Knowledge FAQ

Is Venger DM's son? According to Mark Evanier and Kathy Selbert, who wrote for the show, it was never specifically written in the series "bible" that he was. According to Gary Gygax, who helped create the concept, yes. According to Michael Reaves, who wrote "Dragon's Graveyard" in which DM calls V his "son," and whose unproduced final script confirms it, yes. So I think we have our answer... Is Venger human? We're not sure....his sister Karena looks human, but then, Venger gets blown up/disintegrated/melted several times in the series, has working batwings, and has lived for a thousand years... Of course, if he's DM's son...is DM human? Where was the amusement park? This was the topic of a mailing list discussion, but nobody settled on a place. The park was not named in the series. Is D&D Satanic? I saw a "666" on the spaceship in the "Lost Children" episode! Whether or not the show is Satanic is fairly obvious to ME (of COURSE it isn't, duuu-uuuh!). The show had dragons and demons and magic, but it also taught values of self-sacrifice, forgiveness, and morality that hardly seem evil in nature. It's your call. I've heard from at many devout fans who also play the game regularly, and even they feel this view is bunk. (In fact, they're rather annoyed at Pat Pulling and her accusations for turning the D&D community against religion- MOST Christans don't feel that way at all!) Interesting tidbit: Katie Leigh (Sheila) is a devout Christian who did a lot of questioning of her role on D&D at the time, but eventually decided that the show, as well as Fantasy as a genre, isn't necessarily un-Christian. We're still waiting to hear how Willie Aames (Hank, now 'Bibleman') feels about it... And the "666" designs on the space ship appear purely decorative in nature, as the same markings appear in reverse on the left side of the ship. Was D&D cancelled due to parents/religious folks/Pat Robertson complaining the show was Satanic? According to Mark Evanier, developer of the series at CBS when it was first aired and cancelled, the show was canned due to slipping ratings, and a feeling that the third season wasn't as good as the previous seasons (which most fans tend to agree with). It was NOT, he emphasized, due to pressure from religious groups or parental complaints- in fact, the majority of the complaints about the show centered around the commercial aspect of it. After all, TSR was promoting their action figure line at the time- and several TSR action figure characters (Warduke, Kelek, & Strongheart) made guest appearances in the show. And other parents were concerned about the violence, though by today's standards this seems a fairly ludicrous concern to me...the series emphasized nonviolent conflict resolution and creative problem solving, and the kids never used their weapons to actually hurt anyone, even their enemies. You'll still hear from other sites that it was cancelled due to religious controversy. I was only 12 at the time, so I don't remember. :) But even if that's the case, it wasn't the only reason. Is D&D currently playing anywhere in the world? Oh, yes....everywhere but here in the US, it seems. England, Brazil, Portugal, and a buncha other places. Sorry, I don't have any details about channels and times. And I have a request: PLEASE send Zak copies of D&D episodes dubbed into other languages!!! :) Are the episodes available on commercial tapes? Only one was sold widely in the US: "In Search of the Dungeonmaster." That tape is frequently spotted for sale on eBay. Otherwise it is out of print and hard to find. According to TSR's website, ALL the episodes were released on tape, but I find that difficult to believe- they would have shown up on ebay by now. There are other tapes that have shown up on ebay, usually tapes with 3 episodes. Most of them are in the European PAL format. Most of the merchandise I've found comes from TSR UK, actually. UPDATE: D&D will be released on DVD soon (2004). It will be available for UK customers (Zone 2, I think), but other those in othe