Chapter 1: My First Adventure:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 1, Episode 1]
The Curse of the Jackal (1) (Egypt, May 1908)
Shown 4 Mar 92
Indy meets his new Governess, Miss Helen Seymour.
The family go to Egypt, where they meet Ned Lawrence, Howard Carter and
Demetrios (an explosives expert).
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 9]
Tangiers 1908
Shown
While in Morocco, Indy befriends a young black slave boy ...
and is then kidnapped by slavers himself!
Chapter 2: Passion for Life:
This is a story about the VERY young Indy.
It starts in 1908, when he's 8 years old with a nanny.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 1, Episode 4]
British East Africa, September 1909
Shown 18 Mar 92
Indy and family are in the Massai Mara with Ted Roosevelt and Paul Freeman.
A Masai boy helps Indy find Burton's Auric [this is a 1990s conservationist story].
Is Indy meant to be scared of snakes yet?
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 16]
Paris, September 1908
Shown 19 Jun 93
In Paris, the Joneses meet Norman Rockwell [Tobey McGuire with an Ulster Accent].
He takes Indy to the Montmartre - they meet Degas, Lautrec, Picasso,
and some Cartoonish villains looking for their street-whores.
Chapter 3: The Perils of Cupid:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 11]
Vienna, November 1908
Shown 10 Apr 93
Young Indy, aged 8, attends a riding school in Vienna with Princess Sophia
(daughter of Archduke Ferdinand).
He also meets Sigmund Freud (Max Von Sydow -
Flash Gordon
) and Emilie (Pernilla August -
Star Wars 1: TPM
).
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 23]
Florence, May 1908
Shown
Indy's mother meets a tenor, Puccini.
Chapter 4: Travels with Father:
It's been over one year for them since they lived in New Jersey,
and Indy is getting bitchy.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 7]
Travels with Father (1) (Russia, 1910)
Shown 16 Jun 96
Indy accidentally ruins a wedding.
He does the only thing he can - he runs away.
He meets Tolstoi (Michael Gough -
), and learns the principle of each according to his needs.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 8]
Travels with Father (2) (Athens, 1910)
Shown 16 Jun 96
Nanny is ill. Indy and his dad bond.
They discuss Philosophy.
This is the first episode where the father is important.
Chapter 5: Journey of Radiance:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 18]
Benares, January 1910
Shown 3 Jul 93
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 17]
Peking, March 1910
Shown 26 Jun 93
Chapter 6: Spring Break Adventure:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 7]
Princeton, February 1916
Shown 20 Mar 93
German spies are trying to steal Edison's inventions.
Indy teams up with
Francesca Quinn
(an older woman - aged 24!) to stop them.
This is like Hardy Drew and the Nancy Boy.
Indy is a dumbass wimp -
when he is trying to be stealthy he shouts his GF's name!
This was directed by
Joe Johnston
.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 1, Episode 2]
The Curse of the Jackal (2) (Mexico, March 1916)
Shown 4 Mar 92
Indy goes to Mexico with his cousin Frank,
and gets caught up in the conflict between US General Pershing and Mexican rebel Pancho Villa.
He makes friends with a Belgian named Remy, and bumps into Lt. George S. Patton.
Great story!
This was written by Lucas, as a sequel to the Egypt story.
There is even a mention of Ned Lawrence.
The battle scenes are taken from the 1989 film Old Gringo,
which explains why a TV show has suddenly got Hollywood-scale production values.
Chapter 7: Love's Sweet Song:
This is actually a couple of episodes edited together.
This works because the episodes are linked chronologically,
geographically and also there is a nice contrast between them.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 15]
Ireland, April 1916
Shown 12 Jun 93
Shown 3rd February 2002 - Sunday
The first episode takes place in Dublin, 1916,
in the days leading up to Easter. Indy is involved with a beautiful girl,
and since her brother is a Fenian we naturally get involvement with the Rising.
Strangely, for an American TV show they have managed to show
a reasonably balanced view of things.
It actually keeps more or less to the historical reality.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 1, Episode 3]
London, May 1916
Shown 11 Mar 92
Shown 3rd February 2002 - Sunday
The second episode takes place in London.
Indy signs up for the Belgian Army so he can fight against the German Empire.
While he is waiting to ship out he meets a beautiful suffragette (
Elizabeth Hurley
of all people) and carries on a romance with her.
This allows a nice contrast between the methods of the Fenians
and those of the Suffragettes.
Chapter 8: Trenches of Hell:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 2]
Somme, Early August 1916 (1)
Shown 28 Sep 92
Serving on the Western Front, Indy meets british officers Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 3]
Germany, Mid-August 1916 (2)
Shown 5 Oct 92
Captured, Indy is imprisoned with Colonel DeGaulle.
Ulsterman James Nesbitt (
Lucky Man
) is a Russian!
Chapter 9: Demons of Deception:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 1, Episode 5]
Verdun, September 1916
Shown 25 Mar 92
Indy works a motorbike courier, scout and spy.
As the battle drags on, the story becomes ever more cynical ...
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 19]
Paris, October 1916
Shown 10 Jul 93
In decadent Paris, far from the trenches, Ian McDiarmuid (Palpatine in
Star Wars
) and
Jacqueline Pearse (Servalan in
Blake's 7
) are a married couple!
Indy meets and falls in love with a certain dancer named Mata Hari ...
This was written by
Carrie Fisher
and directed by
Nic Roeg
- and with such high expectations, is easily the most disappointing ep so far.
Chapter 10: Phantom Train of Doom:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 13]
The Phantom Train of Doom (1) (German East Africa, November 1916)
Shown 5 Jun 93
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 14]
The Phantom Train of Doom (2) (German East Africa, November 1916)
Shown 5 Jun 93
Chapter 11: Oganga, the Giver and Taker of Life:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 1, Episode 6]
German East Africa, December 1916 (1)
Shown 1 Apr 92
Young Indy is in Africa, where he is promoted to Captain.
This was written by
Frank Darabont
.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 1, Episode 7]
Congo, January 1917 (2)
Shown 8 Apr 92
Indy takes an expedition all the way across Africa.
They sail down the Congo river, where he meets Dr Albert Schweitzer.
Chapter 12: Attack of the Hawkmen:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 5]
Attack of the Hawkmen (Ravenelle, Germany, 1917)
Shown 8 Oct 95
1917, and Indy is captured by the Red Baron, von Richthofen.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 6]
Attack of the Hawkmen (Ahlgorn, Germany 1917)
Shown 8 Oct 95
Indy becomes a spy to get the plans of Dutchman Fokker's new planes.
Pertwee and Anthony Daniels guest-star.
Chapter 13: Adventures in the Secret Service:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 1]
Austria, March 1917
Shown 21 Sep 92
This was written by
Frank Darabont
and directed by
Vic Armstrong
.
Indy escorts the bothers of the Austrian Empress (including Benedict Taylor -
Star Wars: Phantom Menace
) to Vienna to negotiate a secret peace deal.
The boss of the Austrian Secret Police (Joss Ackland - Lethal Weapon 2) tries to stop them.
Christopher Lee (
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
) is a Count.
Naturally, there are lots of references to a certain film by
Carol Reed
and
Orson Welles
. Jones is the Third Man, we glimpse the fairground as they pass it,
and there is a night-time chase through the sewers ...
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 8]
Petrograd, July 1917
Shown 27 Mar 93
An old man in a museum explains why a photo of the Russian Revolution is mis-labeled.
He is Old Indy (George Burns, aged about 89 years old) ...
In 1917, Indy was a spy in Russia.
His job was to go undercover among revolutionaries,
to discover when the Revolution would come
(and thus, when Russia would cease to be a useful ally in the war).
His rival is a clerk, who thinks that desk-work is more important than field-work.
Chapter 14: Espionage Escapades:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 4]
Barcelona, May 1917
Shown 12 Oct 92
Indy goes to Barcelona in neutral Spain,
where he teams up with Allied Agents Mike McShane, Timothy Spall (
Red Dwarf
) and Terry Jones (
). He goes undercover in a theatre where Pablo Picasso paints the scenery ...
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 22]
"Ah, what a trial" - Prague, August 1917
Shown
Indy goes to Prague, to work with Colonel Clouseau of French Intelligence.
They must get a phone line installed in their safe house in time to receive an important message.
Indy must visit the Ministry of Telephones, a Kafkaesque institution.
Bernard Breslaw (
Krull
) guest-stars, and Tim McInnerny (
Blackadder
) is Franz Kafka himself.
Much slapstick ensues.
Chapter 15: Daredevils of the Desert:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 24]
Palestine, October 1917 (1)
Shown
Indy and a bellydancer (
Catherine Zeta Jones
) must cross the desert.
Ned Lawrence has a cameo.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 11]
Palestine, October 1917 (2)
Shown
The battle scenes are taken from the 1987 Australian film The Lighthorsemen,
which explains why a TV show has suddenly got Hollywood-scale production values.
Chapter 16: Tales of Innocence:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 12]
Northern Italy, June 1918
Shown 17 Apr 93
Indy is on the Italian Front, undercover. Ernest Hemingway befriends him,
but they argue over a beautiful girl.
World War One seems insignificant compared to their petty domestic squabbles.
Pernilla August (
Star Wars: Phantom Menace
) is the girl's Mamma.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 10]
Morocco 1917
Shown
Indy escorts Edith Wharton (
Clare Higgins
) through Morocco. He is undercover to discover an illegal arms dealer who is stealing French rifles and selling them to hostile tribes.
Chapter 17: Masks of Evil:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 25]
Transylvania, January 1918
Shown
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 20]
Istanbul, September 1918
Shown 17 Jul 93
Chapter 18: Winds of Change:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 21]
Paris, May 1919
Shown 24 Jul 93
Indy is a translator at the Paris peace talks, setting up the League of Nations.
His old friend TE Lawrence pops by to work on the Arabia agreement.
There is no mention of the Balfour Declaration, of course.
The Vietnamese delegation is led by Ho Chi Mihn,
while Dutch actor Jeroen Krabbe (
The Living Daylights
) represents the Germans.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 12]
Princeton 1919
Shown
On the ship home to the USA, Indy has a shipboard romance.
He meets his Father again and returns to Princeton,
where he gets involved in Rocket Science and uncovers the ugly truth about racism.
Chapter 19: Treasure of the Peacock's Eye:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 3]
Treasure of the Peacock's Eye (London/Egypt, November 1919)
Shown 15 Jan 95
Indy and Remy go on an international treasure hunt.
Ade Edmundson (Blackadder) is a one-eyed German villain.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episode 4]
Treasure of the Peacock's Eye (South Pacific, November 1919)
Shown 15 Jan 95
Indy and Remy chase the treasure from Egypt to Java to Singapore.
They also meet a brothel creeper named Mrs Simpson.
Chapter 20: Mystery of the Blues:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 5]
The Mystery of the Blues (1) (Chicago, April 1920)
Shown 13 Mar 93
This starts with a car chase. Harrison Ford is on the run, in a segment that bookends the story.
Young Indy went to Chicago, where he met
Jane Krakowski
and the guy who played Billy Bats in Goodfellas.
There is an encounter with Scarface Al Brown.
Hemingway re-appears.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 6]
The Mystery of the Blues (2) (Chicago, May 1920)
Shown 13 Mar 93
The second half is a whodunnit, when the boss is shot dead.
Chapter 21: Scandal of 1920:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 9]
The Scandal of 1920 (New York, June 1920)
Shown 3 Apr 93
Indy befriends George Gershwin, and works as a stagehand on Broadway.
He gets THREE girlfriends:
Kate (one of the Vicious Circle)
Peggy (a singer)
Gloria (a millionaire's daughter)
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 2, Episode 10]
The Scandal of 1920 (New York, July 1920)
Shown 3 Apr 93
Indy has his 21st birthday.
Chapter 22: Hollywood Follies:
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [Season 3, Episodes 1-2]
The Hollywood Follies (Hollywood, August 1920)
Shown 15 Oct 94
Indiana Jones gets a job at Universal Studios, Hollywood.
Von Stroheim, Irving Thalberg, John Ford and Wyatt Earp all work on a western.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
The story starts in South America in 1936, where Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford -
Star Wars
) is on a quest to find an ancient Incan treasure.
Not only does this establish his strengths (swashbuckling) and weakness (a fear of snakes),
but also his arch-rival the French archaeologist Bellaq (Paul Freeman -
).
Back in the USA, Doctor Jones is a nerdy college professor
working for Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliott -
). He is hired by Porkins (William Hootkins -
Star Wars: ANH
), a representative of the US Government,
to find the fabled Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis do.
Indy gets a couple of allies to help him.
One is an old lover interest, Marion Ravenwood (
Karen Allen
), and another is an Egyptian ally named Salah (John Rhys Davies -
Sliders
). Yes, this was in the 1980s when colour was only skin deep,
and actors were judged on their abilities
instead of held back by the colour of their skin.
This paved the way for such revolutionary casting as Eggs as Jimmy Olsen in
Supergirl
.
The Nazis have their own archaeologist - Bellaq.
He is actually better than Indy, and finds the Ark quite quickly.
After much swashbuckling,
which involves Indy wiping out dozens of German footsoldiers,
the climax is literally a Deus Ex Machina.
This is the story's so-called plot hole:
Indy does not actually do much to resolve the plot.
However, it is not about the climax - it is about the journey.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
The story starts in 1912, when Young Indiana Jones (River Phoenix -
Explorers
) is on a quest to save an ancient Conquistador relic.
Not only does this establish his strengths (swashbuckling) and weakness (a fear of snakes),
but also the inspiration for his sense of style.
All from a single afternoon's adventure, would you believe?
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
is far more credible, stretching his development over a dozen years.
The story picks up again in the late 1930s.
Grown-up Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford -
Star Wars
) is contacted by a millionaire (Julian Glover -
). Henry Jones (Sean Connery -
), Indy's father, has gone missing while searching for the Holy Grail.
Indy goes off to Italy to look for the old man, and the Grail.
He also hooks up with yet another blonde bombshell, Ilsa (
Alison Doody
).
This is basically a follow-up to the original movie.
Indy's allies once again include Salah (John Rhys Davies -
Sliders
) and Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliott -
), the McGuffin is an Xian artefact, and the enemies are Nazis.
It is nice to see Marcus actually gets something to do this time.
All in all, this is a bit lacklustre compared to the previous films.
Perhaps that is because it was shot on locations rather than on specially-made sets.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
Indiana Jones is back.
Harrison Ford (
Star Wars: ANH
) has aged two decades since the last film, so the film is set in the Fifties.
The villains are Commie spies, out to steal America's super-weapons.
It is enough to induce a
Rocketeer flashback ...
The commies steal a Crystal Skull from the warehouse -
it is in Area 51, which is a test site for nuclear weapons.
Their leader (
Cate Blanchett
) claims to have psychic powers, and the Crystal skull is from time-travelling aliens from another dimension.
IIRC Lucas originally wanted to set the climax of
Last Crusade
in Atlantis ... but this is ridiculous, even compared to that!
Back at the University, Indy is hassled by the FBI.
His father (Sean Connery) has been written off as dead.
Because Denholm Elliot is dead, his character (Marcus Brody) cannot make an appearance either.
But as a reference, there is a statue of Marcus in the University grounds.
In a typical step too far, this statue actually plays a part in the story.
The big quest is to find the Lost City of the South American civilisation.
Indy gets some help from a group of semi-famous actors.
Shia LeBoeuf (
Transformers
) is a Marlon Wild Ones Brando impersonator,
Karen Allen
pops up for old times sake, and John Hurt (
Alien
) plays a doddery old Professor.
Ray Winstone (
Robin of Sherwood
) is an old friend of Indy's, who is a bit of an unpredictable character ...
There are three big chase scenes in the film.
Yet we never get the sense at any time that Indy is in any jeopardy. After
Raiders Of The Lost Ark
we know Indy is invincible - but in the sequels he had sidekicks who were in jeopardy.
This is just cartoonish in comparison.
The whole Lost City thing was done in
National Treasure 2
. The climax was ... just dumb.
It fitted in well with the rest of the film, though.
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
This is set in 1935, a year before the events of the first film.
The story starts in Shanghai, where Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford -
