This was the feature version of the Flash Gordon animated series, from Filmation and NBC.
It had actually been in production before the series version. NBC was so impressed with
the footage that they commissioned the series, using footage from the feature for stock
scenes.
The feature was in production at the same time as the Dino de Laurentiis version. In fact,
according to Animation by Filmation, (by Michael Swanigan and Darrell McNeil, Blackbear
Press, 1993), de Laurentiis was also impressed by the footage, and invested money in it
when the studio ran into budget problems.
The film begins in Warsaw, Poland, in 1939, as the Nazis are bombing it. Flash is working
for the state department and comes across the name, Mongo. He escapes Poland and flies back
to the US on a plane, which is also carrying Dale Arden, reporter. The plane is hit by a
meteor and Flash and Dale bail out, when they are rescued by Dr. Hans Zarkov. Zarkov informs
them that the meteor shower is a deliberate attack by Mongo, which they must stop. The trio
rockets off into space, on their journey to Mongo.
On Mongo, the group meets up with Emperor Ming the Merciless and his daughter Aura. They
befriend Prince Thun, of the Lion Men, and make their escape. They form alliances with
Prince Barin of Arboria and Vultan, King of the Hawkmen. Together, they launch an assault
on Ming's palace and rescue Dale and Zarkov, as well as push Mongo away from Earth.
Over the course of the movie, it is revealed that Ming is the source of the Nazi's greatest
weapons, such as the V-2 rocket. This adds a whole new wrinkle to Ming's villainy and makes
Mongo an even greater threat to the Earth. Flash is given a government connection and a
background in the 1936 Olympics. This is a much better background than an NFL quarterback,
as in the other movie.
There are different voices in the film, with a few exceptions. Robert Ridgely is still
Flash, Diane Pershing is Dale and Melendy Britt is Aura. Thun is played by Ted Cassidy
(Lurch of the Addams Family) and Barin, Ming, and Zarkov have different voice actors.
The performances are quite good, something Filmation was not noted for.
This film has all of the key episodes and finally provides the beginning of the story,
which is missing from the series. Unlike the de Laurentiis film, it kept a serious tone
and was faithful to Alex Raymond's wonderful strip.
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Voice Cast:
Flash Gordon...................... Robert Ridgely
Dale.............................. Diane Pershing
Dr. Zarkov........................ David Opatoshu
Aura.............................. Melendy Britt
Ming The Merciless................ Bob Holt
Thun.............................. Ted Cassidy
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