"A Mystical World... A Magical Time"
Thus starts one of the more interesting shows to come out of the Saban sweatshops. Modeled after the Power Rangers and Beetleborgs, two of Saban's previous hits, the show is a live-action, martial-arts-style action adventure with heroes who transform into super powered defenders fighting against a horde of terrible creatures. But that's where the similarity ends. Unlike most of Saban's live-action shows, this one is set in ancient times, being (very loosely) based on Celtic mythos and old English folk tales. The story follows the adventures of the "Chosen One", a young druid's apprentice named Rohan. In order to prevent Queen Maeve from conquering the land of Kells, Rohan and his friends, Prince Ivar (A Moor), Angus, Princess Deirdre, and Garrett, must wield the mystic weapons granted to them by Fin Varra, the King of Tir na Nog. Much like their Power Ranger cousins, the Mystic Knights "transform" into superheroes by invoking the elements: Fire, Air, Earth, Water and Forest.
Despite the overall cheesiness of the monsters, plastic armour, and oversized weapons, the show had some overwhelmingly good points to it. First of all, it's the first children's show to have a main character who's Irish, played by an actor who's Irish as well. It's also the first show of it's kind to focus on Celtic history and mythos. While it makes the same sorts of stretches that Kevin Sorbo's "Hercules" makes about Greek myths, it's enough that it gets the children interested. Unfortunately, the show only ran one season (1998-1999), a total of fifty episodes, before getting the axe - hardly even a chance to develop a following. Of course, this did not stop Bandai from marketing numerous toys, including a deal with McDonalds to distribute smaller versions to help build interest.
The "Mystic Knights" starred:
Lochlann O'Mearain*.......Rohan, the Mystic Knight of Fire
Lisa Dwan.................Princess Deirdre, the Mystic Knight of Air
Vincent Walsh.............Angus, the Mystic Knight of Earth
Justin Pierre.............Prince Ivar, the Mystic Knight of Water
Ben Palmer................Prince Garrett, the Mystic Knight of Forest
Kelly Campbell............Aideen the Fairy
Charlotte Bradley.........Queen Maeve
Peadar Lamb...............King Fin Varra
Mystic Knights aired on FOX television weekday afternoons and Saturday mornings from 1998-1999.
* Lochlann was incorrectly spelled in the credits for a long time. There is no "i" in his first name.
Sources:
Internet Movie Database - http://us.imdb.com/Title?0165588
Kimdee's Mystic Knight's Index - http://www.angelfire.com/or/KimDee/MKindex.html