Wizards (Netflix Series)

Wizards is an American adult animated post-apocalyptic science fantasy television series created by Ralph Bakshi and co-produced along with George Lucas. The series is a retelling of Bakshi's 1977 animated film Wizards, the series was filmed using motion capture.

The series features the battle between two powerful wizards. Avatar, the kind and good wizard who represents the powers of magic and his twin brother Blackwolf, the evil mutant wizard who represents the powers of technology. The series was released on Netflix on February 9, 2017 coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the original films release date.

Premise
Earth has being ravaged by a nuclear war instigated by five terrorists. 1 million years later Earth has regenerated, with only a handful of humans having survived the nuclear holocaust. The rest of humanity has either being killed off or hideously mutated by the nuclear fallout, leaving very few unaffected. Eventually creatures of legend, Elves, Dwarves, Faeries, Orcs, Goblins, Trolls, Dragons and Unicorns resurface and live alongside the unaffected humans in the idyllic land of Montagar. Eventually the queen of the Faeries, Delia gives birth to a pair of twin wizards. They are Avatar, the kind and good wizard and Blackwolf, the cruel and evil wizard. Years following Delia's death, Blackwolf tries to usurp Montagar, however he is fought by and banished by Avatar for his evil actions.

Years later Blackwolf, having equipped his armies with guns and ancient military technology sends his robot assassin Necron 99 to hunt down and kill the practitioners of magic, before sending his vast armies on a campaign to conquer the world. In Montagar Avatar learns of his brothers evil plans and sets out to stop them. He also assembles a fellowship, consisting of himself, his human apprentice and adoptive son James, Elf princess and James' love interest Freya, her brother and James' best friend Prince Freyr, Dwarf brothers Durin and Dain, Fairy princess Elinore, Elf Warrior Weehawk and Necron 99, now renamed Peace stop Blackwolf's evil plans to restore peace to the world.

Opening Narration
''My name is Freya, Princess of the Kingdom Of Montagar and I want to tell you a story. A story of peace and hope, of love and war. Of myself, my beloved James. My brother Freyr, our companions Weehawk, Durin and Dain and Peace. But mostly of the great wizards Avatar and Blackwolf themselves, and the everlasting struggle of world supremacy fought between the powers of technology and magic. But first we need to go back, way back, back to the time when humans were still the undisputed masters of the Earth. In those far off days, humans lived in their cities of glass, steel and chrome, they plundered the Earth for its beauty and for her gifts. But mostly they relied on science and technology for their lives, but what they didn't know was that it would all soon end forever. It was on New Years Eve of the year 1999 A.D. when it happened, the first bomb was launched by 5 terrorists. The world then blew up in the fires of the Great Atomic War, the Earth was then consumed by fire, radiation, darkness and death. It took 1 million years for the Earth to regenerate from its wounds, but by then, only a handful of humans had survived. The rest of humanity had either being wiped out or had evolved into a race of hideous mutants. These mutant species floundered in the wastes of the old world, the radiation that still lingered never allowed them to return to the form of their ancestors and with each new generation bringing only new horrors, further separating them form the race their ancestors had once been apart of. The mutants became cruel and hateful to all things beautiful. The humans who were able to avoid the radiation by hiding in lands to the South, but life was hard. Food was scarce, many suffered a life of starvation and hardship, some were even forced to eat their own kind. The humans were facing a very grim future, which they believed would be filled with despair and death. But not all hope was lost, in the preserved forests and secret groves of the good lands we came back. Arising from our long sleep, Elves, Dwarves, Faeries, Orcs, Goblins, Trolls, Dragons and Unicorns, creatures of myth and legend, the true ancestors of man, had returned to the world. Seeing the humans in such a despairing state, the Elves, Dwarves and Faeries took pity on them. We offered them aid, friendship and for our people to live together. The Orcs, Goblins and Trolls, bitter and unforgiving of the humans treatment of them in the past, left refusing to live alongside humans. The Elves, Dwarves and Faeries however invited them to live with them in the beautiful lands of Montagar. It was a very big day when it happened, Delia the Queen who ruled before my father was presiding over the Feast of Plenty, which celebrated 100'000 years of peace between us and our human friends. During the celebration, an ominous storm began to form on the horizon. Delia fell into a trance, she then left the party and headed for her home on a high hill overlooking the village. At first the Faeries and humans were puzzled by this, but soon they felt a strange force that drew them to Delia's home. As they gathered around Delia's home, the storm continue to grew until it was a raging cyclone, hoovering over the dwelling. Then as soon as the storm had begun, it was over. One of the older humans ventured inside to see if Delia was fine, he found her on her bed, holding a pair of twins in her arms. When the rest of the humans and Faeries entered, they realized that these were not ordinary twins, but magical wizards of great power. The two baby wizards were polarized like magnets, one pulling with a strong magnetic draw, the other repelling and impossible to get near. Avatar, the kind and good wizard spent much of his boyhood entertaining his mother with beautiful visions. Blackwolf, the mutant wizard shunned his mother and spent his boyhood torturing small animals and learn the black arts, much to Avatar and Delia's concern. When Avatar and Blackwolf both grew to manhood, a terrible tragedy befall Montagar. Delia caught a fatal illness, to which even magic itself could not cure. Eventually Delia's soul left her body for the heavenly plains, Avatar held her in his arms trying desperately to use his magic to restore her, but in vain, all he could do was cradle her in his arms and wept. When Blackwolf learned of his mothers death, he was excited. He then gathered a band of followers and marched on Montagar with the intent of taking Delia's throne, when Avatar learned of his brothers plans, he was enraged. When he confronted Blackwolf and his followers, the two brothers began a furious battle, with each using his magic. They fought and fought until they had nearly destroyed each other, but in the end it was Avatar's magic that was stronger, for he had the emotional loss of his mother which drove him on. Blackwolf and his followers were defeated and were banished from Montagar, but before he left he utter a dire warning. "The day will come my brother, when I will return and make this a planet were mutants are the master race". Blackwolf and his followers then headed off into the distance, leaving Avatar very disturbed at his declaration, he then pondered whether Blackwolf would indeed return and carry out his threat.''

Avatar's Fellowship

 * Ewan McGregor as Avatar - The main protagonist, he is a wise and powerful wizard who is the protector of Montagar and the wizard representing magic. He was born to the Fairy queen Delia along with Blackwolf during the Feast of Plenty celebrating 100'000 years of peace between Faeries and humans, years later following Delia's death he fought and banished Blackwolf after he had attempted to take her throne by force. 1'000 years later he found a young orphaned human named James whose family had been killed by Blackwolf's Orcs, he adopted James and took him in as his apprentice.
 * Austin Butler as James - A human who is Avatar's apprentice and adoptive son whom he has raised ever since he was 5 years old. He was orphaned after his family were killed and his village destroyed by Blackwolf's Orcs, he was found by Avatar who took him in and trained him as his apprentice.
 * Ivana Baquero as Princess Freya - A beautiful Elf with flaming red hair who is the princess of Montagar and the beloved of James. She and James first met when they were both 5 years old, shortly after James was taken in by Avatar following the destruction of his village and death of his family by Blackwolf's Orcs.
 * Troy Baker as Prince Freyr - The Elf warrior prince of Montagar who is Freya's brother and James' best friend. He is at first portrayed as a party loving individual who behaves irresponsibly, however when he learns of Blackwolf's evil intentions
 * Bailey Noble as Elinore - A Fairy who is the daughter of President Solomon and a student of Avatar. She is later revealed to be an agent of Blackwolf and the lover of his Goblin, Ratso.
 * Gianpaolo Venuta as Weehawk - An Elf berserker member of the Elf royal guard.
 * Robert Craighead & Adam John Harrington as Durin & Dain - Two Dwarf brothers and warriors from the Dwarf Kingdom of Asgard. Durin is more foul mouthed, sports a mohawk and wields a large battle-axe
 * Anthony Daniels as Necron 99/Peace - A robot who was built by Blackwolf to assassin the practitioners of magic and leaders of the Free States. After he assassinated President Solomon, he was incapacitated by Avatar and kept in his house where he was transformed into an avenging instrument of justice and was renamed Peace. He then became the Fellowship's guide towards Scortch.
 * Bill Murray as Himself - The ghost of a famous actor from before the Great Atomic War. He was celebrating New Years Eve with his Ghostbuster co-stars Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis when New York City was hit by the bomb which started the Great Atomic War, after dying he decided to wander the Earth as a ghost until such time. He was later accidently summoned by James when he was 8 years old and ever since then was James' familiar.

Blackwolf's Fourth Reich

 * Mark Hamill as Blackwolf - Avatar's evil twin brother who is the main antagonist and the wizard representing warfare and technology. When he was a child he would never visit his ailing mother Delia, instead he would spend his time torturing small animals and learning black magic. Years following the death of his mother and banishment by Avatar for attempting to take over Montagar, Blackwolf went to live in the dark radiated lands of Scortch where he gathered a vast army of Orcs, Goblins, Trolls and Mutants and began salvaging and restoring ancient technology like guns, tanks, armored vehicles and planes. His
 * Andy Serkis as General Grimskull & Larry Lizard - Two of Blackwolf's minions.
 * General Grimskull - An Orc who is Blackwolf's most favorite general and his right hand man. Years ago he was sent by Blackwolf to destroy a village of humans after learning that one of their children possessed powerful magic.
 * Larry Lizard - A cowardly lizard mutant and Blackwolf's obedient servant.
 * David Tennant as General Trogler - A ruthless Troll who is one of Blackwolf's generals. He wears a black SS officers uniform
 * TBA as Ratso, Skullface & Robin - A trio of Goblin triplets who serve Blackwolf as his assassin's.
 * Ratso - The oldest brother who is the leader of the triplets and the most intelligent.
 * Skullface - The middle triplet and the most sadistic of the three. He wears a vintage Wehrmacht helmt
 * Robin - The youngest triplet who is the least violent and wicked as his siblings. He is mostly a nice and friendly Goblin who listens to music on a vintage Walkman.
 * Christopher Knights as Lorgrin - A large and powerful Troll who is Blackwolf's bodyguard and is always seen by his side. He is shown to be capable of tearing an Elf prisoners skull apart, he rarely shown speaking and mostly communicates in grunts.
 * TBA as Admiral Scurvy - A Goblin who is an admiral in Blackwolf's navy. He was given command of a Type 1936A Destroyer that Blackwolf salvaged and restored as his flagship in the Scortch Navy, he would then procced to attack and sink the ships of the Free States.
 * TBA as Lilith - A Dark Elf and Blackwolf's wife.

Montagar

 * Carrie Fisher as The Great Dragon - A very powerful, ancient and wise Dragon who was born during the Age of Legend, a time eons ago when when Earth was filled with magic and humans coexisted with mythical beings. When the Age of Legend ended and humans became the dominant lifeforms on Earth, she went into an enchanted sleep and slept for eons. When she awoke the world had regenerated from the Great Atomic War
 * Diedrich Bader & TBA as King Oberon & Queen Titania - The parents of Freya and Freyr and the High King and Queen of Monatagar.
 * TBA as President Solomon - Elinore's father and the President of Montagar.
 * TBA as Delia - The former queen of the Faeries and the mother of Avatar and Blackwolf. 2'000 years before the events of the series, she was presiding the Feast of Plenty, which celebrated 100'000 years of peace with the surviving humans. During the celebration a mysterious brewed which caused Delia to go into a trance and head for her home, when one of the Elves went inside to check on her and discovered that she had given birth to Avatar and Blackwolf. Years later, she fell ill and died.
 * Golden Mane - A Unicorn stallion who is Freya's beloved steed.

The Free States

 * Kevin Michael Richardson as Abdul - A Desert Elf chieftain and an old friend to Avatar.
 * TBA as The Mountain Fairy King - The monarch of the Mountain Faeries.



Magical Races and Creatures

 * Humans - The former dominant race on planet Earth. 1 million years before the events of the series in the year 1999 a brutal nuclear war known as the Great Atomic War broke out, which completely destroyed human civilization. For the next 1 million years, the surviving un-mutated humans faced a very bleak and uncertain future. However just when they were about to give up, the magical beings returned and offered them some much needed aid and friendship. James, Avatar's apprentice and adoptive son is the only major human in the series.
 * Elves - A race of magical humanoids who resemble humans except with pointed ears, pale skin, perpetual youth and are long lived. Elves are capable of marrying humans and producing Half-Elves, whom have the physical traits of both their parents. Princess Freya, Prince Freyr, King Oberon, Queen Titania and Weehawk are all major Elves who appear in the series.
 * Dwarves - A race of short and stocky magical humanoids who are famed for their skills in metallurgy. They are the most industrious of all the magical races, they are known to forge swords and axes which never lose their sharpness. They also craft beautiful jewels from gold, diamond, emerald, ruby and sapphire. Two Dwarf warriors, brothers Durin and Dain are members of Avatar's Fellowship.
 * Faeries - Magical humanoids with wings who range in several sizes, from small to human sized and have the ability to fly. Two such Faeries include the Elinore and Sean.
 * Orcs - Brutish humanoids with pointed ears, sharp teeth and greenish-gray molted skin. They are a warlike race who have long been known to serve evil kings and sorcerers as their loyal foot soldiers, this has lead them to have a bad reputation with the other magical races. Despite their bad reputation Orcs have a strong sense of honor and care very deeply for their fellow Orcs and will retaliate if they are hurt or killed in anyway. An Orc named Balor serves Blackwolf as his top general and loyal right hand man.
 * Goblins - Lanky humanoids with pointed ears, noses, either green or red skin and sharp teeth who are known for being skilled assassin's and thieves. Due to their sly nature, Goblins can slip in and out of places before anyone notices they are there. Goblins mostly serve Blackwolf as his assassins, three of whom include Ratso, Skullface and Robin.
 * Trolls - A race of large, hulking and very strong humanoids who come in two variants, Cave Trolls and Forest Trolls. Cave Trolls are hulking creatures who have either green or tan skin with two toes on each foot and six spikes, two on the side of their heads, one on their heads and three running down their backs. Forest Trolls have two large tusks on the side of their faces and more human like feet. A Cave Troll named Lorgin serves Blackwolf as his bodyguard, whilst a Forest Troll named Trogler serves as one of his generals.
 * Dragons - Giant scaly reptilian beasts with wings, horns and the ability to breath fire who are the most powerful of all magical creatures. Some Dragons are good and wise creatures, whilst some Dragons are evil and are known to horde treasure from the people whom they destroy. The Great Dragon is the oldest and wisest dragon on Earth, having being born during the Age of Legend.
 * Unicorns - Magical white horses with a golden horn in the center of their heads and with a goat like beard on the stallions. Unicorns have long been regarded as scared beasts to both the magical beings and certain ancient human cultures, they are shown to make better steeds then horses due to Unicorns being much faster and stronger. A Unicorn Stallion named Golden Mane is the beloved steed of the Elf Princess Freya.
 * Mutants - The descendants of humans and animals who were left hideously mutated and maimed from the fallout of the Great Atomic War.
 * Mutant Humans - The descendants of humans who were mutated by the fallout from the Great Atomic War and the most common race of mutants.
 * Mutant Octopus -

Locations

 * Montagar - A idyllic land located in what was once Germany. It is the home of Avatar, James, Princess Freya, Prince Freyr and where humans coexist with magical creatures. It was one of the few places that was left unscathed by the Great Atomic War, it was also where the magical races first returned after returning to the world.
 * Avatar's Home - A large mansion that as its name implies, is the home of Avatar and his apprentice and adoptive son James.
 * The Royal Palace - The home of the Royal Elf Family and the seat of government in Montagar.
 * East Elfland -
 * Dark Forest -
 * Fairy Mountains -
 * Scortch - A vast barren and radiated wasteland located beyond the mountains of Montagar, located in what used to be France. It is inhabited by Orcs, Goblins, Trolls, a variety of mutants and is ruled by Blackwolf.
 * Scortch One - A large foreboding castle located in the heart of Scortch and the home of Blackwolf and his minions.

Differences from the original film
Whilst mostly having the same plot as the original film, the story line has being expanded, the characters changed and having new characters for example:


 * The series features several new characters who did not appear in the original film, these include Avatar's human apprentice and adopted son James, Elf Princess Freya, Elf Prince Freyr, Elf King Oberon and Queen Titania, the Dwarf warrior brothers Durin and Dain, actor Bill Murray, Freya's Unicorn steed Golden Mane, The Great Dragon, Blackwolf's Orc General Grimskull, his Troll General Trogler, his Goblin assassins Ratso, Skullface and Robin, his Goblin Admiral Scurvy and his Troll bodyguard, Lorgrin.
 * Humans are shown living alongside the magical beings. In the original they were all either wiped out or mutated.
 * Elinore is portrayed as being more villainous in series, she is also revealed to be a secret agent of Blackwolf and the lover of his Goblin assassin Ratso. She later betrays the fellowship and kills Avatar before fleeing to Scortch One in one of Blackwolf's tanks, she is later confronted and killed by Freya.
 * Avatar, Blackwolf, Elinore, Weehawk and Peace have being resigned for the series. For example:
 * Avatar is portrayed as being human sized, wears shoes and wears a wizards robe.
 * Blackwolf now has a shorter beard and wears a suit similar to that of Adolf Hitler.
 * Elinore's outfit is less revealing and she is given shoes.
 * Weehawk has much smaller ears and wears a belt.
 * Peace now has a red Stahlhelm helmet, gas mask and wields a sword.
 * In the original film Avatar was portrayed as been cynical and somewhat perverted. He is portrayed in the series as been less cynical, more willing and kind.
 * Blackwolf's army is portrayed as being more organized and competent then they were in the original film.
 * In the original film Peace was killed by Elinore when they, Avatar and Weehawk were attacked by a tank, whilst in the series Peace survives and it is Avatar who is killed by Elinore.
 * Due to Avatar's death, it is James who kills Blackwolf.
 * Blackwolf's wife is named Lilith. In the original film she was unnamed.
 * The series is set 1 million years in the future, rather then 10 million years as in the film.

Trivia

 * The series was released on Netflix on February 9th, 2017, coinciding with the fortieth anniversary of the original films release.
 * This series is the second time that Austin Butler and Ivana Baquero have starred together, the first time was in The Shannara Chronicles by MTV, which aired on MTV the year before.
 * Ewan McGregor, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels and Andy Serkis have all starred together in the Star Wars Saga.
 * Mark Hamill previously voiced the character of Sean in the original film, he is also the only actor to appear in both the original film and the series.
 * This was Carrie Fisher's final acting role before her death.
 * This would be the first time that Robert Craighead and Adam John Harrington would both voice a pair of Dwarf brothers. The second time would be a year later in the 2018 video game God of War where they both voiced Dwarf brothers Brok and Sindri.
 * Montagar is located in Germany, whilst Scortch is located in France.
 * The weapons and vehicles used by Blackwolf's army include Luger P08 pistols, Karabiner 98k rifles, MP 34 and MP 40 submachine guns, MG 08 machine guns, 88 mm Flak 37 Anti-Aircraft Guns, Panzer IV tanks, Sd. Kfz. 251 half-tracks, Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter planes and a Type 1936A Destroyer all of which were used by Nazi Germany during the Second World War.
 * The shows theme song is For a Million by Alphaville.