Amazing Animals

Amazing Animals (sometimes marketed as Henry's Amazing Animals for home video) is an American/British educational children's animated TV show series nature program produced by Dorling Kindersley Vision and Partridge Films in association with The Disney Channel. It was originally broadcast on the service in 1996. It also aired on Family Channel in Canada. It is also available on VHS.

Henry's Amazing Animals
StarringEric Meyers, Tom Clarke-Hill
Country of originUnited Kingdom
United States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes52
Production
Running time30 minutes
Production companiesDorling Kindersley Vision
Partridge Films
Release
Original networkDisney Channel
Disney Channel UK
Original releaseApril 16, 1996 (1996-04-16) –
July 6, 1999 (1999-07-06)

The show centers on the interactions of Henry the Lizard, a green CGI anthropomorphic lizard with purple spots, and an unseen narrator. Each episode centers on a theme relating to the episode's subject matter, such as Henry traveling through prehistory in a time machine in an episode about prehistoric animals. Henry is usually faced with some kind of predicament or work, always relating to the episode's theme, which he resolves by the end of the episode, often learning a lesson of some sort in the process.

Plot

Each episode is made up of sections in which Henry is featured, video sequences of animals narrated by the off-screen narrator with replies by Henry, and cartoons featuring recurring unnamed cartoon animals. There are also two recurring segments: "Henry's Report" and "The Golden Gecko Awards". Early episodes depicted Henry's Report as a school report, though later episodes changed it to a news report. In either case, the report is comical and almost always wildly inaccurate. The correct information is given by The Narrator after the report.

In Henry's Amazing Golden Gecko Awards, Henry picks three animals relating to the subject of the episode and presents them with awards. Unlike the report, the Golden Gecko Awards are typically more genuine. Henry does most of the narration and often gets annoyed at the Narrator for interrupting him. Henry's Report occurred in every episode; the only episode that did not have the Golden Gecko Awards was "Underground Animals", probably because of timing issues.

Cast and major characters
  • Henry the Lizard: The show's main protagonist. He is a small green lizard with purple spots and yellow eyes. Henry is portrayed as being enthusiastic, albeit foolish and immature. He is generally depicted as ignorant of the episode's subject matter and typically fails in the endeavors he attempts to undertake. Sometimes, he can prove himself to be quite smart, he is also an inventor. He often identifies lizards seen in the video sequences as his cousins. His favorite food is pizza. Henry the Lizard is voiced by Eric Meyers.
  • The Narrator: The Narrator is Henry's co-star, but he is never seen and almost never named. He is depicted as being wise and knowledgeable. In addition to teaching Henry about animals and correcting his special reports, the Narrator acts as a comedic foil to Henry: the show's "straight man", who cuts Henry down for his immaturity and lack of knowledge with some combination of a mature seriousness and a dry sarcasm. The Narrator is voiced by Tom Clarke-Hill (and Nigel Greaves in the UK version).
  • Crab Tuesday: Henry met Crab Tuesday during a visit to the seashore, and the crab has been Henry's best friend and assistant ever since. Henry names him Tuesday after Robinson Crusoe's "man Friday". Henry can often tell what Tuesday is saying, although he has no voice at all and communicates by snapping his claws. However, in Amazing Animal Hunters, he is heard mumbling "I don't know" to Henry.

Episodes

Season 1 (1996)
Episode Number Title Title Card Animal Date first aired Plotline
1 Tropical Birds (Scarlet Macaw) April 16, 1996 Henry lands in a tropical rainforest and learns about tropical birds – including, but not limited to, parrots.
2 Animal Disguises Chameleon April 23, 1996 Henry learns about camouflaged animals after looking for his own disguise.
3 Nighttime Animals Springhare April 30, 1996 After a long day with cousin Rex, Henry can’t get to sleep, and learns about animals which stay up during the night.
4 Animal Appetites King Penguin May 7, 1996 Henry opens a café for animals, but learns that different animals eat different things.
5 Animal Survivors Wolf May 14, 1996 After avoiding the dangerous animals on the desert island he is on, Henry learns about strategies that help animals to survive.
6 Animal Senses Siamese Cat May 21, 1996 After knocking over some sense blocks, Henry learns about how animals explore the world around them using their senses.
7 Animal Weapons Goat May 28, 1996 Guarding his toy castle from an attack, Henry learns about animals that can fight other animals using body weapons.
8 Animal Builders Beaver June 4, 1996 Henry is building a house, to learn that he is not the only animal that builds a home.
9 Armored Animals Tortoise June 11, 1996 Henry learns that there are different animals with protective armor.
10 Mini Beasts Tarantula June 18, 1996 Henry learns that there are many very small animals that inhabit the wild.
11 Animal Babies Kitten, Puppy, Duckling June 25, 1996 An egg belonging to Henry’s cousin hatches in its pram, and Henry has to babysit it. He gets advice from how animals babysit their young.
12 Poisonous Animals Gila Monster July 2, 1996 Thinking of eating the contents of a nearby cauldron, the narrator warns Henry that the contents may be poisonous, and he shouldn’t eat them. He also learns about animals which can be poisonous to protect themselves.
13 Animal Journeys Camel July 9, 1996 Globetrotting (literally walking across the surface of a globe), Henry learns that animals also move long distances too.

Season 2 (1997)

14. Birds of Prey (vulture) – April 15, 1997 (1997-04-15)
15. Desert Animals (dromedary camel) – April 22, 1997 (1997-04-22)
16. Scary Animals (tarantula) – April 29, 1997 (1997-04-29)
17. Animal Records (tortoise, rabbit) – May 6, 1997 (1997-05-06)
18. Animal Colors (golden pheasant) – May 13, 1997 (1997-05-13)
19. Animal Mothers (lioness) – May 20, 1997 (1997-05-20)
20. Animal Pets (Puli) – May 27, 1997 (1997-05-27)
21. Seashore Animals (pelican) – June 3, 1997 (1997-06-03)
22. Animal Families (ducks) – June 10, 1997 (1997-06-10)
23. Endangered Animals (Bengal tiger) – June 17, 1997 (1997-06-17)
24. An Animal Year (red squirrel) – June 24, 1997 (1997-06-24)
25. Prehistoric Animals (crocodile) – July 1, 1997 (1997-07-01)
26. Monkeys and Apes (mandrill) – July 8, 1997 (1997-07-08)

Season 3 (1998)

27. Animal Hunters (golden eagle) – April 14, 1998 (1998-04-14)
28. Animal Talk (dog) – April 21, 1998 (1998-04-21)
29. Slimy Animals (apple snail) – April 28, 1998 (1998-04-28)
30. Rainforest Animals (scarlet macaw) – May 5, 1998 (1998-05-05)
31. Animal Acrobats (chimpanzee, sea lion, wallaby) – May 12, 1998 (1998-05-12)
32. Underwater Animals (fish) – May 19, 1998 (1998-05-19)
33. Animal Neighbors (rabbit) – May 26, 1998 (1998-05-26)
34. Giant Animals (Great Dane) – June 2, 1998 (1998-06-02)
35. Creepy Crawly Animals (grasshopper) – June 9, 1998 (1998-06-09)
36. Farm Animals (cow, sheep) – June 16, 1998 (1998-06-16)
37. Animal Changes (lion cub, lioness) – June 23, 1998 (1998-06-23)
38. Extinct Animals (footprints) – June 30, 1998 (1998-06-30)
39. Animal Eggs (egg) – July 7, 1998 (1998-07-07)

Season 4 (1999)

40. Around the World Animals (red kangaroo, monarch butterfly, chimpanzee, fish) – April 13, 1999 (1999-04-13)
41. Polar Animals (Arctic hare) – April 20, 1999 (1999-04-20)
42. Clever Animals (dolphin) – April 27, 1999 (1999-04-27)
43. Underground Animals (rabbit) – May 4, 1999 (1999-05-04)
44. Animal Helpers (collie) – May 11, 1999 (1999-05-11)
45. Woodland Animals (giant panda) – May 18, 1999 (1999-05-18)
46. Mountain Animals (St. Bernard (dog)) – May 25, 1999 (1999-05-25)
47. Backyard Animals (mockingbird) – June 1, 1999 (1999-06-01)
48. Tiny Animals (mice) – June 8, 1999 (1999-06-08)
49. Animal Partners (mule) – June 15, 1999 (1999-06-15)
50. Scaly Animals (crocodile) – June 22, 1999 (1999-06-22)
51. River Animals (beaver, neon tetra) – June 29, 1999 (1999-06-29)
52. Animal Flight (ladybug) – July 6, 1999 (1999-07-06)

Merchandise

Some merchandise was also released during the activity of the series. An educational computer game was also released with the television show. A board game known as The Really Amazing Animal Game was also sold but was shortly discontinued.

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