the Simba - Kimba controversy

[Biomac]

I'm glad to see that we have the thoughts . I'm watching the Kimba ATM, and it's totally different from TLK.

[TheLionPrince]

[quote="Biomac_92"]I'm glad to see that we have the thoughts . I'm watching the Kimba ATM, and it's totally different from TLK.[/quote]

The 1966 series or Jungle Emperor Leo?

BTW, here's an interesting article from The Los Angeles Times on the Kimba-Simba controversy: http://articles.latimes.com/1994-07-13/ ... _lion-king

[Biomac]

Yes I'm watching the 1966 serie.

[Jiirani]

Disney tried to obtain the rights to Kimba to make a remake, if my memory serves correctly. They had started working on it before they got permission, and were turned down. So they made TLK instead or something. It's been a long time...

Now, there are a few similarities, namely the characters looking quite similar, and there were similar scenes like Kimba's father appearing in the sky. There aren't that many similarities, both stories have different plots and are both quite good stories. You don't need to point out the differences, they're quite obvious. A lot of people wouldn't have discovered Kimba without this controversy. I'm a fan of JE, I like it more than TLK now. The whole controversy sort of put me off of TLK though.

Anyway, Kimba the White Lion was actually inspired by Disney's Bambi, and The Lion King was 'Bambi in africa' [hence the black marks on Simba's ears]. So, without Disney there'd be no Kimba and without Kimba well there may not have been a TLK. Or there may not have been some scenes in it.

[MooLion]

Personally wasn't impressed by what I saw of the Kimba series. Similarities... doesn't matter. TLK all the way.

[Shenzi Kopa]

I do not know the Kimba series although I did watch the first episode...or is it first PART of the original Japanese where his name is Leo on youtube. I had intended on continuing watching but all I could find after was an English episode that was not at the beginning.

If anyone knows where I can find it, please share. I'd like to see the rest of it so I can make a proper evaluation but here is what I can say so far:

From what I can remember of that first episode, and from images I just saw trying to search it again on youtube, TLK bares no resemblance except the father being killed.
TLK is in fact a rough spoof of Shakespeare's Hamlet (and the second film Romeo and Juliet which is likely why Disney rejected Kopa for Simba's child, a son clearly doesn't fit that storyline).

Based on what I have seen other members say while scanning the previous posts, it seems like at most Disney may have just gotten the idea to use lions from Leo. People might also be accusatory due to the similar sounding names which have a one letter difference in spelling; Kimba, Simba.

[Paul Wermuth]

When I was a child, back in 1984, I used to wake up at 5am, well before the time I had to to be on school on time. I would run down stairs and watch all of Kimba's adventures. I bought all his adventures on VHS around 1996 and watched them all, still loved them. When TLK came out I was in heaven. To me it was a refined version of Leo the White Lion.

[Pocahontas]

I adored the Kimba 1966 and 1989 series as a kid growing up, most of what people watch when hearing about Kimba is the old series, I think everyone who hears about the similarities should watch the movie Jungle Emperor Leo, '66 Kimba was made to be child-friendly by NBC, the original manga in my opinion was Tezuka's finest work, he was actually a huge Disney Fan and often drew Walt Disney christmas card's of Astro Boy or Kimba with Mickey Mouse! Jungle Emperor Leo, based off the second half of the story, with Leo (Kimba) as an adult, is a movie with much drama, heart, and in my opinion is better than TLK. Now, after my fan girl rant, here is what I think of the controversy surrounding these two stories.

There is little similarities in the story besides the main character's (Leo's) father dying, the world is full of humans and a white lion cub creating a close bond with a doctor before returning to his home in the jungle, trying to live up to his father's place. That is really the only similarity, the tragic death of his father (and in Kimba's case, his mother also) and perhaps one scene where a lioness pretending to be his aunt has him hanging over a cliff (In the 1966 series). Tlk is a timeless story, based of an actual monarch, while JEL is about a hunter trying to gain power by hunting down a legendary stone on the mountain in Leo's home, which causes one of his cubs to go missing. Simba running away and Lune (Kimba/Leo's) kid could be seen as a similarity, yes the movie was made after TLK came out, but the manga was published in the 60's. Plus, does TLK have a mammoth? A major character's suicide to save loved one's? Sure, there's a lion's shape in the sky, but come on.....

TL:DR: Kimba should be watched as Jungle Emperor Leo, there is little similarity between both productions, both have different morals and time of story, both are great, yadda yadda yadda.

[Regulus]

[quote="MooLion"]Personally wasn't impressed by what I saw of the Kimba series. Similarities... doesn't matter. TLK all the way.[/quote]

Couldn't have said it better.

[Sigurd]

I don't think they're similar. Every movie has elements borrowed from another one. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't TLK the first Disney movie that isn't based on an already existing book or fairy tale (yes, they took elements from Hamlet, but they weren't lions in Hamlet)