CAPTAIN JAKE AND THE NEVERLAND PIRATES: THE GREAT NEVER SEA CONQUEST – DVD Review by John Strange

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W3-vsjOBgw

 

CAPTAIN JAKE AND THE NEVERLAND PIRATES: THE GREAT NEVER SEA CONQUEST – DVD Review

 

John Strange

 

Captain Jake and the Neverland Pirates is an animated series that revolves around three siblings Jake, Izzy, and Cubby (two boys and a girl).  In the show the kid’s are pirates in Nerverland.  They are always dealing with their opposition, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, and Tick-Tock the Crocodile from Disney’s Peter Pan Franchise.

 

This DVD is a movie (45 minutes) and then a series of episodes taken from the show that runs on Disney Junior.  In the movie, The Great Never Sea Conquest, the trio of kid pirates and their ship are searching for the fabled pirate ship, the Colossus (the greatest battleship ever to sail the Neverland Sea) using a magic compass that Peter Pan gave them.  Captain Hook and his team of pirates are following the kids with the intention of stealing the ship (and, of course, the treasure).

 

Arriving in the Tortuga Triangle, the kids use a periscope to look at the sea bottom.  Spying something on the bottom, Jake has a net dropped down to retrieve it.  It turns out to be a tankard from the mighty Colossus.  While they are examining it, a suction cup flashes in and the cup is pulled from Jake’s hands.  Yep, Captain Hook has arrived!

 

After he drives the kids away he looks for the ship and its fabled treasure. What he finds in his periscope is nothing but rocks and seaweed.  He orders the crew to pull up the anchor so they can go “anywhere but here”.  The crew reports that the anchor is stuck on the rocks.  When they manage to pull it free, they set free the evil Mer-wizard Lord Fathom.

 

Lord Fathom and his henchman (or is it hench-squid?) head for Neptune City to recover the gem that gives him his power, The Dark Light Emerald.  He tricks the queen into proving to all that it is still safe in her vault.  When she opens the vault to display the gem, he seizes it and regains the powers it bestows when he returns it to its slot on his trident!

 

Once King Neptune’s trusted advisor, Fathom tried to usurp his ruler and become king of the Never Sea.  King Neptune defeated him and banished him to the undersea cave that Hook and his crew accidentally released him from.  Now, with his powers restored, Lord Fathom takes the crown and uses the fish of the sea to seal imprison the queen and her attendants in the very vault that had held the emerald!  (But not before the queen sends her star fish attendant to find Jake to save them.)

 

His first task after taking the crown is to he heads off to Dreadnaught Cove.  While this is going on Jake and the kids have returned to their island base.  Cubby is sad because he lost the compass when Hook sent their ship away with his dirty trick.  Then Sandy, the queen’s starfish attendant arrives at the island and tells the crew about the disaster that has occurred!

 

Jake sends Sandy back to Neptune City to let Queen Coralee know that they will help.  Pledging by the power of his Destiny Sword he and the group return to their ship and head out to save the day.  By this point you wil have noticed that every important moment in the show is celebrated with a song.  I can see that the younger kids will love this because they can sing along this the cast.

 

The scene changes and we are transported to Captain Hook’s ship.  He is lamenting the fact that he can’t find the treasure of the Colossus.  Mr. Smee tells his captain to not be so sad.  There are other treasures in the sea other than that of the Colossus.  But this doesn’t help as the Colossus’ treasure is the one he wants NOW!

 

The crew cast net after net to try and locate the treasure ship.  While this is going on a waterspout erupts from the water carrying King Lord Fathom,  He orders the “air breathers to get these nets out of his way!  Hook says he doesn’t take orders from fish and Fathom replies the he doesn’t listen to the babble of bumbling buccaneers!  Then Capt. Hook spies the emerald in the trident and falls in lust with it!

 

Hook won’t leave so Fathom starts inundating his ship with water spouts.  Capt. Hook has to admit that for once he might actually need help from Jake!  And wow!  Here he comes!  They try to capture King Fathom.  They tell him he can’t get away with this.  He replies that he will after he awakens his secret weapon, the Strake!

 

He can control the unstoppable beast once that Strake looks upon the Dark Light Emerald!  The kids and Hook’s ships are driven away by waves formed by Fathom’s magic.  He then proceeds on the Dreadnaught Cove to awake the dreaded beast!

 

Jake and his crew know that to defeat this evil wizard and his beast they will need help.  They send out word for the best captains to meet them on Neverland Beach!  The captains gather and they set sail to stop Lord Fathom.

 

The pirate fleet soon finds the evil Lord Fathom.  The wizard orders the fish of the sea to attack the ships.  The fish force the fleet to retreat!  Jake tells the assembled captains and crew  that they need to Colossus to defeat the wizard and the fish.  The captains ask him how he plans to find the ship. He says he doesn’t know but (raising his Destiny Sword), “I never give up and when someone threatens our home we stand as one!”  Suddenly the Destiny Sword begins to glow and a beam flashes from it into the sea!

 

He next moment, up from the sea arises the mighty Colossus herself!  The ship looks brand new (even though sea water IS pouring from all of the cannon mouths)!  Rushing on board, the pirates exclaim their joy over the ship.  All except hook who is upset at the lack of treasure!  Izzy tells him that the ship itself is the treasure!

 

The pirates acclaim Jake the captain of the Colossus because of his actions so far.  Only Hook disagrees (no surprise really).  With the acclamation, the Destiny Sword lifts Jake into the air and upgrades his wardrobe to that of a captain complete with hat and coat!  And the Destiny Sword transforms into a mighty Captain’s Sword!

 

Jake proclaims that lord Fathom better watch out because here comes the Neverland League of Captains!  Of course this calls for a song!  Once the song is finished they head out tosave the day.  It’s not long before they spot Fathom’s water spout!

 

Lord Fathom is surprised to see the ship.  Captain Colossus had trapped Fathom below deck prior to the Strake taking the ship to the bottom of the sea!  Lord Fathom calls up the creatures of the sea to sink the ship once and for all. 

 

Jake and the pirates fight off the creatures and then begin shooting cannonballs at the mer-wizard.  Fathom conjures up old shipwrecks to attack the Colossus.  The three old ships begin ramming the mighty vessel which gives Lord Fathom a chance to go off and release the Strake!

 

Using his trident and the Dark Light Emerald, Fathom opens the doors which have imprisoned the Strake all of these years.  The strake turns out to be a three-headed sea dragon which Fathom quickly puts under the control of the emerald!  He then sends the Strake out to destroy the Colossus!

 

Before the Colossus can fight the Strake they have to beat the derelict ships.  Jake pilots the ship in circles, swerving periodically.  Eventually all three of the derelict ships collide with each other and sink! Just in time for the Strake to attack!

 

Three of the captains figure they can whip the monster.  They quickly learn otherwise!  Then Jake swoops in and cuts one the sails which covers the beast and it disappears below the waves.  Sadly, this is not defeat for the monster, only a momentary setback.

 

Captain Jake calls to Izzy to engage the classic emergency plan!  But when the young girl goes to use the pixie dust, the monster strikes the ship and the dust goes overboard!  Oh no!  Jake has no clue what to do now!  The other captains tell him to do what his hero Captain Colossus would do.  He climbs to the bow of the ship and tells Fathom they will NEVER surrender!

 

Surprisingly, Lord Fathom calls the Strake off.  Why?  So he can destroy the pests himself!  Knocked to the deck while deflecting the emald bolts thrown by the wizard, Captain Jake picks up his mighty sword but he isn’t sure he can do it alone!  Suddenly a beam flashes out of the tip of the sword and strikes the sea!  King Neptune rises up from the sea!

 

King Neptune tells Jake that he can defeat Lord Fathom and the Strake using the Captain’s Sword.  But to do so he must believe in himself more than ever before!  Jake asks how he can defeat them because they are unstoppable.  King Neptune tells him that so is he.  And what’s more, if Jake fails, Fathom and the Strake have the power to destroy everything in the sea AND on the land!

 

Jake discovers that with the sword he can fly!  He flashes around the Strake and leads it away from the ship.  He drives it back under the ocean and then turns to Lord Fathom.  After trading bolts, Jakes swoops in and cuts the emerald off the trident removing Lord Fathom’s power source!

 

King Neptune tells Jake how to use the emerald to force the Strake to return to its cave a slumber forever!  Following the defeat of the Strake, Lord Fathom attempts basically the same trick he used on the queen to try to get the gem back from Jake.  Instead, Jake shatters the emerald into tiny shards!

 

With the destruction of the emerald, all of the magic drains away and the ensorcelled animals are freed!  The queen and her attendants are released and her crown is returned to her!  Sadly for Fathom the release allows the creatures to turn on him.  When we last see him, he and his minion are swimming for their lives from the enraged sea creatures!

 

This calls for an epic song, everyone singing the praises of Captain Jake!  Then the other captains sail off in their own ships and Queen Coralee thanks Jake for saving all of them!  Meanwhile, deep under the sea outside the lair of the Strake, Lord Fathom lurks in the dark.  He is NOT happy but he has a sliver of the emerald and vows to regain his power.  Next time he vows to rule not just the Never Sea but to rule Neverland and the lands beyond the Never Sea!

 

(Note here:  If you think you recognize Lord Fathom’s voice, you are probably correct!  It is Malcolm McDowell’s distinct voice!)

 

The show episodes on this disk are listed below.  They showed two episodes per show.

 

In the Heart of Coldness has a group of penguins that are shanghaied by Shiver Jack, the evil Ice Wizard.  Percy the penguin finds Captain Jake and his siblings to go to the rescue.  Shiver Jack has them looking for an crystal filled with great magic called the Heart of Coldness.  The good guys  have to have to break into the evil wizard’s castle, Frozengard to free the penguins before the wizard gets possession of the magical device.  He will use it to freeze the Never World! 

 

After the rescue the pirates earn 10 gold doubloons for the tem treasure chest! 

 

In The Remarkable Beardini the team must deal with the Great Beardini, a magician.  When Hook and Smee are caught by the Great Beardini going through his home looking for a magic wand, Hook tells of the ring of invisibility held by a pirate.  A pirate named… Jake!

 

The point of this episode is how Beardini deals with protecting his magic tricks.  Jake is happy to return the ring.  He was only holding on to it to protect it from Hook.  Hook and Smee, who have snuck back to Beardini’s lair are not so lucky. 

 

The crew earns 9 gold doubloons for returning The Great Beardini’s magical secrets!

 

Escape from Ghost Island pits the kids against the ghost pirate, Captain Wraith!  If you touch his treasure you become a ghost, too!  If you are still a ghost at dawn when the island disappears you will be trapped and forced to be crew on his ship, the Sea Ghoul!  Hook, Smee and Jake are turned to ghosts and the crews have to save them!

 

For escaping Ghost Island the crew earns thirteen gold doubloons!

 

The Island of Doctor Undergear has the kids looking for a replacement gear to repair their friend, Captain Gizmo!  He is injured protecting them from a volcano.  His golden gear is damaged.  Inside his case is a map showing an island shaped like a gear.  They go to Gear Island to search for the replacement gear.  On Gear Island the trio encounter Doctor Undergear, an evil mad pirate inventor.  He replaces the broken golden gear in Captain Gizmo with the one originally intended for the mechanical man.  One that turns him evil, too!

 

The kids have to defeat the evil doctor and find the replacement golden gear to get their friend back on the side of good!

 

The team earns nine gold doubloons for saving Captain Gizmo!

 

Rise of the Pirate Pharaoh sees the young pirates touring Pharaoh’s Valley with the pirate mummy!  Just as the tour is about to end the ship (on wheels) runs over a stone block and a new buried tomb is uncovered!

 

Cubby finds to ancient devices, a hook and a flail that when struct together make great magic.  When he strikes them a beam flashes out and awakens the two mummies (one human, one a cat). 

 

The mummy is Pirate Pharaoh!  The kids run in fear.  But should they?  Is the man evil?  No, he isn’t!  The kids start off trying to stop him until they realize he is a good man!  They help him return the desert valley to its previous green state!

 

For helping the Pirate Pharaoh restore the waters of the Never Nile they earn 10 gold doubloons!

 

The Golden Hook is a magical device that turns everything touched by its owner to gold.  Hook replaces he current hook for the golden device and as expected things go awry!  Lucky for Captain Hook, Jake and the kids come at Mr. Smee’s request to save everyone turned to gold back to their original state!

 

For helping Capt. Hook get rid of his gold fever they earn nine gold doubloons!

 

And the bonus episodes:

 

The Mystery of the Mighty Colossus brings the team back to the Mighty Colossus to help Hook find his ship.  While deep in a dense fog bank they see a shadow swinging in the rigging and a maniacal laugh!  The Grim Buccaneer is on the Mighty Colossus!

 

The Grim Buccaneer was first mate to Captain Colossus on that very ship until he turned bad and betrayed his captain and was cast away!  The League of Pirate Captains must be on the lookout for the Grim Buccaneer.  Captain Hook disagrees until Sharkey and Bones both disappear.

 

The Grim Buccaneer captures all of the pirates and plans to maroon them on Pirate Doom Island.  Jake and the team escape and plan to maroon the Buccaneer instead!  However the devious pirate escapes into the fog!

 

For helping to defeat the Grim Buccaneer and save the Mighty Colossus they earn 12 gold doubloons!

 

The Doubloon Monsoon brings together Captain Hook and his Mother to harvest berries.  Other pirates including Bones and his grandfather and Jake and Skully.  Conditions are right for finding the doubloon monsoon!  The pirates team up by family to see who can find the doubloon monsoon first.

 

Not surprising Captain Hook cheats and his mother has to correct him that this is not right and he is NOT to do it again.  Arriving in Hidden Valley they soon see the doubloon monsoon firsthand!  Hook and Bones both grab a doubloon but get pulled into the wind driven coin tornado!  Working together they save the two pirates.

 

Hook wants to gather each and every coin but everyone else, including his mother decide to leave them there.  Everyone leaves Hook to gather the coins alone.

 

For helping to find the doubloon monsoon the team earns 9 gold doubloons for the team treasure chest!

 

Shark Attack!  Doctor Gearhead is back!  The trio are on the Mighty Colossus when they see a shark fin.  Using the periscope they see a large number of sunken ships with odd looking marine life stripping the ships of all their usable gear.  Jake uses a mini-sub from the Colossus called a splash diver!

 

Diving down, Jake finds Doctor Gearhead leading his machines in the salvage of the ships.  Why does he want the parts?  To build more evil machines!  Then the evil doctor spies the Colossus and decides he MUST have it!  He orders his creations to sink the Mighty Colossus!

 

The team defeats the evil doctor and save the ship!  For stopping the devious Doctor Undergear from sing the Mighty Colossus the team earns twelve gold doubloons!

 

Captain Hook’s Colossal Collision finds the team tring out the various types of cannon balls to see what each color does!  They are trying a green ball when Captain Hook’s ship sails under it and gets slimed!  As upset as the captain might be, he too, is curious as to what each ball does.  Hook fires a purple stiped ball that ricochets everywhere knocking everyone overboard.  Hook is knock into to ship’s wheel that reveals a hidden control panel.  His fall breaks off a lever.  The lever controls jet engines that deploy and rocket the ship away from everyone!

 

How can they catch the ship (and save Captain Hook)?  They don’t have long to save the ship.  It is headed directly for Pirate Island!  The collision will destroy the kid’s hideout!  Thanks to pixie dust, the kids are able to get over to the Colossus and stop the ship at the last moment!

 

For rescuing the Mighty Colossus, Captain Hook and the hideout, the team earns nine gold doubloons!

 

These shows are fun for kids to watch and teach them about things like team work while giving them the opportunity to sing along with the good guys.  I had a great time watching these episodes and I am looking forward to putting the 3D Might Colossus puzzle ship together!

 

You can get this on DVD.

 

 

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Selig Rating Scale:

 

BRAND NEW: Should add to your DVD collection at any cost

SALE ITEM: Worth owning, but try to catch it a sale

SECOND HAND: Plan to get it, but wait to buy it used

RENTAL: Worth taking a look at, but not owning

COASTER: Pick it up at a garage sale and use it for drinks

PULL!: Makes a great Trap Shooting target