Tara Duncan (TV series)

Tara Duncan (also known as Tara Duncan: The Evil Empress in the United States) is a French animated series produced by Moonscoop,[1] based on the Tara Duncan novel series. The show premiered on 27 June 2010 in France on Disney XD, and aired through 19 June 2011 but was cancelled before a second and third season was even considered.

Tara Duncan
Genre	Animated series
Created by	Sophie Audouin-Mamikonian
Starring	Saffron Henderson Kelly Metzger Matt Hill Maryke Hendrikse John Novak Linda Darlow Ross Douglas Jocelyne Loewen Patricia Drake
Composer	Noam Kaniel
Country of origin	France
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	26 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time	23 minutes
Production company	MoonScoop Group
Release
Original network	M6
Original release	27 June 2010 – 19 June 2011

Characters

Main

• Tara Duncan (English dub: Saffron Henderson) is the main character of the series. She's a 17-year-old Spellbinder and the commander of the Alpha Team. She has blue eyes and blond hair with a pale highlight, and her familiar is a pegasus named Gallant. She is very powerful as , according to Sparrow, she could cause a lot of damage with her powers alone.
• Gloria Daaval (English dub: Kelly Metzger) is Tara's best friend and animal-loving teammate on the Alpha Team. She is dating a local Nonspell named Edward. She has brown hair and eyes. Her familiar is a white panther named Sheeba. Her human name is 'Sparrow"
• Caliban "Cal" Dal Salan (English dub: Matt Hill) is the final member of the Alpha Team. He was born to a family of master thieves and outlaws. He owns a video store and is super flirtatious. He has spiky black hair and gray eyes. His familiar is a red fox named Blondin.
• Isabella Duncan is Tara's strict maternal grandmother, who had raised her for seventeen years. She is very passionate about Tara focusing on school and studying her spellbinding, and she has a weird romantic relationship with Tara's literature professor, Mr. Spade.

Recurring

• Master Chem is the leader and assistant to the Alpha and Beta teams. His full name is Chemnashaovirodaintrachivu and he's the guardian of the portal between Earth and Otherworld.
• Manitou Duncan is Tara's maternal great-grandfather who accidentally turned himself into a brown dog permanently.
• Robin M'angil is the commander of the Beta Team. He's a half-elf and likes to use an enchanted bow and arrow along with his magic.
• Fabrice Besois-Giron (English dub: Andrew Francis) is the half-wolf member of the Beta Team. He and Tara refer to each other as brother and sister and he's very close with his team members.
• Fafnir Forgeafeux is the dwarf member of the Beta Team. She's very hotheaded and hates using magic, which leads to her getting into arguments with her teammates often.
• Sandra Leylocke (English dub: Maryke Hendrikse) is a Nonspell that goes to school with Tara. Despite considering themselves enemies, Tara and Sandra spend a lot of time together.
• Livia is a nonspell and Sandra's "best friend" and flunky. She's a petite blonde with big glasses who has a major crush on Cal; unaware of his magical abilities and being from Otherworld.
• Edward is a nonspell that loves horror movies and werewolves. He and Sparrow are dating on-and-off throughout the season.
• The Cryista Brothers are two brown-skinned fraternal twin nonspells at Tara's human school. People often refer to them as "the Twins" instead of by their real names Jeremy and Jordon.
• Henry Delachasse is a Nonspell villain who is a cryptologist bent on capturing some sort of magical creature and revealing their existence to the human world.

Supporting

• Selena Duncan was Tara's late mother, the top spellbinder wife of an unknown man of the mortal world, was Isabella's only child and Manitu's granddaughter. She had met a sudden unfortunate demise when her only child Tara was just an infant. like her daughter, she had shoulder-length blond hair with a beige streak in it. A picture of her is seen in Tara's room, in Episode Two "BFF", with which she asked for guidance as to why she was so mean all of a sudden. According to Serena the Vampire, she was very powerful as she was capable of stopping her from invading Earth many years ago singlehandedly. Tara had tried to ask Master Chem what he knew of her mother, but Sparrow assured her she could another time.

Episodes

No.	Title	French air date	English air date
1	"The Silent Siren"	June 27, 2010	July 2, 2011
The episode starts with Madney's live rehearsal for the concert taking place later that day. On live television, Madney loses her voice, but it becomes clear to the Alpha Team that a spell had been cast. After researching the spell and the missing Semchanach from Otherworld, the Team discovers that a mute siren named Aquaphonis stole Madney's voice. Tara is forced to audition for "Big Star" with a spell that made her voice better (though Tara is offended by this). The manager, impressed, asks her to sign a record label contract. Sandra is very suspicious, as normally Tara's voice is horrible. She begins to get extremely jealous. In the chaos that Sandra creates, Aquaphonis is able to cast a spell and Tara and Cal steal Tara's spell-amplified voice. But unfortunately for her, Henry Delachasse catches her before she can jump back into the ocean. Cal stops Henri, and Aquaphonis uses the distraction to escape into the water. The Alpha Team follows suit, and Cal casts an approprias to grab one of the voices back from Aquaphonis's necklace. To Tara's horror, it is Madney's voice that she has instead. Finally, she manages to grab Aquaphonis and cast the spell to restore their voices. Master Chem gives Aquaphonis and her daughter their own voices, and then takes them back to Otherworld . After finishing the job, Tara and Sparrow go to the Madney Speer concert, and everything is alright. This episode is the first to premiere in France and in the production order, but aired as the thirteenth episode in the United States where "The Volcan Heart" aired as the first.
2	"BFFs"	July 4, 2010	February 19, 2011
Serena the terrible Vampire, and the archenemy of Tara's late mother, has come from OtherWorld and will do whatever it takes to knock Tara off her stride, taking advantage of the young Spellbinder’s naivety in order to take over the Earth… Fortunately, Cal and Sparrow have got her back and Tara herself has not yet had her say although she is quite annoyed with Sandra who is throwing a party and has invited everyone except her.
3	"The Golden Scepter"	July 11, 2010	February 26, 2011
Tara must battle Nelos the harpy, an old friend of Sparrow’s father, who has come to Earth to steal a golden scepter hidden in the Manor. Master Chem has strictly forbidden them from taking the staff out of the Manor under any circumstances, but Tara, Cal and Sparrow find themselves with no other choice but to disobey—and hand it over to the harpy: Nelos has cast a spell on Sparrow that has locked her in her Beast form the night she has a date with Edward!
4	"Gold Fever"	July 18, 2010	March 5, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow are faced with an evil conspiracy cooked up by harpies who are exploiting Master Chem’s weakness for gold to drive him crazy. The Alpha Team must bring Chem back to his senses but Tara already has her hands full trying to talk Isabella into lending her some money so she can enroll in a dance workshop she would give anything to go to.
5	"The De-Horned Unicorn"	July 25, 2010	March 12, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow are up against Serena. This time the Vampire has stolen a unicorn's horn with which she intends to absorb the young Spellbinders' powers. But that’s only the half of it! Henry Delachasse manages to steal the unicorn from Serena! Our three young Spellbinders must simultaneously locate the mythical animal and get rid of Serena, who has absorbed Tara’s powers.
6	"Brothers in Fangs"	August 8, 2010	March 26, 2011
Tara must arrest Lycos, a werewolf that has come to pick up Fabrice, his "brother in fang", to take him to a big werewolf congress on Other World. It just so happens that Fabrice has been captured by Henry Delachasse and they’ve got to get him out of there. Tara will need all the help Cal and Sparrow can give her on this one!
7	"Haute Couture"	August 22, 2010	April 9, 2011
Tara must unmask Serena, who has come to Earth in disguise with an enormous spider that she intends to use to set a trap for our young Spellbinder friends. As for Sparrow, she’s in deep trouble: she has just discovered that Sandra has stolen her diary—our heroes’ secrets might soon be revealed to all!
8	"Master Chem's Honor"	September 5, 2010	April 23, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow want to prove Master Chem’s innocence. He has been accused of fleeing a combat on Earth against a black dragon named Kouzu. Chem’s future is in jeopardy. Meanwhile, Sparrow is troubled, as she believes Edward may have uncovered her secret.
9	"The Mirror of Youth"	September 19, 2010	May 7, 2011
Krislak, a dangerous elf, has come to take the Mirror of Youth that is hidden inside the Manor. While Isabella is trying to stop him from carrying out his plans, the mirror reflects her face and Tara’s grandmother finds herself turned back into a sixteen-year-old teenager! As for Cal, he has sworn he will seduce the famous singer Madney Speer, who is coming to Rosemond for a school dance party.
10	"Disenchanted"	October 10, 2010	May 21, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow try to stop Sandra, who has been possessed by the spirit of Master Chem’s former mentor, an all-powerful but senile dragon by the name of Shoonavarinatalapatoom or Shoo. As if the situation weren’t already complicated enough, Tara and Sandra take part in a contest the lucky winner of which will get to be in Madney Speer’s latest music video.
11	"Mer-Made"	October 24, 2010	June 4, 2011
Tara has been poisoned by Lorelei, a mermaid from OtherWorld, and she is turning into a mermaid herself! Tara and Sparrow must find an antidote or else the young Spellbinder will have to make her home in the water for good! But, unbeknownst to the girls, Lorelei is a childhood friend of Cal's.
12	"Alpha Male"	November 7, 2010	June 18, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow, backed up by Robin from the Beta Team, are faced with an evil Elf who has come to Earth to take revenge against Robin’s father, head of the Secret Service on OtherWorld. Robin’s presence upends Cal completely but he had better overcome his jealousy if he is to come to Tara and Sparrow’s aid in their moment of need.
13	"The Volcan Heart"	November 21, 2010	February 12, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow are up against the werewolf Hypnos, who has "bewitched" Manitou to make him reveal the whereabouts of some special rubies that can be strung together to form a necklace they say can make people fall in love. Could such an object really exist? This is the question Cal has on his mind because today is Valentine’s Day and he plans to take advantage of this romantic occasion to get closer to Tara.
14	"Cyrano of Otherworld"	December 12, 2010	July 16, 2011
Tara must find her English literature professor, who has disappeared without a trace, while Isabella has fallen for the charms a smooth-talking Semchanach! It turns out that the Semchanach is the one holding the professor captive, forcing him to write love poems for him. In the midst of all this, the Manor, delighted to see Isabella in such a playful mood, plays a string of practical jokes on the young spellbinders.
15	"Clairvoyant"	December 26, 2010	July 30, 2011
Claire, a Nonspell, turns up unannounced at the Manor and quickly becomes fast friends with Tara. But when Chem and Isabella discover she has magic powers and decide to send her to OtherWorld against her will, Tara decides to take matters into her own hands… and finds herself mixed up in an unexpected adventure! The title is a play on the extrasensory/psionic ability of clairvoyance
16	"Summer School"	January 9, 2011	August 13, 2011
Tara is at odds with her own grandmother, Isabella, who wants to send her to an advanced spell-casting camp on OtherWorld! Anteos, a "strange" harpy, chooses this precise moment to show up on Earth, putting Master Chem in a very awkward position. Called in by Tara to stand up for her, he finds himself forced to battle Isabella, who has challenged him to a duel.
17	"The Four Parchments"	January 23, 2011	August 27, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow have got their hands full with Serena, who is back again, trying to gain control of the transfer portals. This time around, Fafnir, is the one that will get the young Spellbinders out of trouble as she is the only one who has the power to walk through walls.
18	"Heart of Stone"	February 13, 2011	September 10, 2011
The Manor is not in its normal state: the Living Stone is giving ludicrous responses, the Manor's rooms transform without warning, and a mummy is roaming the halls—all while Isabella and Manitou are away! Tara, Cal and Sparrow have to work out what’s going on... In the process, they find themselves faced with Karlos, a dangerous elf, and his cousins.
19	"Assault on the Manor"	March 13, 2011	September 24, 2011
While Chem and Isabella are away at a conference, Tara and Sparrow invite their Nonspell friends over for a games night but three nosy gate-crashing werewolves show up at the party! Meanwhile, Cal has volunteered to go along to the conference with Isabella hoping to spend some quality time lounging around by the hotel pool.
20	"The Cup of Invincibility"	March 27, 2011	October 8, 2011
Louxos and Kerberos, two fearsome werewolves, turn up on Earth in search of a silver cup that will make them immune to silver! And Henri de Lachasse just happens to have organized a dog contest the first prize of which is the famous cup! Tara, Cal and Sparrow must find a way to enter the contest, and what could be better than entering Manitou!
21	"As If by Magic"	April 10, 2011	October 15, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow are up against Ptenos and Ephesos, two harpies who intend to kidnap a stage magician and his lovely assistant who have been hired to perform at Tara’s end-of-year school gala night. The harpies mistakenly believe the performers are powerful Spellbinders and when the assistant vanishes into thin air, Tara has to stand in for her at the last minute.
22	"Guardian of My Heart"	April 24, 2011	October 22, 2011
Tara, Cal and Sparrow must stop Amrod, a young magic-crystal-collecting elf. This assignment could have been like so many others, except that there is a little surprise in store for Tara: the moment Amrod sets eyes on her, he falls instantly in love, and clearly, he is as surprised by it as she is! As for Cal, he falls head over heels in love with Vahina, one of his customers at the video store.
23	"The Gold and the She-Dragon"	May 8, 2011	November 5, 2011
Master Chem is in love with an adorable dragon named Mel, but when he invites her to spend the weekend with him on Earth, she becomes the number one suspect for a robbery in which gold was stolen from one of Rosemond’s banks. Tara and her team take it upon themselves to prove Master Chem’s innocence to stop him from being relieved of his duties, and to allow him to enjoy a carefree romantic weekend.
24	"Boil, Bubble, Troil, Trouble"	May 22, 2011	November 19, 2011
After battling a mermaid who ended up getting away, Tara and Sparrow break out in boils. Master Chem must call on the Beta Team to catch the mermaid and find out why she came to Earth. Panicking at the idea that Robin and Fabrice are coming to the Manor while they are disfigured, Tara and Sparrow decide to try and heal themselves despite Isabella’s orders to await an OtherWorld healer.
25	"A Familiar Air"	June 5, 2011	December 3, 2011
Things couldn’t get worse for Robin: Scarela, a terrible harpy, has captured his familiar and is using it to torture him: he has come to tell the Alpha Team that they must find Scarela as quickly as they can. But Tara and her friends have no idea that this is all part of an even more devious trap.
26	"The Naughty Little Vampire"	June 19, 2011	December 17, 2011
Master Chem gives the Alpha Team a new assignment: they must watch over the son of the President of the Land of Vampires on OtherWorld and protect him from Serena who is trying to kidnap him. Little Vlad’s stay at the Manor is going to be all action for Tara, Cal and Sparrow as the little guy has one thing on his mind: to become a Semchanach! Meanwhile, Tara has to represent her school in a "street ball" tournament. This leaves the show cancelled after this episode without any explanation as to why no more seasons have been produced to officially complete the series

Broadcast

The show premiered on 12 February 2011 in the United States, and concluded on 10 December 2011.

References

1. Ian Mundell (30 August 2010). "French TV biz keeps animators hopping". Variety. Retrieved 2017-10-08.

External links

• Tara Duncan at IMDb