Plot
Beginning with a tribute to the original story, L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz , the tale begins with three 1990s era characters, Peter, Mary and Kevin with his dog Max, being swept away from Earth to the land of Oz via tornado. There they discover that sinister forces have been at work, and the evil Nome King now rules the land, backed up by his army of rock-dwelling minions. Having become unwilling freedom fighters in a world not their own, they soon play a central role in ridding the once-beautiful Oz of the Nome King’s dark influence.
The trio are first separated in a battle with Nomes meanwhile Mary is saved by the stick figure Jack Pumpkinhead. She then meets the Sawhorse, Amber Ombi (Ombi Ambi's nephew), General Jinjur, Hektor Hammerhead and the Wogglebug: the Freedom Fighters of Oz. Kevin and Peter barely escape from a Kalidah, a creature half tiger and half bear. Many adventures occur before the three Earthlings are reunited. They must face Witch Mombi and her Ladies Auxiliary Brigade, an army of enslaved Winged Monkeys, and giant spiders in a cavern. They must also find a way to defeat the Three Evil Kings of Oz: the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodsman, and the Lion, as well as defeat the Nome King and all his magical devices and save Queen Ozma to return Oz to its former glory.
The three rulers were restored by issue #10. In issue #14, Princess Ozma, who has been under a spell keeping her in a near-vegetative state on the queen's throne next to Ruggedo, is restored and the Wizard found. A new artist took over with issue #16, though Bryan was back with Arrow—he had been drawing the prequel comics. The remainder of the run of Oz climaxes in Dark Oz, though Ruggedo remains as a villain in The Land of Oz.
Dark Oz was optioned for a movie trilogy in 2008. The movie is in development with Pearry Reginald Teo attached to direct.
The Marvelous Land of Oz: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman, commonly shortened to The Land of Oz, published in July 1904, is the second of L. Frank Baum's books set in the Land of Oz, and the sequel to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900). This and the next 34 Oz books of the famous 40 were illustrated by John R. Neill. The book was made into an episode of The Shirley Temple Show in 1960, and into a Canada/Japan co-produced animated series of the same name in 1986. It was also adapted in comic book form by Marvel Comics; once in 1975 in the Marvel Treasury of Oz series, and again in an eight issue series with the first issue being released in November 2009. Plot elements from The Marvelous Land of Oz are included in the 1985 Disney feature film Return to Oz.
Ozma of Oz: A Record of Her Adventures with Dorothy Gale of Kansas, Billina the Yellow Hen, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, the Cowardly Lion and the Hungry Tiger; Besides Other Good People Too Numerous to Mention Faithfully Recorded Herein, published on July 30, 1907, was the official third book of L. Frank Baum's Oz series. It was the first in which Baum was clearly intending a series of Oz books.
The Magic of Oz is the thirteenth Land of Oz book written by L. Frank Baum. Published on June 7, 1919, one month after the author's death, The Magic of Oz relates the unsuccessful attempt of the Munchkin boy Kiki Aru and former Nome King Ruggedo to conquer Oz.
Princess Ozma is a fictional character from the Land of Oz, created by American author L. Frank Baum. She appears in every book of the Oz series except the first, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900).
The Land of Oz is a magical country introduced in the 1900 children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz written by L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow.
Return to Oz is a 1985 dark fantasy film released by Walt Disney Pictures, co-written and directed by Walter Murch. It stars Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh, Piper Laurie, and Fairuza Balk as Dorothy Gale in her first screen role. The film is an unofficial sequel to the 1939 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film The Wizard of Oz, and it is based on L. Frank Baum's early 20th century Oz novels, mainly The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904) and Ozma of Oz (1907). In the plot, an insomniac Dorothy returns to the Land of Oz to find it has been conquered by the wicked Nome King and his accomplice Princess Mombi ; she must restore Oz with her new friends Billina, Tik-Tok, Jack Pumpkinhead, the Gump, and Princess Ozma.
Tik-Tok is a fictional "mechanical man" from the Oz books by American author L. Frank Baum. He has been termed "the prototype robot," and is widely considered to be one of the first robots to appear in modern literature, though the term "Robot" was not used until the 1920s, in the play R.U.R.
Jack Pumpkinhead is a fictional character from the Land of Oz and appears in several of the classic children's series of Oz books by American author L. Frank Baum.
The Nome King is a fictional character created by American author L. Frank Baum. He is introduced in Baum's third Oz book Ozma of Oz (1907). He also appears in many of the continuing sequel Oz novels also written by Baum. Although the character of the Wicked Witch of the West is the most notable and famous Oz villain, it is actually the Nome King who is the most frequent antagonist throughout the entire book series.
Mombi is a fictional character in L. Frank Baum's classic children's series of Oz Books. She is the most significant antagonist in the second Oz book The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904), and is alluded to in other works. Mombi plays a very important role in the fictional history of Oz.
Billina is a fictional character in the classic children's series of Oz books by American author L. Frank Baum. She is introduced in Ozma of Oz (1907).
The Gnome King of Oz (1927) is the twenty-first in the series of Oz books created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the seventh by Ruth Plumly Thompson. Like nineteen of the twenty previous books, it was illustrated by John R. Neill.
Handy Mandy in Oz (1937) is the thirty-first of the Oz books created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the seventeenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill.
General Jinjur is an antagonist in The Marvelous Land of Oz. She is a character in the Oz books by L. Frank Baum and his successors.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, known in Japan as Ozu no Mahōtsukai, is a Japanese anime television series adaptation based on four of the original early 20th century Oz books by L. Frank Baum. In Japan, the series aired on TV Tokyo from 1986 to 1987. It consists of 52 episodes, which explain other parts of the Oz stories, including the events that happened after Dorothy returned home.
Emerald City Confidential is a 2009 computer adventure game conceived by Dave Gilbert, developed by Wadjet Eye Games, and published through PlayFirst. It follows the protagonist Petra, Emerald City's only private eye, as she is approached by a strange woman named Dee Gale. Dee's fiancé is missing, and she is willing to pay Petra above the going rate in order to find him. Lacking any other prospects, Petra agrees. What starts off as a simple missing person case soon takes Petra deep into the seedy underbelly of the Emerald City's criminal underground and beyond. She encounters many characters from the Oz canon and some new characters, learns several magic spells, and uncovers the answer to a dark secret that has haunted Petra all her life.
The Nome Kingdom is a fictional region near the Land of Oz that is ruled by the Nome King. It is near the Land of Ev, Rinkitink, and the unnamed countries where Whimsies, Growleywogs and Phanfasms live. The Nome Kingdom is also known as the Dominions of the Nome King.
Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz is an American animated children's television series loosely based on L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its subsequent books, as well as its 1939 film adaptation. The series debuted on Boomerang SVOD on June 29, 2017. The series was picked up for the second and third seasons. The series ended on July 31, 2020, lasting for three years.
