Dark Sentinel
| The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest | |
| "Dark Sentinel" | |
| |
| Episode no. | H00616-94029 |
|---|---|
| Airdate | February 10, 1997 |
| Chief locations | Cameroon, Africa E15.31, S6.12 (6,181 miles) |
| Writer(s) | Michael Ryan Melody Fox |
| Guest roles | Rob Paulsen (Higgins) Dorian Harewood (Tigari / Guard) Kevin Richardson (Segala / Monster) Don Reed (Ngama) Brock Peters (The Shaman) |
| Episode sequence | Village of the Doomed <--> Other Space |
| Other episodes | |
In Cameroon, Dr. Quest hopes to learn more about a restorative tree sap threatened by loggers. All parties are put in danger when a researcher's son goes unconscious and an ancient tribe's guardian appears.
Contents
Plot Summary
The Quest team travel without Jessie over six thousand miles by Chinook helicopter, where a huge logging operation is in process. Hadji Singh, Jonny Quest, and a boy named Ngama sneak around the loggers to collect saps from the huge trees. Meanwhile, at a research station within a humble looking cabin, Dr. Quest confers with Tigari, who has identified the tree sap as having amazing curative powers. Tiragi's tribe has used the sap for ages to live long despite a grueling environment. A ban on logging is due to come in; Jonny and Hadji are merely insurance to collect more sap in case it is late. Race's fears for their safety are heightened when Tigari hears war drums from the local tribe's village. A shaman cries out above a huge fire, causing Ngama to faint in front of Jonny and the electrical logging equipment to short out. All parties in the vicinity soon hear giant footsteps as footprints appear in the ground with no apparent maker. As the invisible monster nears the logging camp, he briefly appears and flashes green.
Act One
A man from the logging group opens fire, and the footsteps briefly stop. Race and Dr. Quest hear the shots and take off for the forest. Suddenly, the monster materializes; it is a huge beast with horns and claws, and begins tearing up the camp. The loggers flee as their equipment is totally destroyed; one bulldozer is pushed towards a cliff. Jonny and Hadji pick up Ngama and make a run for it, but are nearly crushed by the bulldozer as it falls from the site—only to be saved by Race, who pushes them out of the way. Dr. Quest, Tigari, Race, and the boys are then brought to Mr. Segala, leader of the operation, at gunpoint by one of his guards. Segala blames the incident on Tigari and promises to level the jungle before the ban reaches the local constabulary. Despite protests that Ngama is ill, Segala refuses to let them leave his trailer and orders his company to fill at least seven flatbeds before the day is over. A native watches them depart, and informs the village shaman, who once again undertakes the flame ritual and calls forth the monster.
Ngama goes into shock; Dr. Quest asks for adrenaline, but two thugs prevent Jonny from opening the first aid cabinet. Race quickly trashes them as outside, the monster utterly ravages the logging equipment. Jonny breaks the medicine cabinet glass, but before Benton administers the adrenaline, Ngama recovers and the monster disappears. Race suggests taking a jeep outside to the chopper and leaving. There, they are confronted by members of the tribe, who note that Ngama has been chosen. The Quests board the helicopter regardless, and the shaman does his war dance, bringing the monster to life next to the helicopter.
Act Two
The Chinook's front blades are smashed on the monster's teeth, and the helicopter makes a rough landing. Race deploys the cargo bay doors and orders everyone out; shortly after, the monster obliterates the Quest helicopter. Ngama reawakens with the monster's evanescence, and the team find themselves surrounded by tribesmen. Imprisoned at their camp, they can find nothing physically wrong with Ngama. Jonny suggests hooking him and the boy into Questworld to explore his mind, where Jonny finds a huge door with a monster behind it. Hadji cannot identify the monster, as it is beyond Questworld's scanner's reach. A tentacle lashes out beneath the door and drags Jonny in before Hadji pulls them both out of cyberspace. Tigari explains that the guardian of the tribe lives within Ngama, and that nothing can be done despite Dr. Quest's objection that the entity is draining Ngama's life. Tigari goes on to say that the guardian has protected the tribe throughout several hardships in its history, and that the one who houses the beast dies from the physical and spiritual strain. Hadji proposes that he has the mental skill to challenge the monster, and that he can try to channel it through himself in virtual reality.
The following morning, the shaman summons the monster; Hadji manages to transfer it to his consciousness. Jonny straps Hadji and himself into Questworld and tries to prevent the door from opening. He is thrown away when the monster assists the chain mechanism, but the monster walks past him. Jonny tries to equip a chain laser gun, but Questworld weapons aren't working; Hadji explains that they are now in his mind. The behemoth marches to the logger camp, where thugs with flamethrowers set a moat of gasoline on fire around it. The monster is not fazed, and proceeds to destroy much of the settlement. Hadji notices that a beam of light emitting from the chamber behind the door is the monster's power source; Jonny tries to make it descend, but the monster splits in two and sends a darker version to deal with him. Jonny dodges his attacks and tricks the monster into throwing a chunk of the ceiling at the chain controlling the door, breaking it and causing the door to crash down and obscure the light power. The monsters disappear; perhaps a day after, the ban on logging reaches the village, but Segala and his men have already fled out of fear. Jonny jokingly wonders how the guardian will find a new line of work.
Notes
Quotes
- Segala - "And I'll have most of this jungle mowed down by then."
- Race - "What kind of jerk are you?"
~
- The Shaman - "So, it begins."
~
- Hadji - "A life is never owed when saved out of friendship."
Goofs
- Not necessarily a goof for thematic reasons, but would an African guardian existing since ancient times be chained behind a medieval-style portcullis?
Trivia
- In a rare move, the show's theme is used as a musical cue when Hadji and Jonny prepare to defeat the monster.
- Cameroon, Africa was the winning location for the Quest World Adventure.
- This episode does not feature a Quest Byte.
Media
Cel
A cel from this episode appeared on auction on Ebay:
Renders
Casey Dame, an animator for Blur Studios, released these on her website:
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
Dark Sentinel
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
.jpg.html)
From: Episodes
- This page was last modified on 21 November 2021, at 17:37.
- Privacy policy
- About QuestFan
- Disclaimers