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The Lion King is one of Disney’s most iconic franchises. Its 30-year history involves numerous films, TV series, video games, and other related media projects. It’s set to mark its three-decade milestone this month with the release of the new photorealistically animated Mufasa: The Lion King.
Everyone knows the flagship films. There’s the animated original, the better-than-expected straight-to-video sequel, and the 2019 remake. Real ones recall the late ’90s series Timon & Pumbaa and the spin-off film The Lion King 1 1/2. But there was actually another film and TV series released in the mid-2010s that casual fans may not remember. The movie was called The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar, and it acted as the pilot for the Disney Channel TV series The Lion Guard. Aimed at a preschool audience, this series isn’t talked about nearly as much when compared to other Lion King projects. Why is that? Was it its choice of target audience? Was it the fact that it arrived so long after the first movie? Or was it just overshadowed by the more well-known projects? Let’s look at everything we know about The Lion Guard and see if it’s worth a rewatch.
The Plot of ‘The Lion Guard’
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Release Date
January 15, 2016
Cast
Dusan Brown
, Joshua Rush
, Max Charles
, Atticus Shaffer
, Diamond White
, Peyton Elizabeth Lee
, Maia Mitchell
, Sarah Hyland
, Tunisia Hardison
, Jason Marsden
, Jacob Bertrand
, David Oyelowo
, Mekai Curtis
, Clyde Kusatsu
, Ai-chan Carrier
Seasons
3
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The Lion Guard debuted as the fourth Lion King movie on Disney Channel in November 2015. Rather than expand the story from the previous entries, it instead introduced a new group of characters. It followed Kion, the son of Simba and Nala, who had never been referenced in any other movie. Kion discovers that he can channel the roars of the Great Lion Kings of the past, which gives him power. Kion forms a team consisting of his non-lion friends to protect the Pride Lands. After first doubting him, Simba sees that Kion’s ready to step up and lead his new Lion Guard team.
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The TV series, debuting in January 2016, expands on what the movie set up. We see Kion and the rest of the Guard step up and protect the Pride Lands from threats. Almost all the characters from the Lion King movies appear, including Simba, Nala, Timon, Pumbaa, Mufasa, Rafiki, Zazu, Kiara, and Scar and the Outsider lions. Most roles are recast, with the exception of Pumbaa. Original Mufasa actor James Earl Jones does reprise his voice in the pilot movie, though he’s replaced for the series. Early episodes are mostly self-contained, though the series does experiment with story arcs later on. This includes the return of Scar as a ghost and confrontations with Zira and the Outsiders from The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride.
To fill in the continuity gaps and Kion’s absence in previous media, the first two seasons are explained as taking place within The Lion King II’s time jump, which saw Kiara grow from a cub to an adult. The third and final season takes place alongside Lion King II’s second act, often at the same time as exact plot points from the movie.
Why Is ‘The Lion Guard’ So Underrated?
It’s a shame that this show is so underrated, as it takes risks and expands The Lion King continuity in new, creative ways. It’s about as opposite to the first TV series, Timon & Pumbaa, as you could get. While that show took the characters out of the Pride Lands and into more contemporary, comedic settings, The Lion Guard took care to preserve that Lion King setting and feel. But maybe that style also worked against it.
It was marketed for Disney Junior as a show for the preschool demographic. That was a sharp departure from the whole-family vibe of the original movies. Despite the young target audience, the series did have its share of mature storylines. We saw Kion grow and develop as a character while tackling darker themes such as war and death. If it had been marketed as a more mature, all-ages show, maybe it could have attracted more fans.
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Another factor could have been the timing. In 2015, there had not been a new Lion King project since the 1 1/2 movie in 2004. A decade away meant that The Lion King wasn’t on most people’s radar in the mid-2010s. Of course, the original is still timeless, but no one was really clamoring for a new project. But we know the fandom was still there, as the 2019 remake netted $1.6 billion worldwide. So, was that excitement at the new movie? Or just curiosity about how the story of the original film would translate to “live-action,” as Disney called it.
Ask most filmgoers, and many will say they tuned in to watch the new remake to see if it was a shot-for-shot remake. We can’t really make any comparisons between The Lion Guard and The Lion King 2019. But if The Lion Guard had been held back a few years and released alongside the remake, maybe things would have been different. In any case, if you’re looking for a new underrated Lion King project to binge along with the new prequel/sequel, put The Lion Guard on your radar. All episodes currently stream on Disney+. Mufasa: The Lion King is in theaters now.
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