Hello fellow PBSers,

I didn't know where to post this, so I figured the fantasy forum seemed the likeliest. All the same, I hope someone can help.

My explanation of the story I’m looking for is a bit complicated. I’m not sure if it’s a fantasy story, a fairy tale, etc. It may even have been a story that I just saw on TV and the writers never pulled from any fairy tale/fantasy story at all. But in any event, if someone recognizes this story, or knows of a book with even a slightly similar plotline, I would dearly love to hear it. This story has rolled around in my mind for at least 20 years and I’m finally taking action to see if I can find it written somewhere.

Many years ago I used to watch Nickelodeon. I think every day at a certain time they had this particular cartoon. I want to say a lot of the cartoons they showed were cartoons of fairy tales. I even want to say the title of this cartoon thing indicated they were fairy tales. I have no idea. This is all I know. 20 years ago I only could rely on the TV schedule featured on the TV. Finding out anything was impossible! Lol.

Anyway, this is what I remember of this particular episode. There was a young boy playing with his ball. I do believe he was a prince. He was told not to play near this particular place because a monster was imprisoned there. But of course the prince did, and his ball bounced into the monster’s area. The monster would give it back but on the condition the prince let him free. The prince, wanting his ball, decided to open the prison.

At this time the monster attempted to escape. The prince was upset and said that he couldn’t leave because he would be in big trouble. So the monster, for uncertain reasons, took the prince with him.

The details here are fuzzy. I know the monster deposited him in an unknown town. The monster said if he ever needed anything, come to this particular lake…or something. The prince wound up having to get a job as a gardener’s assistant. Where, while tending the gardens and such things like that, he met the princess of the king who ruled the area.

Since this is getting long, I’ll just jump ahead. Invaders were coming, and the king had no real protection. So the prince went to the lake the monster told him to come and begged for some help. Out of the lake shot knight after knight on horseback. And the prince himself was somehow dressed in armor and went off to lead the newly-risen soldiers. And naturally, he and the soldiers defeated the invaders.

That is more or less the cartoon I saw. If anyone knows of the story I’m talking about, or, as mentioned already, knows of a good fantasy book like this, I would be interested in hearing it. This was one fantasy/fairy tale story that I loved, and it’s bugged me for these many years that I don’t even know what it was called!

I’ll say thanks in advance!

Natalie B.

http://www.logan.com/loganberry/stump.html

This site does book stumps so someone might know as most of those Nic toons are based on real fairytales.