Wednesday 12 April 2017

AtoZ2017 - J is for Jonathan Chase & Jamil #AtoZChallenge


Welcome to Day 10 of the AtoZChallenge and the letter J. Every day in April (except Sundays) I will be making a post about shapeshifters of all kinds. Check back to see my choices and, from time to time some flash fiction too.

J is for 

Jonathan Chase

Dr Jonathan Chase is a character from the action adventure series Manimal. He was played by Simon MacCorkingdale and he was terribly dashing.

Now this series was made in 1983 and, at the time, the special effects were thrilling. These days they look really rather bad :).

You see Jonathan's secret is that he can turn into any animal. Studying with shaman in Africa and holy men in Tibet he learned the art and he now uses it to fight crime. Only two people know his secret, his best friend Ty and Detective Brooke Mackenzie. To everyone else he is a rich animal expert who turns up in the oddest places.

For any of us who watched this when it first aired it is iconic, but trust me, rewatching it, be prepared to cringe. They are, however, planning a new movie, which, let us hope, will be up to scratch.

Werewolf of the Day

Jamil (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter)

Jamil is an enforcer in the werewolf pack of St Louis, the Thronnos Rokke Clan. His position is called a Skoll. He is the number one enforcer and hence acts as the pack leader's bodyguard.

He was thrown out of his previous pack for being a trouble maker, but serverd under the previous Ulfric of the Thronnos Rokke Clan as Skoll as well. In werewolf tradition, when a new Ulfric takes over he should have killed Jamil as well, but did not, which makes Jamil very loyal to his new Ulfric indeed.

Jamil is just under 6ft tall, he is slim, moves like a dancer, and very, very strong. His skin is a rich brown and his hair is long and woven into corncrows. He is one of the few members of the pack who can keep the Ulfric's power out of his mind.

Thank you for stopping by.
  • Have you had the delight of seeing Manimal?
  • What is your first memory of seeing a special effect that awed you?
  • Do you think being fast or being strong would be the most useful trait of being a werewolf?
Happy AtoZing!

Click here and here to find other AtoZ posts.



11 comments:

  1. OMG, Manimal! I loved that show! Yes, he was certainly dashing at the time. And that weird hand thing he would do when he morphed to animal form...
    Discarded Darlings - Jean Davis, Speculative Fiction Writer, A to Z: Editing Fiction

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    1. I remember that whole morphing thing he did being so amazing - it was like watching magic :). CGI has spoiled us now ;)

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  2. Hi Tasha - Simon MacCorkindale I remember ... the series I suspect not - but thanks for reminding me of him! Werewolf should be strong, though fast might help! Cheers Hilary

    http://positiveletters.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/j-is-for-jellicles.html

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  3. Manimal!!! OMG I loved that when it first came out, but it's one of those that is better in the memory :)
    Sophie
    Sophie's Thoughts & Fumbles - Dragon Diaries

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  4. Lol, "Manimal" is a delightfully awful title... :D
    I don't remember what the first special effect was that I admired, but I remember when Titanic came out and people were all hyped up about "did you know the WHOLE ship was made with a computer?!" :D

    The Multicolored Diary: WTF - Weird Things in Folktales

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  5. Oh dear, I don't know Manimal. And clearly that's not a good thing. Now you've set me on a quest. I'm always inordinately delighted when special effects that once seemed so impressive in later viewing turn out to be quite awful. It's like the whole experience has morphed and can be enjoyed at a new level. I'll certainly be keeping my eyes open for the upcoming film.

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  6. I'm too young to have seen Manimal when it first aired, but it is funny when you see something again that you thought was incredible at the time. My first memory of something like that is seeing the glass elevator soaring over the town when I first saw Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory at school and being amazed. Not so much now!

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  7. Being strong seems like a more useful power. It's nice to outrun enemies, but someone who's strong can stand and fight them at any time.

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  8. I remember that show and Simon Maccorkindale. Good looking man! ☺ Your werewolf character sounds equally attractive. Strength is probably a more useful attribute for a werewolf.

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  9. I've never heard of Manimal, though the title makes me giggle a little. Real subtle. ;)

    I feel like I'd rather be a fast werewolf than a strong one, even if strength is probably more practical.

    A to Z 2017: Magical and Medicinal Herbs

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