Unfortunately for me, I ended up stopping with most cartoons by the time this show made it to America. If it had been on while I was a kid, I would have watched this show to death and went back for a second helping. Then the next day, do it all over again.
The only reason I started witching this is because I remembered seeing the title on Netflix years ago, googled it out of curiosity, saw that the reviews were great and checked it out. And I got hooked. This Italian cult classic created by the man behind Winx Club is like a mix of Indiana Jones and Pokemon, centering around lost mythical creatures being stored in amulets and being able to bond with humans. The monster designs are pretty cool, even though most of them are one-track minded and don't always have the variety you'd expect in Pokemon. HOWEVER, there is real strength in the character development. The four main characters are all cool on their own. They learn from both their strengths and their flaws, which makes for some good drama among the kid-friendly action sequences and historical context. I watched Martin Mystery as a kid, and that mystery vibe is there with a new set of genres as opposed to the sci-fi horror comedy MM was: fantasy / treasure hunt adventure / monster battler.
Sure, the American transition has a few minor mistakes, like dubbing issues and even an episode where the English titles and subtitles overlap the original Italian titles and subtitles, but these are minor instances that never get in the way of the storytelling. My only other concern is that Marc Thompson, who delivers a great Dante Vale, also voices Cherit and his voice sounds very annoying at times. I guess that's to be expected from the guy who voiced H'earring in Chaotic. ONE MORE THING: The rhythm and vibe of the theme song is an absolute jam... but the lyrics suck hard.
Despite minor flaws, I seriously recommend this for the whole family. This wholesome show has a lot of information, a very cool genre-balanced atmosphere, typically strong acting most of the time and strong thematic delivery. I really wish I grew up with this.
