The History of Defenders of the Earth: A Barely Remembered Superhero Team-Up

Among the deluge of pop culture properties in 1986 was the barely remembered Defenders of the Earth, bringing together Mandrake the Magician, The Phantom and Flash Gordon to battle Ming the Merciless.
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[@BackyardEpicMovies]

I remember it for having one of the best intro songs ever in a cartoon.

[@snukastyle]

Now and then that theme just pops into my head and is an earworm all darned day!

[@elidasilva5558]

And very informative

[@cartmanbraahnd6660]

It is awesome, I love the eulyses Intro

[@AdrianColes]

“Out of the sky, his rockets ignite. Flies into battle flying faster than light! Falsh Gordon!”

[@rafpac6]

Even now it makes my heart race. Defenders of the earth, defenders!

[@Solbrick]

I’m the editor of the Swedish The Phantom comic book and next year we celibate 70 year with the comic book. Over 1600 issues. And I’ve worked with Alex Saviuk on several of our stories. For some reason The Phantom is popular in Sweden and Australia.

[@truefanforum3273]

Solbrick That is so cool! Congratulations!!

[@prime1collector792]

The Phantom is an awesome character! Love the strips!

[@hanleyforhire]

Would that be over at Egmont? My family is a neighbor of Tony DePaul, who currently writes the daily for Kings Features. For a time some of his stories would make it your way.

[@Solbrick]

Ryan Hanley Yeah, Tony started out as writer for the Swedish production, and after Lee Falk passed away he was recommended to KFS by my predecessor editor Ulf Granberg. Cool that they’re neighbors! I’ve never worked with Tony myself, but I’ve published many of his KFS The Phantom comics over the years.

[@hanleyforhire]

Solbrick I managed to find some stories that were translated back into English. The Phantom disguised as a nun needs to be seen to be believed.

[@drumngrewve]

"This show has everything! Space ships, etc, etc, etc, SINGLE PARENTS,......" ha, that particular observation was on point hilarious!

[@daveleebond]

master of magic spells and illusion, enemies crumble in fear and confusion - how could those immortal words be forgotten????

[@brianknapp6215]

*Mandrake*

[@magnuscolable]

I still quote this line when I trick someone after all these years

[@nagmulasalupa]

Mandrake. First cromic protagonist with non realistic abilities (magic), hence, technically the first superhero.

[@ARCWuLF]

@@nagmulasalupa In the original comic strip, isn't he just a gifted hypnotist? I mean, the Shadow predates Mandrake and can appear invisible using hypnotism of a fashion...

[@nagmulasalupa]

@@ARCWuLF he can also levitate and turn invisible. And he fights crime. So, i think, technically that qualifies. Also, the shadow was just a radio show, right? So... first comic book superhero, still mandrake the magician.

[@mathewoakley2588]

What do you mean "barely remembered" I LOVED this cartoon. C'mon Dan there must be tons of 40 year olds with a deep love of this series ! Alright, not many kids, tweens and teens as of 2019...but still....🥺

[@jamesswingland8369]

37 year old here - it was a great cartoon! But then I'm in the UK, it might have taken some years to get to us....

[@postersandstuff]

@@jamesswingland8369 We played with DoE figures all the time , that and MotU

[@MGRTurtle]

38 an got the series on dvd :)

[@osirisruiz492]

I'm 28 and I remember watching re runs of this show when I was 7.

[@wadealleyne1919]

Yep! This holds a special place in my heart

[@larrytm1282]

I've been watching these Toy Galaxy videos and it's amazing to find out the origins of all of the toys and cartoons that I grew up with. To see how the industry was competing and strategically marketing the toys and cartoons at us unsuspecting kids of the time. Thank you for taking the time to research and make these documentaries. Keep up the good work!

[@roylloyd606]

You left out Phantom 2099 cartoon show from the mid 90's.

[@truefanforum3273]

Roy Lloyd Actually, it was Phantom 2040. 2099 was a line of comics released by Marvel. I loved that show, and it introduced me to the Phantom.

[@lipstickzombie4981]

@@truefanforum3273 The illustrator that did Aeon Flux did the art there as well IIRC.

[@truefanforum3273]

Lipstick Zombie Yeah, I heard that somewhere. That's pretty cool. I will admit I wasn't the biggest fan of the art style when I first saw the show, but it really grew on me.

[@pious83]

There was also a Flash Gordon animated series in 1996.

[@CantankerousDave]

It was 2040, and holy crap that show was dark.

[@hasbook7156]

Such an underrated show! I loved it as a kid. Surprised no-one has attempted a movie yet.

[@mcurran6505]

Out of the sky his rockets ignite! Jets into battle, flies faster than light! FLASH GORDON! Lord of the jungle, the hero who stalks! The beasts call him brother, the ghost who walks! PHANTOM! Master of magic, spells and illusion, Enemies crumble in fear and confusion! MANDRAKE! His strength is a legend, his skills conquer all, Armed with his power, we never will fall! LOTHAR! With our new young heroes, proving their worth, Four become eight, defending the Earth! DEFENDERS OF THE EARTH!

[@brucewayne79]

M Curran Easily one of the best cartoon theme songs.

[@mikemahon4594]

Still to this day, I can't believe that Stan Lee wrote those lyrics!

[@CantankerousDave]

Mike Mahon To be fair, those are 100% his style.

[@mattshaw5179]

I found myself singing this at work the other day, the children I work with thought I'd gone mental!

[@knightjedi666]

The Phantom line rocks!

[@Hook2099]

Thank you and thank Mr Sunday for playing the theme song on their podcast

[@garybradley912]

Watching this as a kid, I always thought it was odd that The Phantom had a daughter and not a son, because I'm also a fan of The Phantom comic strip where each Phantom has a son to replace him to make others believe he was immortal. Still, I'm a fan of the show. And Stan Lee wrote the lyrics to the theme song? Wow! Great video!

[@rathraven1313]

Actually in the strip, there was a female Phantom. Julie Walker, the twin sister of 17th Phantom.

[@BigFatCone]

@@rathraven1313 Beat my by six months.

[@benjaminkellog7311]

I'd want Mandrake for my dad! He's the most down to earth, literally, since he lives in a suburban mansion (with a sweet backyard volcano/Defenders HQ). Also, his book collection is simply enormous; as an avid reader, when I saw those storied shelves, I was in heaven!

[@orinanime]

I absolutely remember this show. And I freaking love it. I watched as a kid. I bought the DVD box set as an adult. Flash Gordon in the Phantom teaming up with everyone else to fight Ming the merciless. Hell yeah.

[@SnazzyMerlot]

THANK YOU. I had a Mandrake figure as a kid that I absolutely loved (I still remember that even at the time I noticed that it was a lot better-made than most of my other action figures), but I never had any clue which franchise it was associated with. I’ve literally been wanting find this answer for 30 years.

[@andrewflashchannelgibbs5384]

Barely remembered? I find myself singing the theme tune, for no apparent reason, it certainly stuck in my mind. 😟

[@SecretGalaxyTV]

"Barely remembered by the general public except for some people on KZbin who do remember it and know the theme song" was too long a title.

[@andrewflashchannelgibbs5384]

Toy Galaxy - 😂you should be British - your dry humour always makes me laugh. Thank you for your videos.

[@pferreira1983]

@@SecretGalaxyTV I've always remembered the series and the theme song. It was so memorable.

[@paulpetroleum]

Was a HUGE show in the UK.

[@mistaefromdtn]

@@paulpetroleum huge is an understatement, it brang back the phantom and saved Flash Gordon too

[@andrewquick4176]

I was OBSESSED with this show. I heard WB had brought the individual rights for the characters And have done absolutely nothing with them

[@JTManuel]

I loved this cartoon series. I used to watch this almost religiously when its was on TV.

[@415acjr]

Dude. Its stuff like this that truly displays your magic. I tried watching episodes with my son and he said, "Nah." It's far too informative and professional, and the material is golden oldies. This sparked so many childhood feelings just seeing the images for the 1st time in 30 yrs... God Bless Toy Galaxy ❤🔥🤘🐷🤘🔥❤

[@415acjr]

Damn. I need those action figures now.. gotta scratch that itch. Thanks... 🤦‍♂️

[@Tiresias55]

Loved this show growing up, I had the Defenders of the earth Necklace of Oros on VHS, four fantastic episodes rolled into a feature length movie on tape! "Some powers are too great, for the hands of man."

[@caseyv5233]

Heck yeah! Loved seeing that old Sci-Fi Channel commercial!!

[@philipportelli7700]

They even included a Kings Feature character still running today in the series: PRINCE VALIANT and his son, Val!

[@brianknapp6215]

The Prince Valiant movie from '97 was *so* underrated. I mean, the cast alone was quite impressive: Stephen Moyer, Katherine Heigl, Udo Kier, Zach Galligan, Thomas Kretschmann, Ron Perlman, and Warwick Davis.

[@pious83]

Who also had a pretty underrated cartoon.

[@pferreira1983]

@@pious83 The cartoon series was far better than the 1997 movie.

[@mrspeigel3593]

I'm not gonna say the Prince Valiant movie was good but it sure is a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it Vikings with pet armoured crocodiles anyone?

[@arielfilmsinc1926]

@@mrspeigel3593 Valiant appeared in The Man who Hated Laughter as well

[@scotthallgv]

GALAXY HIGH was so good and nobody ever remembers it! So glad you included it here :)

[@jess_a_yo]

Geek Variety LIVING IN GALAXY HIGH! 🤘🏾...I think that's how the song went.

[@Khilkhameth]

Barely remembered? Maybe in the US, but here in the UK..!

[@plkrtn]

Huge in the UK.

[@andhe]

I thought the title was perhaps tongue in cheek at first, as surely it's up there with Transformers and Thundercats in terms of nostalgia. But maybe not so much in the USA judging by comments.

[@josejuanandrade4439]

In Mexico my generation still talks about it. The song was so good, both in english and the latin american dub.

[@basesketch]

Yep huuge 👏

[@sel3735]

I remember having to choose between watching Defenders on CBBC or The Real Ghostbusters on CITV since they were on at the same time (Monday afternoons). Ghostbusters always won out, but I managed to watch a few Defenders episodes.

[@Avvy89]

How can you forget the Flash Gordon movie from the 80's? It had Queen doing the intro theme.

[@CSLucasEpic]

I remember when I watched this back in the 80s as a kid. The thing that confused me the most was why The Phantom's costume was purple instead of sky blue. Being from Argentina and being familiar with the characters from reading the comics, I was used to seeing him with a sky blue suit, because for some reason The Phantom's suit is of a different color in some countries. In Argentina is sky blue, in Turkey is red...

[@khamankhoma8232]

Oh, I remember this show. I remember it because of one word that's almost whispered in the intro; "Lothaaarrrr."

[@russellharrell2747]

Khama Nkhoma Defenders of ASMR

[@darthpaul99]

I got into this show as a kid because I would read The Phantom in the Sunday newspaper comics, and I had seen the Flash Gordon movie. I had never heard of Mandrake or Lothar before that. I’ve loved this show ever since though.

[@thefearmakerlive]

I loved this show, it's available on Amazon prime video, and I've gone through half the episodes. It's crazy going back to these old shows, lots of adult themes.

[@edwardjacobs4042]

For a barely forgotten teamup, I agree this was the team up before Marvel. I own the entire series on DVD and love the phantom (the ghost who walks). Not to mention the catchy theme song. Sad it didn't have a longer run which makes me upset your video tells it like it is. I enjoy your videos do thank you

[@Rendraco79]

I LOVED THIS CARTOON! STILL LOVE IT. HOW CAN I FORGET THIS AMAZING SHOW! I LIVED A WONDERFUL CHILDHOOD! HELL YEAH!

[@MisterE1976]

I remember this show as a kid, would love to see a live action film of this.

[@ironchefcheezsteak]

Dude I put this theme song on just when I need that marlevous 80s sound!

[@MisterTorgo]

*...Defenders...!*

[@mikelcarrow2787]

I use the He-man theme and Thundercats or Mask themes when I need a flash back fix.

[@gartsur84]

Changing The Phantom's descendent from a son to a daughter is breaking the legend of his immortality.

[@arielfilmsinc1926]

in the 2040 time line one of the Phantom's was female

[@patrikbengtsson3883]

According to the Swedish series, one of the legend's superstitions was about a supposed ability to split into multiple entities.

[@rathraven1313]

Actually in the strip, there was a female Phantom. Julie Walker, the twin sister of 17th Phantom.

[@SuperSongbird21]

@@rathraven1313 I've heard of that story - her costume didn't disguise the fact she was a girl and people STILL thought she was her brother.

[@rathraven1313]

@@SuperSongbird21 Having seen some of her stories, she hid that fact by staying in front of people not letting them get a side view of her chest plus most of her adventures she stayed in the jungle.

[@maxordman4100]

Defenders of the Earth sounds amazing. I may have to look it up later. I love your history recaps and your whacky sense of humor. It would be pretty cool if Phantom was my dad. I love animals and it would be neat to talk to them!

[@plkrtn]

I had the Flash Gordon ship that turned into a sword. Damn I loved DotE as a kid. It was really big here in the UK. I'd love to see a live action DotE, but set in the 30s. Good budget, and pulpy as hell.

[@blindboy118]

A precursor to this show was "Popeye meets the man who hated laughter", a one hour special on ABC in 1972 that had many King Feature Syndicate characters teaming up including Flash Gordon, Phantom, Mandrake and Lothar

[@passenger6x3]

Loved this as a kid. Watched it a couple months ago, that first ep gets strange when the mother ends up as the computer.

[@Arashikage32]

Great job as always Dan.

[@jerryharris6342]

There was also a Phantom 2040 cartoon in the 90's. Another interesting crossover universe was Future Quest. It was a DC comic series with a bunch of the Hanna-Barbera action characters.

[@CoraBuhlert]

I was a huge fan of Defenders of the Earth as a kid and it served as my introduction to many of those classic King's Feature Heroes except for Flash Gordon and Ming whom I'd encountered in the 1930s serial before. Oddly enough, this is also one of the very cartoons from my childhood that my Mom remembers. He-Man and She-Ra ans M.A.S.K. don't ring a bell, but Defenders of the Earth does, probably because she was a big fan of the Phantom comic strip.

[@TheMancalorian]

Man i use to love this as a kid, getting up on a saturday morning watching all my favourite superhero shows from Defenders of the Earth, Thundercats and more and later that day watch me some Streethawk, Knightrider even A-Team. These were the best times for watching great shows both in morning and evening. I still cant get over the fact i sold all my childhood toys from every iconic shows, movies on carboots every weekend until i sold everything, i had thousands. I matured too early as a child, due to family issues and began to lose interest in the things i loved and collected, Stuff you will never see again especially 30cm Rubber Wrestlers.

[@swazehl9827]

Its been 30 years and the iconic intro music is still in my head. Love it!

[@JasonJMcCuiston]

I always wanted to see a team-up of Doc Savage, The Shadow, and The Phantom set in the 30s with a Sky Captain aesthetic.

[@kreenect]

The best intro and best crossover. To this day I still remember them. Good old times...

[@davefrancis4529]

One of my favorite theme songs from my childhood.... loved this show.

[@toytripperv8488]

Watched the series when i was a kid. Good times! That theme song was very catchy and commanding

[@maxarnoldy3955]

I still love this show. Bought the dvd and my son loves it to ;)

[@tyreewilson2140]

I actually have this series on DVD! Found it at Fry's for $7!

[@_Only_Zuul]

when i was a kid this cartoon was running frequently for years, whenever i turned on TV it was playing!

[@caball3ro]

Loved the Phantom version in this run, was always waiting for him to say "By jungle law, the ghost who walks calls upon the strength of 10 tigers!"

[@postersandstuff]

RIP Phantom , Lothar & Ming :(

[@Toggleboy626]

Barely remembered? I loved this show as a kid! I love it and it’s commonly reminisced by my brothers and I

[@isaactorres5908]

I loved this show! Watched it religiously. I thought it lasted more than 1 season..

[@Bonko78]

That Queen theme from the Flash Gordon movie still warms my nostalgic nerve.

[@derbyjames240]

Never forgot it, loved the theme song! Loved the continuing story about Enigma center around Mandrake's adopted son.

[@CEOdawg]

Thanks for keep on digging up these shows, man. Once again, I didn't even know that they had a toy line!!

[@AntoineJenkins80sChild]

I loved the hell out of this cartoon, and even though I loved Filmation's version, this was a nice upgrade... and the intro rocks! As for which I would want as a parent, I gotta go with Phantom. By my jungle birthright I wanna be able to call upon the power of ten tigers.

[@LostChrisB]

You can always find a fan of this show really easily, just sing the first line, ‘Defenders of the Earth.’ And then just wait for someone to do go ‘Defenders!’

[@chadbradley3434]

Having to watch an advert for the Cats movie before this almost killed my mood to watch. But...I persevered and really enjoyed this video. Oh my god those cats are terrifying...

[@chefexcellence322]

Loved watching this cartoon as a kid! Mandrake is my favourite, closely followed by the Phantom. The Phantom 2040 was a good cartoon too.

[@briana656]

Ive been watching this series lately on Amazon. Ming The Merciless is one of my favorite animated villains.

[@CthulhusDream]

Can't get past your shirt saying "Dr PP" in bright red and white lol

[@daverage4729]

Fun stuff! The series was enjoyable but damn, that theme tune was catchy. Thirty years later and I still know it by heart. Stan Lee certainly knew about writing a catchy tune.

[@chrishopkins209]

They showed this on UK TV in the late 80s - early 90s. Loved it

[@ClarenceDass]

I loved this show as a kid. The Phantom was huge here in Fiji, still is. So much so that there were Phantom comics printed in Fijian. To see him in a cartoon was a trip for me as a kid.

[@DaBudaa1]

Oh man! I remember this cartoon, I used to watch it in the 90's, when my age was still in the single digits.

[@barrybabbot7481]

This explains my memories of The Phantom going up against Ming. I always thought I'd imagined it

[@dougl.6461]

Best cartoon ever besides Super Friends. This is on the Pluto app every Monday through Friday

[@isaactorres5908]

I used to love this show

[@thatsmystapler]

This show is on Pluto TV. Watched the episode "100 Proof Highway" a few nights ago. It was a very special episode about teenage drinking.

[@zackadamscomedy]

This show was the bomb! Recently picked up the Phantom figure from this series too!

[@pdzombie1906]

I used to love this show when I was growing up, I don't understand why they cancelled it afetr one season only... Thanx!!!

[@SkunkLifeMedia]

the Sci Fi cartoon quest...man those were the days.....well, the mornings before school for me

[@DungarooTV]

Easily top-5 best cartoons series ever!

[@laladoopsy]

Forgotten if you dont listen to the Weekly Planet Podcast! Ay! Ay!Ay!

[@Mjolnir877]

Came to the comments looking for the Gr8 M8s!

[@Zentron]

I have the two set collection, along with the complete DVD set, I enjoyed this show a lot!

[@robertgriffin4811]

I may have been a 90s kid, but absolutely loved this show when it aired in syndication on SciFi's Cartoon Quest alongside Transformers G1 here in the US. My favorites were the multipart story arcs like Prince Krotan and Necklace of Oros. My older cousins always said I should have been an 80s kid.

[@MESIAS_ROCKET]

Defenders of the Earth really had a banging intro song, in both spanish and english.

[@enminghee2926]

The most ahead of its time show of its time and even now.

[@Beargeek616]

I am loving Daddy Dan's greys that are coming in! YAAAAAAAS Daddy Dan!

[@sensationalsean85]

Hands down greatest intro song EVER!

[@dredgewalker]

I remember this show and enjoyed watching it as a kid. Later I found out this was animated in my country and actually visited the studio, they also animeted biker mice from mars and x men

[@kamenelis1]

Hey Toy Galaxy, love the show. Reminds me a lot of my childhood. Thought I would make a suggestion on an episode. Sky Commanders. You guys are awesome.!.!.!!.!.!.!

[@BagoPorkRinds]

Watched this every week after school.

[@DocLantern85]

Let's not forget the Phantom 2040 animated series and the 1990's Flash Gordon cartoon.

[@unocarb]

I watched these guys baked after work hahaha I can still remember the song!!!

[@rondajones7526]

I never knew about this one. Thank you. I remember the Phantom movie because Billy Zane is awesome. The movie was ok.

[@asyourgm]

Dan, if you want another 30's pulp tangent to cover, I was surprised to find that almost all of the early 90's Family Channel animation of Prince Valiant can be found here and there on youtube. It doesn't quite match Hal Foster's draftsman-level art, but the watercolor backgrounds are good and the voice talent is top-notch for the period.

[@CannonKnight]

Now I have that Flash Gordon movie theme song in my head. "Flash. Ah-AHHHH. Savior of the universe!". Thanks a lot.

[@ShinKyuubi]

I had quite a few of VHS tapes of this show..it was something I loved and my mom knew the characters because she grew up with them, she had a preference for Flash Gordon and The Phantom..me it was all of them with a heavy leaning toward The Phantom...it's why I picked up the Phantom 2040 VHS when it came out years later.

[@chaseroush6503]

Mandrake actually got a live-action action adventure series in the 70s, which only aired the pilot episode. IIRC, it featured Lothar.

[@kevthepoet]

one of the best theme tunes ever!

[@Kewryn]

I had no idea there was a toyline of DoE; it had one of the most "kickbutt" intro (and in the 80s the competition was steep :D) with an interesting concept that allowed for many, different themes to exist in the same show (spaceships, magic, robots, aliens... these rarely co-exist in a way that would make it pleasable). It was a pretty fun watch, most of the time and it did go into mature territory occassionally (like when Jedda - Phantom's daughter - took up his mantle when the latter was presumed dead... yes: dead in a cartoon of the 80s ^^'). Ah nostalgia :) I think - as far as parents go - I would go with Flash Gordon though... not sure why, but at least I would know he isn't gonna illusion my butt to make me more obiedient :P

[@Funckle73]

I loved this series!!!

[@Rickyroo1980]

My fav ever cartoon as a kid in the 80's, it's a damn sin this wasn't a big hit, I now as an adult have the dvd set and the new Neca figures :)

[@djvertical]

Needs a re-boot, or a movie, that doesn’t suck. There’s a fan movie trailer that looked decent. 👍🏻

[@manundermask6601]

There is definitely room for a universe of pulp heroes, whether comics, movies, or something else.

[@rolandboss9045]

No no. Leave it as is. A reboot in these times would ruin it.

[@jshtng78]

@@rolandboss9045 We're recently starting to see reboots willing to take on period-accurate sensibilities instead of fishing for political correctness. I think now is a better time than ever.

[@mathewguglielmi8451]

I watched this growing up as a child in the 1980's. It would be great if Toy Galaxy would cover the Filmation Studios series of Flash Gordon !

[@starwarsunfiltered7848]

Defenders of the Earth was one of those shows I didn't really watch, but always remember seeing the end credits as I waited for G.I. Joe to start.

[@DaleCoreySanford]

I remembered that show! My dad watched it with us because Flash Gordan was in it. You should cover the Phantom cartoon.

[@Getwright-]

You didn't mention phantom 2040?? Its legitimately one of the best cartoons ever produced (up there with gargoyles, and batman the animated series writing wise) plus it had design by the creator of aeon flux!

[@supadee33]

My brother and loved this show, we and it had some prominent characters of color that didn't feel shoehorned in. Great video as usual. My only gripe is you missed the chance to Sing Flash ahhhhh ahhhhh in your best Queen impersonation 🤷🏼‍♂️