Post by Kieran on Sept 30, 2014 23:09:51 GMT 2
// EDIT in 2017: There are some misinformation in the following post from 2014, because the show was in production then and the announcement article I'd read wasn't very clear on things. It turned out Kion is Disney's creation every bit as much as Kiara and Fluffy are. But it also turned out that Kion's "movie" is nothing more than a pilot episode for the TV show. (Back in 2014 I thought it would be an actual feature-lenght new film in addition to the TV show.) So, I don't consider Kion a movie universe character anymore. //
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I'm sure most fans know by now, that Disney's about to release some new Lion King stuff.
A TV series called "The Lion Guard" in 2015 and a movie by the same name (I think), in 2016 - or was it the other way around... That'll feature Kion, Simba and Nala's second-born child who is supposed to be tied into the second movie and become Kiara's little brother.
BUT NOTE: According to my research, even though Kion will actually exist in the movie universe and even tie into Kiara's movie...Kion is not developed by Disney's people and therefor will not be a canon character. Only Fluffy and Kiara have been created by Disney's own people and therefor the cub at the end of the first film will remain genderless Fluffy when only the first film is looked at, and will remain the daughter Kiara in the most official storyline that is "The Lion King" + "The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride".
Just that "The Lion Guard" and Kion will offer an alternative storyline for the movie universe, and as a movie character and a literal tie-in to Kiara, Kion will be that much more official than Kopa ever could hope to be. As Kopa never was in the movie universe in any shape or form or even mentioned alongside Kiara in any official source.
So, "The Lion Guard" is about Simba and Nala's second-born, son Kion who has been named as the head of guards in Pridelands while his big sister Kiara is the first in line for the throne. Or something like that. I haven't looked into it too deeply. Even though that setting sounds interesting enough.
But they say it will be targetted at kids aged 2-7! What the ****, Disney?? Why would you do that?
The legendary original movie was obviously made into a family film, very dark and deep and totally awesome and epic in every way - anyone could enjoy it, even the kids aged 2-7. So why downgrade its spin-off stuff into a show/movie that probably only toddlers can enjoy? I can't imagine such execution keeping up the Lion King feel and atmosphere that we know and love.
I'm sorry, but I can't help but be disappointed already. I mean, I will give that show and movie a chance, just to check them out, but...They really should've respected the original movie and fanbase more than to suddenly create a baby-level show out of it as if the original couldn't be enjoyed by the whole family as it is.
Or maybe I'm just biased and too hardcore of a fan, making it hard for me to accept anything less than the first and second movie. Because I was there. A little boy when The Lion King was released in 1994 and I fell in love with it, was part of the explosive super mega hype surrounding the movie. Grew up loving it with all my heart. And I was old enough back then to appreciate the darker aspects of the story as well. And I'm still a devoted, passionate fan after 20 years. But I'm of course not the only one like this.
So...We'll see how "The Lion Guard" will be received. Hopedully it will be enjoyed by many, and hopefully even those of us who feel like The Lion King would've deserved more than what they seem to be producing - especially for it's 20th anniversary mark - could find it in our hearts to appreciate it for what it is.
And frankly, who knows what it will be in the end? It's still in production!
* * * *
I'm sure most fans know by now, that Disney's about to release some new Lion King stuff.
A TV series called "The Lion Guard" in 2015 and a movie by the same name (I think), in 2016 - or was it the other way around... That'll feature Kion, Simba and Nala's second-born child who is supposed to be tied into the second movie and become Kiara's little brother.
BUT NOTE: According to my research, even though Kion will actually exist in the movie universe and even tie into Kiara's movie...Kion is not developed by Disney's people and therefor will not be a canon character. Only Fluffy and Kiara have been created by Disney's own people and therefor the cub at the end of the first film will remain genderless Fluffy when only the first film is looked at, and will remain the daughter Kiara in the most official storyline that is "The Lion King" + "The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride".
Just that "The Lion Guard" and Kion will offer an alternative storyline for the movie universe, and as a movie character and a literal tie-in to Kiara, Kion will be that much more official than Kopa ever could hope to be. As Kopa never was in the movie universe in any shape or form or even mentioned alongside Kiara in any official source.
So, "The Lion Guard" is about Simba and Nala's second-born, son Kion who has been named as the head of guards in Pridelands while his big sister Kiara is the first in line for the throne. Or something like that. I haven't looked into it too deeply. Even though that setting sounds interesting enough.
But they say it will be targetted at kids aged 2-7! What the ****, Disney?? Why would you do that?
The legendary original movie was obviously made into a family film, very dark and deep and totally awesome and epic in every way - anyone could enjoy it, even the kids aged 2-7. So why downgrade its spin-off stuff into a show/movie that probably only toddlers can enjoy? I can't imagine such execution keeping up the Lion King feel and atmosphere that we know and love.
I'm sorry, but I can't help but be disappointed already. I mean, I will give that show and movie a chance, just to check them out, but...They really should've respected the original movie and fanbase more than to suddenly create a baby-level show out of it as if the original couldn't be enjoyed by the whole family as it is.
Or maybe I'm just biased and too hardcore of a fan, making it hard for me to accept anything less than the first and second movie. Because I was there. A little boy when The Lion King was released in 1994 and I fell in love with it, was part of the explosive super mega hype surrounding the movie. Grew up loving it with all my heart. And I was old enough back then to appreciate the darker aspects of the story as well. And I'm still a devoted, passionate fan after 20 years. But I'm of course not the only one like this.
So...We'll see how "The Lion Guard" will be received. Hopedully it will be enjoyed by many, and hopefully even those of us who feel like The Lion King would've deserved more than what they seem to be producing - especially for it's 20th anniversary mark - could find it in our hearts to appreciate it for what it is.
And frankly, who knows what it will be in the end? It's still in production!
