel to Spellbinder. Both series deal with children travelling between parallel universes, although the only common characters between the two series are Ashka (Heather Mitchell), and her sidekick Gryvon (Rafał Zwierz). It was also novelized by the creators, Mark Shirrefs and John Thomson.

The series was filmed on location in Australia ("Kathy's world" and one other parallel worlds similar to hers), China ("Sun's world") and Poland ("Ashka's world", as well as two other parallel universes). The show was a joint production between studios in the three countries, although the script and concept came from Australia, and the spoken language is English.

The series is fast-paced and there are usually new challenges for the characters in each episode, which are solved through cleverness and wits. As with most children's shows, most of the adventure is had by children (Kathy is in her middle-teens), although Ashka, Kathy's parents, and the scientist Mek are adults.

Plot

When Kathy decides to explore an unusual boat that she discovers next to a lake, she is accidentally pulled from her home in Australia into a parallel universe. The new world she finds herself in is populated by ethnic Chinese, who possess advanced technology, including a talking computer called the "Oracle" that runs the empire.

Kathy spends most of her time trying to evade dangerous people, return to her own world, and reunite with her family. She is further antagonized by Ashka, a cunning and manipulative woman who has escaped from prison in her own world (for her crimes in the first series) and who seeks to gain advantage for herself.

The series also depicts a journey Sun takes to Kathy's world, where he is no longer protected by his empire, and people do not respect his authority.

Filming locations

Land of the Immortals

Filmed in Poland, most of it in Nieborów, with the Arkadia palace serving as Lem's and Guin's residence, and the Temple of Diana in the palace's park as the Doctor Elvo's home. The scenes in which Kathy is being taken to school were filmed in the Old Town of Warsaw and Łazienki Park.

Land of the Moloch

Parts of the series were shot on location in Poland, with the Wieliczka Salt Mine used for underground locations, while the village and the scrap yard were filmed near Kraków.

Characters

Kathy Morgan

Fifteen years old, Kathy is slightly spoilt and vain and is reluctant to go camping. Swooning over Tony Lazzi, their neighbour and star on a soap, Kathy accidentally ends up in the Land of the Dragon Lord after playing around with Mek's boat. Upset at first, Kathy soon adjusts to her new life, but begins to resent Sun after he tells her to stay forever. She helps Ashka escape from the Spellbinder world, but after that will swing loyalty with her, sometimes helping her, sometimes not helping her. Beyond that, Kathy is almost like a female version of Paul from the first series, but she does not have the scientific knowledge or military skills that Paul does. Most of her planning is often co-worked with her family or with Mek. She is the only person to see six worlds, including her own: Australia, Australia 2 (Kathy-2), Land of the Dragon Lord, the Immortal World, the Spellbinder World and the Land of the Moloch. She is portrayed by Lauren Hewett.

Josh Morgan

Sixteen years old, he is Kathy's jock brother. While he and Kathy treat each other like brothers and sisters normally do, he cares very much for his sister and is the only person to actually see Kathy disappear. When he and his family end up in the Land of the Dragon Lord, Josh gets separated from them early and befriends Jasmine, an entertainer. He falls for her and the two share a brief kiss in the series. Beyond that, Josh is more like Paul in that he plays a sport and has some military skills. He can also create a good lie on the spot. He is portrayed by Ryan Kwanten.

Carl Morgan

The Kathy and Josh's father, Carl is an ex-pro footballer who injured his knee and now owns a shop called "Crazy Carl's Sporting and Army Surplus Store". He does not believe Josh at first and when he drives into the Land of the Dragon Lord, tries to get help from Sharak, without realising his true intent. He is eventually reunited with his children and wife and becomes like a surrogate father to Sun, Aya and Jasmine. Mostly driving, he teaches Sharak how to drive, drives the "monster" (when they are trying to bluff their way out of a situation with Sharak) and handles the driving in and out of the Dragon Lord world. He cares very much for his wife and children and has some basic military skills, like tactics and being able to use a convincing disguise. He is portrayed by Peter O'Brien.

Vicky Morgan

The mother of Kathy and Josh, Vicky is arachnophobic and is a computer consultant. She appears a little more frail compared to Carl, who can survive without food or water a little bit longer. In the Land of the Dragon Lord, her role is mostly that of supplies and providing diversions for Sun and Aya, but beyond that her role is somewhat minor. She is portrayed by Leonore Smith.

Sun, The Dragon Lord

A spoilt brat at first, Sun is the first Dragon Lord. He is easily bored and relies heavily on the "Oracle" and his guards to take care of matters. When Ashka meets him, Sun takes an instant dislike to her, while befriending Kathy, until he makes her his eternal companion. When he is marooned in Kathy's world however, he is lost and confused, not knowing what to do. He soon adjusts, helping Kathy recover the boat and get back, but everyone believes he is dead. This is played throughout the first half of the series and works to Sun's advantage, as he is able to move around successfully without being captured. He is portrayed by Leonard Fung.

Princess Aya

Sun's older sister, Aya was meant to be the Dragon Lord, but she was injured in an accident which killed their parents. Sun was made the Dragon Lord while she recovered. She is very gentle and kind to others, regardless of their status and usually manages to keep Sun under control. She takes a great liking to Kathy when she arrives, then the Morgan family. When Jasmine was made a hide-tanner, Aya was the one who made Jasmine's dream come true. She becomes the Dragon Lord after she believes that Sun is dead. She remains the Dragon Lord from this point onwards. She is portrayed by Hu Xin.

Scholar Mek

The first person from the Land of the Dragon Lord who Kathy meets. He is the inventor of the trans-dimensional bamboo boat, which is how Kathy and her family end up in the parallel world. His original invention was meant to be musical jewels, but they failed. Working at the scholastery, Mek is a bit like a father figure in a way towards Kathy, helping her adjust to life in the Land of the Dragon Lord. It is also implied that he has a crush on Aya. He is portrayed by Anthony Wong.

Jasmine

A 15-year-old girl from the village of Fin, Jasmine is somewhat superstitious, believing in water spirits and such, even mistaking Josh for one when she first sees him. Her goal in life is to be an entertainer and she uses one of the water spirit's three wishes to try to achieve this goal. When the wish fails at first, Jasmine is angry at Josh, but is soon rescued by his family and eventually the wish does manifest, but not in the way that Jasmine or Josh imagined. She has a romantic interest in Josh and kisses him towards the middle of the series. She plays the flute and can sing and dance, this often makes a good distraction. She is portrayed by Gui Jeilan.

Sharak

The leader of a group of barbarians, Sharak's people are hungry and want food. Sun refuses and sends out his warrior to defeat them. It works well, but Sharak does not give up, recruiting Ashka and at one point, Josh, Sharak's army manage to invade the Land of the Dragon Lord and dismantle the "Oracle". Being very superstitious, Sharak enlists in the help of a diviner to make sure that everything is all right according to the stars and to banish ghosts and cleanse items. Sharak makes himself self-appointed Lord and forces Aya to marry him. At the last minute, however, Ashka takes Aya's place and becomes Sharak's bride. Eventually, the barbarians end up in the Land of the Moloch, where they are needed the most, while Sharak and his commanders are exiled and Ashka is marooned in another world. He is portrayed by Ye Mang.

Ashka

Ashka is a Spellbinder and villainess. When Kathy and Mek arrive in the Spellbinder world, she tricks them into helping her escape a labour camp and travels with them to the Land of the Dragon Lord. She is portrayed by Heather Mitchell.

Cast

Kathy, Mek and Ashka
in "Sun's World"
(book cover)
Kathy and Automatons
in another parallel world
(book cover)

Main cast

Secondary cast

USA Showings

Spellbinder was first shown in the USA in 1996 on the Disney Channel, along with another Australian science fiction series called "Ocean Girl". However, after 1997 the Disney Channel decided not to get the 2nd season, as well as renewing "Ocean Girl" (which Disney helped finance OG seasons 2 and 3). However, "Spellbinder 2: Land Of The Dragon Lord" was picked up by the FOX Family Channel and the series started airing on August 15, 1998 with the channel's launched. Unfortunately, FOX Family Channel canceled the show shortly afterward. Although FOX Family Channel had said that they would show all the episodes later on, they never did. A few years later the FOX Family Channel ownership was bought by ABC Capital TV Network, which is owned by Disney Corporation, and is now called ABC Family Channel, and it seems unlikely that USA viewers will ever see the entire "Spellbinder 2".

DVD release

The DVD set was made available on Friday May 4, 2007, and contains the entire series over 4 discs.

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