Watch Once Upon a Time... The Explorers

1996
1 Season
7.6 (1,133)

Once Upon a Time... The Explorers is a riveting and educational animated television series that made its debut in 1996. Produced by Indigenius, the show captivates audiences through extraordinary adventures that explore events in world history from a fascinating perspective. The show is part of a larger series, "Once Upon a Time...", known for its amalgamation of entertainment with educational content. Featuring diverse narratives around the topic of exploration, the series delves into the lives, journeys, and impacts of some of history's most iconic explorers.

The series intriguingly combines adventure, history, and education. Each episode follows the concept of story-driven animation to make history engaging and approachable for its young audience, although viewers of all ages will find something of value in this enlightening serie's in-depth examination of man's adventures into the unknown.

The protagonists of the series are youngsters by the names of Maestro, Piero, and Psi. The show captures their encounters with different cultures, people, places, and technological advancements as they navigate through time. The series is as much a journey through world history as it is a voyage around the globe. Our heroes find themselves in contrasting settings from one episode to the next, crossing paths with legendary characters like Christopher Columbus, Vasco Da Gama, and Marco Polo.

What makes Once Upon a Time... The Explorers stand out is the variety in its storytelling. Despite being an educational show, it bears a strong temptation towards storytelling, drama, excitement, and humor. It does not solely focus on the successes of famous explorers but also portrays their fair share of struggles, failures, and hardships. This realistic storytelling approach allows the audience to gain a holistic understanding of each character and their exploration journey.

Furthermore, another striking feature of this series is its attention to detail when discussing the technological advancements that spurred exploration throughout different periods. It highlights the evolution of technology, from simple tools to ever-advancing modes of transport and communication. The show also emphasizes how these technologies drove species discovery, facilitated trade and commerce, and birthed new geopolitical orders.

True to the vision of Indigenius, Once Upon a Time... The Explorers is a perfect blend of historical education and creative storytelling. The relationships formed between the main characters of the series are delightful and memorable, and they also add to the relational complexity of historical exploration. These relationships consider generational differences, the concept of the outsider, and the assertion of power.

With demographic diversity, the series beautifully presents an array of cultural narratives, portraying different ways of life, situated in various parts of the world. It includes an understanding of cultures' dynamics, the power of knowledge share, and how explorers interacted with this knowledge. Inclusive of diverse ethnicities and societal roles within its character list, The Explorers mirrors a society, showcasing narratives beyond exploration.

Visually, the series displays a charm that captures the viewer right from the first scene. Each frame is vividly animated, representing a world filled with enchantment and curiosity. The scenes are enriched with minute details that help immerse viewers into the setting and time period. From the ancient period to the modern era, each era is depicted with historically accurate props and settings, making the viewer feel as if they are traveling with the characters.

With an impressive choice of background scores and effective sound effects, the series manages to hold your attention throughout. The musical score directly contributes to the overall engaging and stimulating atmosphere of the series.

In conclusion, Once Upon a Time... The Explorers is a testament to Indigenius’s commitment to creating thought-provoking content that goes beyond the realm of mere entertainment. It stands as a beacon of exploration, an invitation to journey into the unknown, and ultimately, an opportunity for viewers to unveil the mysteries of our world's history. This historically thematized series is a blend of knowledge, adventure, and captivating storytelling - making learning a delightful experience for its audience. It's an educational journey that's definitely worth embarking on.

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Seasons

26. Up to the Stars

January 17, 1997

Our explorers having now truely reached every far corner of the planet, Maestro recapitulates the main points of all he has already said to his young audience. Firstly the history of the Earth, of man freshly born upon a planet where life has appeared only after ten billion years, to evolve for another five billion, before this birth was made possible.

25. Up to the Peaks

December 31, 1995

For thousands of years, mountains have inspired to man a sacred fear. Mount Olympus, home of the gods, favoured residence of trolls, demons and other yetis, these high places are an untamed world, ruled by their own laws which pay no tribut to man's vanity. But these crests which rise like a forboding menace are also a fantastic challenge, and it is this challenge which we shall illustrate here.

24. Piccard, From Mountain Top to the Depth of the Sea

December 31, 1995

As the 20th century begins, we find that the oceans, continents, tropical rainforests and polar regions of the globe have all seen the arrival of man... And quite sensibly, our children ask Maestro : "We have been to the North, to the South, to the West and the East. So, what is left ? " And our old wise man looks up to the skies.

23. Alexandra David Neel in Tibet

December 31, 1995

Born in 1868 into a well-to-do bourgeois family of the Parisian suburbs, nothing prepared Alexandra David Neel for the unusual destiny which was to be hers. In Europe, the closing years of the 19th century were a time of growing interest for the religions and beliefs of other cultures.

22. Amundsen and the South Pole

December 31, 1995

In all times, the poles have drawn men to them. Axis of the Earth, magnetic indicators, they remain protected from human intrusion by their coat of ice. Towards the end of the 18th century, James Cook approaches both poles without touching land. In the 19th, several scientific expeditions attempt reaching the North Pole, more accurately charted and attainable than it's Antarctic counterpart.

21. Stanley and Livingstone

December 31, 1995

As the 19th century dawns, central Africa remains an unknown "white zone" for cartographers. Only the commercial trading posts of the West coast where slaves, gold and ivory are sold, are familiar to Europeans. But Europe, in the midst of its industrial revolution, is keen on finding out about the wealth of Africa, its raw materials, its navigable waterways...

20. Stuart and Burke and Australia

December 31, 1995

Ninety years after Cook's arrival at Botany Bay, the inside of Australia remains unknown, as much to the English government as to the early settlers. From the foundation, in 1787, of Sydney's penetenciary colony, right up to the development of several coastal towns in the first years of the 19th century (Bathurst, Albany, Cranberra, Brisbane, Adelaïde, Melbourne, Darwin...).

19. Lewis and Clark

December 31, 1995

he story of Lewis and Clark is something of a "western" before its time ! It is due to their endeavours that the huge and beautiful western territories were opened up, to become the future scene of so many heroic adventures.

18. Humboldt

December 31, 1995

Scientist and philosopher, humanist, founding father of ethnology and anthropology: impossible to describe in one sentence the vast palette of talents which belonged to Alexander von Humboldt, one of the most brilliant figures of enlightenment!

17. James Cook

December 31, 1995

In 1764, the Frenchman Bougainville, searching for the fabled "terra australis incognita", stumbles upon Tahiti, but fails to find the elusive southern continent that all maritime explorers are so eager to discover.

16. La Condamine

December 31, 1995

1735 - a heated argument is raging in the distinguished Science Academy of Paris. Is the earth round as a potato as Newton has said, or is it rather pear- shaped, a theory favoured by some of the French scientists ? There is but one way to find out : an expedition shall go to take measurements at the Equator, and another one in Lapony.

15. Bruce and the Nile

December 31, 1995

Born in 1730, the Scotsman Bruce is part of an old aristocracy which the modern world, now at the dawn of the industrial revolution, threatens to eradicate. Proud and individualistic, some would say arrogant, Bruce is certainly not an easy man, though he definitively is an enthusiastic duelist.

14. Bougainville and the Pacific

December 31, 1995

Exploring the Pacific, the greatest of all oceans, is no small affair, and it took many years and intrepid navigators before each of its numerous islands was charted out.

13. Bering

December 31, 1995

The life of an explorer is never an easy one, but few have had a terrain of action as hostile as that which brought fame to Vitus Bering: the vast expanses of the Siberian North and the frozen seas surrounding it.

10. Cabeza de Vaca

December 27, 1996

The year is 1528 and America is as of yet an unexplored continent. Five caravels appear off the cost of Florida, from which 600 men disembark under the orders of the conquistador Panfilo de Navaez. It is the golden age of the conquistadors, who persue their dreams of Eldorado at the expense of the Indian tribes they encounter.

9. Magellan and del Cano

December 26, 1996

In 1518, Captain Fernando de Magellan and his friend the astronomer Rui Faliero are at the court of the king of Spain to present young Charles the Fifth with an astonishing project. The aim is to join the spice islands by heading due west and crossing the Atlantic, whereas since Vasco de Gama's trip in 1488, the Portugese sail to India via Africa, therefore heading south.

8. Amerigo Vespucci

December 23, 1996

Everyone knows that Christopher Colombus discovered America. So why is it that this continent is not called Columbia, for example, instead of America?

7. The Taxis and the First Postal System

December 19, 1996

The end of the Hundred Years war, in 1453, announces for christian Europe a time of expansion and innovation. Spain unites around Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castille to achieve the "Reconquista". A vast empire comprising Germany, Burgundy, the Netherlands and Spain is slowly building itself up.

6. Vasco de Gama

December 18, 1996

We are at the end of the XVth century. Spain and Portugal both seek the maritime path to India and the fabled spice islands. Nutmeg, pepper, clover: these are products worth their weight in gold ! When King Juan II of Portugal gives Vasco de Gama commandment of four ships to reach India by circum- navigating Africa, he knows that this young captain has the talent to succeed.

5. The Great Junks

December 17, 1996

At the end of the 13th century, the Venitian traveller Marco Polo was amazed to see, in China, huge 5-masted junks with sails of red silk and crews of 300 men. But these vessels that so impressed him were merely the forerunners of what was to become, in less than two centuries, the most astonishing of fleets ever to sail the seas.

4. Ibn Battuta (In Marco Polo's Footsteps)

December 16, 1996

1325 - Ibn Battuta, a young Maroccan, leaves his home town Tanger to go, as all good Muslim should, on a pilgrimage to Mecca. Little does he know that he is embarking on an extraordinary odyssey, perhaps the greatest journey of all times.

3. Genghis Khan

December 13, 1996

Was Genghis Khan really a barbarian risen out of the Asian steppe to bring terror and death onto Christendom, the direct successor of Attila the "wrath of God"? Europe certainly lived in holy fear of the mongol horsemen, for these nomads were the antithesis and the enemies of the "civilized" farming societies that populated the fertile plains of the West at that time.

2. Erik the Red and the Discovery of America

December 12, 1996

The discovery of America is usually associated to one date and one name: 1492 and Christopher Columbus. This ignores the fact that 500 years before the Spanish navigators touched land with their caravels, a handful of hardy Scandinavian sailors crossed the same ocean in their streamlined knorrs.

1. Alexander the Great

December 11, 1996

400 b.c. ...Greece lives in the shadow of the mighty Persian empire. It is in the small kingdom of Macedonia that Alexander grows up. Son of the king, he is taught the art of war and commandment at an early age. He also learns from the philosopher Aristotle the precepts of wisdom, although his teacher endlessly warns him against his fiery nature.

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