Down by the River (TV series)

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Television series
German title Down by the river - Watership Down
Original title Watership Down
Country of production United Kingdom ,
Canada
original language English
Year (s) 1999-2000
length 20 minutes
Episodes 39 in 3 seasons
genre Animation
youth series
idea David Finley
music Andrew Lloyd Webber
First broadcast Sep 28, 1999 on CITV, YTV
German-language
first broadcast		 September 8, 2000 on Super RTL
occupation
Speaker (original)
German voice actors

Down by the river - Watership Down is a British - Canadian animated series based on the novel by Richard Adams . It was produced from 1999 to 2000 in three seasons with 13 episodes each and also uses a number of motifs from the highly acclaimed cartoon theatrical version from 1978.

action

Season 1: episodes 1 to 13

Unlike the film Watership Down , the series does not begin until after the battering Hazel and his entourage have moved out of Sandlefort Warren, their home building. Hazel's brother Fiver, who is regularly met by visions, had prophesied the demise of the enclosure. He sees high hills on which they will find a new home. In addition to Hazel and Fiver, the group includes:

  • Bigwig, an Owsla captain from Sandlefort Warren
  • Hawkbit, a notorious pessimist
  • Dandelion, the storyteller
  • Pipkin, the baby of the group
  • Blackberry, who, unlike in the novel and the film, is a female in the series

On their trip they meet the seagull Kehaar and the mouse Hannah. The two join the group, which the stubborn Bigwig doesn't like at all. Finally the rabbits reach the high hills.

On one of the hills, by a lonely beech tree, they find an abandoned rabbit hole. The rabbits might be happy now, but there are a lot of problems: the burrow is too small and the rammers too proud to dig, a weasel threatens the small group and Hazel and Bigwig disagree on which of them is to lead the burrow should be.

One night, Holly, another Sandlefort Warren rabbit, shows up. He tells of the terrible destruction of the building and that only he and his comrade Pimpernell were able to escape death.

Holly goes with Hazel, Bigwig and Fiver to the burrow in which he left the tired Pimpernel. The leader of this enclosure is called Cowslip and its residents poetry, dance and eat all day long without fear of enemies and famine. Bigwig is thrilled and wants to join Cowslip when he gets caught in a wire loop. At the last second, Hazel and Fiver can save their friend. Together with Strawberry, a rabbit from Cowslip's suite, they leave the "building of the shimmering wires". Strawberry is enjoying his new freedom to the fullest and doesn’t think about lifting a finger. But when it looks like his comrades are about to throw him out of the enclosure, he comes to his senses.

Through Strawberry, the Watership Down rabbits learn of a nearby burrow called Efrafa, whose violent leader General Woundwort does not tolerate strangers in his vicinity. The rabbits live there as if in captivity, constantly guarded by the Owsla, who are subordinate to the captains Campion and Vervain.

Kehaar observes the desperate escape of the Efrafa rabbit Blackavar during his exploratory flights and cannot prevent Campion and Vervain from catching him and bringing him back roughly. Woundwort sentences him to death. With the help of Campion, his friend Primrose can barely change the general's mind.

When Kehaar reports about it at home, Hazel decides to go to Efrafa with Fiver and Bigwig to negotiate with Woundwort. When Hazel sees Primrose, he falls in love with her and promises to free her. He meets General Woundwort with Fiver and asks what he would prefer: war or peace, life or death. Woundwort replies that he prefers war and death and orders the officers to kill the two. Then Fiver is struck by a vision and he tells of Woundwort's past: The young Woundwort fled with his mother Laurel from the building that the people had destroyed. Laurel was killed by a weasel. Irritated, the general calls back the officers and Hazel and Fiver escape.

In order to get other thoughts, the hopelessly in love Hazel wants to free the rabbits that live in cages on the nearby Nuthanger farm. Together with Fiver and Pipkin, he manages to break into the stable and open the cage. But only a rabbit, Clover, has the guts to go. Suddenly the farm cat Tabatha appears and the rabbits have to flee. Hazel is shot by the farmer. Fiver finds him through his supernatural abilities.

After this action, the Watership Down Rabbits set out to keep Hazel's promise. You survive the hunt with a fox and end up under the bridge over the river, on which the first Efrafa guards stand. A boat located there is supposed to help the rabbits to escape later. With a trick Bigwig infiltrates the Owsla of Efrafa and defends himself against the scheming, jealous Vervain.

Bigwig, Blackavar, and Primrose attempt to escape through the tunnel that Primrose dug. But at the same moment Vervain falls into the tunnel and thwarted the action. The three rabbits fight their way through the Owsla troops and meet Hazel, who leads them to the bridge. Blackberry is already waiting in the boat and nibbling the rope. Woundwort tries to stop the troops and jumps on the boat, but Bigwig pushes him unmoved into the water and the rabbits sail away in peace.

Finally in freedom, Primrose can only think of her Redstone home. Hazel then promises to go to her den. After some hardship on the journey, and a confession of love from Hazel, they arrive there too, but they find something completely different from what Primrose had expected. The building is completely abandoned. Only the old Captain Broom is still there, who, however, has imaginations from the other old members due to the long time he was alone. Hazel and Primrose return with Captain Broom and Hazel cheerfully announces that he will soon be a father.

A few days later, Hazel, Bigwig, Fiver and Hawkbit decide to go to some nearby cabbage fields to pick up some cabbage and beets. However, this ends in a catastrophe when Fiver runs away from the cat under a wheelbarrow and it falls over him. Although he is now safe from the cat, he cannot free himself alone. But then Hannah the mouse has an idea.

It's no less peaceful at home in Watership Down. Hazel's young romp around the back of the den when Pipkin sounds the alarm in front of a hawk approaching. The falcon spots the little rabbits and goes for them. After a wild chase, the little ones make it to the burrow in time, where their mother Primrose first gives them a proper lecture. The group around Hazel comes back towards evening, Fiver is also there, and they excitedly tell what they have experienced today.

Soon after, digging is back in fashion and Hawkbit is so mad that he has to dig that he digs so wildly that he, Fiver, and Hazel fall down into a large hole. Blackberry, which heard noises, comes up quickly and sees the disaster. While she fetches the others, Hazel, Fiver and the frightened Hawkbit set out to find another way out. The further they go, the more excited Hawkbit gets and there is a small argument and Fiver saves Hawkbit, through his visions, from falling into a deep hole. In the end they find an exit through a river and Hawkbit agrees to swim out to see where they are going. Outside, he notices Bigwig, who is being followed by the Efrafas, believing that the three missing rabbits might be with the Efrafas. Hawkbit can save Bigwig and everyone returns to the burrow tired but dirty but healthy and happy.

background

The three seasons of Watership Down were shot back to back, but only fully broadcast in Canada; in Great Britain only the first two seasons ran, with the episodes of the second season also shown in the wrong order.

The series tells the story less darkly than the book and film and allows itself a number of freedoms in the integration of new storylines and characters. Martin Rosen , director of the feature film, worked as a producer on the series. The ending has been completely changed, so it mainly takes place in the Darkhaven enclosure, General Woundwort's home.

speaker

Soundtrack

Mike Batt's soundtrack corresponds to that of most of the animated series for children with not particularly demanding pieces that emphasize the mood of the scene in question. The title track was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber , and Batt also worked the title track of the 1978 original film, Bright Eyes , which became a world hit in the version by Art Garfunkel ; This is sung by ex Boyzone singer Stephen Gately .

Further processing

In March 2001 the computer game Down at the River: In Search of the Watership Down for PC was released. The adventure is aimed at children between the ages of seven and twelve and uses the animation templates from the series. Two more PC games followed, but due to the lack of success, further production was discontinued. In addition, a number of radio plays were produced, but only included the first season and were never continued.

Awards

In 2003 there was a nomination at the Gemini Awards for the best original music in a dramatic series.

Web links