Jungle Cubs - Premise

Premise

The animal stars of Disney's 1967 animated film The Jungle Book were regressed to cubs for this syndicated animated series. Jungle Cubs suggested that when they were younger, both the good and evil animals lived together in relative peace.

Each of the characters were given distinct characteristics which reflected their future personalities as seen in The Jungle Book; this creative idea further tied the show in with its film predecessor. Uptight Bagheera, free-spirited Baloo, headstrong Shere Khan, wild Prince Louie, neurotic Hathi, and hypnotic Kaa all returned from the film, putting aside their differences to live and learn together. The show gave a female elephant named Winifred a prominent role; she was (Colonel) Hathi's wife in The Jungle Book.

The cubs brave a variety of jungle dangers, often matching wits with sneaky vultures Cecil and Arthur. Living up to new federal regulations for educational television, Jungle Cubs offer lessons on friendship, self-respect, and other healthy traits, crafted for an audience of young children.

In the second season of the show, many of the cubs become slightly older and more distanced from one another. (Many are also given different voice actors.) And, although they still remain good friends, they are getting more and more busy with their own lives and spending less time at their fort, the Cub House (Louie's future palace). Louie becomes so wrapped up in being King of the Jungle and is no longer so close to Baloo, Bagheera becomes more serious and uptight than before, and Hathi begins spending more time with Winifred than with the other Cubs. The biggest change, however, is Shere Khan: he spends a lot of time hunting, as Bagheera and Kaa do, and as the series progresses, begins to become more annoyed with the other cubs than before. He even attempts to overthrow Louie at one point, using Kaa (who did not really get a choice in the matter) as a henchman. Kaa, as well as Baloo (with the exception of his friendship with Louie), does not really change much. He still remains sneaky and uses his hypnotism power.