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Alfred J. Kwak

Alfred J. Kwak[a] is a Dutch-Japanese children's animated comedy-drama television series based on a Dutch theatre show by Herman van Veen, produced by Telecable Benelux B.V. in co-production with VARA, ZDF, TVE, TV Tokyo and animated by Telescreen Japan, and first shown in 1989. It consists of 52 episodes. The series characters were designed by Harald Siepermann.[2] There are also toys and a comic based on the animated series.

Alfred J. Kwak
Logo of Alfred J. Kwak
Created byHerman van Veen[1]
Written byAkira Miyazaki
Directed byHiroshi Saitō
Starring
  • Ryan van den Akker
  • Shigeru Chiba
  • Yuko Kobayashi
  • Takuzo Kamiyama
Music by
Country of origin
  • Japan
  • Netherlands
No. of episodes52[1]
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Kazuo Tabata
  • Sumio Takahashi
  • Manabu Tamura
  • Mutsuo Shimizu
Running time22−23 minutes
Production companies
Animation studioTelescreen Japan
Original release
NetworkTV Tokyo
Release3 April 1989 (1989-04-03) –
29 March 1990 (1990-03-29)

The series has been broadcast in many countries and has been dubbed and subtitled in Dutch, French, Japanese, Greek, English, Italian, Spanish, Hebrew, Arabic, Hungarian, Finnish, Serbian, Polish, German, Swedish, Danish, Icelandic, Chinese, Czech, Romanian, Korean and Norwegian.[3]

In 1991, Herman van Veen won the Goldene Kamera award for the cartoon.

Origins edit

When our children were still young, I wrote the first story on Alfred Jodocus Kwak. This was really caused by two things. One night I was driving my car home through the countryside, when I accidentally ran over a duck. I regretted it deeply. A few days later I was on the telephone at home and saw a mother duck and seven little ducklings wobbling through our garden. The man I was talking to on the phone was the leader of a symphonic orchestra. He asked if I could write a fairytale and if I could come over and tell and sing about it, while the orchestra would provide musical accompaniment. While we were talking I thought: "Could that mother duck be looking for her husband? And how do you explain to a duck that you've ran over another duck?" "Hello, hello?", the voice on the phone said, "What are you thinking about?" "I'm thinking of a duck", I replied. The man said: "Excellent, so you'll write us a fairytale about a duck." And that's how Alfred Jodocus Kwak was born, by accident.

Plot edit

Alfred J. Kwak was born as the son of Johan Sebastian and Anna Kwak. Some time after his birth, Alfred loses his parents and his brothers and sisters after a car hits them. Henk the mole, a good friend of the Kwak family, raises the little orphan duck. Alfred experiences a lot of adventures.

Unlike many other cartoons targeted for children, Alfred J. Kwak features exceptionally mature and often dark themes. Amongst others it deals with different social and political issues, such as abuse of power, but also raises important values such as friendship and solidarity.

The cartoon is also notable for the political themes on which it touches. In the cartoon, Alfred fights against a fascist dictator, takes in refugees fleeing from a country under Apartheid (with white geese and black ducks), saves whales against hunters, and oversees the changeover of his country from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy with a democratically elected president. Such themes are far from typical in a children's cartoon, and form a big part of Alfred J. Kwak's appeal. Other episodes have satirised the Japanese love of golf, and criticised countries which have sharp north/south economic divides.

The cartoon is also unusual for the subtlety of its long-term narrative. In most children's cartoons, the characters do not age. In Alfred J. Kwak, we see the progress of the main characters from very young children to adulthood as the series advances. This is particularly striking in the character of Dolf, who is initially a mere schoolboy, but who, as time passes, becomes a criminal and a dictator.

Setting edit

The time setting of the cartoon is somewhat surreal. On the whole the technology and dress of most characters seems appropriate to the late 20th century, and yet Alfred and Paljas/Boffin often travel in a spaceship with a technology far more advanced than that, while many characters such as the king's staff, Scratchpaws the cat, and Dolf in his Napoleonic incarnation wear clothes more appropriate to previous ages. Other surreal elements to the cartoon include such strange characters as the evil genie of the bottle, living chess pieces from Alfred's chess game, Pied Piper style Clown on the Moon, and aliens who appear like ducks except for their human-style feet, and a "dream" style wild West episode during which Dolf seems to become aware that he is a character in a cartoon.

Characters edit

Main characters edit

Alfred edit

Alfred Jodocus Kwak is a duck. As a baby he lived in a giant clog with his family. After his family was run over by a car, he was adopted by Henk and lives with him in a clog-shaped house. He is very concerned with other people and values many virtues, like human rights and good manners. Friends, family and the environment, are also close to his heart and he in some episodes even risks his own safety when it comes to do the right thing. Although he has gone through a lot of sad things, his favourite song is 'Ik ben vandaag zo vrolijk' (I'm so happy today). In the English version, his middle name is changed to "Johnathan". In the Hebrew version, His name is "Shealtiel". In the Icelandic version he is named Alfreð Önd.

Dolf edit

Dolf is Alfred's archenemy and first appears in episode 4. In the first episode Dolf's parents, a crow and a blackbird, can be seen making disparaging comments on the eggs of Alfred's mother. Both are dressed in traditional German garments. The father wears lederhosen, a feathered hat and, in the Dutch original, speaks with a heavy German accent, while Dolf's mother is seen in a dirndl outfit. In the German version, Dolf is called Kra, and in the Finnish version, him is called Korppi.

Oh, they look repulsive. Waterfowl aren't real birds, like us. So in a way I can understand why they are so vile and disgusting.

— Dolf's father, episode 1

Dolf gradually develops from a mere naughty schoolboy to a merciless dictator, an arms dealer, a reckless politician, and overall criminal. Though the show clearly portrays Dolf's acts as inherently negative and wrong, it also provides the background on how Dolf became who he is. For example, as a child, Dolf is prone to blame others for problems in which he too played a role. Dolf mentions that his mother died very early and that his father neglects him due to alcoholism. Dolf can also be seen to express a sense of self hate and poor self image; as he is disgusted by the fact that he is only part crow, and paints his orange beak black to disguise his true identity. When Alfred accidentally finds out about this, he cannot understand why Dolf is so ashamed and urges him to drop the secret and tell others about it. Dolf however is petrified and convinced that his friends will make fun of him, and makes Alfred swear he will never tell anyone about it. Episode 22 through 25 are essentially an allegory of the rise and fall of Fascism and Nazism, with Dolf himself, though wearing a Napoleonic uniform, as a clear caricature of Adolf Hitler. It begins with Dolf returning from abroad, in a train with Austrian markings, and meeting up with his friends. He then discusses the current political climate in Great Waterland, and expresses disgust of it. Dolf then decides to found a political party, the later National Crows Party, for which he goes to Alfred to lend money. He explains his ideas, but Alfred refuses and Dolf barges out of Alfred's house in a fit of rage. Alfred and Henk express their fear of Dolf, but Henk reassures Alfred that Dolf will never gather enough money to fund his intended party. Not much later however, Dolf inherits a huge fortune. He founds his party, which through promising employment and change quickly becomes a major and powerful political movement. Dolf eventually stages a coup d'etat and takes over the country. Political opponents, including Alfred, are imprisoned on the charge of high treason. Alfred and his friends barely escape and flee abroad to the neighboring country of Great Reedland. Not much later the King of Great Waterland himself flees as well, and Dolf proclaims himself Emperor Dolf I. Alfred and the other political dissidents however devised a plan to dispose of Dolf and steal Dolf's inheritances from the vaults of his palace. Without his money, Dolf's power quickly dwindles and he is forced to flee.

Dolf eventually makes an appearance as an illegal arms dealer and general criminal in further episodes. In the 43rd and 44th episodes, the King has decided to abdicate and for the first time democratic elections are held. Dolf once again attempts to rule Great Waterland as one of the three official candidates. In order to get ahead of other two candidates (Ollie being the first candidate), he hires some foreigners to sabotage the dam, which protects the waterland from being flooded by the seawater. After the dam has broken, Dolf cunningly withdraws his entry because he wants to *help* people and cannot waste time on a campaign. Dolf then publicly funds the repairs of the dam, skyrocketing his popularity and prompting his reentry in the presidential race. He then, in an attempt to get rid of any compromising evidence, tries to kill Lispel, who saw the criminal act. Lispel manages to escape and, though heavily wounded, is able to tell Alfred the truth on the flood.

Dolf manages to escape and continues his life of crime. In the final two episodes, Dolf becomes the henchman of an oil magnate who is attempting to get his hands on the blueprints of an environmentally friendly fuel, invented by Professor Buffon. After a fight, in which Dolf attempts to kill Alfred by pushing his car off the road, Dolf is again captured and is sentenced to 26 years of imprisonment. Aided by a former member of his Crows Party, he can escape and takes Winnie, Alfred's girlfriend, hostage. In the series' finale, after a manic hunt, Alfred finds Dolf, who tells him where Winnie is. After telling Alfred her whereabouts, Dolf attempts to escape, only to be caught by the police and put back into prison.

Henk edit

Henk is a mole and the adoptive father of Alfred. In the Israeli version, he is called Hafi, a diminutive for "Hafarperet" - the Hebrew word for "mole".

Winnie edit

Winnie is a black duck and Alfred's girlfriend, her name is a reference to Winnie Mandela. In the Dutch version, she speaks Afrikaans-accented Dutch. Afrikaans being a language closely related to Dutch and spoken in South Africa. Alfred meets her and her family, in episode 27, on a train leaving for Great Waterland after his holidays. Her family are refugees who escaped from their home country after it has been taken over by white geese. After Alfred helps her parents to sort out the problems in her country, she joins Alfred on many of his adventures and holidays. She works in the local university as a secretary (as first seen in episode 34) and lives with her brother Tom in a little house near the forest.

Secondary characters edit

  • Professor Paljas is an interdisciplinary academic. He is a polar bear, and speaks with a German accent. In the UK, Hungarian, Serbian, and Israeli versions he is called Professor Buffon. He makes his first appearance in episode 18, in which he attempts to communicate with the whales in the South Pole using his new invention "Jonus". He returns in episode 26, in which he asks Alfred to join him on his expedition to the Himalayas. He also travels (with Alfred of course), to Egypt to find the only medicine which can cure his ill colleague, and the jungle to investigate a volcano which keeps erupting. He cares a lot about the environment and develops a petrol for vehicles that doesn't expose any carbon monoxide and prevents acid rain.
  • Ollie is Alfred's close school-friend, a stork who grows up to be a lawyer, and later, after the defeat of Dolf, the first democratically elected president of Great Waterland. In the Dutch version, Ollie is a girl during childhood, but a male when he is an adult, confirming his status as Transgender. This change is never directly addressed in the series. In a Dutch interview from 2013 however, Van Veen stated that this gender change was intentional, since that also happens in the real world.[5] In the Israeli version, is a female and is named Lolly.
  • Pikkie is another friend of Alfred's from his schooldays. A magpie, Pikkie is prone to stealing shiny objects, a trait which often lands his friends in trouble. Pikkie is called Stibitzi in the German version, Ruby in the Israeli version, Grabbie in the UK version, Hannu in Finnish version and Grabljivko in Serbian version. He makes his first appearance in episode 2, in which he attends Alfred's first birthday party. He steals the king's ruby during a visit in the king's castle and Alfred gets blamed for it. He is often seen in the early episodes when Alfred was still at school. After episode 12 he isn't seen or spoken of for 19 episodes. We are not told what he did or where he was during Dolf's activism and other events. Alfred and Henk meet him again coincidentally on an oil rig, sporting a stubbly beard, where he worked as a diamond expert. In episode 49 he falls from the sky in front of Alfred's house after trying to fly to the rainbow. He joins Alfred, Prof. Paljas and Henk on an expedition to the rainforest in which the legendary Pot of Gold is kept. His weakness for shining objects persuades him to steal it but Dolf takes it from him at the airport.
  • Franz Ferdinand is a lion and the king of Great Waterland, the country in which Alfred lives. He is a well-meaning, yet lazy and incompetent monarch, with no interest in politics. He is named after the real historical figure Franz Ferdinand. He makes his first appearance in episode 2. In episode 20 Alfred wonders what kind of a king he is. He then is shown lying in his lemonade bath and enjoying life, when a servant comes in and tells him that the messenger from Great Sparrowland has arrived and wants to speak him. The king claims that he just got into the bath, but the servant reassures him that he's been in it for over two hours. The king asks the servant to speak with the messenger for him but since his signature is needed he reluctantly gets out of the bath. In episode 21 the king goes bankrupt and is forced to take loan from Alfred, which he doesn't pay back. After the rise of Dolf, the exiled king realises how careless and reluctant he has been, and begins to take interest in politics. After Dolf's fall, in the planning of which Franz Ferdinand was involved, he becomes a just and beloved king. In episode 43 however, he decides to surrender all his executive power and remain only as a ceremonial head of state, with a democratically elected president as the actual head of government.
  • Lispel is a sinister jellyfish and a spy working for the mayor of the city. As his name suggests, he talks with a lisp. He makes his first appearance in episode 7 as a contact to another agent. In episodes 14, 16 & 19 he informs the mayor of Alfred's plans of preventing him from making ships that catch all fish of the world. In episode 23, during Dolf's activism Lispel informs Dolf where Alfred and his friends are hiding after they escaped imprisonment. In episode 27 he sees Alfred taking in the refugees and threatens to tell the authorities unless he gets three gold coins. Alfred gives him the money but doesn't listen to Lispel's information (Which he must tell him, because he got his money). After several attempts of getting Alfred to listen to him, Lispel does go to the police and betrays them. Lispel makes some minor appearances in later episodes, but in episode 44, before the presidential elections, he sees Dolf and some hired foreigners damaging the dam which causes a huge flood. Dolf pays for repairs and equipment to become more popular, but Lispel threatens to tell unless he gets his gold. Dolf refuses because he thinks that Lispel will keep returning for more gold. By the docks (Their meeting point), Dolf pulls out a revolver and shoots Lispel several times. Lispel falls into the sea. Later in the episode he stands, badly injured, in Alfred's front garden and tells him everything. His last appearance is in episode 51 in which he informs the mayor of Prof. Paljas's plans on making a petrol which doesn't expose any gases or fumes. He receives his payment, leaves the mayor's house and is never seen again. He is not present at Alfred's birthday in the last episode.

Setting edit

Great Waterland edit

Great Waterland (Groot-Waterland in Dutch) is arguably the most important setting within the series. It is Alfred's birthplace as well the home, or future home, of many of the show's characters. It is, partly, a caricature of the Netherlands. The land consists of polders, the town Alfred lives in is built in a typical Dutch style, while he himself lives in a house made from a clog. For most of the series Great Waterland is an absolute monarchy, led by Franz Ferdinand, a lion. Near the conclusion of the show's first season Dolf assumes command, and Waterland briefly becomes an authoritarian fascist state, before reverting to a monarchy and eventually becoming a constitutional monarchy with an elected president.

Episode list edit

Theme songs and voice actors edit

Dutch version edit

Spetter Pieter Pater

Zo vrolijk

Dutch edit

Alfred J. Kwak is one of the first cartoon series in the Netherlands to feature an (almost) all-star cast. Actress Ryan van den Akker is Alfred and Herman van Veen is Professor Paljas (an alternate phrase for fool, clown).

Japanese version edit

Yakusoku da yo (約束だよ)

Happy Happy (ハッピー・ハッピー Happī Happī)

German version edit

Plätscher, Plitscher, Feder

Warum bin ich so fröhlich

English version edit

Never keep a good Duck down

Alfred Song

  • Performed by Alan Carr (ED)

Danish version edit

Sprøjte, pjatte, plaske

  • Performed by Lasse Lunderskov (OP)

I dag er jeg så lyk'lig

  • Performed by Vibeke Dueholm and Lasse Lunderskov (OP)

Hebrew version edit

בין טיפות המים

  • Performed by Orit Yaron

תמיד אני שמח

Finnish version edit

Alfred J. Kwak

  • Performed by Katja Liljestrand, Liisa Lind, Solveig Sundqvist and Heidi Yrjä

Onnenpäivä

  • Performed by Katja Liljestrand, Liisa Lind, Solveig Sundqvist and Heidi Yrjä

Italian version edit

"Niente paura, c'è Alfred!" (used as opening and ending theme)

  • Performed by Cristina D'Avena, lyrics written by Alessandra Valeri Manera, and composed by Ninni Carucci

Serbian version edit

  • Performed by Željko Plivelić


Swedish version

"Plaska, stänka, skvätta!"

Performed by Håkan Mohede

"Jag är så lycklig"

Performed by Nina Gunke

Credits edit

English version edit

Danish version edit

  • Distribution: Scanbox Danmark A/S
  • Translation: Tekstkontoret
  • Voices: Lasse Lunderskov, Tim Mehrens, Vibeke Dueholm

Hebrew version edit

  • Recorded at: Triton Studio
  • Voices: Orit Yaron, Yuval Zamir, Efron Etkin, Eli Gorenstein, Itzik Saidoff, Dov Reiser, Sarit Baruch-Seri, Shimon Cohen, Shosh Marciano, Gilat Ankori
  • Translator and director: Shafrira Zakai
  • Producer: Hasia Wertheim
  • Dubbing editor: Sonia Yudilevich

Finnish version edit

  • Recorded at: Yleisradio
  • Translation: Irja Hämäläinen, Marjatta Kilpi-Wikström, Arja Kuittinen, Marjatta Sario, Arja Kataja, Pirjo Aaltonen, Arja Kari-Ovaskainen, Marja Huuskonen, Kirsti Luova, Maija Rantanen, Jertta Ratia-Kähönen
  • Voices: Jarmo Koski, Martti Tschokkinen, Titta Jokinen, Pekka Autiovuori, Harri Hyttinen, Rabbe Smedlund, Pirkko Aarnio, Kauko Helovirta, Jukka Voutilainen (actor), Maria Salo, Kaija Kiiski, Voitto Nurmi
  • Director: Irja Hämäläinen, Marja Huuskonen
  • Voice recording: Timo Hintikka, Tarja Laaksonen, Pekka Heinonen, Matti Nuotio, Veijo Lehti, Ari Lyytikäinen, Heikki Häkkinen, Pekka Vanhanen

Serbian version edit

  • Voices: Violeta Peković, Nebojša Burović, Tatjana Stanković, Goran Peković
  • Translation: Neda Kovačević
  • Songs: Željko Plivelić
  • Tone master: Nebojša Burović
  • Executive producer: Vladan Škrkić
  • Dubbed by: BK TV

Alternative titles edit

  • Alfred J. Quack
  • Little Duck's Big Love Story
  • The Adventures of Alfred J. Quack
  • Alfred Jodocus Kwak (Dutch)
  • Alfred Jonatan Kwak (Polish)
  • Приключения Альфреда Квака (Priklyuchenia Alfreda Kwaka) (Russian)
  • Niente paura, c'è Alfred! (Italian)
  • Rasmus Rap (Danish)
  • آلفرد كواك ("Alferd Quack") (Arabic)
  • שאלתיאל קוואק (She'al'ti'el Quack) (Hebrew)
  • Alfred Andreas Kvakk (Norwegian)
  • Alfred Jeremias Kvack (Swedish)
  • Alfred J. Kwak (Finnish)
  • Alfréd a kacsa (Hungarian)
  • Rățoiul Alfred (Romanian)
  • Alfred Džonatan Kvak (Алфред Џонатан Квак) (Serbian)
  • 鴨鴨歷險記 (Yia1 Yia1 Li4 Tian3 Gi4, The Adventures of Ducky) (Chinese)
  • Alfreð Æringi Önd (Icelandic)
  • Ο Άλφρεντ το παπί (O Álfred to papí) (Greek)
  • 오리대장 꽉꽉 (Ori Daejang Ggwak Ggwak, "Captain Duck Ggwak Ggwak") (Korean)

Notes edit

  1. ^ Known in Japan as Kwak the Duck (Japanese: あひるのクワック, Hepburn: Ahiru no Kuwakku)

References edit

  1. ^ a b Wolf, Matt (11 November 1990). . Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 19 October 2018. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
  2. ^ Amidi, Amid (16 February 2013). "Harald Siepermann (1962-2013)". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
  3. ^ Clements, Jonathan; McCarthy, Helen (2015). The Anime Encyclopedia: A Century of Japanese Animation. Stone Bridge Press. p. 103. ISBN 9781611729092. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  4. ^ . Archived from the original on 19 October 2007. Retrieved 12 July 2017. (It's in the ‘Over Alfred’ section: ‘Toen onze … geboren, per ongeluk.’)
  5. ^ "Ik stelde Herman van Veen alle vragen over Alfred Jodocus Kwak die ik ooit nog wilde stellen". Vice (in Dutch). 8 November 2013. Retrieved 15 July 2017.

External links edit

  • - A more complete overview of the story's history (Dutch)
  • Alfred J. Kwak (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
  • Alfred J. Kwak at IMDb  

alfred, kwak, this, article, multiple, issues, please, help, improve, discuss, these, issues, talk, page, learn, when, remove, these, template, messages, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, c. This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Alfred J Kwak news newspapers books scholar JSTOR November 2015 Learn how and when to remove this message This article possibly contains original research Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations Statements consisting only of original research should be removed July 2017 Learn how and when to remove this message Learn how and when to remove this message Alfred J Kwak a is a Dutch Japanese children s animated comedy drama television series based on a Dutch theatre show by Herman van Veen produced by Telecable Benelux B V in co production with VARA ZDF TVE TV Tokyo and animated by Telescreen Japan and first shown in 1989 It consists of 52 episodes The series characters were designed by Harald Siepermann 2 There are also toys and a comic based on the animated series Alfred J KwakLogo of Alfred J KwakCreated byHerman van Veen 1 Written byAkira MiyazakiDirected byHiroshi SaitōStarringRyan van den Akker Shigeru Chiba Yuko Kobayashi Takuzo KamiyamaMusic byErik van der Wurff Harry Sacksioni Herman van Veen Hans Jurgen BuchnerCountry of originJapan NetherlandsNo of episodes52 1 ProductionExecutive producersHerman van Veen Dennis LivsonProducersKazuo Tabata Sumio Takahashi Manabu Tamura Mutsuo ShimizuRunning time22 23 minutesProduction companiesTelecable Benelux B V VARA ZDF TVEAnimation studioTelescreen JapanOriginal releaseNetworkTV TokyoRelease3 April 1989 1989 04 03 29 March 1990 1990 03 29 The series has been broadcast in many countries and has been dubbed and subtitled in Dutch French Japanese Greek English Italian Spanish Hebrew Arabic Hungarian Finnish Serbian Polish German Swedish Danish Icelandic Chinese Czech Romanian Korean and Norwegian 3 In 1991 Herman van Veen won the Goldene Kamera award for the cartoon Contents 1 Origins 2 Plot 2 1 Setting 3 Characters 3 1 Main characters 3 1 1 Alfred 3 1 2 Dolf 3 1 3 Henk 3 1 4 Winnie 3 2 Secondary characters 3 3 Setting 3 3 1 Great Waterland 4 Episode list 5 Theme songs and voice actors 5 1 Dutch version 5 2 Dutch 5 3 Japanese version 5 4 German version 5 5 English version 5 6 Danish version 5 7 Hebrew version 5 8 Finnish version 5 9 Italian version 5 10 Serbian version 6 Credits 6 1 English version 6 2 Danish version 6 3 Hebrew version 6 4 Finnish version 6 5 Serbian version 7 Alternative titles 8 Notes 9 References 10 External linksOrigins editWhen our children were still young I wrote the first story on Alfred Jodocus Kwak This was really caused by two things One night I was driving my car home through the countryside when I accidentally ran over a duck I regretted it deeply A few days later I was on the telephone at home and saw a mother duck and seven little ducklings wobbling through our garden The man I was talking to on the phone was the leader of a symphonic orchestra He asked if I could write a fairytale and if I could come over and tell and sing about it while the orchestra would provide musical accompaniment While we were talking I thought Could that mother duck be looking for her husband And how do you explain to a duck that you ve ran over another duck Hello hello the voice on the phone said What are you thinking about I m thinking of a duck I replied The man said Excellent so you ll write us a fairytale about a duck And that s how Alfred Jodocus Kwak was born by accident Herman van Veen 4 Plot editAlfred J Kwak was born as the son of Johan Sebastian and Anna Kwak Some time after his birth Alfred loses his parents and his brothers and sisters after a car hits them Henk the mole a good friend of the Kwak family raises the little orphan duck Alfred experiences a lot of adventures Unlike many other cartoons targeted for children Alfred J Kwak features exceptionally mature and often dark themes Amongst others it deals with different social and political issues such as abuse of power but also raises important values such as friendship and solidarity The cartoon is also notable for the political themes on which it touches In the cartoon Alfred fights against a fascist dictator takes in refugees fleeing from a country under Apartheid with white geese and black ducks saves whales against hunters and oversees the changeover of his country from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy with a democratically elected president Such themes are far from typical in a children s cartoon and form a big part of Alfred J Kwak s appeal Other episodes have satirised the Japanese love of golf and criticised countries which have sharp north south economic divides The cartoon is also unusual for the subtlety of its long term narrative In most children s cartoons the characters do not age In Alfred J Kwak we see the progress of the main characters from very young children to adulthood as the series advances This is particularly striking in the character of Dolf who is initially a mere schoolboy but who as time passes becomes a criminal and a dictator Setting edit The time setting of the cartoon is somewhat surreal On the whole the technology and dress of most characters seems appropriate to the late 20th century and yet Alfred and Paljas Boffin often travel in a spaceship with a technology far more advanced than that while many characters such as the king s staff Scratchpaws the cat and Dolf in his Napoleonic incarnation wear clothes more appropriate to previous ages Other surreal elements to the cartoon include such strange characters as the evil genie of the bottle living chess pieces from Alfred s chess game Pied Piper style Clown on the Moon and aliens who appear like ducks except for their human style feet and a dream style wild West episode during which Dolf seems to become aware that he is a character in a cartoon Characters editMain characters edit Alfred edit Alfred Jodocus Kwak is a duck As a baby he lived in a giant clog with his family After his family was run over by a car he was adopted by Henk and lives with him in a clog shaped house He is very concerned with other people and values many virtues like human rights and good manners Friends family and the environment are also close to his heart and he in some episodes even risks his own safety when it comes to do the right thing Although he has gone through a lot of sad things his favourite song is Ik ben vandaag zo vrolijk I m so happy today In the English version his middle name is changed to Johnathan In the Hebrew version His name is Shealtiel In the Icelandic version he is named Alfred Ond Dolf edit Dolf is Alfred s archenemy and first appears in episode 4 In the first episode Dolf s parents a crow and a blackbird can be seen making disparaging comments on the eggs of Alfred s mother Both are dressed in traditional German garments The father wears lederhosen a feathered hat and in the Dutch original speaks with a heavy German accent while Dolf s mother is seen in a dirndl outfit In the German version Dolf is called Kra and in the Finnish version him is called Korppi Oh they look repulsive Waterfowl aren t real birds like us So in a way I can understand why they are so vile and disgusting Dolf s father episode 1 Dolf gradually develops from a mere naughty schoolboy to a merciless dictator an arms dealer a reckless politician and overall criminal Though the show clearly portrays Dolf s acts as inherently negative and wrong it also provides the background on how Dolf became who he is For example as a child Dolf is prone to blame others for problems in which he too played a role Dolf mentions that his mother died very early and that his father neglects him due to alcoholism Dolf can also be seen to express a sense of self hate and poor self image as he is disgusted by the fact that he is only part crow and paints his orange beak black to disguise his true identity When Alfred accidentally finds out about this he cannot understand why Dolf is so ashamed and urges him to drop the secret and tell others about it Dolf however is petrified and convinced that his friends will make fun of him and makes Alfred swear he will never tell anyone about it Episode 22 through 25 are essentially an allegory of the rise and fall of Fascism and Nazism with Dolf himself though wearing a Napoleonic uniform as a clear caricature of Adolf Hitler It begins with Dolf returning from abroad in a train with Austrian markings and meeting up with his friends He then discusses the current political climate in Great Waterland and expresses disgust of it Dolf then decides to found a political party the later National Crows Party for which he goes to Alfred to lend money He explains his ideas but Alfred refuses and Dolf barges out of Alfred s house in a fit of rage Alfred and Henk express their fear of Dolf but Henk reassures Alfred that Dolf will never gather enough money to fund his intended party Not much later however Dolf inherits a huge fortune He founds his party which through promising employment and change quickly becomes a major and powerful political movement Dolf eventually stages a coup d etat and takes over the country Political opponents including Alfred are imprisoned on the charge of high treason Alfred and his friends barely escape and flee abroad to the neighboring country of Great Reedland Not much later the King of Great Waterland himself flees as well and Dolf proclaims himself Emperor Dolf I Alfred and the other political dissidents however devised a plan to dispose of Dolf and steal Dolf s inheritances from the vaults of his palace Without his money Dolf s power quickly dwindles and he is forced to flee Dolf eventually makes an appearance as an illegal arms dealer and general criminal in further episodes In the 43rd and 44th episodes the King has decided to abdicate and for the first time democratic elections are held Dolf once again attempts to rule Great Waterland as one of the three official candidates In order to get ahead of other two candidates Ollie being the first candidate he hires some foreigners to sabotage the dam which protects the waterland from being flooded by the seawater After the dam has broken Dolf cunningly withdraws his entry because he wants to help people and cannot waste time on a campaign Dolf then publicly funds the repairs of the dam skyrocketing his popularity and prompting his reentry in the presidential race He then in an attempt to get rid of any compromising evidence tries to kill Lispel who saw the criminal act Lispel manages to escape and though heavily wounded is able to tell Alfred the truth on the flood Dolf manages to escape and continues his life of crime In the final two episodes Dolf becomes the henchman of an oil magnate who is attempting to get his hands on the blueprints of an environmentally friendly fuel invented by Professor Buffon After a fight in which Dolf attempts to kill Alfred by pushing his car off the road Dolf is again captured and is sentenced to 26 years of imprisonment Aided by a former member of his Crows Party he can escape and takes Winnie Alfred s girlfriend hostage In the series finale after a manic hunt Alfred finds Dolf who tells him where Winnie is After telling Alfred her whereabouts Dolf attempts to escape only to be caught by the police and put back into prison Henk edit Henk is a mole and the adoptive father of Alfred In the Israeli version he is called Hafi a diminutive for Hafarperet the Hebrew word for mole Winnie edit Winnie is a black duck and Alfred s girlfriend her name is a reference to Winnie Mandela In the Dutch version she speaks Afrikaans accented Dutch Afrikaans being a language closely related to Dutch and spoken in South Africa Alfred meets her and her family in episode 27 on a train leaving for Great Waterland after his holidays Her family are refugees who escaped from their home country after it has been taken over by white geese After Alfred helps her parents to sort out the problems in her country she joins Alfred on many of his adventures and holidays She works in the local university as a secretary as first seen in episode 34 and lives with her brother Tom in a little house near the forest Secondary characters edit Professor Paljas is an interdisciplinary academic He is a polar bear and speaks with a German accent In the UK Hungarian Serbian and Israeli versions he is called Professor Buffon He makes his first appearance in episode 18 in which he attempts to communicate with the whales in the South Pole using his new invention Jonus He returns in episode 26 in which he asks Alfred to join him on his expedition to the Himalayas He also travels with Alfred of course to Egypt to find the only medicine which can cure his ill colleague and the jungle to investigate a volcano which keeps erupting He cares a lot about the environment and develops a petrol for vehicles that doesn t expose any carbon monoxide and prevents acid rain Ollie is Alfred s close school friend a stork who grows up to be a lawyer and later after the defeat of Dolf the first democratically elected president of Great Waterland In the Dutch version Ollie is a girl during childhood but a male when he is an adult confirming his status as Transgender This change is never directly addressed in the series In a Dutch interview from 2013 however Van Veen stated that this gender change was intentional since that also happens in the real world 5 In the Israeli version is a female and is named Lolly Pikkie is another friend of Alfred s from his schooldays A magpie Pikkie is prone to stealing shiny objects a trait which often lands his friends in trouble Pikkie is called Stibitzi in the German version Ruby in the Israeli version Grabbie in the UK version Hannu in Finnish version and Grabljivko in Serbian version He makes his first appearance in episode 2 in which he attends Alfred s first birthday party He steals the king s ruby during a visit in the king s castle and Alfred gets blamed for it He is often seen in the early episodes when Alfred was still at school After episode 12 he isn t seen or spoken of for 19 episodes We are not told what he did or where he was during Dolf s activism and other events Alfred and Henk meet him again coincidentally on an oil rig sporting a stubbly beard where he worked as a diamond expert In episode 49 he falls from the sky in front of Alfred s house after trying to fly to the rainbow He joins Alfred Prof Paljas and Henk on an expedition to the rainforest in which the legendary Pot of Gold is kept His weakness for shining objects persuades him to steal it but Dolf takes it from him at the airport Franz Ferdinand is a lion and the king of Great Waterland the country in which Alfred lives He is a well meaning yet lazy and incompetent monarch with no interest in politics He is named after the real historical figure Franz Ferdinand He makes his first appearance in episode 2 In episode 20 Alfred wonders what kind of a king he is He then is shown lying in his lemonade bath and enjoying life when a servant comes in and tells him that the messenger from Great Sparrowland has arrived and wants to speak him The king claims that he just got into the bath but the servant reassures him that he s been in it for over two hours The king asks the servant to speak with the messenger for him but since his signature is needed he reluctantly gets out of the bath In episode 21 the king goes bankrupt and is forced to take loan from Alfred which he doesn t pay back After the rise of Dolf the exiled king realises how careless and reluctant he has been and begins to take interest in politics After Dolf s fall in the planning of which Franz Ferdinand was involved he becomes a just and beloved king In episode 43 however he decides to surrender all his executive power and remain only as a ceremonial head of state with a democratically elected president as the actual head of government Lispel is a sinister jellyfish and a spy working for the mayor of the city As his name suggests he talks with a lisp He makes his first appearance in episode 7 as a contact to another agent In episodes 14 16 amp 19 he informs the mayor of Alfred s plans of preventing him from making ships that catch all fish of the world In episode 23 during Dolf s activism Lispel informs Dolf where Alfred and his friends are hiding after they escaped imprisonment In episode 27 he sees Alfred taking in the refugees and threatens to tell the authorities unless he gets three gold coins Alfred gives him the money but doesn t listen to Lispel s information Which he must tell him because he got his money After several attempts of getting Alfred to listen to him Lispel does go to the police and betrays them Lispel makes some minor appearances in later episodes but in episode 44 before the presidential elections he sees Dolf and some hired foreigners damaging the dam which causes a huge flood Dolf pays for repairs and equipment to become more popular but Lispel threatens to tell unless he gets his gold Dolf refuses because he thinks that Lispel will keep returning for more gold By the docks Their meeting point Dolf pulls out a revolver and shoots Lispel several times Lispel falls into the sea Later in the episode he stands badly injured in Alfred s front garden and tells him everything His last appearance is in episode 51 in which he informs the mayor of Prof Paljas s plans on making a petrol which doesn t expose any gases or fumes He receives his payment leaves the mayor s house and is never seen again He is not present at Alfred s birthday in the last episode Setting edit Great Waterland edit Great Waterland Groot Waterland in Dutch is arguably the most important setting within the series It is Alfred s birthplace as well the home or future home of many of the show s characters It is partly a caricature of the Netherlands The land consists of polders the town Alfred lives in is built in a typical Dutch style while he himself lives in a house made from a clog For most of the series Great Waterland is an absolute monarchy led by Franz Ferdinand a lion Near the conclusion of the show s first season Dolf assumes command and Waterland briefly becomes an authoritarian fascist state before reverting to a monarchy and eventually becoming a constitutional monarchy with an elected president Episode list editSeason 1 Alfred Comes to LifeAlfred s First BirthdayThe Ruby of the CrownMy Father Is HenkDolf s SecretThe Great RaceSea Scouts Part 1Sea Scouts Part 2The Strange BottleFlying CarpetAlfred Joins the CircusAlfred s Chess AdventureThe Queen Loses Her CrownLet s Find the SawfishAlfred s Perilous VoyageThe Search for the WhalesVisitors from Outer SpaceThe Southern CrossThe Ocean Belong to All of UsDesert DreamThe King Takes a LoanDolf Is JusticeEscape from the Crow PartyEmperor Dolf the FirstThe Decline and Fall of Emperor DolfThe Snowman Season 2 Love at First SightA Gift from the KingJourney to AtA Turtle IslandDrilling for OilThey Come to AtlantisGunfight at TombstoneThe Riddle of the PyramidThe LabyrinthThe Course of True LoveAn Invitation from the PrinceLove UnitesWho Wants to Marry a WitchThe Stolen PanThe Volcano EruptsSave the DragonVote for OllieDolf Takes a ChanceThe Strange EpidemicClown on the MoonThe Magic FiddleHow About a Game of GolfLooking for the RainbowPot of GoldForests of Fuel Dolf s Last StandTheme songs and voice actors editThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed November 2020 Learn how and when to remove this message Dutch version edit Spetter Pieter Pater Performed by Herman van Veen OP Zo vrolijk Performed by Ryan van den Akker and Herman van Veen ED Dutch edit Alfred J Kwak is one of the first cartoon series in the Netherlands to feature an almost all star cast Actress Ryan van den Akker is Alfred and Herman van Veen is Professor Paljas an alternate phrase for fool clown Japanese version edit Yakusoku da yo 約束だよ Performed by Megumi Hayashibara OP Happy Happy ハッピー ハッピー Happi Happi Performed by Megumi Hayashibara ED German version edit Platscher Plitscher Feder Performed by Ryan van den Akker lalala part and Herman van Veen OP Warum bin ich so frohlich Performed by Ryan van den Akker and Herman van Veen ED English version edit Never keep a good Duck down Performed by Alan Carr Russell Shaw OP Alfred Song Performed by Alan Carr ED Danish version edit Sprojte pjatte plaske Performed by Lasse Lunderskov OP I dag er jeg sa lyk lig Performed by Vibeke Dueholm and Lasse Lunderskov OP Hebrew version edit בין טיפות המים Performed by Orit Yaron תמיד אני שמח Performed by Orit Yaron and Yuval Zamir Finnish version edit Alfred J Kwak Performed by Katja Liljestrand Liisa Lind Solveig Sundqvist and Heidi Yrja Onnenpaiva Performed by Katja Liljestrand Liisa Lind Solveig Sundqvist and Heidi Yrja Italian version edit Niente paura c e Alfred used as opening and ending theme Performed by Cristina D Avena lyrics written by Alessandra Valeri Manera and composed by Ninni Carucci Serbian version edit Performed by Zeljko Plivelic Swedish version Plaska stanka skvatta Performed by Hakan Mohede Jag ar sa lycklig Performed by Nina GunkeCredits editThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed November 2020 Learn how and when to remove this message Original idea and storylines Herman van Veen Scripts and storyboards Akira Miyazaki Director Hiroshi Saito Production supervisor Matsue Jimbo Character designer and storyboard supervisor Harald Siepermann Background designs Hans Bacher Susumu Shiraume Masaru Amamizu Colour designs Hans Bacher Filming director Hisao Shirai Music Herman van Veen Erik van der Wurff Nard Reijnders Lyrics Herman van Veen Sound direction Shigeharu Shiba Production managers Manabu Tamura Tamehide Hyakuzuka Tuneumi Nakamura Production studios Telescreen Japan Inc Teleimage Inc Visual 80 Producer Kazuo Tabata Executive producer Dennis Livson Produced by Telecable Benelux B V In co production with TV Tokyo Japan Vara Netherlands ZDF Germany Television Espanola Spain English version edit Recorded at EPK Work in Arts Bray Studios UK Voices John Baddeley Alan Carr Steve Cooke Melvyn Hayes Jill Lidstone Hugo Myatt Lyn Beardsall Director Stanley Joseph Dubbing editor Russell Shaw Danish version edit Distribution Scanbox Danmark A S Translation Tekstkontoret Voices Lasse Lunderskov Tim Mehrens Vibeke Dueholm Hebrew version edit Recorded at Triton Studio Voices Orit Yaron Yuval Zamir Efron Etkin Eli Gorenstein Itzik Saidoff Dov Reiser Sarit Baruch Seri Shimon Cohen Shosh Marciano Gilat Ankori Translator and director Shafrira Zakai Producer Hasia Wertheim Dubbing editor Sonia Yudilevich Finnish version edit Recorded at Yleisradio Translation Irja Hamalainen Marjatta Kilpi Wikstrom Arja Kuittinen Marjatta Sario Arja Kataja Pirjo Aaltonen Arja Kari Ovaskainen Marja Huuskonen Kirsti Luova Maija Rantanen Jertta Ratia Kahonen Voices Jarmo Koski Martti Tschokkinen Titta Jokinen Pekka Autiovuori Harri Hyttinen Rabbe Smedlund Pirkko Aarnio Kauko Helovirta Jukka Voutilainen actor Maria Salo Kaija Kiiski Voitto Nurmi Director Irja Hamalainen Marja Huuskonen Voice recording Timo Hintikka Tarja Laaksonen Pekka Heinonen Matti Nuotio Veijo Lehti Ari Lyytikainen Heikki Hakkinen Pekka Vanhanen Serbian version edit Voices Violeta Pekovic Nebojsa Burovic Tatjana Stankovic Goran Pekovic Translation Neda Kovacevic Songs Zeljko Plivelic Tone master Nebojsa Burovic Executive producer Vladan Skrkic Dubbed by BK TVAlternative titles editAlfred J Quack Little Duck s Big Love Story The Adventures of Alfred J Quack Alfred Jodocus Kwak Dutch Alfred Jonatan Kwak Polish Priklyucheniya Alfreda Kvaka Priklyuchenia Alfreda Kwaka Russian Niente paura c e Alfred Italian Rasmus Rap Danish آلفرد كواك Alferd Quack Arabic שאלתיאל קוואק She al ti el Quack Hebrew Alfred Andreas Kvakk Norwegian Alfred Jeremias Kvack Swedish Alfred J Kwak Finnish Alfred a kacsa Hungarian Rățoiul Alfred Romanian Alfred Dzonatan Kvak Alfred Џonatan Kvak Serbian 鴨鴨歷險記 Yia1 Yia1 Li4 Tian3 Gi4 The Adventures of Ducky Chinese Alfred AEringi Ond Icelandic O Alfrent to papi O Alfred to papi Greek 오리대장 꽉꽉 Ori Daejang Ggwak Ggwak Captain Duck Ggwak Ggwak Korean Notes edit Known in Japan as Kwak the Duck Japanese あひるのクワック Hepburn Ahiru no Kuwakku References edit a b Wolf Matt 11 November 1990 Herman Van Who Chicago Tribune Archived from the original on 19 October 2018 Retrieved 19 October 2010 Amidi Amid 16 February 2013 Harald Siepermann 1962 2013 Cartoon Brew Retrieved 2 March 2013 Clements Jonathan McCarthy Helen 2015 The Anime Encyclopedia A Century of Japanese Animation Stone Bridge Press p 103 ISBN 9781611729092 Retrieved 12 July 2017 Alfred Jodocus Kwak Archived from the original on 19 October 2007 Retrieved 12 July 2017 It s in the Over Alfred section Toen onze geboren per ongeluk Ik stelde Herman van Veen alle vragen over Alfred Jodocus Kwak die ik ooit nog wilde stellen Vice in Dutch 8 November 2013 Retrieved 15 July 2017 External links editjodokus nl A more complete overview of the story s history Dutch Alfred J Kwak anime at Anime News Network s encyclopedia Alfred J Kwak at IMDb nbsp Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Alfred J Kwak amp oldid 1218910957, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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