Jungle Cubs


Jungle Cubs is an American animated series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation for ABC in 1996, serving as the prequel to the 1967 film The Jungle Book as it's set in the youth of the animal characters years before the events of the film. A critical success, the show ran for two seasons on ABC from 1996 to 1998 before its syndication in re-runs on the Disney Channel. The show was broadcast on Toon Disney, but was taken off the schedule in 2001. Re-runs aired on Disney Jr. in the US from 2012 to 2013. The show also aired in the United Kingdom on Disney Cinemagic and in Latin America.
The show's theme song is a hip hop version of the song, "The Bare Necessities" performed by Lou Rawls. Jungle Cubs was animated by Walt Disney Television Animation Pty. Ltd., Wang Film Productions Co., Ltd., Thai Wang Film Productions Co., Ltd., Toon City Animation, Inc., and Sunmin Image Pictures Co., Ltd., with Studio B Productions, as the animation pre-production studio of the series.

Characters

  • Baloo is a fun-loving sloth bear. He likes to play with his friends and sometimes pulls pranks on Bagheera in order to snap the latter out of his uptight attitude.
  • Bagheera is a sensible and level-headed panther who stays out of trouble. He has an obsession with maintaining good personal hygiene. Bagheera is affectionately known as "Baggy" or "Bags" and is the youngest of the group. Despite having a Home Counties English accent in the original film, Bagheera speaks with an American accent in the series.
  • Louie is an orangutan. He is very physically active, spending a great deal of his time in the trees and eating bananas, and wants to become king of the jungle one day, and when any man made objects turn up he immediately shows great interest.
  • Shere Khan is an arrogant and hot-tempered Bengal tiger. He often tries to intimidate the other animals, but his confidence suffers when faced with actual problems. He is often called "Khannie" by Baloo and Louie. Despite having a well-spoken English accent in the original film, Shere Khan speaks with an American accent in the series.
  • Kaa is a young Indian python who wants to hypnotize other animals, but his skills at hypnosis are unpredictable.
  • Hathi is an elephant who attempts to keep the group in order but is known to stammer when stressed. He has a huge crush on Winifred, who is his wife in The Jungle Book. He is often called "Little Peanut" by Baloo. Despite having a strong southern English accent in the original film, Hathi speaks with an American accent in the series.
  • Cecil and Arthur are two vultures who are constantly hoping for one of the cubs to die so that they can eat them, but they are never seen as a threat.
  • Mahra is a ruthless baboon that lives in Pinnacle Rock within the wasteland. She and her three incompetent sons have often antagonized the Jungle Cubs when they enter the wasteland. One particular instance is when she and her sons return from a long journey and she wants a new animal skin blanket after her old one is destroyed.
  • * Ned is one of Mahra's sons.
  • * Jed is the leader of Mahra's sons.
  • * Fred is the largest and most dull-witted of Mahra's sons.

    Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (1996)

Season 2 (1997–98)

Voice cast

VHS releases

US releases

Two VHS releases containing 6 episodes of the series were released in the United States.
VHS nameEpisode titlesRelease date
Cub House Fun"Hathi Meets His Match"
"A Night in the Wasteland"
"Mondo Mungo"
Crazy Congo Capers"The Great Kaadini"
"How the Panther Lost His Roar"
"Who Wants to be a Baboon?"

UK, Australia and New Zealand releases

Three VHS releases containing 11 episodes of the series were released in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. These international releases included newly-animated wraparounds set at unspecified points during the original film with Mowgli interacting with the characters as adults, as they recall events from their childhood through the series' episodes. In these segments, Baloo is voiced by Ed Gilbert, Bagheera, Hathi, Kaa and Louie are voiced by Jim Cummings and Shere Khan is voiced by Tony Jay. Gilbert, Cummings and Jay reprised their roles from TaleSpin.
VHS nameEpisode titlesRelease date
Jungle Cubs : Born to be Wild"A Night in the Wasteland"
"How the Panther Lost His Roar"
"Red Dogs"
Jungle Cubs : Once Upon a Vine"Who Wants to be a Baboon?"
"Hathi Meets His Match"
"The Treasure of the Middle Jungle"
Jungle Cubs : Monkey Business"The Great Kaadini"
"Benny & Clyde"
"The Coming of the Wolves"

DVD releases

On September 8, 2003, one DVD containing three episodes of the series was released in the United Kingdom.
DVD nameEpisode titlesRelease date
Born to Be Wild"A Night in the Wasteland"
"How the Panther Lost His Roar"
"Red Dogs"

Australian and New Zealand releases

On September 12, 2003, three DVDs containing eleven episodes of the series was released in Australia and New Zealand.
DVD nameEpisode titlesRelease date
Born to be Wild"A Night in the Wasteland"
"How the Panther Lost His Roar"
"Red Dogs"
Once Upon a Vine"Who Wants to be a Baboon?"
"The Humans Must Be Crazy"
"Hathi Meets His Match"
"Mondo Mungo"
"The Treasure of the Middle Jungle"
Monkey Business"The Great Kaadini"
"Benny & Clyde"
"The Coming of the Wolves"

Digital releases

In 2016, the entire series was made available for purchase on digital in the United States through Amazon Instant Video, ITunes, and Google Play.