Customer Reviews

Jonny Quest - Dr. Zin: Master of Evil [VHS]

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This video was really great. There are two episodes. One is called "The Robot Spy", about a robot that Dr Zin designed with one red eye, four legs, and two paralyzing antennae and two data-collecting antennae. (They're the same things.) In "Riddle of the Gold", Dr Zin and one of his assistants, Kassim, design a gold stealing plot based in a mine in India. They start by making a man-made bar of gold from Xanium. Dr. Benton Quest finds out that it's fake gold, and decides to go on a tiger hunt in India to hunt tigers (and to film the mine). To find out more, go get it. :)

The Adventures of Jonny Quest (the original "Classic" version) only ran for 1 season, beginning in the fall of 1964. But this short-lived, 26-episode series is still remembered very fondly by many, many fans (including me)! The stories were always interesting, and the animation was quite good. "JQ-'64" has always been one of my favorite animated TV shows! This volume rates an A+, with two episodes featuring Dr. Quest's ace nemesis, Dr. Zin! The Robot Spy is the standout program here.

This one features the Quest teams arch enemy Dr.Zin. Definetly a classic and worth all the money in the world to classic JQ fans.

ROBOT SPY is featured here which happens to be one of the most popular episodes ever, featuring that spider like robot made by Zin himself! RIDDLE OF THE GOLD is also a classic with Zin about a gold smuggling operation in India. Plus a bonus world premier tune and a classic Space Ghost episode featuring Zorak! Memorable huh?

Overall this is the most memorable of the 4 tapes but it may not be the best. Still it is a classic and is worth it! Highly recommended!

This is a must see from Hanna Barbara. If you're like me you couldn't wait to get home from school and turn on Jonny Quest. This film teleports you back to your childhood heros: Race Bannon, Dr. Benton Quest, Hadji, Bandit, and of course Jonny Quest. Dr. Zin is back with more schemes for the Quest's to thwart. This piece belongs in your collection. The classic adventure writing style that Hanna Barbara did so well cannot be found in cartoons of today. Jonny Quest brings out the adventurer in us all. Introduce your children to Jonny Quest-Dr. Zin: Master of Evil and witness the excitement in their eyes that you had as a child imagining if you had all those cool gadgets.

I do not usually review VHS releases that are over a decade old, but this really was a nice set. There were only four tapes in the set but they really captured the best of the series. In fact, if you can't afford the full 26 episode DVD release (and you still have a VHS player) these tapes are still an excellent review or introduction to the classic 1964 series. They were digitally remastered so they are bright and sharp to watch with clear, full sound. It's funny, but in some ways they seem more modern, and optimistic, than anything being produced these days. They really predicted an incredible amount of present day technology.

1) Race Bannon in An Army of One includes: Mystery of the Lizard Men, and Double Danger, plus a Space Ghost cartoon (Heat Thing.)

2) Dr. Zin in Master of Evil includes: Riddle of the Gold, and The Robot Spy, plus a Space Ghost cartoon (Creature King.)

3) Hadji in Mysteries of the East includes: Calcutta Adventure, and Pirates from Below, plus a Space Ghost Cartoon (Revenge of the Spider Woman.)

4) Bandit in Adventures Best Friend includes Attack of the Tree People, and Terror Island, plus a Space Ghost Cartoon (Zorak.)

As many commentators have stated, when you have a story involving a powerful hero, the opposition or villain must also be strong. That also applies to the stories involving Dr. Benton Quest and his band of adventurers. Dr. Quest is a brilliant scientist/inventor, so it is logical that his greatest foe would also be a scientist/inventor. That opponent is the evil and ruthless Asian Dr. Zin, which also allows the story lines to include aspects of the Cold War between the Western and Communist blocks.
"Robot Spy" is one of the best of all the Quest adventures, for it is based on the brilliance of Dr. Zin. He has created a robot spy in the shape of a giant spider and the spy is able to gain access to the Quest lab via the Trojan Horse gambit. Dr. Zin flies the robot to a location just outside the lab and relies on the natural curiosity of Dr. Quest. The robot is picked up and transported to the lab where it comes alive and probes Dr. Quest's latest invention, a device that sucks power from machines.
When the spy is discovered Dr. Zin taunts the Quest group, laughing at them, telling them that there is no way to stop the robot. Dr. Quest orders the soldiers at the compound to destroy the robot, but the tank, flamethrowers and bullets only slow it down. Finally, Dr. Quest uses his invention to down the robot as it is flying away.
"Riddle of the Gold" is another story involving Dr. Zin; it is weaker than "Robot Spy" because in this case the invention is one that Dr. Zin has stolen. It is based in India where a gold mine that was supposedly tapped out has suddenly started to produce again. Dr. Quest learns that it is a metal similar to gold and one of his colleagues that supposedly died recently was the only person that knew the process whereby the metal was made. This puts the Quest team on a plane to Hadji's native India where they face many dangers and discover Dr. Quest's colleague being held prisoner.
There are several good points to the story as Bandit emerges as a hero twice. In keeping with the general rule of saving the villain for later, while Dr. Zin's evil henchman is killed, Dr. Zin survives.
To keep the viewer's interest the power of the villain must match that of the hero, in other words the hero must credibly be in danger. Therefore, the best stories involving Dr. Zin feature his equally brilliant inventions, which is why "Robot Spy" is so good and "Riddle of the Gold" a bit weaker.